Chapter 5: Silence
Bingo and Bluey were happily chattering back and forth in the back seat, Russell sitting in between.
"You're gonna love Calypso, Russell. She's the best!" Bluey said, smiling.
"Yeah! She's really nice and she's really smart too. Maybe even smarter than mum and dad!" Bingo added.
"Hey!" Chilli smirked in the front seat.
"Well, smarter than dad, at least." Bingo amended as the girls laughed.
Russell looked out the window. It was a bit of a drive to school, being outside of Brisbane, and he'd never been somewhere quite so rural. As the car slowed down to make the final turn he got a glimpse of the schoolhouse and the grounds.
That's our school? He signed.
"Yeah!" Bluey smiled.
Where's the soccer field and playground? Russell had only ever been to one school, and was trying to gauge his new place of learning to the former building he'd attended.
"Well, our playground is sorta all over." Bingo replied. "And we don't have a pitch, but some of the boys play in this one open spot not too far from the treehouse."
Russell nodded. Chilli pulled into the drop-off line. There were two cars ahead of them as Chilli unlocked the doors and put the car in park. "Alright girls, Russell, we're here!" She smiled. Russell looked down nervously at his book bag and jumper before looking up.
I… um… I can't go. I feel sick. Russell fibbed, putting on a frown and placing a hand on his forehead. I feel feverish and, um, like I'm gonna throw up.
"Girls, why don't you give Russell and I a moment to talk?" Chilli suggested, looking at her daughters.
"Okay mum, love you!" Bingo said.
"Bye mum, love you too!" Bluey said, closing the door.
"Russ, do you really feel sick?" She asked.
Russell looked down, blushing. No, not really.
Chilli smiled, "I take it you're nervous about starting at a new school?"
He nodded. What if they don't like me? What if they think I'm weird because… He stopped.
"Because you use sign language?"
He nodded.
Chilli sighed, "Remember, we love you exactly how you are, and so will others. If they don't, then you don't have to put up with it. If any of the other kids give you a hard time find Calypso and tell her. She knows how to sign and can help you."
She does?
"Course she does! Calypso's known it longer than you've been alive. You're not the first student with different communication needs that she's taught. Glasshouse is a school for all children, and that includes those with different means of communicating." Chilli smiled, happy to have found the school for her daughters. "I know it's a bit scary, but I promise that it's going to be okay."
Russ nodded. Thanks. He smiled, I love you. He paused, Mum.
A tear came to Chilli's eye. I love you too, Russell.
Russell smiled as he left the car and waved, Chilli pulled the 4x4 away and Russell turned to see his sisters waiting. He'd figured they'd go on without him, but they had stayed by the gate. He turned to see that there weren't any other parents dropping off and checked his watch. He looked up at Bluey and Bingo. Are we late? Where is everyone?
"No, we're on time. Come on." Bluey said, a mischievous smirk on her lips as she led the way up the path. Both girls were silent as they walked, quiet glances shot back at their younger brother, which was an immediate red flag for Russell. In all the time that he'd known them the girls were only ever silent when they were planning something. And generally their plans involved him.
When he got to the door there's no one standing there. So, um, what do we do? Russell asked, looking at the two.
"This!" Bluey said, pushing the door open. After a moment of stunned silence Russell managed to take in the fact that around twenty kids were standing in a semicircle with a woman in the middle She must be Calypso Russell thought.
Calypso stepped forward. Hello Russell, my name is Calypso, and I'm going to be your teacher. We're so glad to have you here at Glasshouse. She turned to the class, Let's all introduce ourselves to our new friend!
A red kelpie boy stepped forward first. Hello, my name is Rusty. I like playing army and riding my motorbike.
Very good! Calypso signed before gesturing for the next student to go.
A pink poodle stepped forward. Hello, I'm Coco! I have eight brothers and sisters.
Wow! Russell signed back.
Each student stepped forward and introduced themselves, saying their names and something brief about themselves. It ended with a brown and white dog stepping forward.
Hi, my name is J-A-K-C. "Oh, no, wait." He muttered. J-A-C-K. He nodded. I like Bluey and army.
Bluey immediately blushed.
