Revolutionary Boys (And Girl) for bobby

[XiaolinLilith]

"I'M LEAVING!" shouted Lucinda, slamming the flimsy wooden door to her family's house. They had done her wrong for the last time...but now what in the world was she gonna do, out here in the bloody snow?! She had slipped her father's hunting knife and an old hatpin into her apron pocket, and grabbed Brown Bess--the rifle used to bag her family of 16's rabbit dinner. Not anymore, it wasn't. Hers now. She headed out into the woods, shivering in the ugly rags from the house.

A large bit of some sort of wool was sticking out of the snow, and the girl knelt down to pull it out. A three-cornered hat, a blue jacket and a pair of pants--it was a uniform, and what it was doing buried in the snow was unclear. The brass buttons glimmered slightly. I know what this is--the Continental Army's been nearby. A sound of many feet crunching in the snow gave her an idea--but she had to hurry.

Quickly, she stripped off the rags, pinned up her dark hair and slid into the uniform. It was a little snug across the chest, and she hoped they wouldn't notice she was...a bit more well-endowed than the others. Lucinda put on the tricorn hat and ran through the trees, carrying Brown Bess and looking for the soldiers.

Finally, she saw them--actually, heard them before she saw them. The drumming sounded very tired, and Lucinda waited until the line of rag-tag militia had nearly reached its end. She slipped into the group, where the drummers and fifers gave her tired but curious looks, and finally went back to playing...where, exactly, are we going? she thought. ...and if I was as smart as everyone says, I would have brought some shoes...but she kept a straight face and marched onward. The wind blew snow into all their faces, and most of the boys really hoped they were to set up camp soon...and wondered who this odd new boy was?

[bobby]

Just a little way behind he army, a small figure slipped from tree to tree. Little Robert Cowler had run away from home. His drunken Pa had fallen asleep after spending a quarter of an hour wailing his youngest son's bare rump with a length of strap. In a house full of 'brat's bobby Cowler was lucky to have a cast off over-sized shirt that one of his bigger brothers had discarded. Undergarments and britches were a privilege he would be given when he was ten. According to Pa and Ma, boys under ten didn't "need to britches." "Ya aint' got nuthin' to hide yet," Pa said, swigging from his mug. "Fi' year olds 're just babes anyway."

"I ain't no babe, Pa!" bobby had said, hands on his hips and filled with righteous anger despite a little round bare fanny and an equally exposed little nub of a wanker in front.

"Don't you sass me, baby boy!" Pa had grunted. And so bobby had spent a long, instructive time laying across his Pa's lap while Pa worked his leather skillfully across his baby boy's bare fanny.

Then, with the boy still across his knees, the drunken man had let the strap slip from his fingers and feel sound asleep snoring loudly.

bobby had climbed off his Father's lap of discpline, stolen his older brother Sean's homespun short legged britches and climbed out the window.

Bare foot and holding the pants up with a bit of rope, the five year old crept behind the army. The young men looked pretty good to the small boy; he wanted to be a soldier to and have a nice warm wool uniform.

"'Cor! I could carry one of them guns! Certain sure I could," the child said.

He darted out of the trees and fell into step beside a fresh faced young man.

"Hey! I come to help ya," bobby said, tugging on the young man's pant leg.

[XiaolinLilith]

Lucinda certainly didn't look very fresh--in her mind, anyways. Her nose was bright red from the snow and howling winds, and her eyes were watering quite a bit. "Hmm...help me, laddie?" she asked, seeing only a rough indication of a little boy's form beside her.

She hoped she sounded manly enough to pass off for the opposite sex. "All I've got is my rifle, and it's much too heavy for you, little boy..." Lucinda said, her teeth chattering as she tried to ignore the cold, wet stinging in her toes as well. I'm gonna blow my cover if I don't do something...and quick..."Er? Little boy? I could show you my sharpshootin' if you let me be until we get to camp..."

[bobby]

The little boy trotted along beside Lucinda. His nose and the tips of his ears were bright red, and his breathe came in plumes, but he seemed like a plucky little chap. As he scampered along, Lucinda noticed that he kept tugging on a rope that apparently kept his britches up. They certainly seemed way too big for him.

"I bet I ain't too little to hold that gun. Here, lemme...." the little boy held up his arms for the gun and the consequence of this was that the child's britches feel down leaving him bare from the waist down.

The child blushed and bent over to pull them up, giving Lucinda a good look at a cute, round bare little fanny.

"Damned britches," the little five year old swore. He couldn't seem to fasten them up again on his own.

