Medina High School - Mirror Yearbook (Medina, NY)

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TIIE MIRROR 17 TED'S SURPRISE Esrrnan J. BoYD M OTHER and father were away. They had been gone three days and this was the fourth. The first two days Mary Jane, my cousin, l1ad stayed with me, but l1er mother was taken ill, so she had to go home. That left me alone in a l1uge rambling farm house, a mile and a half from anyone with Jack and Jill, a dog and a cat respectively. It was the last day of November and it seemed to spell mys- tery. It was not crisply clear with frosty blue sky and bracing air as a well regulated day should be. Neither was it framed in a swirling snow storm. The day opened with a slow sulky rain that looked as if it had come to stay, and the air was full of little jabbing slivers of east wind. My spirits were about as cheerful as the November day with its grey sky and soggy at- mosphere. After dinner I attempted to read, but my mind strayed from the story so that I had to give it up. As time advanced a veil a.lmost as thick as the grey mist circling tl1e river hills seemed to wind itself about me. At last tl1e tearful day wept itself into a wet twilight, muffled in mist. I was huddled lonesomely be- side the library fire, listening to the cold drip-drip from the roof-edge. The floors creaked and snapped as if someone were Walking, walking to his own death, now upstairs, then in the kitchen, now beside me and then back upstairs. First, they were soft and fearful, then louder and braver, until by seven o'clock discontent and nothing to do had nagged me into a regu- lar fit of nerves. VVhen a half hour later steps rang upon the porch, and the side door resounded with a knock, my heart went flip-flop, and I resounded to that knock with a shivery feeling in my elbows. Wlien I opened the door, in filed four masked figures which be- cause of my nerves seemed like giants. They asked me where the silver was, and when I told them I didn't know, they seized and bound me. After they were sure that I could not escape, they left me with the cheerful promise that they would attend to me later. Again, that everlasting walking, now near, now fa.r away, first soft and then heavy. Then, to make it all the more pleasant the wind started to blow.

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16 THE MIRROR bit! I gave one big shriek for Jimmy and cowered in the corner to Wait for him. Slowly the big cat crept towards me. Sud- denly I heard another growl, and like a flash the cat turned and faced the new comer, who was none other than Big Bill. His eyes were blazing, but in despair I saw he hadn't a weapon on his person. He couldn't light that cat barehanded and come out alive. The man and the cat glared at each other and the man used all the power of his eyes on that animal. Not a muscle moved in either as they stood there. It seemed as though I'd scream at their stillness. Oh, why didn't they do something? Then slowly the great cat began to shrink away from the man. Slowly, slowly, bit by bit, it moved away. Slowly, slowly, bit by bit, the man followed. In that great battle of man and beast the man was the stronger. Slowly, slowly, they moved until the man was on my side of the cave and the cat next the opening. In the slow moving the great beast reached the open- ing and suddenly it turned tail and fled. The man turned to me and said, Woman, you need someone to look after you. Come with me. I've followed you all day watching to see that you and that kid brother of yours weren't lost or killed. Now I'll take you to your brother and act as your guide the rest of your trip. Come. For the first time in my life that anyone had ever given me orders, I didn't answer back, I simply crawled out of my corner and obeyed him. His eyes told me to, and I had no will of my own to resist him. When we arrived in camp and told my brother fwho hadn't even heard my screamb what had happened, he scolded me up and down and said repeatedly that Uthe woods were no place for a woman. Big Bill Ferber agreed with him. However, at the end of the trip when we entered the town from which we started, there was a trip to the minister's and now I'm still living in the woods with Big Bill.', His eyes told me to, and I had no thought but to obey.

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18 THE MIRROR It shook the windows, rattled the doors, and whistled in the tree tops. I remember hearing the approach of those gruff voices, but no more. Then a strange feeling crept over my body. I seemed to be sinking-into I knew not what. But unwilling to show the white feather, I decided to look my tormentors in the face once again. Thought was action, I looked. There stood brother Ted bending over me with a glass' in his hand, the contents of which were all over me. Wliat was he saying? After he had repeated it three times it sounded some- thing like this- Hey, Sis, didnlt you get my letter? I say, what 's the matter with you? Sit up and let me present you to- At this point his three companions came in saying: Aw, come on Ted, don 't you know we 'bout scart, the wits out of the poor little thing? Get around here and do the introducing stunt. You nearly drowned her with all that water. After I had been duly presented to the boys amid much laughter, Ted who could never resist teasing anyone, if he- had the opportunity, got down on his knees in an attitude of pro- found humility. As sob-er as a Sphinx he delivered the fol- lowing speech: Really, Sis, we just wanted to have some fun. VVe don't have any school this week, so I brought' the guys home with me. Aw, forget about it and make us some fudge. I obeyed his command with the meekness of a lamb, after deciding that I could get even with those boys with doped fudge more easily than any other way. But that is another story! L Q