by Maria Farrer
“What, and then take him back to our sparkling clean apartment,” said Ruby. “I don’t think so. Look at the color of the pond!”
“But he’s built to swim,” said Mom. “Ursus Maritimus.” She pronounced the words like a magic spell.
“Ursus WHAT?”
“Latin for sea bear,” Mom said. “That’s what it says in your book. I was reading it to Leo this morning.”
Mister P dipped one paw into the water, sending ripples skidding across the surface. He was concentrating hard. Suddenly he launched himself into the water with an enormous
and reappeared with a large fish flip-flopping in his mouth.
Ruby gasped. “NO, Mister P! You can’t eat the fish from the pond. Put it back. Drop it. Drop it now.”
Mister P did drop it … straight down into his tummy.
“Mom! That’s horrible. Do something!”
“I suppose it’s only natural,” said Mom.
“Not here in the park it’s not. What if someone sees?” Ruby looked around, but there was no one about. She watched as Mister P turned onto his stomach and swam smoothly away. He rolled and splashed and played in the water and finally waded out onto the grass. Long strands of slimy pond weed hung across his nose, making him look more green bear than polar bear, and muddy-gray water streamed off his fur into a puddle on the ground beneath him.
Mister P hunched his shoulders.
“We need to move,” said Ruby, suddenly
“My clean clothes,” said Mom, wiping her hands down her T-shirt. Leo rubbed water out of his eyes with his little fists and Ruby pulled off her cap and did her best to shoo Mister P away.
“Did anyone ever tell you you’re a pain in the neck?” Ruby asked angrily. “We’re doing our best to look after you and then you go and do THIS!” She pointed to herself and Mister P sat down, tipped his head to one side and pointed to himself with a large paw.
“Yes, YOU,” said Ruby. “You with the big, wet, smelly-pond-water body. Ursus-pain-in-the-neckus. That’s what you should be called.” Ruby thumped her cap back on her head. “Right, come on. We’ll have to go to the playground while we all dry off. We can’t take Mister P back to the flat like this, he’ll wreck the place.”
Mom hung back. “I’m not sure I’m up to visiting the playground yet. There are always so many people there.”
Ruby often thought that the real reason Mom didn’t like going to the playground was because it was next to the skatepark and the skatepark reminded her of Dad. But Mom couldn’t avoid these things forever.
“It’ll be OK. Most people will be picking up their kids from school now. We don’t need to be long—just time to dry off.”
Ruby coaxed Mom towards the swings. The playground was more or less deserted, which was good, but the skatepark was chock-full of older kids. Ruby felt that familiar twinge of jealousy as she breathed in the excitement and adrenaline. Wheels on concrete—the sound she dreamed of.
She helped Mom get Leo into the swing then waved Mister P over to the roundabout. It was the perfect spin dryer for a wet polar bear.
Mister P eyed it suspiciously.
“Don’t worry, it’s fun. Climb on!”
Mister P clambered on carefully, wrapping his claws around the metal handles. Ruby started scooting it round. It took a while to get going; it was heavy with a polar bear on top, but soon Mister P got the idea and scooted with her.
CHAPTER 11
Happy and Sad
Ruby’s voice trailed off. The tune sounded so sad that she had to stop. How did most eleven-year-olds spend their birthdays? Not like this. No, most people had cards and cakes and presents. She stared around the apartment. No sign of any birthday surprises at all.
She sighed, took the last biscuit from the packet of custard creams, and plonked herself on the floor next to Mister P. “I wonder when your birthday is?” she said to him. “You could share mine if you like—not that there’s much to share.” She passed half the biscuit to Mister P and he nibbled at it in a very un-polar-bearish way.
She was glad Mister P was here. Yesterday had been such a good day and she’d thought Mom had turned the corner. But today Mom was too tired to get out of bed and she hadn’t even mentioned the word birthday.
Worse still, Leo had kept Ruby up half the night snuffling and coughing and fussing with his sore teeth. And now, just when she needed to give him his breakfast, he refused to wake up.
