The small blond boy looked forlornly from his bedroom window.  Below, at the edge of the woods behind their house in Bayport, his brother and two of their friends were hiking into the trees.

Joe Hardy sighed.  Why’d he have to get his stupid tonsils out anyway?  He rubbed his throat, still scratchy and sore from the operation.

“They’re prob’ly goin’ to the fort.  They’ll finish it without me and then I won’t be able to play in it with them,” the frustrated seven-year-old stated.

“Oh, I don’t think they’ll exclude you,” said a baritone voice from the bedroom door.

“Daddy!  You’re home!”  Joe started to disobey his mother’s order to stay in bed, but his dad quickly got to the side of the child’s bed so Joe wouldn’t get in trouble.

“Whoa, cowboy,” Fenton Hardy caught his young son up in his arms.  “I believe Mom said for you to stay put all day.”

Joe frowned. “But Daddy, I’m tired of layin’ here.  There’s nothing to do and Frank’s out playin’ with Chet and Tony.  It’s not fair.”

Fenton quickly surmised that the latter part of Joe’s lamentation held the most significance for the child.  Frank wasn’t here, and for Joey, that was just not fair.

“Well,” the handsome young father declared, “we can’t change the fact that you need to stay inside for a few more days and rest.  What we can do, is make that resting time a little more fun for you, though.”

Joe looked up at his father hopefully, his deep blue eyes sparkling in anticipation.

Fenton smiled.  “Since I got back early from the case I just finished, your mom and Aunt Gertrude have decided to go shopping.  As soon as I see them off, I’ll be back.  Stay put ‘til then.”

“Yes, sir!” Joe agreed with a grin.  He didn’t know what his dad had in mind, but knew anything was better than being stuck in bed by himself all day!

* * *

Joe had just finished reading through a comic book when his dad returned.  He sat up anxiously to see what Dad had in mind.

“First,” Fenton said with a conspiratorial wink, “we’re going to re-locate you.”  He quickly scooped Joe up, blankets and all, and headed downstairs to the family room of their large house.

He settled Joe comfortably in the big, recliner that was commonly referred to as “Dad’s chair”.  Joe felt special.  His dad hadn’t put him on the sofa or the loveseat.  Instead, he placed Joe in his own favorite seat!

“Comfy?” Fenton asked the child.  He was rewarded with Joe’s bright smile and an affirmative nod.

“Now, as I understand it,” Fenton frowned and pursed his lips thoughtfully, “you’ve not had breakfast yet.  We’d better take care of that first thing.”

“But my throat still hurts,” Joe said, looking dejected.  His belly told him he needed to eat, but his throat was saying, no way!

Fenton gave Joe a wink.  “I think I know just what you need.” 

He disappeared into the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with a bowl of chocolate ice cream.  “I left off the sprinkles, since they might irritate your throat,” Fenton smiled at Joe’s wide-eyed expression.

 “Joey,” Fenton bent close to his son, “this is our little secret.  I don’t think Mom would be too happy if she knew you had ice cream for breakfast.”

“Okay!” Joe whispered back, trying his best to wink at his dad.

“Now,” Fenton said as he stood and walked toward the entertainment center, “for my other plan.”  He carefully pulled several DVD cases from the cabinet.

“I thought you might like to meet some of my childhood friends and heros,” the man smiled as he set the DVD’s down on Joey’s lap.

“Your mom bought most of these for me for my last birthday,” Fenton explained.  “I was so excited to see my old, favorite TV shows put on DVD.

“Here, look Joey,” Fenton held up a case.

“Who is that?” the child questioned.

“That’s the ‘Lone Ranger’,” Fenton answered.  “He rode on a beautiful horse named ‘Silver’ and he had an Indian friend named ‘Tonto’.”

“Cool!”

“I thought so,” Fenton grinned.

“How ‘bout this one?” Joe held up another case.

“Oh yes,” Fenton said, “this one is about a small town sheriff.  He had a little red-haired boy about your age and a deputy that always seemed to be in some kind of trouble.”

“Sounds like me,” Joe said, rolling his eyes.  Fenton laughed.  His youngest son did seem to have a certain panache for getting himself, and sometimes his brother, into trouble.

“Wow, Joey, here’s one you might like,” Fenton exclaimed.  “It’s ‘Batman’.”

Joe wrinkled his nose at the picture on the cover.  He and Frank had all the recent ‘Batman’ movies, but this guy looked silly in his gray tights and black underwear.  Fenton chuckled at his son’s expression.

“Give it a try,” Fenton urged as he popped the DVD into the appropriate slot.  He fast forwarded to the start of the show and handed Joe the remote.

“I’ve got to do a little work in my office,” Fenton watched Joe’s countenance change, so he quickly added, “I should be done before the first episode is even over.”  He tousled Joe’s blond curls and left to the sound of…”Nananananananana, Batman!”

Fenton kept the office door open in case Joe needed him, and couldn’t help but smile every time he’d hear Joe’s infectious giggle coming from the family room.

* * *

Finishing the work he’d needed to get done, Fenton returned to his son as promised. He lifted Joe and climbed into the easy chair, pulling his son onto his lap.  Together they watched several episodes of ‘Batman’ and the ‘Lone Ranger’.

After several hours, Fenton glanced at his watch and realized that Frank would be expecting lunch soon.  He tucked Joey back in the chair just as another ‘Lone Ranger’ adventure was beginning.