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Archive Page 12: September 2001
Andy Mooseheart and the Smokejumpers
Author: Marlene, Sep/8/2001 07:41:49
Marnie/Sonja and all MG fans! I just noticed that Marnie said in
the instructions that we could put a different ending on message
board as well as on Pin. Well my pc is off its rocker again---can't
print right sooooo----
here goes---
ANDY MOOSEHEART AND THE SMOKEJUMPERS (FIRESTORM) Hope you all enjoy!
Andy is relaxing with Jesse,the line chief and the
other Smokejumpers in the office of (The Jumping
Fools)as they call themselves.
The phone rings and Monica answers and hands it
over to Jesse.
"Yes sir! He's here! It's the boss!"Monica says
as she hands the phone to Jesse.
"Yes,sir,we'll handle it at once. Thankyou sir,
I'll pass it on to the others" Jesse grins and looks
at his crew."Guess what people,we got a new jumper
to replace Sherman. Andy,finish that sandwich and
get going!His name is C A Thatcher. He's waiting at
headquarters right now. So get over there and fly
him back !"
Andy reluctantly finishes his Swiss on Rye and moves
towards the door with helmet in hand.
"OK,chief! Why is it always when I'm eating?"
"I guess you're just unlucky,Andy! Oh,by the way,
the boss said we all did an outstanding job at Eagle
Lake prescribed burn. We'll get belt buckles or
paper weights!"
"Wonderfull! Maybe he'll buy us all pizza
instead!" Andy grins and moves towards his
helicopter,as he places his helmet on his head and
tucks his long hair under it.
At headquarters,Andy jumps out of his helicopter and
looks around.Suddenly he spies a pair of shapely
legs incased in a pair of leather jeans. His eye
follows the apparition upward past a red silk blouse
with black leather vest. However he stops there. A
pretty blond woman was frowning right at him.
"You're late!I've been waiting an hour. I hope
you respond to fires a little bit faster!" She
struggled with her heavy bag,all the time frowning
at Andy.
"I'd be glad to get that for you!" Andy offered.
"I can manage! I always do!"
Andy noticed the cap said firefighter above the
visor that covered the cold blue eyes.She hopped
into the helicopter.
They traveled along in silence for a while. Andy
noticed the woman was becoming nervous with the
silence,so he looked over at her and smiled.
"So what does the C A stand for? That is if you
don't mind answering."
"Cynthia Ann!" her tone was a little
softer."What's yours?"
"Andy Mooseheart! I fly for (The jumping fools)
Welcome aboard,Cynthia Ann."
The girl smiled then and Andy felt a sudden rush.
She had a lovely smile.
"Look here Andy,I'm sorry I barked at you.I just
get tired of fast moving guys trying to make a hit
on me.I'm here for one thing,fighting fires not
romance!"
"Yes Ma'm! I'll keep that in mind!"
She looked over at the pilot and was sorry that she
had said that. Something about Andy appealed to her.
She felt strangely safe with him. She felt he was
sincere.
"You can call me Cindy if you like! That is only
when we are alone.To the others I'll be just C A
Thatcher.OK?"
Andy looked with wonderment at the beautiful girl.
Then he smiled and Cindy returned the smile.
"OK,Cindy!" Andy answered with a puzzled look in
his eyes.
To continue---------
Thanks, Marlene - Carol, Sep/8/2001 14:50:17
I'm enjoying this. Can't wait till the next episode.
Glad you.re enjoying it,Carol! - Marlene, Sep/9/2001 09:04:32
Well I just lost a big bit trying to put it on MB!
Oh well(Sigh) To Continue---Andy And the Smokejumps
-----After they landed,Andy removed his helmet and
his long dark hair blew free in the breeze. Cindy
backed up. Andy having long hair somehow frightened
her. He frowned and looked at her with a an
inquiring look.
"What's wrong Cindy? You looked frightened!"
"Oh,nothing! I was just surprised at your long
hair. Are you Indian?
"Yes,I'm Cheyenne. May I carry your bag this
time? Otherwise,they'll think I'm nuts!"
"Yes,thankyou! Andy,after we get to know each
other a little better,I'll explain things to you."
"How about tomorrow night? We all go over to the
club called,Shorty's.They always have a good band.
We have a couple beers and dance. What do you say?
I'm asking you before Cowboy and the others move in
on me. Monica and Rich's wife are always with us."
"I'll think on it!" Cindy answered and walked
along beside Andy,who was unaware of her nervous
feelings about meeting the other firefighters. She
always puts on this self-assured front and she hated
herself for it!
---MORE TOMORROW!!!-------
Andy Mooseheart and the Smokejumpers------Continues! - Marlene, Sep/10/2001 06:17:30
Cowboy whisled and eyed Cindy up and down. Spence,
the radioman,eyed her also but Monica frowned, after
she got over the sock. Only Jesse maintained a
serious stance.
