Warning: This is a Western AU with a teenaged Fox who will eventually 
have some sort of parental relationship with Skinner. If this isn't 
your cup of tea, do not read on.

Category: PG-13, Discipline

Disclaimer: My name is Chris Carter, and I've finally decided to use 
the wonderful characters that I came up with in a *good* way. Hey, it 
can't be worse than some of the eps I've written, right? <pleading 
look>

My addy is: gaby@gaby.slashcity.tv

My home is at: http://gaby.slashcity.tv

Summary: Fox gets ready for his first day in school...but things 
aren't what he imagined them to be...



INDEPENDENCE
by Gaby


Chapter 8 - Learning Curve



"Final warning, Rascal!"

"I said, in a minute," came the irritated reply.

Sheriff Skinner stared at the boy in disbelief. Fox was wrapped around 
the fence, his head and right arm stuck through two beams, softly 
talking to Spirit.

The big man had wanted to set the little horse free; in fact, he had 
planned to ride to the mountains with his rascal and let Spirit run 
back where he belonged. The boy had been so adamant about the beast's 
freedom that it had never even occurred to the sheriff to keep the 
horse. He had only brought the animal to his cabin to make sure that 
old Spender wouldn't get too close to Fox.

What he had never imagined was the way the little wild horse reacted 
to his rascal. He and Sam Krycek had had the hardest time bringing the 
animal to the sheriff's cabin; he may be small but he was fiery and 
temperamental. But as soon as he saw the boy Spirit was calm. Maybe it 
*was* true, Skinner mused. Two wild creatures taming each other. There 
was no way he would set the animal free now.

But it also looked like he wouldn't be able to get his rascal away 
from the pasture. Checking the stirrups on Buck's saddle one last 
time, he looked up just in time to see Fox climbing up to straddle the 
fence. 'Oh no, you don't,' Skinner thought, mounting his horse.

"Rascal!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the boy mumbled, seriously unimpressed. He was 
perched on the top beam of the fence, one hand stretched out for 
Spirit to nuzzle. Fox giggled softly and crooned to the horse.

The sheriff slowly rode over to the fence, immediately causing Spirit 
to flee to the far side of the pasture. Fox was about to turn around 
and yell at the sheriff when he was unceremoniously plucked from his 
perch and draped over the saddle, jeans-clad butt pointing upwards. 
Skinner landed four hard swats on each butt cheek, all in the same 
spot. The boy was too surprised to do anything about it and, when he 
finally found his voice again, the spanking was already over.

"You're an old meanie," Fox accused glumly, a pout directed at the 
dirty ground he was still staring at.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Skinner mimicked him good-naturedly before he 
grabbed the boy gently under his arms, lifting him up and sitting him 
down properly in the saddle in front of him. "That was for making me 
wait, Rascal. I gave you a final warning. You know better than to 
tempt me. We're already late as it is."

Fox slumped against the broad chest behind him and squirmed a little 
when he realized that the sheriff had concentrated the spanks on his 
sit spot. "I don't wanna go to school," he sulked.

"We already talked about this, Rascal," Skinner replied patiently 
while they began to ride towards Independence. "I wanted to enroll you 
yesterday but between Mr. Byers teaching and us celebrating your 
birthday we didn't find the time. In that one minute I was able to 
talk to him he also told me that he wanted to meet you in person. So 
we're going." Fox had opened his mouth to protest but Skinner's stern 
voice made him shut it again. "We're just going there to enroll you, 
Rascal. Nothing's going to happen," Skinner added soothingly. "And I'm 
sure you'll like going to school. Just wait and see. Two days can go 
by very fast!"

Fox wasn't so sure about that but he looked forward to spending more 
time with Alex. He couldn't wait to show him Spirit - maybe Skinner 
would even allow him to bring him to school one day! And that stupid 
enrolling thing couldn't be too bad either. And besides, he was going 
to help Miss Dana in the store all day later on, and *that* was really 
nice! The boy hoped he would be allowed to spend the entire next day 
with Spirit though he suspected that Skinner would insist on going to 
church first. Fox sighed. Was there anything more boring in the world 
than church?

They arrived in front of the school house all too soon for the boy's 
liking. He looked at it nervously. Skinner dismounted and tugged at 
the boy's pants leg. "Coming, Rascal?" he asked, smiling.

Fox sighed and slid off the horse. Giving Buck a departing pat on the 
strong neck he determinedly climbed the steps to the front door. There 
was no way he was going to show Skinner that he was nervous! How bad 
could it be? He was going to go in there, say hello, enroll, turn 
around and be done with it. Piece of cake.

The boy started when he felt a big hand on his right shoulder. "Going 
inside?" Skinner asked softly, trying to fight the smile that 
threatened to break out on his face.

Fox kept staring at the closed door for another long moment before he 
airily replied, "Of course." He opened the door and walked inside, 
showing as much self-confidence as possible. The warm hand squeezing 
his shoulder gently was a lot of help.

There was a bearded man sitting at a desk in the front and Fox 
narrowed his eyes immediately. He didn't like beards. He thought they 
disguised the face. He was convinced that people were trying to hide 
something under their beards. And he was supposed to *talk* to that 
guy? Never!

Skinner gently guided him towards the other man who looked up and 
smiled. "Hello, Sheriff," he said. "That must be the boy you told me 
about."

The sheriff nodded. "Hello, John," he greeted the other man, gently 
nudging his rascal.

Fox just stared glumly at the teacher. After another - now not so 
gentle - nudge he muttered, "Hello." Skinner decided to have another 
little discussion about the whole respect issue but Byers seemed 
unfazed.

The bearded man smiled warmly and took the boy's hand to shake it. 
"Hello, young man. I'm glad to finally meet you." Fox's head shot up 
at that. He was clearly surprised. "Well," Byers laughed. "I've 
already heard a lot about you. From Alex and from the sheriff. Who is 
very proud of you, by the way." The teacher smiled again when he saw 
Fox blush. Skinner grinned and tousled the boy's hair affectionately. 
"Would you like to take a look around?" Byers asked and Fox nodded 
eagerly. Exploring was one of his favorite pastimes!

Byers walked towards the school desks which were lined up in eight 
rows with three desks in each row. Two students were able to share one 
desk. "There are currently 43 students in this school," he began. "The 
youngest children sit in the front. And the oldest sit in the back. 
That way it's easier for me to keep track of who is supposed to be 
doing what." He winked at the boy. "There's one exception though. Alex 
sits here," he said, walking to the left desk in the front row, 
patting the desk. "He's learning from scratch but he's faster than the 
little ones so he needs special tutelage. That's why he's sitting 
here. I thought you could share a desk with him."

Skinner grinned broadly when he saw the blinding smile on his rascal's 
face. Then he shook his head regretfully. Byers had no idea what he 
had just done - Alex and Fox together? 'Have mercy on his soul,' 
Skinner prayed.

Fox was eagerly investigating his new seat. The fact that he was able 
to lift the table top almost undid him. The things he could hide in 
that desk! He grinned in anticipation. Maybe that whole school thing 
wasn't that bad after all...

Byers realized that the ice was broken so he sat down at his own desk 
again. Skinner leaned against the desk in front of the teacher's desk, 
crossing his arms and ankles and looking at the other man expectantly. 
The teacher smiled. "I know what you're thinking, Walt," Byers said 
softly. "But don't worry. I've got everything under control." He 
chuckled when he saw the sheriff's eyebrow shoot up. "He's a special 
boy," Byers whispered. "I'll take good care of him."

