“Mathias, you’re usually up for a good game. Let’s ditch the boring one over there and have a go around the estate,” Thad suggested fixing his deep blue eyes on him.
“I am afraid this time the boring one is right,” Mathias replied, grinning at Leath, “Your lessons will play a crucial roll in the development of your character. ”
Thad gave Mathias a weird look, “What does that mean?”
“It means your lessons are important,” Leath interjected, tiring of the games Thad always played.
“Then why didn’t he just say that?” Thaddeus grumbled.
“Because I am smarter that's why,” Mathias stated.
“That’s a dumb reason,” Thad responded scowling.
“Enough. School….Now,” Leath demanded trying to avoid Thad’s puppy dog face.
“But it’s summer. Who goes to school in the summer?” Thad complained.
“Good boys who want to grow up and be smart.”
“But I already am smart,” Thad shot back.
“Really,” Leath replied raising an eyebrow, “Can you tell me what part of your brain is responsible for controlling your emotions?”
“That’s easy, the frontal lobe, more specifically the Limbic System,” Thad replied crossing his arms in satisfaction.
“Oh, so you know that one. Good for you,” Leath replied completely taken off guard.
Thad stood there with a huge smirk plastered across his face. “Anything else you want to teach me?” He asked.
“Keep up that attitude young man and I will put you on dish duty for a month,” Leath warned.
Realizing he’d lost the fight Thad gave in. “Fine,” He sulked. With his bottom lip jutting out as far as it would go, he hunched his shoulders and dragged his feet across the veranda floor. He plopped down in front of a large white board displaying today’s lesson.“Oh I just can’t wait to learn, “How to understand my emotions,” ” Thad grumbled, reading the heading.
Leath ignored Thad’s comment and begun the lesson.
“So how is our young protégé coming along?” The Professor asked Zyphera as he joined her at the window. They watched with amusement as Leath and Mathias struggled to keep Thad’s attention.
“Hard to say, those two arepretty hopeless as teachers,” she replied shaking her head. “To think they are the top of their species!” She laughed.
“Good thing they are not the only ones teaching him,” The Professor grinned.
“He is smarter than any other eight year old I have met,” Zyphera admitted a hint of a pride in her voice, “And it is getting harder and harder to keep him intellectually stimulated,” She added.
“I am feeling the strains of confining his lessons to those only of this world too. I think his adventurous spirit is feeling there is so much more out there to explore,” The Professor agreed.
“I see that too. He gets so restless it’s like he’s vibrating,” She chuckled.
“I definitely see that,” The Professor agreed. “Do you think the time has come to tell him?” He wondered, not bothering to cover up the sadness in his voice, “He is still so young, his spirit so innocent and carefree. I can’t stand the thought of taking that away,” His eyes filled with tears.
Zyphera took his hand and gave an encouraging squeeze. “We can’t keep him locked away on these grounds forever,” she whispered. “And we definitely cannot stop him from growing up.”
The Professor nodded his head. “I am still trying to comprehend the amount of time that’s passed. Feels like only yesterday we were thrown into this house a jumbled mess of mismatched people. Now look at us,” pausing for a moment, “We are a family.”
Zyphera smiled. “Nothing will change that. You'll know when the time is right. I too, am sorry it has come sooner than expected.”
“I just want him to be a kid. I want to keep that innocent childhood wonder alive in his eyes,” The Professor inhaled deeply.
“Everything will work out in the end. You will see,” Zyphera assured The Professor as he pushed open the Veranda door.
“Sometimes I wonder if the universe just has a cruel sense of humor,” The Professor murmured, disappearing through the open door.
“Grandpa!” Thad shrieked as he saw the Professor approach. Quickly he jumped up from his chair and ran into the old man’s open arms.
“Thad my dear boy, are you giving these two a hard time?” The Professor asked patting the boy on the head as he gave him a squeeze.
“Never!” Thad answered, mischief beaming across his face.
“What say we skip today’s lessons and take a field trip,” The Professor suggested.
Thad’s blue eyes glowed, his head bobbing vigorously “Oh yes, yes, yes, yes please!” he begged excitedly.
“Such good manners you have,” The Professor laughed.
Leath and Mathias mouths dropped open, poised to question, but a look from the Professor promptly shushed them.
“Where are we going Grandpa?” Thad asked excitedly as he skipped along beside him.
“I thought you would enjoy having a, lets call it a practical day of lessons,” The Professor replied, taking in the joy on the little boy’s face. “Besides you and I have not had a day all to ourselves in quite some time,” He added with a grin.
“Can we go down to the river and see if any fish are swimming there today? Can we, can we, can we please,” Thad begged, pulling at his Grandfather’s arm.
“Sure we can. That sounds like a marvelous idea!”
