A Company Court-Martial

"But that would be stealin' it." Pye mused. "Know anybody who knows how t' make baskets?.. or ..any place I could then.. I'd love ter afford havin' a chick place.. ter sell eggs n' all that." He looked fond at the idea, though he knew this was probably never to be.

"Not wild plants, it ain't stealin'. An' yeah, I know folks as'd teach you." He smiled. "You only got to ask, an' folks'll help you out. Only right, that is."

"Then.. Well, learnin' it wouldn't hurt. Though dunno as who would buy summat I'd do." He wasn't convinced that anybody would be interested or that he would be good enough. "...still ain't enough ter feed two. But that ain't for anyone, neh?" He smiled and leaned back, before reminding himself that he would not sit, nor topple over and that his rump was tender and would remain so for a short while.

"Oh, you'd be surprised, you would. People will buy almost anythin'." He lay back on the grass.

"You're a liar." Pye commented and debated for a moment, till he did the opposite, and lay on his belly, holding his mug infront of him. "I like war... it's simple...don' like t' dyin' ... but t' rest. I've nothing to loose, but much t' gain. S' interestin' that.. you know. But mebbe that sort of thinkin' is wot' made me upset you lot."

"No, it warn't that. An' well, it is interestin' being out here." He grinned and rolled over to lie on his stomach, too. "Y'know, if it hadn't bin for this war, I might never have left the village I was born in. Till I 'listed, the furthest I'd ever bin from home was about seven miles."

"I don't know how ar I wos'.. never knew distances 'zactly. But.. I kept 'round t' same place.. mos' of t' time." He smiled. "It was alright, though.. well, see. I didn' know wot' army did exactly when my mark wos' made. ..N' that, it kind of .." Made for the marks on his back, which made him fear the officers and for a while making just fear doing anything out of turn. How things have changed. How he had. From a puppet, a tin soldier he was finally becoming more human and sadly with his flaws too.

"Well, you stick with us an' we'll teach you the right of it." He grinned as Roper dropped to sit near them.

"There's worse things to be than a Rifleman," he said, reaching for the kettle. "Anyone for another cup of tea?"

"Worse?.. Bein' a Rifleman ain't bad at all." Pye protested with a grin. Even if a short while ago, he was sentenced by these men, he held no ill will against them. He lifted his hand to ask for some tea himself, his mug yet again empty. "You was workin' at t' farm place ,like, Gabe, right? You Roper? " He shifted to lying on the side and looked rather relaxed.

"Whatcha learn there?" He reached up to his little bag and let the chick go. She made a few runs first, before settling herself on the ground, staring at the other rifleman with her beady dark eyes. She chirped at him, as if trying to intimidate the man, and fluffed up in her usual ' i am BIGGER than you ' way.

"Wasn't a farmhand like Gabe here, me," Roper said, pouring hot water for them to add their own tea-leaves to. "Was a gamekeeper, till I got caught with a couple of pheasant I hadn't no right to. Under gamekeeper." He chuckled. "Learned not to go gettin' caught with the squire's birds when I hadn't any right. He was all right though - give me the choice of goin' to jail for it, or joinin' the army. He'd bin a soldier hisself, years back - think he'd had summat to do with the fightin' out in America, an' that was thirty year back, or more."

He grinned down at the chick as it chirped up him. "You want to see if you can mebbe get some corn meal or oats or summat off Gabe, here - him bein' in charge of lookin' after captain's horses. Means he'll be able to sneak a handful or so of grain when he can. Best thing for hens, that."

Cotton grinned in agreement, reaching to take his own mug back. "Aye. A handful or so won't be much of a problem - the hosses won't notice that've gone missin'."

"That keeper sounds like he was a fair one." Pye glanced at his chick. He hadn't thought of that. Of course Cotton fed the horses and worked with them, but somehow it slipped is mind that it was therefor that he could have access to their feed. Stupid really. Especially considering how logical that was.

"So you's a'right in sneakin' some out for her?" He asked watching the chick perk her little head with interest, though she probably did not understand what they were talking about.

Roper grinned. "Meant, I was an under gamekeeper - it was the head keeper as caught me with the pheasants." He shrugged. "Squire could've had me in the clink, or transported. 'Stead, I'm here, and a Chosen Man, too."

Cotton chuckled. "Don't mind doin' favours for a friend, me. Jus' so long as me friends don't 'spect me to... to abuse me position, 'cause I won't do that. An' a handful of feed here an' there won't make hardly any diff'rence to the hosses, like I said. I don't mind doin' it. Don't s'pose the captain'll mind too much, neither - it ain't like I'm plannin' on sneakin' whole buckets full away, after all"

"N' fair amazin' that is." Pye smiled, thinking of it. He'd heard being told about the chosen men, and the strip of cloth just marked Roper as something more. A good man to learn from, just as Cotton. If anything Pye could feel an honour to be let into such company or so he felt.

He grinned more as Cotton offered that he would indeed get a bit for the chick: "Oh, don't need more n' a bit, Gabe. You know how she don't eat so much, and really.. I'd never 'buse that , or ask ye.. that is."

