Just Another Day in the James Family

On a cool, crisp day, a young girl runs into her parents room with tears in her eyes. “MOTHER MAKE THE BOYS STOP!” A dark-haired woman woke up, rubbing the sleep out of her blue eyes. The eyes that match her daughter’s. “What are you talking about puppet? What did your brothers do now?” Sophia asked, smoothing out Freya’s wild hair. “They put a spider in my bed this morning. It was a big hairy spider. They must have found it in the woods the other day. When father goes into town can he see if he can sell the boys or give them to someone?” Mrs. James gave a short laugh and started braiding the young girl’s hair. “We can’t give your brothers away or sell them. If we did, then you would be doing all their chores and you’re too little to clean out the stables. I will give them a talking to. Don’t worry about them, my little sweet pepper. Now go on, go get dressed for breakfast.” The little girl jumped down off the bed and ran over to the other side of the bed and saw her father sleeping and snoring very loudly. “Mother, why does father sound like a grizzly bear when he sleeps?” Just then Mr. James grabbed the little girl and started tickling her, making his only daughter squeal with laughter. “Grizzly bear am I? I guess that makes you my little cub. Go on now, do as your mother told you. I’ll deal with your brothers in a bit.” The couple heard her run into the boys room and tell them that they were in big trouble before slamming their door and running to her own room. William turned over to his other side to face his wife. “I have to agree with our daughter, Brandon and Bryce should be given to another family. Putting a spider in their little sister’s bed. These childish pranks should have stopped by now.” Sophia got out of bed and gave him a sideways look. “Says the man who just last week pulled the dribble glass prank on his own brother.” Grabbing a hairbrush on her nightstand, she started putting her hair up. “They get that from you William and don’t you deny it either cause I saw you pour the scotch myself.” William got out of bed himself and started to change into daytime clothes. “Well dribble glass is one thing but spiders in a young girl’s bed is another. One day Freya is going to get back at them for everything they did to her. I saw her trying to climb the tree by the barn. She couldn’t reach the holds yet to climb it but give her a few more months and she’ll be up there throwing apples at them. Just you watch, she'll be a wild child just like her mother used to be.” Sophia grabbed a pillow and tossed it at her husband playfully. When Mr. and Mrs. James came into the dining room, they saw their children sitting there enjoying their breakfast. “After breakfast you two go out to the stables and help Mr. Brooks to fix one of the pens. And if I hear that you put another spider into your sister’s bed again you'll be given to the family down the road. Now that that’s settled, let me drink my coffee and read my paper.” William said, sitting at the head of the table. Before a fight came of it Theodora came out with the iron kettle filled to the top with coffee. “How do you know that we did it father? Maybe the little flame head did it herself.” One of the twins said to his father. “Yeah, where is our justice father? Not every prank in this house is done by us.” Theodora poured the coffee, almost dropping the kettle into Mr. James’s lap. “For starters your sister is afraid of spiders. And for another, you two spend a lot of time in the woods. Now, pass the toast, Brandon.” Mrs. James ran over to Theodora, grabbing the kettle from her before it fell. “You don’t have to use this kettle to make the coffee, please use the other one. It’s a lot lighter than this one. Other than that, the breakfast looks amazing.” Theodora gave a nod and said thank you to the woman of the household. “And feel free to speak up about things if need be. How do we know what you need for the kitchen or house if you don’t say something? That goes for your husband as well. Please tell Ian that will you?” Theodora straightened up some and put the rag over her shoulder. “I will speak up from now on Mrs. James, and I will tell Ian to do the same. The only thing I need for the house is some fresh flowers for the study and maybe in here. And the other kind of flour too, for the bread. If that isn’t too much trouble.” Sophia gave the house girl a kind smile and said “Of course, it’s no trouble at all. Now boys, say sorry to your sister and go get your chores done.” Before they went to do their chores, Bryce stopped at the front door. “Have you ever thought we do these pranks as a cry for attention for our mother and father?” William pushed him out the door. “If you don’t do as you are told you’ll be really crying when I take my belt to your backside. Now get, Mr. Brooks is waiting for you.” Freya ran over to the window and made a face at her brothers. “Now young lady, if you are done with your breakfast it’s time for your lessons. Don’t give me that face, my dear. You still have a lot to learn before you grow into a young woman of the world. I'll meet you in the study in ten