A/N: This is set back a few years before the play takes place, so the kids are all about eleven or so. And... that's also the reason why the boys and the girls are playing together. It's before the big split up.
Summer had rolled around yet again.
It arrived with all its warm breezes, rays of sunshine, and feelings of freedom that it usually did; stopping by unannounced just when the children thought they would never see it again. They reveled in the hours of sunshine it lavished on them, running around for hours, until their mamas became so fed up with them getting underfoot, they sent them off to play by the bridge.
It was on one of those sorts of days of fed up mamas and oppressive heat that Wendla and Ilse met the trio of Anna, Thea, and Martha, also on their way to the bridge. Led by Wendla and Ilse, they joined together and continued their walk. From a different path, Georg and Otto also made their way to the bridge, Georg humming the new piece he was learning for piano, and Otto sneaking a look at what his mother packed him for lunch. As each group arrived, each was surprised to see Melchior already sitting there, with a book, Moritz, near him, staring down at the water, and Hanschen, off to the side, lounging under a tree.
As the girls approached, Melchior stood up, grinning. "Wendla! Ilse!" And as their little foursome raced to the end of the bridge, he couldn't help but notice how Wendla's skirt flew up when she ran.
Thea and Anna sighed, dramatically flopping on the ground, and staring after Melchior. But while Anna's mind was consumed with thoughts of Melchior's curly hair and his piercing eyes, Thea couldn't focus on anything but Melchior a few yards away, chasing after Wendla and tackling her to the ground, lingering over her for far longer than Thea found appropriate. Martha, lost in her own thoughts, scrambled down next to Thea and Anna, nodding her agreement when they fawned over Melchior aloud, but secretly watching Moritz struggle to pick up his fallen socks and run after Ilse, who had stolen his cap. How could they talk of nothing but Melchi, when they could be looking at sweet, sad, soulful Moritz?
Everyone was disrupted by … a large hat coming into view. Underneath that hat was Ernst, holding it down against the breeze and running towards them. "Oh-- hello, everyone! My, it looks like all our mamas had the very same idea!"
Hanschen, from beneath his tree, gave Ernst a once-over, with an amused grin. "Not the very same, Ernst. None of us look nearly so stylish."
Ernst looked down, blushing. "It was only -- well, you see, my mama -- I have very light skin, and she worries--!"
Hanschen shook his head, chuckling to himself, and Ernst looked distraught. Perhaps he should have taken off the hat when he had the chance? Now Hanschen thought he was a fool- a very disturbing thing indeed, and one that would keep Ernst up all night. He could only imagine what the rest of them must think of him…
"I like it!" pronounced Ilse, galloping over to his side and beaming at him. "It suits you."
"She's right," agreed Wendla, appearing at his other side. "All of the other boys would look so silly, but not you."
Somewhat comforted, Ernst smiled and was led away, with Ilse and Wendla on either arm, to sit by the river, despite Melchior's stuttered protests. He sat down, crossing his arms, and frowning over at where Ernst sat with the girls. He'd been talking to Wendla , and he wasn't done yet! It was only fair, he reasoned, that they be allowed to finish their conversation without Ernst coming in and disrupting everything. And then, they had their game of Pirates to finish, too. He found the thought of losing his first mate entirely more unappealing now that it was Wendla than when Moritz held the position.
"But we were playing--!" Moritz said, voicing all the thoughts Melchior couldn't bring himself to say. "That isn't fair." He couldn't help himself from sneaking looks at Ilse teasing Ernst, stealing his hat, and putting it on her own head. He must seem so dull in comparison to someone who wore silly hats…
"Well, this is dull," sulked Melchior. "What's the use of us all being here if we aren't going to do anything exciting?"
"Something… exciting?" asked Georg uncertainly. The only thing he wanted to do was go home and have his piano lesson.
"Yes. Exciting." Casting a glance in Wendla's direction to make sure she was watching, Melchior stripped off his shirt and jumped into the river.
