A/N: This story begins after Season 7/Episode 16, Enos and Daisy's Wedding. It was written in answer to a challenge from WENN9366 to write an Enos/Daisy story.
All the Difference
By KayCee1951
Chapter One: Roads
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by..."
Robert Frost
Saturday Evening, February 2, 1985
Daisy stuck her hand into the soapy water, pulled out the last supper plate, and stared idly out the window, swirling the sponge on the surface over and over and over.
"You're gonna scrub them flowers right off the plate if you keep that up," Bo snickered over her shoulder.
Daisy said nothing but gave him an elbow gently in his midsection instead, then flicked a handful of soap at him. Bo ducked just in time.
"Hah! Missed!" he said triumphantly.
"Bo." Luke peeked his head around the corner. "Why are you wastin' time pesterin' Daisy? The girls are waitin' for us at the Boar's Nest."
"You two are hopeless," Daisy scolded. "You don't even have the decency to pick those girls up for Saturday night dates?"
It wasn't like Daisy had ever been that close to her almost bridesmaids. But seriously? They deserved better than this.
"For your information," Luke chided, "they had stuff to do after, well…they had things to do and asked us to meet um at the Boar's Nest instead of pickin' um up."
"Yeah, an' we offered," Bo said.
Four hours had passed since Daisy and Enos didn't get hitched. At supper, Bo and Luke acted as if they'd been the ones to 'dodge the bullet' even if Boss had threatened to make them all pay for the wedding preparations. Of course, Enos wouldn't have any of it and offered to pay all of the cost himself even if it took him till the end of time. That was only because Enos was…well, Enos. However, in Bo and Luke's minds, it was worth every penny, and they insisted on sharing the cost. She hadn't protested – that would have just egged them on. She had put on the same happy-go-lucky face that everyone expected, but the day had taken more out of her than she would ever admit to Bo or Luke. She was weary-worn and not much up to arguing with her cousins the pros and cons of NOT marrying Enos Strate.
Daisy finished drying the last of the utensils just as the boys sped out of the drive. Now that the likelihood of playing the same old broken record had left in a cloud of orange dust, she joined Jesse on the front porch. The sun was well below the trees and would dip below the horizon in about ten minutes. The clouds were lit with brilliant hot pinks and blazing tangerines that cast a warm glow over the yard. Saturday would turn into Sunday in less than six hours, and Daisy still hadn't packed up her Aunt Lavinia's wedding dress.
She was happy to be left with only her Uncle Jesse for company tonight. At least, he wasn't humming Beer Barrel Polka at the supper table like the boys, or while they were helping to clean up, or while getting ready for their meaningless dates. She was both grateful and disappointed that he didn't have any sage words of wisdom for her. She could have used some right about then. But she would have to explain her general forlornness and she wasn't sure why it had set in herself, let alone be able to explain it to her uncle.
Finally able to read his paper, Jesse simply remarked on the fact that there would be six more weeks of winter to look forward to.
In her room upstairs, Daisy began to pack the wedding dress she'd worn for barely an hour. Probably not unusual for most brides, but then, most brides change out of their wedding gowns and into their goin'-away outfits – after they're married – because they are married.
The dress lay draped, with unfulfilled promise, over the white brocade pillow on her bed. Leaning on the pineapple finial of the footboard, she stared at the gown for some time. It was fully dark outside, with no moon. The soft light from the lamp on her nightstand made the lace seem more delicate. She sat on the edge of the bed and sighed. 'Better to rip off the band-aid all at once.'
Reaching her fingers into the tiny pocket in the heart of the bodice, she felt it. Tied there with a hank of blue ribbon was the ring that matched the one Enos was supposed to put on her finger. There had been no question for either of them on the choice. They had perused several trays on Friday afternoon, but time was of the essence, and as soon as Mr. Caulder brought out that particular black velvet lined tray, Enos had said at once, "Those." The set would, consequently, have been her choice as well - so she'd had no reservations about her agreement.
She hadn't seen Enos since the wedding that didn't happen. He'd left the Boar's Nest, where the guests were chowing down on Lulu's wedding buffet, with Jesse and the boys to take back their fancy suits. Then he went to the clinic to get some relief for the hives. He'd looked so miserable and uncomfortable when they left. She called the boarding house to check on him about an hour before supper, but he wasn't there. When she tracked down Cletus, he told her Enos had gone to the farm to visit his folks. Judy and Frank weren't at the Boar's Nest when she walked through in her wedding dress – no doubt absent because they still didn't consider Daisy as wife material – at least not for their nephew. They must be even happier than Bo and Luke right now.
