Mary and Alvin Ch. 11

Up To Camp

"I think you made that up," Mary said, 'I think it's something you tell the tourists to mess with their heads."

"I did not make it up."

"I'm sorry," she responded, shaking her head, "But I don't believe porcupines fall out of trees."

Mary had been appalled by how many roadkill animals they had seen since they'd turned off the interstate and on to the state highway. They had seen squirrels and skunks but there had been a particularly large number of porcupines, and Alvin had remarked that not all of them had been hit by cars, that some might have fallen from trees.

"Why don't you believe it?" he asked.

"First of all, I'm skeptical that they climb trees at all. And if they do know how to climb trees, then why do they fall out of them?"

"They climb too high so as to nibble on leaves or pine needles and a big wind comes along and blows them out."

"Well, maybe. But I still think you're messing with me, and besides, that doesn't account for all the dead ones in the road. They didn't all fall out of trees." "No, they get hit by cars because they don't run away. A raccoon or a skunk in the road will run away when they hear a car coming, a porky thinks it can stand and fight."

"Thats awful."

"Yes, well, they generally lose. But look at it this way. We killed off most of the predators, so now the cars take that spot in the food chain."

"I am not buying the idea that running animals over with cars maintains the balance of nature."

"You don't know that the critters don't prefer it to getting eaten by wolves."

"You people are savages."

Alvin laughed, and Mary turned to gaze out the window. The light was fading but when she looked to the west she could still see mountain peaks silhouetted by the setting sun. The Presidentials, Alvin had told her, the highest peaks in New England.

She had been marveling at the scenery since they left Londonderry. She had packed the day before and taken her things to Alvin's house, still was not sure that she was well prepared for a weekend "up to camp," as Alvin called it, because she wasn't sure what going up to camp really meant. She knew they were going to sleep in a tent, and she wasn't looking forward to that, but she was excited about being invited along to what seemed to be an important family event.

When her work shift ended, she changed into jeans and a sweater in the ladies' room. Alvin was waiting outside in his pick up truck. There was a folded tent in the back, along with camping gear, a pair of sea bags and Mary's suitcase, all tied down with bungee cords.

They bought burgers and sodas at the McDonalds drive through, and headed out of town. It was a beautiful early autumn evening. A line of towering cumulus clouds hovered over the bay, but they were moving away from shore. There was a chill in the air and the first tints of red and gold were appearing on the trees.

"I can't believe it's already Fall," Mary said as she watched the scenery pass by, "It's very much still summer back in California." She almost said "back home," but that didn't sound right to her anymore.

"You know the saying," Alvin said, "we have two seasons in Maine, winter and the Fourth of July."

Mary put her hand on his thigh and squeezed. "Well, I just had the best summer of my life."

Alvin glanced at her and took her hand. He lifted it to his lips and kissed it. "I believe I did as well," he said.

There were a handful of CDs in the glove box, and Mary shuffled through them. They listened to Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen as the highway rolled over ever larger hills and the towns and farms grew further apart. With every rise and around every curve, Mary was captivated by the beauty of the landscape. She saw great vistas of lake and forest. She saw cozy cottages and abandoned barns. She saw a herd of horses galloping in their pasture and a flock of geese heading south for the winter.

It took an hour to reach the Interstate. They headed north for another half hour, then exited onto the state highway that Mary would always think of as "Roadkill Road". After about fifteen minutes, they entered a small town and Alvin pulled into the parking lot of a variety store. A sign out front identified it as The Granthams Corners Store, and advertised "Cold Beer, Guns and Ammo, Wedding Gowns". A second, hand painted sign below it warned, "Last Gas For 32 Miles".

Mary thought the top sign was a joke, but when she entered the store, she saw that it was not. An alcove leading off from the rows of cold drinks, snacks and auto supplies contained two racks of wedding dresses.

"Don't even be looking at those," Alvin said as he squeezed past her and ducked into the men's room. Mary scowled at him, but dismissed the remark as a flippant joke.

Mary used the bathroom, then met Alvin at the front counter. He handed her a whoopie pie and a can of Coke.

"How much further?" she asked him as they climbed back into the truck.

"Half hour or so," he said. "Say goodbye to civilization, it's all willywacks from here on out."