A sad sigh escaped his lips as he watched Thad go running on ahead. He knew this day would one day come, the day he would take Thaddeus in his lap and explain to him the very unbelievable reason for why he was here.
They arrived at the river. Bartholomew watched as Thad excitedly took off his shoes and socks and dipped his feet in the cool water. He squealed in delight as little minnows nibbled his toes.
“See any big fish?” Bartholomew asked.
Thad shook his head, “Nope, just some small ones,” his voice full of delight. He looked up at his Grandfather and yelled “Well what are you waiting for the water isn’t that cold!”
Bartholomew smiled as he carefully made his way down the river bank. He wandered over to a large boulder, removed his socks and shoes then slowly waded in.
"Oh my stars above, it’s freezing,” He exclaimed, his teeth chattering as the water lapped his calves.
Thad giggled. “I hear cold water therapy has amazing benefits for old tired bones!”
The two splashed around the river for hours trying their luck at catching minnows, racing leaves on the current, and seeing who could hold their breath the longest. For the time being all the worries of the world melted away from Bartholomew’s mind, drifting down the bubbling water of the river.His thoughts were interupted as Thad called out to him.
"Watch this Grandpa!"
Bartholomew watched as Thad climbed up the a small rock face and jumped off a ledge. His cannon ball sent ripples of water out in all directions.
“If only things could stay this way forever,” He thought, swimming to where Thad surfaced.
“Bet ya I can make a bigger splash!” He boasted, giving Thad a wink
“Prove it,” Thad challenged, his face aglow with glee.
He watched his Grandfather climb out of the water onto the ledge. Taking a running start, he jumped as far as he could. SPLASH, droplets of water sprayed over Thad, who was laughing so hard he could barely keep afloat.
“Not bad for an old man eh,” Bartholomew gloated, when his head emerged a few feet behind Thad.
Thad put his arms around his Grandfather and smiled. “You’re not that old Grandpa.”
“Old enough to get tired a lot sooner than I use too,” He declared, swinging Thad onto his back. “Hang on.”
The two swam back to shore. Gathering their socks and shoes they made their way back to the house.
“I love you Grandpa,” Thad said taking Bartholomew’s hand, looking up with
a giant smile, “We are going to be together forever, right?”
Bartholomew smiled down at the young boy. “Of course we are my dear. Nothing will ever separate us,” he said kissing the top of Thad’s messy haired head, “You will always be my boy.”
A day in the life of....
The next morning Thad woke with great excitment. Today he had music lessons with Zyphera and then cooking class with Miss Mirdy. He made his bed before rushing down the stairs to the kitchen. Zyphera was already waiting with her favorite mug in hand, sipping her morning cup of tea.
“Hey Zyphy.”
Zyphera smiled back, putting a finger to her lips. Thad went quiet. He let out a small giggle when he realized why Zyphera had shushed him.
“I shot the sheriff, but I did not shot the deputy. I shot the sheriff but I swear it was in self defense.” Leath shouted at the top of his lungs while he showered.
For the last eight years this was a ritual of Leath’s and he had yet to figure out he almost always had an audience.
“Bob Marley again,” Thad deduced, cracking a huge smile.
“Yup. Thank goodness too! I was getting rather tired of hearing, ““RRRROOOOXXXX anne, you don’t have to put on the red light...”” she screeched, mimicking Leath.
Thad nodded his head in agreement as the two giggled away.
Even though Zyphera was the music teacher in the house, there was no denying who was the most knowledgeable. Leath introduced every style of music to the house as humanly possible. He had everything. The classicals of Mozart, Gershwin, Bach and Chopin. All the old crooners like Frank Sinatra, Nat king Cole, Bing Crosby, and Dean Martin. All sorts of disco, dance and hip hop as well as the good old freedom singers of the sixties and seventies.
But Leath’s favorite music was the rock and roll of the late eighties and nineties. Sting and the Police, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Nirvana, Metallica, Pearl Jam, Guns n Roses, Iron Maiden, Duran Duran, Journey, and just about anyone who had a band from that era. More often then not, the early morning hours would be promptly awakened by “Leath, the shower singing sensation.”
Thad and Zyphera had just finished their breakfast as the music man himself entered the kitchen. Even after eight years of living together, and constant rejection, Leath was still as charming as ever when it came to Zyphera.
“Good morning my little ray of sunshine,” He greeted her, grinning away like the Cheshire cat. “Morning Squirm,” he added, ruffling Thad’s dark shaggy blonde hair. “Did you dream of me last night?” he asked winking at Zyphera.
“Definitely not,” she sneered in an overly exaggerated disgusted tone.
Thad stifled a laugh. It was always humorous to watch the way those two interacted. “Here is a great lesson on human behavior,” he thought to himself,
“Leath is a better teacher than he gives himself credit for.”
