Hello! I understand that some readers may be curious about Basil and Byron, and their brotherly relationship. Specifically regarding why Byron is so protective of his little brother. So here's a short little story that might clear things up. Enjoy!!!
*****
(Byron's POV)
"Come on, Uncle Byron," whined my nephew, Able.
Somehow, my brother had let slip a tidbit of a story that had haunted since it had happened. The day I had allowed Basil to get his arm broken.
Usually when I'm asked about that day, or I'm required to give a reason for my protectiveness of my little brother, I claim that I had let Basil play by himself and hadn't been able to catch him when he fell from a height that was just high enough for him to break his arm, but I couldn't be farther from the truth.
Unfortunately, Able was far to intelligent for me to argue my way out of telling the story.
"Why are you so interested," I asked irritably.
"Because Basil only remembers what you told him of what happened that day, and doesn't remember anything himself. Is it not strange that he doesn't remember a thing, yet you said that he only rendered a broken arm?"
"Fine," I sighed as I took a seat in Dawson's chair.
Able smiled upon his victory and sat on my lap, ready to hear the story.
I tried to ready myself for the story myself, but I knew I wouldn't be able to control my emotions, once I started... but I began.
*****
Well... to start off I will give you some back story to this tale. I am eleven years older than your father.
When the incident occurred, I was twenty-one, and Basil was ten... Since the day he was born, Basil was very small and weak, but made it up in bravery. Anyways, I'm getting a bit of track, aren't I...?
It had been two years since we had lost our parents, and he had been staying with me since then.
On the day the incident happened, it was light outside with gray clouds covering the sky and a light fog surrounding everyone. I didn't have work that day, for it was just after Christmas, so I took Basil for a morning walk. Basil was continuously by my side with his brand new sling shot that he had gotten on Christmas morn.
We were about fifteen blocks from home and it was about time for Basil to get back home before he got too cold. To get there faster, I took Basil by the hand and we turned down an alley way. That was my first mistake...
I ran through the alley at such speed that I had to pick Basil up so he wouldn't fall. Without watching where I was going, I ran right into an older mouse of about thirty.
I was knocked to the ground and Basil had fallen out of my grasp. The mouse slowly turned around and looked at me in anger.
"Ya got a problem, buster," the mouse asked.
I gulped. I had never encountered a mouse of his stature. I took a quick glance around, but Basil was nowhere to be seen. I hoped that he had gotten to somewhere safe. When I looked back at the mouse, two more emerged from the shadows with pipe and chains.
"What do ya say, Bruiser," asked the one with the chains. "Should we rough 'im up a bit for runnin' into ya like that?"
He nodded... that was when fear gripped my heart the tightest.
"Let's show this punk some manners."
I scrambled to my feet and tried to run, but they were as swift as they were in size, which was very much so.
I was first caught by the throat by the third mouse whose breath smelled strongly of beer. He then slammed me against a garbage unit and they all commenced to beating me to a pulp. I was kicked, punched, cut, and choked, but somehow I remained conscious though I wish I wasn't for what happened next...
As my beating was becoming more violent, there was a sudden pause in one of my attackers, and then all of them ceased. It was then that I noticed Basil at the far end of the alley shooting with his trusty slingshot pebbles and aluminum cans and other small miscellaneous objects at the thugs.
"Who's the pipsqueak," asked Bruiser.
"I'm sorry," Basil said. "I didn't know we were referring to your IQ."
If I had been fully aware I probably would have laughed, but that was not the case. It took a moment for them to catch the insult, which was just as humorous, but then they turned their back on me and began advance on my little brother. In a burst of energy, I jumped onto the back of the smallest of the three and held tight.
"Leave him alone, you blaggarts," I cried.
The one I had a hold of struggled for a while until he slammed me against the wall. I slid down slowly to the floor. There was no doubt in my mind that they were going to go after Basil, and... I...
*****
I couldn't continue. It had been over twenty years, but I couldn't seem to get over it.
"I wasn't... able to protect him," I finally whimpered.
"You don't have to finish, Uncle," Able said as he scooted closer to me.
I shook my head. This child was so understanding, but I knew that deep inside that he wanted to hear the rest.
I let out a slow breath and looked down at my nephew.
"No, let's finish," I said. "Now where were we..."
