Mates

By: Will B
(© 2008 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

In 1643 King Charles I was reunited with his wife at Longleaf Manor, held by Thomas Robinson. Eleven-year old Ed Robinson and his best friend Henry Thompson saw Alf, the cowman, pleasuring his body, and they did just wonder about that.

Chapter 2
June 25, 1644

In the months since we last met our two young heroes some changes had been taking place in their bodies. They were now twelve years old and a few small hairs had started to grow in their armpits. Other hair had started to grow around their young male organs.

One day as the boys were at the pond getting ready to cool off in the water, Ed said to Henry, “You know, you’re getting hair around your tossle.”

“Yep!” Henry replied, “And the other morning when I woke up, I had this white sticky stuff on my belly.”

“Gosh!” answered Ed, “That’s neat. The same thing happened to me last night. I was feeling kind of itchy, you know, down there, and while I was scratching, suddenly mine got real hard, and then I shot a load of stuff out of it.”

“I think we’re starting to grow up,” said Henry. “Why, the other day I was talking to my Mother, and all of a sudden my voice got REAL DEEP, LIKE THIS.”

“What happened?” Ed asked.

“My Mother looked at me and laughed, and said, “Oh, my dear boy. You’re on your way.”

She told my Dad and he just smiled at me, and put his hand on my shoulder, and said, “Good for you, m'lad!”

“You know, Henry, I think we’ve got pretty good parents. I can always talk to my Father about anything. He told me I could expect things like the hair coming on my body and the white stuff, the man-seed, coming, and my voice changing.”

“My Father is a good Dad also. I hope neither of them have to join the King’s Army,” Henry said.

“Oh, so do I, but I think that if the King asked them to, they would go to fight, because they feel it’s their duty….Oh, Henry, I’m so glad I have you to talk to.”

“Me, too, Ed."

“You know, Henry, there’s one thing my Father didn’t tell me.”

“What’s that, Ed?”

“Well, he didn’t tell me how wonderful it would feel when that man-seed came out. It felt just…. I don’t know, like I wanted it to keep coming out!”

“Hummm!” said Henry, maybe I’ll try scratching when I feel itchy ‘down there’!”

The boys took their dip in the pool, got out and got dressed, and walked down to the Manor. Neither one had been aware of Alf standing in the trees, listening to their conversation, and watching, looking, and wondering …

When the boys got to the Manor they found their fathers in conference in Ed’s father’s office, but the boys were welcomed with smiles and told to come in.

“I have some news for the two of you,” Tom Robinson said. “Reverend Poole has done an excellent job of teaching you your letters and numbers, but now I have engaged a fencing master to come and stay at the Manor to teach all of us something of self defense using the quarter staff, the sword, and some of these new flint-lock guns.”

“Oh, that sounds like fun!” young Ed said.

“It’s not just for fun,” his father said. “We live in troubled times. There is unrest throughout the country and we never know when some of the blasted rebels, ‘roundheads’ as they call themselves, might attack the Manor. He’s also going to teach all of us, including you two lads, and Ned, Ted, and Alf how to use the quarter-staff, how to wield a sword, and how to aim and fire these rifles. Learn well, because some day you may find you are defending your mothers, the maid servants and yourselves against an attack.”

“We will learn, won’t we, Henry?” stated Ed.

“We will,” said his friend. The boys stood a little taller as they realized the seriousness of the situation. One could almost detect the ancient war cry, ‘Saint George for England.’ in their young minds and hearts. This love of country had been encouraged by Reverend Poole’s recently having had his students read Shakespeare’s play, “Henry V,” and discuss that stirring St. Crispin’s Day speech, “Gentlemen of England, now a bed…”

Ed began to recite,

From this day to the ending of the world,

But we in it shall be remember'd;

We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;

For he to-day that sheds his blood with me

Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile

This day shall gentle his condition.

Henry continued,

And gentlemen of England, now a-bed

Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,

And hold their manhoods cheap while any speaks

That fought with us upon St Crispin's Day.

When they finished, Tom and John both had tears in their eyes; they were so proud of their sons. Yes, they were a little fearful, too, not knowing what dangers the future might hold for the boys, their families, the Manor, and the people on the Manor.

Clearing his throat, Tom clapped both boys on their shoulders and said, “Well done, lads, well done!”

At that minute, Mary Robinson came to the door and invited the men to come to the hall for a mid-day meal. “We have cold meat, cheese, bread, and some ale that I’ve just brewed,” she said. “And there’s a messenger from your cousin George.”

“Did he bring any books?” Tom asked.

“No, just some news, Tom,” Mary said.

The two men and their sons went into the Hall, and found the messenger, one George Barnes who seemed to be about twenty. He stood and bowed and said, “My master, George Robinson, has sent me to tell you two things. First, Our Lady Queen was safely delivered of a daughter on the sixteenth of this month.”

