Chapter 34
Simon
Penny's parents come to visit in the afternoon. They bring a few curry dinners that Penny puts in the fridge and freezer and a box of sour cherry scones from Watford that we have straight away with tea. The scones are brilliant. They taste even better than I remember, or maybe it's just that I'm still really hungry and everything tastes brilliant.
Mrs. Bunce tells me all about when she and Lucy were friends back at Watford. Penny and Baz sit on either side of me and I take Baz's hand and Penny squeezes my knee when her mum starts talking about her. Penny's mum says she was a brilliant student, strong and powerful and a little wild. I like that about her. It's really good to hear all about her.
Mr. Bunce nods and agrees with Penny's mum because he knew her as well and he liked her too.
And then Penny's mum says that I'm a lot like her, that she can see the similarities now and that I'm nothing like the Mage. That makes me feel good, that I could be like her and that Penny's mum knew her and says I'm like her. I know I'm smiling as she talks about Lucy, and Baz squeezes my hand every now and then and Penny squeezes my leg, then Mrs. Bunce stops talking and looks at me.
"We had no idea Simon." She says. "We thought she had moved away to America."
Her voice is san and I can see the tears starting to well up in her eyes then, for a lost best friend, for my mother and I don't want her to feel bad about this so I give her a small smile.
"I know, it's all right." I tell her.
We've been talking for a while now and I try to stifle a yawn but they both see it so they stand up and start saying their goodbyes. As they leave they both bend down to give me a hug. I don't get up because I don't trust myself yet, I still feel weak.
"It's so good to have you back Simon. Don't you ever do that again." Mrs. Bunce whispers into my ear as she hugs me. I nod and hug her back. Then Mr. Bunce pats my shoulder.
"Good to have you back Simon." He says to me.
I'm starting to feel a bit choked up but I swallow it down. "Thanks." Is all I can say.
Penny sees them to the door and then turns to me. "Do you want to have a rest Simon, or have the curry for tea?"
"I think I need to rest for a bit." I say as I get up and head back to my room. Baz gets up and helps me to my bed, then he says he needs to hunt and leaves before I can talk to him again. I fall asleep almost straight away.
I wake later and try to get up. Baz helps me up and I go to the bathroom and then sit at the kitchen table. Penny gets the curry out and casts You're getting warmer and we eat dinner quietly.
"Up for a movie Simon?" Penny asks after she clears away the dinner mess.
I shrug and nod as I move to the couch, I'm not sure if I am up for a movie but I'll give it a go. Baz sits next to me and when Penny sits they argue over which movie to watch. I'm too tired to care so I let them pick and I fall asleep within the first half hour. I have no idea what it was.
-oOo-
I wake and Baz is bringing me breakfast so I figure it must be morning. I look at the tray of food – this breakfast is just as big as all the other breakfasts they've made me eat since I got back, and I swear I'm going to be the size of a house if this keeps up.
"You don't need to keep bringing me breakfast." I say as I struggle to sit up. "I can walk to the kitchen you know."
"You're still weak." He says dismissively. "You need to get your strength up."
"And you need to eat too." I say looking him over. "You've lost weight Baz, and you're as pale as ever."
"I'm fine." He says offhandedly. He waits for me to sit up before placing the tray on my lap. "Eat." He instructs. Then he steps back and leans against the wall, arms crossed as he waits for me to start eating.
I don't argue. It tastes good so I eat it all and drink the tea and the juice and the water. After I finish he picks up the tray and starts walking to the kitchen but I stop him.
"Baz I really need a shower." I say. I'm a little embarrassed because last time I tried I fell. "I don't want to ask Penny to help."
"All right." He says. And he takes the tray to the kitchen and then comes back and follows me to the bathroom. I can walk by myself all right this time, I don't feel as woozy anymore.
"I think I can do it on my own." I say as I step into the bathroom but Baz is right behind me, ready to catch me if I fall again. I still feel a little light headed but it's not too bad.
I take a look at myself in the mirror properly this time. I really do look like shit; my hair is long and matted, I need a shave and I'm thin and pale.
"I look like shit." I mumble. Baz doesn't say anything.
Then I turn to look at my wings and tail as I lean on the basin and brush my teeth. I spread the wings out as wide as I can in the small bathroom and it feels good to stretch them. They feel fine, they're not sore at all so I'm not sure what Dr Wellbelove is on about, but I look them over and then I can see some faint scars that must be from the fire. There aren't many but they're there, long silvery lines snaking up the deep red webbing of each wing. I touch them lightly, running my fingers up and down the scars.
I can see Baz watching me through the mirror so I shrug it off. "I need a shave." I say instead.
"Think you can manage that yourself Snow?" he asks, raising an eyebrow.
"Yep." I say, getting my razor out.
