Wow, where do I start? Well, first of all, I wanted to say thank you, Michael Landon, for giving us a gift -- your zany sense of humor and zest for life. Without you, these stories would be lifeless. God bless you!
Second, I would truly never be able to do these stories if it were not for the support of Deb (thank you for proofing this story for me), Leesa and Terri!!! You three are the best!!!!!!
This story was sort of a challenge given to Leesa and myself by Deb and Terri. Leesa had to write one about young LJ as well. We both did great, with Deb and Terri in our corners, when needed. Me more then Leesa, of course, he he he! Hope you like. Honeybear :"O)


 ~SMOKY~

by
Honeybear

    The thunderstorm lashed down toward the window pane on that hot summer night at the ranch, pelting it with a cold rain and a relentless wind. The upstairs lit up from the dancing bolts of lightning, as Little Joe scrambled out of his bed, down the hall, and into his Pa's room, without the aid of a lamp.
    "Pa...! It's back again," Little Joe squealed, as he dove underneath the warm covers of his father’s massive bed, where he found his security blanket once again.

    It had been a long, hot summer and Ben found himself with a little scamp just about once a week, due to Mother Nature's wrath. The next morning, he chuckled to himself as he looked down on the daunting ten year old boy, who was now sound asleep, dreaming of being so strong and brave, just like his Pa. Ben had to come up with a solution to both their problems, he thought, as he slid out of bed, throwing on his robe and slippers.

    Sighing heavily, Ben sat down at the breakfast table and propped his elbows upon it; holding his head up in his hands, he said, “Hop Sing! I just don't know what to do about that son of mine."

    Hop Sing was busy readying the breakfast table as he spoke up, “You mean number three son, don't you, Mr. Ben?"

    Ben looked up from his steaming coffee cup and replied, "Yes, this is the fifth time in two months that I've been woken up by a little boy who is scared of the night. Don't get me wrong, of course I love the closeness of the boy, but he has got to start sleeping in his own bed; there are only so many punches and kicks a pa can take during the night." He chuckled to himself, as he took another sip of the expensive brew Hop Sing had prepared, thinking of the many excuses his imaginative young son could come up with.

    "If Hop Sing may? I think I have solution to Mr. Ben's problem."

    Waving his hand, Ben was open for suggestions at that point. "Out with it Hop Sing! Anything would sound good right now, along with a good night’s rest."

    That's the cue Hop Sing was waiting for, as he turned and scuffled around the corner.

    "Where are you going? Hop Sing…?" There was no answer from the little cook, as Ben's eyes followed him out the front door. "Wonder what he is up to now?"

    A few minutes later, Hop Sing was back inside the ranch house, only with something wiggling under his apron this time. Chuckling to himself, Hop Sing walked up to Ben to reveal his secret.

    "What in the devil are you up to, Hop Sing? And what have you got there?"

    "Solution to many sleepless nights, Mr. Ben. Hold out your hands, you shall see. Hop Sing present to you... Smoky. He kind of remind me of little boy upstairs... small, but cute; strength shall come in time, Mr. Ben, in time."

    "Hop Sing!" Ben boomed. "You know how I feel about animals in the ranch house! They belong in the barn!" Seeing the determined look on Hop Sing's face, Ben began to cave in. "Any other time I would have overruled a fleabag in my house." Squinting his eyes, Ben said, “Do you really think this will work?"

    "Old Chinese philosophy, Mr. Ben. One will not know, if one not open heart, mind and soul.”

    Climbing the stairs, Ben made his nightly rounds and then crept toward his youngest son's room, along with a little friend who was wiggling under his robe, to bid him goodnight. Pa could see the vivid lightning outside the window and the painted on questions the boy would have on his face. **** Hope this works. **** Ben thought to himself, as he knocked on the door. "Little Joe? May I come in? Your Pa has something for you."

    Sitting up, Little Joe pulled the covers close to him, as he scooted against the headboard. Rubbing his tired eyes, he said, "What is it Pa? What is it?" He could see something under his pa's robe wiggling and it lightened his scared mood.

    "Well now, your pa thinks it's time for you to have some responsibilities, Son, so why don't we start with this?" Ben reached underneath his robe and pulled out the smallest, cutest, gray and white, fluffy kitten you could have ever laid your eyes upon.

