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Moonlight bathed over the house and lawn as the crickets chipped their calming songs, the tall grass that grew on the far side of the property billowing in the wind as an old barn owl hooted once or twice every couple minutes into the glimering twilight.

The gentle humid brease and the distant chiros and sounds of barn animals being the only sound for miles probably, well that and supper being prepared

The old wood of the house croaked as a harsher gust of wind blew over the house. There stood the young man and his mother, no words, no kind glances, just silence as the knife cut away the skin off the small vegetable and him pealing away the leafs from the cork stalk. The clack of metal over wood as she cut the vegetales into chunks and the crackling of the fire being the only source of noise. Earl stood stuffy as board his eyes tired and nose pinched as he wished he could be anywhere than here.

For a moment He heard his mother sigh but she doesn't even look at him andas she speaks, her tone cold like always when she's addressing him.

"I thought I told you she wasn't allowed to come here any more"

Earls eyes flicker as it feels like his gut just tugged at his core with those harsh little words his eyes flickering before speaking up calmly as posible,

"She was helpin me do my chores" he continues carefully placing the cobs on the tray also not looking up. Slight anxious twitch of his wrist as his he did so

Her slightly vainy hand grip tighter at the knife as she peeled away another potato, harshness ever evident on her movements that conveys a thousand words when it came to his mother. She was a very hot headed woman but all the while she always liked to keep this thin air of composure "I find that hard to believe, I don't know what you called that but it wasn't any chores " she speaks, tone as dry as ever filled with growing disappointment.

Earls movement become slightly more agitated, frantic even as he slaps the leaves down as his brows furrow and his nose scrunches up at her almost disgusted tone and even more at what she was possibly insinuating as he gulps down air, gathering courage "It was just dancin mama" he grumbled anoyedly almost mumbling, peeling away the leafs with much more force then before, the muscles on his arms from the long years of doing farm work straining with his temper.

Her tired eyes look at him but only to judge once more as she sighs with an agitated tisk "You aren't to indulge in such foolishness, it's selfish it's what it is"she harrumphs, her accent thick adding to the coarseness in her voice.

Their eyes fixed to what they're were doing, no gazes ever meeting the others, once again nothing but silence.

The grandfather clock of the living room ticks as the breeze makes the curtains sway and the wind chimes that hang off of the roof of the porch jingle ever so gently.

Flip click
Clip flip
goes the knife  as it peals almost in rhythm 

"With the other farm hands gone, and you prancing around with that girl, you can't leave me to do everything my self"she spits with her shoulders squared and her old face cast in shadow thanks to the dim lighting's.

Earl pauses for a moment his eyes looking back at his mother, glazed with confusion and hurt the

The boy just glared up at his mom before in a faint dejected tone mumbling a sad "...I help"

She pauses fully, as she drops the knife with a harsh jerked movement as she breathes through her nose. her movement now still as ther gazes finaly meet

their it was

Nothing but hate

Nothing but anger

And something else that earl couldn't quite decipher

It confused him

His mother would always teeter in the line, or keep her words balanced and never fully faltering like a performer on a tightrope, she talked as if she held some unchanged and unknown emotion deep inside but in the end it was always the same

Nothing but cold hearted

"Pack den Mais in den Topf und hol deinen Vater"she spat turning her nose up at him

Earl gulps, his Adam's apple bobbing as all he can do is bite his tongue and nod his eyes flickering down as her eyes bore into his figure, as he scurry's off to continue cooking as he takes the bowl of corn to boil in the pot near by.

His eyes glint at the sight of the paper neatly piled near the fire place, eagerly placing the bowl down and walking with more hopefull strides.

"Anything for me in the post today"

"No"

He flips through the envelopes for a moment before his eyes fix to something new, kneeling over to fully grasp it as he pulls up the folded newspaper with wife and curios eyes speaking fully as he read it loud

"Says the allies have taken control of France"
He speaks surprised, his eyes darting across the words and flushed lips mumbling as he continues to read, his mother looks at him from the corner of her eye slightly for a second before sighing once again

"You can read it after supper"she replied simple

Earl hesitates but then speaks up trying to keep a level headed tone "But mama this  could They've taken control of the war "

She huffs like and annoyed bull, frustrated  grasping at the knife as she harshly stabs the cutting board, her hands  griping at the counter with a firm grip as she turn to glare at him.

"Do as I ask Earl!"

She roared ever so slightly ashamed as she lowers and recollects herself her tone lowering as well as her gaze as she goes to continue finishing up the food. As he voice trembled, with anger or distress Earl couldn't tell

"I don't want to hear about anymore dead Germans tonight"

With that Conversation over. he sadly drops the newspaper down as he walks with a sad saunter to the next room over his worn work boots creaking as he laves small pale tracks in the wood

He lets out a small sigh at the back of a body facing the window as he walks over his feet shuffling over the old rug that must have been in his family for generations.

"Suppers ready daddy"

The figure dose not move, he didn't even flinch

And that simple reason was becase he is  unable to

Mathew Sunderland did not get the way he was now because of the Spanish flu

In fact  at the start of his illness you couldn't tell he was sick at all

At least that's was all the doctors said

But then the jolts in his joints started  happing

Unexplained pain whenever he used to move

The bizarre agitated zpazam that surged through his body that faithfully day he lit the abilitie to move entirely.

It unlike anything the poor man has ever experienced. The unfortunate and relentless desperation that coursed through his mind. The primal fear that shone in his eyes as all he could do was speak brokenly and incoherent mumbles as he desperately tries to comunícate

Earl was nearly five that year and his young mind was ojos engrave that night forever in his memory

He had never seen someone so scared and yet so helpless. Like a frightened wounded mouse in a trap like the ones the laid near the corners of the barn house.

His mother cursed out all the doctors in German damping their souls to hell and back, as she spent nearly a fortnight howling mournfully at the night sky like the moon would answer her prayers and some how magically save her husband from the unsavory existence he would endure for the rest of his days.

But this was his life now.

So with a soft grunt and strong start up he pushes the wheelchair the same path through the same doorway to the same spot it happened that  fated autumn night long ago.

Candled light sat at their quaint little table as they held their hands with one another in prayer. As they come to an end earls mother sighs once more as they all begin to eat.

The young boy eagerly diggin in as he immediately    grabbing one of the cobs. Belly empty and aching from the days long and hard chores.

House only having sound being his energetic bites and the flicker of the fire place as he hums at the taste, his mother glancing at him here and there as she quietly tears into the bread she had baked that morning.

He halts a mid chew as that same cold voice interrupts "hilf deinem Vhather"

The young man sighs as he's still has his mouth stuffed with food, using a arm to wipe   at his face as he gulps down his food.

Begrudgingly grabbing at the spoons to help the slightly gasping man he called his father has he literaly has to inhale the food.

Earl letting out the faintest  sigh of contempt as he lets his mind wander off into someplace better, far far awya and high into the sky his thought ever so wanting to escape the suffocating room he was standing in that very moment.

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Kinda a nothing chapter but just wanted to get the beats down

More to come soon