After I shave (leaning on the basin again) I slowly get into the shower. I know Baz is watching so I feel a little self-conscious because I look so bad, but it's not like he hasn't seen me shower before so I let it go.
"The Wellbeloves want to visit today, if that's all right." Baz says.
"Yeah okay." I say. It feels good to finally wash my hair. I'm not as dirty as I should be and then I remember that Penny said they had to clean me up while I was unconscious. I wonder for a second how bad I was but I don't want to think about that now so I think about not falling over instead. The water feels heavenly so I drag out the shower as long as I can before I finally turn off the tap. Baz hands me a towel and I dry off and wrap the towel around my middle. He walks with me back to my room and when I sit on my bed he rummages around in my drawers and hands me my shorts and socks and a trackie and tee shirt and hoodie. I manage to get everything on myself this time.
-oOo-
Agatha comes over with her parents. Dr Wellbelove checks me over while Agatha and her mum talk to Penny and me. Mrs. Wellbelove is polite to Baz but I think she's still a bit dark on him because he and I are boyfriends. (Were boyfriends?) She probably thinks Agatha would stay in England if she and I were still together.
Agatha's mum brought over a big container of cold roast beef. "Helen made this for you, for sandwiches." she says, handing the containers to Penny. "And a Battenberg cake." Penny and I thank them. I love Helen's roast beef and the cake is to die for.
Dr Wellbelove says I'm doing very well, and then he reminds me that I have my session with my psychologist today. I don't mind, I think it will be good for me actually, to talk about everything.
Penny and Baz and I have been talking a little every day too. Well Penny and I do, Baz sits and listens, occasionally disagreeing with Penny and sometimes holding my hand but he doesn't talk to me. It's weird and I hate it but I don't know what to do about it so I don't do anything. At least he's here I think to myself.
I told them everything that happened once I left and I couldn't believe it when they told me it was them at Hampshire and not the police coming to lock me up for breaking into the estate.
"That was Baz's idea. That you might be in Hampshire." Penny said.
"Only after you worked out that he could be in a dead spot Bunce." Baz said.
"I can't believe it was you two." I said when they told me they went there looking for me. "I thought it was the coppers coming to lock me up."
"Is that why you left?" Penny asked, looking pointedly at Baz for some reason.
"Yeah of course. I never would have taken off if I knew it was you." I rolled my eyes. Surely they know that?
"And where did you go then?" Penny asked. She's relentless when she wants to know what's going on.
"I flew to the cottage." I said, my voice getting quieter. "I didn't want to, I didn't like being there. But I didn't know where else to go."
I told them how I thought I wanted to get away from magic, when I first found out that the Mage was my father. I told them that it was all I could think about when I left. And then I told them how I was scared that I could become as evil as the Mage because he's my biological father. I told them that I thought I had to stay away from the magickal world, to protect it.
Penny squeezed my leg and Baz took my hand.
"Like I said, I was in a dark place."
I told them how I hid my wings in my backpack to buy food and they were pretty impressed. Penny was equally impressed that I thought about going to Hampshire in the first place. She said that Micah said that I didn't want to get away from all of magic and going to Hampshire proved that. I think he was right that I didn't actually want to get away. I thought I had to get away, but I didn't want to. That Micah is a smart one.
And then I told them that while I was at the cottage I was convinced that both my parents didn't want me because I was broken, or no good. That part was hard to tell them and Baz held my hand the whole time. Then I told them that when I found my mother's letter I finally realised that I'm not like the Mage, just because he was my father. My mother was good and she wanted me, she came back to me through the Veil.
I looked at Baz as I told them that I wanted to come home then.
"Why did you set the cottage on fire then?" Penny asked.
"I didn't want anyone else to ever find what the Mage had done, in case anyone ever got the same idea." I shrugged. "I wanted all the evidence of what he'd done gone for good."
"It was Baz's idea to go back to the cottage too." Penny said. "After we worked out who Lucy was, thanks to Agatha."
I looked at Baz then. "If I'd have thought for a second that you would have gone there I never would have set the place on fire Baz. I don't know what I would have done if you'd got hurt…"
"I know." Is all Baz said to me the whole time.
-oOo-
Baz's family come to visit – which is really, really weird. Daphne brings a bunch of different pies including a couple of Shepherd's pies, Cottage pies and I think a Steak and Kidney pie as well. The freezer is so full that Penny has to jam them in.
Mordy made a cake with 'Get Well Simon' on it and she stuck some dragon wings and tail on it somehow. (I think her mum used magic.) It looks cool.
"It's chocolate and mint." Mordy says as we sit on the couch. "Yours and Baz's favourite." She's jammed herself between Baz and me and she's holding my tail and is swinging it around as she talks, almost hitting Baz in the head more than once. She made the football team at school which she was pretty chuffed about. And she's also doing brilliantly at a bunch of different languages, just like Baz.
