Author's Note: A normal day in Hazzard is when the Duke boys get run into the pond. Not so much normal when one Duke boys get run into the pond, and can't get out of there.
Big thanks to JordynD for beta work and Gray Wolf for all the help.
Warning: The warning is placed here for Vinsmouse, who wanted a spew warning here, claiming it might be a bad idea to drink while reading the funnier parts. So please keep in mind that drinking any kind of beverage while reading this, might be hazzard'ous to the health of your screen.
Disclaimer: The Duke Boys are not mine, I don't own the Duke boys, nor the General Lee. I promise that once I'm through with them, there will be nothing broken that a trip to Cooter's garage can't fix….
The Days After The Night Before
Chapter 14: The Nature of a Guitar
"Wanna play some checkers?" It would be one way to amuse Bo he supposed.
He was almost surprised when Bo shook his head that he didn't want that.
"We've been playing so much checkers I see a checker board every time I close my eyes." Bo complained.
"What do ya wanna do then?" Luke asked softly, there wasn't all that much for them to do that didn't involve the General.
"How about grab them guitars and go sit outside fer a bit?" Bo suggested hopefully. "Kerry-Marie was singing this new song she had heard for me, an' I promised her I'd see if I could figure out how to play it."
"Sounds good to me." Luke grinned, it was an activity he could agree with. "Dang hot outside though, so if we's gonna sit out there fer some time I'm getting some lemonade for us as well."
"Ya ain't gonna hear me complain." Bo beamed at him. It sounded perfect to him.
Luke chuckled. "Alright, ya get out there, I'll bring the guitars and get some lemonade." He had to make two trips with everything or risk dropping either guitars or lemonade. Bo had taken his seat on the porch swing while Luke sat down on the steps, leaning against the post.
Bo tried a few experimental notes before sighing. "It's out of tune again…."
Luke chuckled, "Bo, it's a guitar, it's in his nature to be out of tune."
"Yeah, I guess, ol' Lukas here always is." Bo patted the wooden casing lovingly.
"Lukas," Luke burst out baffled. "Don't tell me ya call it Lukas."
"Sure do." Bo beamed at him innocently.
"Why?" Luke demanded crossing his arms over his own guitar.
"Cause the more out of key he gets, the more like your singing he sounds." Bo fell out in a giggle, near falling off the porch swing. Normally he would never have dared to say that, but he figured he might as well make use of the fact that Luke would not resort to physical punishment right now.
Luke glared at him. "That's really cute, ya know that?"
"Yeah, that's why I named him that." Bo beamed again. He wasn't gonna tell Luke that there was a completely different reason why the guitar was called Lukas. Because when he was younger Luke would play for him. When Bo got his own guitar he had named it Lukas cause he wanted to learn how to make it sound like Luke's guitar. He just didn't want to let Luke know that, in case he would start to tease him about it.
There was some things he just didn't want to be teased about, the name of his guitar was one. As far as he knew Luke had never named his, so just the fact that it had a name might be enough to make his cousin tease him.
It didn't take him too long to get it in tune either. Both of them were well experienced on how to get an un-tuned guitar back in tune. In fact, he never minded all that much since the routine was so familiar and soothing. It was only annoying the few times you were trying to impress a girl. For some reason a guitar that was out of tune never seemed to do the trick, and they could be far too impatient for a careful tuning.
As soon as both boys were finished they settled down to play. Bo ran through it a few experimental turns to see how it would go like. The first one Luke only listened but then he joined in as they figured it out together. They had used the guitars to impress girls many, many times.
Bring the guitars along on a picnic and you were hard pressed to get anything but success. Daisy would tease them about it, but she enjoyed hearing them play and sing as well.
"So, the next time ya meet her, ya's intending to try an' impress her with that one." Luke asked with a grin.
"Sure do." Bo grinned. "I figured I'd ask her to come over here some evening." She had called quite a few times after she heard about the accident to make sure that Bo was doing okay.
"A date here on the farm." Luke frowned thoughtfully.
"Not exactly, it's weird Luke, she's something halfway in between a girlfriend and a friend." Bo tried to explain it while he absently plucked at the strings.
Luke tilted his head back and laughed at him.
"Luke…"
He stopped laughing when he heard the tone in Bo's voice. The one that meant that taking it any further would be to take it too far. Instead he looked at his younger cousin, seeing the look on his face that nearly made him start laughing again.
"I ain't making fun of ya Bo." He assured him. "But the thought of ya not chasing a girl for long enough to be her friend is a new one."
"That don't mean ya's got to laugh at me." Bo told him in an annoyed voice, and Luke got worried that he had already taken it too far. Some said Bo was too touchy yet you had to keep in mind at the moment that he was still feeling insecure after the accident. He put down his guitar and moved to the porch swing draping an arm over his cousin's shoulders.
Bo gave him a small frown, but then he leaned against Luke to make good of the comfort that his cousin offered. Luke smiled at him chucking his chin. "I am not making fun of ya, ya have my word on that."
Bo looked up at him, when he wanted something Bo had a puppy dog look that could turn the heart of any man. Now, it was a look of such immense trust that it nearly set Luke back apace. He nodded and gave a small smile while Luke gave his shoulders a small squeeze before going back down to his guitar.
He could tell that Bo was back at ease again. Picking up the glass of lemonade between the songs, sipping it and laughing at the jokes they made.
When he started on the supper Jesse could still hear them at it. If he ever wanted to listen to music while he was in the kitchen he could easily turn on the radio, or the kids did have a small collection of records. Daisy more so than the boys, he had just never bothered to. This however was different. Having the boys out on the porch singing and playing while he was preparing the dinner was a true pleasure.
