Newton and the Treefellows (2 of 3)

As I was still a little unsettled about Professor Aristotle Treefellow's potential designs upon me, I decided to take one brother's advice and visit my other brother. My twin Newton Butterglove has always been clever. When he was a child it didn't surprise any of us that Professor Treefellow sought him out as a pupil. We figured Newton's long association with this estimable owl must assuredly give some insight on how best to handle him. Consequently I made a call at Newton's home.

o 0 O 0 o

"Hello Jackson," he said when first he saw me, "was I expecting you? You know me when I'm in deep-thinking mode."

 

"No, don't worry, Newt," I said, suppressing a smile, "I came on the off-chance you could offer me some advice."

"Intriguing. Let's go and get comfortable."

Newton led me to his living room. Audrey - his wife - was there with their twins and she sighed with relief when she saw us.

"Oh good, Newton," she said, "I'm glad you've taken a break. I need to pop to the shops and these two want watching."

"That's fine, but Jackson wanted a word..."

"Then you can both watch them, can't you? I won't be long."

With that, Audrey left and two little girls were left watching us. Newton raised his brows at me then held his arms out to his daughters. They ran to him.

"Daddy playing with us?" said Donna in a sweet, high-pitched voice.

"And Unky Jacky?" said Dinah.

"Maybe later, my beautiful bon-bons. First, Uncle Jacky has to talk to Daddy."

"Aw," said Dinah, sticking out her lower lip.

"Puzzle?" asked Donna.

 

"They've decided they like puzzles," Newton whispered from the side of his mouth. He delved into his pocket and extracted a piece of paper that he unfolded and handed to the outstretched hands of his daughters.

 

"What is it, Daddy?" said Donna.

Dinah peeked at the tightly-drawn lines covering the sheet of paper. "It's a maze!" 

 

"Yes girls," said Newton, "oh, where are you going?"

The twins had skipped to the corner of the room, preparing to solve the maze Newton had drawn for them.

"Well," he added, "that should keep my little darlings happy for a while." He grinned. "You need to fold the paper to solve it."

My clever brother had a way about him.

"So, Unky Jacky," he said, "how can I help?"

o 0 O 0 o

After I'd explained myself, Newton nodded slowly. "You're right to come to me. Aristotle has a way about him that you need to understand. It took me a while to figure him out, but I was a child."

"What can you tell me about him?" I said, not really knowing what I needed to know.

"I think it's important you realise that all the Treefellows are more than they appear. They are older than any of us. Even the children. They have learned much during their lives. Their longevity could create a distance between other Sylvanians with a shorter lifespan but only if you let it."

"How do you handle it?"

"Don't let yourself be intimidated. Treat them as equals. That usually takes a while to realise, meaning that you can be influenced to do things out of a sort of inferiority complex. Don't get into that rut. From what you said, there's a danger you might go that way if you don't put a halt to it."

"What do you mean?

"You were effectively summoned to their home by the three boys. Then, as Aristotle spoke to you, the three girls circled you, making you uneasy as they examined you. That wasn't by accident."

"It was unnerving."

"They were learning about you. They all have their specialities. Grumpy sees the downside of any situation. Winky sees the absurd. Blinky thinks laterally. Fussy is a stickler for accuracy. Grizzly is particularly empathetic, and Sniffy is fixated on solutions, eliminating irrelevancies. Together, they are brilliant analysts providing information to Aristotle and Arabella."

"How does knowing that help me?"

"It may not, but now you're aware that there's nothing sinister about them. They are all devoted to preserving the Sylvanian way of life, which is what we all want. Keep that at the back of your mind. These days, we uphold Sylvanian values in our own way. It doesn't always need to be on their terms. Maybe it did in the earliest days of Sylvania. Not now. Knowing this will help you face Aristotle as an equal."

I considered my brother's words. It made sense. We were equals. My unease was due to the imposing way the Treefellows presented themselves. I had to put that aside. Concentrate and assess what was being said rather than be swayed by how things were said.

"If you treat Aristotle as an equal, he will respect you," said Newton. "The kids may be a little surprised at first, but they will adapt. Arabella will sort them out."

