Handcrafted Monsters

The steady buzz of springtime insects hummed through the warm air, occasional sweeps of wind blowing across Witsal Park and throwing about the golden hair of Baythal Nelson. Several years had passed since she had adopted the name of Miss and purchased her first child, and though she looked drastically different, the woman hadn't visiably aged in any way. Next to Baythal sat her childhood friend and neighbor Pegs Tarl, chatting away with her as their children ran about. Spring had arrived in Danforth not long ago, and parks were now opening across the city, giving the women an excuse to busy themselves in a way other than housework.

"You'll never believe what Tony said to me last night," Baythal began peevishly, turning her attention to focus on Pegs. "He had the nerve to suggest that I need to go back to work. Ha! If he thinks I can raise our son and work at the same time, he has another thing coming. I'm hardly able to do it without worrying about work. I have another year of leave before I have to go back, and I'm not budging on the issue until then."

Pegs rolled her eyes knowingly, "Wildon is the exact same way when it comes to the matter. For the life of me, I don't have the slightest clue why husbands are so set on spreading the misery of hardwork and resposibility. I think I've talked him into letting me bring a new baby in, though. He's always wanted a boy to teach sports to, and this way my leave will be extended for another six years. You should do the same thing. It'd be marvelous to have two of the same age again. I hate having to set up play dates with other parents, I just can't trust their children won't ruin Sloan."

"I highly doubt Tony would go for that," Baythal replied, a small frown tugging at her bright red lips. "We've talked about it on more than one occasion. He thinks we should wait until Archie is older. He doesn't want me to be overwhelemed with two young children at once."

Pegs snorted, "If I can manage Sloan and the new baby, you'll easily be able to raise Archie with a little sister. Archie doesn't even consider breaking the rules. I don't think I've ever seen that child do one thing you haven't specifically told him to. Sloan, on the other hand... She's a handful."

"I don't know," Baythal admitted, looking down to her small hands and thinking of her husband's firm words. She had a tendency to feign disagreement of his instructions and beliefs with Pegs around, embarrassed by the simpleton lifestyle he was determined to live. Truthfully, though, she believed waiting made perfect sense. "I don't want to get all my time off from work at once and then have to worry about doing it for years and years."

"Oh, darling, it will work out perfectly," Pegs argued, waving her hand dismissively before flipping her hair behind her shoulder. "I buy the new baby when Sloan turns six, meaning she'll be twelve before I have to go back to work. By then I'll be able to take a year off for her fertility surgery and preparation. That means I'll only have to work five years before she moves out of the house, and then I'll be allowed to bring another baby in."

"I wouldn't get that year off, though," Baythal reminded her in a small voice, wondering how it could be so hard to remember Archie was a boy, "And I can't say I'm ready for another one. It's great having time off and babies are cute and all, but I promised myself I wouldn't touch another diaper for a few years. Potty training was a disaster. Not to mention all the crying..." She shuddered slightly, feeling exhausted at memories of sleepless nights.

"You can always bring in a nanny, that's what I did whenever Sloan was at that unbearable age. They take care of all the dreadful things, and you're allowed to play with the baby when she's being delightful or cute," Pegs suggested. "Or, well, maybe a babysitter would be a better option for you. I'm sure there are some trustful ones out there, don't worry, and a lot of teenagers are willing to do the job for next to nothing."

Baythal worked to hold back a scowl. She never did anything to indicate it, but she was desperately jealous of Pegs. Wildon worked one of the higher paying jobs with Rind Inc, whereas Tony was limited to oddball jobs around town. Mostly outside work, fishing, hunting, cleaning. The jobs paid well, as not many people were willing to do them, but not nearly as much as Baythal would have liked. Sometimes she found herself wondering why she'd married Tony in the first place, thinking of the arguement she'd had with her mother back when she was young, shouting that love mattered more than money and dignity. She tried not to regret her decision, but it was hard living less comfortable than she'd grown used to. Especially when she still had so many ties to that world. "Maybe," she allowed finally, letting out a small sigh, knowing it was out of the question.

Just downhill from the park bench the mothers were situated on, two small children wandered around a small patch of grass searching for four leaf clovers and flowers. Archie was assembling a pile of flowers to give to his mother as a gift, whereas Sloan merely wanted four leaf clovers to tear the small leafs off one by one and make a wish. Whenever Archie found a clover, he handed it to Sloan, though she seemed too busy to return the favor. He didn't mind.