    "Oh Pa! Can I? Can I really have him? I mean her? Is it a he, or a she? What's its name? Where did it come from? What will I feed it?"

    "Slow down, Son, slow down! One question at a time here, okay?" Ben lowered the kitten onto Little Joe's lap, as he now sat on top of his bed sheets, with his legs criss-crossed. The little kitten jumped in between them, purring away.

    "Now, to answer all your questions, Son. First of all, I want to stress to you this is a lot of responsibility. You do understand that this little kitten will need your love and care, just like you need mine, don’t you?"

    “Sure I do, Pa, and I’ll do a real good job too. I promise...cross my heart,” Little Joe excitedly answered and was about to jump in with more questions. That is, until Pa held up both hands. "Now let me finish. Hop Sing found her wandering inside the barn, homeless. Seems to me she's lost her ma, too, and needs a little bit of attention, just like you do. Now, you can keep the kitten under the condition that you take care of her. She'll need plenty of warm milk, warmth and affection, is that understood, Son?"

    "Yes Pa, I REALLY, REALLY promise. But is it a he, or a she?"

    Shaking his head, Ben smiled and said, "I believe I've already answered that question. It's a she kitten. Why do you ask?"

    "Oh nothing, just wondered, I guess. Now I can be her mommy."

    " I see, well why don't we get you back under these covers and to sleep. I don't want to hear you up all night playing with this kitten. Get acquainted and I will be back in a minute to turn the lamp down."

    "Okay, Pa. Oh wait! What’s her name?"

    "I think Hop Sing said something about it being called Smoky."

    "Smoky! I like that name, here Smoky, here kitty, kitty, kitty...."

    Pouncing on the bed, the little kitten and the boy were a perfect match, that is, until the thunder outside started to boom and the wind started to pick up again, pouring rain down on the window. Scooping the little kitten up in his hands, Little Joe slid underneath his covers to get away from the scary night. Flashes of light, filtering in through the covers, lit up his face, as the kitten played with the shadows inside the blanket. Feeling safe and warm, Little Joe fell fast asleep with Smoky by his side.

    The door creaked open as Ben went into the room to turn the lamp down to a small glow. He gently pulled back the blankets and cast his eyes upon the two sleeping beauties. What a sight he saw before him, a sight that would melt anyone's heart. He would have stayed in that one spot forever, if he could only stop time. ****Tonight I will catch up on some much needed rest at last. ***** Ben chuckled to himself, as he slowly shut the door.

    
    Skipping down the stairs, the two little scamps made their way to the breakfast table.

    "Joseph! Go wash your hands, young man!"

    Throwing off a sheepish grin, Little Joe held out both hands and said, "See Pa, we already did. Smoky and I washed up on the bed. Boy! Does her tongue hurt! Why does it feel like sandpaper, huh Pa? Why?"

    The whole table busted out laughing, as Hoss passed the platter of eggs and ham around the table. "Yeah, Pa!? Can you tell us all why?" Hoss elbowed Adam and they both started to chuckle.

    Casting a stone eyed look at his pre-occupied older sons, Pa continued on, "Well Little Joe, that's not quite what your Pa had in mind. Now get!" Ben said, with a swat to the pants. "And don't come back till they're scrubbed real good this time." Turning to the older boys, Ben said, "As for you two, eat hearty, because it's going to be a long, tiring day for the both of you."

    Gulping down their breakfast, Hoss and Adam both chimed, "Yes Sir, sorry!"

    Little Joe ended up helping Hop Sing milk Old Betsy after breakfast that morning. All other times, Little Joe would have fussed and stomped his feet, because his older brothers were breaking horses for the Army today.

    Ben knew all too well what the little scamp was up to and hoped his son would not be a handful for Hop Sing this morning.

    "Hop Sing, how much milk do kittens drink? And why does it have to be warm?"

    "Oh this one just a baby, need warm milk, but not much. Why you ask?"

    "Oh nothing, just wondering I guess."

    "Hop Sing almost done, you no touch stuff! You too little and cow velly, velly big. Be wight back with another bucket, you stay put, oclay?!"

    Patting Smoky, Little Joe set her down and walked over to the cow. "How hard can it be milking a cow? Heck this looks easy, all you have to do is sit down underneath Old Betsy like this, grab a hold of one of these, aim and pull. See Smoky, this is a piece of cake. Yum! Want some?"