"I expect nothing less," Skinner growled. "And that goes for *all* the 
children." After another stern look he began to smile. "I know you're 
a good teacher, John. I'm just a little nervous..." He looked at Fox 
who was now intently exploring one of the maps that hung on the wall 
behind the teacher's desk. It was showing Independence and its 
surroundings, and the boy was so busy tracing the outline of a lake 
with his index finger that he wasn't even aware of the men talking 
about him. He stared at Crystal Lake, the one behind the sheriff's 
cabin, without actually knowing what it was. From the look on his face 
he somehow seemed to sense it, though.

"Ready to enroll?" Byers asked in a normal voice, grabbing a notebook 
and a pen.

Fox didn't react. Skinner cleared his throat twice before the boy 
looked up. "What?" he asked, annoyed.

"I need some information," Byers began. "I hope you can help me." Fox 
raised a suspicious eyebrow but walked to the bearded man anyway.

"What's that?" he asked curiously, pointing at the notebook that lay 
open in front of Byers.

"Everyone who was ever a student in this school is listed in this 
book," Byers explained, thumbing through page after page of names.

"Really?" Fox asked, excited. "Is the Old Meanie in there, too?"

Skinner tried to scowl at the use of that particular term of 
endearment but failed miserably. "No, Rascal. I only came here a year 
ago. Remember, I told you about that."

"Oh. Yeah, I remember." Fox shrugged and looked at the notebook with 
considerable less enthusiasm. Then he realized something and he 
beamed. "But Alex is in there, isn't he?" he exclaimed.

"Oh yes," Byers said, turning to the page with the latest entries. 
"Right here. In fact, he's the last one I wrote down."

Fox looked at the hand-written name. The few letters and words he knew 
were all printed block letters so this was something entirely new. 
"This here means 'Alex,' doesn't it?" he asked after a long moment, 
pointing at the first name. Skinner and Byers were seriously 
impressed. "I recognized the 'X,'" Fox explained. "I already know how 
an X looks like. And I know how to spell 'Alex' but this here," he 
tapped the name, "looks different to what I already learned." He 
pointed at the wall where a banner was hanging. It showed the alphabet 
in block letters. "See? I know some of those letters. And the 'X' 
looks the same here." He tapped the notebook again. "The 'X' was the 
first letter I ever learned," he declared proudly.

"That's great, Rascal," Skinner said, also quite proud of the boy.

"I'm sure you'll know how to read and write in no time," Byers added, 
picking up his pen. "Well, are you ready to see your name standing 
right under your friend's?" he asked. "I always write down the 
student's name, birthday and..." he faltered for a split second before 
he finished with, "guardian."

Skinner's eyebrow shot up. He was glad that Byers had caught himself 
just in time. He was sure that his rascal wouldn't have reacted too 
kindly to the word 'parent.'

"I had a birthday yesterday," Fox declared happily. "I got a horse as 
a birthday present."

"Really?" the teacher asked, smiling. "That's wonderful. I'm sure you 
spent the night in the stable then."

The sheriff pointedly cleared his throat, glowering at the other man. 
But Fox was happy that he had found someone who was on his side and 
that had been Byers' goal in the first place. "Well, I wanted to spend 
the night with Spirit but the Old Meanie wouldn't let me," the boy 
pouted.

"That's because Spirit is still wild and he won't go near the stable 
and I won't have you spend the entire night outside in the cold," 
Skinner explained reasonably.

"Well, he does have a point," Byers said to Fox, nodding gravely. The 
boy huffed. But it was obvious to everyone that he seemed to like the 
teacher. "So, October thirteenth," Byers said while he wrote it down. 
"And how old are you now?"

Skinner held his breath, hoping that they wouldn't have another long 
and heated discussion about *that* issue. They had ignored the age 
issue the day before, not wanting to spoil the party. So he was more 
than a little surprised when Fox readily informed Byers about what he 
considered was his age. "I turned thirteen yesterday." Then he looked 
at the sheriff and grinned. "It was the bestest birthday ever and it 
was on the thirteenth. So, I'm turning thirteen."

The sheriff wasn't sure that he could follow this logic but he grinned 
and nodded anyway. From the looks Byers gave him the bearded man 
seemed to think that Fox could be around that age. Skinner had told 
him the short version of his rascal's story - what little he knew - so 
Byers had been forewarned. That was also part of the reason why the 
teacher had wanted to meet Fox before he started school officially. Up 
till now Skinner thought Byers handled his rascal masterfully. He 
smiled at the boy and waved him closer.

Fox readily came to him and found himself enveloped in a bear hug. 
"Good boy," Skinner whispered into the boy's ear before the ruffled 
the long locks tenderly. Fox grinned at him and blushed.

"So," Byers began. "And who is your guardian?"

Fox looked at the teacher with his head cocked. "What's that?" he 
asked, clearly puzzled.

"Well, that's the person who takes care of you," Byers explained.

"Oh." The boy chewed on his lower lip for a second, stealing a 
surreptitious glance in the sheriff's direction. "I guess that would 
be the Old Meanie," he finally said, receiving another hug from the 
big man.

"Old Meanie," Byers repeated slowly while he was writing.

"Did you just write that in your book?" Fox asked excitedly and walked 
back to the other man to have a closer look.

"Well, no. I did write 'Walter Skinner, local sheriff'," Byers 
admitted but when he saw the disappointed look on the boy's face he 
added conspiratorially, "but we both know who he *really* is, don't 
we?" That produced another smile from Fox and he nodded happily.

Byers quickly exchanged a worried look with Skinner. They both knew 
what was coming next and the teacher had purposefully left it till the 
end. "Now all I need is your name," he said softly.

"It's Fox," the boy replied, shrugging.

"Rascal, no. Let's not have that discussion again." Skinner shook his 
head, frowning.

"Why?" Fox exploded. "It's my name!"

"You said yourself that your name is William," the sheriff began but 
he was cut off by his agitated rascal.

"I told you that my *birth*name is William. My *real* name is Fox!" 
The boy stomped over to what would be his school desk soon and sat 
down with a serious pout on his face.

Byers looked from Skinner to Fox and back to Skinner. He didn't want 
to take sides and he *had* been warned that this would happen but he 
had figured they would be able to find a solution quickly. Apparently 
he was wrong. "What about the last name?" he asked, hoping that this 
would diffuse the anger.

"I don't have a last name," Fox spat. After a long moment he mumbled 
dejectedly, "At least I don't remember one." Both men's hearts went 
out to the boy but Fox was having none of it. "And my name is Fox. 
That's all you need to know!" he told Byers stubbornly while he played 
with the desktop listlessly.

"Well, I'm sorry but I do need a full name," Byers replied gently. 
"How about a compromise? We could write down 'William Fox.' The saloon 
owner's last name is also Fox so-" The teacher jumped when the boy let 
the desktop slam shut with a loud bang.

"No," Fox yelled, jumping up angrily. "Fox is not my last name! I 
don't want you to write it down like that!"

Skinner opened his mouth to reprimand the boy for his behavior but 
Byers warned him off with a look so he shut his mouth again and let 
the teacher deal with it. "How about...'Fox Williams' then?" he 
suggested.

"No." The sheriff shook his head adamantly. "I refuse to allow you to 
list 'Fox' as his first name."

"Why?" Fox yelled, agitated. "It's my *name*! It's *my* name! You 
can't force me to use another name! I hate you!"

The boy began to run to the door but he was stopped by a very stern, 
"Stop it right there, Rascal." Fox slowed down but didn't turn around. 
"Come back here, Rascal. Right now! I mean it!" Fox swallowed 
nervously. He realized that he was in trouble and he had already 
received one spanking! He slowly turned around to look at the angry 
sheriff. "Now," Skinner repeated with a calm yet stern voice.