“Oh,” said Mary. “That’s wonderful. Why … it was just last September …uh… nine months ago that the King and Queen… Oh, Tom, do you think it was that visit…?”

“We’ll never know, my Dear, but we’ll drink a toast to the new baby and Their Majesties’ good health. You’ll join us, and also for lunch, won’t you, young Master Barnes?”

“That I will, Sir, and with a right good heart, too. Riding is thirsty work, and I haven’t eaten since I had a scrap or two before setting out from Whitehall.”

“Good. We’ll be eating shortly. Now you said you had two items to tell us…?’

“Yes, and this is not so good,” George said. "The King is marching north to Yorkshire. He is going to meet the damn…oh, pardon me, Mistress, those dratted Rebels somewhere for a battle.”

Tom and John started to say something, but Mary knew her man and knew what he was thinking. “No, Tom. Not this battle. Not this time. You’d never make it to Yorkshire in time. No, I say NO!”

“But, Mary, the King….”

“No, dear heart. Not this time!”

“Sir, if I may suggest something,” George interrupted. “Perhaps you could spend some time getting the men in the village ready in case there is trouble closer to home.”

 “Well, George, that is something to think about, but I … “

“No, Tom, George is right. The men will listen to you. Your place is here,” Mary said. “Now, I think it’s time for our meal.”

A few days later Ed and Henry were on the hill by the pond when they saw a handsome young man, in his early thirties, driving a cart filled with all kinds of packages. Behind the cart trotted a handsome steed. The boys ran down the hill to greet him.

The man was wearing a plumed hat with a feather in it. His black hair was long and curly, his green eyes crinkled as he smiled, and he had a most attractive mouth. Dressed in a shirt and leggings with black boots, he presented a fine figure of a man. Alf the Cowman stood back observing the young man and thinking how attractive he was.

Tom Robinson came out of the house and said, “Good day, Sir. Are you Giles Jenkins, whom we’ve been expecting?”

“Indeed I am, Sir, and you must be Master Thomas Robinson who has sent for me to come and teach the men of the Manor some skills with quarterstaff and sword and the flintlock.”

“I am, Master Jenkins, and this is my son Edward, and his friend Henry Johnson. Henry’s father, John, is the Steward of the Manor.”

“’Pon my soul, Sir, I would have taken these lads as brothers, they look so much alike.”

“Well, Sir, my wife and John’s wife are sisters. Sir, I will have Ned and Ted unload the weapons and take them into the Hall. We’ll put them in a storeroom for now. Alf will help you see to your ass and cart and your fine horse—Arabian, by the looks of him. We will have a meal in about forty minutes.”

“Ah, yes, he is a thoroughbred!”

Ned and Ted appeared and began to unload the cart. Alf led the ass and the cart around to the barn and Giles led his horse.  Giles rubbed his horse down and put him in a stall. The horse, whose name was ‘Lion-Heart,’ seemed a little nervous in his new quarters.

“I wonder if I could make up a bed near ‘Lion-heart’ for a few nights, until he settles in. Like many thoroughbreds, he is very nervous,” Giles said.

“Well, young sir, my room is adjoining this barn or shed,” Alf offered. “You would be welcome to stay there, with me. My quarters are rough, but comfortable, and you would be near your horse.”

Giles looked at the older man, and saw a rough countryman who, for all his muscular body, seemed shy. Somehow he was drawn to this man by his kindness, by . . . oh, he didn’t know what, but he said, “I thank you, good Alf. I think I’ve made a friend already.”

“At the end of the day, we’ll share a mug of ale, and if the day’s been hot, we could go up the hill and cool off in the pond. Master won’t mind,” Alf said.

Giles grinned and said, “I’d like that. I’d like that very much!”

Giles joined the family for lunch in the Hall. Including the women, everyone was anxious to hear what the handsome young stranger had to say. It was worked out that in the mornings when young Ed and Henry were at the school run by Reverend Poole, Giles would work with Tom, John, and the servants Ned and Ted and Alf in learning how to use all of the weapons. In the afternoon he would work with Ed and Henry and teach them the rudiments of sword play and perhaps teach them how to load and fire the flintlocks. Even the women could be given some elementary lessons in firearms. He was to take his mid-day and evening meal with the family, but after supper, his time was his own.

“You know, we have a room you can use for your own, here in the Manor,” Mary Robinson said.

“Thank you kindly, m'lady, but Alf has invited me to share his shed with him for the first few nights so I can be sure my horse is settling in.”

“Well, if you’re sure, but just remember we do have a room for you,” Mary said.

And so the routine of training and lessons began and went on for some weeks without incident.