Slowly untying the ribbon that bound the gold and silver band to the dress, she put it back into the ring box. She'd only found the tiny pocket by accident. Uncle Jesse hadn't mentioned it, and Aunt Lavinia hadn't been there to tell her about it. Before her aunt passed away, they'd shared only a few secrets.
From the window of her room, a million stars could be seen in the clear winter sky. She watched them twinkle and wished for a shooting star. With the wedding dress carefully folded into the box and the veil just as lovingly added after it, a finality came with closing the lid – a dropped stitch, an unraveling thread...things lost.
[…da da dum pa-dum-pa-dum…da da dum pa-dum-pa-dum, youuuuuu….]
Damnit!
2:30 in the morning and Daisy couldn't get the tune out of her head. If her brain could just remember all the words, she might get some peace. But the only part that kept thrumming over and over and over for the past hour was the same damned notes. Now she had a whale of a headache.
Reaching over to open the drawer of the nightstand, she swore under her breath a word she would never utter around her uncle. Everything else was in that blankety-blank drawer except the aspirin. Still a moonless night, the hallway to the bathroom was dark, and she stubbed her toe on the linen closet about halfway there—another opportunity to swear silently. Today was starting out just like yesterday had. At this rate, her entire left foot would be black and blue by the time they left for church. At least the pain had driven the musical phrase from her mind. Now she was just wide awake at 3:00 am. Too much time to think. She just wanted to sleep and not have to think.
The house was so quiet, she could hear herself breathing and her soft footfalls as she padded lightly back to her room. At least her eyes had adjusted to the dark, so she was able to avoid the big heavy linen cabinet 'that had been in the same place for as long as she could remember for crying out loud.'
She shivered. Now, on top of everything else, she was cold. Crawling back under the covers, she spotted the outline of a gray-blue frock hanging on the wardrobe. It was the one with lace and ruffles and tiny pink roses that she had worn Saturday. Her wedding day. The one that covered her knees, her arms down to her wrists, and the midriff, which dipped in a narrow V below her cleavage in the front. In her sleep-deprived brain, she mused, 'Wholesome, yet sexy.'
With all the concern she'd had about properly packing the wedding gown back in its box, she must have forgotten to put the blue dress back in the wardrobe. It sent her on a journey through yesterday.
Saturday Morning, February 2, 1985
When she appeared in the kitchen to get a cup of coffee, Bo had been the first to voice his opinion, as usual. "Ya' know, Daisy, it might not be so bad."
"What might not be so bad?"
"Marryin' Enos."
"And what's so bad about marryin' Enos?"
"Well, for one thing, you don't love him."
"I told you. I do love him."
"No," Luke interrupted, "You said you have a 'genuine affection' for him. Like we said Friday, ain't the same thing. And that stuff about learnin' to love somebody after you get married. That's what people did back when they didn't have options. Like in the old days when men ordered brides outta the Sears and Roebuck catalog."
"Yeah, Daisy," Bo chimed in, "You got options."
"You two don't understand anything. And I thought you said it ain't gonna be so bad marryin' Enos, Bo."
"Oh, I mean you can get one of them annulments. As long as you don't––"
"What are you two talkin' about? When I marry Enos, it's gonna be for better or worse, for richer or poorer 'til death do us part."
"You mean, you'd go through with the ceremony and the wedding night and everyth––" Bo was shocked.
And Daisy was beside herself. She put her fists on her hips and gave them a warning stare. "Look. There's gonna be a weddin' today. If ya'll can't get your head around this and be there for me and Enos, then just don't bother showin' up at all. I'll make some excuse to my fiancee why his best friends refused to stand up with him."
Climbing back up the stairs, she stopped at the top step to listen in on the conversation still going on in the kitchen, even though they were trying to keep their voices low.
"Oh, that was real tactful." (That was Luke.)
"Well, it needed to be said, and it didn't look like you were gonna say anything." (Bo.)
(Luke) "I was tryin' to ease into it, not go in with both guns blazin'. Now she's gonna dig in like a badger. The more we tell her she shouldn't do somethin', the more she's gonna wanna do it just to show us we're not the boss of her. And then, what's that gonna get us?"