She edged closer to Mister P, feeling the softness of his fur and the reassurance of his steady breathing. On days like this, Ruby’s world seemed to shrink very small and she felt trapped in the apartment with all her problems. She’d like to escape and clamber into the basket of Mister P’s hot-air balloon and float high above the rooftops without a care in the world. But that’s not how life worked.
Ruby jumped up as she heard a terrible sound from Leo’s crib. It was somewhere between a and a Ruby rushed to her room and put her hand against Leo’s forehead and felt the burning heat. She knew, immediately, that this was much more than a problem with his teeth. Leo was sick.
Mister P put his head round the door, took one look at Leo, and skidded through to Mom’s room. The next thing Ruby knew, he’d got the bottom of Mom’s T-shirt between his teeth and was dragging her towards Leo’s cot.
Mom lifted Leo into her arms. She felt his head, his legs, his tummy. “Oh no, oh no!” she moaned, over and over. She started rushing around opening and closing cupboards and drawers. “I’m sure I’ve got medicine somewhere, I bought some … oh, I don’t know … sometime!” Poor Leo started crying and coughing uncontrollably and Mom didn’t seem to know what direction to go in next.
Leo’s eyes looked all wrong and he was getting more and more distressed. Suddenly Mom handed Leo to Ruby and ran for the bathroom. Ruby could hear the unmistakable sounds of Mom throwing up. Ruby was desperate. She needed help and she needed help fast. Mister P was turning circles and scratching at the front door and suddenly Ruby understood. She opened the door and, quick as a flash, Mister P was off down the stairs.
Ruby heard banging and then the sound of Mrs. Moresby’s voice.
“All right Mister P. I’m coming, I’m coming. Keep your hair on.”
Mrs. Moresby arrived in the flat at high speed, helped along by a good shove from Mister P. She looked around and took in the situation.
“It’s all right, Ruby,” she said, “don’t you worry.” She took Leo out of Ruby’s arms and smiled at him. “You’re a little bit warm, aren’t you young man.” She started to remove his clothes until he was wearing only his nappy and she put two fingers against his chest and looked at her watch.
“Ruby, could you go and find me a sponge and a bowl of cool water. There’s a good girl. Mister P, it might be best if you stayed out of the way.”
Ruby came back with the bowl and sponge and Mrs. Moresby started to dab Leo’s body with cool water.
“Is your mom here?” she asked.
Ruby nodded towards the bathroom door.
“Here,” said Mrs. Moresby handing Ruby the sponge. “You keep Leo cool, I’ll go and check on her. Would that be OK?”
Ruby nodded.
“What’s her name?”
“Lisa,” said Ruby. “But most people call her Liss.”
Ruby held the cool sponge against Leo’s forehead. Mrs. Moresby knocked on the bathroom door then let herself in. Ruby listened as Mrs. Moresby spoke quietly to Mom.
“Hello Lisa. I’m Josephine Moresby and I’m a neighbor from one floor down. Are you feeling all right?”
Ruby heard Mom mumble something and sob.
“I know,” said Mrs. Moresby. “It is such a worry when little ones are sick. But I’m a retired nurse so I’ve seen plenty of it in my time and Leo is going to be fine. There’s a nasty bug doing the rounds, but he looks like a tough little man so I’m sure he’ll be over it soon. Why don’t you take a few moments to sort yourself out and I’ll go and put the kettle on for a nice cup of tea.”
&nb
sp; Ruby closed her eyes. She liked the sound of Mrs. Moresby’s voice and she was glad Mrs. Moresby was here to help. It made things so much easier when there was someone who knew what to do, someone to share the worry with. She looked at Mister P sitting in the corner. If it hadn’t been for him, she never would have met Mrs. Moresby. Perhaps having a polar bear to stay wasn’t so bad after all.
“Do you know if your mom takes any medication,” asked Mrs. Moresby coming out of the bathroom.
Ruby nodded and went to fetch the bottle of pills. She handed it to Mrs. Moresby. “I don’t know if she’s taken it this morning. I haven’t had the chance to check—with Leo and everything.”
Mrs. Moresby glanced at the bottle. “Not to worry. She can take one when she’s feeling a little less queasy. But we do need to get your brother sorted out. Have you got any medicine in the house?”
