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THE TALE OF MR. BROWN
By Janine S
Mr Brown was used to people looking at him strangely. He was not entirely sure why people would react the way they did. They just...did. And that was the way of his world. Mr Brown could not change it, nor did he strive to. He just did his best to keep his life simple and carefree.
It was not always that way. At one time, the way people treated him bothered him.
Until, that is, one day in September.
Mr Brown was taking a nice walk through the park. Shining through the puffy clouds that littered the sky like an angel had spilled bag of cotton balls, the sun was doing its best to bring light to the dismal little town. The reactions he received from people as he circled the park were typical. Some glared. Some pointed. Some even laughed. He tried not to scowl as the warming feeling of the sun on his back was too good to be spoiled.
He spotted a butterfly on a nearby plant. It was fluttering its wings and looked as if it had just come out of its cocoon. He quietly approached the monarch, admiring its markings of black on brown. Through the leaves, he noticed a young girl, maybe five feet away from him,staring at him intently.
"You're funny looking." she stated simply.
Mr Brown decided not to dignify her opinion with an answer. He noted that she still stared, though he maintained interest in the monarch and ignored her. She moved closer, almost nose to nose with him but for the leaves of the plant.
"Well...you're not too friendly, are you? Did the cat get your tongue?"
"Hmph." he grunted, and licked his lips as a subtle gesture to show that his tongue was intact.
She was as absorbed with him as he was with the butterfly. Then she actually noticed what it was he was staring at.
"Ooooo. Pretty!" she said as she reached out to touch the butterfly's fragile wings. Mr Brown was ready to knock her hand back before she could destroy the beauty of the monarch with those reckless child's hands, when it fluttered away to the relative safety of the air.
"Julia. What are you doing? Get away from him. He's...he's...filthy." the mother's reproach was so hurtful, Mr Brown could only drop his head as the young girl was led away.
He didn't mean any harm. He never meant harm. He had tried not to show even the slightest interest in the girl. And it was not his fault that children were always so curious, or that they overlooked 'abnormalities' even if they did bluntly point them out first. And being homeless wasn't entirely his fault. Surely the Fates had something to do with his being down on his luck. He used to have a loving family. Then, his parents died and the family was somewhat torn apart. Everything changed.
Mr Brown walked all the way back to the dumpster he called home hanging his head. He did not stop by the store where the nice gentleman would sometimes give him something to drink. He did not stop by the takeout place where a kindly lady would give him scraps to eat. He just went straight to his dumpster.
The next day was another mild one perfect for walking. With a kind of newfound optimism after his bad night of self pity, Mr Brown took his normal route to the park and started his familiar circle of the grounds - stopping at a tree here - a plant there - and taking in all the people around him, wishing he had somewhere he could fit in. Being alone all the time did make him feel as if the taunts hurt more. He was almost certain that if he could find a companion...
Across the grounds he saw the same young girl he had seen the day before. This time, her mother was not with her. She was with a man that Mr Brown assumed was her father. She was smiling and pointing out something to the man as she dropped his hand and ran off for closer inspection.
Mr Brown cautiously wended his way toward her, casually. She spotted him as soon as he came into her view. Her father, who was focused on a silicone blonde jogging in a revealing outfit, did not.
"You're here again! I'm sorry my mother was so mean. Do you want to play with me?" before he could answer, she ran off yelling "Catch me if you can!"
Mr Brown gave chase, darting through and around the growth trying to catch her. But she was fast. He was panting just to keep up. Then he made a fatal mistake. He ran right into her father.
"Well...what have we here? Like to play with little girls, do you? You filthy mongrel!"
"Daddy! Don't call him that! He's my friend."
"Friend?" he let out a sarcastic laugh. "So this is who your mother warned me about?"
"Daddy...can't we take him home and look after him?" she gave him her best 'I am the cutest little kid in the world and you can't say no to me' wide-eyed expression. "We can give him a bath and some food...he looks real hungry."
The man gave her a reproachful look. Then, he surprised Mr Brown. He reached down and scratched him right behind his drooping, tawny ear. Mr Brown wagged his tail enthusiastically.
"Well...I guess we were thinking about getting you a dog anyway. And he seems to be able to play quite well despite having only three legs. I just hope he is house trained"
"Oh thank you Daddy!" the girl squealed as she gave the man a strong hug.
"Come on boy. Let's go home."
Mr Brown happily followed his new family out of the park to a hot bath, a full meal, and a new lease on life.
***THE END***
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