"Guess what Mommy told me," Sloan prompted suddenly, looking up from the ground to Archie. Her cheeks were rosy and her blonde hair in curly tangles from being tossed around as they played. "Mommy and Daddy are gettin' a new baby soon. You know what that means? I'm gonna get to have a brother."

Archie smiled widely, his wide blue eyes lighting up in what was genuine happiness for his friend. Sloan couldn't help but grin back at him; something about him was pretty in a way that boys usually weren't, somehow giving off an air of trustworthiness as well as an acute vulnerablity, "Now we can play games that you need three people for."

"And Mommy told me I get to name him whatever I want," she went on, blue eyes lit up in excitement. "I like the name... uh... maybe Henley."

"I like that name," Archie responded politely, finding another clover for Sloan and handing it over. He looked over to a group of older boys roughhousing near the swingset, eyebrows drawing together. He was a lot smaller than other boys his age and found that they were easily able to push him around. "I hope he likes games instead of fighting like all the other boys do. It's boring."

"It is borin'," Sloan agreed wholeheartedly, nodding vigorously as she ripped the clover to pieces. "You're the only boy I like, 'cause you don't do that... I wish the baby would be a girl."

"You know that's not allowed," Archie said, alarmed by Sloan's wish. She tossed the stem of the clover aside carelessly, though Archie remained concerned. "You only get one girl and one boy. It's the rules, or else you get in trouble."

"The rules are dumb," Sloan announced. Her tone was angry, but Archie was perceptive enough to notice she was truly just feeling upset. "And stupid. I don't like 'em."

Archie gave her a pat on the shoulder, trying to be comforting, "Don't worry. When I get a little sister I'll share her with you. You can even help me name her if Momma lets me."

She brightened up a bit, but still didn't look entirely convinced, "That'll be a long time, though. When is your Mommy going to get another baby? My mommy says that your daddy has her on a leash. So she can't."

"I'll ask her now," he offered, pushing himself up off the ground. As an afterthought he grabbed the pile of flowers, running up the hill to Baythal and Pegs. He handed his mother the mountain of small flowers, "Here you go, Momma. I picked these for you."

Baythal took them, doing the best she could to muster up delight, "Thank you, Archie. They're very nice. I'll put them with the rest of the flowers at home."

"I know you like yellow the best, so I only picked the yellow ones," he told her proudly. Without an ounce of hesitation, he went on, "When are we gonna get another baby?"

Next to his mother, Pegs smiled knowingly, "Looks like Sloan has been talking about her new little brother. I can't say I blame her. She's very excited. She's always wanted a brother, you know."

"I don't know yet," Baythal answered, ignoring Peg's rambling. "Whenever Daddy says it's okay. Babies are a lot of work, though, and they cost money. We have to save up before we can buy a sister."

"I have fifteen dollars in my jar at home. Mr. Green gives me a dollar every time I help him with the crossword in the newspaper," Archie explained, looking hopefully. "Does that help any?"

Heat rose to her cheeks as Pegs raised an eyebrow; she had been trying to keep it under wraps that Archie had a talent for helping their older neighbor figure out the answers to even the hardest crossword puzzles in the daily newspaper. Most children Archie's age weren't even able to read well. "We talked about this, Archie. Stop showing off. But thank you. I'll be sure to let Daddy know. We can talk to him about it tonight."

Satisfied with his mother's answer, Archie found his way back over to Sloan, who was now surrounded by two boys from the other side of town- Dod and Kane. Both boys were a few years older, but still seemed to show an interest in speaking to Sloan. While Archie didn't mind Dod, Kane had always been especially unkind towards him- something that was obvious the moment he approached.

"Lookie there, it's itty bitty Archie Nelson," he sneered, harshly shoving Archie. It wasn't an invitation to play. "Aw, crap, I'm sorry. I'm always forgettin' that I ain't 'posed to hit girls."

Archie did his best to stand his ground, attempting to appear unaffected, "I'm not a girl, Kane, you know that."

"Then why are ya spendin' all your time pickin' flowers and playin' with girls? You never wanna fight," he accused, giving him another shove. "And look at ya. Sloan is bigger then you. You're a girl if I ever saw one."

"Just because I don't wanna fight doesn't mean I'm not a boy," he argued. "Not everybody has to like the same things. Just like how Dod likes bikes but you like basketball."

Kane looked annoyed at Archie's point, giving some sand a good kick into his eyes after saying, "Whatever. You stay here and pick your flowers. Me and Dod are gonna go do real man stuff."

Archie did his best not to cry, knowing that boys weren't supposed to. He held back tears as long as he could, but then Sloan asked him if he was okay. He found himself soon after in Baythal's lap blubbering like baby.