Ruby shook her head. “We just searched. We can’t find any.”
Mrs. Moresby asked for paper and a pen and scribbled down the name of a medicine. “They know you down at the pharmacy, don’t they?”
Ruby nodded.
“Pop down as quick as you can, and give them this.” She handed the note over to Ruby along with some money. Ruby hesitated. “No arguing,” said Mrs. Moresby as if reading her mind. “And take Mister P with you. It’ll give us a bit more space around here.”
Ruby was glad to get out of the apartment and into the fresh air. She and Mister P raced all the way to the pharmacy. Luckily Mister P stuck his nose round the door, but decided it wasn’t his kind of shop, which made life easier for Ruby.
Then they rushed home again, Ruby clutching the bag with the medicine. As they got to the main entrance to her block, the mailman had just arrived. Ruby hesitated for a moment, catching her breath. “Got anything for 22c?” she asked. Maybe, just maybe, Dad would have remembered to send her a card.
The mailman eyed Mister P nervously. “What’s he doing here? Is he safe?”
“Oh yes,” said Ruby. “He’s fine.”
The mailman frowned and flicked through his pile of letters very quickly.
“No, sorry. Nothing today.”
The words hit home hard. Nothing today.
Mister P pushed his nose in the direction of the letters as if he wanted to check for himself.
“Get off me,” shouted the mailman.
Mister P lifted his head and held out a paw as if trying to shake hands.
The mailman screamed, dropped all the letters onto the floor, and RAN.
Mister P stared down at his paw and then looked at Ruby.
“Don’t worry,” said Ruby. “You didn’t do anything wrong. You were only trying to help.” She scratched Mister P behind the ears. “Honestly, some people!”
They returned to the apartment to find Mom and Mrs. Moresby sitting side by side, drinking tea, and having a quiet chat. They looked so comfortable that Ruby didn’t want to interrupt the conversation. She handed over the medicine and she and Mister P went out to their usual spot on the balcony.
“I hope Mom likes Mrs. Moresby,” she said. “It would be nice for her to have a friend to talk to.”
She looked up at the sky and sighed. No letters. No presents.
she sang quietly.
Mister P pressed his cold black nose against hers and at that moment, Ruby couldn’t think of a nicer present in the whole world.
Dear Dad,
I didn’t have a great birthday if I’m honest. Leo was ill and none of us knew what to do. Luckily our neighbour, Mrs. Moresby, used to be a nurse before she retired (I found that out today by the way) so she came and helped. Leo is much better now in case you are wondering.
Mom hasn’t been good either, but Mrs. Moresby says it might take longer for her to get better. She says Mom is very lucky to have a daughter like me to look after her and that it isn’t my fault when Mom feels bad. I like Mrs. Moresby even though she is quite old. She says she would be happy to come and help me out sometimes, but I’m not sure. I don’t want to put her to any trouble. She says it’s good for her to be busy because it gets a bit lonely when you get older. She doesn’t want paying. What do you think?
The good news is that we have managed to give her back almost all of what we owe her for the fish sticks. Mister P did a great job busking at the shopping center. You should have seen him! Mrs. Moresby says on no account are we to go busking again because we might be arrested and she doesn’t want to have to rescue me and Mister P from the police station. She thought that was very funny and laughed a lot when she said it. She also says that it isn’t really good for bears to dance in public, but I told her I never MADE Mister P do anything, it was him that wouldn’t stop, so she said perhaps that wasn’t so bad.
I went to your favorite skateboard shop. Do you remember you promised to give me a skateboard for my birthday one day? I didn’t get ANY presents this year (except a polar bear kiss from Mister P). Just saying.
I still miss you and so do Mom and Leo.
Love, Ruby
CHAPTER 12
Doubt and Trust
Ruby chewed at her nails. School. There’d be questions today. There were always questions when she’d been off. She carefully picked long strands of polar bear hair off her school uniform and rolled them into a little ball in her pocket. It hardly seemed worth going back, not just for Friday, but she’d promised Mrs. Moresby that she’d go to school if Mrs. Moresby promised not to tell anyone about things at home. Ruby checked the time on her phone. She was already late.
