The first time I saw the house on the lake, I was amazed. To me, there was
never a house as beautiful or grand. As Papa (so I called him, even though
he had explained his name was Erik) poled us across the lake, I watched it
come closer.
"Is that it?" I asked in awe. "That can't be it! It's beautiful!"
He laughed. "Thank you. Yes, that's it."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course, I built it."
"Wow. You can do everything, can't you?"
"Not everything. Not by a long shot."
The boat pushed up against the dock. He jumped out and tied it up. Then he reached back and pulled me out.
@---@---@
She couldn't have had a good meal in years. As I picked her up, I could have counted every rib. She didn't even seem to notice though. As soon as I put her down she ran towards the house. She pulled up short a few yards away.
"But, what happened? It's all torn up!"
How was I to explain everything? Well, that was simple, I wouldn't. Not now anyway. Maybe not for years. Not until she could understand. Though, judging by what I knew about her already, she could probably understand almost anything right now. I'd still wait.
"There were some people that got really mad at me for what I'd done. I haven't had time to clean up yet."
"Oh," she said knowingly. "Yeah, I know what you mean. One time, I climbed out of the window, when Mama had locked me in my room, and I went to visit my friends. When I got back, Mama had ripped up all of my things, including my bed. It wasn't really that bad, I didn't have much to begin with. But it took me a long time to get a new tick for my bed."
We walked into the house, and I took her to her new room. It was the only one that the mob hadn't torn to bits, mostly because they didn't see the door. I quickly fixed that so that it was openable from either side, and opened it.
@---@---@
He opened the door to a room so beautiful I could have never imagined it. It was all made up like a princess's room. There was a real fireplace, and a big bed with a cloth stretched above it. There was a big wooden piece of furniture the size of the horse that pulled the carraige with doors in the front. Everything was made out of a red wood, and the only other color was blue. I just stared, not caring if I looked like a dope.
"Oh," I breathed, "Whose room is this?"
"Yours, if you like it."
"Like it!" I exclaimed. "It's beautiful!" I walked into it, reverently touching the beautiful things. I turned back, "Mine?"
"Yes."
"Wow!" I jumped onto the bed, marveling at its softness. Then I wizzed across the room to another door. "What's in here?"
@---@---@
She pulled the door open, and then stopped, as if she had been struck. -Oh @$$#@!- I thought. - The mirror.-
Earlier, when the last occupant of this room had still lived here, I had installed a very expensive full-length mirror. Like everything else in this room, I couldn't bear to get rid of it. I had bought it for one person, and the thought of someone I didn't know using it was beyond me.
Right now, I wished I had sold it.
@---@---@
I stared in horror at the thing looking at me. It was a skeleton, dressed in a brown sack, with long brown hair streaking down from its head. I nearly screamed before I realized it was my reflection. Then I nearly screamed anyway. Instead, I closed my mind and the door.
"Oh, the washroom. I'll have to use that tomorrow, won't I? I'm very dirty, I guess. Right now though, I'm kind of tired. It's really late."
"Of course," said Papa. "But, I'm afraid that I made a mistake. You saw the mirror in there?"
"Yes."
"Well, I sold that to a man a few weeks ago. I just realised that I was supposed to deliver it tonight. It's supposed to be a birthday present for his wife, and her birthday's tomorrow. I'll have to take it to him tonight. Do you mind?"
"No," I said, grateful past all belief. "No, of course I don't mind! You gave me a room and a home! How could I mind a mirror?"
"Good," he said, and walked into the washroom. There, he unceremoniously pulled the entire thing right off the wall. I stared in disbelief, that thing had been bolted to the wall! Then he walked out, closing the door behind him and calling, "Goodnight!"
I stared at the closed door until I heard the main door close a few minutes later. I was alone again. Suddenly suspicious and scared, I ran over to the closed door and pulled on the handle. It opened easily. I was free. I could leave if I chose. Instead, I closed the door and went to the chest at the foot of the bed. There I searched desperately for something I wouldn't feel bad about sleeping on. But everything there was sumptuously made. I finally gave up and fell onto the bed. I was asleep almost before I hit it.