"Well, all it means is that I'm a Rifleman like you, just being watched and, well, bein' prepared for promotion. Got more responsibilities - duties, really - than you. Really, it's half-way to bein' a corporal, see." He tasted his tea, and shifted until he was lying on his side, propped on his elbow.

Cotton grinned. "Out of the whole group of us - us three, Newbury, Jacklin, the Palmers, an' Joe Cavender - an' Martha Jacklin an' Maggie, when they'm up with us - Roper an' me have the extra duties. I'm batman to the Captain, an' Roper here's the Corporal, sort-of, in charge of our mess. He's the one you go to first if there's a problem with anythin', you see. I jus' look after the Captain, make sure he's got everythin' he needs, wait table for him, things like that."

"Oh!" The lad looked actually much more sheepish now, that he heard what Roper was and a better explanation as to what a chosen man was. He began to scramble to his feet, but then changed his mind and solely looked embarrassed about it.

"'s ..are we suppose to act different, then? I'm sorry if I's been too general n'..well like it..n'." He rushed to apologise. Both Roper and Cotton were in ways like superiors, and here he was acting to them as equals!

Roper chuckled and put out a hand to pull Pye back down. "Don't be daft, Zack. I'm same as you, really. So's Gabe Cotton, here.We just got other things to do on top of what you have to do, see."

Cotton nodded. "It's extra work for me, 'cause I've got to see to the Captain's things as well as mine. Get paid a little bit more for doin' it - for me time. Don't get to relax like you till I've done everythin' else for the Captain. Like lookin' after his uniform an' his sword an' pistols, as well as my own stuff. An' then there's the horses. Still," he shrugged. "Never expected to be anyone's servant, not like that."

Pye allowed himself to be brought back down, though still careful not to disturb things that weren't meant to. He wasn't completely certain that they were not somehow ranked higher, but decided that as long as they did not tell him off, he would try behaving as before.

"That'n extra will be good. 'specially for Maggie n' you pair, later." He grinned and glanced at Roper. "Either o' you. If there's a time I should address you in a different way, jus' remember I dun' know how rifles go, so's better you tell me directly." He nodded watching as the chick hopped up and first seemed to chirp at Roper in a threatening way, when he had took hold of her owner, but then relaxed and just went off to inspect this new man.

"I think I like this better." He added as an afterthought.

"Well, that's good," Roper said and looked down. "Hello, there," he said, and held a hand out for the chick's inspection. "Don't have anythin' 'part from breadcrumbs, I'm afraid," he told the little ball of fluff.

"Address us... Oh, no. We'm Riflemen, like you," Cotton said. "Though it'd be a good idea to listen to what Roper here says 'bout things, 'specially if you want to learn the right way about it."

The chick didn't seem convinced that Roper has no food though, and hopped closer, tilted her head a bit, hopped even closer. Pecked at the floor as if to indicate what she wanted, and then chirped. She suddenly broke into an adorable run,back to Pye. Just to stop where she felt safe, turn about and look like a cheeky little thing.

"I'll lissen." Pye answered and scowled a little. "Don' say I don't." He offered and looked up at Roper. "Well.. for t' most part." Though he'd only hung as much around Roper now, so that he had an excuse of never listening to him before :p. Or atleast, not much.

Roper chuckled at the chick's actions. "Never said you didn't, lad," he said, still watching the fluffy creature. He looked up. "Anyone know what's for dinner?"

"Think Ben's gone to scuff somethin' up," Cotton replied.

"Ah, that's all right, then."

"Could'a been rabbit, if we went' for it.." Too bad the last had been finished so soon. He would have loved to have another rabbit stew. Those were very tasty, and rather fine to eat. As if the mention of food provoked the hunger of the young lad, his belly rumbled loudly and his cheeks turned red, his eyes dropping to stare at the floor.

He couldn't help it, being hungry. Couldn't help wanting to eat whenever he was enabled to. "Will it be long till...its ready?" He asked rather timidly. Even the sensation on his bum was forgotten at the thought of food.

"Ought to be, though I dunno as it'll be much good, really, it only bein' beef," Roper said and lifted the lid of the pot hanging over the fire. "Give it a little longer, though I don't think even if we left it to cook for a week that it'd be much cop. Might as well boil your boots as ration beef, that's all bone and gristle and nothin' much beyond that. Though there's some vegetables and things in it, which'll help."

"Doesn't matter, Roper." The lad might have preferred rabbit, but beef was just as good as long it was in his plate. Even shoes might've been eaten, if worse come to be. "Food's food. As long as we get it,.. that's all that is. It's good, as long as its in our bellies." He grinned.

"Oh, you'll get some, don't you fret over that," Roper said, putting the lid back on the pot. He grinned at Pye. "D'you ever think of anythin' apart from food, mate?"

"..I do!" The lad exclaimed. But as he tried to come with an example, the conviction, seen and heard earlier, began to be far less. "Well..." He began, and then with a triumphant grin he pointed at his chick. "I think o' makin' sure ter fee.......ter take care of her. That's not food then. Because she's not my food." He reasoned. "N'..when I'um cleanin' t' rifle see... I think of doing that, then.."