He enters the barn and quickly takes care of his horse, gently rubbing her and making sure she is comfortable.

"I was just about ta go get Buck an' let him ride out after ya like he's wanted to all evenin'." Ike jumps at the unexpected voice, noticing for the first time, Teaspoon, sitting in the shadows, watching him.

"Sorry, didn't mean ta scare ya, son."

Moving closer so Teaspoon can see his hands in the dim, Ike signs, <It's alright. I just didn't see you there.>

Teaspoon studies his mute rider in the faint light of the lantern, noting the tired face and red eyes.

"You alright, Ike?"

<Yeah, just tired.>

Teaspoon starts to ask Ike what upset him enough to make him ride out without a word, but stops himself. From the looks of him, Ike is too emotionally drained to talk about anything right now, and he is starting to shiver from the cold.

"Well, goodnight then," Teaspoon says, standing up. He gives Ike a fatherly squeeze on the shoulder as he walks by.

<Goodnight,> Ike signs at Teaspoon's back, relieved that he didn't ask what is wrong. Ike walks to the bunkhouse and enters as quietly as he can. Everyone appears to be asleep and he doesn't want to wake them. Although he knows they mean well, he can't handle all their questions right now. Ike soundlessly undresses and is ready to climb up into his bunk when he feels someone's stare. Lowering his head, he meets Buck's concerned eyes gazing at him from the bottom bunk.

"Ike, is everything alright?" Buck whispers.

<Yes,> Ike gestures, but he knows Buck can see through him.

"Who was the letter from, Ike?" Buck tries again, leaning up on his elbow.

Ike sighs. He knows Buck won't be satisfied until he has an answer, but Ike is just not ready to talk yet.

<I'll tell you tomorrow. I want to sleep now.>

Buck looks at Ike for a long time, trying to gage his friend's emotional state from his face. Finally, Buck nods

"Alright. Get some sleep, okay."

Ike nods 'yes' and climbs into his bed. He doesn't really expect to get much sleep, but the strain of the last few hours catches up to him. His tired body wins over his churning mind, and before ten minutes have passed, Ike is fast asleep.

When Ike wakes the next morning, he is alone in the bunkhouse. Grateful, Ike lays thinking. Although a night's rest has helped to restore his exhausted body, inside his emotions are still spinning like a top. Everything feels different. He is still Ike, still the same person he was when he woke up yesterday morning, but somehow it seems like the world around him has changed. He feels like he is a scared, seven year-old little boy again, helplessly caught up in forces beyond his control.

Ike sighs audibly as he climbs out of bed, reminding himself that he, of all people, should know how much your life can change in one day.

He dresses quickly, wondering where everyone is and why he was allowed to sleep for so long. It's unlike the others, especially Cody, to let anyone sleep in, particularly when there's chores to do. Again, Ike tucks yesterday's letter into his vest, thinking about what it says. 'I have a grandmother and she wants me to visit!' he marvels to himself. He still isn't sure what he is going to do, but there's one person he's hoping can help him with that. Finally, with hands swift from many years of practice, Ike covers his smooth scalp with his bandana. Last night may have been a bit chilly, but today is going to be a scorcher. The last thing Ike wants to deal with is a sunburnt head.

Opening the door, Ike steps out into the glaring heat of day. The sun is almost directly over head. 'I slept the day away!' he thinks in amazement.

"'Bout time ya decided ta git up, Ike!" Cody's voice calls to him from over by Rachel's house, drawing Ike's attention. Cody, Jimmy, Buck, and Kid are engaged in digging up the ground all around the front porch of the house. "Rachel said we had ta let ya sleep, but seein' as how yer awake now, you can take my place. All this hard work ain't good fer me."

"Hard work! Cody, you ain't done no work yet! You ain't done nothin' but drive us crazy with yer big mouth!" Jimmy growls, jamming his shovel into the ground to emphasis his words.

"Whadda ya mean I ain't done no work? What do you call this pile a dirt right here, huh?" Cody defends himself.

"Pitiful," Buck mumbles under his breath, a sly smile on his face.

