"What Should We Do With Him?"
A/N: Okay, this is a pretty boring chapter and no other main characters (besides my original ones),other than Shrek (who isn't Shrek right now). Sorry! I just had to get this up before I got to the more interesting part. Don't worry; other characters will be all over the next chapter. You can count on that! Please r&r. Enjoy!
"Who am I?" the man asked in desperation.
The entire Berwick family looked to each other, at a loss for words. They really had not been expecting this, although they probably should have. Considering the fact that the boy was tied up in the middle of nowhere, the family assumed that he was very lucky to even be alive.
The fact that the man had no idea who he was upset Bertha more than anyone else, mostly because she didn't know who he was either. Being the kind of woman she was, she wanted more than anything to be able to tell him what he wanted to hear, and to help him get home.
Frank was upset also, but in a different way than his wife was. He figured that this poor boy must have been the victim of a mugging, kidnapping, or some other sort of foul play. This was the very reason why he kept his family miles away from places where people did things like this.
"You don't know, do you?" the man said in despair. He felt like a baby bird having just been hatched and introduced into the world. His life was literally in the hands of these people, and he had hoped that they would at least know who he was...
"I - I'm sorry, honey," Bertha said, near tears. She didn't even know this boy, and she could already feel her heart going out to him.
Frank looked down at the man and sighed. He didn't know what to do about this. He could either welcome this guy into his home and try to help him start over, or he could try to help him find out who he was. He would have much prefer the latter, but there were a few problems. One was the fact that he didn't even know where to start. The Berwicks did not exactly live close to any other town, village, or kingdom. In fact, it amazed Frank that this boy had gotten all the way out to their farm. Another problem with this idea was the condition this fellow was in. It was highly unlikely that any of this had been an accident, and this boy probably wasn't even meant to have been found.
"Do you remember anything, lad?" Frank ventured.
The man set his eyes and mouth in concentration for a few moments, as if in deep thought. After a while, however, he dropped his shoulders and sighed sadly.
"Nothing," he said, "Nothing at all."
Bertha's expression changed from one of sadness to one of motherly purpose. She kneeled until she was at eye-level with the man.
"It'll be okay, sweetheart," Bertha said gently to the fellow, softly running her hand through his hair, "We'll make sure that it will all be okay."
The man's look of fright and despair was briefly replaced by one of relief and gratitude. He had never met Bertha, or at least he didn't think he had. Either way, he still couldn't help but trust and rely on her as if she were his own mother.
Rising to her feet, Bertha turned to her husband. Grabbing his sleeve, she pulled him to the other side of the road. Their daughters quietly followed. Petey, who had been watching the man with scrutiny, briefly looked to his masters. He debated whether to follow them, or to stay and guard the stranger that had so rudely intruded on his property. He decided on the latter, growling warningly at the intruder once again.
Now that Bertha and Frank had left his side, the man was suddenly aware of Petey's presence. The dog, which seemed to be the size of a small horse, intimidated him. He cowered slightly, attempting to get as far away from the beast as he could, silently praying that the family would come back soon.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the road, the family had finally gotten out of earshot of the fellow.
"Well?" Bertha whispered to her husband, crossing her arms over her chest, "What are we going to do about this?"
"I don't know," Frank sighed, "We should probably see if we can find his family, I guess."
"Oh, I wish we could," Bertha said, troubled, "But you know as well as I that we have little to no chance of finding anyone that would even know him. I mean, there aren't even any villages near here, and even if there were, we still wouldn't have a good chance of finding his family! That is, if he even has one."
"We should take him home, then," Evelyn, who had been uncharacteristically quiet up until now, said, "At least until he gets his memory back, I mean."
Bertha and Bethie nodded in agreement, looking to Frank. Instead of agreeing as they had expected, Frank looked on the ground and scratched his head, in deep thought.
"Frank?" Bertha asked, surprised that her husband was hesitating.
Frank looked up at his wife and smiled.
"Of course we should take him home, honey," Frank said, but then looked worriedly into her eyes, "It's just that...I know how you are, sweetheart," Frank looked to his daughters as well, "I know how all of you women are. I mean, what are you going to do when he finally gets his memory back and leaves?"
"We'll be happy for him!" the three women yelled in unison, "What do you think we'll do, be upset?"
Frank looked at all three of his girls with an expression that silently told them that yes, that is exactly what would happen. Frank then turned towards his wife.
"Honey, you're such a wonderful mother, and you have a tendency of wanting to be a wonderful mother to...everybody," Frank laughed softly, "But if you don't think you'll get attached to the lad, then by all means, we'll take him home."
"Good Lord, Frank, you make him sound as if he's a lost puppy," Bertha said with a groan, "I mean, I'm not that selfish to want to keep him with us when he finally learns who he really is. I'm just saying that we should take care of him until that time comes."
"Yeah, I know," Frank stated, draping an arm around his wife's shoulders.
After saying this, Frank, with his arm now placed across his wife's shoulders, led her to the other side of the road. Bethie and Evelyn ran after them, annoyed that they kept getting ignored. When the family got to the other side of the path, Frank pulled away from his wife. It was now his turn to be the one to kneel at eye-level with the man.
Frank wordlessly started to untie the fellow's binds, earning himself a confused stare from the boy. After succeeding in untying the ropes that had bound the man's hands and feet together, Frank figured that he should try to communicate with him.
"Can you stand, boy?" Frank asked. Instead of responding, the man attempted to lift himself from the ground, having to grab onto the nearest tree to keep his balance. Frank had to grab Petey, who was now barking wildly with anger, by his collar to keep him from biting the poor boy's leg.
Considering how awkward the man seemed to be standing, it seemed obvious that he would most likely not be able to walk, at least for a while. As he let go of the tree, the fellow suddenly lost his balance and began to fall towards the ground. Every member of the Berwick family began to come to his aid, attempting to stop his fall. After he hit the ground, however, the family stopped and stood where they were when the man shook his head and began to rise again.
"No…I can do this," the fellow said, "I just need to—." He was cut short when he suddenly fell once again. He got back up just as quickly as he had fallen, surprising the Berwick family with his doggedness. It took him at least seven tries before the man finally stood on his own, although he was still quite awkward. The whole scene reminded Bertha of a two year old attempting to stand for the first time, for this was what the man looked like at the moment.
Although the fellow had succeeded in standing on his own, there was still the matter of walking that still needed to be dealt with. If he had been graceless before, he was downright ungainly in his attempt to walk. Very slowly, and very uncomfortably, he made his way towards the road where the cart was. To the amazement of the family, he made it all the way without falling, although there were many times where he had come dangerously close.
"See…I told…you I could…do it," the man said, out of breath. It amazed him that something that had seemed so simple could be so hard and tiring. However, it made him feel good to have accomplished his great feat, and he contently collapsed onto the cart, trying to catch his breath. Meanwhile, Frank and Bertha gazed from each other, to the man, and back. It seemed that this fellow was not as scared and helpless as he had first seemed.
The Berwick family walked towards the man, who was lying comfortably in the cart, but still staring back at them with inquiry. He seemed to be silently asking what the family was going to do with him.
"Well, what do you want to do?" Frank asked the man, thinking it best to ask him rather than assume that what Bertha wanted was what he really wanted. The man seemed to think for a minute about his answer, until he finally found the right words to express what it was he truly coveted.
"I just want to go home," he said.