New chapter! Quite a short chapter, but another is coming very soon! Enjoy!
With their hunger satiated, exhaustion had begun to set into the minds and bodies of the weary travellers. After setting Kasia down for bed, Laurien made her way to Nina's room which was located in the same hallway as those of the students. As she walked down the hallway, Laurien stole a few quick glances at some of the rooms she passed with open doors, marvelling at the various decoration styles. One student seemed to be quite a big fan of something called 'Star Wars,' but whether it was a video game, film, or band, Laurien hadn't a clue. Whatever 'Star Wars' was, it certainly had a lot of action figures, as was evident by the rows upon rows of characters organized upon one of the book shelves. Unfortunately, living behind the Iron Curtain meant that much of what was popular in the West didn't reach them. She supposed that now they were back in the United States, she would have to get reacquainted with Western pop culture. A small thrill jolted through her as she realized how many new books were most likely out there, just waiting for her to read them.
Laurien finished navigating her way around the students preparing for bed, feeling slightly self-conscious as she received a few strange looks from those she passed. She reached Nina's door, giving a quick knock before entering. As she opened the door, Nina was just crawling into bed, with Bilbo the Bear tucked tightly under her arm.
"You ready for me to tuck you in?" Laurien asked, closing the door behind her. "Did you brush your teeth?"
Nina nodded as she pulled the covers up to her chin. Atop the sheets, Laurien recognized the pink and yellow patched quilt that Charles' grandmother had made for Raven when they were young. The last time she remembered seeing it was draped across a rocking chair in the newly renovated nursery that Charles had set aside for their first expected addition. A nursery that had gone unused until this evening.
"And you're warm enough?" Laurien queried further, ignoring the twinge in her chest at the memory.
Nina nodded again, but looked uncomfortable in her new bed. Laurien searched for any other questions she could ask, feeling reluctant to turn off the lights, as it seemed as though something was on Nina's mind.
"Mama?" Nina finally said, pulling Laurien from her thoughts.
"Yes, kochanie?"
"Where's Papa?"
Laurien had known that the question would inevitably come, but it still sent a spark of fear through her. The few days Erik had spent holed up in the factory during the strike was the longest he'd been away from Nina, but by the end of tomorrow, this current absence would exceed it. She knew that it was certainly normal for children to have some time apart from their parents, healthy for their development even, but she could tell that Nina was struggling. Even in happy times, Nina didn't like either of her parents to be away for long. Laurien herself had struggled with the process of dropping Nina off at preschool, finding her mind wandering while she was at work as she thought about which park she would take Nina to once she picked her up. She couldn't even imagine what Nina was experiencing now in such an uncertain time with one of her parents missing.
Even as a child, Laurien had a difficult time being away from her family. Sleepovers at friends' houses were a bit trying, and she'd thoroughly kyboshed any of her parents' ideas of sending her for a year of secondary education abroad. In the brief fifteen years Laurien had with her parents, the longest that Laurien had been without either one of them was during her father's trip to Austria, as he studied the types of baroque architecture around Vienna. At the age of seven, it had felt like ages before he finally came back, while in reality, he had only been gone perhaps two weeks. But this set of circumstances with Nina was very different. It was the fact that they did not know where Erik was, why he had left, or how long he would be gone that seemed so very damaging. Laurien had gotten the impression that perhaps only Raven believed her when she said that Erik would never willingly leave them. While Hank had done his best to reassure her that they would find him, she could tell that a seed of doubt had planted itself within her old friend regarding Erik.
Laurien wished that she could smile and convince Nina that everything was perfectly fine, but she knew that she couldn't find the strength to do so. There was no handbook to follow in this scenario, and she hadn't any clue about what the best way of approaching the matter was. All she knew is that she didn't want to lie to her daughter about it.
Laurien took a deep breath and climbed onto the bed next to Nina, wrapping what she hoped to be a comforting arm around her. "I'm not sure." She admitted in a soft tone, choosing her words very carefully as she went. "But what I do know is that he loves us very much, and is trying his very hardest to get back to us."
Nina was quiet, leaving only the sounds of the other students preparing for bed to reach Laurien's ears through the walls. Nina didn't speak for such a time that Laurien found herself unconsciously seeking out her daughter's emotions in the air between them. An uneasy and delicate energy simmered within her, one that seemed capable to break into the throes of inconsolable sorrow at a moment's notice.
When Nina did finally speak, Laurien almost released a sigh of relief, until she heard what Nina had to say. "Did someone take him away like his Mama and Papa were?"
Laurien's heart clenched painfully. Erik never talked much about his parents, much like Laurien didn't speak much about hers. Even after all these years, to refer to them in the past tense elicited a kind of pain that cut deep.
She took Nina's hand in her own. "I don't know."
"I'm scared for Papa." Nina admitted, holding tightly onto Laurien's hand as though it were a lifeline.
