Pretty Pat-tern

   "And you're going to walk around with a kid whose sitter wears a skirt?! Hahahahahahah!" A boy with a dark buzzcut and evil-like smirk (it seemed that he couldn't smile in a different way) burst out laughing when he saw that Matt was peacefully talking to the newbie.
   "Go away, Simmy!" Matt shouted.
   "And this is not a skirt", the newbie - all black bowlcut and deep blue eyes - added. He was kind of a "helpless brave kid": attempting to resist, but with nervousness in his voice.
   "It is! It is one of the lies adults tell kids! And you know what my big bro says? He's seen lots of Scots, and they all were not wearing pants!" Simmy (whose real name was John Simm, but the kids called him this way not to mix with other Johns) went on giggling until Matt and the newbie got two more protectors. Those were David and Johnny, the twins who were Simmy's greatest opposites in all senses - from the ability to smile to character.
   "You were said to get lost, Simmy, or you're going to get a double hit", David threatened. Simmy sulked and, having thrown a we're-not-done-yet glare at the newbie, walked away. "Anyway, I see we haven't caught up with Matt again. I'm David, that's Johnny. No mix-up, okay?"
   "O-okay. Name's Patrick", the newbie replied.

   The second half of the day passed without problems, though Johnny had a suspicion about Simmy (who had been gone every break). Patrick appeared to be "counter-Matt", as Matt's stepbrother Peter said: he appeared to be very alert and ready for any deed, but only around those who won his trust. When it was about complete strangers, he momentarily turned into a reserved and shy creature. Two different kids.
   The realisation started at the drawing class.
   "Wow, look, Little Beatle's able to smile!" That was Mels, the second troublemaker after Simmy. Their difference was that Simmy was only pleasing himself with mischief, while Mels wanted to prove her own point of view (which didn't often match the "needed" one), but was quite good-natured, though explosive. And truly, now Patrick's expression was dreamy, and the corners of his mouth were turned up while he was moving the blue pencil over the paper.
   "He doesn't look like a bug, Mels", Matt objected and, not caring that she was hardly holding her laughter, walked up to his new pal. "Show me, please".
   But Patrick covered the drawing with his hands and remained like that until Matt shrugged and walked away. Only when it was ready, he allowed the rest to see it. In the very front there was a figure in black sweater with too huge collar and something like a checkered skirt. It was holding a hand of a much smaller figure - dark-topped, wearing pants with colorful (too colorful) suspenders. Next to them there was a blue box of those which had been gone decades ago. Also Patrick had managed to fit in more little figures, which were a bit behind - one with a ridiculously huge fringe, two almost identical and one with brown skin. The clumsy writings over this all said: "MAT", "JAMI", "MI", "DAVID", "JHONY" and "MELS". To be honest, almost all letters were written correctly, except for mirrored "N".
   "At least you wrote me correctly", Mels immediately commented.
   "And you care only about this!" Johnny replied. "It's great, Pat... Why did you draw a box there?"
   "I read a tale about a man from blue box, who came and saved the day", Patrick admitted.
   "And you, wishful bonehead, thought he would come?"
   "SIMMY!" This was said simultaneously by all kids. Yes, Simmy was there to spoil it all.
   "It all's not real. Tales are not real, quick friends are not real, and COOL BOWTIES are not real!" Within the last word Simmy, who was slowly approaching to Patrick all this time, quickly moved his hand and in a second was running away, clutching a stripe of indigo cloth which used to be Patrick's bowtie.
   "Give it here!"
   "Able to run? Get me!" Simmy blew raspberries at Patrick and darted into the corridor.

   After the classes (luckily one of the teachers noticed Simmy's behaviour and punished him for the rest of the day at least) Matt, who was worried and bamboozled, because Patrick had been gone from sight after the chase, began searching all over the pre-school territory and finally found the newbie on the branch of the tallest tree around.
   "Heeeey! Patrick, come down!" Matt shouted. "Simmy's not going to bother anybody!"
   Instead of reply there was a rumble and silence.
   "I promise!" Matt went on, wondering for how long he was going to yell like this. It's easy to get punished for it as well.
   "P'haps I could shoot fireworks?" This was Peter, who had already recovered from the crack-up he had got when he had unleashed a huge set of fireworks in the town's park.
   "Peter, you no want him to fall", Matt said reproachfully. "Pa-a-a-at!"
   "Pat-cat. Cats rarely go down from trees", Peter muttered.
   But here he was wrong. After some minutes Patrick got brave enough to get down, though slowly and carefully. Oh dears, what he looked like! His pants were torn on the knees, one of his red suspenders with yellow patterns was ripped in two, and he was besmeared in dirt head-to-toe. But the most prominent moment was his bowtie which was still missing.
   "You sat there the whole time?" Matt marvelled. His wish to ask questions was gone as soon as he saw two lines of almost clean skin on Patrick's cheeks, beginning at his eyes. "Is it because of Simmy?"
   Patrick sniffed his nose, rubbing his face with his fist.
   "Next time he teases you, I'll steal explosives from Ace and put them into his bag", Peter promised.
   "And I told you that I'll be your friend", Matt reminded. "I'll prove it". Having said that, he undid his blue polka-dotted bowtie and tied it around Patrick's neck (he had already learned how to tie this knot though his fingers still got stuck in loops of cloth). "Don't tell me anything, I have a box of 'em!"
   "Really?" Patrick coughed to clear his throat - his blue eyes were as big as saucers now.
   "Really-really. Now..." Matt dug into his pocket and produced another strip of cloth (this time dark red), which was immediately tied around his own neck. "Bowtie buddies?"
   "Bowtie buddies", Patrick nodded, though he didn't quite understand what that meant. It sounded well, after all.
   "When is your guardian coming?" Matt asked as they approached back to the yard.
   "Emmmm..."
   "I wanted to see if he's as awesome as I think", Matt explained. "If Simmy says bad things about people, it usually means they are awesome. He is green about them, this is it".
   "Green?" Patrick blinked.
   "Jell-ows", Peter interfered with a really clever face (Matt snickered upon this sight). "Bad word".