ㅤ
The academy approved our lease at nine seventeen in the morning.
ㅤ
I'd spent twenty-three minutes watching the housing office clock.
ㅤ
The clerk stamped the final page and slid it across the counter.
ㅤ
“You may collect the keys from the landlord.”
ㅤ
I looked at the document.
ㅤ
“That's it?”
ㅤ
“That's it.”
ㅤ
“No additional office?”
ㅤ
“No.”
ㅤ
“No form I need to obtain from a different building?”
ㅤ
The clerk's expression changed.
ㅤ
“Would you like another form?”
ㅤ
“Absolutely not.”
ㅤ
I took the approved lease and left before anyone reconsidered.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Mr. Pell was sweeping the stairs when I arrived. He examined the approval, counted the first week's rent, and handed me a key attached to a square wooden tag.
ㅤ
“Second floor. Lift the left shutter before closing it when it rains.”
ㅤ
“Understood.”
ㅤ
“And don't leave wet shoes outside your door. The woman downstairs complains.”
ㅤ
“Also understood.”
ㅤ
He returned to sweeping.
ㅤ
I stood there holding the key.
ㅤ
The iron was worn smooth around the teeth. It had probably opened the same door for years.
ㅤ
A home.
ㅤ
A rented apartment, technically. After weeks of moving the teapot to make room for my textbooks, I'd appreciate the distinction later.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Marcus was less sentimental.
ㅤ
“Does the key work?”
ㅤ
“Yes.”
ㅤ
“Then why are you staring at it?”
ㅤ
“I'm appreciating a milestone.”
ㅤ
“Appreciate it while carrying this.”
ㅤ
He pushed a bundled mattress into my arms. I staggered.
ㅤ
“Where did you get that?”
ㅤ
“Same training residence as the bed frame. Before you ask, I checked it for insects and stains.”
ㅤ
“Thank you.”
ㅤ
“And whether anyone died on it.”
ㅤ
I lowered the mattress.
ㅤ
“Marcus.”
ㅤ
“I'm joking. It's been in storage.”
ㅤ
“That wasn't funny.”
ㅤ
“You smiled.”
ㅤ
“I imagined dropping it on you.”
ㅤ
He picked up the bed frame we'd kept at the guesthouse.
ㅤ
“Come on. Your daughter wants a house.”
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Moving took most of the afternoon.
ㅤ
We carried the frame and mattress first, then books, clothes, the chipped teapot, our single pan, and an alarming number of drawings.
ㅤ
I'd underestimated how much paper a six-year-old could produce.
ㅤ
Marcus had underestimated the staircase.
ㅤ
By our fourth trip, he was breathless.
ㅤ
“I'm in the martial department. This shouldn't be difficult.”
ㅤ
“You train with swords. You don't train with furniture.”
ㅤ
“I'm adding furniture to my routine.”
ㅤ
“Start with chairs. Build up gradually.”
ㅤ
He pointed at me.
ㅤ
“When you move again, I'm unavailable.”
ㅤ
“Noted.”
ㅤ
He'd volunteered. I spared him the reminder.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Mrs. Alder watched us load the last bag. We'd settled the guesthouse account that morning. She'd refunded the unused prepaid rent.
ㅤ
“You have everything?” she asked.
ㅤ
“I believe so.”
ㅤ
She looked at Mira, who stood beside me with Sir Flopsy and a small cloth bag.
ㅤ
“And you, young lady?”
ㅤ
“Daddy checked under the bed.”
ㅤ
“Very sensible.”
ㅤ
“And inside the cupboard.”
ㅤ
“Excellent.”
ㅤ
“And behind the curtain.”
ㅤ
Mrs. Alder glanced at me.
ㅤ
“Very thorough.”
ㅤ
“She worries about abandoned rabbits.”
ㅤ
“A reasonable concern.”
ㅤ
At the door, Mrs. Alder lowered her voice.
ㅤ
“Will the young lady who visited know where to find you?”
ㅤ
I looked at Mira.
ㅤ
“Yes. Evelyn has the address.”
ㅤ
Mrs. Alder smiled as though I'd confirmed several theories at once.
