The storm was a cold one, and the two fronts collided directly above Cape Suzzette. The rain didn't just fall, it sheeted down, in solid curtains, and the wind conspired to insure that even covered sidewalks were no protection from the icy deluge. People got off the street, and even drivers decided that this was the time to stay indoors, and let the worst of the storm pass. Only those who had no choice were out in the rain…including one bear cub in a cheery yellow slicker.
The eight year old walked home through the rain. Molly Cunningham knew she should have waited for mom…but she also knew that mom was really busy. The November shipping rush was the time that H4H made some of its most profitable runs. Mom didn't need to have to come and get her because the bus had broken down.
Besides, the bear cub thought, mom was too worried about her polio. That was over…almost two years ago.
"She thinks I'm going to break if she drops me." Molly grumped. The bearess immediately felt bad about that. Mom had cried, on and off, for months later, especially when Molly had a hard time at the rehabilitation center. But it wasn't like she was the worst off. What about Jereem, with his leg that never seemed to get better? The child shook her head at that. And Jereem always seemed to be running into things and getting bruises…even his mom was clumsy like that. It was sad too—it always seemed to happen when their dad was home. Molly shrugged, and looked down the long streets to the waterfront.
That was a long way. Further than she'd ever walked even before she got sick. The cub paused, looked back up at the school, its lights still on, and then set her face and looked back down.
No. It was just a little rain, and it was just a little walk. She'd run when Covington had chased her, and this wouldn't be half the work. Molly ignored the warning twinge from her legs, and started marching on.
Then it really started raining. The icy droplets whipped up into her face, ran down the inner side of the hood and sent icy trails down her back. Her legs started aching. Molly bit her lip and refused to give in. She would not be the first one to say uncle. Besides, Doctor Gosslin had always said exercise was important.
Of course, the bear cub conveniently forgot his other comment. "Within reason".
***
"Baloo? Balooo!" Becky called, waking up the sleeping bear.
"Oh Becker's why'd you go and do that…I was dreaming about one of Louie's Triple fudge-"
"I know Baloo, they could hear your stomach growling up in Khan Towers." Becky said. "Where is Molly? The bus-"
"Probably got held up by the storm." Baloo said. "That's why Kit's late too." Becky nodded uneasily and went back to her work, peering out at the curtains of rain.
"Baloo…. Can you and Kit do that delivery for the Patagonia Prancing Pony Celebration?" She asked. Baloo took a drink of soda and frowned.
"Sure, Beckers…if the weather breaks like the forecaster said it would." He brightened. "Hey, that gives time for Louie's!" Now Becky frowned, and it had nothing to do with her schedules.
"Baloo…I saw the doctor's note."
"Aw Becker's, they just worry…they're not happy unless they find something wrong." Becky put her paperwork down and looked at him.
"You're not 18 anymore Baloo." Becky said, in a forcing reasonableness into her voice.
"Becker's I'm fine." Baloo said, protesting.
"That's not what the doctor said." Becky said. Noting his frown, she forced reasonableness into her voice. "Baloo, you also need to think about Kit." Baloo shook his head and chuckled.
"Don't be a worry wart, Beckers', I'll be fine." Becky sighed inwardly.
***
Molly leaned against the wall, shivering. It had only been five miles, but now she could barely see five feet. The rain had started thundering down, the odd flash of lightning and bellow of thunder giving counterpoint to the hiss of the raindrops hitting the asphalt. The odd passing car had splashed her in the freezing water, and now her legs…they throbbed in agony. Worse, they resisted her commands, barely moving and threatening to give out at any minute, trembling with the strain of standing up. Molly punched the wall in anger. She liked playing more than any other girl in class, so why did she get something that made it a torment. The eight year old gave a brief sniffle as she remembered how easy it had been before she'd gotten sick, and how hard it was now. She still tripped and fell flat on her face when she didn't remember to watch and think about what she was doing. Maybe she should go to the drug store she'd just passed and call mom.