"Gang, this is C A Thatcher! C A, this is Monica,
Spence, Cowboy, Rich. This is Jesse, our line chief,
" Andy said as he introduced everyone.
"Welcome aboard, C A," Jesse started to say. Cindy
interupted him by handing him her papers."Thankyou
Jesse. My papers will explain my training and that
I am to be alternite line chief under you." She
handed the papers to Jesse, looking neither right
nor left.
"OK! We run a rather relaxed crew here. We save our energy
energy for the fires. When you get to know us,you'll
find out that we don't bite!" Jesse advised with a
bit of sterness in his tone.
"C A will be going with us tomorrow night,over at
the club,"Andy said as he smiled at Cindy,"Am I
right?"
"Yes,I'd be glad to join in!" Cindy answered.
"Well Alright!" Cowboy grinned and was joined
by the others in welcoming the new girl. All but
Monica,that is. She stood with a cross look in her
eyes.
The club was a lively place the next night.As Andy
had said,the band was good. Cindy took her seat
beside Andy, at the table and watched Jesse,Cowboy
and Rich go directly to the dartboard and started
playing with much vigor."They have some serious bets
with each other. They play for $2.00 a game. Jesse
usually wins!" Andysaid,grinning.
"Yes, but to see them up there you'd think they were
putting the stakes at $200,"Spence explained.
"So how did a pretty girl like you decide to be a
smokejumper?"Rich's wife asked,eyeing the uneasy
girl.
"My father was a smokejumper!" Cindy said.
"Just a family tradition. Right C A?" Monica
asked and she didn't try to hide her dislike for
the girl.
"Would you like to dance, C A?" Andy asked.
"Yes,I would,Andy,"Cindy answered with a warm look
in her eyes for Andy's rescuing her.
Out on the dance floor, Cindy relaxed. She soon saw
that Andy was an excellent dancer and she had to
admit to herself that see liked dancing close to
him.
"Don't mind Clara Richards, Cindy. She always comes
right to the point. We all ignore her for Rich's
sake. Did your father call you Cindy "No,he called
me C A! It lightened his dissapointment that I
wasn't born a boy.He wanted a son real bad to carry
on the family tradition,like Monica said. He had a
ranch up in the Bitter Roots. I tried so hard to
please him by working right alongside the cowboys
and Wranglers.
He acted like I didn't even exist
and he swore at me when i couldn't keep up with the
men. There were two old cowboys,Jim and Scooter,
who were more like fathers to me than he was. They
called me Cindy." The music stopped but Cindy just
stayed there in Andy's arms until the band started
up again.
"I'm glad you were born a girl!"Andy said softly
as he drew Cindy close to him and smiled down at
the beautiful girl. Cindy completly relaxed in
Andy's arms and smiled up at him.
"So am I!" she whisphered.
Monica for some reason,suddenly marched off with
Clara. The others took this as a reson to call it
quits for the night.
"Looks like this C A is moving in on you and Andy.
I told you it was necessary to show Andy that you
have eyes for him. How long has it been now?"
"A whole year! He just thinks of me as a buddy!
Well,I'm not giving up this easy! I'm going to fight
her for him. Will you help me Clara?"
"Sure! Who is this C A anyway? Monica,you and I are
going shopping for a new sexy wardrobe for you.And
maybe a new hairdo also! You can't go around 24hrs
a day dressed in smokejumper gear! Go get him,girl!"
The two women laughed and walked off arm and arm.
Andy and Cindy chose to walk back to the together.
They were enjoying the night with all the stars and
full moon. Cindy took Andy's arm and looked up at
him.---------To Continue!--------
Moose - Nellie, Sep/11/2001 03:28:20
Anxiously awaiting the next installment.
Mooseheart and Thatcher! - Marlene, Sep/11/2001 06:30:11
--To Continue--
"Andy, I want to explain something to you. When I
was sixteen and working on my father's ranch, a
drifter was hired to feed the stock horses. He was
a creepy guy with long hair and a dirty beard. He
was always hanging around in the shadows, looking at
me. I told my father but he only laughed and said
I was crazy like my dead mother had been. He wanted
his saddle polished and I was to do it. It took me
a few hours and it was dark when I finished and
started towards the house. He came out of the
shadows and grabbed me, dragging me behind the
corral. I was so frightened! I tried to call for
help but he held a knife to my throat and said he'd
kill me if I yelled out. He smelled sweat and his
long, dirty hair smelled as he raped me over and
over. I'll never forget his dirty hair hanging down
in my face. Your hair is not like that!" Cindy
buried her face in Andy's hair and started to weep.
Andy held her close, comforting her.
"Well,I'm glad I washed my hair today!" Andy said
softly,lifting her face up and smiling into her
eyes. Cindy smiled then,wiping her tears away. Andy
placed his arms around her again and continued,
"What did your dad do when you told him?"
