a run for it. George snagged the middle by his collar, but the boy torefree and took off down the midway. George looked about wildly for security, butthey still hadn't arrived.
Then Joe tore past him, moving faster than George had ever seen him go. Hecaught the boys and stuffed one under each arm, kicking and squirming. Hegrinned ferociously as he pinned them beneath his knees at George's feet. Heclamped his hands over their mouths. "Got 'em!" he said to George.
A security team emerged from the utilidor beside George's booth, wearing clownmakeup and baggy pants. Two of them tranquilised the boys and the third fittedthe donkey out with a halter and bit. The clown slapped the donkey's haunchappreciatively. "He's a healthy one."
The security team disappeared down the utilidor with the Mitchell brothers: twoboys and a donkey. Joe smacked George on the back. "Did you see me catch them?Like greased lightning! Bounty, here I come!"
George didn't mind sharing his bounty with Joe, so he just smiled and nodded andwent back around to his booth.
#
Bill named his son Tom. Names weren't very important to their people, but thesoft ones' world demanded them. Within a week, Tom was eagerly toddling throughtheir cabin, tasting everything, exploring everything. His eyes shone withcurious brilliance. The clever son of a clever son.
George loved Bill's son. He loved to watch Tom as he gnawed at their bedding, ashe dug at the floor in search of grubs. Tom was clearly delighted with hissurroundings, and George basked in Tom's delight. Bill could barely restrainhimself from picking Tom up and hugging him every moment. The only time he leftGeorge alone with Tom was a few precious moments after each evening's meal, whenhe would duck into the woods to find some new toy for Tom: a crippled chipmunk;a handful of pretty rocks; a discarded beer can. The son built bizarre towersout of them, then knocked them down in a fit of giggles. Tom ate all day long,and spoke a steady stream of adorable nonsense.
Bill hardly spoke to George. Their evening meals were given over to watching theson eat. George didn't mind. Talking to the Guests all day wore him out.
When Tom was two months old, Joe came by George's booth.
"Well, it's final. Tomorrow, we shut down the midway. Too old-fashioned -- it'sonly stood this long because some of the older Imagineers had an emotionalattachment to it. I told 'em: 'That's _your_ demographic, not the _target_demographic.' So we're knocking it down. HorrorZone's gonna be _huge_." Heskipped off before George could say anything. His ears were long and pointed. Itwasn't the first time George noticed it, but now, he could see that Joe'shunched-over gait wasn't just because of his belly.
George built a dozen cones for the Guests, but his heart wasn't in it. Besides,most of the Guests already had their hands full of gummi spiders and snakes,from the Actionland Jungle Treats buffet. His thoughts were full of Joe, and heturned them over in his slow, cautious manner. Joe was turning into a donkey. Hedidn't think that one of their kind could turn into a donkey, but this wasPleasure Island. Indulging your vices was a dangerous pastime here. He shouldtell Bill, but there was no phone at the cabin. He couldn't send a runner forhim, because this was family business. His shift wouldn't end for hours yet, andthis was too important to wait.
Finally, he called his Lead. "I have to get offstage. I'm having a bad day."
Technically, this was allowed. Management didn't want anyone onstage who wasn't100 percent. But it was something that none of the brothers, not even Joe, hadever done. The Lead was surprised, but he sent over a soft one to relieveGeorge.
#
Orville and Bill were sitting out front of the cabin, watching Tom, when Georgegot back. He wrung his hands as he approached them, not sure of what to say, andwhether he should talk in front of Orville at all. He held his left thumb in hisright hand, and it comforted him, a little.
Bill and Orville were so engrossed in Tom's antics that they didn't even noticeGeorge until he cleared his throat. Orville raised his eyebrows and lookedsignificantly at Bill.
"I just saw Joe," George said. "On the midway. His ears are pointed, and he'swalking all hunched over. I give him a few days at the most before he's all theway gone." George held his breath, waiting for Bill's reaction.