[XiaolinLilith]

Lucinda groaned inwardly. "We're holding the line up and the officers are gonna have my hide..." She stepped out of formation to help Bobby with his pants and scowled at the other boys giving her looks. "You go on!" she shouted to one particular little redhead in glasses that wouldn't leave them alone.

"...and don't cuss. It's common." Lucinda scolded, busying herself fixing the little boy's britches. The coveted rifle was on her back now, being covered in snow from the blizzard. "Good grief, boy, what elephant did you steal these from?" Lucinda said crossly, hitching them up.

[bobby]

bobby stood smiling, as the soldier 'boy' pulled up his enormous pants and wound the rope up around his shoulders like suspenders before tying them. The pants were now pulled up snugly and bobby's little fanny was well outlined. Lucina couldn't help chuckling and patting the little fanny as she told the little boy that he was all done.

"Thank you, sir," the little boy said. "My name is Bobby Cowper. My dad's a drunken sot!" the little boy said boldly.

He would have benefited from a good, long mouth soaping.

"What yer name, Mister," the little boy asked, falling back in step as Lucinda hurried to catch up.

"Hey, don't run so fast. My legs ain't as long as yours, Mister."

[XiaolinLilith]

"Louis Merriweather," Lucinda said, without missing a beat.

"Pleasure to make your aquaintance," she said as politely as possible. "Can't go any slower or the officers will make a commotion...and I thought I told you to quit cussin'?"

She fixed the boy with a steely green-eyed gaze.

"It's not polite to insult your elders..."

But the storm had passed, for now anyways, and 'Louis' continued to march, barefooted and freezing cold, through the snowdrifts. Passers-by could note that 'he' seemed to be making moon eyes at an officer who was really the same age as her--17. He didn't appear to be noticing, but many of the others were. Oh, he's so handsome! she thought. ...he'll think I'm...er...peculiar since he doesn't know...thank goodness he isn't looking...

[bobby]

The seventeen year old officer lead them up to a blessed sight. A log cabin with smoke coming out of the chimney. It was the home of one of the Minute Men and they were welcomed in.

The men crowded around the fire place. bobby kept close to Louis and Louis longed to get closer to the handsome young officer. The cabin belonged to the Officer's parents. His Maw carried his little brother, who was only a year younger than bobby, on her hip, and she gave the men some porridge in wooden bowls which they took gladly enough.

The Officer, whose name was James passed Louis and bobby and overheard the little boy saying to Louis, "Hot damn. My feet are froze like a polar bears arse!"

Shocked, James put his hand on Louis' shoulder and indicated the little boy with a nod of his head.

"Your little brother?" he asked.

"Yeah!" bobby said hurriedly. He would soon regret it.

"I thought so," James said. "Do your Big Brother duty, man. Put that foul mouthed little imp across your lap, bare his bottom and spank the tar out of him. Wait! Here!" James handed 'Louis' a fine wooden hairbrush that belonged to his Mother. "This'll get the job done. Hop to it! And I expect to hear lots of wailing and see an apple red rump! DO YER DUTY SOLDIER!"

[XiaolinLilith]

...Polar bear's arse? Lucinda/Louis couldn't stop herself giggling quietly at that one, but nodded. "Yes sir, I'd believe he is!!"

And in a few seconds she felt the odd sensation of being put on the spot--the effiminate-looking boy soldier with the dirty-mouthed little brother...and still no shoes...watched by everyone in the huddle, expected to provide a fine rump roasting for entertainment that night..."Yessir!" she blurted out, taking the brush and Bobby in hand (she had a surprisingly strong grip for a young lady) and leading him over to a nearby straight-backed chair, but faltered a second.

"Does the lady of the house approve of ragged soldiers and naughty brats on the furniture?" Lucinda asked with a twinkle in her eye.

[bobby]

Bobby was not at all happy with the words of the young officer.

"Hey," the little boy shouted. "I aint' come here to get beat on blast ya!" But his little hand had already been seized by his new 'Big Brother' and he was being dragged toward a chair.

Bobby couldn't keep from staring, in horror, at the big hairbrush, that Louis gripped in his fist.

Bobby had a moment of hopeful relief when Louis stopped and asked, "Does the lady of the house approve of ragged soldiers and naughty brats on the furniture?"

The Lady of the House threw back her head and laughed, "Ha! That's the very chair that my Fred and I sit in whenever it's time to warm a bare fanny! Sit down lad and give your little brother what he's got coming!!"

"Yes," Louis said, and held out a big bar of lye soap, "and use this on his nasty little mouth when you're down with his tanning!"