Tom was awarded the treasure for saving the town but Judge Thatcher kept it to give him in small bits. We all had a picnic for "Hero Tom" the next day but I wanted to talk to Judge Thatcher first.

"Judge Thatcher sir, can I visit Pa today?"

"Yes, he's locked in, he ain't gonna hurt you. Why did you hold on to him like that, after all he done?"

"He's my pa, he's all I got. I'd rather have him locked up for the rest of his life than get killed. He said he was gonna buy us a nice farm and raise a lot if animals, I don't know if he was actually telling the truth. Either way, I think it's more luxurious to live with someone you love than have a luxurious place to live or things to wear. If living with Pa taught me something, it taught me that you don't have to be rich to be happy."

"I understand how you're feeling right now, he is your pa, but he needs to take responsibility for his actions, he killed a man, and he threatened to kill someone else. He may be hanged."

"No, dont hang him, just sentence him to some years in jail or...a place where he won't hurt anyone and I can still spend time with him."

"We'll discuss more later, this is a time of celebration."

"You're right sir."

I walked to where Tom and Huck were. Huck was clean cut looking.

"Tom, can me and Huck talk for a minute?"

"Sure...oh yeah...suuuurrreee."

Huck raised an eyebrow as Tom walked to Becky.

"Hey Queenie, what was that all about?"

"Well...uhhh...Huck...there's something I wanna say to you, something I wanted to say for a long time. Since we were very little."

"Wow, Aquene, you must've been so nervous to tell me, whatever it is. Is it a yes-no question?"

"Sort of, it's more of a confession."

"What is it?"

I cleared my throat.

"Huckleberry Finn, I like you, more than a friend."

I let out a deep breath.

"Your cheeks are red Queenie, this must be real. Well...that's very....flattering of you to say. For now, I'm gonna have to say I don't feel the same."

"Is this because of my pa?"

"Oh no, it's not that. I'm too old for you...and I can't stay in one place, I'm planning on leaving again, to travel. But, don't be sad Queenie, when we're both adults, I might give you and me a chance."

"I understand Huck, I know we have an age gap and you don't really like living in proper human civilization."

He laughed.

"Thank you for telling me, it took guts didn't it."

I nodded.

"We're still good friends, you're still my little queen."

I hugged him.

After the picnic, I got a leftover sandwich and I went to the town jail to see Pa, he was the only prisoner there. He was talking to Mrs. Polly. What was she doing!?

"She is a wonderful child Joe, I don't know how, but you raised her up well. She loves you but she feels that you don't."

Pa was sitting on his cell bed with his head down.

"I saw her pray, really pray for you to change."

"I love her too, but it's too late for me to change, even for her. I've always had a temper and got into fights."

"I'm a patient woman, and a good Christian, I was taught to be forgiving, kind. Instead of living in the woods or a hotel room, I would be more than happy to let you and Aquene stay in my home for a while."

"You'd do that?"

"Yes, Aquene has been staying with me since she ran off."

"I failed her test...I failed her."

"It's not too late to change, she's still a kid, she's still your kid Joe. She still has a long way to go with growing up. I'll talk to Judge Thatcher about our discussion. I have a good feeling this'll work out."

She stood up and saw me. She smiled, patted me on my cheek gently, and left. That moment, he was given a metal bowl of soup.

"Hi Pa, you can have a leftover sandwich from the picnic with the soup, it'll be heartier."

"The soup is more than he deserves," the jailman said.

As soon as he left, I was able to reach the bowl before Pa could, I slide it towards me and gave Pa the sandwich.

"The sandwich is better, trust me."

He just looked at me. I took a sip of the soup, just a bland broth.

"Tastes like beef broth, reminds of that Christmas feast at that pub in St. Louis, you got so drunk."

I smiled before taking another sip. Then, I heard a sniff. I looked up to see Pa's tear stained face.