A Rose By Any Other Name

by Nona Mae King

  *

  Natalie smiled. "Hi, Red. How did it go?"

  "Good." Red stretched before lying down in front of Natalie with a deep breath. "It felt good to be on a type of quest. Haven't done so in months."

  "Did you find a waterwheel?"

  Red nodded and set to the duty of thoroughly licking the trail dust from his paws and fur. "Yes," he said between licks. "Quite a large one."

  "Really? Oh good. Then we shouldn't need to worry about the speed of the water damaging it, at least not for a long time." Natalie wiped the tuna-juice from her fingers and set the sandwich aside. Then she stood to her feet and made her way over to the cliff, looking over with her hands on her hips. "There's a little ledge here, so that would probably be the best. That way we can have someone go down on regular intervals to do maintenance and such. Hm." Natalie examined the other side of the river. "If it's big enough, we might even be able to secure it from both sides. That way it would be even more sturdy and long-lasting. What do you think?"

  "A very wise precaution," Red agreed as he sat down beside her. "And I do believe the wheel is large enough to do that very thing."

  "Oh good. I was hoping we wouldn't need to install double wheels. Then you have the problem of making them able to run at different intervals, so that you don't have to secure them to run the same." Natalie shivered. "Saves time, that's for sure."

  Red nodded, still staring down at the rushing and raging waters below. "How is the generator coming along? Did you need any help?"

  Natalie sighed, lowering herself to a sitting position beside Red. "I don't think I can do it by myself. I have already made a mistake that cost a circuit board and the hour or two of time it will take to replace it."

  Red looked over at her. "Then don't attempt to do it by yourself," he said, matter-of-fact. "Vincent and I understand the concept almost as much as you do, Natalie. There's no reason for you to not ask for help, nor for us to keep it from you."

  Natalie flushed as she tucked an imaginary curl behind her ear. "Bad habit."

  "One that you will try harder to break?"

  She chuckled, finally meeting Red's gaze. "Yes, sir."

  Red smiled. Then he licked her face, purring as he rubbed his cheek against hers. "I am the last one to enjoy scolding, Natalie. Thank you for understanding."

  She scrubbed him behind the ears before standing to her feet. "Why shouldn't I understand? I deserved that one."

  "Yes, but that is generally when we don't want to hear the scolding."

  Natalie conceded the point with a nod. "Now that I understand."

  Red headed toward the would-be generator. "Shall we do our best to fix what is broken?"

  She followed. "Yes. Please. Any moment I will start pulling my hair out, and no one wants to see that mess."

  Red looked over the pages in the book as Natalie sat beside him and started explaining what she accomplished thus far.

  "It's just so frustrating," Natalie confessed once she'd finished her explanation. "I have this itch in the back of my head that something isn't right, but I simply cannot put my finger on it."

  Red nodded. "Yes, and now the frustration serves only to cloud your mind to the possible solution."

  "I know," Natalie agreed with wide eyes and a raised hand. "That's why I was having dinner. Vincent thought I needed a break. I agreed."

  Red didn't raise his eyes from the book. "Once he and Yuffie arrive with the wheel, why don't you and he see about plotting the mechanism for the wind tunnel."

  "No."

  Red lifted his eyes. "Pardon?"

  "We need to get the cliff ready for the insertion of the wheel," she reminded, pointing toward the ledge.

  "Of course," Red said, patient. "Yuffie already has plans to do that."

  "She'll need--"

  "No," Red interrupted. "She won't need your help. She won't need Vincent's. We have a rope ladder, which we will fasten tightly to the top of the cliff here and lower below."

  "But, Red--"

  "Natalie."

  Natalie took in a deep breath and released it slowly. "Very well. I'm sorry, papa."

  Red smiled. "I hardly think that's called for."

  Laughing, she gestured to the innards of the box. "Any ideas?"

  Red nodded as he looked within. "As a matter of fact, yes, but only due to the past history of watching my grandfather repair his refrigerator."

  "You're kidding."

  Red shook his head. "I'll walk you through it."

  "Thank you." Natalie picked up her tools. "Let's get busy."