*****
After I had been knocked to the ground, they turned back to Basil and went after him.
Basil's eyes widened, he let out a shriek, and ran. He took a sharp turn around the corner where I had lost sight of him.
"I'm gonna break you, you little runt," yelled one of them.
My brain set off numerous alarms to tell me to save him, but I couldn't move. The pain was too great.
Suddenly, I heard another scream from Basil, several whacks, and then a grunt from being hit very hard.
The muggers then ran away from the scene with sadistic grins and pilfered any money I had had on me.
"Pleasure doin' business with ya, govner," laughed Bruiser.
Then I blacked out...
When I woke up, the temperature had dropped dramatically and night had settled in.
I sat up slowly as I looked over my injuries. They were not too bad, but my whole body ached. I breathed in and out slowly, then stood unsteadily on my feet.
Suddenly, I remembered that Basil had tried to run away from those heathens.
"Oh no," I whispered. Then I began to yell for him. "BASIL! BASIL, WHERE ARE YOU?"
I ran as fast as I could around the corner, and continued my search. After a few moments, I found his half-frozen body lying in a little divot.
I almost broke down into tears right then and there.
His face was battered, there were cuts all over his body, a large cut was on his head, and his tiny arm was terribly broken.
I gingerly gathered his broken form into my arms and began to run to find somewhere to find help. I refused to call out, but I ran from one block to another and soon, I came a single lit house on Baker Street.
It was Ms. Judson's home, though I didn't know of her until I knocked on the door. When she answered, she was covered in flour and let out a startled gasp at the sight of my brother and I.
"Who are you," she asked.
"Madam, please, my brother cannot be in this weather. We were mugged just a few blocks away, but our home is too far. I swear I will pay--"
I tried reaching for my wallet, but remembered that it was gone. I sighed and looked at her apologetically.
"I... I'm so sorry... it's just..."
I looked down at Basil and back at her. Her startled posture relaxed and she nodded as she opened her arms so that she could carry Basil in.
I hesitantly handed him over, then followed her inside. Once she had gotten a better look at Basil and I, she let out another short gasp.
"Oh dear Lord," she breathed.
She patted exceeds flour off her dress and looked around. She ran to the phone that was attached to the wall just outside the kitchen. She put in a number and waited for someone to answer.
"Yes, Doctor Bailey," she asked. "I'm sorry to bother you at this time, there is a young child and his older brother that both need medical attention. How fast can you get here?... Soon? Good, good. I will see you then."
She hung up and rushed towards me. There was worry painted across her features. She gave me a seat to sit in as she cleaned Basil up.
When she finished, she took another chair and sat in front of me.
"What happened," she asked sternly, as if she was my mother.
"Well... what happened..." I started saying.
Soon everything that had happened came out, even extra things like the loss of our parents which explained why my brother was staying with me.
After I had finished, she looked back at Basil in shock.
"We are surely in the presence of a braveheart," she whispered to me.
I smiled a bit at the compliment she has given my brother and nodded in agreement.
"He always was courageous, even if it got him into trouble... but... the reason he got hurt this time was my doing. I couldn't protect him."
Before she could object my statement, the door opened quickly with a burst of cold air, and in came a doctor. He was small in height and thin, Basil might've even been able to surpass his height. His eyes were kind as was his whole presence. He rushed in, tipped his hat to Ms. Judson, then came over to me.
"Sir, please," I said as he started looking at my injuries. "Please look at my little brother, first. I will survive, but my brother hasn't woken up."
He nodded and asked, "What's your brother's name?"
"Basil," I replied.
He then stepped over to where Basil had been laid in a big red chair next to the fireplace to warm up.
Doctor Bailey gathered him up in his arms and looked to Ms. Judson.
"Is there a room we can take him," he asked softly.
She nodded and began to lead him upstairs.
"Come on, Basil," I heard him whisper. "We're going to go fix you up."
Then, they disappeared into a room upstairs and I was forced to wait in the sitting room. I waited... and waited... and waited for what seemed like days. The anxiety was probably killing me more than my actual injuries.
After about three hours, Doctor Bailey walked out of the room and came down the stairs to me. I stood up quickly, which caused my vision to grow dark around the edges. He quickly grabbed my shoulders to steady me.
"Sit down, sit down," he said as he sat me down. "Before you cause yourself more injury."
