Author's Note: This is a story I wrote about the Dukes and their first years at the farm. I tried to keep it with them from the point where they got to the farm, and carry on throughout a couple of years. It's a growing and learning experience for all of them. There are also notes at the end of each chapter, a credit of sorts to a father from his son.

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….

Learning To Love…

Chapter 9: …..Fishing

Having played hard with Cooter all day Luke fell asleep early, and he was woken up early the next morning to. Jesse had decided he should try and do something with the boy, and as far as he was concerned, there wasn't anything better to do with a young boy than to take him fishing.

Martha packed them some sandwiches while Luke sat eating his breakfast. Jesse was outside doing the chores and Luke was trying not to yawn. Then Jesse came back inside to pick up Luke and the sandwiches, promising Martha that he would bring the dinner home with them. Luke hugged her goodbye and then he followed his uncle outside and climbed into the pickup.

"Have ya ever been fishing before Luke?" Jesse asked him, not sure if Luke had gotten the chance to go with his father or not.

"I don't think so," Luke told him.

"Well, there ain't all that much too it. Ya bait the hook, an' then ya wait fer the fish to bite, it's really rather relaxing."

"Okay," Luke pulled his legs up, he tried not to show it, but he was still tired.

"It's gonna be fun Luke," Jesse reached over and patted his hair lovingly. He had fixed the boy up a fishing pole of his own. After all, the boy needed one, and not only for this time. He had cut down a slender willow sapling and cut it to a suitable length for a five year old. Tied on a few feet of fishing line and threaded on a cork for a float before he also fitted it with a sinker and a hook. Maybe it was a rather crude fishing pole, but it was a perfectly well working one, and about all Luke needed. The boy would grow and then he would need a bigger one.

The night before after Luke went to bed Jesse had been digging up worms that he kept in a jar in the back of the pickup. He had no idea how Luke would like it, there was a kid in town that apparently didn't like fishing and refused to bait the hooks with the worms. Something Jesse found strange since as far as he knew, every boy loved to go fishing.

Pulling up at his favorite fishing hole he took the poles from the back while Luke got out of the pickup and walked over to the shore. He peered down into the water to see if he could see any fish.

"Be careful Luke," Jesse warned him. "The water there is a good three or four feet right by the shore, that's what makes it so perfect for fishing."

"How deep is that?" Luke asked looking up at him.

"About so," Jesse measured it up on the side of the pickup and Luke went over standing there and looking up at his Uncle's hand.

"Oh," he said quietly as he saw his Uncle's hand over his head.

"Yeah, so I want ya to stay close to me, an' be careful so that ya don't fall in," Jesse cautioned him.

"Okay," Luke nodded, he didn't really want to fall in, and knowing he wouldn't be able to reach the bottom if he did made Luke quite content to stay on the shore. Wanting to look down into the water though, he found a safe way. Lying down on his stomach and sticking out his head he peered down into the water. He could see some rocks, but he didn't see any fish.

"Come here Luke," Jesse called out as he stood with two poles in one hand and the jar in the other. Luke got back to his feet and ran over to him, taking the smaller pole.

"Now, lets sit down over here," Jesse picked a spot on the bank and stat down on it, Luke sitting down beside him. "Put yer pole beside ya, an' mind the hook, it's mighty sharp," Jesse instructed him softly.

Luke did as he was told, carefully putting his pole on the ground.

"Now, ya need to bait the hook with the worms, an' they's mighty slippery there Luke, so ya be careful." Jesse selected a worm before he baited his hook, slowly, taking care to show Luke how to do it. Nodding that he had understood Luke took a worm out of the tin and picked up his own hook. Holding it between thumb and forefinger he tried to get the wriggling worm on the hook, his tongue showing at the corner of his mouth as he concentrated on it. When he finally managed Jesse patted him on the back encouragingly.

"That's good Luke, really good, now, all ya do is throw the hook in, an' keep a hold of that there pole, when the float sinks, or ya start feeling something tugging on it, then ya real it in." He was proud of the boy, he remembered helping one of his younger brothers with the worm until the boy was ten.

Luke wasn't having the best fisherman luck thought, Jesse had reeled in two trouts while he was still waiting for something to bite, keeping his eyes on the float the whole time. Then when there finally was a bite, all the fish did was get away with his worm. Luke had a small pout as he looked at his bare hook.

"They do that at times, them fishes," Jesse told him softly. "Ya just bait up with a new worm an' get back at it."