Ike shakes his head in mock despair. They really are hopeless, the whole lot of them. He walks the short distance between the bunkhouse and where they are digging up the lawn, still engrossed in their bickering when he comes up behind them. Ike thumps his chest to get their attention.

<What are you doing?> he questions, gesturing to the lawn they are destroying.

"Rachel decided that some flowerbeds would make the station look pretty," Jimmy says, his voice giving away his opinion of pony express stations that look pretty.

"Yeah, and we git ta dig 'em," Kid sighs.

"That's right, boys, and I remind you that the rate at which ya dig 'em is directly related to the rate at which I fix lunch." The riders look up to see Rachel standing on the porch, her hands resting firmly on her hips. "From the look a things, it's gonna be a long time 'till ya eat."

"Aw, give me that shovel!" Cody grabs the tool from Buck and starts digging with renewed fervor.

"Mornin', Ike," Rachel greets him. "Ya want some breakfast?"

"Hey! How come you'll fix him food an' not us? He ain't even done nothin'," comes Cody's predictable complaint.

"Cause he ain't been asked to, an' you have, Cody," Rachel admonishes sternly. Turning back to Ike, she waits for his answer, "Ike?"

Ike shakes his head 'no.' His stomach is asking for food, but there is someone he needs to talk to first.

<Where's Teaspoon?> he asks Rachel.

"I think he's in town at his office. Ya sure ya don't want some breakfast? Ya didn't eat dinner last night, either," Rachel asks, concerned.

<Later.>

Ike leaves the others to their digging, and heads for the barn. Somehow, during the night, he settled on the idea that Teaspoon will know how to help him, can tell him what to do. Now he hurries to saddle his horse and ride into town.

"Ike, why do ya need ta talk to Teaspoon?" Buck has followed Ike into the barn.

<I just do,> Ike tells his friend. Ike loves Buck more than anyone in the world and hates keeping him in the dark, but he is still too confused about how he feels to talk to him. Buck will only ask Ike what he is going to do, and Ike doesn't yet have an answer for that.

"Ike! What was in that letter!?! Are ya in trouble!?!" Buck grabs Ike's arm to keep him from leaving. "Why won't you tell me!?!" He is frustrated with Ike's stubbornness. Buck knows Ike is hurting. He can see it when he looks into his friend's eyes, and yet Ike refuses to tell him why!

Ike turns and faces Buck. He sees the worry written plainly across his face, the pleading in his eyes.

<Buck, I'm not in trouble. I'll be alright. I just need to talk to Teaspoon first. I promise I will tell you everything when I get back. Okay?>

Buck knows there is no use in pushing Ike for more, but he still shakes his head slightly.

"Alright, but I ain't gonna let ya dodge me again."

Ike nods his thanks and, mounting his horse, heads into town.

Teaspoon is in his usual position (chair tipped back, feet propped up, hat pulled down) when Ike enters the Marshal's office.

"Mornin' Ike," Teaspoon greets him. Ike smiles faintly, wondering how Teaspoon could tell it was him with his hat over his eyes like that.

Teaspoon rights his hat and sits up straight, studying Ike carefully. Ike looks better than he did last night, not quite as ready to fall to pieces, but Teaspoon still notices the haunted look in his eyes.

"Sit down," Teaspoon says, indicating a chair. "What's eatin' ya, son? The boys said ya got a letter yesterday that upset ya somethin' fierce. You in some kind a trouble?"

Ike shakes his head 'no' as he sits down.

"What is it, then?"

Slowly, Ike removes the letter from his vest and hands it across the desk to Teaspoon, indicating for him to read it.

"Ya sure?"

<Yes.>

Teaspoon takes the now slightly smudged paper and starts to read. When he is done, he glaces over at Ike. No wonder the boy looks like he's seen a ghost! He practically has! His whole frame of existence as knew it has been turned on its heels by one sheet of paper!

"What er ya gonna do?" Teaspoon asks Ike, quietly.

Ike just shrugs his shoulders, not meeting Teaspoon's eyes. For a while they both sit in silence, until Teaspoon breaks it.

"Do ya wanna go?"

Ike looks up at Teaspoon, his face twisted in an anguished expression, tears once again threatening to fall. Finally, his hands start moving and it's like a dam has burst. Rapidly, all the emotions he has been holding back flood out, almost too fast for Teaspoon to follow.