"I am too. But I believe that it's going to be alright." Laurien murmured, "We are so fortunate to have so many good friends who are going to help him come back to us."
They sat in silence for a moment, listening to some more muffled calls of goodnight exchanged between students, followed by the soft thumps of closing doors.
Laurien suddenly got an idea. "Can I tell you a secret about this place?" She whispered conspiratorially to Nina.
Her interest piqued, and perhaps welcoming the distraction, Nina nodded.
"My old friend Charles has a machine that can help him find anyone in the world."
Nina's eyes lit up. "Even Papa?"
"Even Papa." Laurien asserted, a gentle smile tugging on her lips as she sensed a spark of hope emanate from Nina. "Tomorrow morning, Charles is going to use the machine to find Papa and then we can figure out the best way to bring him here. We'll all be together again soon, don't you worry."
With hope's warmth nestled within Nina's heart, she seemed to relax in Laurien's embrace. "Can you stay with me until I'm asleep?" She asked, her words slightly distorted through a large yawn, as if her exhaustion had finally caught up with her.
"Of course, kochanie." Laurien whispered, pressing her lips to the top of Nina's head and willing for her slumber to be filled with good dreams. "Would you like me to read you a story as you doze off?"
"Yes, please." She said, snuggling into Laurien's side and getting herself comfortable with Bilbo the teddy bear held tightly in her arms.
"Do you have a preference?"
Nina shrugged. "Not really. Something nice."
"Hmmm, let's see." Laurien hummed, searching her mind for reminders of what kinds of books Charles' library possessed, before finally settling on one. "Have you heard of Anne of Green Gables?"
Nina shook her head. "What's it about?"
"It's about the adventures of a young girl in a small community of Canada who seems to get into all sorts of wacky situations."
"What kind of wacky situations?"
"Well, we'll just have to find out. I don't want to spoil it for you." Laurien chuckled. "Does that sound good to you?"
Nina nodded, and Laurien was just about to try to get up to see about finding the book, but as she saw how Nina seemed so comfortably nestled at her side, she realized it would have been a crime to move. It was moments like this that made her thank the heavens for her powers.
"Hey, watch this." Laurien extended her hand towards the door, opening it a book width as she reached beyond the confines of the room with her powers. She soon felt the presence of the many books upon the shelves of the library, and searched for the tell-tale impression of 'Montgomery' along their spines as though she were actually running her fingertips against them.
The endeavour was made all the easier due to the fact that Charles kept a meticulously organized alphabetical system based on author. It had been a matter of contention between them, as Laurien had initially preferred to organize based on title, making Charles proclaim her as a heathen and thus leading to a rather silly argument. Her opinion had since changed, but even after all these years, Laurien wouldn't give Charles the satisfaction by telling him so.
Laurien let out a small exclamation as she finally happened upon the book, and took care pulling it from the shelf before summoning it down the hallway. She was then glad that the students had gone to bed, considering it would have been a much more difficult feat navigating around them. In her sleep deprived state, Laurien didn't quite trust herself to not accidentally smack one of the kids with the book.
After a few moments, the book slipped through the cracked opening in the door and into Laurien's hand.
"Woah!" Nina exclaimed, her eyes wide in amazement.
"Pretty cool, huh?" Laurien smirked as she took in the faded green cover, remembering how it always seemed to be in Roosje's hands at all times during her childhood, even at dinnertime. "This was my sister's favourite book when she was a kid." She said, without thinking.
"This was Auntie Sera's favourite book?"
Oops.
"Uh, sure." Laurien replied, quickly flipping to the first chapter before she could let anything else slip. "Chapter One. Mrs. Rachel Lynde is surprised…"
A short chapter this time. This used to be part of a much larger chapter, but it was just taking too long, and I wanted to get something out for you all. Since Nina is not really supposed to be alive, I get to have a lot of free reign with her storyline and I'm trying to give her the happy life she deserves. With Laurien though, it remains to be seen how her storyline plays out... She might still have some heartbreak in store for her. Hehehe.
I'm still committed to this story, it lives in my head rent-free, it just takes me a bit to get back into writing for fun after university has been beating me over the head with academic writing for so long.
Also TW: There is a genocide happening in Ukraine right now being perpetrated by Russian soldiers against innocent Ukrainian civilians, so my mind has also been preoccupied with that for the past few months as well. I have Ukrainian heritage alongside the Dutch side, and I've been part of a few Ukrainian-Canadian student groups for a couple of years now and we're trying to support one another through this terrible time. Please consider donating to charities helping refugees if you can, every little bit counts. I have been knitting Ukrainian toques for a few months to try and raise money for Ukraine, I think that I've made over 70 so far. It helps me feel like I'm doing something so I can combat the feelings of complete helplessness that I've been experiencing. It feels a bit insignificant, but honestly, anything helps.
Thank you, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll be releasing another one pretty soon, I believe. Please leave a review, and Slava Ukraini!