"He said it must have been my fault. He thought I
was probably fibbing and he said I was to stop
making up such crazy stories. I left the ranch and
my father that following Spring.I heard that they
needed wranglers over on the next ranch. I worked
there until I was 21 and read an ad in the paper
for those wanting to train as firemen. I trained
hard and then became a smokejumper. I also proved
to myself that I was worth something!"
"And you'd like to get one little bit of praise
from your father!"
"Yes,just for one time!"
"You have a right to his recognition but don't shut
other folks out that admire you and want to get
close to you!" Andy took hold of Cindy's shoulders,
"I think I've fallen in love with you,Cindy! I know
this is sudden but I--I--"
"Don't try to explain,Andy Mooseheart! I think I'm
falling for you also!"
"Well, let's find out!" Andy brought his lips down
to Cindy's and kissed her. She responded with just
as strong a kiss,filled with a lot of emotion.
"Goodnight Andy! Let's sleep on it!" Cindy smiled
and walked into her quarters.
"Goodnight!" Andy whispered and walked away. A warm
feeling was there deep inside.
Also glad.... - Carol, Sep/11/2001 13:04:11
that Andy washed his hair that day!
One Moment to Reflect--------- - Marlene, Sep/12/2001 06:48:01
--on the deaths of my countrymen at the hands of
terrorists!!!---On with Andy and the Jumpers-------
The next couple of weeks were a busy time for Cindy.
She started with the stress test which is a devilish
inventure where you climb up and down steps with
full pack for so many minutes. Cindy passed this and
all the other grueling tests and Jesse declared her
in excellent condition.
Jesse and his crew were flown to a small wildfire
in Idaho.When they were ready to jump, Cindy took
her place just before Jesse.
Andy turned and smiled at the girl saying,"You know
I'll be chewing my fingernails back at the center
until I hear good news. Please be careful,Cindy!"
"Yeah! Yeah, we all know your feelings for C A! Lets
jump and you,Romeo,just fly the copter!"
Cindy,Monica and Jesse jumped and Andy watched them
tumbling down in free fall until he saw thier chutes
open. He turned the helicopter around and headed
back to the center.
A very unfortunate accident had happened to Monica!
She was 20 feet to her landing spot when her chute
got caught in some branches.
Both Cindy and Jesse saw the situation as they
parachuted down. Cindy ran to Jesse.
"Monica's caught up there! What's your orders,Jesse?"
Jesse observed the fire approuching from the West.
He took out the charges to ignite the backfire. It
was to stop the wildfire when it could no longer
move because it no longer had oxygen.
"Can you set the charges C A?" Jesse yelled to Cindy
"Yes,I can do it!"
"Good girl! Give me your Polaski. I might need two
in getting her down. You can dig with your small
shovel in setting the charges!"
Cindy handed over her big hatchet to Jesse and
immediately set about the task assaigned her. She
noticed the fire was steadily moving towars their
position!
Jesse moved in and looked up at the dangling Monica.
He appraised the situation.
"Monica,can you swing your feet and catch the
branches in the next tree?"
"Yes,I think so!" Monica succeeded and her chute
ropes were visible now.Jesse swung the big hatchet
upwards at the chute ropes. He grinned when it
sliced through one of the ropes.
"We'll have you free in a jiffy,Monica! Here comes
C A's Polaski!"
Agan Jesse was successful and Monica fell to the
ground.
"Are you OK?" Jesse asked as he helped Monica to
her feet.
"Yes! Just got one big bruise on the hip! Now let"s
help C A. I don't want her to get all the credit
for this caper."
They found that Cindy had already finished setting
the charges when they came up.
"Good work! Now let's get the hell to the clearing
where Andy can pick us up!"
The three smokejumpers ran as fast as they could
with their full packs to the clearing. "You call
Andy, C A! He's probably worn a path in the carpet
and he'll want to hear your voice. Give him the
position co-ordinates. Tell him he can't land here!
Sorry ladies but we'll have to climb up on the ropes
into the copter while he hovers!"
BAck at the command post,Andy heard Cindy's voice
on the radio and went to the mic! After getting
instructions,he put on his helmet and ran to the
helicopter. As Andy maneavered the copter into place,
the fire was already too close. Any moment,the
explosion would acure! Andy dropped the ropes down.
Monica started to climb. Jesse saw the danger and
yelled to Monica.
"Hurry,Monica! I know that left leg of yours got a
big bruise but we'll all get much more if you don't
get your butt up there pronto!"
Andy held the copter steady as they started to
climb. He watched Cindy as she scurried up the rope
(Just like a little critter! I love that girl!) he
thought to himself. Monica saw the big grin on
Andy's face.
After Jesse was safely inside,Andy turned the
helicopter and headed out fast! The explosion came
and rocked the helicopter but Andy held it steady.
