Senta and Hero stood side-by-side on the steps of the Church of the Apostles. Hero held the fussy baby Senta. Her own Senta rode horsy back on her father across the lawn, while Benny Jr. rode his Uncle Hertzel. All four seemed heedless of the stay off the grass sign. The adult Senta cradled the sleeping Hannabeth Markham.
“It’s too much, really,” said Hero. “I don’t think Benny will allow it.”
“If he has a problem with it, he can tell me,” said the sorceress. “I don’t care if he approves or not. I’m paying for her college education. You said you wanted your Senta to be special. What’s more special that a proper college educated lady?”
“I don’t know. Do I know any proper educated ladies?”
“Mrs. Government.”
“Oh,” said Hero with a frown.
“Egeria Korlann.”
“Oh, well she’s okay.”
“Of course, if you don’t like that plan, we could always just trade. I’ll take your little Senta and you can take mine.”
“Don’t even joke about that,” said Hero, and then changing topics. “What did the police inquest decide?”
The sorceress shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t go.
“Um, aren’t you worried?”
“If they want to track me down, I won’t be hard to find.”
Benny Markham walked up, carrying his eldest child under one arm like a sack of potatoes. He kissed his wife on the cheek. Right behind him was his brother-in-law, now out of breath, with Benny Jr. on his shoulders.
“Look, you’ve both ruined the knees of your trousers,” said Hero.
“You’ve got to have fun while you have the chance,” said Benny.
Hertzel nodded.
Benny tickled the chin of the blond baby.
“Would you like to play horsey?”
“You don’t have time,” said his wife. “The ceremony is going to start in just a few minutes.”
“I don’t think anyone expected you to be here,” Benny whispered to the sorceress. “They just send the Drache Girl an invitation out of respect. It’s like sending one to the governor.”
Senta nodded her head in the direction of the street and the others turned to see a car driven by Governor Staff and containing her husband and her daughter pull up and park, two tires completely up on the sidewalk.
They turned and filed into the church, taking their places toward the back on the right hand side. It wasn’t a packed house by any means. Less than a hundred people, about equally divided between the groom’s and bride’s sides, filled the front third of the pews. As the Markham party was getting settled in, the governor’s family filed past toward an empty pew in the front. Iolana Staff waved as she passed. A mechanical music player began the first chords of Kafira’s Marriage. They all turned to watch Wenda Lanier walking down the aisle to where Father Galen and Walter Charmley awaited her.
“It’s nice that her mother could come,” whispered Hero, gesturing to where Melody Wardlaw, the mother of the bride, sat near the front, still wearing a metal brace outside of her dress.
“I just hope Wenda knows what she’s getting into,” whispered Benny.
“What do you mean?” asked Senta.
“Nothing. Never mind.”
* * * * *
The following day was a warm one. Iolana and her friends Dovie Liklighter and Willa Tice sat at a small table in the gazebo on the west side of the Dechantagne Staff garden. Dovie, wearing a bright pink day dress stood out from the other two girls, who wore simple black skirts, white blouses, and black neckties. A pair of microraptors squawked loudly from a nearby tree as Iolana poured the tea, and she glanced up with a frown.
“No matter how much trouble you go to, there is always something that’s going to budge it up.” She looked at the young lizzie sitting on the gazebo steps. “Esther, go throw a rock at those birds.”
“Oh, let them alone,” said Willa. “We can put up with a few noisy birds.”
“As long as it’s just the little ones,” said Dovie. “I nearly died when I saw that tyrannosaurus the other day.”
“Figuratively and literally,” said Iolana.
“Well, no. I wasn’t really in danger, at least not from the dinosaur. I could have been burnt alive in the fire though.”
“There wasn’t too much damage was there?” asked Willa.
“The shop will be closed for a week,” Dovie replied. “I don’t mind that at all. I think my mum can do with a rest. The sorceress paid for the building repair and the damaged stock.”
“As well she should,” said Willa, to which Dovie nodded.
“I’m worried about Mum though. I think she thought Abner Winton might ask her to marry him.”
“She’ll find somebody better,” said Iolana.
The two looked to their hostess to find an enigmatic smile in the corner of her lips.
“What are you on about?” Willa asked her.
“I’m just enjoying the fact that I have friends for tea. Care for a biscuit?”
They ate their sugary treats and talked of things that were both unimportant and vitally important—like what type of handbag would be fashionable in the fall and whether they were old enough to wear dresses that showed some of their backs. They were alerted to a new arrival when Esther hissed. Turning toward the front corner of the house, they saw Questa Hardt timidly approaching. Iolana stepped down the steps from the gazebo and met the girl several feet away.
“Good day,” she said.
“Hello,” said Questa, her smooth umber skin tinged with green. She looked like she wanted to say something else, but just stood wringing her hands.
“That’s a lovely dress,” offered Iolana.
Questa’s day dress was very pretty. It was the latest style, much more in fashion than Dovie’s, light blue and decorated with little bluebirds over the breast.
“Thank you. I… I… I’m sorry, um… I’m interrupting your tea.”
“Would you like to join us?”