"But-- Melchior, we're not supposed to do that--!" Georg flailed his arms, waiting for someone to back him up on this, but Otto just looked bewildered, Thea was covering her eyes, and Wendla and Ilse were already rolling down their… oh dear.
"Look out! Look out! I'm coming!" Ilse, having discarded her shoes and stockings in a messy pile next to Ernst, took a flying leap into the river. Close behind her came Wendla, but not without folding all of her clothing neatly, first. Melchior's triumphant grin quickly turned to a look of pure shock when Wendla emerged, her white dress dripping wet.
"I -- Wendla, you --" For one of the first times in his life, Melchior was at a loss for words.
Wendla giggled. "I feel like… like a mermaid!" When Melchior could do nothing but stare and nod a little, she splashed over to Ilse, who took her hands and giggled.
"That's because weare mermaids, Wendla!" And they splashed off to try and coerce Ernst into jumping in.
In desperate need of a distraction, Melchior turned to Moritz, still on the shore. "Well, then? You're the only pirate who hasn't jumped in."
Moritz fumbled with his shirt, acutely aware of how skinny he was. He was awkward enough clothed; shirtless would only be ten times worse.
"Mooooritz!" came Ilse's sing-song voice. "Your captain just gave you an order! Besides, don't you want to go swimming with mermaids?"
He wasn't sure how much obedience he owed to his "captain", but if Ilse told him to jump in, jump in was what he would do.
"Are you alright?" Otto asked Georg, munching on some sweetmeats. "You've been awfully quiet."
Georg swallowed. How could he possibly explain to Otto what he was feeling? He couldn't even explain it to himself. All he knew was that the sight of Wendla and Ilse, with no stockings and dripping dresses, was making him feel strange and uneasy. In fact, it was quite the same feeling that he had during piano lessons. He wiped his glasses on his shirt, nervously. "I'm just fine."
Otto swallowed his food. "Well, I think I'm going to join them. It's very hot out here."
Georg watched, dumbfounded, as Otto bounded into the water, calling out to Melchior and Moritz.
"That's the spirt!" cried Ilse, brandishing a small tree branch. "Does anyone else dare join the fearsome pirates?"
Moritz, standing near her, trying to avoid being poked by the branch, noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Looking closer, he realized Ilse had bruises all over her arms and legs. She'd always been reckless and a little clumsy, it was true, but the more Moritz thought about it, the more he remembered Ilse always showing up to play more bruised than the day before.
"Ilse, are you hurt?"
She turned to look at him, covering her arms quickly. "I'm not hurt, silly! Why would I be hurt? I am a pirate, and pirates are never hurt." She looked away, picking at a large scab.
"You're hurt again, Ilse? Didn't my mama just bandage you up the other day?" Melchior wandered over, looking curious.
"No! I'm a brave, strong pirate!" Ilse threw down her branch and dashed away- over to Wendla, who was still attempting to coax Ernst into joining them.
Ever since Otto had taken his shirt off, Thea had kept her eyes firmly shut. During her final judgment, she didn't want anyone to accuse her of being sinful. Martha pulled at her collar, fanning herself and wishing it wasn't so hot out. Anna cast the occasional amused glance at Thea, but she was growing more and more fed up of always being left out of the fun.
"I'm going to join them," she announced, unbuckling her shoes.
"You're WHAT?" Thea's jaw dropped. "Anna -- what would your mama say? Anna? Anna!" Thea crossed her arms, huffing as she heard a splash and Anna disappeared under the water. "Well, I'm staying here. I'm not going to disobey my mama."
"But Thea, while you're sitting here, Anna is out there." Martha couldn't help herself.
"So?"
"With Melchi Gabor."
Thea weighed her options. Risk eternal damnation, or save her soul and let Anna marry Melchior?
"Anna! Wait, I'm coming!"
Martha laughed to herself and followed after Thea, settling down on the bank. From here, she had a much better view of Moritz…
"But Wendla, it's so cold!" Ernst shivered as he dipped a toe in the water.
"Perhaps a bit, but it's very warm out, so it feels nice!" She flopped back and floated. "At least put your legs in!"