I nodded. "Thanks, Newt. I think this helps. I was probably swayed when I learned that Aristotle's earliest ancestors moulded how Sylvanians developed. That is true, isn't it?"

"So I've been told. But that's only from what Aristotle told me. He did mention one aspect of early Mellowdene history that was new to me, suggesting owls had been involved, but if you're talking about the very beginning, I couldn't say. I'm no expert on early history and legends. If you're interested in the lore of the land, then you are probably best talking to someone like Mulder Honey-Fox. I'm told he has investigated all sorts of weird and wonderful occurrences and that's helped him gather a decent overview of ancient history."

"Hmm. Darcy found him a useful source."

"A useful source. Yes, that's a fair description."

Maybe I could talk to Mulder, but that wasn't a priority. However, I was intrigued about Newton learning something new about Mellowdene. I asked him. He was happy to explain.

"I always wondered how the four families knew where best to divert the waters from Sweetwater Lake. I didn't believe it could be luck. How could they know the layout of the relevant subterranean watercourses?"

"And?"

"The Owl Collective brought in some moles. They mapped the underground rivers and dug a tunnel to a suitable entry point. Supposedly this location was secretly revealed to a few of the rabbit founders. The moles left, and the rest is history."   

"It sounds like the Owl Collective were really the ones that allowed Mellowdene to come into being."

"They were significant, assuredly. I don't know to what extent that covered the rest of Sylvania."  

"Is that more Mulder Honey-Fox's area of expertise?"

"Probably. As I said, the lore of the land is his thing."

"Okay. If I decide to pursue this, I'll try him."

A high-pitched voice came from the corner of the room. 

 

"We can't do this maze, Daddy!" complained Dinah.

"You can," said Newton. "Think beyond two-dimensions."

"Ooh!" said Donna, and the two small girls resumed their puzzling.

I smiled. These tiny children were definitely Newton's daughters.

o 0 O 0 o

 

Brotherly Advice (1 of 3)

It's a rare occurrence for me, but sometimes an unwelcome thought won't go away. I'm speaking of the throwaway comment by Aristotle Treefellow - "I could undoubtedly make use of your skill" - undoubtedly related to my manipulation of the crystal locks in my underground adventure (see Routes of Sylvania). I didn't want to go down there again. Couple this with the potential call on my time for the forthcoming Melting Festival, and I needed a way to relax to prepare myself. (You may be puzzled why there was trepidation concerning the Melting work, but I will get to that.) Thank goodness for my brother and a little routine.

Merlin and I were out on one of our regular jaunts, ending up at the East Dock Road snackbar we tend to frequent. None of the Seadog brothers were there but the good news was that Heston Doughty was in the kitchen instead of Fenton Barker, giving us unexpected variety in our food. His special herby nutburgers were on the menu. They would help me to relax! 

 

 

I was grateful to Darcy when he volunteered to write the recent blog entry. He obviously remembered last year's Melting preparations; I didn't write about it at the time but I was heavily involved. Before I mention this year, some disclosure might clarify last year's tasks.

There was still a lingering excitement about certain Mellowdene residents "being famous" - as some said. With the publicity and success of The Sylvan River musical, Chris and I had been thrust into the limelight, and certain people - Mayor Ramsey Nettlefield for one - were eager for our music to feature heavily in the Melting Festival. He does tend to be optimistic with his big ideas. 

 

Of course, it would have been an honour but there were difficulties whichever way one looked at it. Mellowdene doesn't have an orchestra and without one, one has to arrange the score for whatever musicians are available - and that's before one finds singers to do the job. It looked beyond our home-grown talent, especially in the time available. 

It was a relief when Lionel Grand volunteered his services and persuaded Roxy Renard to help. Working alongside these two talented musicians was a wonderful experience. We took a few of the most popular songs from the musical - not all, allowing Lionel to include some songs from his repertoire - and with his skill in my arsenal, arranging the score purely for piano was easier than it could have been. The choice of songs excluded the baritone solos, but with some key changes and minor lyrical tweaks from Chris, Roxy was able to manage the tenor parts in addition to those that fit her range and gender. 

 

My work was done when it came to the performance so I was able to relax with Cecile and the children.

