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| | From:  proteuskat1 (Original Message) | Sent: 1/26/2008 1:00 AM |
Episode 2; Despair and Hope
Logan, Spud, Flava Flav, De La Soul, Hawkeye and Cruise Strained to see what Kinkajou was showing Mitch. Mitch was having a hard time seeing it himself. “To the right of the tree?�?Mitch asked. Kinkajou patiently replied, “Yes. If you will turn your head slightly, you can see Daisy in front of the bush.�?“Oh yeah, OK, I see. That's cool.�?Mitch said excitedly. Kinkajou turned to the rest and said, “OK, everybody come up here and look. Do what you saw Mitch do. It's called perspective viewing. If you want to be an asset to the family, you have to learn it. Now what are the three ways of obtaining perspective views?...Logan.�?“Angle, skew and height.�?Logan said proudly. Kinkajou Smiled, waved Daisy in and said, “OK, that's all for today. Mozart has your lunch. Class dismissed.�?“Wow, that's a big class!�?Shakespeare said from behind Kinkajou. Without turning, she said “Yep, seven of them....I'm glad you're here, Shakes. I wanted to tell you that I don't agree with...�?Without letting her finish, Shakespeare quickly said, “Don't worry about it. Dad made the decision for you to replace me on the flank and that's the end of it. I know it wasn't your idea.�?“Thanks for not being mad�?Kinkajou replied. They both stood watching their shadows grow long in the late afternoon sun. Kinkajou put a paw on Shakespeare's shoulder. Shakespeare quickly glanced at the paw and turned to Kinkajou and smiled a smile that said more in it's fleeting moment than a thousand words. “There goes Mom. Will you help me get the pups together?�?Kinkajou said. “Of course.�?Shakespeare replied as he ran along with her toward the family.
The sun was almost down as the family sat around the borough entrance. As usual, Shakespeare, Kinkajou, Mozart and Daisy were in their little group, talking about what everyone would do the next day. They all had just recently been given their first adult positions. Mozart; first aid, Kinkajou; pup training, Daisy; babysitting and Shakespeare; security. They all took their responsibilities very seriously. Sometimes a bit too seriously. As they were talking, Flower walked by and calmly said, “Shakespeare, you are to be the new sentry during mobbings.�?Shakespeare felt the words like a blow to the chest. Mozart, Kinkajou and Daisy glanced at each other uncomfortably. Shakespeare got up and followed Flower and said, “Mom, can I ask you something?�?She stopped and replied, “sure.�?“I thought it was my job to choose sentries.�?“It is, honey, but I knew that you wouldn't put yourself on sentry for mobbings.�?Flower said graciously and authoritatively. Shakespeare thought for a moment and said “That's because I'm more valuable mobbing.�?Flower smiled compassionately and said, “No, Shakespeare, you're not. Not any more.�?He couldn't believe what he was hearing. A month ago he was the star of the family and now he was just the look-out. “I don't want to be useless, Mom. I was born to be more than that.�?Flower took his paw in hers' and said sternly, yet softly, “My brave son, the only meerkat that is useless is the one who doesn't accept his role within the family.�?Shakespeare didn't like her answer, but he knew that, as usual, her answer was right. He walked slowly into the borough not knowing how to deal with these words that hurt him worse than the puff adder did.
Shakespeare spent the next week in a trance. Mozart tried her best to cheer him up, but nothing worked. Daisy decided to put him on babysitting one day to see if it would help. It helped a little. It gave him some freedom and some feeling of worth. It was during the hottest part of the day that he started to smell another meerkat, and he knew who it was before he saw her. “Hello, Tosca.�?Shakespeare said without turning around. Tosca had sneaked up on him without making a sound, but just as he had done since they were young, he knew she was there. She stopped sneaking and walked up to him and said “I hate when you do that!�? Shakespeare finally turned to her and said “You know that you aren't supposed to be around here. If anyone sees me talking to you, I could be evicted.�?“Don't worry, they are still four dunes away foraging.�?Tosca reassured him. Tosca took a moment to look around and fixed her eyes on Shakespeare and said “What's wrong with you?�?“Nothing!�?“It's not nothing.�?“OK, Mom put me on mobbing sentry. Me! Can you believe that?!�?Tosca was visibly shocked and said, “Wow! I never thought I would hear those words come out o your mouth!�?Shakespeare replied, “Well, now you have.�?Tosca couldn't take her eyes off of Shakespeare and said “So, what are you going to do?�?He looked at her for a moment as if he didn't understand her and replied “What do you mean? What can I do?�?“leave!�?she said. Shakespeare said with a laugh “Leave?! How?!�?“Well, you get up off your butt and start walking.�?she insisted. “And go where?�?he said. “there are groups across the black stone river. They never evict anyone and they never go hungry!�?“Tosca, those are myths and wives's tales!�?He said sarcastically. She got closer to his face and said “No, they are not. I have seen them! Just go through the wire tree and across the black stone river and you will find them!�?Shakespeare cut his eyes at her and said “The wire tree will kill you and the metal rhinos will crush you on the black stone river!�?“Talk about myths! I have done it, Shakes, I wouldn't lie to you!�?she said. Shakespeare's ears perked up and he said “You see, here comes the family and you are still here!�?“OK, get in the borough and when they come over the dune, I will take off running and you chase me.�?She said. He agreed, chased her off and the family was none the wiser.
As Shakespeare was dozing off that night, the thought of these other groups and the thought of a fresh start gave him a feeling of hope that he hadn't felt for two and a half months. That night, Shakespeare dreamed for the first time about having his own family. The first of dozens of dreams he will have about having a mate and pups of his own. He thought several times about the odd fact that his happiest thoughts were not about his current family, but about a family that didn't yet exist, and was never able to understand it.
Things had been so quiet recently that Shakespeare was a little surprised to be watching the family mobbing. It was at a hollow tree much like the one with the puff adder under it. This time it was a wild cat. He didn't hesitate to take his new role as sentry. He climbed the tree and kept a look-out while the others chased the cat out of the other end of the tree. Flower made a concerted effort to give Shakespeare a pat on the back. Zaphod said nothing, but then again, he never does. He doesn't believe in rewarding his family for doing what they are supposed to do. Fortunately, Mozart never shared this belief with her father. “Good job, Shakes!�?she said as she caught up to him. He turned and said “Thanks, Mo, I needed that.�?“My pleasure, Buddy.�?she replied.
That night, Shakespeare was thinking about the next day. He had agreed to help Kinkajou with the training classes. It was overtly obvious to him that his attitude was different than it had been not too long ago. He thought about the next day as something he had to do, not something he wanted to do. What confused him more than anything else was that these thoughts didn't sadden him. They excited him and they were the only thing he had that gave him hope. He had no idea that mere thoughts would soon rule his world and lead him to a life that he couldn't yet imagine.
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wow, Proteus, you really got inside my little man's head. superb story. |
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