29. A Fresh Start #2
It was a good thing, Arthur thought, that he wasn’t currently using a T-watch to communicate with his daughter. This wasn’t the time or place to pick a fight.
“Your muffins are very yummy, indeed. The ginger was the perfect touch,” he said amiably.
He carried the suitcases up the short stone flight of stairs and stopped again at the bubbling fountain.
Pausing for a moment, he reached into his breast pocket and pulled out two coins.
He handed one of them to Rosie, before proceeding to toss a coin over his left shoulder with a bit of a flourish.
It wasn’t like him to indulge in common superstitions, but he thought he might make an exception today.
Rosie clasped her chest dramatically with her free hand. “Oh my gods, Daddy! Did you just make a wish?”
Arthur couldn’t recall the last time Rosie had called him Daddy. Just Dad. Or Arthur. Lately she’d taken to testing his patience by addressing him with his given name.
“I’d love to be able to afford something here, so you could go to school with your friends and see them more,” Arthur admitted. “But maybe not that Bardo Chan.”
Rosie’s expression darkened again. “You’re as bad as some of the stuck-up witches.
He’s not who you think he is. He’s had a tough home life, and he’s misunderstood.
I would think you of all folk would be more sympathetic!
” She took off down the path ahead of Arthur before he could respond.
So much for calling him Daddy again. The ray of sun had disappeared back behind the clouds.
Arthur didn’t wholly disagree with Rosie.
It wasn’t Bardo’s fault his parents had been criminals who abandoned him to be raised by an elderly grandmother.
Part of what drove him to ask Pearl to watch Rosie was that he’d recognized how great their need was.
He’d wanted to help, and he’d tried. He’d done as much as he could.
But it was different when the kids were small.
As a public defender, Arthur had seen a thousand Bardo Chans get carried away by the undertow of crime, succumbing to dark magic. It was tricky. He wanted to help, but he also didn’t want his daughter getting sucked in.
“I swear you’re going as fast as you go on that blasted K-bike,” Arthur complained.
Normally, it would be no effort to keep up with his daughter, but she really was racing.
Plus he was carrying two heavily laden suitcases tucked under his arms now, rather than hassling with the ways the wheels kept catching in the cobblestones.
“Speaking of which, when can I have my bike back?” Rosie asked.
“Next week,” Arthur said. “And you’ll need to promise me you won’t forget your helmet again.”
Rosie made a sort of “hmmmph!” sound that Arthur thought didn’t sound all that promising.
“Almost there, Gemmy!” Rosie was talking to her cat.
“See those shops through the trees? It’s at the end of that block.
That big house on the corner with the porch that looks like the helm of a pirate ship?
” She stuck a finger into the cage to touch her cat’s nose.
“We’re going to have so much fun and make so many new friends there!
Even if it’s only temporary and Dad’s being such a doom druid about it. ”
Arthur heard the wistful tone in Rosie’s voice and cringed.
He could empathize with how she felt. Always an outsider.
There weren’t any other kids with magical heritage in the Ordinary high school she was attending.
She had friends, but none that she’d stay in touch with once she graduated.
All of her true friends were here in Primrose.
He considered the fact, yet again, that in just two short years, his daughter would likely be gone from his daily life.
His influence on her was waning daily. The least he could do was make the most of the time they had left together.
“I’ll put out the word and seriously start looking for a place here, Ro,” Arthur said.
“It will probably be smaller than our apartment.” That part was going to be a problem for him more than her.
He was already using their dining room table as his office.
But if he could find anything in Primrose Court, he would make it work, at least for the next couple of years.
“I thought you said it’s hard to get a place in Primrose?” Rosie eyed him with suspicion. Now that he was finally giving in, her eyes were guarded. That was on him. He’d only just told her not to get her hopes up, hadn’t he?
Arthur set one of the cases down on the sidewalk as they exited the park. He ran a hand through his hair. “Things tend to turn up and get snatched up quickly, but it’s easier if you’re already living here,” he assured her. “I’m sure we can figure something out if it’s that important to you.”
“Sure.” Rosie shrugged, chin wobbling again. “We’ll see.”