<I ain't sure what to do! It's like the world is spinning around me and I can't catch hold! I have all these emotions fighting inside of me, but I don't know which ones to feel! Part of me wants to jump with joy and part wants to run and hide! Teaspoon, how come I can be so angry, and sad, and sorta excited, all at the same time?>

Teaspoon watches the silent young man before him bare his soul, his expressive face and hands telling more of the tortured heart inside than words ever could. He appears so lost, so vulnerable. Silently, Teaspoon curses the world, curses the fact that life has dealt this gentle, kind spirit such a cruel hand. This boy deserves so much more than fate has seen fit to give him!

Ike is waiting for an answer as Teaspoon studies him. Eventually, Teaspoon speaks.

"Because yer normal, Ike. This here letter has just tore yer world an' yer heart apart. Yer angry that ya never knew about this grandmother. Angry that you've spent most a yer life with people that didn't want ya, now knowin' that there was someone out there who did. Yer sad 'cause of all the people that you've lost, yer childhood that was stole from ya. Ike, it's okay ta feel like this. It's normal."

<What do you think I should do?>

Teaspoon pauses before answering. Ike has already had too many things taken away from him. He doesn't want to see him get hurt again, but he also knows, even if Ike hasn't admitted it yet, that Ike will never really be content again until he follows this new path through to the finish.

"I think ya better go meet yer grandmother," Teaspoon finally answers Ike.

<But what about my runs, my job?>

"You've got some time off comin', and the others can cover fer ya while yer gone."

Ike still isn't convinced and it shows on his face.

"Ike, I ain't gonna tell ya how ya should feel about all of this. Lord knows I'd be just as confused if it was me, but I am gonna ask ya to give yer grandmother a chance. I don't think ya will be able ta live content if ya pass up this chance." Teaspoon catches Ike's eyes as he finishes speaking. Looking in them, he sees something more than just worry about his job and the long journey.

"That ain't the only thing knawin' at ya, is it?" he asks his rider.

Ike looks down at his boots. He is almost afraid to share his fear with Teaspoon. At last he turns to Teaspoon, his hands shaking a little as he signs, <What if she don't want a grandson like me?>

"Not want one like you? Whadda ya mean?" Teaspoon is puzzled by this turn in the conversation, until he watches Ike slowly point to his mouth and then his head. Understanding hits Teaspoon like a bolt of lightening. He has grown so used to Ike's differences that he sometimes forgets Ike isn't speaking out loud when he signs, forgets that the red bandana covers a head devoid of hair. But the outside world never forgets, and Ike knows it.

Teaspoon wishes he could say some words that will take away this fear from Ike, but he can't. Instead he says the only thing left. "You will jist hafta go show her that ya are the best grandson anyone could want."

Ike finally manages a real smile, which he gives Teaspoon in return for his last comment. He stands up to leave, but Teaspoon stops him.

"Ike, before ya go, I wanna say somethin' else. Now I know what yer gonna think when I say this but, but I'm gonna say it anyways. I don't want ya goin' alone."

Ike looks sharply at Teaspoon, raising his hands to protest, but Teaspoon cuts him off.

"'Fore ya git all riled up, hear me out. I know ya can take care of yerself jist fine, but there are a lot of people out there with nothin' better ta do then cause problems fer the rest of us. You should know that, Ike. It's a mighty long way from here ta Philadelphia and if you was ta git in trouble and need help there's no way we could git to ya in time. I want ya ta take one of the others with ya, jist incase. 'Sides, it might be nice ta have someone who can help ya talk to yer grandmother when ya meet her. I don't imagine she knows much Indian Sign."

Ike gives Teaspoon a glare which states clearly he doesn't like it, but he knows Teaspoon is right. Then he shrugs his shoulders and sighs knowing the old marshal has made up his mind, so it doesn't really matter what he thinks.

<Okay. I'll ask Buck.>

"Fine. And, Ike, try ta be a little excited. Ya just got a grandmother! That's a pretty good thing."

Ike's customary grin splits his face, coming almost unbidden. <I know, Teaspoon. Thanks.>