Part 135, Chapter 2318
Chapter Two Thousand Three Hundred Eighteen
27th August 1974
Montreal, Canada
It had been harder saying goodbye to her family as they had boarded the plane that would take them home then she had thought it would be. Marie Alexandra had watched the plane take off and had almost cried when it had disappeared from view in the distance. Her grandparents had stood there with her, not in any rush to get out of the airport until she was ready to leave of her own accord. The entire ride back to the Blackwood house had been a blur, with Marie not really paying much attention to anything other than how she already missed them terribly. Even Sophie, who she tended to argue with constantly.
When Marie got back to her room, she found it was full of the clothes and other supplies that her mother had insisted she needed, most of which were still in their bags. At the center was a heavy weight wool coat and fur lined boots that she had said Marie would be incredibly grateful to have when winter came. Just that thought reminded her that she didn’t have the first clue as to when she might see any of them again. Christmas or perhaps Easter, Marie had no idea.
Then she saw the radiometer that had once belonged to her father and usually sat on the windowsill in her grandfather’s home office had been moved to the windowsill of her bedroom. The black and white vanes spinning around in the morning sunlight, Marie remembered how she had thought that it was magical when she had first seen it years earlier. Opa Blackwood had told her that it was simple physics that she hadn’t been taught yet. Later, the Science Professor at her Gymnasia had explained a concept called thermal transpiration which was the widely accepted theory of how a Crookes radiometer worked. She had thought that it was wonderful, learning the trick of how it worked. The world was full of magical things, all it took was a little bit of understanding and you could work wonders. The Science Professor had disagreed and had chastised Marie, saying that Science Class was no place for her frequent flights of fancy. It was hardly Marie’s fault that old fuddy duddy totally lacked imagination. It just seemed to her the world was full of miracles that had grown mundane by being familiar. Stepping close and seeing the little black and white vanes spin around a glass spindle inside the sealed globe seemingly of their own accord was one of those things.
“You found it” Sir Malcolm said from the doorway. “I’d say its yours now.”
“I cannot take this” Marie replied, “It belongs to my father, and it has been in your office for ages.”
“I doubt that Douglas would take issue with you having it” Sir Malcolm said, “I think you’ll get the most out of it. Before you came to visit when you were thirteen, I had almost forgotten that it was there.”
“Thank you” Marie said, looking at the radiometer.
“I know that you are a bit homesick but know that you choosing to come here to go to University and keep up the family tradition is quite wonderful” Sir Malcolm said with a slight smile. “Margot is proud of you, even if she will probably never tell you that herself.”
“I thought that she didn’t like me?” Marie asked.
“Pride can be a terrible thing at times” Sir Malcolm replied, “Your grandmother hates admitting that she is ever wrong, but if she really didn’t like you, she never would have allowed me to invite you to stay with us.”
That was an angle that Marie had not considered.
Plänterwald, Berlin
“Some things are supposed to be easy, fun” Was what Ben had said earlier that night. “The instant they became laborious and boring, there was a problem.”
He had said that because he had noticed that Kiki had kept looking at the clock, was unable to hide the bored expression on her face because it had come to feel like an obligation. That had completely killed the mood for both of them. Now a few hours later, rinsing out the small amount of blood that had seeped into the nightgown she had been wearing. It was a sign that what had become laborious had not accomplished anything this month. Besides that, she was more comfortable in the old football jersey and trackpants that she had slept in for years. The trouble was that as soon as Ben saw what she was wearing he would probably have a good idea of what was going on. Berg had warned her that when couples did this it took eighteen-months on average. It had just grown so frustrating in the meantime. Like anyone else, Kiki had wanted things to happen right away and that apparently wasn’t happening.
Looking over her shoulder in the mirror, Kiki saw a bit of movement by the doorway. “You are supposed to be asleep little Mouse Bear” She said.
Nina poked her head around the corner, surprised that she had gotten caught. Kiki didn’t think that her daughter lacked intelligence, she just hadn’t realized that even though Kiki’s back was turned she could still be seen in the reflection. It was the sort of mistake that children made.
“Owie?” Nina asked.
“No” Kiki replied only to get a quizzical look back.
One day, probably far sooner than Kiki would like, Nina would understand this. For now, she was a fairly typical three-year-old. Scooping up Nina, Kiki saw that Rauchbier had been watching over her as he tended to do.
“You are just getting too big for me to carry you like this” Kiki said sadly as she carried Nina back to her room.
