Our loving mother-daughter reunion did not last very long. My mom is the most stubborn and hypocritical person I have ever meet.
"Tiffany, what have you been eating? You look rather chubby." I'm several pounds under weight due to a bad case of the stomach flu.
"What is that smell?" I had taken a shower this morning.
"Your hair! What on earth did you do to it?" My was exactly the same as it was the last time I had seen her.
"Nice to see you too." My mother scowls. Some people say we look similar with our wavy chestnut hair and small builds, but we have completely different demeanours. She gives of an air of superiority and unfriendliness while I'm very unmemorable.
"Don't talk back to me it's very rude."
"Speaking of rudeness, why were you so nasty to James?"
"I suggest you stay away from James Petrovitch. He'll bring you nothing but trouble." I make my way over to a chair that is almost buried in books and plop down it. Pressing my hand to my head I try to formulate a plan.
"I'll just ignore what you said about James so we can actually survive these next few months. How exactly did you break your leg?" She huffed and have me look that said Isn't it obvious?.
"I fell out of a tree." I collapse back into the seat and start laughing hysterically.
"Of course you fell out of a tree. What in the world was I thinking? May I ask what you were doing in said tree?" If looks could kill I'd be dead right now.
"You may not." My mother says coldly. "Besides we need to discuss your stay. You need to get a real job." She looks at my violin case with disdain.
"Excuse me! You're the one running the 'Magyk Shoppe'. And you say I need a real job." She chooses to ignore me and continues.
"I assume you finished veterinarian school before you ran off to play the violin. The local vet could probably use an assistant. We have a lot of farms in the area, and she is always very busy." I throw my hands up in mock surrender.
"Alright, I Will look into it tomorrow. I'm pretty tired, so could you show me my room?" She points to tiny staircase crammed in the back of the store.
"I live above the shop. You know Tiffany, running away from your troubles won't make them go away. Even though you quit being a veterinarian, you still have-" I cut her off abruptly.
"You swore never to speak of that again. It's over now."
"It's still there and you know it."
The next day l wake up sore and covered in bruises. Apparently my first encounter with James Petrovitch left me more damaged than I had thought. I glance at my violin. Better not. I really don't want to face off with my mother right now. Grumbling, I pull on a pair of slacks and a button down shirt. Before I dash down the stairs I grabbed my coat.
When I get outside I inhale deeply. Litchfield really is beautiful, especially with winter approaching. Trees line the street, shedding their autumnal foliage. Birds chatter excitedly and the air is as pure as can be.
I walk along for a couple blocks before reaching a plain white two story building. The sign on the front reads, Dr. Lakshmi Mistry, Animal Clinic.
"This must be it." I mutter while swinging the door open. A cacophony of squawks, barks, and hissing greet me. Definitely the right place. A woman appears in the back holding a frantic cat. She looks to be in her mid thirties, but the lines on her face make her seem much older. Her long black hair sticks out at odd angles and dark circles rim the bottom of her almond shaped eyes. Scratchs cover the dark gold skin of her hands and the woman holds the frightened feline as far away from her body as possible. I can't decide whether the woman or the cat looks more upset.
"Dr. Mistry?" She looks up.
"That's me, though everyone just calls me Lucky." Dr. Mist-, Lucky was looking more frazzled by the minute.
"Hello, I'm Tiffany Donovan. I heard that you might have a position for an assistant."
"So you're Michelle Donovan' s daughter."
"I am, and it appears you're not a cat person." Lucky laughs.
"Not at all. You came just in time. In fact I have a job for you right now."
"Really? What is it?" She thrusts the cat towards me.
"Take care of it for me."
After dealing with that nutty cat and more paperwork than I thought existed, I am thoroughly and utterly exhausted.
"How about we close up for the night now, Tiffany?"
"Yes, Please!" I say gratefully. Lucky and I have really gotten on well, and she has already agreed to hire me.
"Some one sounds tired." Lucky remarks as she pulls on her coat. "You are really good at this. You have a gift. Why did you quit?" I shrug.
"It wasn't right for me at the time." Not quite a lie, not quite the truth. Lucky nods as if she understands.
"I'll see you bright and early next week then."
