* * *
The alarm blared way too early. I could have easily slept a couple more hours, especially with the warm fuzzy furnace sleeping next to me, making me feel extra cozy. Since I wasn’t going outside of the keep or our wing, I didn’t have to wear my cloak. I slipped on black slacks and a conservative shirt of cornflower-blue silk. It had an attached sash at the neck that I tied into a loose bow.
I pulled my hair back into a ponytail, knowing it made me look a couple of years younger, and also that my father would be pleased with that overall look.
I noticed Cheeva pacing back and forth. “Oh no! I’m sorry, Cheeva. You need to take care of business, don’t you?” I glanced at my clock. Already feeling guilty for not thinking about Cheeva’s needs, I heaped more guilt on myself with my next words. “I sorry, but I hope you can, ummm…hurry.” And we both jogged to the closest outside door. I let Cheeva outside to answer nature’s call and waited.
My foot tapped with nervous energy as I stared at my wristwatch. This wasn’t a morning to be late. My father absolutely loathed it if one of us was late to a family breakfast, and the last thing I wanted this morning was to make him mad. Luckily, Cheeva trotted back inside in less than a minute.
We made it to the private dining room with two minutes to spare. Zarius hadn’t arrived yet.
Minor victory.
My parents both gave me a curt nod.
“Good morning, Adriana,” my mother said, giving me a slight smile. She was dressed in an elegant pantsuit, her unglamoured white-blond hair swept into a bun, her eyes their normal shade of blue.
“Good morning, Mother,” I said to her, and then turned to my father. “Good morning, Father.”
“To you, too,” he replied in a distant tone that made me wonder if the source of his displeasure stemmed from the Bart disagreement or if it was the disaster of Cheeva choosing me, or perhaps both.
My parents took their plates and selected breakfast food from the sideboard. Learning from my earlier blunder, I took a plate and filled it with bacon, eggs and a thick steak. Then I set it on the floor next to my chair. Next, I took a cereal bowl and filled it with water from a pitcher, and set it next to the plate on the floor. Cheeva nodded at me, his crystal-blue eyes rewarding me with a look of approval. He sat next to his food and waited.
I noticed my father had stepped away and was staring at me, a pensive look on his face.
“Did I do something wrong, Father?” I asked.
“No, on the contrary, daughter, I approve of your actions.”
My father’s familiar had died only a few months ago. He’d been incredibly close to Jarvis, an osprey. He hadn’t taken the time to bond with another familiar, and I wondered if that was because he still mourned Jarvis.
Zarius came skidding into the dining room just as my watch read eight-thirty. Without sparing a glance at anyone, he started loading his plate with food and then sat down.
I’d finished filling my plate as well, but I stood by my chair, waiting for my parents to sit down.
“Zarius!” My father scolded in his quiet, authoritative way. “Your mother has not been seated. Where are your manners?”
Zarius dropped his fork and stood up, not meeting my father’s eyes.
Just then, Piri the ferret scampered into the room, and in moments was perched on Zarius’ shoulder, chirping.
“Zarius, has Piri eaten today?”
“I don’t know,” Zarius replied.
Uh-oh.
My father let loose with a long-suffering sigh. “Zarius, I will never say this to you again, but you do not ever eat until your familiar has food to eat as well. Jarvis has only been gone for a few months. How could you have forgotten what you have seen me demonstrate for most of your life?”
The muscles in Zarius’ jaw tensed. “I apologize, Father.”
“Your sister took care of Cheeva before she got her own food.”
Had my father really gone there? Zarius turned toward me, which meant he turned away from our parents so they couldn’t see the hateful glare he speared me with. I returned his glare with what I hoped was a pleasant smile, which my parents could see. That only seemed to make him angrier. Great.
Zarius went to the sideboard and made a plate of fruits and cereal for Piri.
“Zarius, did you even attempt to research the care of your familiar last night?” My father touched the tips of his fingers to his temples as though Zarius was making his head hurt. He then glowered at Zarius. “Ferrets are carnivores. You must feed Piri meat.”