So - what about this year? The musical is still popular, regularly running from a smaller theatre in Calico New City, and there are a couple of touring companies performing a stripped down version. Twelve months on, the excitement has died down here in Mellowdene. Chris and I are no longer treated like minor celebrities by some villagers - which suits us! Nevertheless, I expected to be approached to provide some assistance for this year's festival.

Merlin is a tolerant soundboard and had good advice as usual. I offloaded my concerns.  

 

"Jack - it's great that you're so helpful, but you mustn't let people take advantage of you. You had a lot to do last year. I wasn't the only one to notice it. I can tell you now that I was having an informal chat with Ramsey after the performance. He was excited how well Lionel and Roxy had interpreted your work, and I told him."

I stared at him. "What did you say?"

"I merely agreed that the concert was excellent, that you had spent almost two week's worth of full-time work doing arrangements and setting things up for the performers. I added, 'at least he won't be called upon to work so hard next year, eh, Ramsey?' and watched his face. He was silent for a few moments. I hope I did right."

"Still the big brother," I smiled. "What did he say to that?"

 

"After a bit, he nodded and said how last year had been special. He agreed that you'd gone beyond the amount of work anyone could expect. 'Caprina says that I can get carried away,' he said, 'and she's probably right. Well you don't need to worry, Merlin. I intend to scale back after this year's extravaganza, and I'll seriously think about spreading the load.'"

"It might explain why he's been quieter recently, Ramsey has normally approached me by now."

"Well, maybe that's a good sign. Nevertheless, he should have told you if your services won't be required."

 

At that point, a voice rang out. "Ah! Mr Butterglove, I've found you!"

We turned to see a somewhat flushed Alessandro Lopez. I pointed to myself and he nodded. 

Alessandro Lopez was a relatively new teacher at Mellowdene School. The recent reorganisation of the education system had included the engagement of additional teachers and Mr Lopez was one of these. During one of my weekly slots providing piano lessons for my nephew Figwort Ivory, he had mentioned Mr Lopez and a new music class over which he presides.

"Mr Lopez," I said in greeting.

"Please call me Sandro," he said, indicating a seat. I waved that he should sit.

"How can I help, Sandro?"

"I've called at your house but your wife told me you might be here. I've come mainly to apologise to you."

"Whatever for?"

"It's regarding the music for Melting," he said, and I exchanged glances with my brother. "I know you've been called upon in recent years, but Mayor Nettlefield had said you deserved a break and suggested that the school might be involved, which meant I would need to organise my students.  I've been busy the last few weeks."

"I'm not sure why that warrants an apology, Sandro."

"The thing is, both the mayor and I thought that each other would have been in contact with you to inform you of these plans. I only found out this morning that you were in the dark."

Merlin laughed. "We were just talking about that. Ramsey Nettlefield's delegation skills can be amorphous at times."

Sandro smiled uncertainly. "Then you don't mind?"

 

I shook my head. "Frankly, it's a weight off my mind. It will be refreshing to be an observer this year. What do you have planned?"

"That's generous, Mr Butterglove..."

"That's Jackson. Saves confusion. I know my brother prefers to be called Merlin too."

"Right. Well, Jackson, the classes are relatively new and few children can play instruments - although I'm aware Figwort Ivory is learning the piano, thanks to you - so I am concentrating on their singing for now. I hope to form a proper choir at some point, but my current objective is to get as many children involved as possible."

"You'll have your work cut out."

 

"As I'm learning. I should manage, but if you have any ideas I'd be grateful."

 

As Heston Doughty appeared with our nutburgers, Sandro stood. "I'll leave you to your meals. Thank you for understanding."

We acknowledged him, and the chihuahua teacher left the snack bar.

Merlin looked at me. "Problem solved. There's just the other issue."

"Aristotle Treefellow."

 

"Right. An imposing bird. It seems to me that the best way of dealing with the Professor is to find someone who knows more about him. How best to handle him."

"You're thinking of Newton?"

"Of course. Aristotle tutored Newton for some years. If anyone can help..."

 

He was right, of course. I'd go and visit my twin. But first, nutburgers.

o 0 O 0 o