PART 6
An hour later, Nan lifted a bitter-smelling pot from the fire. “Asia, did you bring any oatmeal with you?” she asked.
“No--I planned to make hotcakes on the griddle in the morning.”
“Hmmm…I’ll have to add something else to make it thicker.” In the darkening gloom, she wandered to the edge of the clearing. Suddenly she noticed some moss at the foot of the tree, and pulled up a clump. Another idea formed in her mind…
Bess squirmed as Nan pulled the spoon from the pot. “You’re not putting THAT on my face,” she protested. “It smells horrible! And I’ll look terrible!”
“What’s worse, the smell or the itching?”
“Um, the itching, I suppose…But it’s GREEN! The boys will make fun of me!”
Nan maintained eye contact, and restated the question. “What’s worse, the itching or teasing from the boys?”
Bess finally gave in, and let Nan spread the green goop over her face and hands. The moss made it look even more grotesque than the oatmeal had been. Tommy made a more willing patient, having experienced its beneficial effects before. Both of them felt better, and dinner proceeded without any difficulties, beyond the occasional giggle at how foolish the two looked. Tommy withstood the teasing better, joking that he might pretend to be a monster from the woods in the middle of the night. Rob reacted with a little fear, until Jo told him that Tommy was just kidding. Amy’s anxiety ceased as she saw that the salve really helped to reduce the swelling, despite the horrible appearance it caused.
Full darkness reigned when Jo and the other adults ordered the children to bed. They protested, still feeling energetic. Jo listened to the complaints for a moment, then whispered a question to Asia. Asia thought a moment, then nodded her head.
“Quiet! Quiet! I’ll grant you one concession--IF you agree to the terms.”
The children paid attention, and Jo laid down her terms. They agreed that they would trade nights for the pillow fight just this once, and wouldn’t leave their assigned tents. Once the fifteen minutes were up, they would go to bed quietly and not pester her the rest of the night. Soon chaos reigned in the three tents-pillows flying and children yelling. Jo wondered to herself what the animals in the woods thought of the racket. In two of the three tents, everyone’s pillows quickly carried green smears as Bess and Tommy participated. When the fifteen minutes ended, two-thirds of the group managed to sleep despite the bitter smell of Nan’s salve filling their tents. And thanks to that salve, Bess and Tommy were able to sleep comfortably.
In the morning, Asia cooked up mountains of hotcakes for the voracious group. Bess and Tommy felt much better--the rash and swelling had receded considerably. They dismantled the tents and carefully put out the fire. Everyone had a completely different appearance than the day before. Jo dreaded the chaos of arranging use of the bathtubs later. Everyone was filthy, and some of the children still sported traces of the salve in their hair on or on their faces. Bess and Tommy sported fresh coats of the green solution, and didn’t look abashed about it anymore. Her own hair was bedraggled, and she didn’t dare tell Amy how disarranged her usually immaculate coiffure remained. But the lack of cleanliness and order didn’t hide the happy feelings among the group. Amy and Laurie laughed and smiled as they climbed into the cart beside their daughter. Jo couldn’t believe how her strait-laced sister chattered with all of the children and teased Laurie mercilessly. Laurie looked happier than he had been in a long time, relaxed and content. He pulled his wife into the crook of his arm as the cart went into motion. Birds sang in the trees, and everyone smiled as they reminisced over the previous day’s events. Nick urged the horses into a trot, and headed back for Plumfield.
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