Chapter 2
Let's start from the beginning, shall we? It all started when our Mistress was just a baby. Funny huh? Well everyone and everything started out as babies at one point and this was no exception really. Well anyway, she was small, innocent, and just master walking so about 20 months old aka 1 year old. It was the weekend and she was sitting on her grandfather's lap watching television. Well grandpa, who was a spitting image of Colonel Potter from M*A*S*H, was anyway, the little baby was having too much fun pressing all the buttons on the remote. Her name was Mary Engel. Daughter to Tom and Sarah Engel and granddaughter to 2 German immigrants who arrived at the state after WW2 when they were very small. She has an older sister named Beth and a twin brother named Max. Currently, Beth was working on her homework in her room and Max was with their grandmother, Omi. As Mary was flipping through the channels she spotted something and stopped. One the screen was a silhouette of a man waving his arms and music was playing as he moved them. Then the screen changes to a stage of a large house and soon dancers appeared in their costumes and pointed shoes and started to dance everywhere on the stage. Mary was memorized by the performance and her grandfather noticed it too. So he did a test. He gently took the remote, pressed a button, and changed it. Well, that made Mary mad and screamed. "Ok, ok I'll change it back." He pressed the button again and the TV went back to the original channel. Mary smiled as she was watching the dancers again. Her grandfather smiled. "Do you know what you're watching?"
Mary turned to her grandfather and shook her head as she said, 'no'.
"Those are dancers." He replied. "Ballet dancers. They dance silently with body movement to tell a story and they dance on their toes to spin." A dancer on the TV did a spin like her grandfather was talking about. "Just like that. What we're watching is called The Nutcracker. Just like the storybook." Mary looked at the TV in awe as she watched the dancers and the story being played out. Then Mary made a sound and pointed to the ground. "You want to go down?" Mary nodded. Her grandpa put her down and Mary walked up to the TV to get a better look. Then she got on her toes, put her hands up, and started to spin around and around. Her grandfather smiled. "Well, would you look at that?" He said. Soon the program hit a commercial and Mary groaned in disappointment. "Don't worry poppet." He picked up his granddaughter and held her in his arms. "It's just a commercial. It'll come back. All we have to do is wait." Mary pouted at him. "I know, I know. The waiting game can be a pain in the butt but we have to do it." He looked at his watch. "Since it's almost snack time, how about I record the rest and we get to freshen up?"
Mary smiled and nodded while saying 'yeah'.
Her grandfather chuckled. "That's my girl." He placed her down. "Look for a covered recording tape for me please while I get the snack ready." He walked through the kitchen to get something while Mary went to the shelves where the VH tapes were. Though that were uncovered means that they're being used. Uncovered means that they're blank. Mary reached for one and as soon as she got it, her grandfather came back. "Looks like you got one." He placed the snack on the living room table. Mary handed the tape to him. "Go get your brother will you Mary." Mary quickly ran off as her grandpa put the tape in and hit the recording button. Once that was done, he turned off the TV. "Too bad we can't use the TVs as babysitters as I did with my kids. Screen time my ass. How else are they going to learn things before school?" He said to himself. After he finished gripping, he saw Mary and Max come in ready to eat. "Hey kids! Look at what I got for snack today?" He asked as he pulled up 2 small chairs for them to sit. The kids sat down as they waited for their food. "I got us some pretzels, grapefruit, and tortillas with cream cheese on top. Doesn't that sound good?" The twins smiled and squealed as those here their favorite balanced food. Grandpa put the bibs on them, put the food on their little plates, and placed them in front of his grandkids. "Now don't make a mess I'll be right back with your water bottles. You're grandmother nearly whipped me after the grape juice incident last month." The 2 laughed as they started to eat as their grandfather got up and got the small water bottles.
Later that day, Max was playing with his toys, Beth was listening to her music while reading a magazine, and Mary was sitting in front of the TV watching the rest of the Nutcracker ballet. Grandma Omi was baking sweets while her husband was on his laptop looking for something on the internet. When Omi was done for the moment, she walked to her husband and placed her hands on his shoulders. "What are you looking up love?" She asked in German.