ㅤ
I thanked her before she could develop more.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Our belongings changed the apartment. Not entirely for the better.
ㅤ
The bed frame occupied most of the bedroom. My books formed an unstable tower in the sitting room, and the teapot sat beside our only pan. The mattress needed bedding. I'd sleep on folded blankets until I found a second mattress.
ㅤ
Mira had already claimed the window.
ㅤ
“Daddy, look!”
ㅤ
Below us, sunlight fell across the courtyard. Marigolds leaned toward the wall, and a small bird hopped along an empty planter.
ㅤ
“Can we put flowers there?”
ㅤ
“We should ask Mr. Pell.”
ㅤ
“Can we ask now?”
ㅤ
“He's working.”
ㅤ
“After supper?”
ㅤ
“After supper.”
ㅤ
She pressed Sir Flopsy against the glass so he could see.
ㅤ
I checked the latch. Secure, still crooked.
ㅤ
At least something remained consistent.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Marcus assembled the bed while I cleaned the kitchen. Mira supervised both operations.
ㅤ
“Uncle Marcus, that part goes there.”
ㅤ
“I know.”
ㅤ
“You put it there before.”
ㅤ
“I'm checking whether it remembers.”
ㅤ
She considered him.
ㅤ
“Beds don't remember.”
ㅤ
“Then I have an advantage.”
ㅤ
I heard her sigh.
ㅤ
It sounded remarkably like Evelyn.
ㅤ
When Marcus finished, he stood and stretched.
ㅤ
“One bed. One mattress. One exhausted friend.”
ㅤ
“You've earned supper.”
ㅤ
“What are we having?”
ㅤ
“Eggs.”
ㅤ
“Again?”
ㅤ
“Would you prefer to eat the furniture?”
ㅤ
“Eggs sound excellent.”
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Evelyn arrived just as I was setting out the plates.
ㅤ
There was a knock, followed by Mira's delighted shout.
ㅤ
“Mommy!”
ㅤ
She ran toward the door. I reached the door first.
ㅤ
“Let me open it, sweetheart.”
ㅤ
Evelyn stood outside with a paper parcel and a narrow cloth bag.
ㅤ
“Good evening.”
ㅤ
“Good evening. You found us.”
ㅤ
“You gave me the address.”
ㅤ
“I'm told that helps.”
ㅤ
Mira slipped around my side and hugged her.
ㅤ
“You came!”
ㅤ
“I said I'd visit.”
ㅤ
“You did!”
ㅤ
Evelyn rested a hand against Mira's hair.
ㅤ
“Yes,” she said softly. “I did.”
ㅤ
I stepped aside.
ㅤ
“Welcome to our new home.”
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Evelyn looked around. Her gaze passed over the books, the single assembled bed visible through the bedroom door, and the teapot on the kitchen counter.
ㅤ
“Is that the same one?”
ㅤ
“It survived the move.”
ㅤ
“Remarkable.”
ㅤ
“It makes perfectly respectable tea.”
ㅤ
“The lid is chipped.”
ㅤ
“An aesthetic choice.”
ㅤ
She almost smiled.
ㅤ
Mira took her hand.
ㅤ
“Come see the flowers!”
ㅤ
Evelyn allowed herself to be led to the window.
ㅤ
“Marigolds,” she said.
ㅤ
“I told Daddy you'd like them.”
ㅤ
“You were right.”
ㅤ
Mira beamed.
ㅤ
I owed whoever planted them thanks. Those flowers had delighted Mira more than anything I'd bought that week.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Evelyn placed the parcel on the table.
ㅤ
“I brought something.”
ㅤ
“Please tell me it isn't an entire household.”
ㅤ
“Bread.”
ㅤ
I relaxed.
ㅤ
“And jam.”
ㅤ
“Dangerously close.”
ㅤ
“And tea.”
ㅤ
“Lady Rosenfeld.”
ㅤ
“You have a chipped teapot and no tea leaves in sight.”
ㅤ
“They're in my bag.”
ㅤ
“Then you have more tea.”
ㅤ
Mira opened the parcel.
ㅤ
“Honey cakes?”
ㅤ
“Bread,” Evelyn said.
