"I'm home!" Sofia called out as she walked through the side door of the house, hanging her backpack on one of the pegs on the wall beside her.
"Sofia, you're just in time!" Her mother greeted her by shoving her baby brother into Sofia's arms, flashing an apologetic smile as she let go of the toddler. "I have to make a last minute trip to the grocery store, and you know how Jake gets carsick." Sofia sighed, cradling her brother close while her mom grabbed her purse and rushed out of the house.
"What should we do, Jake?" She asked outloud, even though he couldn't talk yet. Jake snuggled into her shoulder, but when he began rooting around in search of milk, she chuckled softly and held him at arms length. "You won't find any of that. Maybe mom left you a bottle..."
Sofia strapped Jake into his highchair, glad he was finally old enough to sit in it instead of being plunked into the playpen, where he would scream until someone rescued him. Once he was secure, she dug through the fridge until she found some thawed milk for him.
"You're old enough to just drink it cold, aren't you, Jakey?" She mumbled, pouring it into one of the clean bottles on the counter. He signed 'milk' as she approached, then grinned at her appreciatively while he drank.
ring, ring
Sofia crossed the kitchen and peeked at the back of the cordless wall phone, recognizing the number as Grace's, though her name still wasn't programmed into the phone.
"Hello?" She answered, taking the reciever with her so she could sit near her brother while she talked.
"Sofia? I tried to text you, but you didn't answer.." Grace began, clearly thinking Sofia's number went to a cell phone.
"That's because it's a house phone." She pointed out. Everyone her age seemed to have their own phone, and she saw them sneaking the devices during break periods, but she honestly didn't see the appeal.
"Are you kidding? I swear, you and your folks are like something straight out of those old '50s sitcoms my grandma watches." Grace teased her, but Sofia knew it wasn't meant in a bad way.
"So what were you texting about?" She wiped Jake's face, which he'd somehow managed to completely cover with milk, as she prodded her friend to get to the point.
"Oh, right... I was asking if you could hang out, maybe go see a movie?" Sofia shook her head, forgetting for a moment that Grace couldn't see her through the phone.
"I'm on babysitting duty." She explained apologetically, tucking the receiver between her shoulder and elbow so she could lift Jake from his seat. "I don't know how long it'll take."
"Eww, not again!" Grace complained, unintentionally offending Sofia slightly. "This is why I'm glad to be an only child. Alright... give me a call when you're done playing 'mommy'." Sofia promised that she would and hung up the phone.
Jake's eyes fluttered open and closed as Sofia paced the kitchen to bounce him to sleep, staring down at his sweet face and wondering how Grace, or anyone else, could have such a strong distaste for babies.
"Don't listen to her, I think you're amazing." Sofia whispered as he finally drifted off. She walked with him a little longer for good measure, then took him upstairs to tuck him into his cot.
Feeling unusually run down, which she chalked up to still being ill with the flu, Sofia sank into the cushioned rocker in the corner of the room and drifted off to sleep.
...
"A job?" Merlin mumbled, stroking his long beard thoughtfully. Cedric nodded, taking a sip of the coffee the older sorcerer had brewed for him. His eyes scanned the inside of the meager studio flat, which seemed far too lived in to be a recent hire, though he hadn't found an opportunity to ask Merlin about it just yet.
"I used to be a substitute at Royal Prep. Maybe something of that nature." Cedric explained, picking up on something akin to hesitance on the older man's behalf.
"It's not that simple here. Teachers require degrees, plus a background check, which you surely couldn't pass. You forget, Cedric, that as far as records are concerned, you don't exist." Cedric was about to press for more details, but the elder man held his finger up, then crossed the room to sit at a desk which held a small, silver box. "That's not to say it's completely impossible, though. We just have to look for the right sort of work..." He opened a hinged lid on the box, and a window inside began to glow. Cedric cocked his head, trying to deduce what manner of sorcery the man was using to make what looked to be book pages appear in the lit window.
"What the devil are you doing?" He finally asked, joining Merlin at the desk to get a better view. The old man chuckled, shooting Cedric a wry smile before returning to his spell.
"I forgot. You've no idea what a computer is." He shook his head, gesturing to the box in question. "We'll use this to see if there's any way to get you into Sofia's school. I make no promises, though... these days they're very cautious about who can work with children." Cedric crossed his arms, still watching the pages.
"She's hardly a child, you know. She would be presented in about a week, under normal circumstances." He shouldn't raise the issue, he knew. Their relationship was a complete secret, a stipulation he'd been the one to insist on. Nevertheless, it bothered him to hear her referred to as though she were still a little girl, even if his friend hadn't meant any harm by it. Merlin's fingers, which had been dancing across a tray of letters set into the bottom of the contraption, stilled as he glanced up to carefully examine Cedric.
"In your time, yes. But here she is considered very much a child, by everyone including herself. You would do well to remember that." Cedric frowned, letting the weight of his warning sink in. In what ways was a young woman on the verge of marrying age anything like a precocious youth, he couldn't imagine, but if that was how things were here, then he would have to be mindful of it no matter how ridiculous it sounded. He thought back to earlier, when he openly watched her in the school yard, and wondered if he hadn't already done something wrong.
"Here we are... a day labour position in the school." Merlin grinned victoriously, pointing to the 'computer'. "It's janitorial work, but it's much easier to get this sort of job without a proper identity." Cedric let out an offended huff, straightening up his shoulders proudly.
"That's servant work. I am a Royal Sorcerer, not a janitor." He argued, annoyed by such a suggestion. Janitors were the non-residential equivalent to scullery maids, and his status put him far above them.
"If you want a way into that school, then this is it." Merlin insisted firmly. "Besides, your tower was always immaculate, so I'm sure you can handle it."
"That was Sofia's doing." Cedric confessed, still sulking over the idea of accepting such a menial position.