The woods grew thicker on either side of the highway and while a thin strip of sky held some light, the road was completely engulfed in darkness. After a little while, Alvin turned left onto a narrow dirt road that sloped precipitously downhill. He rode the brakes for a half mile or so, then, after coming to an almost complete stop, turned right on to a winding two track. After they had bounced along the rough road for a couple of minutes, Mary saw glimmers of light through the trees.

Alvin pulled into the clearing. It was as familiar to him as the home he grew up in. Some of his earlier memories were here; fishing off the dock with Diana and his father, curling up in the corner of one of the cabin's bunks while a thunderstorm boomed overhead, sitting in the porch swing on his grandfather's lap, listening to the Red Sox while the old man smoked a cigar and drank his Narragansett.

The yard was lit by a floodlight. He recognized Diana and Bob's SUV and Charlotte's Prius parked side by side near the cabin. Further to the side, half hidden under the trees, was Tim's pick up camper. He parked behind it and got out of the truck. Mary walked around from the passenger side, and took his hand.

"I smell a campfire," Mary said.

"I love that smell," Alvin replied.

As they walked across the dooryard, his nephew Theo came running around the corner of the cabin towards them. He made a beeline for Mary and threw his arms around her hips. She leaned down and hugged him.

"Aunt Mary, did you bring any cookies?" he asked.

"No, honey, I'm sorry, I didn't."

"That's okay," he said, "we got lots of good stuff."

Mary and Alvin looked at each other. Each knew what the other was thinking. Theo had called her "Aunt Mary".

They stepped around the corner of the cabin, Theo tugging at Mary's hand. The ground sloped gently towards the lake. Alvin stopped and looked around at his family, gathered around the fire, in the yard between the cabin and the dock. Theo continued to drag Mary forward, shouting, "Mama, Mama, come see Aunt Mary!"

Mary looked over her shoulder at Alvin, and even in the gloaming, he come see the smile on her face. He realized, with a sudden catch in his breath, that to his eight year old nephew, Uncle Alvin had always been alone.

Charlotte stepped forward and greeted Mary with a warm hug, then strode up the slope to her father. Alvin squeezed her and kissed her forehead. She wrapped her arm around his waist and joined him in watching Theo introduce Mary to his mother.

"I think Theo has his first crush," Charlotte said, as Mary and Molly chatted. Tim stood near them, holding his son's shoulders, while the boy looked up at him, chattering.

Alvin laughed. "She said she was the Faulkner charmer."

"Well, Theo's a bit of an easy mark. I guess you were, too."

"She was talking about you when she said it."

Charlotte laughed and elbowed him in the ribs.

"Where's your sister?" Alvin asked.

"They are coming up in the morning."

"Well, alright then."

Alvin watched Mary greet Diana and Bob, then step over to the picnic table where their daughter Rachel sat reading by lantern light. Mary stooped to say hello to her. Rachel said something back to her but never raised her eyes from the pages.

"I'm going in to the bathroom," Charlotte said.

"You used to pee off the end of the dock," Alvin said.

"I never did," she called over her shoulder, "That was Jen. Should have been your first clue."

Alvin chuckled. They both had, but he wasn't going to argue with her.

He started down the slope. Mary was standing near the fire, chatting with his cousin Laura. Her kids, Emily, Rosemarie and Noah, were running around the yard, playing tag.

Alvin felt proud of Mary, the way she handled herself, the ease with which she had become a familiar part of his family's lives. He remembered her tearful confession of how her father had never told her that he was proud of her, and resolved that he would tell her more often.

He shook hands with Bob and kissed his sister. He stopped to tousle Rachel's hair and turned to join Mary.

"Well, here is your man," Laura said.

Mary turned and saw Alvin, on the other side of the fire. He looked so handsome in the warm glow of its light. He came to her and took her hand. Laura patted her shoulder and stepped away to round up her children. Mary leaned into Alvin and kissed him.

"Hey!" Diana shouted from across the yard, "No PDA's in front of the kids!"

"Alright, Di," Alvin said, waving his hand at her. He looked at Mary and whispered, "What's a PDA?"

"Public display of affection."

Alvin scowled. "I'm supposed to be able to resist you?"

"You're supposed to try," she laughed.

He hugged her, shouting, "Di! I'm hugging Mary!"

"Just keep it PG13," she called back.

"PG13 is..." Mary began.

"I know what PG13 is."

Mary looked around the yard. A bright orange tent stood on the edge of the light. "Whose is that?" Mary asked.