"No." Molly said. She was better than she had been, and she was not going to let everybody see that she was a quitter. She hunched over, trying to conquer the shivering that ran through her icy, soaked body, and started moving on, far slower than she had.
***
Kit leaned against the bus window and looked out at the rainy street. The cub didn't mind water, but right now he was happy to watch it from a dry bus. Kit smiled. It was a Friday, he'd passed all his tests. (Even Ms. Thompson had said he had improved), and they'd be making deliveries, with a stop at Louie's, if he knew Papa Bear. The rest of the Jungle Aces were scattered through the bus, each one waiting with varying degrees of joy or trepidation for the end of the ride, depending on the test scores of the day. The Jungle Aces would be meeting that Saturday night, rain permitting…and the fact that the it was a long weekend made it even better.
In fact, there was nothing between him and a good weekend! Nothing except for a familiar figure in a cheery yellow slicker that had evidently just tripped and fallen on the side of the road that is. Kit blinked and leapt up.
"Mr. Thorkdon!" He shouted. The driver, an elephant turned around and started to tell Kit to sit down, but Kit overrode him. "Pull over, quick! That's Molly!"
The elephant turned saw what Kit was talking about and pulled to the side of the street. Kit was the responsible one, he reminded himself. Not that he didn't have…youthful energy, but Thorkdon trusted Kit.
"What's she doing there, Cloudkicker?" He asked, "She's soaked."
"I don't know…she was supposed to take the bus like me." Thorkdon slapped his head.
"That's right, the elementary school bus broke down—I guess she decided to walk it out."
"In this?" Kit said, hurrying to the door. Behind him, two seniors looked at each other and nodded. The male panther gallantly helped his girlfriend to Kit's seat, abandoning their seat directly under one of the heating vents.
***
Molly had made it another half block, and than suddenly the pavement had come up and hit her in the face. The bear cub struggled to her feet, gasped, and swayed. It felt like she was walking barefoot on broken glass.
"No." She said, fighting a hitch in her voice, "I'm not quitting." That phrase had almost become a mantra over the last two years. She struggled to take another step and started to feel herself topple again, right into a puddle…
When all of a sudden a pair of strong hands caught her and kept her from falling. Molly gave a tiny squeak of surprise and looked up at Kit's concerned face.
"Molly…what's happening? Why didn't you call Ms. Cunningham?" Kit asked. Becky would never have let her walk in this weather.
"It was just a little storm. I can walk that far." Molly said, a catch betraying her voice. Kit looked at her and realized that she could barely stand.
"Your legs are hurting?" Kit asked.
"No! I'm just a little tired!" The cub snapped and then gave an explosive sneeze.
"Sure they aren't." Kit said, "C'mon, let's not keep the bus waiting." Molly looked at the bus, and frowned, her face turning red.
What?, she wants to walk the rest of the way…oh. Kit thought, after all that walking, her legs were probably locked up tighter than a safe…but to be carried into a bus full of high school kids… yeah, he understood. He also knew what to do. Kit grabbed her by her backpack straps, and raised his voice so everyone could hear it.
"Gee, Molly, what are they giving you to carry home? Lead bricks?" As he said that, he pulled up on the backpack, incidentally taking most of the weight off her legs. "I'll help you with this—I don't want it falling into the wet." With that, and a few judicious moves, Kit helped Molly into the bus, with nobody the wiser that he was actually doing most of the walking. Seeing the empty front seats, he nodded at the seniors gratefully.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it." The girl replied. Mr. Thorkdon started the bus up again, and when he caught Kit's eye, gave a nod of approval. Thorkdon hadn't been fooled for a second. Kit managed to get the shivering Molly into the seat and pulled off the cheery yellow slicker hat, revealing her soaked hair from where the wind had blown the rain up and under it.
"Wow, she's soaked." Ernie said. He handed Kit his jacket. "Here, take this."
"Ernie, don't you-"
"Nah, my place is just a few feet from the bus stop and I have another jacket at home." Kit nodded, looking at Molly, now shivering uncontrollably even in the heated bus. He wrapped the jacket around the smaller cub.
"Thanks Ernie."
