Describe Characters

    Aine called out, “Iollan, Mom wants us to go to the farmers market.”

    A boy, with brown hair bleached by the sun, looked up and waved as he jumped up from the pier. He gathered his fishing gear including a stringer of fish and ran towards his twin sister.

    Where her brother’s hair was bleaching towards blond, Aine’s hair had red highlights. Iollan took the fish into the camper, and then joined his sister outside. They started out down the dirt road. Aine walked in the dusty road, kicking up dust around her trod over shoes. The shoes were so worn in some places that the canvas shoes was thread bare. This matched the frayed cuffs on Aine’s shorts that were pulled up over her swimsuit.

    Iollan walked in the grass alongside the road. His shoes were clean and slightly worn. Over his slightly damp swimming trunks, he wore a pressed “golf” shirt without a logo. It was weird that so many people expected them to be alike, just because they were twins. They were even asked on occasion if they were identical. Their eyes were alike brown with gold flecks and veins – like the tiger eye stones the children wore in necklaces for protection and clarity.

    ”Is there something particular Mom wants?” Iollan asked.

“She doesn’t care,” Aine replied shrugging, “She has rice, so no starch and we are eating grilled fish,”

The kids got to the end of the dirt road, where it dead ended into a 2 lane black top highway. The kids looked both ways before dashing across the road and turning right walking against traffic up on the shoulder. They walked in silence in single file. They had about 2 miles to walk.

The farmer’s market was on the side of the road. The ground was covered with crushed shells with parking on one side of the highway and the market on the other. There was a county cop stopping traffic at the crosswalk, he motioned Aine and Iollan across the road.

“Let’s see if Brad has some sweet corn,” suggested Iollan. They headed over to a booth mid way down the 2^nd road.

“Hey,” Aine called out, “how’s the sweet corn, Brad?”

“Oh, are you all back,” Brad replied, “you are early this year. Corn is ok, but it won’t be at its peak for a couple of weeks.”

“We are looking for something good to grill,” Iollan explained, “We are having fresh catfish and steamed rice”

“Corn is a bit small, how about I throw in some green beans and garlic,” Brad suggested, “enough for all of you’ll. 5 bucks”

Iollan nodded, and Aine said, “you got a deal”, and handed Brad a worn $5. She pulled a canvas bag out of her shorts pocket and put the corn and green beans in the bag.

“Hey is Carol around?” Aine asked.

Brad nodded, “She moved back near the trees,”

“Thanks,” the kids called out and headed towards the trees.

When they got to Carol’s booth there were a couple yuppie tourists with their yuppie kids. Aine and Iollan hung back and watched the yuppies pick over Carol’s goods.

Yuppie Mom, “Well I don’t know. Do we know it is safe, I don’t want us getting food poisoning?”

Aine looked at Carol and rolled her eyes – food poisoning from cheese? Carol waved off the kids. They started to walk off to allow Carol to finish her sale. They wondered down the aisle, buying a large oatmeal cookie to split between them. A little way down there was a small musical group set up. The kids sat down on a couple of hay bales.

The group started with Fiddler’s Green. The kids sang along the chorus, clapping along. Next the group launched into The Devil Made Texas. The kids heard a sniff behind them and the yuppie family was walking away. Apparently the Mom didn’t like the song.

Aine elbowed Iollan and tossed a couple of bucks in the guitar case before getting up and going back to Carol’s booth.

“Hey, Carol,” Aine greeted the woman, “Can we have 4 quarts of milk, 2 of cream, a dozen eggs, .5 lb of pepper jack, and .5 of swiss?”

“Sure,” Carol replied, while she cut a small wedge of the pepper jack and swiss and handed it to the kids, “Thanks for waiting – take a pint of milk each. I got some chocolate left”

“Thanks,” the kids grinned at Carol.

“Any one got some good berries this early,” Iollan asked

“Jessie and John have some excellent strawberries, but the blackberries won’t be in till May,” Carol answered, “They are on the third row about a third away down.”

She positioned the quart bottles around a basket, poured ice around the bottles, and snapped on a lid. The eggs were in cartons that were added to the canvas bag along with the cheese wrapped in cloth.

“That will be $8.75,” Carol stated.

Aine handed her an old 10 and Carol handed back the change. “Remember to bring back the basket and carton for a discount”.

Iollan grabbed the basket and they headed off to Jessie and John’s booth. When they get there, they find the same yuppie family.

Yuppie mom was whining, ” but they have black berries in the grocery store I don’t understand why you don’t have them here.”

Jesse sighed, “Yes ma’am they have them in the grocery store because they are importing them from other places. These are locally grown and the black berries will be in for a couple more weeks. ”

Yuppie girl tugged at her mom’s arm, “but Momma I want black berries”.

Yuppie Dad patted the yuppie girl on her head and said of the soothing voice, ” Yes sweetheart, we are going to get you some black berries.”

He turned an addressed John, ” I am sure you has some black berries back there. Please get some for my daughter now.”

John looked the yuppie dad up and down and said in a slow deliberate voice, ” Sir, the only black berries around here are flowers and have it even set yet. Either by some strawberries, or move on.”

” Well I never,” sputtered yuppie dad, ” I thought you were supposed to have good service at a farmers’ market. This isn’t service.”

With that the family stormed off.

John rolled his eyes, ” I really wish they would just say in their McMansions.”

Jesse smiled at Aine and Iollan, ” what can I do you for.”

Iollan smile back and said, ” 4 pints of strawberries please.”

” That will be $8.00 please,” Jesse said.

Aine handed him an old $10.00 bill and he gave are $2.00 back and change.

With that the two children started walking home. They pass was singing group again, and heard strains of Wild Rover as they passed. As they left the shell covered parking lot is started walking along with two lane blacktop highway, there is a rumble behind them. Iollan and Aine looked up to see a large black SUV pull out across the street kicking up the huge amount of dust. The children can say the four members and the yuppie family through the window. They all looked unhappy.

As Aine set off down the highway she said to her brother, ” why would anyone want to live like that.”

” I’m sure I don’t know,” Iollan answered, ” I sure would wanna be them.”