"That would be the kids tent," Alvin replied. "I expect Tim and Molly will be sleeping in the camper. The rest of the adults will pile in the cabin."

"Except us."

"Well, I though there might well be some private displays of affection."

"There might well be," she nodded.

"Best get our tent up then," Alvin said, then shouted, "Hey Theo, want to help put up our tent?" But Theo was busy roasting a hot dog over the fire.

"I'll help," Bob called. The three of them went back to Alvin's truck. Alvin lowered the tailgate and he and Bob dragged the folded khaki tent out of the truck bed and dropped it on the ground behind Tim's camper.

Alvin took a lantern from the truck and lit it. He tossed Mary his keys. "Mary, we could use more light. Can you back up the truck and point the headlights over here, between these pines?"

"Sure," Mary said, although she had never driven anything as large as the pickup and was anything but sure about it. But she managed to move the truck as Alvin had instructed. The area under the trees was covered with a deep bed of brown pine needles. Alvin and Bob walked around the little clearing peering at the ground, every once in a while kicking aside a pinecone or bending to toss a stick. When they were satisfied the ground was clear, they positioned the tent and began to spread it out.

"How can I help?" Mary asked.

Alvin walked back to the truck and took a contraption from behind the seat. "This is an air pump." He unwound a cord from it and plugged it into the truck's cigarette lighter. It immediately began making a loud hum. Moving to the back of the truck, he said, "This is our air mattress." He dropped the mattress on the ground.

"We have a mattress?" Mary said, surprised.

"Of course we have a mattress. Jeezum Crow, Mary, I'm forty six years old, I'm not going to sleep on the frickin' ground."

By the time Mary had inflated the air mattress, Alvin and Bob were finished pitching the tent. Alvin hung the lantern from the center pole, and they wrestled the mattress into place. Stepping out, Bob gave Mary a grand bow and announced, "My lady, your suite awaits."

The interior of the tent was bigger than she had expected. She sat down on the mattress and was pleased to find it quite comfortable. Alvin came through the front flaps with the two sea bags.

"Pillows in here, if you'd like to haul them out." Mary got the pillows out while he went back to the truck and brought in Mary's suitcase and a pair of rolled up sleeping bags.

"We have separate sleeping bags?" Mary frowned.

Alvin shook his head. "I would not think of such a thing."

He gestured for Mary to get up from the mattress. When she had moved out of his way, he unrolled the two sleeping bags. He unzipped them and, laid them out, one on top of the other. He zipped them together into one double bag, and looked up at Mary.

"You think that's roomy enough for the two of us?" he asked.

"We might have to stay pretty close together."

"I think we will manage to get by." He took down the lantern and they stepped out of the tent. Hand in hand, they walked back toward the fire.

"Is Laura married?" Mary asked Alvin.

"She was. He worked at the Bucksport mill. When it closed he took it hard, starting drinking pretty heavy and things sort of fell apart. He's down to Stonington now, working a lobster boat last I heard. Not much help to her."

Laura had wrangled the kids into their tent. Supposedly they were going to sleep, but every now and then a chorus of giggles put the lie to that notion. Diana and Bob, Tim and Molly and Charlotte and Rachel all sat in canvas chairs around the smoldering fire. Alvin and Mary joined them. A bottle of coffee brandy was going around the circle.

"So, what's on everyone's agenda for tomorrow?" Diana asked. "I've got a cooler full of steaks for supper. Other than that, I don't plan to do anything but relax."

Alvin took a swig of the brandy, then said, "I was thinking that if someone would run us up to the North Fork, we might take the canoe and come back down the river."

"Wait a minute," Mary said, "You wouldn't let me rent a kayak but now you want to put me in a canoe?"

Alvin laughed, and Diana asked Mary what she was referring to.

"That's how we met," she explained, "I wanted to rent a kayak and paddle around the harbor. He said that it wouldn't be safe because I had no experience. He said that if I wanted to explore the harbor, he would take me sailing. Later on, he admitted that it would have been fine for me to go out in a kayak."

Tim and Bob laughed. Diana shook her head in a scolding manner.

"So you went sailing with him?" Molly asked.

"Yes, we went out the next day," Mary said. She looked over at Alvin. "I guess you could say we have been sailing along since then."

"I think that's kind of sweet," Molly said.

"Hold on," Tim said in mock indignation, "If I did that, you'd call me a lying son of a bitch. He does it and it's sweet?"