"Oh, no, wait, um. I mean I like playing with Bluey and army." Jack stuttered. "I mean, I like Bluey too, but um… Oh." He blushed slightly as he looked at his feet. A titter of laughter came from some of the other children before Calypso raised an eyebrow and silenced it.
"Welcome again Russell. We've been practicing some sign language in preparation of your arrival, but many of us are still learning. We promise we'll try our best."
Thank you… Russell wiped his eyes, just now realizing that he was lightly crying.
"Russell, are you okay?" Bingo whispered to her brother.
Yeah. I'm happy. Really happy. He signed back, quickly wiping his eyes.
"Why don't we go ahead and start our morning play time?" Calypso said, looking at the children, all of whom immediately smiled. "Russell, go ahead and take some time to explore. We have morning play until lunch, then we do lessons in the afternoon."
Thank you Miss Calypso.
"Just Calypso, dear." She smiled.
***PT***
After playing briefly with his sisters Russell bid them farewell for the moment and started picking his way through the tall grass, following a path. He didn't know where the path went, nor how long it was, but he figured he had plenty of time before lunch and would make the most of his time exploring. No sense in just staying near the building. Bluey had told him that there was a wooden fence around the very outskirts of the schoolyard, but that most of the kids didn't go that far out-that there wasn't much to do at the edges. He was caught in his thoughts as he walked when suddenly he heard a loud voice mimicking an explosion.
"KABOOM!"
He turned to see two of the boys from earlier, Rusty and Jack running through the tall grass looking behind them. He tried to get out of the way, but failed as the three ended up in a heap staring up at the bright blue sky above.
"Oh. Sorry." Jack apologized, helping Russell back up.
It's okay. You didn't mean it. Russell signed, waving his hands in front of him afterward before offering a small smile.
"I think it's cool you talk that way." Rusty said, looking at Russell's hands as he signed. "My dad taught me some of the hand signals they use in the army, but you get to use your hands all the time to talk. You can have entire conversations without anyone eavesdropping on you!"
Russell hadn't thought of that, but he supposed it was an advantage.
"Do you wanna play army with us?" Jack asked, turning to Rusty, "Can he Rusty?"
"Course he can, private." Rusty smiled, "Do you wanna play with us Russell?"
Russell shrugged. Sure, why not?
"Was that a yes? Sorry, I don't those signs yet…" Rusty admitted.
Russell nodded.
"Excellent!" Rusty smiled, clapping him on the back. After the pat he turned from Russell and quickly rooted through his backpack, eventually producing a bandana. "I don't have any other hats, but do you want a bandana? Some of the guys in my dad's unit wear them when they're on patrol."
It was a camouflage bandana in the modern pattern, unlike Rusty or Jack's more traditional patterns. It was thin, but appeared durable as Russell held it in his hand. Russell nodded, smiling as he tied it around his forehead like a sweatband.
"Awesome! Let's go!" Jack said, about to spring off.
"Private, remember the mission…" Rusty chided.
"Um, we have to return to base and relay information about the enemy's location." Jack stated.
"Good job, now come on, we need to get back to base!"
The three boys trekked across the high grass, dodging 'enemy fire' and hiding to make sure they safely returned to base, the treehouse. Rusty clambered up first, then gave the all clear, allowing Russell and Jack to join him.
"Private Russell, I think we have the perfect job for you." He smiled, revealing a small spoon and a wooden table.
Russell tilted his head.
"It's a telegraph machine! We send our signals by encrypted telegraph!" Jack explained.
Russell had heard of telegraphs before, his one teacher had talked about them in science class earlier that year as an important invention. He nodded. How do I use it?
"Here's a sheet for Morse code." Rusty whispered, pulling out a worn piece of paper. "These longer marks are dashes and the shorter ones are dots. When you make a dash it sounds like this." He tapped the spoon against a table and let it echo. "And dots are like this." He made a quicker jab that didn't echo.
"You put all the different bits together and it makes letters and words! Rusty and I both know the code and can do it. Sometimes we tap secret messages on the tables at lunch…" Jack grinned, bouncing on his heels.