However, one hot day in August, Giles said to Tom, “Master Tom, I think it would be a good idea if I taught Ed and Henry something about swimming--or at least a dog paddle that might keep them afloat if they found themselves in deep water.”

“By Harry,” said Tom, “I think that’s a great idea. You can teach them in the pond, and maybe John or I will come to watch and listen. Sometimes you can teach old dogs some new tricks.”

So it was that the next afternoon, when it was hot and muggy, all the men, including Ned and Ted and Alf, climbed the hill to the pond. They stepped out of their braies and leggings and went into the pond.

“Now, watch me,” said Giles. He put his hands on the edge of the pond and bent forward. Then he began to kick his legs out behind him with enough force that his body as suspended horizontally in the water. Then he pushed away from the edge of the pond and moved his arms and hands in the dog paddle motion so that he could stay afloat and even move a little through the water.

All of the men and boys were impressed at this because they had never seen anything like it. Alf was also impressed at the sight of this young man’s arm, back and leg muscles moving through the water, and at the sight of his buttocks moving as he moved his legs. Alf found himself thinking that he would love to run his hands over that smooth, muscular body, and perhaps run his fingers into that crevice between the . . . He just  wanted to feel that young body in his arms, and to smother it with kisses, and perhaps even take Giles’ organ into . . .

Alf stopped, shocked at the images his mind was conjuring up.

John Thompson asked Giles, “Will you watch while I try this dog paddle exercise?”

“To be sure, Master Thompson. Just let your body relax and keep your arms and legs moving.”

John Thompson soon mastered the art of keeping afloat. Then Tom Robinson said he would like to try. He, too, mastered it. Before long all the men—masters, servants, and lads—were kicking and paddling and staying afloat. Perhaps the best one to master the dog paddle was Alf. As he finished, everyone watching him congratulated him.

Something happened to Alf. He no longer had the surly expression on his face. The other men liked him, and he smiled happily, knowing that even though he was just Alf, the cowman, he had accomplished something worthwhile. His happiness was complete when Giles came over to him, and clapped him on the shoulder, and said “Good job, my friend..

All too soon it was time to climb out of the pond, shake various appendages free of excess moisture, and get dressed and go to their evening meal. Tom came over to Alf and Giles, and said, “Well, my friends, we have had a good days’ exercise. Giles, you have taught us all well, and Alf, I am impressed with your prowess in the water. I think my good wife has roasted several chickens for dinner. Would the two of you like to join us, this once?”

“Oh, no, Master Tom, ‘twouldn’t be seemly, and all, a simple cowman sitting down with his betters. I’ll just have my supper in my shed,” Alf said modestly, but he was touched that Master Tom would think so kindly of him.

“How about you, Giles. Will you join us?” 

"Oh, I thank you, sir, but I’ll keep Alf company.”

“Well, my friends, I will have Ned or Ted bring one of those chickens over to you. I’ll see you tomorrow, and again, good job, Giles, and you too, Alf.”

As the days shortened and Fall drew near, Tom gave more thought to the well-being of Alf. He sent Ned and Ted over to repair any chinks in the walls of Alf’s shed, to keep out the winter breezes that would come.  Mary found an old rug that would make a very warm, comfortable bed covering for Alf. Why it was big enough to cover two men!

One October afternoon, Giles and Alf had gone out to the fields to bring the cows home to the barn for their afternoon milking. The cows gave no trouble; they knew the way home, and they were ready for their milking. Their udders were full.

Truth to tell, Alf and Giles were anxious to get home too, because the clouds were piling up, big black thunderclouds that promised to bring rain to the earth.

The two men and the cows were about three hundred yards from the barn, when, BOOM! CRASH! The skies opened and the rain came down. In seconds the two men were soaked.

The cows ran into the barn, and the maids were there to do the milking. Alf and Giles went the few feet to their shed, shut the door, and stripped off their clothes. Alf threw a piece of rough sacking to Giles to use as a towel and put some kindling and a log in the fireplace. He soon had a fire crackling, and turned to Giles to say, “There, my friend. We’ll soon be warm.”

He was shocked to see Giles shivering and shaking, and saying “So…cold... can’t…get …warm…cold., so ….cold!”

Without thinking what he was doing, Alf went to Giles, and pulled him into a full hug, and said, “Come on, Giles, get under this blanket with me. You’ll soon feel warm. You’re safe and warm now. Come on, under the cover with you!”

Alf had his strong muscular arm around the shivering shoulders of Giles, and gradually, Giles stopped shaking, and relaxed in the warm embrace of Alf.

To be continued...

Encourager’s Note:  It appears that the Cowman and Teacher are going to be more than friends.  Oh dear, how are Hank and Ed going to learn anything new now that the chinks are being fixed.  Maybe Ned and Ted will miss one or two. E

Posted: 01/16/09