"Don't worry." Ernie said, as he and S.R. both shared a worried look. The Jungle Aces were among the few who knew all about Molly and her illness. "She'll be OK?" Ernie said in a lower voice.
"Sure." Kit said with a confidence he didn't completely share. "Just a little longer walk than she thought it was, right Molly?" An explosive sneeze answered him.
Mr. Thorkdon actually drove down to Higher for Hire, letting Kit and Molly off close to the entrance. Molly this time refused Kit's help, walking forward, pain evident in every step. Kit hovered over her, but didn't try to stop her, although he did open the door for her.
"OH Good, Kit, I-Molly!" Rebecca came hustling over, "You're soaked! What happened, was the bus late, why didn't you call, why are you here with Kit?" The eight year old looked up and started to walk forward, when her legs gave out again, Rebecca grabbing her just in time to save her from a fall. Becky saw her daughter's eyes squeezed shut against the incipient tears.
"Kit, what happened?" Baloo asked.
"Molly tried to walk to here from the school, Baloo." Kit said, looking worried. Becky heard that and looked down at Molly even as she was pulling off the slicker, revealing the only slightly-less-wet coveralls on underneath.
"Molly Elizabeth, what were you thinking?" Becky said. "In this weather? You'll be lucky if you don't catch a terrible cold…and how are your legs?"
"They're fine mommy." Molly said, just before a sway made the lie obvious. Kit felt he had to chime in, although he hated it, made him feel like a snitch.
"She'd fallen on the side of the road when I saw her, Ms. Cunningham." He paused, "She couldn't make it into the bus on her own."
"Oh fine, are they?" Becky said, dropping down on one knee and lightly touching Molly's legs, feeling the knotted muscles and trembling strain in them. Without waiting for an answer she picked Molly up and put her back in Baloo's large easy chair.
"Baloo? Could you go get the salts and the spare clothes? I have to…talk, with my daughter." Baloo and Kit took the hint and left, the bear turning up the heat on the way out. Molly looked pleadingly at them as they left, but then the door closed, sounding like a judges gavel.
"Well?" Rebecca said to her daughter. "What do you have to say for yourself, Molly Elizabeth Cunningham." She paused then continued, "I cannot believe you did that—even on a perfectly clear day you wouldn't walk all that way, and today of all days," She took a deep breath, "You'll be lucky if you don't catch a cold that will last the next month, and-"
"I'm…I'm sorry mommy." Molly said, now with more than a hint of a hitch in her voice. Rebecca looked at her daughter, and saw tears beginning to mix with the water from the rain. She sighed, and got up, sitting besides Molly. (any chair fit for Baloo could definitely seat two normal people), and pulled her to her.
"Than why did you do it, sweetie?" Becky asked, "I would have come and gotten you, or Baloo, or Uncle Wildcat." She smiled, "And don't say I was too busy…I'm never too busy for you."
"I…" Molly didn't speak for a moment, "I just wanted to do it myself." She said, staring at the floor. The quivering in her body was no longer from the cold. "I wanted to be able to do it myself." Rebecca pulled her daughter to her, holding her tight, feeling her trying to stifle the tears.
"Oh baby… I know you wanted too." Becky said, "But you never did that even before you… got sick."
"I was only six then." Molly's muffled reply came. "I tried, Mommy, I really tried… my legs hurt, but I kept going…and then I fell over."
"I know sweetie, I know." Becky said, "Just be glad Kit saw you."
"He pretended that my back pack was heavy, so he had to hold it up." The eight year old said, "So nobody saw that I couldn't walk." The cub paused, and continued, honestly, "But I couldn't." She paused, "I wonder if I'll ever be able to walk like I used to."
"Honey, I hadn't told you yet, but tomorrow we're going to visit Dr. Gosslin for your check up. How about if we ask him." Rebecca said.