Byers watched in surprise how the boy slowly made his way back to the 
sheriff. He would've sworn that nothing could've stopped Fox from 
running outside and yet the boy obeyed the big man. And he had never 
seen Skinner like this - angry but controlled, stern but loving.

As soon as Fox was within arm's reach Skinner wrapped his hand around 
the back of the boy's neck and pulled him close. He locked eyes with 
him and gently asked, "Do you really hate me, Rascal?" The boy dropped 
his gaze and shook his head imperceptibly, a few tears pooling in his 
eyes. Skinner wrapped his arms around the skinny boy and squeezed. 
"It's okay," he whispered into his rascal's hair and felt the tears 
soaking into his shirt. He gave the boy a moment to collect himself 
then he heartily swatted the jeans-clad bottom twice.

Fox winced but he knew that he was getting off easy so he didn't 
complain. "I'm sorry," he offered, looking up at the sheriff 
hopefully.

Skinner just sighed and rolled his eyes at himself. He just couldn't 
stay angry at his rascal when he looked at him like that. "It's okay, 
Rascal," he repeated tenderly, maneuvering the boy between his open 
legs and wrapping his arms around the skinny body once again.

Byers looked at the both of them, marvelling at the way Skinner was 
able to tame the boy with nothing more than a few words and the touch 
of his hand. Fox looked at the teacher calmly, slowly melting into the 
big man's chest behind him. Byers was glad that Fox wouldn't be able 
to run away again - or bang the damned desktop!

"Okay, I have another idea," he said hesitantly. The bearded man 
looked at Skinner. "I understand that you don't necessarily have a 
problem with people calling him 'Fox,' do you?"

Skinner shook his head. "No," he answered truthfully. "Quite a few 
people do that. But it's something completely different writing the 
name down in an official document." Byers nodded. Well, the notebook 
wasn't really that official but whatever name was in there would also 
be used on the report cards. Fox, on the other hand, didn't understand 
what all the fuss was about. What's the difference between him being 
called 'Fox' or the name being written down? Then again, he made a big 
deal out of not wanting 'William' so he guessed the big man had the 
same right to make a big deal out of the 'Fox' issue.

"How about this then?" Byers offered. "I'll write down 'William' in 
the list since this *is* your birthname," he looked at the boy 
warningly, making sure he wouldn't yell bloody murder instantly. "But 
I'll gladly call you 'Fox' in class."

Fox blinked and cocked his head. "You would do that?" he asked, 
surprised.

"Why not? A lot of my students have different 'official' names," he 
explained. "There's James who everybody calls 'Jimmy' for example."

"Yeah, but that's different. 'Jimmy' is just short for 'James'," Fox 
argued. "I don't wanna be called 'Bill'! I really don't!" He 
shuddered, just thinking about Miss Dana's evil brother.

"Well, there's another boy who everybody calls 'Cal' though his real 
name is 'Balthazar'."

Skinner chuckled knowingly while his rascal's eyes almost popped out 
of their sockets. "No wonder he wants to be called 'Cal'," he 
commented under his breath.

"Actually, everybody calls him 'Cal' because it's short for 'Calamity' 
- and they call him that for very good reasons, by the way," Skinner 
chuckled, squeezing the skinny body in his arms.

"Be that as it may," Byers chimed in, trying to get back to business. 
"So you see I don't have a problem calling you 'Fox'." He looked at 
the boy intently. "So, do you allow me to write down 'William'?"

Both men held their breaths until Fox finally nodded his head. Skinner 
gave him another squeeze. "Good boy," he commented softly.

"Now all I need is a last name," Byers said hesitantly.

"How about this, Rascal? You can choose whatever name you want," 
Skinner suggested. He hoped to find out more about the boy that way. 
Maybe he only said that he didn't remember his last name but would 
tell them the right one after all. If he was a runaway then Skinner 
had more to work with than just the first name and the description of 
the boy. The sheriff also hoped that by giving his rascal the 
opportunity to choose his own last name he would get back into the 
boy's good graces.

"But...but I don't know which one to take," Fox said nervously.

"It's just for the list, Fox. It's not really that important," Byers 
tried to soothe him.

"Just pick one, Rascal. You can choose any name you like." Skinner 
half expected Fox to say 'Scully' because he loved the Scully ladies 
so much. On the other hand, having the same last name as Bill - with 
'William' officially being his first name... maybe not. 'Krycek' 
because Alex was his best friend? Skinner really didn't want to 
explain that to the other boy's father, Sam. Maybe 'Buck' or 'Spirit'! 
The sheriff tried hard not to grin.

The silence stretched into several long minutes and the men gave Fox 
all the time in the world. It *was* a hard and difficult decision to 
make, after all. Skinner reassuringly hugged the boy in his arms, 
slowly rocking him, relieved to find that his rascal relaxed into the 
embrace.

Finally Fox muttered, "I guess 'Skinner' would be a good name." Then, 
before either one of the two men could actually react to the rather 
shocking news, Fox pointed out the window and exclaimed excitedly, 
"Look, there's Alex! Can I go help him?"

Skinner was so dumb-struck that he automatically looked out the window 
to see the other boy busily hauling large - and obviously heavy - bags 
of grain off a wagon that stood in front of the livery stable. Before 
he knew what he was doing he let go of his rascal so Fox could run 
outside. Right before Fox could open the door Skinner snapped out of 
his reverie and turned around to look at his charge. "Rascal?" he said 
warningly.

Fox blinked and cocked his head for a second before he understood. He 
blushed slightly then waved at the bearded man. "Bye, Mr. Byers. See 
you on Monday!" And out he ran.

Both men stared at the closed door before they finally looked at each 
other. After a long minute Byers neutrally commented, "Well, 'William 
Skinner' it is then," writing the name in his book.

A slow, happy smile split the sheriff's face in two and he looked out 
the window to watch his rascal run up to Alex, offering his help. 
"Yeah," he said softly. "Sounds perfect to me."

XXXXX

The sheriff walked up to the two boys who were working hard on moving 
the heavy bags of grain into the livery stable. Alex was standing on 
top of the wagon, shoving one of the bags towards Fox who was waiting 
on the ground, arms outstretched.

When Alex saw Skinner he straightened up and grinned. "Reinforcement! 
Finally! Took you long enough!" He had his hands on his hips and threw 
in a scowl for good measure, mimicking the sheriff pretty well. "Next 
time don't dawdle, do you hear me?" he scolded. The big man's eyebrows 
shot up in surprise. Alex grinned again and turned to his friend. 
"Come on, Fox. Your Old Meanie," he flashed another grin at the 
sheriff, "will take care of the rest. I think after the hard work 
we've done we really deserve a nice, cold beer! Let's go to the 
saloon!"

He jumped off the wagon but his feet never made it to the ground. 
Skinner had his strong right arm wrapped around the boy's waist so 
Alex was hanging doubled over in mid-air. Fox just stared at the scene 
that was being played out in front of his eyes.

Skinner manhandled Alex until he held the boy's right ankle in his 
right hand, holding him upside down, softly swaying in the morning 
sun. Alex giggled. "Well, you've just proved quite nicely to be strong 
enough to finish our work," he said, pointing in the direction of the 
wagon. "Now stop fooling around and get busy! Old Meanie!" Alex 
laughed again, clearly enjoying this nickname.

The sheriff growled warningly before he used his left hand to find the 
exact one spot where Alex was ticklish - directly above his left hip 
bone. The big man used his knowledge wisely and soon had the boy 
laughing hysterically. "What did you call me?" he asked, mock stern. 
Alex just kept laughing harder, trying to twist out of the strong 
grip. "Do you yield?" Skinner asked after a minute, stopping the 
tickling.