minutes. Get your lesson books and if I find your writing lessons in the potted plant again you’ll be doing extra chores yourself.” The little girl stomped off to get her lesson books muttering to herself wishing she didn’t have to do lessons. “Where’s the mail at? I thought I saw it on the table in the front hallway. I saw a letter addressed to me from my mother.” Sophia said to William. Mr. James flipped through the mail and found it. “Here it is. I can smell the bourbon coming off of it or is that the latest perfume scent in New Orleans’ French Quarter?” Mrs. James gave her husband a scoff and opened the letter. As she read it her face went from the pleasant smile to one of anger. “Well my mother thinks Freya should go to a convent where she knows the nuns. And she quotes “If Elizebeth doesn’t go sooner than later this wild behavior and temper will grow into a bigger problem. I’m sure you and William have done a great job so far with her but it’s time that she learns how to act like a proper young lady. I have her best interest at heart and I only want what would be good for my only granddaughter.” Sophia shoved the letter into William’s hand to have him read it. “Why does she keep calling our daughter by her middle name? Oh here it is. She doesn't understand why we gave our daughter a viking name. If she has the name of a wild creature then she’ll become one. When can we send a letter back telling your mother too well to put it properly shove it where they bury the dead? Freya isn’t going anywhere but the study where she should be now instead of listening to us talking.” William said, feeling as if someone was watching them. They heard her running back to the study as fast as her little legs would carry her. “I am going to write her back and tell her that she is our daughter to raise, not hers. And we love her wild side. We encourage it. And if she doesn’t like her name then well that’s her problem not ours. We know what’s best for her and if it’s not good enough for Marie Harper then so be it! And you noticed she didn’t say a thing about the boys? It’s like she gave up on them.” William gave her a swift kiss on the cheek. “ I doubt she gave up on the boys. After all, the woman wrote a novel last time she put a pen to paper and it was all about the boys. Just watch, next time it will be about yours truly. It’s like she has a one track mind. It might be about the smell of the outhouse or the thunderstorms we get here. Let’s put this out of our minds and try to focus on other things. Maybe after lunch we can all go into town for a while. Get new books from the library or something. Didn’t you say you wanted to make Freya a new dress at some point?” Sophia put the letter in her pocket then ran her hands over her face, trying to get the letter out of her mind. “Yeah, all four of you need new clothes to wear. The boys are growing like the corn stalks and Freya has grown some. And I might have to let out your best pants if you keep eating all the pound cakes Theodora makes then maybe you’ll turn into one yourself. Maybe you should leave the sweets for the children to eat. I have to remind Theodora to make sure she doesn’t make anything with peppermint. Don’t need Brandon and Freya breaking out in hives.” Mr. James started going to his study then turned around to his wife. “We don’t need scratchy itchy children to deal with. Then again, they do behave more when they are sick.” Sophia gave him a narrowing look with her ice blue eyes folding her arms. “William Bryce James, don’t joke about our children getting sick. You know if you wish someone ill then it more likely lands on your head not theirs. Go on now, go give our wild creature our daughter her lessons for the day.” As the day went on, the family did their chores throughout the day. At half past two p.m. Mr. James went outside to find the boys so they could go into town for a spell. ‘BRANDON! BRYCE! WHERE THE DEVIL ARE YOU TWO BOYS?!’ As the man of the house went off the porch towards the barn he heard a thud coming off the porch. “You didn’t have to yell father. We were just on the other side of the porch here.” Brandon said, putting his hands in his pockets. “If you keep yelling for us two things will happen. One, you will lose your voice and two, we might go deaf; then you will feel guilty for making your only sons have no way to hear you and mother sing us to sleep.” Mr. James closed his eyes and shook his head, feeling a headache coming on. “We are going into town for a while so clean up whatever mess you have made and get ready to go. And if you have any library books go get them so we can drop them off.” Before they ran off, something fell out of Brandon’s pocket onto the porch. William bent down and picked it up and saw it was the pocket knife that once belonged to his father. “I believe this was in my drawer in my study, the drawer you children aren’t to go into. And yet here it is in my hand. Before I look on the side of the house of what you were doing, is there anything you want to confess to or do I need to give this back to you to cut a switch?” The twins looked at one another and took the pocket knife