A few times he found that he had forgotten about what he was doing and instead stood and simply listened. Luke usually had a slightly darker voice than Bo, but now you could hardly tell their voices apart. He walked over to the open door and stood there for a few minutes while the stew was simmering on the stove. Looking out at them without them knowing about it. Not spying on them, just so very proud of them.
He was almost sad to break it up, but he really had to. Going out onto the porch he allowed them to finish the song they were playing just then.
"Alright ya two boys, suppers ready." He told them cheerfully.
"Daisy's eating wi' us?" Bo looked up at him.
"She's at work already." Jesse reached out a hand and helped him to his feet while Luke handed him the crutches. Luke brought the empty glasses and pitcher inside with them, but left the guitars where they were.
It didn't matter since they might continue to play after supper, and even if they didn't they wouldn't take any harm from it. He could easily bring them back inside later.
"Smells great Uncle Jesse." Bo had paused at the stove with his nose over the pot on his way to the table.
"An smelling's all ya's gonna do if ya don't sit ya end down at that there table." Jesse told him in a gruff manner as he shooed him away from the stove. "An there ain't gonna be no sneaking while I say the good lords grace either." He just knew that it would get a chuckle from the boy. Bo continued his way around the table and sat down. Balancing the crutches against the table and giving a shrug as they fell down to the floor.
Yet he obediently folded his hands and kept them folded away from the food while Jesse said the grace.
"The two of ya sounded mighty good out there." He told them as he filled their plates for them.
"Thanks Uncle Jesse." Luke took the first plate and passed it on to Bo. "Bo's finally learned how to tune that thing. Did a world of difference."
"Cute." Bo gave him a half glared as he started cutting the bread.
"Well, it kept ya from sounding like someone who stepped on the tail of a cat." Luke went on.
"As opposed to ya' self then." Bo passed out the slices of corn bread.
"I've never sounded like that." Luke objected.
Bo shook his head. "Might be right Luke, think it was closer to the sound of a dying octopus."
"An how'd ya know how that'd sound." Luke wanted to know.
"Well, I've heard ya play, an' that's it." Bo grinned at him, knowing that for once he had come out the victor of their banter.
"Ya had better watch ya mouth Bo." Luke told him. "No one likes a kid that's always getting smart with ya."
Bo shrugged and took up his spoon to start eating his stew. Jesse was wondering if he and his brothers ever went on like that. Most likely they had. They had all loved each other dearly and he could remember quite a few times of friendly banter between them. Yet those two boys seemed to be able to take it to a whole new level.
"Cat or not it don't really matter ta me," he told them. "The way that sounds I wouldn't mind at all if ya took it up again after supper. I'd just as soon listen ta the two of ya as the radio."
Both of them shone up. It might be Daisy who were always trying to write her songs, while the two boys claimed to be far more interested in a career in NASCAR than in music. Yet that was not to say that they didn't like it. Had the three of them worked together and decided to go for it, he didn't doubt that they would be able to succeed. All three of them seemed to think it was a nice enough hobby.
"Ya reckon them guitars have had time ta go out of tune while we were eating?" Bo frowned at the end of the meal. Using a bit of bread to scrape his plate clean.
"They are guitars, of course they had time to get out of tune." Luke informed him. "Didn't we discuss this earlier?"
Bo shook his head. "Nah, we just said it was in their nature to get out of tune, we never said anything about how long it took them."
"Why don't the two of ya git out there and find out." Jesse told them, picking up Bo's crutches from the floor and handing them to him. "I'll take care of the dishes."
"Thanks Uncle Jesse." Bo took them from him and pulled himself up from the table. "We could do it though."
Jesse shook his head, it would be one excuse to be in the kitchen where he could hear them before he took care of the chores out in the barn. "Probably shouldn't sing though Bo, go easier on ya throat."
"Okay Uncle Jesse, I'll leave it to Luke." He smiled at his uncle as he followed his cousin out on the porch again. Once more sitting down on the porch swing and taking up his guitar, noting that it hadn't made any major attempts at getting out of key.
An hour later Luke took the guitar out of Bo's hands as the younger of the two cousins had fallen asleep on the porch swing. He draped a blanket over him and headed down to the barn to give their uncle a hand.
"Bo fell asleep." He smiled gently as he took up a pitchfork to start mucking out Maudine the mule's stall.
"Well, let him sleep fer a bit then, probably just needs a nap." Jesse stated thoughtfully.
"That's what I thought." Luke agreed. "I thought I'd give him half an hour. More than that and I'm afraid he ain't gonna sleep tonight."
Half an hour later he went back up to the house to check on his cousin. Bo had shifted so the blanket had fallen off him and he was now shivering slightly in the colder evening air. Not much, only enough that Luke could notice it. Taking the two guitars back in their room he went back to wake him up.
"Hey buddy, wake up." He shook his shoulder gently.
Bo opened his eyes and looked up at him before rubbing at his eyes with his knuckles. "Did I fall asleep?" He asked sleepily.
"Yeah." Luke nodded. "Time ta get ya inside. What do ya say about a sandwich afore we go ta bed?"
"Sounds great, bed time already?" Bo looked around for the crutches before he saw Luke holding them. He accepted Luke's hand to pull him to his feet.
"Not quite, but we're getting there, an' I sure think a snack would be nice." Luke grinned at him.
Bo followed him inside and pulled the door to the fridge open, looking around to see what they could get to eat. Soon both of them were sitting at the table with a sandwich each.
"Well, if anyone can find anything good to eat in there, he will."
/Please leave a review, the cricket is hungry…..