It took the boy a few seconds to catch his breath before he heroically 
crossed his arms over his chest - which, he had to admit, looked a 
little silly hanging upside down - and he proudly declared, "Never! 
You may torture me all you like, Lord Meanie, but *I*, Prince Alex the 
Purehearted, will prevail in the end!" Then, just for effect, he stuck 
his tongue out. Skinner cocked one eyebrow and merely continued to 
tickle the hapless boy hanging from his grasp. "Knight Fox," Alex 
giggled in between gasps. "Knight Fox, you will have to help me!"

Fox stared at his friend with wide eyes. What the hell was he talking 
about? Prince? Lord? Knight??? "It's your own fault, Alex," he finally 
said. "You know he's *my* Old Meanie!" Fox grinned at the sheriff who 
stopped tickling Alex long enough to point a blunt finger at his 
rascal.

"You'll be next," he informed him ominously. Fox blanched momentarily 
before he realized that at least for the moment he was relatively safe 
from retaliation. But he knew that Skinner was a first-class, grade A 
tickler and he was surprised that Alex hadn't wetted himself yet.

Alex, in the meantime, was twisting and turning until Skinner stopped 
the torture. The sheriff looked down at the boy. "Do you yield?" he 
asked again, smiling.

"Never," Alex replied, wiping away the tears of laughter that had been 
flowing freely into his long, soft hair. Then he grabbed Skinner's 
pants, using his hands to slowly inch his way up the big man. The 
sheriff steadily held the boy up while Alex twisted his way up, 
grabbing Skinner's vest and then the shirt sleeve until he was finally 
hanging on the same arm that held his ankle, his left leg swinging 
freely. He looked like a baby monkey dangling from a branch. He 
grinned at the sheriff who was at eye level. "That was fun! Can we do 
it again?"

Skinner let out a belly laugh before he wrapped his left arm around 
the boy to put him safely down. "My poor arm," he said mournfully, 
rubbing his right arm. "I'm getting too old for this..."

Alex smirked. "See? Fox is right. You *are* an old meanie!" He jumped 
aside just in time to avoid the swat that was directed at his butt.

The sheriff turned to Fox who had been silent throughout the whole 
scene. "See what you're doing to my reputation, Rascal?" he asked, 
sighing dejectedly.

Fox stared at him with wide eyes. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, tears 
pooling in his eyes. "I'll never call you 'Old Meanie' again!"

Skinner stared at him in disbelief. "I was just kidding, Rascal," he 
exclaimed, wrapping the boy in a hug. After a second he felt the 
skinny body trembling and at first he thought Fox was crying - until 
he took a closer look. Fox was laughing. Hysterically.

"I was kidding as well. Old Meanie!" The boy grinned at the sheriff 
and wasn't as successful as Alex in avoiding a swat to his butt. Fox 
rubbed his bottom mournfully. "Alex might think you're an *old* 
meanie...but I think you're an old *meanie*," he stated, pouting. 
Skinner raised an eyebrow before he broke out in a big smile and 
ruffled the boy's hair. Fox couldn't help himself, he grinned as well.

The sheriff turned to Alex. "Where's your father, anyway?" he asked, 
clearly surprised that Sam would leave the hard work to his son. That 
was quite unusual.

"Oh, he's robbing the bank," Alex replied without batting an eyelash. 
Then he slapped both hands over his mouth and he gave the sheriff a 
wide-eyed look. "Oops. I wasn't supposed to tell anyone."

Skinner laughed out loud and winked at the boy. "Don't worry," he 
said, leaning in close to whisper conspiratorially. "But tell your 
father that I expect a ten percent share for looking the other way."

"Will do," Alex replied, grinning. When the sheriff turned to grab one 
of the heavy bags he intervened. "No, it's okay, really. There are 
only three left." He pushed his chest out proudly. "Lord Alex will be 
able to handle that with the help of his trusted friend, Knight Fox!" 
Fox raised a suspicious eyebrow at that. Alex just grinned at him 
before he turned back to the sheriff. "And besides, we wouldn't want 
you to over-exert yourself. You being old and all."

This time he didn't avoid the stinging swat. "I may be old but I'm 
still fast," Skinner declared with his head held high. "My middle name 
is 'Quick-Swatter'," he informed the boys before turning on his heel 
to walk away. After a few steps he looked at the two hysterically 
laughing boys. "Rascal, don't forget that Miss Dana is waiting for 
you. If you need anything, I'll be in my office." He continued to walk 
down Main Street, missing the look of pure envy Alex shot his friend. 
Dashing Dana all day long! Fox just smirked.

XXXXX

Taking the customary bath Saturday night was bad enough for Fox but 
going to church Sunday morning was even worse. At least Skinner 
allowed his rascal to spend the rest of the day with Spirit and Fox 
made good use of that - he jumped off the buggy as soon as Buck came 
to a stop in the cabin's yard and he ran to the fence. The little 
horse immediately sensed his owner and galloped closer. He stayed away 
a safe distance as long as Skinner was near and ignored Buck when the 
big horse entered the pasture. Fox eagerly waited until they were 
alone before he could pat his beloved Spirit.

Skinner had to practically drag him away for lunch and made him change 
clothes. "You will stay on the other side of the fence, Rascal," he 
warned the boy, clearly knowing that Fox wanted to play with his 
horse. "You may sit on top of it but if I see you inside the pasture 
you'll be a very sorry little boy."

Fox glared at him for a moment, informed him that he wasn't little 
anymore and ran outside to spend more time with Spirit.

The little horse looked tame enough when the boy was near but he 
became a whirlwind as soon as anybody else came near - whether it was 
Skinner or Buck. The big horse mostly ignored the pestering wild 
animal anyway though.

Skinner came outside in the late afternoon when it was raining hard. 
He opened the gate to the stable and Buck immediately walked inside, 
glad that he was allowed into his warm home, but Spirit still refused 
to enter the shelter. Skinner shrugged, deciding that it wouldn't kill 
a wild horse to stay outside in the rain. Wild little boys, however, 
were forced inside.

That didn't sit too well with Fox who wanted to stay with Spirit.

"Last warning," Skinner finally said. That worked wonders and Fox 
walked into the cabin, though he kept muttering under his breath for 
the rest of the day.

The cuddling before going to bed lifted the boy's mood though and Fox 
actually looked forward to spend the next day with Alex. In school. He 
wondered how school would be like. Alex loved going to school so it 
had to be a lot of fun. The boy couldn't wait to find out what kind of 
fun things they would be doing and fell asleep with a smile on his 
face.

XXXXX

Fox wasn't too sure about the whole going to school thing the next 
morning. He only had had five minutes to say good morning to Spirit 
before he was whisked away by the sheriff. They rode into town 
together, the boy safely nestled against Skinner's broad chest.

Maggie and Miss Dana had given Fox a slate and a notebook for school 
for his birthday and the boy clutched both to his chest protectively 
when Buck came to a stop in front of the school house. Byers stood on 
the steps and was just rounding up the children. He smiled and waved 
when he saw Skinner and Fox.

The sheriff dismounted and helped the boy down as well. "I'm not so 
sure about this anymore," Fox whispered. "I don't wanna go to school. 
Please don't force me to go in there!" He looked pleadingly at the big 
man but Skinner was having none of that.

"Rascal, you are such a bright boy. I promise you that you will like 
going to school." The big man framed the boy's face with his two large 
hands, looking at him gravely. "Be good. Behave. Be respectful. And 
most importantly," Skinner locked eyes with Fox. "Have fun!" The 
sheriff smiled at the boy who hesitantly grinned back. "I'll see you 
this afternoon, Rascal," Skinner said in parting, sending the boy on 
his way with a light swat to his buttocks.