27th August 1974
Montreal, Canada
It had been harder saying goodbye to her family as they had boarded the plane that would take them home then she had thought it would be. Marie Alexandra had watched the plane take off and had almost cried when it had disappeared from view in the distance. Her grandparents had stood there with her, not in any rush to get out of the airport until she was ready to leave of her own accord. The entire ride back to the Blackwood house had been a blur, with Marie not really paying much attention to anything other than how she already missed them terribly. Even Sophie, who she tended to argue with constantly.
When Marie got back to her room, she found it was full of the clothes and other supplies that her mother had insisted she needed, most of which were still in their bags. At the center was a heavy weight wool coat and fur lined boots that she had said Marie would be incredibly grateful to have when winter came. Just that thought reminded her that she didn’t have the first clue as to when she might see any of them again. Christmas or perhaps Easter, Marie had no idea.
Then she saw the radiometer that had once belonged to her father and usually sat on the windowsill in her grandfather’s home office had been moved to the windowsill of her bedroom. The black and white vanes spinning around in the morning sunlight, Marie remembered how she had thought that it was magical when she had first seen it years earlier. Opa Blackwood had told her that it was simple physics that she hadn’t been taught yet. Later, the Science Professor at her Gymnasia had explained a concept called thermal transpiration which was the widely accepted theory of how a Crookes radiometer worked. She had thought that it was wonderful, learning the trick of how it worked. The world was full of magical things, all it took was a little bit of understanding and you could work wonders. The Science Professor had disagreed and had chastised Marie, saying that Science Class was no place for her frequent flights of fancy. It was hardly Marie’s fault that old fuddy duddy totally lacked imagination. It just seemed to her the world was full of miracles that had grown mundane by being familiar. Stepping close and seeing the little black and white vanes spin around a glass spindle inside the sealed globe seemingly of their own accord was one of those things.
“You found it” Sir Malcolm said from the doorway. “I’d say its yours now.”
“I cannot take this” Marie replied, “It belongs to my father, and it has been in your office for ages.”
“I doubt that Douglas would take issue with you having it” Sir Malcolm said, “I think you’ll get the most out of it. Before you came to visit when you were thirteen, I had almost forgotten that it was there.”
“Thank you” Marie said, looking at the radiometer.
“I know that you are a bit homesick but know that you choosing to come here to go to University and keep up the family tradition is quite wonderful” Sir Malcolm said with a slight smile. “Margot is proud of you, even if she will probably never tell you that herself.”
“I thought that she didn’t like me?” Marie asked.
“Pride can be a terrible thing at times” Sir Malcolm replied, “Your grandmother hates admitting that she is ever wrong, but if she really didn’t like you, she never would have allowed me to invite you to stay with us.”
That was an angle that Marie had not considered.
Plänterwald, Berlin
“Some things are supposed to be easy, fun” Was what Ben had said earlier that night. “The instant they became laborious and boring, there was a problem.”
He had said that because he had noticed that Kiki had kept looking at the clock, was unable to hide the bored expression on her face because it had come to feel like an obligation. That had completely killed the mood for both of them. Now a few hours later, rinsing out the small amount of blood that had seeped into the nightgown she had been wearing. It was a sign that what had become laborious had not accomplished anything this month. Besides that, she was more comfortable in the old football jersey and trackpants that she had slept in for years. The trouble was that as soon as Ben saw what she was wearing he would probably have a good idea of what was going on. Berg had warned her that when couples did this it took eighteen-months on average. It had just grown so frustrating in the meantime. Like anyone else, Kiki had wanted things to happen right away and that apparently wasn’t happening.
Looking over her shoulder in the mirror, Kiki saw a bit of movement by the doorway. “You are supposed to be asleep little Mouse Bear” She said.
Nina poked her head around the corner, surprised that she had gotten caught. Kiki didn’t think that her daughter lacked intelligence, she just hadn’t realized that even though Kiki’s back was turned she could still be seen in the reflection. It was the sort of mistake that children made.
“Owie?” Nina asked.
“No” Kiki replied only to get a quizzical look back.
One day, probably far sooner than Kiki would like, Nina would understand this. For now, she was a fairly typical three-year-old. Scooping up Nina, Kiki saw that Rauchbier had been watching over her as he tended to do.
“You are just getting too big for me to carry you like this” Kiki said sadly as she carried Nina back to her room.
