C h a p t e r T w e n t y
We Squabble & Talk of Funny Things
These were happy days of ours.
I produced my scrap paper from my pocket, where I had later written down the first two verses, and fixed my eye on Claudia. I would give her a lovely little verse, one that compared her heart to a songbird. And just as a little bird is fragile, my dear sister’s heart was the same.
“Singing, and listening…” I said wistfully, and wrote it down with a flourish of my pencil.
One afternoon, on a pleasant, warm day, I was reading in the Lovingale a book about the wonders of the desert far away. You might guess who lent it to me. I did not expect what happened next. But looking back, it was all so very funny. Claudia and Charlie had been playing together a lot lately, and I really did wonder what they talked about.
And then there was a quiet knock on the door.
“Come in,” I replied and sat up.
Charlie poked his head in. When I nodded for him to come in farther, he swallowed and bowed his head.
“Where’s Claudia?” I asked.
“Outside. She’s playin.’”
“Alone?”
“Yes’um.” Charlie bit his lip and looked down. “We was talkin’.”
“About…” I waited for more. I hoped there wasn’t anything dreadfully wrong.
Charlie walked up to me where I sat in my chair. He looked down into my eyes. “I was thinkin’, some day, when I’m older…”
“Yes?”
“Why don’t we get married?”
I choked on my tea. “Oh, you have been playing with Claudia, haven’t you?”
He shrugged and his eyes glanced aimlessly around him.
“Charlie…don’t take this the wrong way, but you are younger than me.”
“That don’t matter,” he persisted. “You like taking care of me and watching me.”
“Yes, but—”
“So we should—” he cleared his throat and said in a polished tone, “we should become espoused.”
I choked again. But I was genuinely baffled. “Such a nice, long string of words you have there. What has my sister been doing to you, Charlie dear?”
“But don’t you want to get married?”
The door flung open behind Charlie, who leaned over me.
A golden-haired girl with a bouquet of flowers hanging loosely in her fingers stood there, looking tragic. “Married?” she cried in horror. “What about me?”
My head fell in my hands. “Might you two resolve your fuss outside? Please, Charlie?”
Claudia frowned. “I should have known you, Charlie, to go off without me and ask Annabelle to marry you.”
Felix stepped inside. “Hello girls, and Charlie. Why all the long faces?”
“Come outside Claudia and Charlie,” I said quickly, and the three of us went out the door, leaving Felix perplexed inside.
Once outside, I exhaled. “Claudia, I thought your heart was set on a different person,” I whispered.
Claudia sighed and looked off into the distance, where the two older boys played. “Not everything is set in stone. Things can still change.”
I turned to the boy, confused and quiet. “And Charlie, we really don’t need to be discussing things like this at your age. At my age, either.”
“I figured you liked me enough. We can wait though, ‘till I’m older than you, and then do it.”
“I’m afraid you won’t get older than me, Charlie, but that’s beside the point.”
Claudia crossed her arms. “I will never marry anyone ever again!” she cried and stalked off far away.
I didn’t know what she meant by again but I supposed it to be one of her silly games.
“Claudia’s mad,” Charlie despaired, “and it’s my fault, isn’t it?”
“Well, she shouldn’t blow up over small things like this,” I objected. “My siblings have such tempers.”
“But you don’t.”
“I do, a little, but I try to control it,” and I crossed my arms, releasing an angry puff of air that blew the hair out of my face.
Mindless nonsense.
The hours that followed I’m afraid things didn’t get much better.
It was evening and all of us, Artie and Charlie too, sat at the table eating popcorn and rhubarb pie.
Claudia glared at me everytime our eyes met. My mouth was set in a straight, hard line and I refused to look at her anymore.
Henry sensed the tension in the air. “Claudia, can you pass the popcorn?”
Felix passed Claudia the popcorn, who should have passed it to me, but instead she leaned over the table to avoid passing it to me, and then, as she reached the bowl over our plates to Henry, fell, and landed her stomach in the rhubarb pie.
“Claudia!” I cried. I pushed my chair away from the table in a fury.
Henry stared.
“Well, do something Henry!” I demanded. I had let my temper get ahold of me. “It took me ages to make that, and she deliberately destroyed it!”
“Claudia, get a rag and clean your dress,” Henry ordered.
Claudia groaned angrily and shoved past me.
I stood before my chair, my arms crossed.
Artie glanced up at me. “Might still taste good,” he mumbled.
“But it’s ruined,” I said, my face flushed red with embarrassment as my voice broke over so small a thing.
Charlie snickered.
I frowned. “I suppose you think the whole thing is hilarious.”
That set him off, Felix along with him.
“It isn’t funny!” I cried. “Stop laughing, Felix.”
“I’m sorry,” Felix said through his wheezing.
“Why is Claudia angry at you, anyway?” Henry asked and the table regained some silence.
“Well…” I stammered. “She’s angry at Charlie. I don’t know why she should be angry at me.”
“Charlie asked Annabelle to marry him,” came Claudia’s gentle voice that was slightly shaken by tears. “But I thought we were going to marry. We planned a ceremony and everything.”
Artie’s face distorted so horrifyingly that I laughed.
“Don’t you like me anymore, Charlie?” Claudia asked.
Charlie shrugged. “I guess. And Annabelle and Ar—”
“You will stop this foolish talk at once,” I chided. I couldn’t help but glance at Artie who had a strange look on his face. But the corner of his mouth turned up and I saw a hint of merriment.
Henry rolled his eyes and pushed himself away from the table.
“Well,” he cleared his throat. “It is time me and Charlie go back home to the stable.’
“I wish you could spend the night here,” Felix mused.
“You can if you wish,” Henry said, walking away. “There’s enough rooms. Just please do not disturb me as I cleanse my ears.”
I shook my head.
You know, Henry always washed his ears after an unwanted argument. That was just a little quirk of his.
“I’m sorry for losing my patience,” I turned to my sister.
“I apologize to you also, ” she said, holding up her chin.
It was silent for a moment.
And then we all burst out laughing.
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