Byers was still standing on the steps, waiting for Fox. "I'm glad you 
made it, Fox," he greeted the nervous boy. "I'm sure you'll like it 
here." He guided the boy inside.

Everybody turned around to look at Fox who blushed furiously and 
ducked his head. Byers guided him to the front and gently pushed him 
into his seat next to Alex. "Hi," his friend said, grinning broadly. 
"We're gonna have so much fun!" Fox wasn't so sure about that.

"Children, I want to introduce a new student," Byers said, clapping 
his hands to get everyone's attention. "This here is Fox. I want you 
to welcome him as part of our group."

There was a lot of mumbling and muttering going on, causing Fox to 
blush even more. He usually didn't mind being the center of attention 
but this here was just embarrassing. "Oh, another idiot who has to sit 
up in the front with the babies, just like the barbarian," came a 
jeering voice from the last row.

Fox's eyes snapped open at the same time as Byers purposefully walked 
to the offender to have a little chitchat about proper behavior. 
"Don't tell me Donny is here as well?" Fox whispered to Alex.

"'fraid so. His last year in school," his friend whispered back.

Fox turned around to look at Donny. He had never so much as exchanged 
one word with the bully but he had already heard enough stories about 
him to know that the boy was trouble. Donny just sat there, listening 
to the teacher's reprimand with a bored expression on his face.

And then Fox saw her.

His eyes grew huge and his mouth dropped open. He had always thought 
that Miss Dana was pretty but the girl he was staring at was plain 
beautiful. Just like with Alex's green eyes or Miss Dana's red hair, 
Fox was completely enthralled by the long, blond hair that the girl 
wore in a thick braid down her back. He had seen people with light 
brown or dark blond hair but this was just *blond* - almost golden. 
The sun that was shining through the window highlighted the vivid 
color, making the hair glow. She looked up then and gave Fox a shy 
smile that totally undid him. He blushed a deep red, swallowed 
convulsively and turned back to Alex to roughly grab his friend's 
shirt sleeve. "Who's that?" he asked him desperately.

"Who's who?" Alex replied, frowning.

"Who's sitting right in front of Donny?"

Alex turned around to look at the person in question before he stared 
at his friend in disbelief. "That's a *girl*," he said with a 
disgusted look on his face.

Fox rolled his eyes. "I know that! I'm not stupid, you know. But who 
is she?"

The other boy gave Fox a once-over, clearly trying to decide whether 
or not he had lost his mind before he replied, bored, "Her name is 
Lily. Lily Beere." He shrugged. Then his face brightened. "She's Cal's 
big sister. Now, *Cal* you're gonna like." Fox frowned momentarily, 
trying to remember where he had heard that name before. Then it came 
back to him - Cal, the walking chaos. He looked where Alex pointed. 
There was a boy sitting in the third row, on his face an impish grin 
that showed his missing front tooth. He also had blond hair that 
flopped into his eyes. The freckles that adorned his nose only 
enhanced the mischief that was sparkling in his eyes. He waved at Alex 
who winked back.

Before Fox could say anything to Alex, Byers stood in front of him. 
The teacher had given the students something to do while the boys had 
been busy talking and the man frowned slightly when he bent down. "So, 
are you gentlemen going to learn something today or would you prefer 
to go outside and chat?" he asked.

Fox had half a mind getting up and walking to the door but Alex 
immediately replied, "No, sir. Sorry, Mr. Byers."

The man smiled at them then. "Good. Now, Alex, have you practiced over 
the weekend?" The boy nodded vigorously. "Very good. Why don't you 
write one line of each letter of the alphabet so I can see how much 
you've improved?" Alex nodded eagerly before he grabbed his pen. Byers 
turned to Fox. "Now, you told me that you already know several 
letters. Is that right?" Fox nodded. "Can you tell me which ones?"

"Well, I know the 'X'," Fox began, frowning in concentration. "And the 
'A' and the 'E' and the 'L'...and the 'S' and the 'T'...oh, and the 
'O' and the 'U'!"

"Wow, that's a lot," Byers praised, smiling. Fox beamed, obviously 
proud by what he already knew. "Have you ever tried to write them down 
or are you only reading them?" the teacher asked.

The boy frowned. "I can read them," he began, not sure what the 
teacher wanted. He was sure that there was a trap hidden in that 
question. "I've never tried to write." What for, he asked himself. 
There were way more important things in life than being able to write!

"Okay, here's what I want you to do," Byers said. "Just like Alex 
here, I want you to write me one line each of the letters you already 
know." Fox reached for his notebook but the teacher shook his head, 
grabbing the slate instead. "Just for practice," he explained, writing 
down A, E, O, and U on the far left for Fox to copy. "We'll use the 
notebook a little later, okay?" Fox glared at the man. It was *his* 
notebook so why shouldn't he be allowed to use it whenever he wanted? 
He grabbed the piece of chalk listlessly and began his lesson.

Byers walked around, helping a child here, answering a question there, 
praising a student on occasion. When Fox had finished his task he had 
to admit that writing was harder then it looked. The teacher came up 
to him, smiling appraisingly. "That looks very good, Fox," he said. 
"You're very talented." Then he wiped the slate clean, causing Fox to 
almost choke. His letters! He had worked so hard to write them down! 
That wouldn't have happened with the notebook! "Now give the other 
letters a try, okay?" Byers asked, writing down an S, T, L, and X. Fox 
glared at him again but he suddenly remembered what the sheriff had 
said - 'behave!' The boy silently cursed Skinner before he started to 
copy the letters.

Fox finished his task at about the same time Alex was done with his. 
Byers walked up to them and looked at their work. "Very good, Fox," he 
said. "I can see that you have a few of those letters down cold 
already. Now let's give the more complicated ones another try, okay?" 
He wiped the slate clean again, and wrote down S, A, E. Fox could've 
wept. Why was he supposed to do that *again*? He had already learned 
how to copy those stupid letters! Couldn't Byers teach him something 
*new*? He stared at his slate glumly, fingering the piece of chalk.

Byers was busy praising Alex who beamed proudly. "Okay, Alex, I want 
you to try and write down short words. Whatever you can come up with. 
Just imagine how they would be spelled and write them down for me, 
okay?" Alex nodded eagerly. Talk about a big task! He immediately 
buried his nose in his notebook.

His friend just stared at his slate, pouting. This was so boring. Fox 
turned around to surreptitiously glance at Lily again. She was busy 
solving a math problem but she looked up when she sensed someone's 
eyes on her. Lily gave Fox another shy smile before turning back to 
her notebook. Fox blushed again and looked at the boy next to him.

Alex had a very concentrated look on his face, the tip of his pink 
tongue sticking out of the left corner of his mouth, his long bangs 
hanging in his face. Fox nudged him gently. "Alex, I'm bored." His 
friend shot him an angry look.

"Well, then go ahead and copy those letters," he hissed, pointing at 
the slate.

"But I don't wanna," Fox complained. "That's the whole reason why I'm 
bored in the first place!"

He jumped when Byers suddenly stood in front of them, knocking on 
their desk to get the boy's attention. "Fox," he said patiently. "I 
know this is all new to you but please keep in mind that there are 
other students here who also try to learn. Please don't disturb them 
by talking out loud." Fox glared at the teacher again. Byers calmly 
returned the look. Finally the boy caved in and began to copy the 
letters.

Fox was bored out of his mind after a while. Byers made him copy the 
same letters over and over again until he had them down cold. The boy 
sighed deeply, quite obviously annoyed by the way all of this was 
going. He had *known* that school was a boring thing. He vowed to not 
come back the next day!

