Free Sarny by Gary Paulsen Page A

the carriage door and stepped down. “Home.”
    I climbed out holding Tyler Two and Lucy she jumped down from the top.
    “Ain’t this something?” she said, eyes wide, smiling at all the people walking past us. “Did you ever even
think
on a place like this?”
    And I had to admit it was more than the other towns. It just kept moving. People all hurrying one way or the other. On one corner there was a man cranking a box that made tinny music and he had a tiny spit of dog on a string dancing on its back legs to the music.
    Stupid, I thought. Dancing dog. What’s it good for? But the man had a tin cup and people dropped pennies in it when they walked past. I wouldn’t have done it. Pay a penny to see a dog dance. But some did and the man’d smile and crank harder.
    All sorts of people. Black people, white people. Some in rags, both black and white, some dressed in fine clothes, both black and white, some pretty and some fence ugly, both black and white. For a breath I watched it, thought on it, marveled on it, and then I saw a small black head and thought on Tyler, almost called his name before I saw it couldn’t be him. Too tall and I looked away, saw another black child and then another boy dancing to an old black man playing a fiddle for more people to drop money in a box on the ground.
    Children everywhere and every one I looked at made me think on Tyler or little Delie and I had to hold myself to keep from running after them.
    “Are you going to stand all day?” Lucy shewas back on top of the carriage holding a hat-box down to me. “We have work to do.”
    I shook my head. “Was thinking on Tyler and little Delie.” I looked and was surprised to see Miss Laura she had gone. Big building with three floors, open place in the middle with black iron gate like bars, only made into pretty shapes. The gate was open and led into the open place full of green plants and vines that climbed the walls and a stairway up the side.
    “Take some boxes. Bartlett and Miss Laura they went up those stairs on the side and down to a door. “Get to carrying.”
    I took an armload and headed up the steps, down a balcony to an open door and stepped in. For a bit I couldn’t see much because of the boxes but Bartlett he was there and he took them from me and I looked around.
    “Oh my …”
    It was like a … a … I don’t know what. I didn’t know on castles then, hadn’t learned on them, but that’s what it was like. I was in a big room with high ceilings and paintings all over the walls and flowered wallpaper so real you could smell the flowers and tall windows with drapes made of cloth that caught the light coming in and seemed to glow inside. In the middle of the room was a large dark wood table, all polished and shined ’cept it hadsome dust on it. Over against the wall was a tall wooden box thing that I found later was a piano. It all took my breath away. “Oh my …”
    Miss Laura she was standing there, holding Tyler Two by the hand to keep him in one place. “You like my little home?”
    “
You live here
?”
    She nodded.
    “In
all
the rooms?” There were doors off to the side of the big room on both sides. Eight of them. Doors so tall I couldn’t have reached the top standing on my toes.
    She laughed. “Well, yes. Of course, you and Lucy will live in one, and Bartlett lives in one, and there is a kitchen in one, and two are for baths, and there are two other rooms for … other reasons.”
    “Bath?”
    “A place to make water and clean up. I have two of them. One for you and Lucy and Bartlett and one for myself.”
    “You’ve got a place to do your doings?” I asked. “
Inside?
”
    “Yes, dear. It’s all the rage.”
    “Oh my
God
!” A scream from in back of me and I turned to see Lucy standing there holding a box, staring up at the room. Mouth open and eyes wide.
    “Don’t be swearing,” I said.
    “Didn’t
you
?”
    “It’s just her house,” I said, staying settled, but I