@---@---@
After I left the room, I went into the den. There was the wad of money I had left. I had a use for it now. I took it and the mirror and left the house. The mirror was quickly disposed of, I left it in the prop room on the third floor of the opera. Then I set out on a shopping spree. In the shops open at that time of nightI bought clothes for Lyra along with food for both of us. I then set about buying furniture to replace the splinters that remained in the house. It took me all night, but when I was done we were set up for quite a while, at least long enough for me to set up relations with the managers again. I had everything delivered to a certain opening in the opera. By the time I got back, it was all there. Then it was a simple matter of putting it away.
@---@---@
I slept late, and when I woke up I knew that Papa had been there in the night. I ran over to the big-doored furniture and pulled it open. Inside there were many many outfits, all about my size. There was everything from gowns to little pants and shirts. It all depended on what I liked. I did not like dresses. I immediately pulled out a beautiful outfit of blue pants, a white shirt, and a blue vest. Then I walked into the washroom and took my first real bath. I knew how to work everything because of a friend of mine, Berniece. She had been rich before her family had thrown her onto the street. Baths were the things she missed most, and she would talk of them for hours. It took me very little time to determine that they were just as wonderful as she had always said.
After I got cleaned up and dressed, I walked back into my room. I wanted to find out exactly where everything was. I explored all of the drawers, grinning at all of my finds. Then, in the last drawer, I found a mask, just like Papa's, only for a girl and just my size. I touched it, torn. On one hand, this would protect me from people who didn't like how I looked. On the other hand, it seemed like a betrayal, to myself if not to Papa. I finally decided to leave it where it was, just until I needed it.
Somewhere in the house, a bell rang. I walked over to the door and opened it, searching for the source of the noise. It came from above the fireplace in the den, seeming to come directly from a small brass figure of a boat. That had to be a doorbell. Someone was coming across the lake. I ran back to my room and pulled a small dagger out of my discarded sack of a dress. Then, as an afterthought, I gabbed my mask and put it on. Then I was off to greet the newcomers, be they friend or foe.
@---@---@
Erik had left a boat on the main side of the lake, thankfully. I didn't relish the thought of swimming through that black water. As I poled across, I heard the doorbell ring. At least that hadn't been broken. I reached what was left of the dock, got out, and bent to tie up the boat.
"Who are you sir? What do you want here?"
I froze. The voice was obviously feminine and young. That led to two questions. One was who was she and what was she doing in Erik's home. The other was if she was dangerous. That wasn't an idle question either. I was in a compromised position and anyone who Erik would take in would be dangerous in their own right.
I cleared my throat. "My name is Nadir. I am a daroga, from Persia. I'm Erik's friend. Please, where is he?"
"Oh, stand up!" came the voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were a friend of Papa's! I'm not sure where he is, I haven't seen him since last night. He's probably asleep in his room."
I stood and regarded the girl. I tried to hide my surprise, but I was probably unsuccessful. If not for the long hair, tied at the neck, and the voice, I would have assumed that Erik had somehow been shrunk. How had he found such a child? When had he found such a child?
@---@---@
The man stared at me and then asked, "Pardon me, but beneath the mask...?"
"I look like my father."
"Your father?!"
"Well, he's not really my father. He saved me! My mother abandoned me, and he took me in. That was last night."
"Now really Nadir," came a voice from behind me, "Don't you know that in France it is very impolite to stare so?"
"Papa!" I cried happily, turning and hugging him. "Thank you for everything! It's so wonderful. I've never seen so much that's so beautiful! Thank you so much!"
@---@---@
I looked up at Nadir, nearly as suprised as he was. Then I laughed.
"You're welcome Lyra. Now go back to your room. I think you'll find the contents of the trunk have changed quite a bit since last night."
She looked up at me in wonder and then ran into the house. I turned to regard Nadir. "Well for goodness sakes daroga, say something!"
"What are you possibly thinking Erik? You can't raise a child, a girl!"
"Why not?"
"Erik, you live under an opera house. You are also a murderer. That is hardly something to look up to."
"But, you will of course help me raise her."
"WHAT??!!!"
"Of course. The truth of the matter is, daroga, I will not give her up. She has no one else to go to. And if you don't help me, her moral status will be entirely your fault. Do you want that on your head?
Nadir always did know when he was beaten. He did mount a last defense, though.
"What about the drugs, Erik?"
"Sold, every last grain and bottle, and I have no intention of buying anything else."
"There'll be withdrawal."
My mouth felt dry. "I know."
Then Lyra raced out of the building. "Oh Papa! Books! And Toys! Oh Papa, thank you!"
