PART 2
"How is he?" asked Nat, leaning over to peer into the box in front of Dan. The small bird sat huddled in a corner, surrounded by the grass, leaves and twigs Dan had used to make the temporary residence as comfortable as possible.
"Better," explained Dan. "I thought he'd fly away after I got all the thorns out, but he's hardly moved. He don't seem hurt; Nick just thinks he's a little shaken up and will leave when he's ready." Nat nodded as though that sounded logical. Reaching behind him, Dan pulled out a large book. Opening it to a marked page, he handed it to Nat. "Accordin' to the book he's a chickadee--a black-capped chickadee. They live in the northern regions of America and in parts of Canada. They eat all kinds of insects in summer, and in the winter they eat seeds and berries."
"Have you fed him?"
"Well, I put some breadcrumbs in the box." Dan moved around some leaves to show Nat where he had placed the food. "But Nick says if we feed him too much he'll become dependent on us and won't be able to go back and live in the wild."
"We could keep him," suggested Nat.
"I'd like to," admitted Dan, "but he don't belong in a cage. Birds need lots of room to fly and be free. He wouldn't be happy all cooped up inside."
"I guess not," agreed Nat disappointedly.
Dan stood and started out the door. "C'mon. Let's go finish up our chores. I bet he'll be long gone before we get back."
Bess and Nan decided their first course of action was to get Jo and Nick into the right frame of mind. Bess went after Jo, who was helping Asia in the kitchen, and Nan found Nick hammering away on the front porch.
"What are you doing Nick?" Nan asked, leaning over the railing to watch, while inside Bess sauntered into the kitchen where Jo and Asia were preparing dinner. "Can I give you a hand, Aunt Jo?"
"Mendin' some loose boards," Nick answered, as he swung his hammer against the side of the porch. Nan sat down beside him to allow them to talk more intimately, swinging her legs over the edge, but being careful to keep them well out of reach of Nick's hammer. "Want some help?" she offered.
"Thank you, Bess," replied Jo with an appreciative smile. "Why don't you help me break the ends off these beans."
"Hold these." Nick dropped a handful of nails into Nan's lap.
"Wasn't the wedding beautiful?" Bess began.
"It was," agreed Jo.
"You sure missed a fun time this morning," Nan commented.
Nick looked up. "Yeah?"
Nan tried to paint an impressive picture for him. "Sure. It was beautiful--all kinds of flowers and decorations. Almost everybody in town was there. The ceremony was real nice, and the couple looked awful happy. Then afterwards there was a big celebration, with music and dancing and all kinds of food."
"Was your wedding like that, Aunt Jo?" Bess asked.
"No. We had just what was most important: our family and our closest friends."
Nick reached for a nail and Nan handed it to him. "Do you ever think about getting married?" she asked seriously, while inside Bess posed the same question to Jo.
Both kind of shrugged off the question and replied with the vague, "maybe someday."
"If…?" Bess prodded.
"If I met the right woman…" began Nick.
"… at the right time," finished Jo.
"Would the right man be just like Uncle Fritz?"
Jo took a bite of one of the green beans and said thoughtfully, "not necessarily just like him. But there are certain characteristics any man would have to show for me to be interested in him."
"Not someone like Charlotte Gerson," teased Nan.
Nick grinned. "No, not like Charlotte."
"What about someone like Father?" Bess asked next.
Jo flushed a little and began to concentrate very hard on the beans. Bess didn't know anything about the history between Jo and Laurie, and Jo didn't feel very comfortable discussing it with her. "I… don't think so," she said finally. "I love your father dearly, but not in that way."
"How 'bout someone like… Mrs. Laurence?"
Nick looked at Nan to see if she was serious. "I don't want to say anything against Mrs. Laurence, 'cause she's Mrs. Jo's sister and a real nice lady, but…" Nan giggled as Nick rolled his eyes. "She's a bit too high society for me."
Bess snapped the ends of a bean and tried to speak off-handedly. "What about someone like Nick?"
"What about Mrs. Jo?"
Though both would have liked to seem unfazed by the question, Jo began to choke violently on a piece of green bean she had been eating, while Nick missed the nail he was aiming for and whacked his thumb.
"You okay?" Nan exclaimed as she watched Nick grasp his thumb, almost doubling over in pain. Nick struggled to refrain from blurting out several phrases from his sea-faring days that would not be appropriate for mixed company. "I'll be alright," he assured her through gritted teeth.
"Aunt Jo! Are you alright?" Bess exclaimed, as Jo continued to cough deeply.
She finally managed to clear her throat. "I'm fine. Let me just get some water. Asia," she began, changing the subject. "Do we have any spinach?"
Asia, who had been listening acutely to their conversation and was aware of what Bess was up to, even if Jo didn't see it, shot Bess a look and wiped her hands on a dishtowel. "Lemme go check in the cellar."
"So you were saying about Nick…" Bess continued.
Nan gave Nick a look that indicated she was still waiting for his answer.
Jo looked a little flustered "Nick's a wonderful man…"
"Women like Mrs. Jo are few and far between," Nick assured Nan.
"But Nick and I…"
"We're from very different worlds," Nick explained.
