Family Secret
By LM Hooten
Chapter 1 (cont.)

Gussie refilled the bucket and Francine led her some small distance away, then directed her to quietly move some bushes aside. There, in the meadow beyond, a fox searched carefully through the brush, looking for something. Just then, a pheasant jumped into the air, clearing the fox's sharp teeth by mere inches, as he lunged, too late, after his erstwhile meal.

"Did you see the pheasant before she moved?" asked Francine.

"No!" replied Gussie, goggle-eyed with wonder at the sight she had just witnessed.
"The pheasant knows that silence and stillness are potent camouflage, doubling the value of her coloring in protecting her from predators. Remember screaming when you saw the bear? That works only if there are other people nearby who can help you. If you had stayed still and silent, he might very well have continued on his way without molesting us, and I would not have had to wound him. Now he is injured, and may not survive through to next winter ."

"That's alright," said Gussie, "That nasty old bear deserved it!"

"Did he?" Francine asked, "He saw your scream as a challenge, a threat to his own life. Was he so wrong in protecting himself?"

"Well, uh. I guess not, but, but." her protests died faster than she could speak them. "So now it's my fault? He should have eaten me?" Gussie began to cry.

"No, little one! You are worth much more than the bear! But you must learn to live in harmony with your surroundings. Look at that rock." Gussie looked down at a flat boulder embedded in the ground.
"See that spider crawling across the surface? Watch how it moves. See how it runs and stops, runs and stops? Why do you think it does that?"

"I think it does that to scare me! I don't know what it will do next! But I bet you don't want me to smash it, do you?"

"You're right!" Francine nodded approvingly. "I don't want you to hurt him. And he does that so you WON'T know where he's going next. But it's not to scare you. He is hunting. He wants to pounce on his victim, but he knows he is being watched. So, he goes until he thinks his quarry will surely see him, and then he stops to 'hide'. Then because he is still too far away, he starts another dash, until he succeeds or is discovered. Your fears see his movements as a threat, just like the bear's fear made him see your screams as a threat. Control your fear and everyone wins, most of all yourself!" Francine turned and galloped away, leaving Gussie to find her camp, where she continued doing her chores. But she also thought a great deal about what Francine had told her.

A few days later, the wagon camp was set upon by a half-dozen thieves. They quickly hustled the men away, no doubt planning something terrible for the women-folk, but they didn't seem very concerned with the children at all. Gussie decided to apply what she had learned from Francine recently, and hid herself away among the stores within the wagon. Most of the food was in barrels outside, but they were carrying valuables that the thieves would have loved to take, if they ever saw them! Her Mother's gold locket was in the jewelry chest with a few other items; rings, a cameo, necklace chains, and two pearl earrings, all of which represented a great deal of the family's wealth. Gussie silently crawled to the chest, opened it, and poured its contents onto an open diaper, which she then folded and buried in the bottom of the wagon. She then took the dirty clothing awaiting washing in the next stream, and began tossing them over the entire contents of the wagon. She buried herself in the pile just before one of the brigands walked up and shoved the canopy aside, looking for trouble or valuables.

Gussie smiled grimly to herself, vowing to be BOTH if at all possible. Noticing the barrel of Father's rifle partly uncovered, she took advantage of the thief's momentary distraction to better conceal it. In another moment, he was gone, at least for a while, and she took the opportunity to take the weapon from its pegs. Wrapping it in a small blanket, she picked up her doll and the camouflaged rifle. She threw another blanket over her shoulders, tied the rifle behind her back, and quietly snuck out the back of the wagon, planning to go to Mother, if possible without their noticing. Otherwise, she would pretend to just be a small, scared child without the wit to be a threat. She had seen her Mother shoot deer often enough to know she was as good a shot as Father was. And if she could get the rifle to her, they could create enough confusion to allow the men access to their own weapons. Taking single steps, Gussie began making her way to the women, doll clutched tightly in one arm, thumb stuck uncharacteristically in her mouth. Halfway to the women, her mother saw her and called out to her, "Gussie! Run Away!" Unfortunately, this attracted the attention of the bandits, and one of them started running towards her, drawing his pistol at the same time. Gussie screamed and ran to her mother, hoping the thief would let them stay together. He slowed to a stop, holstered his weapon, and made a small threat if Gussie tried that again.

Her mother picked her up with a hug, and felt the carbine at Gussie's back. Looking at her daughter quizzically, she took her shoulder and faded back behind the rest of the women. Dropping to Gussie's level, her mother questioned her urgently, and Gussie showed her the weapon. Most of the women had enough sense to stay silent and give no hint of what was transpiring, but Mrs. Connors (who wasn't really very bright) began clucking to herself about Gussie's foolishness. Fortunately, when the bandits noticed that something was afoot, one of the other ladies loudly proclaimed that Mrs. Connors had nothing to fear from them, with HER looks! This elicited much laughter from all concerned, and disarmed their suspicions. Taking the rifle from her daughter, Gussie's mother prepared it and caught her husband's eye. Once the men-folk knew that something was up, she muttered a small prayer and took aim at the leader of the bandits. The first shot knocked him headlong into the campfire, but he never moved away, as most of his brains were no longer in his head. The second and third shots went wild, but the next caught the man who had threatened Gussie earlier. By this time, the men had scattered, and two men had retrieved their arms and begun blasting away at the thieves. In moments, three more were dead, and the last was running for dear life.

The next evening, Francine came up behind Gussie while she was getting water for the camp.

"Well done, young one!"

"Francine! You startled me!"

"Startled? Why bother now with fear?" Francine asked. "Those men would have hurt you in ways you cannot begin to understand. But you stopped them. Your courage saved your family and your friends. I am very proud of you!"
Gussie blushed at the complement, but said nothing. "You know, you remind me of Crysalicus, a unicorn whose fame once spread throughout the Seven Worlds, many years ago..."

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