May 2, 2022 10:15 am
Johnny waited for his aunts to arrive, a creeping numbness keeping his emotions from getting the better of him. That numbness has been his companion for the past three years and it always came when he thought things got bad. It was there the night his parents were killed, it was there when his grandfather Edd got too sick to really take care of him and the Child Welfare people showed up, it was there every time he'd been moved from relative to relative. You'd think it would be comforting to just not feel anything but to Johnny it was worse but he didn't know how to make it go away. Being numb was like being a backseat passenger in your own mind.
He was just kind of...there...when his aunts arrived, Harold and Roger in tow. He heard them talking with the officers and reviewing what the trio had been caught doing. Johnny knew there'd be no public display of disapproval, that would be relegated to the privacy of the house, but he could feel it coming. In Cherokee, an aunt is referred to as ᏔᎵᏁ ᎠᎩᏥ (taline agitsi) - literally 'second Mom’ - and it was a bond taken seriously.
It had to be a difficult balance for Mary, and to a lesser extent Charlene, how to approach Johnny. It wasn't uncommon for kids who'd lost their parents to act out, especially dangerous stunts, but they knew this was out of character for the boy they'd come to know. Fortunately, Mary insisted that Harold and Roger stay out of the issue and let her and Charlene manage Johnny. The three stayed up pretty late discussing the event and what led up to it. Johnny stayed truthful this time and related the whole story to his Aunts. Mary was simultaneously relieved that Johnny wasn't deliberately taking possibly fatal risks but a bit alarmed that he'd let himself and two other kids get into such danger and trouble following a dead man's treasure hunt. Charlene was a bit less surprised, having been the sort of kid in her youth that would've done exactly the same thing for probably less cause.
The Aunts decided on a week of grounding, only being able to leave the house on errands assigned by them or for volunteer work. He probably would've been advised to steer clear of the other two kids if they hadn't already met them when they stayed for the barbeque earlier that day. Fortunately, Alana and Logan had made enough of a good impression to avoid that.
He was just kind of...there...when his aunts arrived, Harold and Roger in tow. He heard them talking with the officers and reviewing what the trio had been caught doing. Johnny knew there'd be no public display of disapproval, that would be relegated to the privacy of the house, but he could feel it coming. In Cherokee, an aunt is referred to as ᏔᎵᏁ ᎠᎩᏥ (taline agitsi) - literally 'second Mom’ - and it was a bond taken seriously.
It had to be a difficult balance for Mary, and to a lesser extent Charlene, how to approach Johnny. It wasn't uncommon for kids who'd lost their parents to act out, especially dangerous stunts, but they knew this was out of character for the boy they'd come to know. Fortunately, Mary insisted that Harold and Roger stay out of the issue and let her and Charlene manage Johnny. The three stayed up pretty late discussing the event and what led up to it. Johnny stayed truthful this time and related the whole story to his Aunts. Mary was simultaneously relieved that Johnny wasn't deliberately taking possibly fatal risks but a bit alarmed that he'd let himself and two other kids get into such danger and trouble following a dead man's treasure hunt. Charlene was a bit less surprised, having been the sort of kid in her youth that would've done exactly the same thing for probably less cause.
The Aunts decided on a week of grounding, only being able to leave the house on errands assigned by them or for volunteer work. He probably would've been advised to steer clear of the other two kids if they hadn't already met them when they stayed for the barbeque earlier that day. Fortunately, Alana and Logan had made enough of a good impression to avoid that.