Her feigned nonchalance hurt his heart. How many times had he done the same? Pretending he didn’t care at all about the things that mattered the most. The apple didn’t fall far from the tree. It doubled his resolve to make this happen for Rosie.
A few moments later they paused at the corner outside the gate to the Mudpuddle.
“We’re home, Gemmy!” Rosie exclaimed, holding up the cat carrier for Gemini to get a better view. “Home for now, anyway.” She glanced back at Arthur cautiously, amending her statement. “Isn’t she beautiful?”
Gemini responded with an enthusiastic meow.
“But…Something’s different,” Rosie stared at the house. “The plants are all different. There’s so many flowers. Everything looks more colorful. Did somebody paint?”
It was quite the transformation. The house had simply slipped into a new color scheme, like it was putting on a dress.
“The house painted itself,” Arthur said. “And I think Maida has a way with plants.” He thought he’d never seen the Mudpuddle look more welcoming, however a moment later when the new proprietress stepped out onto the porch, he completely revised that thought.
Maida was luminous in the morning sunshine.
Her silver white hair glowed like a halo.
She tucked a strand behind her ear and smiled at him, raising her hand in a shy half wave.
She was wearing a simple gray knit dress and an old-fashioned apron like an artist’s smock.
It had large pockets in the front, and Arthur could make out a book, possibly her sketchbook, in one of them.
On anyone else, this ensemble might look frumpy.
But Maida somehow made it her own. There was something that was both endearing and wickedly challenging about that many buttons and ties. Like a thoughtfully wrapped present.
Maida looked down at him from the top of the stairs, snaring his eyes with her own. He wondered if she’d read his mind as she wrapped the strings of her apron back around to her front, and tied them securely at her waist. She didn’t seem angry. A small smile played about her lips.
Rosie set the cat carrier down on the top step and ran to throw her arms around Maida, nearly bowling her over in one of her signature, Rosie-style hugs.
Arthur so rarely got to experience those hugs these days.
The last time he’d had the honor was when the Mudpuddle reappeared. He couldn’t recall the time before.
“Thank you so much for letting us stay here, Maida. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I don’t know how we can ever make this up to you. Whatever you need help with, I’m willing to work. I’ll bake cookies, wash the floors, shelve books, whatever you need!”
“My goodness.” Maida seemed a little overwhelmed by Rosie, which was not surprising. “That’s quite a greeting. But I think you’ve got it wrong. You and your dad are doing me a favor, not the other way round.”
“It’s a privilege to stay here with you while you get settled.” Arthur set down the suitcases on the front porch. It was the truth. Staying at the Mudpuddle was every magical child’s fantasy, and he was sure more than a few adults as well. Staying there with Maida only made it more so.
“Please, stay as long as you like.” Maida relaxed a bit and patted Rosie’s back now. “This place is enormous.”
“Thanks for letting me bring Gemmy too!” Rosie said, remembering the cat now. She lifted the carrier for Maida to see the cat. Gemini stared out at Maida with sphinx-like calm.
“What a beauty!” Maida exclaimed.
When Maida bent forward to greet her, the normally impassive cat blinked lovingly at her.
“She won’t be any bother,” Rosie promised. “She’s very clean and I look after her.”
“Yes, well, I keep thinking I’m seeing a mouse in there.
” Maida gestured back towards the house.
“Maybe Gemini can scare it away?” She glanced up at Arthur, who had now reached the top step.
He set down his luggage and as he reached for the banister, his hand grazed hers.
She met his eye again. There was still something burning there, some white spark of curiosity in the gray. He wasn’t imagining it, was he?
He reached into the pocket of his overcoat and pulled out a bottle of champagne with a blue bow. It was a rare vintage, dating back to the year they’d first met as children. It had been a bit extravagant, given his meager salary. He didn’t know if she would notice, but he’d hoped she would.
“You know, I think I’m going to like it here, Arthur.” Maida moved her hand closer to his and smiled shyly.
“Who wouldn’t?” Rosie enthused.
It was then that Arthur understood that Rosie wasn’t the only one in danger of getting their hopes up.