*Author's Note: Any and all persons engaging in any sexual activity are at least eighteen years of age.
**Author's Note: I wrote this story in the beautiful, simple Cajun dialect of the people I grew up with. (Microsoft Spell Check has a hard enough time with normal English; Cajun English really fucked it up!)
In the Cajun dialect, there is no 'TH' sound. Words such as 'Month' become 'mont.' 'This' and 'that' are 'dis' and 'dat.'
The word 'Cher' is a term of endearment; it is not in reference to the pop star by the same name.
The work is hard, the play is hard, the lives are hard, and yet the Cajun people are among the most beautiful and loving people around.
But if this man's grandfather wronged that man's grandfather, they never ever forget it. An outsider to the very close knit community will find themselves accepted; to a degree.
Chapter 1
Eunice Theriot stepped out of the principal's office and wiped at a tear. Dr. Savoie had begged her to stay in school, had pointed out that her grades were perfect, and had even hinted at a scholarship to college.
"We need food now, not no four years from now," Eunice had said resolutely.
Finally, the man threw up his hands, wished the eighteen year old girl well, and let the attractive brunette leave his office.
"Hey Theriot, you leaving?" Lester Burnette asked, forcing her against the cinderblock wall.
"Best let me go now," she warned the smirking African-American youth.
In answer, he thrust himself against her, rubbing his crotch against her belly.
"Hey, maybe you and me get together, you know, get busy like me and Norma done," he husked into her ear.
He gasped suddenly as Eunice's knee connected solidly with his testicles. As he was doubling over, Eunice brought her knee up again, loosening two of Lester's teeth.
"I done told you, best let e go and you don't be lying 'bout my sister no," she shrilled as he collapsed to the floor.
She walked to her locker, dug out the last of her school books and walked to her next class to return the text books to Mrs. Linda New.
Mrs. New was extremely upset that the girl was dropping out of school; the woman took it as a personal failing of hers whenever a student left Baylor Lake High School without graduating.
"I'm being sad too," Eunice told the woman, fighting against fresh tears. "But we need me working, not sitting around playing."
"But school is not playing," Linda wailed. "You're too smart, Eunice! You could be so much more than just a laborer!"
"Hey, what wrong wit' being a laborer?" Eunice asked defensive.
"Well, nothing except when you could be so much more," Linda said.
Backpack now empty, Eunice waited for Bus 128.
Trey Martinez, Lester's friend, came up to Eunice. He did make sure to stay well out of reach of her knees, though.
"Lest said he's going fuck you all up," Trey warned.
"Tell him I ain't scared no," Eunice said.
She stepped onto the bus and nodded to Mr. Randall, the bus driver.
"You really ain't coming back no more?" Sally Leblanc asked as Eunice sat down next to her.
Eunice blinked back fresh tears as she sat next to the girl she had sat next to for the twelve and a half years they'd gone to school together.
"Yeah, my last day," Eunice agreed.
"'m miss you yeah," Sally said, giving her friend a tight hug.
"Don't do that no," Eunice sobbed out, pushing the girl off of her.
Even though she was only five foot two, Eunice was quite strong, especially against the five foot tall Sally, who lived in a nice house with her mom and never did a bit of physical labor.
Eunice abruptly got out of her seat and took an empty seat near the front of the bus.
"Y'all have a nice day, hear?" Mr. Randall said as he dropped them off in front of Sally's house.
"I don't care no; I'm miss you," Sally sobbed out and again embraced Eunice.
Eunice wiggled out of the tight embrace and ran to the steps that let her cross over the retaining wall of the levee that separated Baylor Lake and Jazz Beach from the brackish waters of the Atchafalaya Basin.
She ran as fast as her short legs would carry her until she reached the plywood shack she shared with her father, Alton Theriot and twenty year old sister, Norma Theriot. Climbing up the splintered steps, Eunice barged into the shack.
"Hey," Norma smiled from the propane stove.
"Hey," Eunice choked out.
"Daddy working on that pirogue," Norma said as she turned the meat over in the cast iron skillet.
"That new log?" Eunice asked when she got her tears under control.
"Yeah; said you need finish up that other one yeah," Norma agreed and let a small squeal escape when the pan spattered some grease onto her hand.
"It do that all the time; think you'd be used to it yeah," Eunice teased, giving her sister an affectionate pinch on her rear end.
Norma giggled at her own silliness and turned to her sister.
At five feet even, Norma was the shorter of the two girls, and most thought her to be the prettiest, with her long blonde hair, wide blue eyes, round face and ever-present smile. She was also more developed than Eunice, with a 34C chest, 28 inch waist, and 32 inch hips.
Eunice had 32 A/B breasts, or what their father called 'cupcake titties,' a twenty six inch waist and 34 inch hips.