He replied in German, "I'm looking for a book for Mary when she gets older. We were watching ballet and she really got into it. So I'm trying to see if I can find the Tchaikovsky Trio."
Omi looked at the computer screen. "She's really into ballet?"
"Hard to believe isn't it? Something tells me that she should be in ballet school. There are some that are enrolling children at the age of 3." He replied. "I'll talk to her parents about it."
Omi squeezed his shoulders. "Well if you can't find the book, there's no shame in making one. You're a great craftsman. It's thanks to your work that we survived the 1950s and 60s." She lost her smile. "Just wish we weren't alone back then."
Her husband put his hand on her and looked at her. "You were just a child back then love. What we've gone through would've broken anyone. Just wish it wasn't that day love." Omi smiled and kissed her husband. Then the doorbell rang. "Are we expecting someone?" Omi shrugged and went to the door and peeped through the peephole. It was Aunt Dorothy. "It's Dorothy."
That bolted her husband out of his seat. "Dorothy's here? PLEASE tell me she didn't bring Sarah's side of the family?!" He put his laptop down and went to the door as it opened. It was Dorothy and luckily she was alone. "Dorothy! What a surprise!" The 2 moved to the side as she walked in. "What brings you here? It's July and you celebrate the 4th in Miami with your former employees Charlie, Alan, Jake, and Waldon."
Dorothy took off her coat and placed it on a coat hanger. "I had to get away from the craziness for a while. Got too much there even for me. Didn't help when Rose pops up from now and then." She turns to the 2. "Besides, when I arrived, Sarah and Tom called me and told me they were running late possible out of town, and asked me to stay to help around the house. Is that alright?" She may be rude but she does have respect for the elderly.
The grandfather was taken back a bit and said, "Sure, you can stay but three days is the limit and the best we can do. Remember last time?"
Dorothy nodded. "Don't worry. It's won't be like St. Patrick's Day and in my defense, that shmuk of a husband took his sweet time fixing my house. Next time Howard does something cheap for me, I'm slugging him."
Grandpa said, "Hopefully his horse will get him before you do. Come on to the living and rest up. I'm sure your flight wasn't a doozy."
Dorothy walked in and rested on the couch. "Thank God no." She got her bag out and started crocheting. Omi soon came with some ice water. "Thanks." She took a nice swig and put the cup down. "Just really muggy up there." She looks at Mary watching TV. "What you watching kiddo?"
Mary pointed to the TV saying 'Ma, ma…' She hasn't developed proper words yet.
Dorothy saw the TV. "Into ballet huh?" Mary nodded. "I can see you dancing like that. You do like bouncing off the walls before your mid-day nap sometimes." She got back to crocheting. As she was doing her work, she felt someone getting on the couch and sitting next to her. Dorothy turned her head and saw Mary. "You wondering what I'm doing?" Mary nodded. "I'm making a blanket using yard and needles. Want to watch?" Mary nodded again. "Cool." She put her feet up and placed Mary on her lap. "Now don't touch the needles they can be pretty sharp for wooden tools." Mary nodded again as she watch her aunt do her work. "Much like dancing it is all about a pattern. Curl one, nit 2, curl one, nit 2. There are other patterns but I like this one the most." She looked at Mary. "You want to know why?" Mary nodded. Dorothy picked up the finished portion of the blanket. "Pull it apart as hard as you." Mary took hold of it and pulled it however way she could trying to rip it, tear it, and break it, but couldn't. "The pattern I use is very strong and it's not easily breakable." She continued her work. "Maybe once you're in first grade, I can teach you how to crochet, knit, and sew. The only thing I can't do is embroider." Mary looked at her confused. "Strings too thick, needle holes too small." Mary nodded.
That night Dorothy tucked the twins into bed. But just as Dorothy was about to leave, Mary woke up and sat up. She groaned and Dorothy turned her head to Mary after hearing the sound. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll just be downstairs." Mary pointed to the rocking chair. "You want me to stay for a while?" Mary nodded. Dorothy shrugged in defeat. "Fine I'll stay, but once you're asleep, I'm outta here. Ya got that?" Mary nodded and lay back down. Dorothy sat down on the chair and went back to crocheting. Soon enough Mary was asleep.
