Fic: Betty at Eight - Baseball
Title: Betty at Eight - Baseball
Author: majorrogue
Pairing, Character(s): Betty and Family
Word Count: 1,305
Rating: U
Spoilers: None
Summary: During the school holidays, Mrs McRae's friends come for a visit bringing their children.
Authors Note: I'm no expert on the time period this would be set in and i don't really know much about baseball, but hopefully you enjoy this anyway!
“Hey! They’re here, they’re here” Alistair shouted as he ran out the front door.
As quickly as they could Benjamin, Thomas and Betty all ran after him. They ran straight down the garden path, through the garden gate, took a sharp left turn, then another until they were on the main track to their farm. Walking towards them were Mrs Cartwright, Mrs Marshal and their four children.
Their mother had followed them out of the house and was waiting at the corner of the garden fence. She watched smiling as her four children raced each other to their approaching friends. When the other women were close enough she waved to them and they waved back happily.
When the grown-ups and Mrs Cartwright and Mrs Marshals daughters had gone into the house, Betty stayed outside playing an impromptu game of tag with the five boys.
Al who was currently ‘it’ chased the Marshall boy Steve around and managed to just clip him on the shoulder “You’re it” he shouted and quickly ran away from the boy. Steve stopped to see who was nearby, he knew Ben was too fast for him as he was the oldest there, he then got a glimpse of Betty out of the corner of his eye and quickly ran in her direction.
Betty was used to being chased so made a dash for it, but she knew not to just run in a straight line and she knew not to run in open ground. She quickly made her way towards the barn where there were hay bales, machinery and other obstacles that she knew better than Steve. As she twisted and turned around hay bales she couldn’t help but laugh at how frustrated Steve was getting at not being able to catch her.
After a minute or two of him chasing her and always missing when he reached for her, Steve stopped running. He stood and caught his breath.
“What’s wrong? Can’t catch a girl?” Betty shouted at him from a safe distance away and laughed
“No.” Steve said defiantly “I just thought we were here to play baseball, not tag”
“Come on then” Ben shouted from where he was standing.
They all started towards the other side of the barn, where they had made up a small baseball diamond, and Betty followed. But before she had turned the corner of the barn Steve stopped
“What are you doing?” Steve turned around and said to Betty
“I’m coming to play baseball”
“No you’re not” Steve said “No girls” he stood in Betty’s way
“That’s not fair”
“That’s how it is” Steve said. John, Mrs Cartwright’s son chipped in with a “Yeah, No girls”
“But I always play with Ben and…..”
“Yeah, well, not today” Steve said and pushed Betty’s shoulder then walked away.
**
"Ma? Ma?" Betty shouted as she ran into the kitchen. Her mother was sitting at the long kitchen table with her friends Mrs Cartwright and Mrs Marshal; they all had a cup of tea in front of them.
Betty leaned against the table next to her mother "Tell them."
"Tell who what, Betty?"
"Tell them to let me play." Betty said angrily "The boys won't let me play baseball with them"
"If they won't let you play baseball, why don't you play with Annie and Mary?" Betty's mother said pointing into the parlour. Betty moved slightly from where she was standing to see what Annie and Mary were doing and her heart sank. She moved back to where she was and looked at her mother, she had to be kidding
"Dolls?" she asked her mother in dismay “I don’t wanna play with dolls! I wanna play baseball!” she practically shouted. She pushed herself away from the table, stormed out of the kitchen and down the hall and stormed through the screen door letting it slam loudly shut behind her.
Back in the kitchen her mother sighed and sipped at her tea.
“She spends too much time around boys” Mrs Cartwright said smiling and laughed a little
“Hmmm” Betty’s mother hummed. She didn’t know whether to agree to the statement or not. Yes Betty did spend a lot of time around boys, but she has three brothers, who else was she going to be around on the farm. But she also thought maybe she should do something about it, but what, she didn’t know.
Outside Betty sat on the corner of the front porch. From where she sat she could see the boys by the barn playing baseball. She kept looking at them and angrily looking away.
She had been sitting there for a while when her father came in from one of the fields and saw her sulking.
“What are you doing sitting out here on your own, Betty?” he asked
Betty crossed her arms in a huff “They won’t let me play with them” she pointed to the boys by the barn “and mum won’t do anything about it”
“Why won’t they let you play?”