So far, Zarius was the center of all the negative attention that I’d assumed would be directed at me this morning. Given my brother’s perpetually cruel behavior, I couldn’t find it in myself to feel sorry for him. Piri I felt sorry for, but not Zarius.
Besides, I was sure my turn in the negative spotlight was coming at any moment.
Once we were all seated and we’d had a chance to eat for a few minutes, my turn came.
“Adriana, are you speaking with Cheeva?” my father asked, and something about the way he said the words made the hair at the back of my neck prickle.
“Speaking with the white wolf, Father? What do you mean?” I asked, going for as oblivious as I could.
“Have you bonded with him?” My father’s eyes had an intense, almost scary quality.
“Father!” Zarius shouted with outrage.
“Quiet, Zarius,” my father commanded with a steel edge to his voice. “Let your sister answer.”
I’d known it for the trick question it was, because if I had bonded with Cheeva, that would mean I could wield magic, and my father certainly knew that. But I hadn’t been prepared for my father making me feel like a murder suspect being tricked into a full confession. I mean, sure, parents always tried to trip you up, it was their job; but this didn’t feel like a father-daughter thing. It sent shivers of dread up my spine.
I reminded myself again of Operation Oblivious and let loose a little trill of innocent laughter, hoping I wasn’t overdoing it. “Oh, you mean bonding like with a familiar. Cheeva can’t be my familiar, Father. I’m not a wizard. I’m sure it’s exactly like you said last night. It must have something to do with being Zarius’ twin. What else could it be?”
“I agree with you also, Father,” Zarius added, obviously pleased with my answer. “It must be because of me somehow. Cheeva will probably come to me eventually.”
My father narrowed his eyes, studying me with a penetrating scrutiny I’d never seen before.
“Mother?” I shifted my attention from my father.
My mother looked my way, her smile slightly brittle. “Yes, dear.”
“Can you let me know when we can take our shopping trip to New York City?” I smiled excitedly at my mother and then my father before meeting my mother’s eyes again. “Perhaps you and Isadora’s mother can figure out a date that would be good for all of us. Should I ask Tristan to coordinate with each of you? I can’t wait to go shopping!” And I did like to go shopping, but I was trying my best to channel my behavior from the previous year, when we’d shared this almost identical exchange.
“Yes, Adriana. Please coordinate with Tristan. I do always enjoy our shopping trip to New York City and Woodstock, too.” My mother smiled at my father with relief in her eyes and he nodded, returning her smile with a discreet one of his own.
Score.
I took a bite of my waffle and stole a glance at my father. He caught me and I smiled at him. “Thank you, Father. I can’t wait to go shopping, and the dress from last night was absolute perfection. I’ve never had a dress I loved more!” And actually, that was true.
“It made me feel more mature—even elegant. Mother, I think it’s time that my room is updated to reflect that I’m not a little girl anymore.”
My mother looked expectantly to my father, waiting for his reply.
“I think our Adriana makes an excellent point,” my father said. “I’ll increase the budget for your shopping trip to include a remodeli
ng for Adriana’s room.”
“This will be so much fun,” my mother said with true pleasure.
Talk about hitting two birds with one stone! I knew this would make my father believe I was the same me I’d been a few days ago, and at the same time, I got to remodel my room. Score, again.
Besides, I loved the shopping trip for more than just buying new things. It provided me time with my mother that I didn’t otherwise get. We would eat at restaurants and attend plays together. We’d have time to talk and laugh. I loved that time with her, and of course, Izzy, too.
I smiled at both of my parents, and finally, my father gave me a real smile that reached his eyes. He gave me the smile that said I was everything he wanted me to be: his good little girl who wanted to shop and plan parties and marry whomever he wanted me to. It said he was confident I would do and say the right things and wear my cloak and that I would never embarrass or challenge him again.
But Rory, my friends, and I knew the truth. I was the Queen of Chaos, and whatever that meant, it sure didn’t mean I deserved that smile from my father.