A/N: Hey all. We're very sorry for the very long delay in posting. We all hit a snare and unfortunatly this fan fic suffered as a result. Hopefully now we're back on track and will have another update for you soon :-)
Hugs to you all!
Jordyn, Elenhin and Ani
xx
26th February, 1970
Luke,
As Bo re read the first section of the letter, he couldn't help but smile and think about how he had turned the tables and got what he had wanted Luke to do, even though his cousin kept trying to avoid it. He didn't know if his cousin realised it or not, by the sounds of it he didn't, but he had been letting a lot more slip in this letter, a lot more emotion despite the fact Bo could tell in past letters he had been trying not to. Maybe by showing Luke that he was in fact growing up, Luke was willing to open up to him more. If growing up was what it took to keep Luke happy then he would do it.
Well, I got to play in the game after all and then one the following week. Our team is on a real winning streak at the moment and I tell you why. It's because we got this new player called Tim, and he is so fast you look for him on one end of the pitch and he's there in an instant! It's so cool! I know I can run fast but boy this is something else all together Luke. Anyhow, as you can probably tell, we won the past two games and we got another one coming up soon. Daisy wants to start sending you some articles of the game…though I don't know why. I don't read the school paper, but I'm guessin' it's so you can keep up with what I blabber on about in these letters.
He smiled, amazed as he knew Luke probably would be that he had managed to blabber on about a subject in script. It wasn't uncommon for him to do it in words, heck everyone was used to it, but to do it in text too….Bo didn't know whether to be ashamed or proud.
Thanks for the mini cup Luke….it's so great and is right next to the soldier you sent me….unfortunately I can't put the flute there….it has to be kept in a real safe place so Daisy don't get it. She keeps trying to assassinate it whenever she sees it when its not in my hands…I only just managed to save it from being thrown in the wood chipper that came by a few days ago. I ain't really using it to make Daisy jump…I'm more using it just to irritate her…we's all been a bit upset recently with everything that's gone on so I recon its about time I started getting things back to normal…which means the pranks are coming back.
Which also meant that Bo was constantly avoiding the woodshed as much as he could as well. He knew with no proof, Jesse wouldn't take him there because he was fair and just, however if Jesse asked him directly if he had done something he couldn't lie about it. Luckily though, Jesse rarely ever did unless it was something that really was too out of hand, and Bo got a feeling that sometimes his uncle really didn't mind the pranks so much…he just wished Daisy would feel that way sometimes.
So anyway, how's the hang glidin' go? I ain't gonna bother crossin' my fingers, mainly because you's probably already done it but also because ya don't need it. You got yer very own guardian angel over there Luke, keepin ya safe for us, an' with her there ain't no need for any luck or all that superstitious junk. I bet you'll love it.
He smiled as he drew a little smiley face at the end of the sentence, re-reading the letter again to think what to say next.
Course I understand you having to wait to tell me things Luke, it ain't like I tell you things as soon as they happen sometimes. I know the reasons you do it, an' I don't blame ya one little bit…we worry about you too here; it's the same for us. We know what's going on here but over in 'Nam is different ball game. Don't fret about us so much cousin, we're safe over here, just keep yer head and come home like ya promised.
And no I am not going to bed with the dictionary, Teddy is still tucked away safe and sound with your bear thank you very much. (Little smiley face). No, Uncle Jesse taught me what the word was and how to spell it, thought that'd impress ya a bit. My English grade is steadily improving though, I know I said it before but it has to be down to this letter writing.
He smiled wider hearing Luke was proud of him. He had promised Luke that he would take care of the family while he was away and this whole thing with Daisy was a huge wake up call to let him know he hadn't exactly been doing that. Hearing Luke say that he thought he was doing a good job was as good as finding a bar of gold in Bo's eyes.
Yeah Cooter and Broody really took care of that guy before they sent him to jail. I'm not as good a scraper as you think though Luke…if I was a half decent scraper I wouldn't have gotten beat up and started this mess in the first place! And as far as him being big brother to me, there's only one guy who I want to fill that role cousin and he always will whether he's here or not and there ain't a guy in the world who could take his place. You're a great example to me Luke, with you an' Uncle Jesse as my role models how can I go wrong in life?