"A cousin-in-law we love like abrother, but end up resentin' cause-"
"Exactly."
Daisy had grabbed the wedding dress and her shoebox from the bed and was back downstairs, headed for the door when she heard Uncle Jesse voice. "What's all the ruckus about? It ain't even time for milkin' yet. And where's Daisy?"
Letting the front door snap shut behind her, she didn't hear Bo's or Luke's answer.
On the drive into Hazzard, she tried to quell vexations she shouldn't have to deal with on her wedding day.
-000-
The place where they were all renting their wedding duds from, except for her wedding gown, was part of the dry-cleaning shop, something not much in demand nowadays except for cleaning chenille bedspreads and leisure suits, both of which had gone out of style.
She was supposed to meet Patsy and Cindy, her spur of the moment bridesmaids, there. They weren't her best friends, and younger than Daisy, but would do in a pinch. This wedding had to go on whether it was the way she would have wanted it to happen or not. Neither she nor Enos had a choice, so she had told herself to 'put her big girl panties on and just get over it.' She wasn't letting Enos go...to jail...for something he didn't do. Not if it was in her power to prevent it, and that was the end of it.
Why was everybody so dead set against it, anyway? It's not like she was marrying an ax murderer or a wife-beater or a drunk. She was marrying Enos Strate, the most honest, caring, kindest, and gentlest soul that ever walked the earth.
"Hey, Daisy. You okay?" It was Cindy, the girl Luke was sort-of dating.
"Yeah, fine. You and Patsy picked out your dresses yet? Did they have anything in yellow?"
"Sorry, Daisy," Patsy said, "All they had in our sizes at the last minute was light pink. But I think they're kind of pretty, don't you?" She held up the dress for Daisy to see.
"It's real pretty," she said, without a lot of enthusiasm. Those big girl panties were beginning to pinch a bit. "They should go with the flowers Lulu picked out. She said we would just go with white rose bouquets, 'cause they'll match anything."
"Then, we all better get on over to the beauty parlor," Cindy reminded them. "Silvy's waitin'. She's openin' up on a Saturday 'specially for us. Said she wouldn't miss doin' your hair for this weddin' unless she fell down a well or somethin'."
Patsy snapped her fingers in front of Daisy, since she seemed to be staring out into space. "Earth to Daisy? You sure you wanna go through with this, hon?"
Snapping back, Daisy declared, "Of course, I'm sure. Now let's go get gorgeous."
She also wanted to be gone before Bo, Luke, and Uncle Jesse showed up to collect their tuxes. She knew that Enos had picked his up last night. Admiring the suit of black tails with a gray vest on the headless mannequin in the window, a fleeting image flashed in her mind of how handsome Enos was going to look in it.
-000-
It was about 11:30 am when Daisy, Patsy, and Cindy showed up at the Boar's Nest. Lulu caught her on the way to Boss's office and asked if they could talk a little before she got dressed for the ceremony.
"Sure Lulu, I'll just make sure Aunt Lavinia's dress gets hung up proper, and then I'll be right back out."
"Oh, that dress takes me back. I remember Lavinia wearin' it like it was yesterday. She looked absolutely radiant standin' next to Jesse. Just makes my heart cry that she can't be here to see this day. She wanted to you know. So very much." Lulu was starting to tear up and reached for her hanky.
"I know Lulu, I wish she was here too. Maybe she could help…"
"Help with what, sweetie? If there's somethin' botherin' you or you got somethin' you want to talk about, I'm not your dear departed aunt, and I'd never try to fill her shoes, but I'll do whatever I can.""
"I know, Lulu. And I appreciate it, I truly do. But it's not somethin'…I just wish she was here, that's all."
"Well, I'm sure she's here in spirit, darlin'."
"I'm sure she is. But I have to go get dressed now, so I'll see you after the ceremony." Lulu started to turn but Daisy stopped her. "And Lulu, thank you so much for all you've done, with the wedding, gettin' everything put together and all. I can't thank you enough, and I know Enos feels the same way."
"Well, don't you worry about it, sweet girl." She started getting weepy again. "You just go get ready while I go and have a good cry."
Daisy hugged her tightly and ran off to the dressing room before she got teary-eyed herself and made her mascara run.
-000-
Before she could even think about changing, Uncle Jesse knocked on the door and asked if he could come in.
"Of course, Uncle Jesse. I'm still decent." She was still in her blue-gray dress.