Molly patted his knee. "You've got a track record, honey."

Tim scratched his head and said, "Well, I guess that's fair." He took the bottle from Bob and poured down a long gulp. He leaned forward and kissed Molly's cheek. "You love me anyway, right?"

Molly took the bottle. "God help me, I do," she said, taking a sip.

They sat quietly around the fire. The night was growing chilly. Bob got up and fetched a couple more logs to feed the fire.

Charlotte looked up at the sky. "Is Uncle Harry coming up?"

"He said he would likely come up tomorrow," Diana replied.

"Think he will see a UFO?" Charlotte asked.

Everyone laughed. Alvin explained to Mary that every year, Harry would point to the sky and claim to see a mysterious moving object. No one else had ever seen one, no matter how indignantly he would point them out.

Now and then a knot of wood would pop in the fire or a loon would cry from off in the distance, but the night grew quiet again. Mary felt relaxed, completely at ease. When she shivered, Alvin pulled his chair closer to hers and rubbed her back to warm her. First Rachel, then Charlotte, drifted off to bed. After a few quiet murmurs to each other, Tim and Molly made their way to their camper.

The fire burned down to embers. Alvin stood and stretched, then held his hand out to Mary. They said their goodnights to Diana and Bob. Alvin relit his lantern, and they walked back to the tent in it's golden glow.

It was cold inside the tent.

"Maybe we ought to go sleep in the house," Mary suggested.

"We will be fine, It will be nice and cozy once we are in the sleeping bag."

"Yeah, but we have to undress in the cold first."

"No, we don't." He kicked off his boots. "Just get in the bag dressed, then undress inside it."

"Oh, clever," she said, then corrected herself, "I mean, well ain't you cunnin'."

Alvin laughed and unzipped one side of the bag. Mary slipped inside, and he followed, zipping the bag behind him. They hugged each other tight and kissed while their bodies warmed.

"See, better already," Alvin said.

"But now we have to get undressed."

"I would be willing to help you." He snapped the button on her jeans.

She shook off her sweater. "I'm going to leave my t-shirt on," she said. To Alvin's surprise she rolled on to her back and began wriggling about. In a few seconds she raised her hand, holding her bra. "Don't need this though."

Alvin laughed. "You can take that off without removing your shirt, but you didn't think you could undress in a sleeping bag?"

Mary kicked off her pants while Alvin tugged his shirt and undershirt over his head and cast them aside.

"I'm leaving my socks on," Mary said.

"That's sexy," Alvin replied as he worked his way out of his jeans. When they had cleared their clothes from the bag, they snuggled together. After a while, Mary decided her back needed to be warmed and turned over. Alvin spooned against her.

"Cozy as a pair of porcupines in a tree," he said, kissing her behind her ear.

Mary giggled. "I have a question," she said.

"What's that, sweetheart?"

"How do they mate? Porcupines? Don't they stab each other?"

"The usual answer is very carefully," Alvin said. He kissed her at the nape of her neck, and then down along her shoulder blade. With one hand, he caressed her breasts, the other slipped beneath the waistband of her panties.

"Don't be a smart ass," Mary said.

Alvin's fingertips lightly brushed up and down her labia, sliding between them a little further with each pass. He found her clitoris, and lightly circled it.

"Oh god, Alvin," she moaned, burying her face in the crook of his elbow to stifle a moan. His fingers continued to tease her. She placed her hand on his, holding it to her, silently urging him to continue.

"Are you ready for your nature lesson?" he whispered.

"My nature lesson?"

Alvin placed his hand on her hip and gently pushed. She rolled over on to her stomach. He rose up and straddled her, placing his knee between her thighs. When she parted her legs, he knelt between them. He was hunched over her, the sleeping bag draped about his shoulders.

"The lady porcupine presents herself to the male," Alvin said.

He pulled up on Mary's hips. She arched her back, giggling.

"She flips her tail up over her back."

He tugged her panties to the side.

"There are no quills on the bottom of her tail. It makes a soft pad for the male to rest on when he mounts her."

He tilted his hips forward and entered her. She gave out a startled little yip, and Alvin laughed. "That's not how they sound," he grunted as he trust into her. He lowered himself on to her back, leaning on his elbows, fucking her with long, steady strokes.

Mary could not stop giggling, even as her arousal grew. Alvin slipped one hand under her and began stroking her clit in rhythm with the motion of his hips.