I found myself in another fierce embrace. -Papa.- I thought. All I said was, "You're welcome Lyra."
"Is that it?" I asked in awe. "That can't be it! It's beautiful!"
He laughed. "Thank you. Yes, that's it."
"Are you sure?"
"Of course, I built it."
"Wow. You can do everything, can't you?"
"Not everything. Not by a long shot."
The boat pushed up against the dock. He jumped out and tied it up. Then he reached back and pulled me out.
@---@---@
She couldn't have had a good meal in years. As I picked her up, I could have counted every rib. She didn't even seem to notice though. As soon as I put her down she ran towards the house. She pulled up short a few yards away.
"But, what happened? It's all torn up!"
How was I to explain everything? Well, that was simple, I wouldn't. Not now anyway. Maybe not for years. Not until she could understand. Though, judging by what I knew about her already, she could probably understand almost anything right now. I'd still wait.
"There were some people that got really mad at me for what I'd done. I haven't had time to clean up yet."
"Oh," she said knowingly. "Yeah, I know what you mean. One time, I climbed out of the window, when Mama had locked me in my room, and I went to visit my friends. When I got back, Mama had ripped up all of my things, including my bed. It wasn't really that bad, I didn't have much to begin with. But it took me a long time to get a new tick for my bed."
We walked into the house, and I took her to her new room. It was the only one that the mob hadn't torn to bits, mostly because they didn't see the door. I quickly fixed that so that it was openable from either side, and opened it.
@---@---@
He opened the door to a room so beautiful I could have never imagined it. It was all made up like a princess's room. There was a real fireplace, and a big bed with a cloth stretched above it. There was a big wooden piece of furniture the size of the horse that pulled the carraige with doors in the front. Everything was made out of a red wood, and the only other color was blue. I just stared, not caring if I looked like a dope.
"Oh," I breathed, "Whose room is this?"
"Yours, if you like it."
"Like it!" I exclaimed. "It's beautiful!" I walked into it, reverently touching the beautiful things. I turned back, "Mine?"
"Yes."
"Wow!" I jumped onto the bed, marveling at its softness. Then I wizzed across the room to another door. "What's in here?"
@---@---@
She pulled the door open, and then stopped, as if she had been struck. -Oh @$$#@!- I thought. - The mirror.-
Earlier, when the last occupant of this room had still lived here, I had installed a very expensive full-length mirror. Like everything else in this room, I couldn't bear to get rid of it. I had bought it for one person, and the thought of someone I didn't know using it was beyond me.
Right now, I wished I had sold it.
@---@---@
I stared in horror at the thing looking at me. It was a skeleton, dressed in a brown sack, with long brown hair streaking down from its head. I nearly screamed before I realized it was my reflection. Then I nearly screamed anyway. Instead, I closed my mind and the door.
"Oh, the washroom. I'll have to use that tomorrow, won't I? I'm very dirty, I guess. Right now though, I'm kind of tired. It's really late."
"Of course," said Papa. "But, I'm afraid that I made a mistake. You saw the mirror in there?"
"Yes."
"Well, I sold that to a man a few weeks ago. I just realised that I was supposed to deliver it tonight. It's supposed to be a birthday present for his wife, and her birthday's tomorrow. I'll have to take it to him tonight. Do you mind?"
"No," I said, grateful past all belief. "No, of course I don't mind! You gave me a room and a home! How could I mind a mirror?"
"Good," he said, and walked into the washroom. There, he unceremoniously pulled the entire thing right off the wall. I stared in disbelief, that thing had been bolted to the wall! Then he walked out, closing the door behind him and calling, "Goodnight!"
I stared at the closed door until I heard the main door close a few minutes later. I was alone again. Suddenly suspicious and scared, I ran over to the closed door and pulled on the handle. It opened easily. I was free. I could leave if I chose. Instead, I closed the door and went to the chest at the foot of the bed. There I searched desperately for something I wouldn't feel bad about sleeping on. But everything there was sumptuously made. I finally gave up and fell onto the bed. I was asleep almost before I hit it.
@---@---@
After I left the room, I went into the den. There was the wad of money I had left. I had a use for it now. I took it and the mirror and left the house. The mirror was quickly disposed of, I left it in the prop room on the third floor of the opera. Then I set out on a shopping spree. In the shops open at that time of nightI bought clothes for Lyra along with food for both of us. I then set about buying furniture to replace the splinters that remained in the house. It took me all night, but when I was done we were set up for quite a while, at least long enough for me to set up relations with the managers again. I had everything delivered to a certain opening in the opera. By the time I got back, it was all there. Then it was a simple matter of putting it away.
