The weather at the POW camp was starting the slow march to colder temperatures. B.A. frowned a bit as he looked up at the overcast sky. Oh, it wasn't cold by Chicago standards, but it sure seemed like they spend half their time sweating and the other half freezing. What he wouldn't give to be back home - warm and smelling what his Momma would be cooking up for Thanksgiving.
The meager offerings on his plate were a sharp contrast to his thoughts. A mound of rice and scraps from the guards' mess hall. His musings were interrupted by a sound and the humming drew his attention over to Murdock. What was that fool up to now?
The tune Murdock was humming was 'Over the River and Through the Woods' and his attention was fully centered on his own plate. He appeared to be shaping his mound of rice into a rough (very rough) shape of a roast turkey. Hannibal and Face weren't too far away - neither of them had started eating and seemed amused by Murdock's fussing.
Shaking his head slightly, B.A. moved next to Hannibal and sat down.
"Some days I don't know how much more o' that fool's foolishness I can take, Colonel."
Hannibal gave Murdock a tired smile, wishing for probably the hundredth time that he had a cigar.
"We all have our own ways of coping with being here, B.A. - there are plenty worse."
Next to Hannibal, Face smiled a bit himself before leaning back, closing his eyes, and starting to hum along with Murdock. Hearing him, B.A. gave a huff that sounded almost like a repressed chuckle and settled back himself.
None of them noticed that one of their fellow prisoners was watching Murdock with a scowl. He moved quietly enough that he didn't draw attention to himself as he moved next to Murdock. Sensing someone standing over him, Murdock lifted his head to look at who was there just in time for the man to slap his plate out of his hands.
"Shut the hell up with that humming!"
It almost seemed slow motion as everyone watched the metal plate take a bounce that sent Murdock's food into the air. It traveled between the bars to land on the dirt path and, within seconds, one of the camp strays had gobbled the rice-turkey down. The man started laughing, but his laugh was cut short when he felt his feet being lifted off the floor after an irate B.A. grabbed a handful of his uniform.
"You think it's funny you just fed another man's rations for the day to s dog? Think it'd be funnier if I squeezed your worthless butt through the bars and let the dogs have some stringy meat to go with that rice?"
A firm tug on the leg of his pants drew B.A.'s attention back down to Murdock. With a weary smile, the pilot indicated the struggling man (who was turning a little blue by that time).
"What've you got against the dogs that you'd try to poison them, Big Guy?"
Snorting, B.A. managed to give Murdock a grin in return.
"You're right for once, fool. That would be animal cruelty."
He shifted his gaze back to the other man, lowering him enough so that his feet touched the ground again. His glare was hot and his words told the man that B.A. was deadly serious.
"I catch you within a yard of the Captain again? The dogs will have to watch out for themselves."
Releasing his grip suddenly followed by a shove saw the man landing on his rear. When he caught his breath enough to look around, it was easy to see that B.A. was far from the only man disgusted by what he'd done to Murdock. Not even daring to grumble loudly enough to be overheard, he slunk off into a corner and stayed there. Everyone else gave him a wide berth.
B.A. offered Murdock a hand up.
"You know, I haven't eaten my own food yet. Think you could manage another turkey? Sure couldn't hurt the taste."
Murdock brightened.
"Sure! I could do that!"
Hannibal and Face exchanged a glance, then Face spoke up as well.
"Why don't you add ours to it and make a bigger turkey? I want one of the drumsticks though."
All of the other POWs in their enclosure came over and added in a spoon of their own rations to Murdock's plate - not much but collectively, it added up to enough to replace what Murdock has lost,'
Then, his three teammates sat back and watched as Murdock enthusiastically tackled the task as B.A. kept a protective eye on the admittedly oddest member of their odd group. One thing this had proven to Hannibal was that their group had tightened into a stronger unit. B.A. might pick on Murdock, but nobody else was going to while the big man was around.
A bit later as Murdock asked Face to 'carve' the new and improved rice-turkey, a smile formed on Hannibal's face. Between his willpower, Face's craftiness, B.A.'s strength, and Murdock's resilience? They were going to make it through.
Now if only he had a cigar.