"Alright." I reply, but she's already out the door.
I leave the clinic and walk back towards to the Magyk Shoppe. About half way there I see a familiar face.
"Hello, James." He smiles and crosses the street.
"I see the old lady hasn't murdered you in your sleep yet." I grin back.
"It's only a matter of time though." James considers this, with his dark eyes glinting.
"Well, when she does, at least the police will where to look."
"Small comfort." I look up at him, since I come up only to his chest. I really don't like being short.
"Anyway, what are you doing out here."
"She made me get a job." James laughs, a deep hearty chuckle that warms me all the way to my toes.
"The Magyk Shoppe lady made you get a job."
"Yep." James slides his arm around my shoulder. It's a friendly gesture, but I shy away from the contact. Things go wrong when I touch people. James looks a little hurt and perhaps annoyed, but he hides it quickly.
"If you aren't too busy we could have dinner some time and I could show you around Litchfield."
"I'd love to. How about next Friday."
"Done. Do you want my number?" I nod and we exchange phone numbers.
"See you then." He calls out as he turns the next corner.
"See you then." I stand there for a few moments with the most stupid grin on my face.
I awaken to the smells of tea and burnt toast. Stretching, I consider whether to go down or just lay on the bed some more. Then my stomach decides for me. I creep downstairs to see if my mother will give me some breakfast. And I am in luck.
"You're up. Good." My mother frowns at me and hands my a cup of tea. I take a sip and grimace. I prefer to sweeten black tea, and this brew is unusually bitter.
"What's the plan for today." I question before downing the contents of the cup.
"You are going to watch the shop while I run errands." Suddenly she snatched my empty cup off the table.
"Hey!" I stand to take back my cup, but I sit down when she gives me a scathing look. My mother examines the dregs at the bottom of my cup. She occasionally mutters a bit of nonsense before finally setting the cup down.
"I am very skilled in the art of tasseomancy." She offers as an explanation.
"The art of what?" My mother rolls her eyes.
"Tea leaf reading." She shoves the cup towards me. "Now do as I say. Swirl the remains three times."
I raise my eyebrows, but take the cup.
"Then turn it upside down on the saucer sand tap the bottom three times."
I do so and pick the cup back up.
"Now tell me what you see." It is my turn to roll my eyes but I look anyway.
"I see a bunch of blobs."
"Tiffany." My mother says with warning in her voice. I harumph, but look again. This time the sticky dark shapes plastered against the bottom of the cup resemble things.
"I see... a violin." She leans forward.
"What else?"
"There's a crescent moon as well." I squint and turn the cup."And I think that's a key." I pause again.
"Yes, yes, is that all?" She says impatiently.
"And... a noose." My mother inhaled sharply clasps and her hands together.
"Care to tell me what they mean?"
"The violin symbolizes loneliness," I bristle at what I am sure was another jab at my music. "But the moon means love."
"Love?" I repeat skeptically.
"Love." She said firmly. "The key is the unveiling of a mystery."
"What about the noose? I'm guessing that can't be good."
"No." She said with her face as hard as a rock. "The noose means terrible danger ahead." Then she bends her head at an odd angle and raises her hand in such a way that it appears that she is hanging from an invisible rope.
After my mother leaves to run her errands I climb upstairs and grab my violin. Laying the case on the checkout counter, I lift my instrument out. I stroke the smooth unvarnished wood, before gently placing it on the counter. Then I took out the bow. The violin had been tuned at the Celtic music festival, but the bow needed a little more attention. I tightened the bow as I did every time I played, just as I loosened it before putting it away. Three turns, no more, no less. I take the hardened resin and slid it over the bow hair, so that the bow will play the music that I live for.
I place the violin upon my shoulder. My chin slide perfectly into the groove meant for it and I press the palm of my hand against the bottom of the neck of the violin, just as I had been taught. I grip the end of the bow and decide what to play.
It's a joyful tune that sets one's toes a'tapping and hands a'clapping. I move with movement of the bow and even spin around once. When I stop, someone is applauding enthusiastically. A tall, reed thin woman is standing by the door grinning appreciably.
