MirrorSparkles1234 I really hope you like this seeing as I made you wait all day!
Everyone else - I hope you like it too :D
P.S. I kind of guessed Arthur's age as being a year or so older than Zosia so hope nobody minds that.
There was a succession of light, hurried taps on the front door of the Self's house one morning, not long after Guy had kissed his girls goodbye and rushed off to work at the local hospital. Anya Self put down the cloth she was using to wipe her daughter's face after breakfast, placed a soft kiss into her fluffy dark brown hair and whispered
"trzymać ukochaną"(hold on sweetheart) as she went to investigate as to who the mystery visitor was. She opened the door to be greeted by a tall slim woman with long dark hair curled into a bun on top of her head and deep red lipstick framing perfect white teeth, she was wearing a black pin striped blazer with matching trousers and a crisp white blouse. As Anya looked down she saw the woman was clutching at the hand of a small boy with the same shorter dark hair, pale skin and rectangular blue framed glasses. "Hello" Anya greeted the woman with a mild tone of confusion in her voice. She smiled back, taking a deep breath and quickly explaining her situation.
"Hi, you're Anya right?" Anya nodded, "I'm Jessica Digby, I live across the road." She paused for a moment, allowing Anya to take this first piece of information in before continuing, "I really hate to have to do this but I don't suppose there's any chance you'd be able to watch my son for a couple of hours is there? It's just me and my husband work full time and the nanny's just called in sick. I'd take the day off myself but I'm in the middle a really important court case…" She finally finished, leaving Anya smiling back at her.
"Of course! I am here all day with my daughter Zosia anyway and I am sure she will be grateful of the company." Jessica then exhaled in relief as she babbled hurriedly,
"Oh my gosh. Thank you so much. You're a life saver! Arthur will be no problem at all, and there's a bag of books and things here if he gets bored. Thank you again!" She practically pushed the boy into the house and sprinted off down the driveway. Anya was just about to close the door when Jessica sprang back around the corner shouting,
"By the way; he's allergic to nuts!" To which Anya replied with a stifled laugh and a wave of her hand.
Just as Anya closed the door and Arthur began taking his shoes off Zosia bounded into the hallway calling
"Mamaaaaaaa" before she noticed there was someone new in her house and her eyes grew wide with excitement. "Mama, who's that?" she asked, pointing at the dark haired boy standing in her hallway looking bewildered. Anya picked her daughter up balancing her on her hip and disciplining her lightly,
"Do not point Zoshie, it is not polite." Zosia buried her head in her mother's neck as she mumbled,
"Przepraszam Mama." (Sorry Mama)
"Jest w porządku" (It's okay) "Zoshie, this is Arthur, he has come over to play for a few hours." Zosia's eyes lit up at her mother's words,
"Really? Can I go say hello?" Anya smiled warmly at her daughter as she wriggled in her arms,
"Of course you can, but first; you have still got porridge on your face." Zosia blushed at her mother and hid her face in her hands which caused Anya to chuckle softly. "Come on through Arthur" she offered the boy her hand and asked "have you had any breakfast?" to which Arthur shook his head.
Arthur sat at the kitchen table eating a bowl of Weetabix in warm milk while Anya continued to clean the strawberry flavoured porridge gloop off her daughter's chin and got her changed out of her pyjamas. As she put her last sock on Zosia was practically jumping up and down with anticipation.
"Can I go and play with Arfur now Mama?" Anya laughed again as she bundled the dirty pyjamas up and put them into the washing basket.
"Yes Zoshie" she replied "as long as Arthur has finished his breakfast." Before she had even finished the sentence Zosia was bounding down the stairs in pursuit of her new friend.
"Arfuuuuuuuuur!" she called as she galloped into the kitchen. Arthur was just in the middle of placing his bowl in the sink when the small girl appeared beside him.
"Hello! My name is Zosia, I'm three" she announced, holding three chubby fingers up in his face. "How old are you?"
"I am five" Arthur replied, very articulately for a five year old. "and my name is Arthur, with a t-h." Zosia screwed her face up in confusion at this as she tried again
"Arfur!" Arthur shook his head as he walked back over to the table and tucked his chair under,
"No. Arthur." Zosia frowned.
"My Daddy calls me Zoshie! Can I call you Arfie?" This time Arthur frowned back as he corrected her,
"No. Because there is no f in my name, therefore that makes no sense." He then watched on in confusion as the little girls bottom lip began to tremble and her eyes filled with tears. "No no Zosia, please don't cry!" he paused as he tried to think of a way to fix his problem. "What if you called me Artie? Can you say that? Artie?" Zosia gave Arthur a shy smile as she mumbled,
"Artie." To which Arthur replied with a smile and said
"Yeah! There you go!" Causing Zosia's grin to spread across her face as ran into the lounge where her mother was now dusting the mantelpiece chanting
"Artie Artie Artieeeeeeeee!" Anya looked at Arthur for an explanation only for him to smile and shrug his shoulders.
"Zoshie" Anya caught the young girl's attention, grabbing her shoulders, "would you and Arthur go and play in the den for a little while please?" Zosia nodded her head energetically and grabbed Arthur's hand, pulling him into the den which was full of pillows, blankets and almost all of her toys.
After a while playing 'house' in the little wendy house with Zosia's dolls and reading a book about Napoleon, Arthur sat on the little sofa and Zosia followed suit, watching him intrigued.
"Zosia?" he began to ask, "When we were in the hallway; you and your mother were speaking Polish weren't you?" Zosia nodded again, smiling frantically,
"yeaaaaah, my Mama was born in Poland but she came to England to meet my Daddy and then they got me! How did you know it was Polish?" Arthur crossed his legs and turned to face Zosia,
"I watched a documentary once with my Father and he taught me all about Poland and World War Two." Zosia nodded, making a mental note to ask her Daddy later what a Documentary and a World War Two was. Arthur continued with an excited gleam in his eye as he asked, a little timidly,
"Would you be able to teach me?"
A couple of hours later just as Arthur and Zosia finished eating their cheese sandwiches there was a knock at the door. Anya went to open it and a few seconds later they heard her call
"Arthur, you're Mum's here." Jessica was stood in the doorway as the pair came into the hallway, Zosia carrying Arthur's backpack for him. Jessica took the bag from the dark haired girl and said to Anya
"Thank you again for having him, I hope he wasn't any trouble?" to which she replied with a smile,
"None at all, these two have been occupying themselves all day."
"Great!" Jessica answered back, "come on then Arthur." Zosia turned and leapt at Arthur with full force and hugged him squealing
"Do widzenia Artie!" (goodbye Artie) causing Jessica and Anya to exchange a baffled look as Arthur, with a cheeky grin replied,
"Do widzenia Zosia. Dziękuje Pani Self" (Goodbye Zosia. Thank you Mrs Self) and waved goodbye to the mother and daughter as he walked down their drive, hand in hand with his mother.