Bo smiled as he looked over the photo Luke had sent nearly a year ago now and sighed gently. He missed his cousin but was coping with it a lot better now than he had been the year before.
Recon it's about time you sent me another picture of you ain't it? Me an' Daisy get another batch of school photo's soon enough so I suppose we'll be sending you one, s'only fair we get one of you too….then I can laugh at your toilet brush haircut some more. I didn't get to do so much of it when you were here. I can't wait for you to teach me football and driving and you're gonna have to explain these new games you learnt, they sound fun.
As Luke had probably predicted, Bo gave a guilty grin as he recalled the incident that made Luke madder at him than he had ever before. Being only a young kid at the time, Bo didn't understand what he had done wrong but seeing Luke with a face full of oil had certainly been entertaining.
Oh don't tell me your still sore about that little incident Luke; I was only a little kid at the time. Still….I agree I don't think Uncle Jesse would like me blowing up the barn. Anyway, I don't want to work on it without ya, we're doing this together it's our project an' ain't no stupid war gonna make me finish it without ya.
Bo set his jaw gently and looked out to the barn, able to see the metal of the unfinished engine glinting in the sunlight. He couldn't wait to finish it and put it in a car, that day would come he was sure of it and when it did him and Luke would be driving the car together.
Pete's party was great fun and Daisy got a date with the guy I set her up with. She acted like she wasn't very happy but still. She's going out on her first date with him tonight, hopefully she'll see what a real date with someone who loves you is supposed to feel like. If not, then I've always got Cooter and Broody up my sleeve.
Bo chuckled a little at that, Daisy had actually acted furious when they got home and had threatened to tell Uncle Jesse and have him whooped. She didn't of course and hadn't said anything else on the matter.
Well I better get moving cousin, love ya lots Luke and I can't wait for your next letter.
Hugs
Bo
March 13, 1970
Dear Little Brat-Cousin….
Bo was right, it was time to cheer things up, and what better way then teasing. Luke smiled to himself as he imagined an indignant cry…
Whoooa, yer running off so fast I don't know how to get two words in! Really Cousin, give me a chance to catch up! I don't know how that brain of yers kept up with the pen, but yer babbling so fast I'm gonna need a chipmunk to translate it for me.
Sounds like ya got real talent on the team though, treat him good Bo, those are worth keeping, but don't make him the 'hero'. He might be fast as the wind, but without the rest of the team, there ain't nothing to him. Feel free to send me the articles of the games though, heck, I'd be happy to read about ol' Pringle's pig escaping as long as it was news from home, an' yer game would be even better…
Glad ya liked the cup Bo, but don't mention it anymore please, the officers here are starting to suspect someone snitched some eggcups, and while I didn't do the crime, well, you know…
That was for sure, someone had pulled a grand theft from there, no one knew if it was a local or not, but if anyone even suspected anything, with all of the silverware gone missing he could be in trouble.
Well, if you want you can hide the flute in my sock drawer, ain't no reason for her to go looking there, an' fer the rest, keep it up Cousin. Make her suffer as long as it's fun and as long as ya don't take it too far. I don't think yer gonna have to worry about either Jesse or the woodshed, he does have humor.
Hang gliding went good, I'm starting to get the hang of it so to say. Had a few rough landings before I figured that part out, but I manage pretty good now. Like an' eagle in the sky, the first part is kinda like falling of the barn, but when you get it straightened out, then it is amazing, you can even forget what is happening on the ground.
Unless they started shooting at you, Lord, hearing the gun fire beneath you sure snapped you out of that illusion right quick. He drew a tiny winged figure, hang gliding, hoping Bo would smile when he saw it.
I'm glad you understand Bo, some things are just so hard to tell, hard for me to put down, and hard to think that you would have to read it. There is so much of it that I just want to tuck away so far inside that even I will never know about it again, an' I just can't bring myself to tell them things to ya. Maybe someday when I can do it in person, but write them, no Bo. I know yer getting older, heck, yer even maturing an' I for sure never saw that one coming. But trust me on this one, it would be bad enough face to face, you don't want to hear it in letters.