"He's nice." Molly said, before being interrupted by an explosive sneeze. "He doesn't talk to me like I'm a little kid." She paused, "But I wish I could just get better… Everyone used to want me on their team, but now I always get picked last for games." Rebecca winced. Teachers had commented on her daughter's abilities, and how other children liked to play with her, before the Polio, damn it. Molly continued. "If I just keep exercising, like the doctors told me, I'll have to get better, won't I Mommy?" Rebecca smoothed Molly's hair back.
"Sweetie, you have to pay attention to everything they say. Remember that Dr. Gosslin also said you had to take things in moderation?"
"That was two years ago—forever! I don't want to be moderation, I want to win!" Molly said. Rebecca smiled. That was Molly alright…and it sounded like some of her sorrow was dissipating into determination.
"Molly…" Becky could now confess what had been her deepest fear two years ago. "I didn't know if you would ever be able to walk, or run, two years ago. You're doing so wonderfully well I can't even really describe it…as long as you don't try to walk five miles in a downpour." There was a sudden clatter from the door.
"I got it Beckers!" Baloo said, coming through the door, a pan of steaming water in his hands and some towels.
"Thanks Baloo." Rebecca said. Molly twitched looking at the steaming water, the smell of Epsom salts rising from it. Kit and Baloo could see the child visibly preparing herself. They glanced at each other
"Baloo, I have some homework upstairs." Kit said, "Could you give me a hand?" Baloo nodded, trudging up after Kit.
Becky waited until the two were gone, removing any witnesses, before she started massaging responsiveness back into Molly's legs. Molly gasped, as the flood of tingling, pins and needles feelings started, and grew into a fiery torment. Becky bit her lip. This had to be done, or Molly would be practically unable to walk in the morning. One particularly sensitive muscle caused Molly to cry out, the sound unwillingly forced out from her clenched teeth. Becky looked to see Molly trying to keep her face set, tears freely falling from her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Molly." Rebecca said, feeling her own eyes tear up. If there was ever a way to take the pain upon herself- but there wasn't.
"It's… okay Mommy…" Molly said, another whimper forcing its way past her throat. "I won't be a big baby."
"Oh Molly, you're not." Rebecca said, "I know it hurts…and if you want to cry, go ahead. You won't be any less my brave little girl." She continued, kissing Molly on the forehead. "Everyone cries…it's how we get the pain out to face tomorrow." Rebecca continued.
At least right now, Molly can cry. Becky thought. Kit and Baloo had helped with her therapy, but it was plain that Molly would rather gargle ground glass than be seen crying in front of her big brother and Baloo…and the times when she hadn't been able to keep from doing so, the humiliation, however unwarranted, had made things doubly devastating. Kit and Baloo had quickly developed a sixth sense for when they could help her, or when only Rebecca could. Rebecca…or Wildcat, since the mechanic had an incredible way with children.
Becky continued the massage, as gently as she could, occasionally smoothing Molly's hair back as the child started to cry, still resisting, the sobs unwillingly forced out of her throat. Becky kept reminding herself that it did no good for Molly to see her mother burst into tears.
Finally, it was done, and Molly stood up. Too fast for Rebecca's taste, but she wasn't' about to say anything, not after what Molly had just been through. The eight year old walked around the room, carefully, concentrating on every step, then nodded.
"I'm better now, Mommy." Another sneeze interrupted her statement, and she swayed, more from exhaustion now, Becky judged.
"Well," Becky said, "I think we'd better get ready and go to bed…Would you like to stay here tonight?" Molly's eyes brightened at that. Becky smiled. That was all the answer she needed. Equally importantly, Rebecca did not fancy trying to negotiate the streets in this rain, especially when it was supposed to be clear tomorrow.
Ten minutes later, Molly was napping on the couch. As much as she resisted, Rebecca expected that the cub would be sleeping most of the afternoon and night. That walk had taken a tremendous amount of energy out of her.
Baloo peeked down and than walked quietly down the stairs, the big bears light tread belaying his bulk.
"Pigtails is resting? Good." He said. "Pretty bad this time?" Rebecca rubbed her eyes and nodded.
"Yes… but I understand why she did it. Molly thinks that if she pushes herself far enough, hard enough, she can force everything back the way it was." Kit was now joining them and the teenager spoke up.