He'd barely been able to tell her about Enos leaving the ring at the boarding house in his other pants before the Deputy Attorney General showed up, followed by Enos, Rosco, and Boss Hogg. He accused them of committing fraud by getting married so she couldn't be forced to testify against Enos and demanded, based on an anonymous tip, that Boss issue a warrant to search Enos's room for the stolen money.
And that's when Enos called off the wedding because he thought "maybe the reason you wanted to marry up with me was like he said, to save me from goin' to jail. Well, maybe it's true and maybe it ain't. But folks might think that way."*
And after everything she'd done to convince him otherwise.
He was then arrested and locked up when the DAG, Boss, and Rosco found the money those crooks had planted in his room.
She went down to the cell and asked him for the second time to marry her through the bars that separated them. "Enos. Let's get married. Right here. Right now." But he refused. "I'm not gonna ruin your life and that's all there is to it."*
That man was impossible, and she told him so before storming up to the Sheriff's office in frustration. Uncle Jesse, witness to the whole thing, had followed close behind her.
She plopped into Enos's chair and laid her head on his desk, mumbling to herself about how Enos was the most stubborn man she ever met and how he'd rather rot in jail, or worse than marry her. She wasn't making any sense, and she knew it. But damn it all anyway – she was mad.
So mad, she didn't pay any attention to the fact that Rosco, Boss, and the DAG were in the room. They passed the next twenty-five minutes in a standoff, Daisy daring the three of them to speak to her unless it was an apology. Daisy could be scary when she put her mind to the task.
Then, Lulu arrived to find out what the delay was. "Everybody's waitin' at the Boar's Nest. And all that food's gonna go to waste if we don't start the ceremony soon."
"Well, lambikins, we just better go on back over there and make sure those vittles are still fit to eat before the weddin' guests try um."
"J. D. I warned you about castin' aspersions on my cookin'."
"Of course I wouldn't do that. But you said yourself it's gonna go to waste. And it don't look like the ceremony's gonna start soon, or at all, Ahem. So we better just go over there and let them guests know the weddin's been canceled."
"Canceled. What do you mean canceled? Because Enos left the ring in his other pants? So did you J.D."
"I know, sugar lump, but this weddin's gonna be canceled on accounta' the groom's downstairs behind bars."
"Behind bars! J.D. What are you talkin' about?"
"Welllll––" Boss started to explain but was interrupted when Bo and Luke burst through the door with the stolen money and the real crooks hogtied.
Luke declared, "You can let Enos out now, Rosco. We got the guys who really stole that money right here."
She was back in her bed under the covers now, at 4:00 am, still wondering about why her Saturday frock was hanging on the wardrobe instead of in it. But she spotted something else in the dimness. The dress box containing Aunt Lavinia's gown was still on the chair in the corner. But…she'd returned it to Uncle Jesse last night. She had gone downstairs and put it into his hands, thanking him for offering such a precious treasure to her with the promise she would wear it for real someday. Was she that out of it last night that she'd imagined doing it? Had she been dreaming?
Heaving a deep sigh, she closed her eyes and tried to think of something else, something constructive – like ways to cure hives.
The soft wrapping on her door and Uncle Jesse's voice woke her. 'Lord have mercy. Had she overslept?' The clock on the nightstand read 8:36. It was Sunday. They wouldn't need to leave for church until 11:00.
Struggling to focus her sleep crusted, bloodshot eyes, she cracked open her bedroom door and asked, "Uncle Jesse? Is anything wrong?"
She couldn't imagine a scenario where her uncle, or cousins for that matter, would wake her before 9:30 on a Sunday morning. Especially this particular Sunday morning.
"Depends, Daisy. With everything you got to do today, we figured you'd be up and at um by milkin' time."
"Why would I––?"
"We…me and Bo and Luke…we thought maybe you was havin' second thoughts about goin' through with this."
"Goin' through with what – goin' to church? Uncle Jesse, you're not makin' any sense."
Her uncle knitted his eyebrows and his whiskers into a worried frown. "Bo! Luke! I think ya'll should git up here."
From downstairs, Bo yelled up, "Daisy change her mind?"
"Stop askin' questions and git on up here."
"Uncle Jesse," Daisy said, now more anxious than annoyed at being woken up early. "Tell me right now what's goin' on. You're startin' to scare me."
References:
* Direct quotes from Season 7, Episode 16 - "Enos and Daisy's Wedding"
