Flora And Ulysses

Flora has a dream in which she is sitting on a riverbank with William, and they are holding hands. A neon sign approaches them, and as it gets closer, Flora reads it as “Welcome to Blundermeecen” (179), the city where Dr. Meescham is from. Flora feels perfectly happy as she listens to William talk about the expanding universe, and names the river the Incandesto. She does, however, wonder where Ulysses is.

Ulysses smells something strange in the kitchen and wonders if it is the landlord’s cat, coming to take revenge. However, it turns out to be Flora’s mother, who is smoking and standing behind him in the dark. She approaches and rips Ulysses’s poem out of the typewriter, crumpling it up into a ball. Ulysses wonders if this might be the end for him and thinks about how much he loves everything in the world, even Flora’s mother’s smoke rings. Flora’s mother instead puts a new piece of paper in the typewriter and demands that the squirrel write exactly what she says.

After inspecting Ulysses’s letter, Flora’s mother tells him to wait in the kitchen. It saddens Ulysses to look at what he’s written, knowing Flora’s mother’s lies will hurt Flora. He feels unable to move in his own defense and thinks of a stone sculpture of a squirrel he once saw in a garden. Ulysses feels as if he is made of stone and is terrified of what Flora’s mother will do next. He starts to type again in an attempt to save the situation, but Flora’s mother grabs him by the tail.

Foreshadowed by her dream, Flora awakes to find Ulysses gone. She wanders downstairs and sees a letter in the typewriter, which describes Ulysses’s desire to go back to the wild. Flora knows this is a lie and thinks about how much she loves Ulysses. She thinks about calling the police but knows they will find her story ridiculous. She wonders who else she can trust in such a dire situation and realizes this person is William.

Flora goes out at 2am in search of William. She stands outside his window, saying his name until he appears. William is happy to see Flora despite the hour, and she desperately begs for his help in saving Ulysses from her mother. He starts talking about how a person’s whole universe is inside their brain, and Flora reminds him that they are in a hurry. Tootie hears the commotion and offers to help, and together, the three of them set off to save Ulysses. Flora brings the shepherdess lamp in the hopes of negotiating with her mother.

Ulysses is in a sack being carried by Flora’s mother. He is certain he is about to die, and thinks about the fact that he will never get to try a giant donut or hear Tootie’s poetry. He laments losing Flora, poetry, and all the other beautiful things he’s encountered in the past couple of days. Flora’s mother tells Ulysses that her actions aren’t personal, which he doubts. She insists that she wants Flora to be happy and normal, and that Flora is becoming too strange. Ulysses wonders what is so wrong with being strange, and hugs his crumpled poem close to his chest.

Tootie speeds down the road with one finger on the wheel, as she and Flora call out repeatedly for Ulysses. William points out the flaw in their approach, noting that they should try to think logically and figure out where Flora’s mother may have taken the squirrel. Flora and Tootie keep calling out regardless, and Flora thinks about something she read in her comics about magical thinking: “It was dangerous to allow yourself to believe that what you said directly influenced the universe” (199). Still, Flora allows herself to be hopeful. Tootie runs out of gas and pulls over to the side of the road.

Ulysses can tell that Flora’s mother has brought him to the woods by the smells and sounds around him. He is set down and taken out of the sack, and Flora’s mother shines a bright flashlight on him. Ulysses thinks about who he is, the encouragement he’s received from Flora and Tootie, and what he needs to do. As Flora’s mother raises a shovel over his head, Ulysses jumps into the air and soars off into the night. A comic strip illustrates Ulysses as he flies across the face of the moon.

Flora, William, and Tootie continue on foot, calling out for Ulysses. The former feels lost in more ways than one, and William and Tootie argue about whether he can see or not. William tells Tootie, “You are not me. You do not exist behind my traumatized eyeballs. I am telling the truth, my truth. I cannot see” (205). Tootie insists William is fine, and that he was sent away because he pushed his stepfather’s truck into a sinkhole. Flora senses that William is crying as he talks about his mother sending him away, and feels her heart ache; William just wants to go home and be called by his preferred name. She asks to hold William’s hand, and together, they walk and stare at the stars. When William mentions missing his father, Flora thinks about how much she loves her own, and suddenly has an idea.

A comic strip shows Ulysses flying over the city in search of Flora. He manages to find the Giant Do-Nut and sits atop it, wondering what to do next, when he realizes that he is sitting across from Dr. Meescham’s apartment. Ulysses decides to fly over to her for help.

Ulysses flies through an open window to Dr. Meescham, who is happy to see him. She tells Ulysses that she always keeps her window open because “something wonderful might make its way to us through the open window” (210). She knows Ulysses is there for a reason, but he doesn’t know how to explain everything that’s happened. Dr. Meescham prepares a snack for Ulysses that her husband used to make for her when she couldn’t sleep (sardines and crackers), and Ulysses plans to write a new poem for Flora. She assures Ulysses that they will go to George and figure out what’s going on.

Flora, William, and Tootie walk along the highway in search of a clue. Flora and William are still holding hands, and William is still quietly shedding tears. Flora investigates the garbage along the side of the road and thinks about the incredible situation she’s found herself in. When William trips over the lamp cord that Tootie’s carrying, he and Flora tumble together and William’s dark glasses break. He looks up at the stars and shouts, “I can see the stars! I can see!” (216). Tootie sarcastically comments that it must be a miracle but knows that William could see all along.

Flora, William, and Tootie make their way to Flora’s father’s apartment. They knock on his door to no avail, but then Flora hears her father laughing from Dr. Meescham’s apartment. Dr. Meescham hears Flora in the hallway and opens the door before she can knock, and on her shoulder sits Ulysses. Flora is relieved to see Ulysses and hugs him tight. She tells Ulysses that she loves him, and Dr. Meescham soaks up the happiness around her. William and Tootie introduce themselves, and William remarks on how beautiful everyone’s faces are now that he can see.

Flora’s father and Dr. Meescham have pieced together some of the evening by watching Ulysses’s gestures, but Flora knows they need a typewriter to know what truly happened. As the group discusses what to do, they suddenly hear a scream from the hallway: Flora’s mother is being attacked by the landlord’s cat. Flora’s father runs out to help, followed by Tootie and Flora, and Ulysses flies above them, on his way to “rescue his arch-nemesis” (223). A chaotic tussle ensues that involves the cat, the squirrel, and both of Flora’s parents. Ulysses attempts to defeat the cat but cannot, and then Tootie wacks it over the head with the lamp. The lamp breaks, and Flora is certain her mother will be upset. However, Flora’s mother barely notices the lamp, and is instead relieved to know that Flora is safe, which shocks her.

Everyone sits on Dr. Meescham’s sofa, embracing the calm after the storm. Flora’s parents are holding hands, and Flora holds William’s hand. Flora’s mother admits to kidnapping Ulysses and explains that she wanted everything to be normal. After she found Flora missing, she just wanted her daughter back. Flora is amazed to learn that her mother genuinely loves her and starts to cry; her tears roll off the sofa, just as Dr. Meescham described. Tootie plugs in the lamp, which is now missing its head, and finds it still works. Flora’s mother pulls out Ulysses’s poem, titled “Words for Flora” (230), and reads it aloud for everyone to hear.

Ulysses plans to write more poems about the things he loves and “things that hadn’t happened yet” (231)—like William and his mother resolving their differences and Dr. Meescham being visited by her long-deceased husband. He looks out the window and sees the shining sun, and knows it will soon be time for breakfast.