Thad often wondered if Zyphera truly disliked Leath as much as she claimed, or if it was all a big rouse to cover her own feelings for him. He had caught her staring dreamily at Leath more than once.
Finally Thad could take Leath’s excessive sweet talk no longer. “Zyphy I think it is time we start our day,” he suggested, hopping down from the island stool.
“Right behind you Thad,” she said quickly following suit.
“Tootle Lou my little dream catcher,” Leath called out. “I’ll miss you,” he shouted loud enough for her to hear.
Zyphera groaned as they climbed the stairs to the music room.
“Why don’t you tell him to stop?” Thad asked, curious about her response.
“I have, on many occasions,” she told him with a heavy sigh. “I eventually gave up and decided to suffer in silence in the hopes that one day he’ll get tired of the whole charade.”
Thad chuckled. “I doubt that will happen.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“So what are we learning about today?” Thad asked, changing the topic and the mood.
“Today we are studying the healing powers of music,” Zyphera informed him cheerily, glad for the shift in conversation.
“Sounds incredibly fascinating,” Thad mumbled.
“Are you mocking me?” Zyphera raised an eyebrow, casting a suspicious glance his way.
“Absolutely not,” Thad insisted, as if shocked by her accusation.
“Go sit down,” She instructed, shaking her head while gently pushing him towards his seat.
Thad loved being in the music room. Its architecture enchanted his imaginiation. The room encompassed the entire left hand side of the second and third floors. Two of its walls were constructed out of massive windows, many of which were adorned with delicate stain glass designs lovingly pieced together. When the sun shone through, it cast pleasant arrays of color across the entire room making you feel as though you were swallowed by a rainbow.
The amber colored maple floor sported a giant plush rug. Scattered around its borders were the many instruments played by the various inhabitants of the house. Mathias was gifted with musical abilities much like Zyphera was. He played the Guitar, Harmonica, Percussions and Bass Cello. Zyphera played the Piano, Violin, Guitar, Flute and Harp. Thad could never keep his eyes from closing every time Zyphera’s long delicate fingers strummed the golden strings on her Harp.
He remembered her sitting by his bed for hours on end when he was younger, playing till her fingers were sore helping him deal with his nightmares. He smiled at the memory. He had started to pretend he was afraid, just to hear her play.
“Earth to Thaddeus,” Zyphera interrupted his thoughts, waving a hand inches from his nose.
“Hum... what, oh sorry, I was thinking about something,” He replied sheepishly.
Zyphera grinned. “I could tell!”
Thad's cheeks changed a shade pinker. “What did I miss?”
“I was asking you to close your eyes and concentrate on a sad memory,” She replied getting comfy on the old wood piano bench.
“A sad memory,” Thad repeated, puzzled by her intentions.
“I want the emotions of the memory to envelope you. Then I will play some music and we’ll see what happens next."
Skepticism covered Thad's face, “You’re the teacher.”
“It is just an experiment to show you how much music affects our emotions,” She explained with a smile.
He closed his eyes, probing his mind for the objective of his lesson.
“When you have one, let me know,” Zyphera instructed.
Thad scrolled through his memories in search of something sad. It was more challenging that he expected. His life was relatively happy, surrounded by people he loved and who loved him. He even made friends with the numerous animals they kept in the barn. But there was one person who was not around, his mother. The person who bore him into this world with much pain, was not around to hug him, kiss him or hold him if he was afraid. He would never know the sensation of a mother’s unconditional love. He could only imagine what she looked like, and he imagined he looked just like her.
Thad gave Zyphera the thumbs up. He’d found a memory, or what he thought was a memory.
Zyphera softly touched the ivory keys on the old baby grand piano. A soothing love song floated out, drifting around the room like a care free cloud. Thad listened to the sweet sounds, still concentrating on the sadness of his mother. Slowly he felt the sadness drifting away, dancing and twirling among the music notes like he imagined his mother did with him as a baby. Happiness squirmed into his heart. A little smile played across his face. That was the cue Zyphera was looking for.
She lifted her fingers from the keys. “Feel better?” she smiled.
“Actually, I do,” Thad said quite surprised.
"Do you mind if I ask what you where thinking about?” Zyphera inquired.
"I was thinking about my mother and how I have no memories of her. I don’t even know her name,” he said sadly. “But then I began to imagine her as an angel and how she really is here with me
and keeps me safe.” His face brightened a bit.
Zyphera’s heart flooded with guilt. She, along with the rest of the Sentry, agreed to keep as much of Thad’s life a secret, including the truth about his mother.
“Well I am glad this lesson has helped you,” Zyphera said sincerely. “If you like, we could always ask your Grandfather what he knows about your mother,” she suggested, thinking back to the conversation with The Professor about Thad’s future.
“I would like that,” Thad nodded.
Sentry Rising Page 8