“Because I’m a girl” she spat
“Is that right?” Her father said putting his hand out for Betty to take. “Come on”
She got up and took her father’s hand and they walked out of the front yard towards where her brothers and the other boys were playing baseball.
As they approached them Betty’s brothers all stopped playing and turned towards their father, they knew what was coming
“Boys.” He said “I have told you before about excluding your sister from your games, haven’t I?”
“Yes father” Ben said
“Yes” Al answered
Tommy just looked down
Their father looked at them all sternly, then nodded once “Then Betty bats next” he said. He then patted Betty on the back and walked back to the house. The boys were relieved, they had been let off lightly this time, probably because their friends were there. They daren’t tell their father that Steve had told them Betty didn’t want to play with them, not that Tommy believed him anyway.
With a little worry Betty saw that Steve was standing in the middle of the diamond with the ball, but it didn’t stop her. She picked the bat up off the floor and lifted it over her shoulder and readied herself for the ball.
“Let’s see if a girl can hit a ball” Steve shouted. She could see a smirk on Steve’s face just before he pulled his arm back and threw the ball as hard as he could.
Betty swung the bat and heard the satisfying sound of bat hitting ball. It flew straight over Steve’s head and he followed it as it went.
Betty’s face lit up. This was definitely not the first time she’d hit a ball, but this is one of the most satisfying.
“Looks like I can” Betty shouted at Steve as she dropped the bat and ran as fast as she could around the diamond.
**
Betty climbed into her bed and pulled the covers up around her neck.
“You’re really good at baseball you know?” Tommy said from under his covers just the other side of the night stand between their beds.
Betty smiled “I like baseball, I like hitting that ball as far as I can” she thought out loud
“You’re better than Steve, I think that’s why he didn’t want you to play, why he told us you didn’t want to play”
“You could have said that to him earlier…..” Betty said
Tommy screwed up his face “He…. He’s so much bigger than me…..”
“Yeah….”
“Are you all tucked in?” Their mother said as she walked into their room. She walked to Tommy’s bed, pulled his covers up and kissed him, then turned and did the same with Betty “Goodnight, my darlings, sweet dreams”
“Goodnight mother” Tommy said
“Goodnight ma” Betty said “goodnight Tommy”
“Goodnight Betty”
{{{}}}}
Author: majorrogue
Pairing, Character(s): Betty and Family
Word Count: 1,305
Rating: U
Spoilers: None
Summary: During the school holidays, Mrs McRae's friends come for a visit bringing their children.
Authors Note: I'm no expert on the time period this would be set in and i don't really know much about baseball, but hopefully you enjoy this anyway!
“Hey! They’re here, they’re here” Alistair shouted as he ran out the front door.
As quickly as they could Benjamin, Thomas and Betty all ran after him. They ran straight down the garden path, through the garden gate, took a sharp left turn, then another until they were on the main track to their farm. Walking towards them were Mrs Cartwright, Mrs Marshal and their four children.
Their mother had followed them out of the house and was waiting at the corner of the garden fence. She watched smiling as her four children raced each other to their approaching friends. When the other women were close enough she waved to them and they waved back happily.
When the grown-ups and Mrs Cartwright and Mrs Marshals daughters had gone into the house, Betty stayed outside playing an impromptu game of tag with the five boys.
Al who was currently ‘it’ chased the Marshall boy Steve around and managed to just clip him on the shoulder “You’re it” he shouted and quickly ran away from the boy. Steve stopped to see who was nearby, he knew Ben was too fast for him as he was the oldest there, he then got a glimpse of Betty out of the corner of his eye and quickly ran in her direction.
Betty was used to being chased so made a dash for it, but she knew not to just run in a straight line and she knew not to run in open ground. She quickly made her way towards the barn where there were hay bales, machinery and other obstacles that she knew better than Steve. As she twisted and turned around hay bales she couldn’t help but laugh at how frustrated Steve was getting at not being able to catch her.
After a minute or two of him chasing her and always missing when he reached for her, Steve stopped running. He stood and caught his breath.
“What’s wrong? Can’t catch a girl?” Betty shouted at him from a safe distance away and laughed
“No.” Steve said defiantly “I just thought we were here to play baseball, not tag”
“Come on then” Ben shouted from where he was standing.