back. “How big of a switch do you want us to cut? One for each of us or one long one?” Bryce asked, looking at his father with his brown eyes trying to look disappointed in himself and twin. “Use your best judgment and then get ready to go. Go on get! And wash your faces while you are at it. No one is going to want to buy two boys with dirty faces.” When they ran off Mr. James looked at the side of the house to see the paint off one of the posts and walked over to get a better view. One after the other was B.W.J and B.R.J. “Yep they are definitely going to get sold or just left in town. I don’t think my head can handle any more aches from those two.” He said to himself, shaking his head and closing his eyes. Before Mr. James could open his eyes he heard a little giggle coming from the front doorway. Opening his eyes, William started walking slowly to the door to sneak up on his daughter. As he got closer to the door, he bent down almost to Freya’s level and put his hands out like bear claws. The little girl peeked around the corner, thinking that her father had gone to the back side of the house when he jumped out and scared her. Mr. James picked up the screaming eight year old, tickling her. Sophia came out of the house when she heard Freya scream. “Look what I found creeping around the corner Sophia. A tiny little sweet tomato. Whatever shall we do with her? I say we should make a salad out of her.” Freya frowned at her father for a second. “I’m not a tomato father. I’m a little girl. And I’m not going to live in a place full of big scary bird people.” “Well you are not going anywhere other than with us. The big bird people are called nuns.” Mrs. James said, brushing back Freya’s hair from her face. William walked over to where the boys had carved into the post with Freya still in his arms. “How would you like to put your name into the post my little sweet tomato? And maybe add mine and your mothers? It’s only fair since the boys put their initials into it.” The little girl looked at her mother and father and back again. “Will I get into trouble if I do it too?” Sophia gave a laugh and said “No you won’t get into trouble. I’ll help you. If we all do it then none of us get into trouble.” The three of them started with Mr. James’s initials then Mrs. James and Freya’s at the bottom. “See, now everyone will know that we live here from now until the end of time.” William said, putting Freya down. “Why don’t you go and put that pocket knife on the desk for your father and get ready to go into town sweetheart.” Sophia said, handing her youngest child the pocket knife. As Freya ran off into the house the couple sat on the porch swing to wait for their children. “Answer me this my love, how did we get out numbered? Don’t get me wrong, I love our children but…” Mr. James said, kissing the top of his wife’s head. Mrs. James looked up into his brown eyes and gave him a smile. “But nothing, just learn to love our children even if they carve their initials into the house. We can’t punish the boys for that now. Maybe on the way into town we can stop at your brother's to see if they want to come with or maybe send Ayden with us? Our nephew told me that he wishes to read every book in the library by the time he is of age.” Mr. James gave a huff then a sigh. “Well I guess now we know who Ayden takes after. His mother. My brother never cracked open a book unless it was life or death. Even then you had to threaten to take a switch to him. Maybe I can work on Ayden going into town and talk him into banking or the law.” “You leave that boy alone. I think it’s great he has his sights set on the medical field, the way the world is going we are going to need healing hands not the ones that carry guns.” Sophia said. Before William could do anything else the three children came outside with a bag full of books. “You three ready to go into town? Double checked all your books for the library? Sophia, you have your list of stuff you want from the store?” Mrs. James showed him the list in her pocket. “Ok let’s get going you James clan. And boys, one toe out of line while you're in town we might just leave you there so you best try to find a job.” The five of them started towards town picking up Ayden on the way who talked to Freya on the way there about the books he was planning to get. “I’m thinking I should get twenty books this time. If I am to fill my head with knowledge then I must read as many as I possibly can.” “Sheesh save some books for the rest of us, will you Ayden? I mean they aren’t all for you.” Brandon said, walking past him and trying to get his twin to race him into town. “Hey you two, no running, come back here!!” The boys looked back running still. “Fine, just keep going, meet us at the library’s stairs.” Sophia yelled after her sons. As they ran into town, the two boys dropped their books onto the ground. Ayden picked up the books when he got to them while mumbling about their lack of respect for literature. “They really shouldn’t be allowed to get any more books if that is how Brandon and Bryce treats them.” He said, going to his aunt and uncle. “Don’t you worry about those two