@---@---@
I slept late, and when I woke up I knew that Papa had been there in the night. I ran over to the big-doored furniture and pulled it open. Inside there were many many outfits, all about my size. There was everything from gowns to little pants and shirts. It all depended on what I liked. I did not like dresses. I immediately pulled out a beautiful outfit of blue pants, a white shirt, and a blue vest. Then I walked into the washroom and took my first real bath. I knew how to work everything because of a friend of mine, Berniece. She had been rich before her family had thrown her onto the street. Baths were the things she missed most, and she would talk of them for hours. It took me very little time to determine that they were just as wonderful as she had always said.
After I got cleaned up and dressed, I walked back into my room. I wanted to find out exactly where everything was. I explored all of the drawers, grinning at all of my finds. Then, in the last drawer, I found a mask, just like Papa's, only for a girl and just my size. I touched it, torn. On one hand, this would protect me from people who didn't like how I looked. On the other hand, it seemed like a betrayal, to myself if not to Papa. I finally decided to leave it where it was, just until I needed it.
Somewhere in the house, a bell rang. I walked over to the door and opened it, searching for the source of the noise. It came from above the fireplace in the den, seeming to come directly from a small brass figure of a boat. That had to be a doorbell. Someone was coming across the lake. I ran back to my room and pulled a small dagger out of my discarded sack of a dress. Then, as an afterthought, I gabbed my mask and put it on. Then I was off to greet the newcomers, be they friend or foe.
@---@---@
Erik had left a boat on the main side of the lake, thankfully. I didn't relish the thought of swimming through that black water. As I poled across, I heard the doorbell ring. At least that hadn't been broken. I reached what was left of the dock, got out, and bent to tie up the boat.
"Who are you sir? What do you want here?"
I froze. The voice was obviously feminine and young. That led to two questions. One was who was she and what was she doing in Erik's home. The other was if she was dangerous. That wasn't an idle question either. I was in a compromised position and anyone who Erik would take in would be dangerous in their own right.
I cleared my throat. "My name is Nadir. I am a daroga, from Persia. I'm Erik's friend. Please, where is he?"
"Oh, stand up!" came the voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were a friend of Papa's! I'm not sure where he is, I haven't seen him since last night. He's probably asleep in his room."
I stood and regarded the girl. I tried to hide my surprise, but I was probably unsuccessful. If not for the long hair, tied at the neck, and the voice, I would have assumed that Erik had somehow been shrunk. How had he found such a child? When had he found such a child?
@---@---@
The man stared at me and then asked, "Pardon me, but beneath the mask...?"
"I look like my father."
"Your father?!"
"Well, he's not really my father. He saved me! My mother abandoned me, and he took me in. That was last night."
"Now really Nadir," came a voice from behind me, "Don't you know that in France it is very impolite to stare so?"
"Papa!" I cried happily, turning and hugging him. "Thank you for everything! It's so wonderful. I've never seen so much that's so beautiful! Thank you so much!"
@---@---@
I looked up at Nadir, nearly as suprised as he was. Then I laughed.
"You're welcome Lyra. Now go back to your room. I think you'll find the contents of the trunk have changed quite a bit since last night."
She looked up at me in wonder and then ran into the house. I turned to regard Nadir. "Well for goodness sakes daroga, say something!"
"What are you possibly thinking Erik? You can't raise a child, a girl!"
"Why not?"
"Erik, you live under an opera house. You are also a murderer. That is hardly something to look up to."
"But, you will of course help me raise her."
"WHAT??!!!"
"Of course. The truth of the matter is, daroga, I will not give her up. She has no one else to go to. And if you don't help me, her moral status will be entirely your fault. Do you want that on your head?
Nadir always did know when he was beaten. He did mount a last defense, though.
"What about the drugs, Erik?"
"Sold, every last grain and bottle, and I have no intention of buying anything else."
"There'll be withdrawal."
My mouth felt dry. "I know."
Then Lyra raced out of the building. "Oh Papa! Books! And Toys! Oh Papa, thank you!"
I found myself in another fierce embrace. -Papa.- I thought. All I said was, "You're welcome Lyra."