"Cool!" Jesse called to all aboard with a big grin
on his face.
Monica watched Andy and Cindy walk hand and hand
towards Andy's jeep.Then she settled back in the
ambulance and thought of her next try to take Andy
away from C A!
----to continue--------
Thanks for keeping the story going....! - Sonja, Sep/12/2001 07:21:51
Thanks Marlene...we can do with a little 'distraction' at
the moment. I've been enjoying the story immensely.
Thank you Marlene for your 'distraction' - Carol, Sep/13/2001 01:02:54
This is a difficult time. People deal with things
in different ways, and if your imagination and writing
skills are still going strong, through the events of the
past 48 hours, then all I gotta say is, YOU GO GIRL!
I welcome and appreciate the respite!
Some how life goes on!---(Firestorm)---Andy&Cindy-------Continue---- - Marlene, Sep/13/2001 06:53:29
Andy stopped the Jeep in front of his apartment
building. He smiled at Cindy.
"Tired? Can you make it to your apartment all the
way over on the East side of town?"Andy said,with a
warm smile. Cindy knew what he was up to!
"No,I don't think I'd make it! Maybe I better stay
with you tonight! That is if you're inviting me?"
"I'm inviting!" Andy jumped out of the Jeep and
carried Cindy's gear into the building. He unlocked
the door and stood back so she could enter.
Cindy saw a neat,bachelor place with beautiful
American Indian paintings on the wall.
"Beautiful! That's The Buffalo Surround,isn't it?"
"Yes!" Andy answered. He was openly pleased with
her knowledge of the painting.He put his arms around
her. She turned and reaching up,she kissed him full
on the lips.
Both Andy and Cindy were real tired but they made
love until the early morning hours. Then Cindy fell
asleep in Andy's arms. There was a gentle breeze
that moved the curtins in the open window.
Then suddenly the breeze turned into a strong wind
that blew the curtins inward. Andy opened his eyes
and felt the wind blowing at a high level. Cindy
was also aware of the change in the weather and the
two sat up as the phone rang. Andy grabbed it up
fast. He heard Jesse's voice on the other end.
"Yes,get both your butts down here fast! The fire
changed its direction and is headed straight
towards the town of Eagleton. We got to get out
there! We got a hell of a forest fire on our hands
now!"
When Cindy and Andy got to the command post, Jesse
was walking around trying to get things together.
Rich and Cowboy were ready with the phones and
Monica was on radar.
"You two get your gear together! We're all going in
the observation plane in 20 minutes to take a look.
The forest service tells us that it has already
burned about a thousand acreas and is moving fast
with this wind."
Andy and Cindy went over and watched the fire on
Monica's radar screen.
"It sure is moving close to the town! I take it
I've been recruited for land duty!" Andy remarked.
"Yes, the forest service needs us all. The tanker
is standing by with chemicals."
"Looks like we'll get dumped on during this gig!"
Rich said in all seriousness.
"That's for sure!" Cowboy added.
The phone rang and Jesse motioned to Cowboy and
Rich that he would take it.
"Yes,sir,we're ready to go! Yes,yes,will do!" Jesse
hung up the phone and turned to his smokejumpers.
"This is it,gang! The plane will pick us up in 30
minutes. Everyone,make sure your chutes and
equipment are OK! Now let's get cracking!"
The steady hum of the transport's plane's engines
hung heavy on the smokejumpers ears as they sat in
silence as the big plane made its way over the
fire's position. The pilot called to Jesse that they
were in position. They all looked below. Large smoke
colums rose like huge ghosts. Then they saw it!
Flames from the fire were eating up the trees as
it moved along, consuming everything in it's path.
---To continue----
Conclusion---Andy,Cindy&The Smokejumpers(Firestorm) - Marlene, Sep/14/2001 08:10:06
Jesse observed the entire situation and then spoke
to the pilot.
"Well,Cap,it looks like we jump into hell today.
Those poor campers and picnic folks must be scared
out of their wits. How many seconds 'til jump time?"
"Ten seconds,Jess! Good luck and be careful!"
"Thanks,Cap!" Jesse answered and signaled to his
crew to get ready by holding up ten fingers.
"Damn! Ten seconds!" Cowboy uttered.
Cindy taped Andy on the top of his helmet. He turned
and smiled.
"I love you,Andy!" Cindy yelled,knowing he could
hardly hear her because of the sound of the engines.
"And I love you,baby! See you down there. Please
take care!"
The (Jumping Fools) jumped one after the other in
excellent order and soon were free falling into the
fire.
Jesse was the first to open his chute and then the
others accomplished this without any misfortune.
Jesse hit the ground and quickly got out of his
parachute. The other smokejumpers soon gathered
around him."Is everyone here and OK?"
"Yes,chief,we're all here and ready!" Monica pointed
&nbs