"That was wonderful!" The blonde lady walks towards me gracefully. I place the violin in its case and slid it under the counter. I feel a twinge of guilt, but I'll put it away properly later.
"Thank you. How can I help you?"
"You're Mrs. Donovan's daughter?"
"I am." She rubs her hands on her dress nervously.
"I am Mrs. O'Seamus. I have a request for you. My husband and I are going out of town for the night, but our babysitter canceled. We have two children, you see." Mrs. O'Seamus looked even more apprehensive, but she hurried on. "I couldn't find anyone else to do it, but then Lucky said you might be willing. I know it's a little short notice, but it's easy money."
"Of course, I'll help." Her relief is written all over her face.
"Thank you so much." She begins to walk out.
"Wait, what time do I have to be there and where?"
"Come at five, and ask Lucky for directions. I'm sorry, but I have to run."
At exactly five o'clock I showed up at the O'Seamus residence. Lucky had given me the address and even offered to take me there, but I said no. A squat red haired man opened the door.
"You must be Ms. Donovan. Come in, Come in." This cheerful, broad shouldered made me smile in spit of myself.
"Thank you. Please call me Tiffany." Mr. O'Seamus nodded and called towards the back of the house.
"Marisa, come on. We are going to be late." He turned towards me again and smiled again. Mrs. O'Seamus appeared and I realized that they were dressed much too casually for a night on the town. Ratty old T-shirts and jeans were not what I expected.
"I'm so glad you came. The kids are in the living room. I was just about to put a movie on."
"Good idea." She gestured for me to follow her. The kids are sitting in a wreck of a room arguing violently. Mrs. O'Seamus clears her throat and the children fall silent.
"Andrew, Lisa, this is Ms. Donovan. Please be polite." The little girl, Lisa, stares at me.
"You have the same name as the witch lady." Mrs. O'Seamus flushs and opens her mouth, but I laugh.
"The witch lady is my mother, so why don't you call Ms. Tiffany, instead." Lisa considers this for a moment.
" Alright, Ms. Tiffany." Andrew stares at me sullenly.
"I don't see why I need a babysitter. It's not like I'm a toddler, or anything." Mrs. O'Seamus sighs and turns to me.
"All of the emergency information is on the fridge, and you can help yourself to anything in the kitchen. Thank you again." Then she dashed off, leaving me to deal with Lisa and Andrew. Lisa skipped over and grabbed my violin case. I had brought it with in case the kids might have an interest. She opens the case and thrusts the violin towards me.
"Play." And so I do. I play every jig and dance that I know and eventually even Andrew is whirling about the room. When we all plop down on the couch Lisa asks the strangest question .
"What do you know about wolves?"
"Wolves?" Andrew is obviously trying to shush her, but Lisa ignores him.
"Yes, wolves. Have you ever seen one?" I suddenly recall my mother's rude remark to James wonder what that was all about.
"I can't say I have."
"I have. I see them a lot." Lisa leans in confidentiality. "They are my family." Andrew suddenly stands up and drags Lisa off the couch.
"C'mon Lisa, it's time for bed." I follow them closely with violin.
"The wolves are your family?" I question but Lisa pursues her lips and refuses to say more. Before Andrew closes the door to his room he looks at me.
"Could you play something while we go to sleep?" I nod and raise my violin as he leaves door open a crack. The song is one of my favorites, with a name that rolls of the tongue. Ashokan Farewell. Just as the name suggest it is a beautiful song full of sadness, goodbyes and promises. It sounds of lovers parting and mothers kissing their babes good night. As I play I look out the window. For the first time that night i notice that it's a full moon. The round shining surface of the moon seems to smile sadly upon me.
I like to think that the moon is a lonely woman, who longs for love. So, I played for the moon, as well as for Lisa and Andrew. And perhaps the moon gained some small comfort in my music, just as I do. I play under the full moon, and in the distance I think that I can make out the howling of a wolf.
Author' s Note
Did anyone catch my reference to Sarwat Chadda' s the Savage Fortress, in Dr. Lakshmi 'Lucky' Mistry? No? No? Alright, then. Please Review, I know that there's somebody reading this, and I love feedback. Until next time. Peace!