She brushed her long brown hair out of her hazel eyes, gave her sister a quick kiss on the lips, again pinched her rear end and danced out of the way of Norma's retaliatory slap. The girls giggled at each other and Eunice left the small shack.
"'Bout time yeah," Alton grumbled when Eunice found him working on cutting the large cypress log in half lengthwise.
"Just got here," Eunice defended then bent to helping him saw the large log.
Father and daughter both had calloused hands from years of hard work, both were used to the rusty tools, and both knew what the other expected without the other having to say anything.
"There' that look good," Alton said as they broke through the end of the log.
"I use the top one; okay?" Eunice asked.
"Not 'til that other one done," Alton said, nodding with his head at the nearly finished pirogue that rested a few feet away.
Eunice picked up the rusty planer and began the tedious task of smoothing out the interior of the craft.
"And your sister wants some of that wood yeah," Alton reminded her.
"Why? So she can make some more of them stupid dolls?" Eunice asked, but did gather up the larger pieces of wood for Norma.
Father and daughter labored until it grew too dark for them to see what they were doing. Eunice gathered up the scraps of wood and brought them to the shack.
"I was fixing call you," Norma said as she put a heaping plate of food at the head of the table.
"Be a waste of time," Alton teased his oldest daughter as he sat at the head of the table.
""Daddy, you wash them hands?" Norma asked as Alton prepared to dig into Te food.
"And you say grace?" Eunice asked.
"Man! I tell you!" Alton complained as he got to his feet.
After the dishes had been washed, Alton tuned the small transistor radio to 88.9, the college radio station from the University of Louisiana at DeGarde just as the Cajun broadcast was beginning. He was the only one that was allowed to operate the radio; playing the sports radio broadcast out of Lafayette Louisiana during the day, and the Cajun broadcast at night.
The disc jockey made some program announcements in French, and then played a lively Zydeco tune.
Norma and Eunice grabbed each other's hands and danced a lively jitterbug to the tune. Alton sat and tapped his foot in time to the music, enjoying the music as the girls danced. Every now and then, Eunice, acting as the lead, would twirl Norma around and Norma's skirt would flare up, exposing her naked button and golden curls.
A slower tune came on and the girls easily slid into a two-step.
They sat down as the station played some announcements, then Norma clapped for joy as Freddy LaSalle, a local comedian began telling a joke.
"He's stupid yeah," Eunice grumbled.
"Shut up; he is not!" Norma shrilled, slapping her sister's shoulder.
"Bot' you shut up; I'm listening yeah," Alton warned.
As is the norm in Cajun joke-telling, it was a long, very involved joke that built up to the punch line. Alton rubbed his hand up and down Norma's bare thigh as they listened.
Eunice groaned as the punch line finally came but Norma laughed out loud and clapped her hands.
"Oh that's so funny yeah!" she said. "'Momma's got a mustache too?' Oh that's funny!"
They listened to the broadcast for another hour, dancing to the music while Alton sat and watched. Finally, he declared an end to the activities and they readied for bed.
Norma got into the bed first and Eunice lay on the outside while Alton got into the bed on the other side.
No sooner had he turned out the light then he was rolling on top of Norma, thrusting himself into her. Eunice lay and listened as Norma cooed, sighed, and giggled throughout the grunting and thrashing. Soon, it was over and the three fell asleep.
Chapter 2
Eunice woke up to the sound of rain beating steadily on the roof of their shack. She smiled; that meant the frogs would be out in full force, which meant the bass would also be out in full force.
That meant she and Norma would be out fishing as soon as they finished with their breakfast.
Norma was very excited when Eunice suggested they go fishing.
"I make us a fish couvillion!" she gasped, checking that she had the ingredients for the meal.
"Man why you don't just fry them yeah?" Eunice suggested.
"Man you so good you already cooking them ain't even caught them huh?" Alton teased the two girls. "Here, let me open the window save you the time catching them, they just jump in."
The two girls laughed at their father's antics.
"Take that gun case you see that Bobby Bordelon out there," Alton warned as the two girls climbed into their pirogue.
"Got my bow and arrows," Eunice said.
"What you do he pops up?" Alton spat. "Oh you wait I get my arrow lined up yeah? You just do what I tell you, huh?"
"Yes sir," Eunice said and reached out for the twenty two pistol he held out to her.
Eunice sat in the rear; she knew if she sat in the front Norma would do very little paddling. Soon they were in an area where there were few trees, but several cypress stumps. They put the paddles into the boat and cast their lines out.
Within minutes, Eunice was pulling a large bass into the boat. With a practiced ease, she brought the paddle down on the fish's head, stilling it's struggles. Norma shuddered.
"Man I hate that yeah," she admitted.
"What? Want it jump back in?" Eunice asked, bating her hook and casting it back out.
"Well, no, but..." then Norma squealed as her line jerked.
