By Air Mail Ch.02

Amelia bawled like a baby all the short way home and she spent the rest of the day in Craig's arms as they sat together and wept.

She sat up in the tub and prepared to stand up as she thought about where they were now. The war had ended, and after a time when all that they knew was that Tad was alive, they'd heard nothing for a time, though Marjorie had said that as far as she knew, Tad was on his way home the long way and had something in mind for a business. She wouldn't say much more, not wanting to curse whatever that meant.

Craig was grown now and so was she. The difference was that she knew what she wanted and it was the same now as it had been long ago. She just didn't know if she was too late.

She wrapped a towel around herself and as she got to the door, it opened and a hand held out a huge T-shirt through the opening.

"Here," her mother said, "It's one of your uncle's. If you've got a brain in your head, you'll come to sit with us. We need to talk. Women always need to talk and now; you're one of the women in the family."

Amelia took the article, "What's this for? I was going to put on a nightgown."

"Whatever you want," Rebecca smiled as she walked away, "We figured that you might not want to sit up and talk to a couple of naked crazy ladies anymore."

"Where are you?" she asked and was told they'd be in the huge bed that Marjorie shared with Deke.

Amelia couldn't say why, she just knew that she felt better and as always, all that it took was to be just a little near to those crazy ladies. She hung up the towel, carried the shirt into the room and laid it over the back of a chair.

"Fine, but I get to sit in the middle," Amelia said with the same smug expression that she'd worn all of the times before since she could say the words.

Since that time and even before, when she'd been a newborn, she'd lain in bed sometimes with these two women, who were both mothers to her. That way, she'd always felt safe and warm and she'd always been able to talk about anything. All of her life, Amelia had been in her jammies or later, her nightgowns. Sometimes, she was the only one clothed, though that hadn't necessarily always held true. A lot of the time, it depended on who was home and the time of year, so often it was all of them wearing nightgowns as they spoke to her.

The only times when she'd stopped had been ... while she was married to Bobby and ... and recently, now that she thought of it and she didn't know why that was.

"She's getting brave, getting in here without anything on like us," Marjorie smiled as she held open the covers.

"You said that I'm one of the women now," Amelia shrugged, "I figured that it was in the rules or something."

She got in next to Rebecca and Marjorie was next to her after that.

"You know, there are only two people in this whole town who make a big deal about the way that you live - and that's you," Amelia said with a grin, "Everybody else either hasn't figured it out or they have and they don't give a damn."

"That reminds me," Marjorie said, as though she was ignoring what had just been said, "Is there any chance you might go hunt up a few rabbits tomorrow or Saturday? It's my mother's birthday Sunday and you know that old Bonny Tait will be coming over to the cafe for her lunch that day. Any time between now and then is fine, so long as I've got the time to prepare them for her."

Marjorie's father had died while hunting and after that, her mother had been like a rudderless ship for a time, until Rebecca had noticed something about old Bonny and gotten them together. Bonny's husband had been killed in a car wreck and her children were both long grown and they never stopped by to see her, since they lived on opposite coasts.

They were both a couple of old women by that time in their lives, but they'd had a few good years together until Marjorie's mother had passed on two years ago. Bonny liked to come over to remember the day that they'd met and she always shed a few tears remembering.

"I hadn't planned on it," Amelia said, "but sure. Why not? I've always liked Bonny and I know how she loves to have rabbit." She looked up, "Is she one of the women that you're talking about?"

Rebecca laughed and shook her head, "No, what I meant was that you're old enough to be one of the women in this family, not that one. This isn't about what Marjorie and I do in bed. This is about us being adults and talking that way. You're old enough now."

"And I'm naked," Amelia laughed.

She wriggled a little between them and giggled once, "This is even better than it was when I was a kid. You'd never have let me be here naked. I always thought that it wasn't fair. No wonder you're always like this."

She sighed loudly, "I'm finally in the club."

It caused them all to laugh, but Amelia was wise enough to let it drop right there.

To her, all of her life, this had been the best place to feel the love of her mothers as they all talked forever or just brushed each other's hair. And all of that time, Amelia had been given their sage advice in such small constant doses that she'd never even been aware of it until now.