ㅤ
“Oh.”
ㅤ
Evelyn glanced at me.
ㅤ
“There are two honey cakes in the smaller bag.”
ㅤ
Mira cheered.
ㅤ
I gave Evelyn a look.
ㅤ
“She asked about them last time,” Evelyn said.
ㅤ
“She asks about them every day.”
ㅤ
“Then she'll be pleased.”
ㅤ
I couldn't argue with that.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Supper was crowded. The table was small, and Marcus occupied enough space for two people.
ㅤ
He greeted Evelyn politely, then looked at me.
ㅤ
“I should go.”
ㅤ
“You haven't eaten.”
ㅤ
“I can eat elsewhere.”
ㅤ
“Marcus.”
ㅤ
He glanced between us. I knew what he was attempting, but I wasn't sending him away hungry after he'd carried half our belongings.
ㅤ
“Sit down. You've earned the meal.”
ㅤ
Mira pulled out his chair.
ㅤ
“Uncle Marcus, Mommy brought bread.”
ㅤ
“Then I'm staying.”
ㅤ
A loyal friend.
ㅤ
Conversation remained ordinary for a while. Marcus described a training exercise that had ended with three students in a pond.
ㅤ
Evelyn looked up.
ㅤ
“Was the pond part of the exercise?”
ㅤ
“The instructor says it was.”
ㅤ
“Was it?”
ㅤ
“No.”
ㅤ
Mira laughed so hard she dropped her bread.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Evelyn asked whether Mrs. Fenwick could still care for Mira now that we'd moved. I explained that the walk was slightly longer but the arrangement remained manageable.
ㅤ
“And the second bed?” she asked.
ㅤ
“Still comparing prices.”
ㅤ
“Daddy says I can have the big one tonight,” Mira announced.
ㅤ
“You can,” I confirmed.
ㅤ
“Where will you sleep?”
ㅤ
“On the folded blankets until I find another mattress.”
ㅤ
Marcus raised a hand.
ㅤ
“Before you ask, I'm not carrying another bed today.”
ㅤ
“Nobody asked.”
ㅤ
“You were thinking it.”
ㅤ
I had been.
ㅤ
Evelyn glanced toward the bedroom.
ㅤ
“Make sure you don't postpone it too long.”
ㅤ
“I won't.”
ㅤ
She didn't offer to buy one. I was trying to establish a household I could maintain, and she seemed to understand.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
After supper, Marcus washed the plates while I put away the food. Evelyn helped Mira decide where to hang her drawings.
ㅤ
The rabbits went beside the window.
ㅤ
The garden went above the table.
ㅤ
The picture of me cooking an egg went in the kitchen.
ㅤ
“Why am I so small?” I asked.
ㅤ
Mira examined the drawing.
ㅤ
“Because the pan is big.”
ㅤ
Evelyn nodded.
ㅤ
“That explains the proportions.”
ㅤ
“You're encouraging her.”
ㅤ
“I'm respecting the artist.”
ㅤ
I looked at Marcus.
ㅤ
He kept washing.
ㅤ
Coward.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
When the dishes were done, Marcus announced that he really was leaving.
ㅤ
Mira hugged him.
ㅤ
“Thank you for my bed.”
ㅤ
“You're welcome, little one.”
ㅤ
“Will you come back?”
ㅤ
“Of course.”
ㅤ
“Even though there are stairs?”
ㅤ
He looked at me.
ㅤ
“Especially because there are stairs.”
ㅤ
I doubted that.
ㅤ
He left with a warning to tighten the frame's left support after a week. I wrote it down.
ㅤ
Furniture maintenance had officially joined my responsibilities.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
Mira began yawning shortly afterward.
ㅤ
She climbed onto the mattress with Sir Flopsy.
ㅤ
“Daddy?”
ㅤ
“Yes?”
ㅤ
“Can Mommy see where I sleep?”
ㅤ
I looked at Evelyn. She nodded.
ㅤ
We followed Mira into the bedroom. There wasn't much to see yet: the bed, folded blankets, and a small bag of clothes.
ㅤ
Mira patted the space beside her.