Ayden. I’m sure the head librarian will yell at them for getting dirt on their books. That Miss. Pince is a stickler for rules. She has been there since Washington was the President of America.” Mr. James said, taking his son's books from his nephew. Sophia took a couple of the books from her husband as they got into town. As they got closer to the boys, they saw them talking to a young woman playing with a deck of cards in her hand. “You see the state they are calling California? It's nothing but sunshine 80% of the time. Only problem is that it’s always hot there. It got close to a hundred degrees on my last day there before heading back this way.” The golden-haired teenage girl said to the boys. “What is that bandage on your… well.” Brandon asked, trying not to look at the young woman’s chest area.”Thank you for reminding me. I was told that I can take the bandage off every other day so it can get some fresh air.” She started to take the bandage off a little bit at a time before Mr. and Mrs. James showed up. “Next time you go on a run like that, do not throw your books to the ground because I’m not going to pay for book damage.” William said to his sons. Sophia handed the books she had to one of her sons then stepped over to the golden-haired teenage girl. She gave her a good once over looking at her. “You look well Miss. Swan, a bit skinny though, maybe I can talk you into coming home with us for a spell. Get some good home-cooked meals into you? And tell me what is that on your chest young lady? A tattoo? How in the devil’s name did you get that?” Cecilia gave Mrs. James a hug. “I miss you too and well, If I come home with you then I’ll tell you over that home cooked meal you offered.” As Mr. James gave his other son the books he had he walked towards the young woman in question. “Correct me if I am wrong but aren’t you close to marrying age young lady? Maybe it’s high time you stop running about like a vagabond and settle down. I am sure there is a man or two around here that will be happy to marry you.” Miss Swan walked over to Brandon and stood next to him. “Perhaps I will marry some day. What will you give me for taking this one off your hands? I think I should be the one being paid for marrying someone If I am to be made into a little housewife.” “Just like you to say something like that Miss. Swan. I believe the only love you have is for the money you get from the card tables. Maybe If you start acting like a lady us men will treat you with the respect you so demand to have. Also, it might do you some good if you had some kind of knowledge in that golden head of yours.” Ayden said, walking up the stairs to the library. Miss. Swan gave him a smirk. “You can read all those books and still not hold a candle to what I have in my head of how the world goes round. By the way, it’s nice to know that no matter how much time has passed you are still a stick in a pile of horse droppings!” “Maybe we should get inside before the whole town hears us shouting like lunatics. Come on now let’s get inside.” Mr. James said, heading up the stairs holding Freya’s hand along with Sophia’s. “Now you remember the rules for the library, our sweet tomato? What do we not do while in the library?” Sophia asked her youngest child. The little girl thought for a minute and said “No screaming, running and no monkey business pretty much don’t act like my big brothers.” Sophia gave her a smile and asked "what do we do at the library?” “We act like ladies and find a book or two to read and not make a fuss when I can’t find the book I want. And if I need help looking on a tall shelf, ask someone to get it for me like you or father.” “Good girl puppet, now go on and we will be there in a minute.” The couple watched her go inside then gave a sigh. “And your mother thinks she is a wild child? Maybe we should send your mother the boys then she’ll see Freya as the angel she is. Perhaps we should talk about Freya’s future though. My business partner in West Virginia has a son a couple years older than she is. He said that he is a handful right now but in a few years he’ll be a great man. His name is Mitchell. A strong name, not as strong as William but strong all the same. And if our daughter is anything like a wild creature then she is going to need someone to balance her out. The girl is already headstrong.” Sophia climbed two steps away from her husband. “We aren’t going to talk about this now. I don’t want to think of her all grown up. Let her be a little girl as long as she can William. Maybe later on we can talk to her about her future and not push one on her. We should let her pick the person who gives her balance in life. And so help you if you even think about pairing her off like a horse ready for the ark. The flooding will be on your head and you’ll be facing a cold bed. We should get into the library before our sons do damage to it and Ceillia tries to sell the librarian her own books to her.” The group spent most of the afternoon looking through the small amount of books the library had on their shelves. “I don’t see anything that jumps out at me. Trying to find a good book is hard to do. Maybe