"Too bad," Bill said. "It was inevitable, I suppose. A child of the tongue! Whatwas father thinking?"
Orville smiled and puffed at his pipe. "Don't you worry about it, George. Joe'sgoing to be much, much happier. Focussed. If you'd like, I can bring him outhere to live. Little Tom could have pony rides."
Bill said, "I don't think that's such a good idea. Joe's too wild to play with achild."
Orville put a hand on his shoulder. "You'd be amazed at how docile he'llbecome."
Bill scooped up Tom, who was up to his waist now, and who liked to grab ontoBill's nose. "We'll see, then." He retreated into the cabin with his son.
Orville turned to George and said, "You've probably heard that we're taking downthe midway tomorrow. The others are all being reassigned until the rehab isdone, but I thought I'd see if I could get you a couple months off. You couldstay here and play with Tom -- it's not every day you get to be a new uncle."
Orville had always taken obvious pleasure in the transformation of boys intodonkeys. It was the whole why of Pleasure Island, after all. Orville seemedespecially pleased tonight, and George thought that he was as surprised aboutBill as George was.
George, not knowing what to say to any of it, said nothing.
#
It didn't take long for George to start missing the midway. Stuck at the cabinwith Bill and Tom, he sat against an outside wall and tried not to get in theway. He prepared meals in silence, taking a long time in the woods, gathering upchoice morsels. Bill and Tom ate on the floor, away from the table. Bill chewedthe tougher morsels first, and then put them in Tom's mouth with his crippledleft hand. Most of the time, neither of them took any notice of George.
One day, he prepared a whole day's worth of meals and left them on the table,then walked to the utilidor at the other side of the woods. He boarded a tramand rode to the old midway entrance.
The midway was fenced in with tall plywood sheets, and construction crewsbustled over the naked skeletons of the new HorrorZone. Heavy machinery groanedand crashed. Nothing but the distant silhouettes of Actionland's skyline werefamiliar. George tried to imagine working here for years to come. Anoverwhelming tiredness weighed him down.
He took the tram back to the cabin and stripped off his clothes. They werebrowner than ever. His arms felt weak and tired. He suddenly knew that he wouldnever have a son of his own.
Bill and Tom were playing out front of the cabin. He sat in his usual spotagainst the wall and watched them. "Bill," he said, softly.
"Yes?" Bill said.
"When will I have a son of my own?" Bill always knew the answers.
Bill gathered Tom up to his chest unconsciously while he thought. "I supposethat once Tom is grown, you could take some time off and have a son of yourown."
To his own surprise, George said, "I want to have a son now."
Bill said, "That's out of the question, George. We're too busy with Tom." Onhearing Bill's annoyed tone, Tom leaned into him.
George said, "I'm not busy. I am old, though. If I don't have a son soon, Iwon't be able to care for it until it's old enough to care for me."
Bill said, "You're thinking like Father. We're living with the soft ones now.Orville will make sure that you and your son will be fine until he's grown."
George never won arguments with Bill. He went inside the cabin and set outdinner.
#
Orville visited the brothers the next morning. He chucked Tom under the chin andshook hands with Bill. Then he took George out into the woods for a walk.
"Your brother tells me you want a son of your own," he said.
George nodded, and stooped to put a small, mossy log in his basket.
"Bill doesn't want you to, huh?"
George didn't feel very comfortable discussing the family with Orville. That wasBill's job. Aft
er some thought, he said, "Not right now."
Orville said, "I can see that that makes you unhappy. No one should be unhappyhere. I'll see what I can do. Come down to Ops tomorrow morning, we'll talkmore."
When George got back to the cabin, Bill was lying on his back on the floor,laughing while Tom climbed all over him. Tom still babbled, but they were realwords now, though nonsensical. With his constant talking, he reminded George ofJoe, and that made him even sadder.
#
George had never been to Ops before, but he knew where it was, in a collectionof low-slung prefab buildings hidden behind the topiary