"Alex," he whispered, nudging his friend again. "Alex, when are we 
finally going outside?"

His friend blinked in confusion. "Outside?" he asked back. Then he 
looked at the clock hanging on the wall and shrugged. "Pretty soon, 
actually. Why? You gonna continue being a pest outside as well or are 
you gonna act normally again?"

Fox shot his friend a hurt look but kept his mouth shut. 'Pretty soon' 
Alex had said. Fox began to understand. So, they were supposed to get 
the boring stuff out of the way before they could have *fun* learning 
the *important* things! He had been curious about the whole school 
house idea from the beginning but now it began to make sense. Of 
course, he could understand that they couldn't spend all day outside 
when it was raining so some kind of shelter was necessary. However, 
looking out the window and seeing the sunshine, he asked himself why 
they didn't use the golden October day to their advantage and spend 
the entire day outside! After all, they could learn all the boring 
stuff on rainy days - now they were wasting a perfectly good 
opportunity to be outside and learn the important things, like fishing 
or setting a trap for small animals or how to find water. Fox shook 
his head in disbelief. These people were really and truly weird!

Byers suddenly crouched down beside the boy. He could see that Fox was 
bored and that he resented the lesson he was being given. Quickly 
coming up with an idea, the teacher wiped the slate clean one more 
time. Fox didn't even protest anymore, he just stared glumly into the 
distance. "Fox, I want you to do something for me," Byers began, 
holding the piece of chalk up for the boy to take it.

"What?" Fox asked, sighing.

"You've shown me that you are a very bright boy. The letters you've 
been practicing are looking very good. I think we can take it a step 
further now." Fox briefly wondered if that meant they were finally 
going outside but the teacher's next words smashed this idea. "I want 
you to write down a big 'E' for me," Byers instructed.

Fox sighed again but did as we was told. Alex watched his friend and 
when he saw the straight lines Fox drew, he smiled proudly. "And now?" 
Fox asked, annoyed. He did remember Skinner's 'behave' but pushed that 
thought aside. He only had so much patience, after all.

"Now I want you to erase the bottom line," Byers said. Fox stared at 
him in disbelief. So, now *he* was supposed to wipe his work clean? 
The stupid teacher wasn't even doing it himself now, was he? Angrily, 
Fox used his flat hand to wipe over the slate but Byers stopped him 
just in time. "Only the bottom line, Fox, not the whole thing," he 
gently instructed. The boy shot him a look but did as we was told. 
"Well," Byers said, smiling. "You just learned a new letter."

"I did?" Fox asked, still slightly bored.

"Absolutely. This is an 'F'. Now, write an 'O' next to it." Fox sighed 
in exasperation but did as he was told. "And now an 'X'," Byers gently 
urged. The boy obeyed and then looked at his slate blankly. "Do you 
know what you just wrote?" the teacher asked him softly.

Fox shook his head mutinously, not wanting to even think about letters 
and writing and slates anymore. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw 
Alex grin broadly so he took another, closer look at his slate. He 
already knew the 'O' and the 'X'...what was that other letter again?

Suddenly, he understood what Byers had done, and a blinding smile 
broke out on his face. "I just wrote my name," he whispered, awe in 
his voice.

The teacher patted his knee, smiling. "Told you that you're a bright 
boy," he praised.

'That's me', Fox thought as he stared at the letters on his slate. He 
couldn't believe what he had just done. Suddenly, the whole writing 
thing had a new appeal. "Can you show me how to write 'Old Meanie'?" 
he asked Byers, excited.

The man laughed out loud. "Let's take it one step at a time," he 
softly admonished. "I think first you should learn all the other 
letters, okay?" Fox nodded eagerly. If he knew the other letters he 
would be able to write 'Old Meanie'! He couldn't wait to show the 
sheriff what he had learned! Byers straightened up and cleared his 
throat. "Okay, everyone, I think it's time," he began.

The children seemed to know what that meant because they all jumped up 
and ran to the door, leaving a bewildered teacher behind. It took Fox 
a second to understand what was going on before he also shot out of 
his seat. He was a bit disappointed that they had to stop now that he 
had finally realized that writing *could* be fun but he was glad that 
he was able to spend the rest of the day outside! Who knew, maybe he 
could show them just how much he already knew! He was convinced that 
nobody knew as much as he did when it came to the *important* stuff!

Just as he was about to run to the door, Byers called him back. "Fox, 
I'd like to talk to you for a minute." Fox sighed deeply. He saw Donny 
standing at the open door, grinning at him. The other boy was sure 
that Fox was in trouble and he enjoyed every second of it. With one 
last smirk he walked outside. Fox decided to kick some Donny butt as 
soon as possible. Then he turned around and walked back to the 
teacher's desk. "I don't know how much Alex told you about school," 
Byers began. "For the last two weeks Alex spent an additional hour or 
two after school for special one-on-one lessons. That way he'll be 
able to catch up to the older kids faster." Fox nodded. He remembered 
Alex mentioning this in passing. "I thought I'd do the same with you 
this week. Since you already know a little bit you should be on Alex's 
level by the end of the week. Then we can continue with the both of 
you receiving extra lessons after school together. What do you think?"

Fox stared at the man in disbelief. Did he say 'more'? And 'extra'? He 
couldn't wait to go outside and that man wanted him to spend an 
additional hour inside after being cooped up in that building all 
morning??? Then he remembered Skinner's words again. He was supposed 
to behave himself. Well, the sheriff had also said to 'have fun' - but 
spending endless hours in school sure wasn't fun for him! Fox sighed 
and stared at his feet. "Okay," he finally said. Maybe it wouldn't be 
so bad. He would just enjoy the afternoon in the sunshine, running 
around and having fun. Another hour inside couldn't be *that* bad 
after that, could it?

Byers smiled approvingly and sent him outside. Fox didn't need to be 
told twice. He dashed to the door, grinning happily.

XXXXX

Alex sat on the steps, waiting for his friend. "There you are," he 
said, patting the spot next to him invitingly. Fox got comfortable. 
"So, you had The Talk, eh?"

"What talk?"

"You know, that you're supposed to stay after school."

Fox blinked. "How do you know?"

"Well, Mr Byers told me last Friday that he would help *you* this week 
so I'm off the hook for now." Alex grinned. "Don't worry, it's not 
that bad."

Fox wasn't so sure about that but at least for now they would stay 
outside and that was nice. "So, where are we going now?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" the other boy replied, frowning.

"Well, are we going to the lake now? Or the forest?" Fox stared at his 
friend, seriously doubting his sanity. Wasn't it obvious what he 
meant?

Alex laughed. "Are you kidding? We can't just go and play, Fox. School 
isn't over for the day, you know."

"Yeah, I know that, stupid. That's why I'm asking where we're going 
next!" He grew impatient. Alex really could be dense sometimes. How 
were they supposed to learn how to read animal tracks when they stayed 
in town, right?

It took the other boy a moment to understand what Fox was talking 
about. When we realized what his friend meant, he shook his head 
ruefully. "I'm sorry, Fox, but this is just recess. You know, like a 
break. We'll go back inside in a few minutes." He jerked his thumb at 
the school house behind him.

Fox gaped at Alex. He had to be kidding! His friend had told him a 
little about school and he had always said how much fun it was. Even 
though Alex never really elaborated on the things they learned it was 
obvious to Fox that they would concentrate on the *important* things - 
and Fox knew from experience that it was a lot of *fun* learning 
those! But staying *inside* the school house? All day? Where was the 
fun in that?