I should see if my mother will take me to the capital next week.” Ayden said, looking through the books on the far end of the library. Ceillia crept up behind him with a book in her hands. “HERE YOU GO!” Screaming to make the bookworm wannabe jump out of his skin. He turned around and looked at the book in her hands. “Walden by Henry David Thoreau? I have read it already and the man is a bore. He loves to hear himself talk and use big words. Nice try though Miss. Way of the world.” Ceillia gave him a sweet smile and rolled her blue/green eyes at him. “So you recognize when someone is boring but not when you are. I guess you are in good company then with Mr. Thoreau.” “Well at least you tried to find a good book. Maybe next time you will find something more lively than a stick in the mud. Little Miss. I think I know everything.” Ayden said, putting the book on the shelf. “You should listen to this by this Poe guy. “Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before; But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token, And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, "Lenore?" This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, "Lenore!"— Merely this and nothing more.” Brandon read out loud to them. “He has this whole book that would give the devil himself nightmares for the rest of his life. I think I’m going to get it for midnight reads in the woods when we go camping.” William came up behind him and took the book from his son and found another tale and put the book back in his son’s hands. “Read that one and remember it when you want to do something you shouldn’t.” The kids read the title of it and then Brandon looked at his father. “Very funny father, nice try. But I will still get the book all the same. I got my pranking behavior somewhere unless I and my twin are neighbors that you just let live in your house.” William gave him a laugh. “Neighbors no, the truth is we saw you two on some fencepost and felt sorry for you. If we knew back then what you would become, maybe we should have just left you there for the crows.” Sophia walked over to them and gave William a narrow look with her eyes as if she was mad at him. “WILLIAM BRYCE JAMES! Don’t you go lying to our children. And if you are thinking about scaring your sister with that book Brandon William you won’t have any King’s cake when we get home later on.” The little redheaded girl ran over to her mother with a couple books she wanted to check out. “Don’t we have to go to the apothecary before we go home? Theodora said something about some kind of oil or soap for the kitchen before we left. Whatever soap she doesn’t use maybe you can use it to wash my brothers’s mouths out with.” Mrs. James bent down to Freya’s level and looked at her little face. “It’s one thing to punish the twins for something that they did, it's a whole other thing to punish them for just being boys. That goes for anyone. It’s not our job to pass judgment on others unless they have done something to you, you are a judge or you are God. Now the boys have been punished already for the spider in your bed. So let's that be understood Freya?” The little girl gave a sigh and crossed her arms. “I guess, but if I do become a judge can I throw them in jail later on?” The woman of the house closed her eyes and stood up trying not to smile. “You are a girl you little cretin, meaning you will never be a judge. All you will be is a dumb girl with a temper and nothing more.” Bryce said, trying to climb the ladder for the books on the top shelf. Freya tried to run at her older brother to push the ladder down the line. “I think it’s time to go on home now. We have made a mess of the library. Now put the books you aren’t getting back where you found them.” Mr.James said, grabbing his daughter before she got across the floor. Freya looked up at her father with a frown on her face. “Can we use the soap for their mouths now father?” Ceillia gave the little girl a wink and put her hand against the ladder one of the twins was on and gave it a good shove. Bryce fell off the ladder onto the carpet, coughing a little bit. “If girls were so dumb then explain how I am able to go about different states without help from a boy? Last time I checked it takes some brains to hustle people at the card tables. And let me remind you it takes a strong,smart woman to learn to deal with the likes of you two.” Mrs. James started putting the books away that her family drug out. “You two are going to have some lemon ginger tea before bed tonight. I heard the pair of you coughing last week at night. And don’t give me that look Brandon William, you are going to drink it and like it. Same goes for you Freya. It’s the start of cold and flu season. It’s best to keep it at bay as long as possible.” William started towards the door waiting for everyone to leave. “If anyone needs that tea it’s you my loving wife. You were coughing more then the boys were. It was more like a barking sound to be honest. I was about to wake up and tell the dog to keep it down. Then I remembered we don’t have a dog.” Sophia walked over to him, giving him a sly smirk. “Now you know