A Barrel of Laughs, A Vale of Tears by Jules Feiffer

Author:Jules Feiffer [Feiffer, Jules]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2021-05-04T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 14: End of a Friendship

Tom was changed.

Roger was changed too, but if he didn’t happen to be an eagle he would have been something like the old Roger. Changed for the better, no doubt about it: a kinder, wiser, stronger Roger. But, still, if you were to run into him on the street outside this book, you’d know him right away. But you wouldn’t know Tom. Tom had turned cruel.

Now, as you will recall, I warned you about Tom early on. I told you he wasn’t to be trusted. But the old Tom, the Tom I warned you about a while back, was fun to hang out with. There are people like that: they’re a lot of fun, and you have a fine time with them, and then one day they do something bad. They don’t take your side, or they talk about you behind your back, or they steal something that’s yours—and you are shocked to discover that, underneath the fun, they are not nice people.

The difference between Tom now and Tom in the old days is that the old Tom behaved like a nice person. A friend, a buddy, a pal. But the newly rediscovered Tom behaved like a rat. “I am going to get even” he sneered at Roger when they were back on the ground.

Roger was shocked. “Whatever for?”

“You left me in the Forever Forest. You could have taken me with you, but you didn’t. You left me flat. I’m going to get even.”

In the old days, before he became an eagle, Roger would have dismissed Tom’s complaint as nothing more than his friend in a whiny mood. Tom used to whine a lot and Roger was good at kidding him out of it. He never gave Tom’s complaints a second thought.

But the eagle Roger understood what the prince Roger would have laughed at. Tom’s point was well taken. Roger felt pangs of guilt. He hadn’t thought of taking Tom with him when he backed out of the Forever Forest. He hadn’t thought of anything except that his bag of Magic Powder was half empty and that he must get out before it was gone. “I was wrong, Tom,” Roger said sadly. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m going to get even.”

“I apologize.”

“Someday in some way, when you least expect it, I will get even.”

“Look, I said I’m sorry. I said I apologize. I didn’t mean anything by leaving you flat. I was just stupid. I forgot. I was wrong. I was stupid. I forgot.” Roger went on explaining and apologizing and defending himself until he was blue in the beak. Nothing he did placated Tom.

“Someday when you’re asleep or when your back is turned or when your mind is on your stupid quest, I’ll get even.”

Roger refused to believe that this, his first and only true friendship, could end so badly. It didn’t seem sad so much as dumb. Okay, he made a mistake, he acted selfishly. But that was long ago, and he wouldn’t act that way

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