"Please put that down Mordelia." Baz's dad says, looking really uncomfortable sitting in the old stuffed chair that we inherited from Penny's parents. Penny had to grab some kitchen chairs so we had enough seats for everyone.
"The twins drew some pictures for you Simon." Mordy says as she hands me some drawings. She picks up my tail again and alternates between swatting my and Baz's knees with it as she talks about the drawings. "This is you flying." she points out, "And that's me and that's the twins running on the lawn. Oh and this is Baz over here, reading and looking all serious and pretending he's not watching." Baz rolls his eyes and snatches my tail out of her hand and wraps it around his wrist. She rolls her eyes and pokes her tongue out at him.
Daphne talks about the twins and Baz's brother. She tells me what they've all been doing since I last saw them, which is mainly art classes for Baz's little brother and tennis lessons and music classes for the twins. I didn't even know they had that sort of stuff for kids who don't even go to school yet. She says they all wanted to come today but she decided to leave them home with the nanny in case I wasn't up for the noise. I thought that was kind of funny– they're the quietest and most well behaved kids I've ever met. It was probably for the best that they didn't come though, there isn't enough room in the flat for so many people. We've already filled our small lounge room with just us. She says I have to come and visit them soon and she looks pointedly at Baz.
"We're so relieved you're all right." Daphne says when there's a lull in the conversation. She's smiling at me warmly and I smile back.
"Thanks." I say. And then I turn to face Baz's dad. "And thank you, you know, for working it out . . . about my mum coming through the Veil. And telling Baz . . ." I trail off.
It's awkward to say, and he's still as scary looking as ever but I'm glad I get it out. He nods at me and almost smiles.
When they get up to leave, Baz stands to see them out. I'm a bit worn out so I stay sitting on the couch. Mordy hugs me and whispers rather loudly "Next time you come can we go for a ride?" I chance a glance at her mum but she pretends not to notice so I mumble yeah sure. Daphne hugs me and says I have to come back to Oxford soon.
"The children have missed you so much Simon. And so have we." she says, hugging me.
Baz's dad pats me on my shoulder and nods, which is weird because I always thought he hated me. Maybe he still does and he just has decent manners.
When they leave Penny and I look at each other, "I think you've got yourself a bit of a fan club there Simon." she says, grinning at me cheekily.
I snort back a laugh. "Yeah right, Baz's dad is my number one fan."
She rolls her eyes at me. "I meant Daphne and Mordelia . . . But maybe his dad too." And then she giggles and so do I.
-oOo-
My ex-boss Alex arrives with coffees and cakes and a bunch of different pastries from the café.
"Alex!" I yell. I can't believe she's come to visit me. I was planning to call her to apologies for resigning anyway. (And for resigning by text especially) Now I can tell her in person.
"I'm really sorry Alex, for resigning by text." I tell her. "That was rubbish of me."
"Yeah Simon it was." She says. "But Penny here told me you were going through some family shite so I forgive you. When can you come back?"
"What?" I ask. How can she want me back? I resigned and left her in the lurch all those months ago. Surely she's replaced me by now.
"When can you start?" she says again. "I need you back, all my female customers miss you and so do most of the blokes as well."
Baz narrows his eyes and Penny says, "Hah!"
"It's true." Alex says, smiling now. "And a lot of the older ladies have been asking after you as well Simon. You seem to have a bit of a following."
Baz snorts from his seat next to me.
"Um," I say, "If you really mean it Alex, I'd love to come back. If you're sure, that is."
I do need my job back, or a job. I wasted a lot of money while I was away and I owe Penny a shit load of back rent. I can't believe my luck.
"Sure I'm sure." She says adamantly. "You're the best barista I've ever had. You can start as soon as you want, just let me know before so I can get rid of that dolt I had to get to replace you. He's hopeless, doesn't know the difference between a macchiato and a piccolo for heaven's sake."
"Thanks Alex." I say again, grinning like an idiot at her.
Then she turns to Baz. "And when are you going to come over again with your violin? It's been a long time."
He looks at her and smiles. "Whenever you like."
I smile at that. I can see he wants to, he doesn't hang out with anyone from music school given that he only goes during the summer. I know he loves practicing with Alex. They get along really well for a vampire and a Normal.
She says goodbye to Penny and Baz, giving them both quick hugs. This time I go to see her out and when we're in the hallway she turns to me.
"You have good friends there Simon." She says quietly. "Look after them."
"Yeah okay, I will Alex." I say, a little embarrassed. She hugs me goodbye and I have to bend a little because she's really short..
"Ring me next week okay?" She says bouncing down the stairs. "Or better still come into the café, we can work out a timetable for you." she adds. "And tell Baz to come too. I want to talk music with him, it's been too long!" she calls back over her shoulder.
"Okay I will." I say as she disappears down the stairs. I'm still smiling when I go inside my flat.