Russell's ears perked up. He took the spoon and started tapping on the table, using the spoon to make the noises that matched the letters on the sheet. He was pretty sure he made a mistake or two, but after a moment he'd managed to make a message.
W-A-S-T/S/C-A-N/U-I-E/T-H-S-I/T-O/T-A-L-K
"Yeah, but you flipped S and I." Rusty replied.
Russell was grinning from ear to ear as he turned and lunged at the boys, pulling them into a tight hug. Rusty's eyes flew wide as he tensed. Jack just happily embraced his new friend. He quickly released and used his claws to tap on the wall of the treehouse.
T-H-I-S/I-S/A-W-E-S-O-M-E Russell tapped. I-T-S/L-I-K-E/S-I-G-N-I-N-G/B-U-T/D-I-F-F-E-R-E-N-T
"Yeah, and only we know it, so it's top secret." Jack said.
Russell couldn't help but smile even wider. He had a new secret way of communicating. It was like signing, but with sound, and if someone else tried to figure it out they'd have to know the same code.
"Ready to send our intel, Private Russell?"
Y-E-S/S-I-R He tapped, putting on a serious face as he returned to the table.
"Excellent. Ready relay beacon."
Jack held up an umbrella and aimed it at the window.
"Alright men, let's let them know what we gathered…"
***PT***
After lunch were lessons, and to Russell's surprise all the students worked in the same room. Most of the kids were older than Russell, though there were a few the same age as him. Calypso already had his test information from his last school, so he was in groups with kids the same level, not just the same age. He was happy to discover he had math with Jack and reading with Rusty, and when they weren't working with Calypso at the table they could be together at center time.
The boys tapped another conversation in Morse code, Bluey and Bingo trying to figure out what they were saying.
"Come on, please…" Bingo plead.
Russell shook his head no as he continued tapping on the table.
"Russell, no fair! We want to talk too." Bluey pouted.
We will, but not right now. Russell replied.
Bluey sighed, knowing that it was unlikely that he would relent. If there was one thing that she'd learned about her new little brother it was that he was determined. If he didn't want to tell, she wasn't going to find out. At least, not without some additional persuasion…
The day eventually came to an end and the boys stood by the door, talking, tapping, and signing interchangeably.
"Hey, do you want to come to my house this weekend? I just got a skateboard and my dad says he's gonna let me practice on the back patio." Jack said. It had been a reward for his hard work in school the last few months and he was looking forward to learning how to use his new 'cooler than a bike' means of transportation.
"Sure. I'll see if my mum will let me." Rusty replied.
Russell nodded in agreement. A moment later a friendly beep was heard.
"Oh, that's my dad." Jack said, turning to look at the grey car. "Hey, um, if Bluey wants she can come too." Jack said, before amending. "Oh, and, um, Bingo too." He blushed slightly, "Bye!" He quickly ran down the path, stopping to wave a final time before getting in the waiting car.
Bye! Russ signed, then waved.
"He totally has the hots for your sister." Rusty smirked as soon as their friend had gotten in his car.
Russ stuck his tongue out. GROSS!
Rusty shrugged. A blue sedan was next, "That's my mum. See ya tomorrow Russ." He saluted Russell as he ran toward his car.
Bye Rusty! He saluted back.
***PT***
"So, how was your first day at your new school?" Bandit asked, cutting up his salmon as he sat at the dinner table.
E-X-C-E-L-L-E-N-T Russ tapped, grinning as his parents looked confused at him. He silently laughed as he smiled, looking forward to seeing his friends tomorrow.
***Author's Note***
Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! In case any of you were wondering, Morse Code actually isn't that hard to learn. Once you've learned the letters and numbers it can be something that is a quick means of communication with another individual who knows it. I learned it back for Signaling Merit Badge (along with semaphore, an equally outdated, but arguably useful means of communicating), and immediately thought of Jack and Rusty using it to send messages. Given Russ' natural tendency toward non-verbal communication it was a natural fit to have him as part of the group. I also think their personalities mesh well, with Rusty as the serious, Jack the cinnamon roll, and Russ as the straight man. In any case, if you liked this please comment, and if you have criticisms, please let me know what I should address. Have a great one!