They all started towards the other side of the barn, where they had made up a small baseball diamond, and Betty followed. But before she had turned the corner of the barn Steve stopped
“What are you doing?” Steve turned around and said to Betty
“I’m coming to play baseball”
“No you’re not” Steve said “No girls” he stood in Betty’s way
“That’s not fair”
“That’s how it is” Steve said. John, Mrs Cartwright’s son chipped in with a “Yeah, No girls”
“But I always play with Ben and…..”
“Yeah, well, not today” Steve said and pushed Betty’s shoulder then walked away.
**
"Ma? Ma?" Betty shouted as she ran into the kitchen. Her mother was sitting at the long kitchen table with her friends Mrs Cartwright and Mrs Marshal; they all had a cup of tea in front of them.
Betty leaned against the table next to her mother "Tell them."
"Tell who what, Betty?"
"Tell them to let me play." Betty said angrily "The boys won't let me play baseball with them"
"If they won't let you play baseball, why don't you play with Annie and Mary?" Betty's mother said pointing into the parlour. Betty moved slightly from where she was standing to see what Annie and Mary were doing and her heart sank. She moved back to where she was and looked at her mother, she had to be kidding
"Dolls?" she asked her mother in dismay “I don’t wanna play with dolls! I wanna play baseball!” she practically shouted. She pushed herself away from the table, stormed out of the kitchen and down the hall and stormed through the screen door letting it slam loudly shut behind her.
Back in the kitchen her mother sighed and sipped at her tea.
“She spends too much time around boys” Mrs Cartwright said smiling and laughed a little
“Hmmm” Betty’s mother hummed. She didn’t know whether to agree to the statement or not. Yes Betty did spend a lot of time around boys, but she has three brothers, who else was she going to be around on the farm. But she also thought maybe she should do something about it, but what, she didn’t know.
Outside Betty sat on the corner of the front porch. From where she sat she could see the boys by the barn playing baseball. She kept looking at them and angrily looking away.
She had been sitting there for a while when her father came in from one of the fields and saw her sulking.
“What are you doing sitting out here on your own, Betty?” he asked
Betty crossed her arms in a huff “They won’t let me play with them” she pointed to the boys by the barn “and mum won’t do anything about it”
“Why won’t they let you play?”
“Because I’m a girl” she spat
“Is that right?” Her father said putting his hand out for Betty to take. “Come on”
She got up and took her father’s hand and they walked out of the front yard towards where her brothers and the other boys were playing baseball.
As they approached them Betty’s brothers all stopped playing and turned towards their father, they knew what was coming
“Boys.” He said “I have told you before about excluding your sister from your games, haven’t I?”
“Yes father” Ben said
“Yes” Al answered
Tommy just looked down
Their father looked at them all sternly, then nodded once “Then Betty bats next” he said. He then patted Betty on the back and walked back to the house. The boys were relieved, they had been let off lightly this time, probably because their friends were there. They daren’t tell their father that Steve had told them Betty didn’t want to play with them, not that Tommy believed him anyway.
With a little worry Betty saw that Steve was standing in the middle of the diamond with the ball, but it didn’t stop her. She picked the bat up off the floor and lifted it over her shoulder and readied herself for the ball.
“Let’s see if a girl can hit a ball” Steve shouted. She could see a smirk on Steve’s face just before he pulled his arm back and threw the ball as hard as he could.
Betty swung the bat and heard the satisfying sound of bat hitting ball. It flew straight over Steve’s head and he followed it as it went.
Betty’s face lit up. This was definitely not the first time she’d hit a ball, but this is one of the most satisfying.
“Looks like I can” Betty shouted at Steve as she dropped the bat and ran as fast as she could around the diamond.
**
Betty climbed into her bed and pulled the covers up around her neck.
“You’re really good at baseball you know?” Tommy said from under his covers just the other side of the night stand between their beds.
Betty smiled “I like baseball, I like hitting that ball as far as I can” she thought out loud
“You’re better than Steve, I think that’s why he didn’t want you to play, why he told us you didn’t want to play”
“You could have said that to him earlier…..” Betty said
Tommy screwed up his face “He…. He’s so much bigger than me…..”
“Yeah….”
“Are you all tucked in?” Their mother said as she walked into their room. She walked to Tommy’s bed, pulled his covers up and kissed him, then turned and did the same with Betty “Goodnight, my darlings, sweet dreams”
“Goodnight mother” Tommy said
“Goodnight ma” Betty said “goodnight Tommy”
“Goodnight Betty”
{{{}}}}