He sat down in front of me and began to care for my injuries. As he did so, he talked with me in the most gentle voice just like the hands that mended my wounds.
"How is he," I asked.
"Resting," he answered simply. "Ms. Judson told me what had happened... I wanted you to know that the injuries your brother has are not your fault. There was no way for you protect him in your condition, and I think he knew what he was getting into. I believe he just wanted to save his big brother."
"But I could have withheld the worse they could offer, and if I had been watching the time I wouldn't have felt the need to turn into that alley. It is my fault."
"Well, what matters now is that you both are safe and that we look to the future, hmm?"
I nodded and waited for him to finish. The worse of my injuries was a small gash under my ribs.
As he finished up his work, I thought of how I could ever repay these kind mice.
Suddenly, my thoughts were interrupted by the doctor's gentle voice.
"One thing I forgot to mention about Basil's condition..." he said sadly. "Along with a broken arm and several small injuries, I'm afraid your brother has suffered a major concussion..."
"What does that mean for him, Doctor Bailey," I asked.
"He will most definitely have some memory loss. To what extent, I do not know. It could from the minute he lost consciousness or even his entire life. We won't know until he wakes up."
I let the information sink in for a moment, then thanked the doctor for what he had for us.
The world seemed to have dropped from under my feet.
My brother may not remember anything? The though was unbearable.
Doctor Bailey gathered his things, checked on Basil, promised to make regular visits with us here at Baker Street until we were both to full health, and left.
It would be three days until Basil would wake up. Thankfully, his memory was not damaged by much, but he did not remember any of the incident.
"Byron," he later asked me. "How did I break my arm?"
"Well..."
I had to think of something different from what had happened. What child would want to hear that they and their brother were mugged in an alley?
"You fell from a limb at the park. I wasn't fast enough to catch you in time."
"How come I was out for three days, then?"
"Doctor Bailey had you on heavy medication for quite a while."
"What about my slingshot?"
"I can get you a new one, don't worry about that."
He nodded and was quickly back to sleep. That short time awake must have exhausted him.
Weeks passed and soon Basil was on his feet again. We stayed at Baker Street for a good length of time.
After a month had passed, Basil has grown more and more used to being with Ms. Judson, and I had to get back to work.
So... I made the decision to leave Basil in the care of the landlady.
I left a note next his bed, kissed him upon the head, and left in the middle of the night, so I wouldn't be faced with his questions...
*****
"Now, I did visit quite often, but I wasn't as present as I was when our parents first passed," I said as I finished. "That's what truly happened, Able. Satisfied?"
I looked down at my nephew, who was smiling widely at me. He shrugged and turned his head towards the stairs.
"Well, I know he is," Able said.
Then, my sneaky little brother, who had promised he would rest, came down the stairs with his cane with a sheepish grin on his face. I stared at him in shock.
"You tricked me," I cried.
"That I did," my brother replied. "And more than once, I'm afraid."
"More than once?"
He nodded.
"When I woke up, I heard you and Doctor Bailey talking one night about how you blamed yourself for my injuries. Of course, I knew what I was doing, and I didn't agree to the blame you had brought upon yourself... so I played dead, so to speak. I knew that you would make up a story if I had forgotten, and that's what I did. I forgot."
"So you remember?"
"Not everything," he admitted. "The entire alley scene is a bit of a blur, though I distinctly remember certain details. I guess that was another reason to trick you into telling Able the story."
He sat down in his chair and looked at me as Able walked over to him and took a seat in his lap.
"It really wasn't your fault," Basil said.
"Thank you, Basil," I said as tears welled up in my eyes.
He will never know how much that meant to me.
He nodded his acknowledgement and laid his head back against the chair. Then he dozed off. I smiled at him as I stood up from Dawson's chair. I hugged Able and squeezed one of Basil's shoulders.
"Tell your father," I whispered to Able. "I'll be visiting again tomorrow. Stay of trouble, okay?"
He nodded and gave a tiny salute. I saluted back and turned to leave. As I opened the door, Ms. Judson came out of thekitchen and hugged me. I hugged back and whispered into her ear.
"Thank you for all that you've done. I will never be able too repay you for your kindness."
"That's why they call it kindness, Deary," she replied.
I tipped my hat towards her, then left Baker Street.
THE END
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