    The little kitten meowed, weaving in and out of the wooden stool, licking her face as Little Joe squirted milk at her whiskers. Moments later, Hop Sing entered the barn with the empty bucket in his hand. With perfect timing on Little Joe's part, Hop Sing ended up with the same treat the kitten was getting. With no time to react, a stream of milk landed on his face, too. The warm, sticky milk dripped down Hop Sing's chin, as the Chinese man yelled out with a string of words that came out too fast and furious for Joe to understand.

Startled, Little Joe fell off the stool, spilling the bucket of fresh milk and scaring the cow, who took off, knocking Hop Sing over on her way out of the barn. The chain reaction didn’t stop there, as the empty bucket went flying through the air, landing in a comical fashion on top of Hop Sing's head. Out the door went Old Betsy, Little Joe and Smoky, along with some loud Chinese language. "What you do that for?" Hop Sing said, shaking his fists as he yelled at the boy. "Have no time for little boy's games. Go away!"

    "What's the matter with him? I was just trying to help. Come on Smoky, he can catch his dumb old cow; don't want to be around no cranky cook anyways. Hey! Let’s go see what Pa's up to." Stepping onto the porch, Little Joe peeked around the corner to where his Pa was working at his desk, snickering to himself about the trick he was about to play.
    But things didn't go as planned.  Just as he was about to jump out and say, **** Hey! Pa! What’s ya doing?***** , there was a loud bang as Ben's fist hit the desk, which made Little Joe stop dead in his tracks. He heard his Pa shout out, "Of all the lame brain things to do!" The booming voice scared the pants off of Little Joe, as he turned and ran out the door like a shot. Catching his breath, behind the pine tree out front, Little Joe couldn't believe how his Pa knew everything. "Come on, Smoky, we better lay low for awhile, everyone seems awful mad at us today. Pa must have seen what happened in the barn. It was an accident... really it was. Oh, who wants to milk some dumb old cow anyways? Hey! I know, let’s go see what older brother Adam and Hoss are doing! They always get to do all the fun stuff, come on!"

    Walking down the path by the corral, Little Joe could see his two older brothers breaking horses. "Shucks, that don't seem too hard to me. I bet I could break them old nags better than older brother Adam can. Heck, he can't even stay on that horse, ya see that, Smoky?" Little Joe held the kitten up for a better look. "Bet Hoss would let me try. Come on, Smoky, lets get a better look!"

    One by one, Little Joe climbed each rail on the corral fence, with the kitten not far behind, clawing its way to the top. "Almost there, Smoky, just one more rail and we'll be able to see everything from here."

    "Oh no you don't, Shorty! It's too dangerous for you up there." Hoss pulled his little brother off of the top rung of the fence and planted his feet back on solid ground. Squatting down to his little brother's eye level, Hoss ruffled his head of thick, curly locks and said, "Hey Little Brother! What you got there?"

    "It's my kitten, Hoss; her name is Smoky, isn't she the best?"

    "Sure thing, Little Brother, but just make sure you stay back now." Hoss put his large hands on his little brother’s shoulders ever so gently, moving him back a few steps. Winking, Hoss said, "Wouldn't want you two getting in the way now; older brother Adam can get mighty cranky."

    "Hey! Adam... tighten up those reins! Stay with him, Adam! Hold up! I’ll be right there. Little brother, you stay put now, ya here? And don't be climbing this here fence again. Old Hoss will be right back in a jiffy." Turning his back, he ran to help Adam.

    "But Hoss, I wanted to ask you...?" Little Joe's words were not heard as Hoss hurried over to help his older brother. "If I could sit a bronco? Hoss...?" Feeling left out and not wanted, Little Joe wiped away the tears that were starting to form in the corner of his eyes. Not Hoss, too?

    Little Joe decided to run away with the only friend he thought he had in the world... Smoky. "They can have their dumb old cow, dumb old paperwork and their dumb old horses. I have you." Little Joe kissed his soft kitten's head, the fur now wet from all the tears that had fallen from his forlorn green eyes.

    Hoss and Adam were too busy to notice Little Joe walking away, hugging the kitten in his arms tightly, with his head down. Little Joe could still hear them in the distance. "That a boy Adam. You got him now. Yahoo!"