ㅤ
Evelyn sat. Mira shifted closer until their shoulders touched.
ㅤ
“Is it comfortable?”
ㅤ
“Mhm.”
ㅤ
“Good.”
ㅤ
“Will you stay until I'm sleepy?”
ㅤ
Evelyn glanced at me.
ㅤ
“If that's all right.”
ㅤ
“Of course.”
ㅤ
I returned to the sitting room.
ㅤ
From the doorway, I heard Mira ask whether Evelyn remembered Sir Flopsy's blue cloak.
ㅤ
“I've seen it,” Evelyn said.
ㅤ
“You made one before.”
ㅤ
“Did I?”
ㅤ
“In the future.”
ㅤ
A pause.
ㅤ
“Was it a good cloak?”
ㅤ
“The best.”
ㅤ
I leaned against the wall, listening to Mira explain the stitching with sleepy determination.
ㅤ
I couldn't know what Evelyn was thinking. I stayed where I was and let them talk.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
When Evelyn emerged, Mira was asleep.
ㅤ
“She asked whether I liked the apartment,” Evelyn said quietly.
ㅤ
“What did you tell her?”
ㅤ
“That it has good light.”
ㅤ
“An excellent answer.”
ㅤ
“And that the window is crooked.”
ㅤ
“Betrayal.”
ㅤ
She smiled.
ㅤ
Then her expression grew serious.
ㅤ
“Have you thought more about what Mira remembered from the letter?”
ㅤ
“Yes. I haven't asked her anything else.”
ㅤ
“Good. I looked through the references I mentioned. I found no academy room matching her description, but red flooring could mean stone, paint, carpet, or a magical formation.”
ㅤ
“Which leaves us with most of the city.”
ㅤ
“Possibly more than the city.”
ㅤ
I sighed.
ㅤ
“Wonderful.”
ㅤ
She looked toward the bedroom.
ㅤ
“We shouldn't ask her to remember it again immediately. If she mentions something naturally, we can write it down. Otherwise, we investigate what we have.”
ㅤ
“Without taking her anywhere near a mysterious red room.”
ㅤ
“Especially that.”
ㅤ
It wasn't a dramatic plan. I preferred it that way.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
I accompanied Evelyn to the door.
ㅤ
“Thank you for coming.”
ㅤ
“You've said that before.”
ㅤ
“I intend to keep saying it when appropriate.”
ㅤ
She glanced back at the apartment.
ㅤ
“It's a good place for Mira.”
ㅤ
“I hope so.”
ㅤ
“For you too.”
ㅤ
I looked at the books, mismatched plates, and window leaning into a private conversation with the wall.
ㅤ
“It needs work.”
ㅤ
“Most places do.”
ㅤ
I smiled.
ㅤ
“That's unusually philosophical.”
ㅤ
“It's an observation.”
ㅤ
“Of course.”
ㅤ
At the threshold, she paused.
ㅤ
“Adrian?”
ㅤ
“Yes?”
ㅤ
“Bring the preservation copy tomorrow. I want to compare it with an older reference on transport formations.”
ㅤ
“I'll bring it.”
ㅤ
“And get some sleep.”
ㅤ
“I'll attempt that too.”
ㅤ
She looked unconvinced.
ㅤ
Fair.
ㅤ
***
ㅤ
After she left, I checked on Mira.
ㅤ
She slept beneath the blanket, one arm wrapped around Sir Flopsy. The bedroom was quiet. The sitting room was full of bags.
ㅤ
I still needed another mattress, a shelf, and a plan for next month's expenses.
ㅤ
But the door locked.
ㅤ
The kitchen worked.
ㅤ
Mira had fallen asleep somewhere she could learn the creaking floorboards and the morning light.
ㅤ
I placed the key beside my notebook.
ㅤ
Tomorrow, there would be classes, work, and more questions about the letter.
ㅤ
Tonight, I had one final task.
ㅤ
I took Mira's drawing of our new home and hung it beside the crooked window.
ㅤ
She'd drawn three people standing in the courtyard.
ㅤ
One had dark hair.
ㅤ
One had silver hair.
ㅤ
The smallest stood between them, holding both their hands.