"Miss Cunningham…Molly's probably stronger than most of the other kids in her class." He shrugged, "she probably exercises more than any of them, boy or girl."
"'An she's determined." Baloo said, "Shortstuff doesn't give up."
"I know." Rebecca said. "I know… but I asked Dr. Gosslin to tell her everything tomorrow…and I hope that I was right." Baloo and Kit both looked at her, both now very concerned.
"Is there something we don't' know about?" Baloo asked. Becky looked up and shook her head.
"Oh no… its just that, well, over the last six months, Molly's rate of improvement has really slowed up… Dr. Gosslin thinks we might be seeing a plateau." Kit blinked.
"How long?" The teenager asked, as he and Baloo shared a look. Rebecca smiled inwardly. Both Baloo and Kit had been incredibly helpful over the last two years, along with Wildcat. In fact, not once had Becky been forced to cancel a therapy appointment for Molly due to unexpected late arrivals by her flight crew—if anything, Baloo was there ahead of time.
And there were the times Baloo had taken over for Becky, especially after- She shook her head. No reason to be woolgathering now. Baloo and Kit wanted an answer.
"He doesn't' know." Becky said. "Dr. Gosslin doesn't think this is the end of her improvement, but he does believe we might have to wait a little while….I just don't know how Molly's going to handle it."
"And he's going to tell her?" Becky nodded.
"She deserves to know." She sighed, "Baloo, Kit, if this was just a matter of a month or so, I wouldn't…but Molly will realize she's not getting improving at the same rate, so I want her to hear it from a doctor, instead of figuring it out on her own—at least he can tell her that this is a plateau, not the end." The two others nodded.
"That makes sense, Miss Cunningham." Kit said, "Molly gets really angry if she thinks someone's been lying to her." Baloo nodded, but smiled.
"Becker's I think you're worrying too much— Pigtails knows it's a long road, 'an she gets frustrated some times. But she hasn't given up yet, has she?"
"Oh, Lord no." Becky said, gesturing to the raincoat hanging on the jacket peg.
"Well, let's not borrow trouble." The gray bear said.
Later, after dinner, Rebecca tucked Molly into bed, in this case the couch, while she would sleep on a cot that Baloo had set up for her. Molly barely twitched, and Becky relaxed into sleep, as the lights went off upstairs and downstairs alike.
Later, Molly opened her eyes. The room was dark and quiet, with only the breathing of her mother breaking the light sound of the rain pattering on the roof. The cub got up, swung her legs down, and stood.
"I'm not giving up." Molly said softly. The cub started walking, from one side of the room to the other, silently padding back, and forth, back and forth. Molly's expression was set—Mommy had forgotten the night time exercises, but she wouldn't. She kept going, until she felt the warning twinge, and than slowed up, moving carefully.
Put out one leg, brace it, put her weight on it, make certain it would hold the weight, then swing out her other leg and repeat the process. As the walk continued, the process most people took for granted required more and more conscious effort and concentration. Finally, Molly stopped. The cub was good with math—her teachers had given her a gold star! She had kept track and she'd walked at least 400 yards. Molly stood in the silent room for a second, than nodded in evident satisfaction, before crawling back into her impromptu bed.
Unnoticed by the cub, Becky watched her get back in bed, and pull the covers up to her chin. Rebecca had woken the moment her daughter had touched the floor, and had watched over her as she performed her lonely march.
It was David, Rebecca thought. She had been the loud one, she knew. In fact, some of their friends had joked about "poor David", when they were married. But David had possessed reservoirs of strength that few other did. Becky wondered if she would have been able to endure what her daughter had…but she had no doubts that David would have endured it…and triumphed.
Oh David, My Love, I miss you so much. She said in her mind, I miss your strength, your love… She paused, And I so wish you could see our daughter now. We always knew she was so beautiful…but now you can see how she's grown up so brave. I love you, my husband… I always will, wherever you are… Rebecca felt sleep come upon her, and this time, satisfied she let it take her.