"Well… alright. But just for a minute!" Ernst waded into the shallowest part of the river and wrapped his arms around himself. "There, I've done it."
"You have!" Ilse applauded. "And now I've done this." And before Ernst could utter another word, Ilse stole his hat and sent it floating down the river. "Now you've got to swim to get it!"
Anna sneaked up behind Thea and splashed her. "I knew you'd change your mind."
"Yes, well. Hush. -- What about Martha? I thought she was following me."
Georg, who had finally worked up enough nerve to follow Otto into the water, overheard Anna and Thea, and couldn't help looking over at Martha.
"Aren't you going to swim?"
Martha shook her head fervently. "No. No, I can't. My papa would never allow me to. Ever." She tugged at the long sleeves of the dress she was forced to wear, even in this warm weather. "I think I'll just watch."
Something in the seriousness of her expression made Georg nod and let the subject drop, though he couldn't help but wonder why Martha was wearing long sleeves in the middle of July.
Otto, for his part, was growing bored with the pirate games. He had no desire to tackle Wendla around the waist, as Melchior seemed so fond of doing, or chase down Moritz with flowers, like Ilse. He grew bored with simply staring at the girls, though Georg seemed to find it fascinating. The only thing on his mind was his mama's cookies. He felt rather slighted that she hadn't packed any in his lunch this afternoon.
Hanschen told himself he had no desire to join in on the fun everyone else was having. They were just silly games after all. He had his book- Shakespeare's Othello- and that was all he needed. He could read and watch everyone else go about their games. He could watch Wendla's dress cling to her in the most inappropriate places. He could watch Ilse kick her legs up in the air as she floated on her back. He could watch Anna hike her dress up as she ran to try to catch Ernst's ridiculous hat before the breeze took it… Ernst. He could watch him make a fool of himself and somehow still be more appealing to everyone than he himself was. And he could watch everyone make a fuss over Melchior, their golden boy. The more Hanschen thought about these things, the more resentful he felt. What if it had been his idea to jump into the water? Would anyone have followed? If he went to tackle a girl around the waist, would she run away shrieking? If he couldn't be their leader, why couldn't someone at least have the decency to invite him to swim with them?
No, Hanschen was not going to take this lying down. If he couldn't be a part of what was going on, then he wasn't going to let it continue. Picking up his book and casting a disdainful glance at his swimming schoolmates, Hanschen stalked back to town.
"Wendla Bergmann!"
Wendla's head snapped up and she fell backwards, off of Melchior's back, ruining what was going to be a wonderful tackle. "Mama?"
All the children froze as more angry mothers came into view. The band of mothers stopped in their tracks at the sight of their precious little girls in transparent dresses, and their angelic little boys without their shirts on.
"Wendla Bergmann, you get out of that water this instant!"
"Thea, this is sinful! I've half a mind to have you exorcised--"
"Anna, pull your skirt down--!"
"Ernst, I had to leave supper just to come down here, and-- Where's your hat gotten to? You're going to be burned come tomorrow morning!"
"Georg Zirschnitz, your piano lesson starts in fifteen minutes--"
"Moritz Stiefel! What in the world do you think you're doing?"
"Otto, supper's nearly ready--!"
"Ilse! Cover youself up, child!"
Frau Bessel didn't have to say a word. Instantly, Martha was on her feet and being dragged home by her braids.
Only Frau Gabor remained calm. "Melchior," she sighed, "please do put your shirt back on."
And so the children scrambled out of the water and were taken home by their shell-shocked mothers. Some were scolded all the way home. Otto burst into tears at the prospect of being sent to bed without supper. Thea, as she was being dragged away to a night of endless prayers on rosary beads, noted that Hanschen and his governess were suspiciously absent.
That Sunday, after church, the parents huddled together to come up with the best way to keep their children from heading down a path of sin. They all agreed it would be best to keep the boys and girls apart.
After that day, no mother sent her child to play by the bridge without checking with the other mothers first.
Haylofts, however, remained unmonitored.