Yes, Bo was getting more and more mature, and it made him feel sad. Proud, and sad. Proud that Bo was growing up, that his baby cousin was turning into a young man, and sad, for as a young man he doubted Bo would never really need him in the same way anymore. Still, this was about Bo, not him, and he would do what was the best for Bo.
Not sleeping with the dictionary then, but building on yer vocabulary, that's really good. Okay Bo, here is one for you, 'subterfuge' I do that every time they send me out, now see if ya know that one. I can tell ya I'm dang good at it, so ya tell me what it is now, okay?
That should have him run for his uncle or whoever was around. Yeah, he was proud over Bo, and he didn't doubt that Bo appreciated that, he could see that look of satisfaction on his face, he just hoped that as Bo grew he himself wouldn't be outgrown.
Still, the kid was saying he used him for a role model, him and Jesse, and nothing could make Luke himself feel more proud than that.
Yer better than ya think cousin, everyone can be overpowered ya know. I just got beat in one of the training exercises. An obstacle course, usually make it to the top ten who finish, but now I was pretty much last. Don't know why, just couldn't get around. Humiliating though, very humiliating.
Bo, when ya get them school photos, ya had better send me more than one, got that? I want many, an' I want more than just school photos. Most of the ones I had got ruined, my pack went swimming in the river, an' well, they got ruined.
Got you a few snapshots of me though, but I'm warning ya, if ya call the crew cut toilet brush haircut one more time, I'm gonna make sure ya know what them things feel like as soon as I get home, an' I'm gonna find a real messy one to do it, got it?
He would never do that of course, but the joke was wearing thin, and maybe the threat would scare him off. One photo was one he had posed for, one of his friends had a camera, and he was more than happy to take snapshots that the others could send home. Bo would be happy, the crew cut was a mere day old, and Luke looked as if he was bald, with the dark hair stubs showing more like a shadow. Then there was one would make Bo laugh. The obstacle course had a mud pit you used a rope to swing over, and the rope had broken so he went plummeting in the mud, his very nice friend had taken the pictures as he was trying to clean the mud off, kneeling by a not to clear water puddle and working hard at trying to clear it off.
The next one was more of a shrubbery, it was a camouflage drill and Luke had been determined he would do a good job, the only thing that really could give him away was the fact that his rifle showed in one spot, and his boot near the ground.
The last one was one he hoped Bo would like, having been assigned to the garages for auto maintenance Luke had taken the opportunity to relax a few moment by stretching out in the middle of a huge pile of old tires. The position he had assumed might not appear comfortable, but it had been good enough for him.
No, Uncle Jesse would not be happy if ya blew up the barn, an' I wouldn't either. An' Bo, I don't care if ya were a kid or not, it was NOT funny. Just so ya know.
Well, maybe a tiny bit, but he was not letting Bo know that.
He couldn't bring himself to answer the last part either, not as it stood, because every day he was realizing how hard the 'stupid war' was working so hard to do just that. He just couldn't bring himself to mention that part.
Don't worry Bo, with you an' me, there ain't gonna be no one can beat us, that engine will be a masterpiece.
Glad to hear that Daisy enjoyed herself, she needs that. Call in Cooter an' Broody anytime ya need, if it is fer the best of her, it's the right thing to do. Yer doing a good job watching out over her, I'm proud of ya.
Think I have to go as well, they're gonna blow that damn horn to get us up any minute now, an' it's an awful ruckus. Not even a rooster would be up this early, but it was the only chance I would get to write ya, so take care now cousin, remember how much I love ya, I might be far away, but yer still my baby-cousin, an' ya mean the world to me.
A bit mushy maybe, but every once in a while he had to make sure Bo knew that, and as seldom as he wrote it out that way, he doubted Bo would miss how it was true.
Luke
February 27, 1970
Hey Luke,
How ya doin? Hope you're ok. We are all doin' well I guess. Nothin really interesting t' report on the home front.
And that was the truth of it. Things seemed to have come at a stand still. Daisy wasn't sure if she liked that or not.
I suppose ya know Bo fixed me up on a date. Well, it was last night and…it was alright I guess, and I know Bo means well, but…
But being set up on a date by your baby brother isn't exactly a moral booster.