    "All this busting broncos has made me plum starved. Let's go get Little Brother, before I get dizzy and have to eat me a side of beef."

    "Ok Hoss, lets call it quits for the time being. I don't think Pa is going to let us off the hook that easy, after this mornings little uprising at the breakfast table."

    "That's for dang sure, Adam. Hey! Little Brother sure was cute this morning, weren’t he?"

    “Yeah! The kid can melt your heart without even trying. See you when you get to the house, I'll tell Pa you got Little Joe." Brushing his pants off,  Adam walked away, toward the ranch house.

    Kicking up the dirt and the dust, Little Joe walked down the road feeling unwanted and unloved. "Who needs a cranky old cook and them old stuffy brothers anyways? We can take care of ourself, can't we Smoky?" But something deep inside was tugging at his heart; he would miss his pa so, as he wiped the salty drops from his face. "Oh Pa!"

    Just then the front door flew open and Hoss ran into the dining room, out of breath. "Pa! Adam! Little Joe's gone!"

    "What do you mean, your brother is gone? Slow down, Hoss; try to catch your breath."

    Hoss was having a hard time of it as he spoke. "Down by the corral Pa... I told him to stay put... we was too busy breaking them wild horses, Pa. I didn't want him getting hurt. I feel terrible. I just walked off and left him."


    Pa slowly started to put two and two together as he glanced up at Hop Sing and had flashes of the events that morning. The door being left open during his outburst, about the figures not adding up on the ranch paperwork he had been working on. **** Little Joe must have thought I was speaking to him. That, along with being in the way again with his brothers, only leads to one thing. **** "Saddle up our horses, boys!"

    Walking just a short way made Little Joe tired and hungry, as he lay down in the tall grass, next to the Ponderosa. He wanted to go far away, but his little legs hampered the distance he could go. Now his eyes grew heavy watching Smoky play with a blade of tall grass, and they slowly closed.

    "Meow! Meow!” The kitten rubbed and butted her head up against the sleepy boy. In no time Little Joe was fast asleep in the tall grass, as the sun started to set.
    Riding down the road, Pa signaled for his sons to stop. He thought it was best if they split up and tried all the secondary roads before it got any darker. He sat up in his stirrups, stretching his aching body, when he noticed something ahead in the road. It looked small and fluffy, as it jumped back into the grass. Smiling to himself, Pa knew all too well what it would be. Minutes later, they pulled their horses to a stop. There, sleeping in the grass, was Little Joe and his kitten, curled up in a ball next to his head of curly hair.

    "I'll get him Pa!" Hoss dismounted from Chubb and walked over to where Little Joe was lying. Bending down, Hoss lifted his little brother up into his mighty arms. He brought him over to where his father waited on Buck and handed him up into his Pa's arms. He then picked up Smoky and tucked her inside his shirt.

    "Well, looks like the mystery is solved. He'll have plenty of explaining to do when he wakes up, “commented Adam.

    "Yes, Son, looks like he does, but if there is any explaining to be done, it will be done to his pa! And in the morning. Have I made that clear?"

    "Perfectly clear, Pa, perfectly clear."

    "Good, then let's get this little rascal home, shall we? Looks like there is another storm brewing."

    The Cartwrights rode back to the ranch house, just as the storm began. The wind seemed to chase them all the way home.

    Hoss carried his little brother up the stairs, easing him onto his bed ever so gently. As flickers of lightning lit the room, Pa readied his son for bed. Little Joe was so tired from his busy day, he never woke up.

    Hoss pulled Smoky out of his shirt and sat her down next to his little brother, where she curled up once again into a ball next to Little Joe's head.

    Pa kissed his boy goodnight and brushed aside the unruly curls that had fallen down upon his forehead. As he turned the lamp down low, there was a round of loud thunder booms that seemed to ricochet through the house. ******Surely this should have woken my little boy by now, **** Ben thought to himself as he peered down at the two. **** Hop Sing was right, this is the end of my little boy’s sleepless nights...and mine,***** he chuckled.
    Little Joe had found his security blanket and it was purring right next to him in bed, thanks to good old Hop Sing. With a kiss to the forehead, Pa whispered,”Goodnight Joseph, goodnight!"

The end.


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