And what were the children supposed to do when they were in the middle 
of the wilderness, and they got hungry? Write 'fish' or 'rabbit' on a 
piece of paper and eat *that*? Didn't these people have their 
priorities straight? "But tomorrow..." Fox began hopefully but Alex 
shook his head. Fox swallowed convulsively. He felt like weeping. That 
was torture, pure and simple. How was he supposed to survive day after 
day being cooped up inside that building? He needed to be outside, in 
the sunshine, breathing fresh air, looking at the blue sky!

It was hard enough working in the Scully store but at least there he 
could run around and do something and he was allowed to talk! In 
school he had to sit still and he was forbidden to say anything! The 
sheriff couldn't seriously think that he would survive another day in 
school like that, could he? Fox sighed dejectedly.

Alex realized that his friend was feeling down so he decided to cheer 
him up with easy chatter. Fox listened to him with half an ear, his 
eyes wandering over the school yard. Children were running around, 
playing catch or climbing the tree that stood proudly in the middle of 
the yard or just talking to each other. Suddenly he found a group of 
girls huddled close together, whispering and giggling. Lily was among 
them. A happy smile lit up his face when he saw her. "Oh brother," 
Alex moaned, rolling his eyes heavenwards. "You sure got it bad."

"What?" Fox asked, trying to look innocent.

"You're not fooling me, buddy. Why don't you just go up and talk to 
her?" Fox stared at his friend, totally aghast. "What, you chicken?"

"Nooo," Fox mumbled, staring at his feet. "It's just..." He shrugged 
helplessly.

Alex moaned again and shook his head in disbelief. At that moment, 
somebody came to a skittering halt in front of them. "Look what I 
found, Alex," an excited voice exclaimed. "You think I could use that 
as a slingshot?"

Fox looked up to see that Cal was almost bouncing up and down with 
pent-up energy. He held a small, Y-shaped branch under Alex's nose. 
"Cal - Fox. Fox - Cal," he introduced the boys without so much as 
looking at them. He was busy examining the branch. Cal grinned at Fox 
in way of greeting and Fox nodded in return. He instantly liked the 
younger boy. The mischief in his eyes reminded him of Alex and the 
slingshot-to-be only proved that point. "Hmm," Alex said after a 
minute. "I think this could work. Just cut off the end here and smooth 
it down a bit and you're set to go." He held the branch up but Cal 
hesitated. Apparently he wasn't sure that he was up to the task. 
Suddenly Alex grinned. "Tell you what, Cal," he began, digging a small 
knife out of his pocket. "I'll get the slingshot ready for you when 
you go to your sister and tell her that Fox would like to talk to her 
but is too chicken to take the first step."

Fox stared at Alex in disbelief, too shocked to say anything. Cal just 
grinned wider. "Got it," he said cheerfully, turning on his heel to 
run to his sister. Fox blinked once, refusing to believe what he had 
just heard. Then he buried his flaming face in his hands, groaning.

"What's happening?" he asked after several seconds.

"He's walking up to his sister," Alex informed his friend in a bored 
tone, working on the slingshot.

"And now?" Fox asked, a couple of moments later.

"Now he's talking to her." Alex paused. "Now she's looking in your 
direction," he announced, his grin evident in his voice. Fox just 
groaned and buried his face deeper into his hands. "Now she's walking 
towards you." Fox willed the ground to open up. Immediately.

When he didn't hear anything else for a long moment, he whispered, 
"And now?"

"Now she's standing in front of you," Alex informed him gleefully. 
"Hi, Lily."

"Hi, Alex."

Fox couldn't believe how wonderful her voice sounded. He looked up 
hesitantly, his face still red with embarrassment. Lily just smiled 
shyly. Fox was immediately and totally enraptured. The blond hair 
really fascinated him, though he swore to himself not to yank at it 
the way he had done when he had met Miss Dana. Lily had sparkling blue 
eyes that seemed to change into a golden glow when the sun hit them 
just right. Her blue dress accentuated her eyes. Not to mention her 
dazzling smile. Fox almost forgot to breathe.

"Why don't you sit down, Lily?" Alex said when it became obvious that 
his friend wasn't able to move a muscle. He rolled his eyes again. 
Turning into a drooling idiot. Over a girl! How immature!

Lily sat down next to Fox who kept staring at her. She moved with the 
gracefulness of a cat, or at least so he thought. He needed to hear 
her melodic voice again! He had to say something! Fast! "Uh, 
so...you're Lily?" Fox mentally smacked his forehead. How stupid was 
*that* for an opener?

But she just smiled again and nodded. "And you're Fox, right?" He 
nodded as well though he wasn't really sure about anything at the 
moment. "That's an unusual name," Lily said. "But I like it." Fox 
blushed ten shades of red again and ducked his head.

"Really?" he asked shyly. Lily nodded again. Then they lapsed into 
silence.

Alex couldn't take it anymore after several minutes and he stood up. 
"I'll go give that to Cal," he began, holding up the prepared branch. 
"But don't worry, Lily. I'm sure Fox will keep you so well entertained 
that you won't even miss me. He's such a great storyteller!" He rolled 
his eyes, smirked and swaggered away.

Fox blushed again, desperately trying to come up with something to 
say. Lily beat him to it. "So, I hear you're living with Sheriff 
Skinner?" He nodded. "He's such a nice man," Lily enthused. "I really 
like him. He's so tall and big and strong!" Fox looked down at his own 
lanky, skinny frame and his face fell. Lily noticed that. "Oh, don't 
get me wrong," she hastened to say. "It's just that my father is 
rather, um, short and stocky. The sheriff is so different. And I like 
that. That's all." She shrugged. "My father's the editor of the town's 
paper, by the way. That's why he thinks that even a girl should learn 
how to read and write." Fox looked at her blankly. What difference did 
it make what gender someone was?

"Yeah, I'm glad that I finally learn to write as well," he replied. 
Then he smiled and proudly announced, "I even wrote my own name for 
the first time just before recess!" As soon as the words were out of 
his mouth he mentally smacked his forehead again. Could he have said 
anything more stupid? She already knew so much about reading and 
writing, she must be laughing her butt off right about now!

He was surprised by her dazzling smile. "That's great, Fox," she said, 
truly happy for him. "It took me forever to learn how to write my own 
name. And it's really not that hard." She laughed a little. "Hey, if 
you ever need any help or anything, just let me know." Then she 
blinked, as if suddenly realizing what she had said. "I mean, if 
that's okay. Me being a girl and all."

Fox blinked again. What was it with the whole gender thing, anyway? 
Was she kidding? He'd love her to help him whether he needed it or 
not! At least that way he would be close to her! He smiled broadly. 
"That would be great," he said.

Just as things started to look good and they were happily chatting 
away, Donny showed up. "Hey, Lily, is that guy bothering you?" he 
asked, staring at Fox.

"No, he isn't. And even if he were, believe me, Donny, *you* were the 
last person I would call for help," Lily replied coldly.

Donny stared at her open-mouthed and Fox smirked. So, she didn't like 
the other boy either. This just got better and better! He grew bold 
and sneered, "You heard the lady. Now get lost, donkey." God, how he 
loved the nickname Alex had given the bully!

The other boy glared at him. "What did you say?" he hissed.

"I said, get lost!" Fox stood up and took a step closer. Donny shoved 
him. Fox shoved back.

Alex showed up immediately, pushing them both apart. "Is there a 
problem?" he asked, giving Fox a warning look. Fox shrugged. He knew 
that Donny liked to fight dirty but he was no slouch either. And 
besides, Donny had disturbed him when he was talking to Lily!

Donny was about to start a fight when Byers cleared his throat. 
"Recess is over, boys and girls!" he announced, glaring at the three 
boys. He shook his head in way of warning and Donny took a step back.