Luke nodded, but this time try as he might, he couldn't get the worm on the hook, and turning his head to offer to help him Jesse had to laugh at what he saw. Luke had given up and tied a knot on the worm, around the hook. He had never seen any other boy do that before, but Luke had a look of stubborn satisfaction on his face as he threw the hook back into the water.

That boy was something special Jesse decided as he went back to his own pole, the worm might wriggle lose, but you had to admire the boys ingenuity. Tying a knot on a worm. It seemed to work as well, because Luke gave a startled gasp as there was a tug on his line. Raising the pole high in the air he held out a hand to grab the line, sliding his hand down it and catching hold of a fairly small trout, his first catch.

Jesse was learning something else about his young nephew, a stubborn streak of independence. As Jesse offered to help him get the hook out of the fish Luke shook his head, he wanted to do it himself. He grabbed the fish with one hand and started working the hook out with the other. Realizing that Luke wouldn't let him kill the fish either, and since the fish was so small, Jesse explained to him that if he put his thumb in the trout's mouth, and his fingers at the nape of his neck, he could brake his neck by pulling his head back. Though he warned him never to try it with the bigger fishes, praying Luke would never get the idea to try it with a pike.

Luke just gave a small nod and did as his Uncle told him. It wasn't all that easy, and the fish was slippery, but he did it, and he grinned proudly at his uncle.

"That's really good Luke, really good." Jesse told him proudly and Luke grinned back.

Luke baited his hook again, and was able to catch one more trout, but that one was far too big for him to handle on his own. Jesse had to both kill it and get it off the hook for him. Then he had to admit that he was getting bored with fishing. Jesse could understand that, even bored the boy was trying to behave himself.

"Luke, if ya want ya can run off an' play some," he told him softly. "Just stay close an' mind that ya don't fall in."

"Okay," Luke put his pole neatly on the ground before he took off exploring. It was fun to look around and he had to try really hard not to go too far away. He found some nice pretty stones, and some sticks that he used to build a fort. Then after he had been crawling through a shrubbery he realized something else, he was getting very hungry. Hoping that it was time to eat soon he went back to his uncle.

Jesse was still fishing, and there was two more trouts in the bucket when Luke looked.

"Did ya get some of that 'run' out of yer legs?" Jesse chuckled as he saw his nephew peer into the bucket.

"Yeah," Luke nodded. "But I'm hungry."

Jesse looked up at the sun, "Well, it's a little early, but I reckon we could eat if ya want too."

Luke frowned looking up at the sky, "How can ya tell?"

"Well, the sun moves over the sky ya know Luke, an' it takes him the same time everyday, so if ya look where he is, ya can tell what time of the day it is," Jesse explained.

"I can't," Luke frowned. "It makes my eyes hurt."

"Come son, lets eat an' I'll explain it to you." Jesse put his own pole up on the ground and went to the pickup for the food and for a blanket that he spread out on the ground. Giving the boy a sandwich he started explaining to Luke just how to use the sun to know what time of the day it was. Luke understood, but he couldn't quite manage it.

Once they had eaten Luke figured he should fish some more, after all he wouldn't be helping none if all he did was run away and play. Taking off his boots he sat down on the shore again and dangled his feet in the water as he waited for the fish to bite at his hook.

He got one more catch but that one too was so big Jesse had to take care of it for him.

"I reckon we's got enough now," Jesse stated as he looked into the bucket. It was probably time to head back. Luke was starting to look decidedly sleepy where he sat with his pole. He didn't know what would happen first, a big trout pulling the pole out of his hands, or Luke falling in as he fell asleep, but it was probably time to get the boy back home to the farm and put him down for a nap.

Gathering everything up he put the bucket with the fish on the floor in the pickup an' told Luke to keep an eye on it. As they approached the farm Jesse also told him to dig the first one he had caught out of the bucket so that he could show it to his aunt.

Martha looked up as they came in, Jesse with the bucket and Luke with his fish in his hand.

"Did you catch that one Luke?" She asked smiling.

"Yeah, an' I got him off the hook, an' I killed him myself," Luke told her proudly holding it up for inspection.

"It's a really nice one, I'm gonna make him ready so ya can have him for dinner," she promised him.

"I'm gonna put him down for a nap," Jesse told her as he gave her the bucket with the rest of the fish. "He was near falling asleep back there."

"Ya do that Jesse, sounds to me like he's earned a nice good rest," Martha smiled.

In credit of the man who gave me the top half of a fishing pole, and took me out fishing with him and his friend, and gave me chocolate to eat while they drank their beer.

TBC

Please review, the Cricket is hungry….