"Nick's an adventurer. A man who's lived the way he has wouldn't be interested in the kind of life I could offer him."
"A woman like Mrs. Jo--caring and educated and beautiful--could do a lot better than a guy like me."
Both were silent for a moment, realizing just how much they'd confided in these two young girls. Bess and Nan could tell from the way Jo and Nick spoke that they did have feelings for one another, but feelings they weren't certain were reciprocated.
After an awkward pause on both counts, Bess and Nan tried to lighten the mood. "So what kind of man would you be interested in?" asked Bess. "You know, what would she be like?" Nan inquired.
"Well," Jo thought for a moment. "Someone good and kind, honest and open…"
"…independent and spirited…" added Nick.
"...who sees people for who they are, rather than what class they're from…"
"…caring, puts others first…"
"…who'd enjoy being a part of my life here at Plumfield…"
And as they both listed the qualities that interested them, Bess and Nan saw how obvious it was that what they were looking for was right there in front of them.
As Nick had finished his job, Nan let him go without pressing him for any further information. Bess, on the other hand, hoped to make a few more hints, but their discussion was ruined when Tommy and Emil came running in.
"Have you seen Asia?" asked Tommy.
"She went to the cellar for something," Jo told him, "but she should be back in just a moment."
"Whatcha doin'?" he inquired, while, with Emil, he looked through their dinner preparations for something to nibble.
"Making supper and discussing the wedding."
"Wasn't it bully?" Tommy began excitedly. "Everything was so much fun. I want to have a wedding just like that when I get married."
Jo smiled. "What about you, Emil? Will you want a big wedding with all the trimmings?"
"I won't be getting married," Emil explained. "As a sea captain, I won't have the time to fool with a wife and family."
"I'm definitely going to get married," Tommy announced. "I'm going to marry someone just like Mrs. Jo."
"Thank you, Tommy," Jo said, very pleased at his compliment.
"In fact," he continued. "I might just marry Mrs. Jo, if she won't mind waiting till I'm grown up."
"And not just in age!" Emil teased him.
Tommy gave Emil a dirty look, then turned to Mrs. Jo to see what she thought of his plan.
"Well, we'll see," she assured him, trying to suppress a laugh.
"Asia, do we have any bananas?"
Asia knew without even turning around who would be asking such a question. "Tommy, when have we ever had bananas at Plumfield?"
Tommy frowned for a moment, then his face lit up again. "Could we get some next time we go into town?"
"You ain't gonna find any bananas at the General Store in Concord. You'd be lucky to find some in Boston. Even at this time of year." She didn't know where he'd gotten this crazy idea about having bananas, but seeing his obvious disappointment she softened. "What do you need bananas for, anyway?" she asked gently.
"Isaac said bananas make you grow taller," Tommy explained. "I thought maybe if I ate a lot of bananas I could grow faster."
Asia snorted at the idea. "That's just an old wives' tale. If you're tryin' to grow you'd do better eatin' more of your vegetables." And she presented him with a large leaf of the spinach she'd been preparing.
"Uh, thanks, Asia," he said cautiously. "I'll give that a try."
But the look Tommy had on his face after chewing his first mouthful told her that he wasn't quite convinced.
Bess dragged Nan around to the side porch where she stopped her in front of the window. "Look," she directed.
Nan peered in carefully. Jo and Nick were sitting alone in the kitchen, deep in discussion. "Mrs. Jo and Nick," she observed simply. Then catching on "and they're alone! Perfect!"
"Perfect?" Bess rebuked. "Nan, they're alone in the kitchen. There's nothing romantic about the kitchen. It's a beautiful night--let's try and get them out on a romantic moonlit stroll."
Bess and Nan tried to walk calmly and casually into the room, though they were both excited about their plan.
"…he's trying to come up with ways to grow taller."
"I wondered. Did you watch his face as he was eating all those vegetables at supper?"
Jo and Nick were still laughing over Tommy's predicament as they turned to the girls. "What are you two up to?"
"Oh, Aunt Jo, it's a beautiful evening," gushed Bess. "There's a nice breeze blowing, the crickets are chirping, and all the stars are out. You should go take a walk and enjoy it."
"That sounds wonderful," exclaimed Jo. "You know, if all the stars are out we should go get Franz--I think he read a book about constellations and mythology."
Nan and Bess exchanged distressed glances, but before either could think of a reason not to include Franz, Nick jumped in. "I could tell you about the constellations."
Everyone looked surprised. "You could?" asked Jo.
"Sure," Nick answered offhandedly. "With all my travelin' to so many different places the night sky is the one thing that always stays the same. At sea we use the stars for navigatin'. And entertainment--there are some real good stories behind 'em."
Everyone looked duly impressed. "Well, let's go then," suggested Jo, starting for the door.
"Actually," advised Nick, "we'd have a better view from the widow's walk. It's--" Nick stopped suddenly, looking for Jo's reaction when he realized what he'd said. "I'm sorry, Jo. I didn't mean--"
"No, that's alright," interrupted Jo softly, trying to be cheerful but obviously a little disturbed by the reminder. "That is what it's called." There was a pause as they waited for Jo's verdict. "Well," she began expectantly, "what are we waiting for? Let's go up!"
PART 3