She'd pretty much always known the way that they were between them, but she had more of a real regular family between all of the parents that she had in it as well as her brothers than anybody and she knew how fortunate she'd always been.

On the rare occasions when they could do this with nobody else home, it had felt like she was allowed among the elders in a way, and then, Amelia felt the depth and the immense strength of their love for her just by being there.

But even so, she knew when to stop kidding around.

You had to be just stupid to keep doing that in between these two in a bed. Nobody could tickle you into jelly like they could.

"I don't really know how to start," her mother said, "I guess that ... I mean, I think ..."

Amelia wasn't looking at her, but she knew that Marjorie's eyes were already rolling.

"For Pete's sake, Rebecca. Amelia knows how you are and how you can see and feel things. It's not like you're trying to describe it to a stranger. Just tell her what you know. I'll correct you whenever you're about to run off the rails."

"Oh?" Rebecca's eyebrows rose slowly, "So you have the sight too, do you?"

Marjorie blew past her lips, "No but I'm a mother too, and that count's you know."

Amelia was about to express her wish that they had television, but she knew what that would get her, so she said nothing and waited.

"You've said what you plan to do," her mother told her, "My heart is full of hope for you. But if it is to happen, then it must... happen ..."

Amelia looked at Rebecca with her eyebrows rising, since that was where she'd stopped.

"Or? And? What?"

Rebecca looked at her and seemed to come back to herself a little, "Yes. Sorry. I was just thinking.

Among the letters that Marjorie got from Tad, there are a few that she has not shown anyone but me. He has been coming home, as we all knew. Twice, he has written to his mother and to Deke, giving a bank's mailing address and asking that some of his inheritance from his grandfather in Portland be wired to him there. Only the four of us who he holds as his parents know what he has in his mind."

She looked at Amelia, "But I am - as Marjorie always tells everyone - a wise woman who can see far through the smoke of life and I know something more now."

She put her arm around Amelia, "I do not know where he is, but I know that Tad will be here in only days."

She looked at her daughter searchingly, "Craig loves Tad as much as you do, but he has always hidden himself in the shadows a little bit in Tad's presence. I tell you this now, so that you can think of what you must do - if it is anything different. If it changes how you would approach things, Amelia. For my part, I am one of the mothers of you all, just as Marjorie is. Neither of us would ever take sides and you must know this."

Marjorie only had so much patience and she turned to Amelia and said, "What your mighty, mystical mother is trying to tell you in so many words and in her careful way is that we also know that if you had the chance ..."

Amelia nodded, "I understand. This might complicate things. It's sooner than I planned, though I'm really happy that he's coming home at last."

She thought for a moment and then she looked from one to the other, "I'd only ever say this to you two and never to anyone else, not Dad or Deke for sure, and not to either one, Craig or Tad. But I'll tell you what I've held in my heart, if you promise not to judge me."

"Amelia," Rebecca smiled, "why do you think that you are here with us right now? This is why I asked you to come to us. This is for only us."

The mothers looked at each other around Amelia and chuckled a little. "You were so right to call her one of us," Marjorie smiled at Rebecca and she hugged Amelia, "You really are one of us from now on. You don't have to say another word. We already know.

Just ... well, be really careful. If you think on it a little, you could be holding two very strong hearts in your hands.

Amelia nodded, "But I want to say it, more to see if I can and to try to see how it feels if I do."

They watched as Amelia took a bit of a breath, not being dramatic or even very visible about it, just because it was important to her and she felt that she needed it.

"I've always loved them just as we were. I hope that I'm given the chance to go on loving them forever no matter what happens. But we're all grown up now - and who knows, after all of this time? The way that I think of it in my mind, I'd want to love Craig if I still even have a chance. When I was a kid, I always wanted to be a Mrs. Fairbairn. I just didn't know which one at first.

I'm not even going to mention my rotten marriage anymore, but now, I find that I want that again - to take that name as mine too. I want that so much. If I can say it without sounding like a fool of a young girl, I want to marry Craig one day, because I think that he needs for it to be that way. I'd let him love Tad if it ever gets to that, but I'd want Tad too - if the world stands on it's ear long enough to ever let that happen."