“Are you sure you’re going to be OK?” she asked Mrs. Moresby for about the fiftieth time.
“Go on with you,” said Mrs. Moresby. “We’ll be fine. I’ll take care of everything.”
“And you’ll do it all just like I told you.”
“You’re the boss, Ruby,” Mrs. Moresby replied. “I’ve written everything down, and I’ve got Mister P to keep an eye on me.”
Ruby wished she could take Mister P to school. She was sure things would be easier at school if Mister P was there.
She arrived and was stopped at reception by the school secretary.
“Could you wait here please, Ruby. The Head wants to see you.”
“But I’m already late,” said Ruby.
The secretary gave her a look and Ruby sighed and sat down.
Ruby knew Mr. Bayford quite well on account of spending a lot of time in his office. Mr. Bayford wasn’t the kind of head teacher who just told you off. He was always really nice and tried to make you talk about things that you did NOT want to talk about … like home and parents and that kind of thing. She knew what people said about her behind her back. She was naughty and aggressive; she should learn how to behave or be excluded from school. She didn’t need Mr. Bayford to explain all this to her again. Maybe Kelly’s parents had made an official complaint. She fiddled with the polar bear fur in her pocket.
The door opened and Mr. Bayford called her in. He smiled. “Hello Ruby. Sorry to hold you up, but I thought we should have a little chat.”
Uh-oh, here goes, thought Ruby.
“You’ve been absent for the last few days because you have been unwell. Is that right?” Ruby nodded.
“Are you sure about that, Ruby?”
“Yes! You can call my mom if you don’t believe me.”
“The thing is, I’ve tried doing that,” said Mr. Bayford, “But she never answers the phone, does she? Because she’s always too busy at work or looking after your little brother—or that’s what you told me last time.”
Ruby shrugged. She hadn’t bothered to charge Mom’s phone since she’d been at home. It was the best way of making sure Mr. Bayford could never speak to Mom.
“You see,” Mr. Bayford swung his chair to the left and right and then leaned forward on his desk, “I’ve had reports that you’ve been seen in Highcross shopping center with a …” Mr. Bayford squinted at his notes, “… with a polar bear.” He chuckled as he said it and his eyebrows
Ruby’s heart fell.<
br />
Who could have seen her?
“Of course, that sounds a little far-fetched,” Mr. Bayford continued. “Except Lucas Pottinger says his dad was nearly attacked by a polar bear when he was on his mail round yesterday—near your address.” Mr. Bayford raised his eyebrows and waited.
“Mister P never attacked Lucas’s dad. Lucas is making that up.”
“Mister P? And who is Mister P?”
Now Ruby had landed herself in it. “No one,” she said. “Nothing.”
“You just said that Mister P never attacked Lucas’s dad. I want you to tell me who this Mister P is.” The Head’s eyebrows went up even further. In Ruby’s opinion, Mr. Bayford had very overactive eyebrows.
“He’s a polar bear,” said Ruby, sighing. “He followed me home from the park not long ago and now he’s moved in with us. I have to look after him 24/7. That’s why I had to stay at home.”
“So what were you doing at Highcross then?”
Ruby shrugged. “Giving him some exercise,” she said. “Polar bears aren’t used to being cooped up.”
“Oh, I see!” Mr. Bayford clapped his hands together. “Well I am going to give you ten out of ten for imagination. I’ve never had a polar bear used as an excuse for deliberately missing school before. I suppose you and Lucas cooked up this little story between you. But do you know, Ruby, sometimes telling the truth is far easier.”
Ruby couldn’t blame Mr. Bayford for not believing her, but what else could she say? She pulled the ball of polar bear fur out of her pocket and held it out. Mr. Bayford took it and examined it closely.
“A ball of fur doesn’t make a polar bear, Ruby.”
“I’m not lying, Mr. Bayford,” said Ruby. “And I wasn’t deliberately missing school.”
“All right. I will give your Mom one last try. I suppose she can confirm whether or not this polar bear exists?”
“Oh yes,” said Ruby. “He’s there with her now.”
Mr. Bayford shook his head and punched the numbers into his telephone. The phone rang once, twice, three times.