Max Hystory - Adventures in Time - Glencoe

Nobody's fool

Chapter 9

    Max, Tom, and Angus begin to stir from their sleepy, drunken stupor as the morning sun peers into the stall at the back of the stables. They moan against the throbbing headache, bright light, and urge to vomit. Tom rolls over and realizes that they each of them have have the urge to vomit sometime during th night, and actually did all over each other. The Stall door opens wide to the young girl Mary from the kitchen, and stepping out from behind her is the Tacksman. 

"You two are absolutely worthless to me today! And where in did ya ever find another one as stupid as you two, you dunderheeds!" The Tacksman yells as he walks away.

Tom struggles to a seated position after failing to stand, and begins to beg Mary, while the other two roll over to vomit once again.

"Please, whatever you do, Do not tell Mrs. McDo.... Oh shit!" Tom stammers as Mrs. McDonald steps out from behind Mary.

A moment later the Tacksman returns with a couple buckets of water and tosses it on the three boys, then the soldier who guards the stables walks up with two more buckets and he tosses them on the boys as well. The fresh cold water does wonders to sober up the three misguided young boys, but the threat of a good lashing from Mrs. McDonald works even better. The boys struggle to their feet, still a little drunk, They striaghten their clothes and follow the large womenand young Mary back to the kitchen where they are to be given 'something for what ails them' whatever that is. The boys enter the room only to find a large tub of hot water just inside, Tom and Angus seem to be frightened by the sight of it, and even turn to run out, only to be stopped by a soldier. Max wonders why they would be so afraid of a simple bath, afterall they vomited on each other and were lying in a horse stable full of manure.

"Whats wrong? Its just a bath." Max asks as he removes the clothes the boys gave him, and steps into the tub,"Do you have any soap?"

"Thats the problem Max, the soap will burn you all the way to your soul, and she will scrub the flesh from your bones if you let her," Angus insists.

"It can't be that bad... Ahhhhh!" Max screams as Mrs. McDonald takes a cloth to his back.

"Well, you Nae as dirty as those two, but ya stink like the rear end of a horse," Mrs. McDonald says as she holds on with one hand so tight she cuts off the circulation and scrubs with the other.

 After a while Max give up fighting and lets the large woman bathe him, the soap does burn some, but it is a small price to pay not to smell like he had. Max and Tom stand in the waiting guarded by a soldier while Mary brings in fresh clothes for the three of them. Mrs. McDonald keeps her busy with fetching more hot water, fresh cloths and soap, so she will not linger to long in the area where their are naked boys bathing. She has to think of the young girls reputation, Mrs McDonald says as she bathes Tom, that's all a girl has in this world, and you need to protect it! She demands. It takes a while but the three boys are cleaned, and dressed ready for more mischief. The energy used to fight against Mrs. McDonald seems to have aleviated the discomfort of their hangovers as well.

"Well I guess we will go help out in the Stables," Angus states as he stands and heads for the door.

"Sit that wee butt back down on that wee bench, wee Angus, you'll go nowhere. I'm nobody fool you know? There is more to your friend Max than you are telling me," Mrs. McDonald accuses as she leaves her pots and pans on the hearth to wag her finger at the three boys.

"I just want to go help, before The Tacksman gets too angry at me for what I have done," Angus explains.

"Oh! You not gonna turn this day around in ya favor young man, He is mad as a hornet, you not only left him to do the work all by himself, but you made of mess of the stables, and he loves those stables like they were his own home," Mrs. McDonald warns, "If I were you, I wouldnae want to go back there anytime soon."