She looked down for a moment, "It feels sort of alright if I say it that way. But from right here, in a bed with you both, it also sounds a long, long way from ever happening."

They were silent for a few moments as they all thought about it. Marjorie leaned in and kissed Amelia's cheek softly, "Honey, it might sound a little odd, but to my mind, if there's one girl in the world who could pull magic like that off, it just might be you. If that's what you want, fine, as long as there are no broken hearts and one thing.

I love those boys too, because I'm the closest thing that Craig has had for a mother since he was six. I'd love to see you make our grandchildren with him, just like your mother would. But I'm also Tad's mother - so you know what I'd want from that side."

Amelia looked over, "More grandchildren, right?"

The three of them shared peals of laughter over it for a few moments before Amelia looked over, "Why did you say that I'm the only girl who could do that?"

Rebecca hugged Amelia and kissed her cheek as well, "Who are your mothers? I can't believe that you wouldn't think of it."

Amelia sat in the bed looking down as she thought for a minute.

Then her head snapped up. "Then it's true? Nobody around here even thinks about it, but I've always wondered. I can remember getting out of bed from a bad dream when I was little one time and I went to see Mom, but ..."

She stared at Marjorie a little, "But it was you there. You were in bed with my father."

Marjorie nodded, "Your mother was right here with Deke that night. I got up and took my upset and sleepy little girl back to her bed. I held you close and told you everything was going to be alright and that it was just a bad dream - the same as I've done for the boys - the same as your mother's done for them both at times.

If we'd had our kids at near the same time, we'd have both nursed whichever one was hungry out of convenience because we were busy with the cafe and the Potter businesses. It just didn't happen, that's all.

When you and Tad were each toddlers at different times, there were times when one of us would nap with you, because we had the luxury of there being two of us."

"The only one who didn't get that was Craig, "Rebecca said, "because he was too old when he came to us. I've always been a little sad about that. That boy probably needed a mother more than you and Tad did and never had that at that time in his life. All that he had was a disinterested governess before he came here. We just did what we could for him and let him know that we loved him too, all of the parents. We all made sure that he knew that he was loved here very much."

Amelia looked back and forth, her mind playing childhood memories at high speed, "So ... so you ..."

Marjorie shrugged, "Uh-huh, every once in a while, we do that."

Amelia smiled, "I can't believe I've never thought of it before. You guys are ... "

"Amazing or just weird?" Marjorie offered.

Amelia shook her head, "Amazing."

She laughed, "Definitely amazing. Wow."

"I wouldn't go that far," the redhead smiled, "We're just a pair of girls who have gotten what we both always wanted. That we began between us at all is your mother's fault, but really, where we were all alone, it sort of came natural and she fascinated me anyway. We just saw a wonderful chance when we met the Potter boys and after a little time, we told them our fondest wishes.

They're not twins, but what woman wouldn't want the man she loves and then OTHER man she loves once in a while? Nobody does it like those two.

Now you know why I said it like that," Marjorie smiled, "If you really want - I mean ... if it's what you really, really want with them, then you're the only one who I'd say even has a chance."

She raised her finger, "But it can only be with them. Neither of them would allow it if there was anyone else, I mean, a man."

Amelia smiled with a little laugh, "I've always thought that we're the best family anywhere. Now I know why even more. I still don't really know how I'm gonna make up this little miracle, because that's what it will take if it happens. Holy jumpin' ..."

It took a minute, but Marjorie and Amelia noted that Rebecca was silent and had been for a little while.

Amelia looked over, "You're quiet, Mother. I know you and that means something as sure as anything. Do you think that I won't be able to make it happen? Will I do something wrong to ruin it and maybe have neither of them? I need to know so I can weigh the risks - if you think that you can say it."

Rebecca looked up from the spot on the blanket that she'd been staring at unconsciously, "I have heard stories of something like this where a man keeps two women. It is rare and always has been, for most are not like that. It usually comes from war and a prisoner taken as a second wife, and somehow, it turns into love out of the coldest of hates.

