A CHANGE OF MIND

By Jo

Bar leaned his head back in the rear seat of Alistair's car, not really seeing the trees passing by outside his window. His rental car? How had it gotten turned over like that? At least he hadn't been hurt. His head felt so strange, though. He must have given it some sort of hard bump to make him feel like he was.

"Th...thank you for your kindness," he said to Alistair as the reverend pulled up close to Sid's.

Alistair got out, opening the rear door for Bar, offering him a hand to steady him. "You're sure you don't need a doctor, Bar?"

"I...I don't think so. Perhaps just a little rest." And some answers, he thought.

Holding Bar's elbow still, Alistair rang the doorbell. Beethoven? He'd never heard a doorbell quite like it.

Sid opened the door. Ah, the reverend. He'd wondered which of the Glennites would find Bar. Instantly his face became a mask of concern. "Bar! What happened? You look quite pale, brother."

"He was in an accident, Sid," Alistair explained. "Ahnna and I found his car overturned just around the bend. He says he's not hurt, but he was thrown completely out and may possibly have hit his head."

"Here, let me," Sid said, taking Bar's arm and leading him gently to the large white couch in the living room.

Seated, Bar looked up at Sid. "I left? Can you...I mean...why...I, um, don't remember leaving."

"I was taking you to your room, Bar, when you suddenly announced you wanted to see the neighborhood in case, well, in case you might want to move here. I was, frankly, quite taken by surprise as the suddenness of your decision."

"I...I said that?"

"You did, indeed, brother. Do you not remember? You said you were so thrilled to find family that the thought of going back to Maine was, um, unappealing to you."

"But Maine has always been...has always...." He stared at Sid. "But you ARE my brother." He couldn't explain just why, but for some reason he wanted to stay in Australia. Everything he had left behind in Bar Harbor seemed far away, unimportant compared to being with his kin.

Sid smiled to himself. His manipulations inside Bar's head were working. He had him now in the palm of his hand. "Yes," he nodded in agreement, "and I can't begin to tell you how important it is to me that we're together." 

"I...I don't want to leave you, Sid."

"I don't want you to leave, brother." Sid looked sad at even the thought of it.

Alistair and Ahnna were both watching this interchange. Neither of them had thought Sid capable of such feelings, not from what they'd heard about him. "It is nice for family to be together," Alistair said quietly.

"I've lost my entire family," Ahnna added. "Do appreciate each other while you have one another." She had been surprisingly moved by Sid's fondness for his sibling.

"Thank you, my dear," Sid said, looking at Ahnna. "Your words are wise." He squeezed Bar's shoulder slightly. "Are they not, brother?" he asked Bar.

"I...I don't know how I could ever entertain the idea of leaving here now that I've found you," Bar said emotionally, tears sparking in his green eyes.

"You have made me truly happy, brother," Sid smiled, brushing at his own eyes as if there were tears there.

"Is Kate here?" Ahnna asked.

"She is, indeed," Sid replied, "but she is expecting our little one, as you know, and an afternoon of, um, strenuous activity has left her quite fatigued. She's resting upstairs, but I shall gladly tell her of your inquiry when she wakes."

Ahnna stared at him some more. Why, he was quite pleasant, actually, and with excellent manners. She was about to say more when she heard Alistair, standing beside her, let out a tired sigh. Turning, she looked at his profile. Yes, he needed to get home and rest himself. "Well," she continued, taking his hand, "we were just on our way home from the doctor's in Coffs and it's been a long day. We'll be going now if you're sure Bar's all right."

"I'm fine," Bar smiled, something in his head having greatly settled now that he knew what course he needed to follow. "My brother will take good care of me." He looked fondly up at his older brother.

"I shall, indeed," Sid affirmed. "Very good care."

Bar turned his gaze back to the Harrises. "Thank you again for all you've done for me, for bringing me back where I belong."

"Well," Alistair said, "if you are going to be a new resident here, let me welcome you. I hope we'll see you around, possibly for dinner soon."

"I'm sure I'll be running into you," Bar smiled. "If the rest of the residents here are as nice as you two, I can tell I shall be most content."

"Allow me to add my thanks to my brother's," Sid said, walking the couple to the door. "He couldn't have been found by nicer people."

The door closed behind them and Alistair looked at Ahnna. "Well, that was different," he commented.

"Maybe I'll talk with Joimus about this," Ahnna said. "It might be interesting to see what she thinks."

Inside, Sid leaned his back against the closed door, looking intently across the room at Bar. He did want him to stay. He wanted to find out more about his operating systems and how and with whom he'd been programmed. Now that Katherine was plumping out, he needed a new toy to distract his mind.

He'd just taken a step across the room when his wife appeared on the stairs again.