"Later, barbarian," he promised Alex, giving him a slight shove before 
he walked back inside. Alex just rolled his eyes. He knew that it had 
been an empty threat because the teacher would make sure that nothing 
would happen. He sighed, winked at Fox and followed the bully.

Fox dragged his feet to the steps as well. He still didn't like school 
but at least now he could turn around and steal a glance at Lily when 
it became too horrible. She waited for him on the first step, smiling. 
"Don't worry," she whispered conspiratorially. "We're already plotting 
to get back at the donkey. Alex and Cal have several ideas. We're just 
waiting for the right time!" She winked at Fox. "I hope you'll help us 
when the time comes?"

He stared at her in disbelief and it took him a long moment before he 
was able to nod. Not only was she pretty and smart, she was also a 
cunning adventurer! Fox knew at that moment that he had found the 
woman of his dreams.

XXXXX

During the rest of his first school day Fox learned several new 
letters. Byers was obviously very pleased with his newest student and 
he praised him constantly. Fox basked in the attention he received and 
exchanged surreptitious glances with Lily until Alex finally had 
enough and made puking noises.

Byers ended the lectures with a cheerful "See you tomorrow, children" 
before he turned to Fox. The boy stared at the children that all filed 
out of the building, happily chatting away. He sighed. He wanted to go 
outside as well. He had learned enough for one day. He wanted to go to 
Rose and eat her waffles. He wanted to go to his old meanie and show 
him that he knew how to write his name. He wanted to play with Alex. 
He wanted to talk to Lily. He wanted to spend time with Spirit. But he 
was stuck with Byers.

"You've done extremely well, Fox," the teacher said. "I actually think 
you're one of the smartest boys I've ever taught."

"Really?" Fox asked, delighted to hear such praise. Then he remembered 
his good manners and added, "Thank you."

Byers smiled. "Well, I thought we might get started on numbers this 
afternoon. You've spent all day learning the alphabet so a little 
change of pace is only fair."

Fox thoughtfully chewed on his lower lip. "Mr. Byers?" he finally 
asked. "I, um, I have a question."

"Sure, Fox. You can ask me anything you want." The bearded man watched 
patiently while the boy was clearly trying to work up the courage to 
speak again.

"Before we do that numbers thing," Fox mumbled, staring at his feet. 
"Could you...would you teach me how...how to tell time?" He blushed, 
chewing his lip again.

Byers walked over to the nervous boy and gently laid a hand on his 
shoulder. "I would be honored to do so, Fox," he softly replied. "And 
just think about it - we can 'do that numbers thing' at the same 
time!" He smiled reassuringly and was rewarded by a slightly hesitant 
but blinding smile from the boy.

XXXXX

The door slammed open, causing Maggie Scully and Sheriff Skinner to 
almost have a heart attack. "Rose!" the reason of the commotion 
yelled. "Rose, where are you?"

"Halfway to my grave," Maggie whispered to Skinner, clutching her 
heart. "In the sitting room," she then replied loud enough for Fox to 
hear.

The boy came to a skittering halt in the doorway, a broad grin on his 
face. He was surprised to see the sheriff sitting there as well but 
then he remembered that it was that usual time of the day when Skinner 
strolled through town and ended up at the Scully house. Besides, the 
big man had probably wanted to be here when his rascal showed up. They 
had decided that Fox would come to Maggie's house after school, 
getting his homework done there and helping her out when something 
came up.

Fox's grin became even wider when he saw the sheriff. "Hi, Old 
Meanie," he greeted the big man who growled at him.

"Someone's asking for a warm bottom," he commented, winking. "How was 
school, Rascal?"

Maggie got up to bring the boy a glass of milk and some cookies and 
had to smile when she came back into the room. Fox had snuggled up in 
Skinner's lap, waiting for his Rose before he began his report. The 
boy eagerly grabbed a cookie, talking with his mouth full. "I learned 
a lot of new letters today," he mumbled.

"Swallow first, Rascal," Skinner softly admonished, hugging the boy. 
He couldn't believe how much he had missed his rascal - even though 
Fox had only been away for a few hours! And he had already spent whole 
days at Maggie's house or in the Scully store but the sheriff had 
always been able to just drop in and see the boy if he wanted to. 
School was a different matter.

Fox made a big show of swallowing the rest of his cookie before he 
continued to tell his audience about the different letters he had 
learned. Not to mention the numbers! He told them about how much Alex 
already knew, mentioned in passing Cal and even his sister Lily though 
he really didn't want to elaborate on that. Maggie and Skinner "oh'd" 
and "ah'd" at the right places and the sheriff squeezed the skinny 
body in his arms repeatedly. "I'm so proud of you, Rascal," he said 
when the boy finally stopped talking.

"There's one more thing," Fox said, wriggling out of Skinner's 
embrace. He grabbed his slate and the piece of chalk and 
matter-of-factly wrote down his name. Then he showed it to the adults. 
"See? It says 'Fox'," he said proudly.

Maggie instantly clucked over him, raining little kisses on his face. 
"That's wonderful," she said, clearly teared up. "Such a smart boy!"

Fox turned to the sheriff, suddenly remembering that Skinner didn't 
approve of his name. His smile faded. "That's all I can write for now 
but I'm sure I'll learn more soon," he said, placating.

"Looks perfect to me," Skinner softly replied, hauling his rascal back 
in his lap. He looked at the slate in the boy's hands. "I'm very proud 
of you, Rascal. You've already taken such a big step on your very 
first day. Maggie's right, you are such a smart boy." He hugged Fox. 
"My smart Rascal," he said teasingly, a surge of pride coursing 
through his body.

"You just wait till I can write 'Old Meanie'," Fox stated solemnly.

"Oh, I can show you right away if you want to," Maggie offered, 
laughing. She laughed even harder when Skinner shot her a stern look.

"Are you trying to undermine my authority, madam?" he growled.

"Absolutely," she replied solemnly before she smiled at him. Skinner 
grinned back, looking down at his rascal whose head was now resting on 
the big man's shoulder. It was obvious that the day had been trying to 
the boy.

"Can we ride home now?" Fox asked. Skinner couldn't help the sappy 
smile that showed on his face when he heard the boy refer to his cabin 
as 'home.' Fox looked at the grandfather's clock, happy beyond belief 
that he was finally able to tell time. "It's already five thirty," he 
announced. "I wanna go and play with Spirit."

"Okay, Rascal," the big man said, gently pushing the boy off his lap. 
"Let's get going." Skinner stood up and gave Maggie a chaste kiss on 
her cheek. "Thanks for the coffee, Maggie. It's still the best I ever 
had."

"Stop that, Walter. You're making me blush!" Maggie slapped the 
sheriff's upper arm, causing him to laugh out loud. She then turned to 
the boy. "I'll see you tomorrow afternoon, right?"

Fox nodded vigorously. Then he leaned closer. "Let's make sure we're 
alone. Then you can show me how to write 'Old Meanie'," he whispered, 
giggling. Maggie winked conspiratorially.

Skinner matter-of-factly grabbed the boy and threw him over his left 
shoulder. He landed an affectionate swat on the boy's butt before he 
turned to the door. "I'll teach you something much more important 
tonight," he told the boy.

Fox's curiosity peaked immediately. "Something even more important 
than 'Old Meanie'?" he asked wide-eyed, trying to twist and turn 
around so he was able to see the sheriff's face from his upside-down 
position over the big man's shoulder.

"Oh yes. The most important word of them all, in fact," Skinner 
replied solemnly.

"What's that?" the boy asked while he was being carried outside.

The sheriff gave him another affectionate swat on his backside before 
he answered, "Rascal."



THE END OF CHAPTER EIGHT.


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