I never knew anyone like that, but I heard it in some stories of the past. Things like that didn't happen after the whites came, since our culture was turned upside down then - as it was with many tribes, I must guess. Remember that many of those stories were more male-sided, if you know what I mean. I don't have a better way to say it.

For a woman to take two men - who know it - that is something that I have never heard of at all. I don't mean to say that it couldn't happen, I just ... have never heard even a scrap of a story like that. I suppose that she would have to be a very strong woman to hold two men to her."

She looked up then, "But that isn't what I saw in my mind just now. Tad is coming home, so I am already happy just for that. Right now, he is far away and he waits for something, though I do not know what it is. I know that it is not a bad thing, only that he waits.

When he has finished waiting, he will come home. He does not know it himself yet and I do not know what it will mean, but ... I know that ..." She looked at them both.

"He will not come alone."

"A man?" Amelia asked.

"A woman?" Marjorie asked in a whisper.

But Rebecca was shaking her head.

"What's left - besides dogs and Christmas trees?" Marjorie asked.

"Guns, dames and money?" Amelia suggested.

Seeing the looks which came her way she just mumbled, "Sorry, I've been reading detective novels again."

"When I see something," Rebecca said with just a trace of mild annoyance, "It's not like a newsreel like they show at the movie theater. Things come to me - or they don't and when they do, it is like little things you might see if you were in a hallway, passing by many doors.

Sometimes, a door stands open as I move past and I see inside, but it is only for a moment and then I am past the door. I can't stop and go back to look in.

You should just accept what I tell you and when. Sometimes, I don't say anything and if I am lucky, I see more in another doorway another time, enough to tell of then. I only know that Tad will come with someone. He has not met her yet and neither one knows of it at all. Do not forget that I could be wrong. That happens sometimes."

She looked up, as though trying to see through the bedroom wall for a moment. She smiled just a little and looked at the others. "I was right. Neither of them know anything of it - yet. But it will need to happen, for her sake. At that time - and it will happen soon - she will need him."

"A woman," Marjorie nodded, "That's bad."

Amelia held up her hand, "Wait up."

She looked at her mother very searchingly, "Why, Mom? Do you mean that like, she'll need him as in love, or for him to give her food or what? Is she lost?"

Rebecca shook her head a little, "Maybe later. I don't know. But when they meet, she will need his help right then, or ..."

She shook her head and shrugged, "I don't know enough yet. It might come in a dream to me later. I think that she will need him badly."

Marjorie looked concerned, "Even worse then. Maybe it would have been better if it was a man."

Amelia thought about it and shook her head, "No. It would be bad if it was a man and there was anything between them, even if they were just friends. I'm thinking of Craig. That would be bad. It would make everything impossible." She looked at her mother, "Nothing between them yet, right?"

Rebecca nodded, "They have not met yet. I don't know much more than that."

"What are you thinking, Baby?" Marjorie asked Amelia quietly, "Let us in on what comes to you. I'd do anything to help - you know I would."

Amelia shook her head, saying nothing, since she needed a moment to think. She looked over at her mother and saw Rebecca nod.

"I think it's best that it's a girl," Amelia said softly, "I think that I might still have a chance then."

"You're not thinking of coming between them if something happens, are you?" Rebecca asked, "It is never wise to think like that."

"No," Amelia said in more of a whisper as she thought further, "It means that if I can work this delicate thing at all - assuming that it does turn into something between her and Tad - then just maybe I can have the same thing that you do. I'd have to meet her of course and nothing's definite anyway other than Mom's seen it."

Marjorie snickered, "We don't know anything. The poor girl might look like a horse."

Rebecca shook her head, "Don't be ridiculous. This is your son - our son we're talking about. How many times have you and I laughed as women tripped over the crack in the sidewalk right outside the café when he's stepped out to go somewhere and a girl has almost fallen on her nose in shock?

He walks back to help her up if she's fallen, asks her if she's alright in that way of his and then goes on his way. We end up with a girl on our doorstep who's almost a puddle.