Mature Content: No
With: W&W
Location: The Ranch and Environs
Time of Day: Morning
Finally!
Even though it had only been a few weeks, to Weedy it seemed like it had been months since the dance, when the boys had first schemed get together out at Wyatt's dad's farm, a place far more interesting than anything in town, at least to Weedy's thinking. He'd pestered Miss Addy for days, until the arrangements had finally been made and the date set.
And Addy had even offered to let him ride her mare, Arabesque, so he had a horse while he was out there. Of course, she insisted on escorting him as far as the road to the farm, since she had a delivery to make 'out that way', and she'd meet him when it was time to come home. Still, he had a horse, and a friend, and no school...how good could it get?!
The farm was only a few minutes from the crossroads, and when it came into sight, Weedy gigged Arabesque into a gallop -- may as well make a grand entrance -- then pulled the mare to a sliding stop in front of the house.
"Wyatt! I'm here!"
Storyteller / Shared NPC
From inside Wyatt heard the horse's approach before Weedy even let a yell out. He had been sitting at the kitchen table working on his arithmetic problems. He hated numbers. Clara helped him with it sometimes but his big sister had this annoying habit of saying "you need to do this yourself too, I am not about to do it all for you". And yet some folks thought she was such a good sister. She had her faults.
Dropping his pencil he scrambled to the door then opened it. Sure enough, it was Weedy and on a fine horse too! Wyatt stepped out, he was barefooted but didn't pay that no mind.
"Hey, so you made it!" he stated the obvious.
"How long can you stay for?" he absolutely needed to know this important detail.
"Hey!" Grinning, Weedy slid off the mare then loosened her cinch and tied her to the rail with the lead rope on her halter. "Two days, Miz Addy says. And she let me use her horse, and she rides double, if you don't have one to ride."
He was really excited, it hadn't been often that he'd had a chance to just play with a kid his own age, and have the whole of the outdoors, a horse, a pond, a stream, plenty of trees...it was a boy's dream!
"I have my stuff, Miz Addy made me bring my toothbrush, and she sent some bread for your pa." He grinned. "Don't worry, she didn't make it, she got it from the Lickskillet!"
Storyteller / Shared NPC
"Two whole days!" Wyatt's eyes went wide, "That's great!"
As for the horse, Wyatt was a bit jealous as he admitted, "Pa won't let me ride ours yet. He said maybe with my next birthday."
"I have my stuff, Miz Addy made me bring my toothbrush, and she sent some bread for your pa." He grinned. "Don't worry, she didn't make it, she got it from the Lickskillet!"
Wyatt chuckled, "That bad huh? Then who knows, my sister probably baked it. She works there you know?"
"Anyhow, we are gonna have a great time. Why don't you get that bread and bring it inside. We can put it in the kitchen," he suggested.
"Yeah, sure!" Weedy dug in the saddle pack and pulled out two bundles wrapped in clean cloth. "I know Clara, she's really nice...I help out there sometimes, and she and Miz Emeline will give me cookies and things." Sometimes, the work was actually worth it, too!
"I want to see the house, too!" Now that he had something to actually compare it to, Weedy wanted to see what a real farm house was like. "Do you have your own room?" It would be pretty bad, he thought, to have to share a room with a girl! But Wyatt didn't smell all rosy, so probably not!
"We should ask if we can sleep on the trail!" They had the horse, after all, they could ride out a ways and make a camp, with a fire and everything, and sleep under the stars! Of course, that would be after the swimming and climbing trees and exploring and maybe some hunting...
He wanted to make the most of the visit, even if his plans were pretty ambitious!
Storyteller / Shared NPC
Weedy produced the freshly baked bread, if Wyatt begged enough, they could probably eat it with some of the butter from their very own cow. Clara tended to ration the butter though not everyday use. This was definitely a special day though.
"I know Clara, she's really nice...I help out there sometimes, and she and Miz Emeline will give me cookies and things," Weedy declared.
"She ain't always so nice, she is kinda strict but maybe she'll be on her best behavior cuz you're company," Wyatt didn't want Weedy to go overboard on Clara.
"I want to see the house, too! Do you have your own room?" the boy sure was curious.
"Come on then, we can go inside for awhile. And nope, when we were younger, me n' Clara shared a bed but then Pa decided she needed her own bed cuz she is a young lady now. You know what he means," Wyatt answered as he waved him to follow him on inside.
"I sleep up in the loft, you can't stand up in it but it's fine and dandy for sleeping," he added.
Wyatt deliberately did not answer Weedy's trail sleeping suggestion, he knew what Pa and Clara would think of that one. NO.
"Wow, a loft!" Well, Weedy knew about lofts in barns, but not in houses, and it sounded pretty exciting! So much that he completely forgot about camping (squirrel!).
"This is really nice," he declared, looking around as they entered the house. The house that Miz Addy had bought for them was good, and he even had his own room, but they hadn't really been in it long enough for it to feel like home. But Wyatt's house had all those personal things that made it lived in, what he imagined a real house should be like.
"Girls smell all flowery, I wouldn't want to share a room with one." Well, except Miz Addy, who smelled like horses and fresh hay, except recently she'd been smelling a bit like flowers too, but he wasn't sure what that was about!
Wyatt led him into his home, it wasn't big but it was clean and comfortable. Wyatt was quietly proud of it and pleased that Weedy was duly impressed.
"Girls smell all flowery, I wouldn't want to share a room with one," declared the boy.
Just then Clara emerged from her father's bedroom with some bedding in her arms. She had heard the boys chattering outside and now even more clearly once they were inside.
"Hello Weedy, do not fret, you shall not be sharing a room with one."
"Hmm, do I smell bread?"
"Yes, Miss Clara." Grinning, Weedy handed her the bread. She was at that awkward age for a boy, that she was too old to refer to by her given name, but really wasn't so old as to be a 'Ma'am'!
"Miz Addy sent some bread," he explained, holding out the package, then telling Clara what he'd told Wyatt. "She got it from the Lickskillet, so she didn't cook it." He grinned. "She makes black bread! And then the whole room smells burnt for a week!" It was safe to say that, since she wasn't here!
"Oh stop with the 'miss'," Clara tutted, "My Christian name will do just fine."
The young lady then accepted the bread, "Why that is certainly kind of Addy. You be sure to tell her thank you from the Redmonds now."
Wyatt laughed at the black bread story. Clara, as was her wont, just barely cracked a hint of a smile at best.
"There actually is a black bread. I had some once in Pennsylvania, a woman from Russia made it. But sounds like that is not what Addy made. Oh well, we all have our strongpoints and weaknesses no doubt, Addy more than makes up for her lack of culinary skills," Clara explained.
"Cul narry?" Wyatt raised one eyebrow, her sister always used fancy words he didn't understand.
"Cooking...baking skills," the girl clarified.
Wyatt nodded, "Yeah, right. Anyhow, Weedy, should we go do some stuff?"
The boys were certainly not about to spend a whole lot of time with his boring sister.