how I feel having to hear you snore at night. I swear a real bear could come into the house and we won’t even know over your snoring.” Mr. James looked at her, arching his eyebrow. “Maybe I should sleep in my office instead of our bed if my snoring is that bad. And if a bear does come into the house then I’ll grab my rifle and turn him into a rug.” Before the couple were close enough to touch, the librarian walked over to them with the twins. “The library is closing in a few minutes and I have some cleaning to do. And if you could kindly remind your children this isn’t a place to play. It’s a place to read and learn. I expect them to know that for next time they come here. Only two of your five children you brought in had behaved. Maybe if you minded your family instead of keeping what should be behind closed doors of your house they might become well behaved citizens of the world.” Miss. Pince said, almost shoving the lot of them out of the door. As the group went down the stairs with the children leading the way a buggy flew by them kicking up dust. The children started sneezing and coughing trying to get dust out. “HEY YOU SHOULD WATCH WHERE YOU ARE DRIVING THAT THING. YOU COULD HAVE HIT A CHILD!!” Mr. James yelled at the buggy going down the road. “And with that fun day at the library, I think it’s time for me to hit the lonesome road myself. Thank you for the offer of a meal and a warm bed but I will decline. Maybe I’ll see what the northeast coast has to offer. I heard there is a new state It’s called Maine. Maybe I will have a better chance there since no one knows me yet. Or I can just stay here and torment, I mean spend time with my good friend Ayden.” The young James boy looked up from one of his books. “Tell the lobsters hi for me Miss. Swan. Maybe go to Boston while you are near there or Amherst. There is some amazing history there, maybe you will learn something. I mean other then taking money from people’s pockets when they aren’t looking.” Ceillia walked over and put her arm around Ayden’s shoulders. “Do me a favor, will you Ayden? Keep an eye on Freya and keep the twins in line. I think if anyone can get them to behave and act right it's you the stick in the mud.” The young man looked at Ceillia and gave her a huff. “I’ll watch over Freya, as for whipping the twins into shape well, I don't think I can even if I wanted to. Even sticks in the mud like to laugh at pranksters.” He gave her a smile then shrugged off her arm. The golden hair vagabond gave each member of the James family a quick hug and ran off in the other way. “Can we possibly get some honey for the tea?” Bryce asked his mother. Sophia gave him a nod instead of talking in fear of the cough building up in her throat as if there was still dust in it. As they entered the shop and the kids went looking about Mrs. James couldn’t hold it in anymore and started having a coughing fit. “Are you ok my dear? Do you need a drink of water or something?” William asked, trying to search for a napkin for her to cover her mouth. The couple went outside thinking the fresh air would do her some good. Sophia took the napkin from her husband and within a few minutes the coughing eased up some to where she could breathe. After she cleaned off her mouth with the napkin she saw blood in the napkin. It was just a few drops of blood on the cloth napkin but it showed that it was more than just the start of a head cold. “What are we going to do my love?” William asked Sophia, looking at her pale face. “We are going to go back in the shop and tell the children that I am fine. That my coughing was a delayed reaction to the dust from the buggy. As for the napkin, we are going to burn it. The children don’t need to know. And tomorrow I’ll go to the doctor and take the boys with me just in case. You will keep Freya from going with us. If all goes well, this is just nothing more than a simple illness that will go away on it’s own.” As they went back into the shop, Mrs. James handed William the napkin to hide the blood. “Mother, do you think we can see the ponies before we go home for dinner? There are some pretty ones down the road.” The youngest James child asked. “Maybe another day, puppet. I'm sure dinner is almost done by now. Come on now, let’s get the tea and honey and go home. I guess I will come back into town tomorrow and get the fabric for clothes I was planning to make you all. And we forgot the stuff for Theodora. Maybe the boys can get it tomorrow.” She said, pulling her list out of her pocket. As the family walked home the children chattering away and laughing, the only thought Sophia had was of her family. Of how much more she had to teach each of her children and how she hoped the illness wasn't what she feared the most. Freya looked back at her mother smiling then told the twins how she put her name on the post as well. They all started running towards the house once it came into view with the sun setting casting a pink and gold light onto their lawn. Mr. James leaned over and kissed the top of her head as they finished the walk hand in hand into the house.

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