He asked me out again for next weekend. I don't really want to go, but I don't want to hurt Bo's feelings either, so I guess I will…
Here are the latest articles about Bo's games. I've been clipping everything I find. He's getting to have quite a reputation round Hazzard as a linebacker. You'd be so proud of him Luke. He is so good at it and he acts like he doesn't even know how good he is.
She bit the end of her pencil and debated about what to say next. There was a time when the words would just spill on to the paper but now… now it was harder. She guessed it was because she was older. She tried to be more careful with what she wrote about, and the things she once shared with both of her cousins so freely now seemed almost taboo. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk to the boys as openly as she always had…but something had changed. Maybe it was an eagerness to please or a yearning for approval. She didn't know. What she did know was that Luke was interested in Bo's football, and cars and things like that, so that was what she would talk about. End of story.
I saw a Ferrari the other day…right here in Hazzard! I think the fella musta been lost, but it was beautiful. Good thing Bo wasn't with me or he probably would still be chasing the fella down, begging for a ride. It was real pretty…bright cherry red.
Mary Lou asked about you the other day. I gave her your address, so don't be surprised if she writes…she always did have a crush on you.
Well, that's all from me…sorry so short, but I have homework to do.
Love you Luke,
Daisy
March 14, 1970
Dear Daisy,
I'm doing fine here at the moment; things are calm so to say. Don't know how long that will last, but I tell you I don't mind if it does. Hope that everything is still okay at home, did I mention I kinda miss you?
Oh yeah, he missed them, and even if nothing much had happened it was sure good to hear from his cousin, not to mention that no news was better than bad news, and there had been far too much of that lately.
Yeah, I know about the date, I thought you were having a good time there. I know it might be weird with Bo setting you up, but really Daisy, he does it cause he wants ta do something nice for ya, an' he's trying to be a big brother of sorts. Still, if ya didn't wanna go out with him again, ya shouldn't, it ain't fair to any of ya - you, Bo or him.
Giving brotherly advice was one thing, but doing it from the other side of the world was even harder. By the time she had gotten this, everything might be long over.
Hey, what do ya mean I'd be proud of him, ain't no question about it, I'm dang proud of him, of you too. I really appreciate the article though, it's mighty thoughtful of you, and I really enjoy reading them.
It was odd to have a letter that was so short, as if she didn't know what to say to him anymore, his own fault for going away. And he had never been one who knew how to open up and talk to his cousins, but maybe it was time he gave that a shot. He didn't want Daisy to see writing him like a chore she had to perform, and maybe if he could tell her something, it would be easier for her.
Guess what? Got pummelled good the other day, an' ya ain't gonna believe this but it was all voluntarily. See, there aren't too many pastimes here, one fella has a football an' some play baseball, but those weren't never my best so I gave something else a shot, boxing. This far I've been told I've got good potential since I can take the beating without giving too much ground. I know it don't sound like the smartest thing to do in the book, an' it probably ain't either, but ya know me, I always wanted to see if I was better than the other guy, an' that's what this sports all about. Might actually suit me ya know.
A Ferrari in Hazzard, yeah, that fella must have been so lost. Never thought I'd hear ya talk about a car as beautiful though, when me an' Bo do it ya always go shaking yer head, didn't ya think I would listen if ya talked about something else?
Luke smiled softly, while it was an unusual occurrence, the lack of other news in the letter led him to believe it was there because she thought it was what he wanted to hear. While he wished she had captured it on a photograph, he was interested in what was going on with her.
Mary Lou? How'd she look? I mean, she used to fill out them tops of hers mighty good. Hope she sends a photo if she writes, wouldn't mind something sweet to look at.
Oups, maybe she would not be too happy about things like that, she used to complain that the boys did their thinking with their hormones, and heck, maybe she was right, but even so, Mary Lou was a mighty pretty gild, and if she had a crush on him, maybe he could convince her to send a couple of photos.
Homework huh, poor you, makes me think I'm the lucky one here, say what you want, but there ain't no homework, unless you count what they make us learn in training, still, I don't cry over not going to the school, I tell you that much.
Take care now Daisy, love you.
Luke