Baby

That question must wait for a more opportune time. She would just care for the stranger the old fashioned way. This time, pulling him up on his feet was easier with Baby’s help. Baby then held the mare’s reins as Netty soothed her and levered the stranger up across the saddle blanket. They slowly worked their way through the snow back to the cabin.
    Arriving safely, Netty slipped the stranger from the saddle blanket, asking Baby to take the mare to the barn and bed her down with the herd, making sure he fed and watered them all. That was a big responsibility for Baby as Netty had never required him to do anything on his own without her being nearby. Glancing back toward the barn, she saw little Baby shuffling and bobbing along as he led the huge mare by her reins to the barn. What a sight, thought Netty, her heart swelling with laughter and affection.
    Grasping the stranger under his arms, she yanked him into the cabin a few inched at a time. Pulling him over to Baby’s straw mat, she laid him down carefully, noting the ice and the snow were melting from his face. A nice face she thought in passing. Pulling off his overcoat and his shirt, she decided to remove everything. Quickly she took a towel and rubbed him down. His body trembled with chills. She modestly toweled around his manhood as Baby startled her, peering around her skirt.
    “Wet Brother on my bed, Sister,” her mind whispered.
    “Yes Baby, this man is very sick. You must heal him. We can then send him home to his wife who misses him and is probably very worried.” No whisper came to her head.
    She covered the stranger with a blanket and put a pot on the fire to start a healing broth. While the broth simmered, she went to the barn to check on the livestock and do the milking. Entering the cabin after her chores, she quickly poured the fragrant broth into a bowl for the stranger. While it cooled, she took stock. He had no firearm, no money (she thoroughly inventoried his belongings) and few supplies that would normally be necessary to survive in this weather. She also discovered a huge swelling over his right ear. As she undressed him, she discovered his left side sported a huge black and blue mark that she knew would be very tender to the touch. She began to wonder if he had been bushwhacked and robbed. If so, the fact that he lived showed Lady Luck favored him well. Usually they would just shoot their victims and take everything. Noticing the broth was now cool, she carefully tried to spoon it into the man’s mouth. It was a toss-up what got the most, the man’s mouth or his neck. But his shivering seemed to have abated. She put the bowl aside, realizing he might be in better condition than first thought.

    Covering the man tightly, she went for another blanket, hearing him murmur Maggie as she tucked him in. As she watched him dozing more fitfully, she realized she must now take the time to pin down Baby. Tired of putting it off for so long, she prepared to formulate the questions. The appearance of the stranger merely exacerbated her need to know. She glanced at Baby who made himself comfortable on a rug in front of the fire, his mysterious tail glinting as it lay wrapped around his chubby abdomen. Sitting down next to him, she took a deep breath and asked.
    “Baby, where do you come from?”
    “Oolaha,” the whisper casual.
    “Oolaha; what is Oolaha? Is that a name? The town near your woods?”
    “I do not understand, Sister,” the whispered aura stated.
    “I asked you where you came from. Where did your family live?”
    “Oolaha.” Again, the whisper came. Netty, feeling frustrated, changed the subject. Taking Baby’s hands in hers, she looked him directly in his amazing eyes.
    “Why do you not want to heal him?”
    Softly, hesitantly, the whisper said, “It is forbidden.”
    “Who has forbidden it?”
    “The Elders, the Womb.”
    “But you told me you were an Elder, Baby. And you healed me.”
    “A grave error, Sister.” The aura of golden colors in her mind flashed intermittingly.
    “A mistake, Baby? I’m a mistake?”
    “No, no,” the whisper protested. “Sister is my Sister! Sister will be my Sister forever. Just Baby and Sister; forever and forever and forever and forever and forever and forever.” The whisper sang; golden colors so bright her mind flinched.
    “Shush, there, there, Baby, it will be fine.” Netty could not follow anything Baby said, but it clearly upset him. So, she just gave up. Baby filled her