“Yes, but first I have to say something. I’m sorry. I’m sorry for being so horrid to you. I’m sorry for being a part of that group… you know, the girls that tease you. They used to tease me too, because my mother is Mirsannan. I shouldn’t have had anything to do with them, but when they seemed to want me with them, I was pleased just to have friends.”
“I know just what you mean.”
“When they wanted to play that terrible trick on you, I was just so happy because… because it wasn’t me. They were horrible to you and I was right there with them. Then one day at the trolley stop, I looked and saw just how ugly Sherree and Talli are inside. I ran away screaming!”
Iolana’s face scrunched up as she tried very hard not to burst out into a grin.
“I haven’t been able to look at either one of them since.”
Pulling the girl to her, Iolana gave her a hug; at last unable to keep her teeth from showing.
“You’re forgiven. Come and join us.”
Taking the dark-skinned girl’s hand, she led her to the gazebo steps.
“Girls, this is Questa Hardt. Questa, this is Dovie Liklighter, Willa Tice, and um… Esther.” She called to Kayden who was watching from the back corner of the garden. “Have them send out more tea and two more cups!”
“You want some tea too, don’t you?” she asked Esther.
The lizzie bobbed her head up and down.
* * * * *
Senta’s garden looked so much smaller with the massive form of the steel dragon curled up in it. Both his gigantic head and his barbed tail rested on the grass near the wrought iron furniture where the sorceress reclined. The baby crawled across the lawn, finally stopping to tug on the great beast’s whiskers. The long forked tongue shot out to flick over her fine blond hair.
“She’s retarded,” said the dragon.
“Nonsense. All human children are dull.”
“I don’t mean this one.” He pointed up into the sky where the tiny coral dragon was circling. “That one. She’s not growing fast enough and she doesn’t seem very bright either. Are you sure she’s getting enough nutrition?”
“Her name is Zoantheria, and dragons do everything at their own pace,” said Senta. “You should know that better than anyone. And you have to be nicer. She may grow up to be your wife one day.”
“That’s ridiculous,” said Bessemer. “Dragons don’t have wives. I’m sure she will someday worship me like all the other reptiles on the continent.”
“Ooh, a few years on your own and you’re already having delusions of grandeur.”
“There’s nothing delusional about it,” he said. “I am grand.”
“Well, I’m glad you could grace my garden. How long are you staying?”
“A day or two. I can’t really be gone any longer. My people need me.”
“Your people?”
“You know what I mean. Now there are prospectors streaming into their lands looking for gold. There is bound to be trouble. It’s a lot of responsibility,” he sighed. “We could change places if you like.”
“No thank you. I’m sure I’d make just as ugly a dragon as you make a man.”
“But you could come visit.”
“Yes, I could come visit. I hear you’ve been visiting Port Dechantagne in my absence.”
“I had to see Geert and Maro. They’re family.”
“And young Miss Staff?”
“I confess,” said the dragon. “She is one of my favorites.”
“I’m glad you’ve kept an eye on things.”
“How is Hero?” he asked.
“Beautiful.”
“And Hertzel.”
“He’s… well, he’s Hertzel. You know what I mean?”
“Yes. What about Saba?”
“What about him?” She narrowed her eyes.
“Just asking how he is.”
“I don’t really know.” Senta stood up and picked up the tea tray. “I’ll be right back.”
As she stepped inside, she came face to face with Baxter.
“You can’t leave Senta out there with that beast,” he said.
“She’s safer now than she’s ever been.”
“It’s him, isn’t it? It’s that police inspector.”
“What?”
“You know what. He’s her father.”
“I thought you didn’t care who he was,” she said, but seeing the look on his face, she softened. “I already told you that I don’t love him.”
“But you don’t love me either.”
She sat the tray down on an occasional table and wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’m very fond of you.”
“But do you love me?” he asked.
“I think I might, actually.” She blinked her grey eyes. “I said you have me for as long as you want me.”
* * * * *
Despite the warm summer, fall came early to Port Dechantagne. The winds whipped in from the west and the third week of Novuary saw seven solid days of rain. This didn’t slow down the wave of immigrants coming into the colony and by the end of the month the tide of new arrivals had actually increased, as news of a gold discovery made its way to Mallontah.
Iolana Livonia Dechantagne Staff finished the box of Rikkard Banks Tatum books and returned them. She finished the first draft of her history of Birmisia Colony, but put it away to revise at a later date. She wouldn’t return to it for almost a year. Her friendship with Dovie Liklighter and Questa Hardt grew closer, as did her relationship with her cousins Augie and Terra, whom along with DeeDee Colbshallow she continued to tutor. In Decius, she formally added Esther the lizzie to her small class.
Sherree Glieberman seemed to have permanently split from Talli Archer. However, she filled the void when she started dating Maro McCoort, ending Iolana’s hopes of being a permanent fixture in his yellow steam carriage.
Walter and Wenda Charmley continued to operate their dinosaur ranch, and Wenda expressed no bewilderment at the fact that her husband, one day each week, claimed to be his brother. Since she didn’t seem to mind, nobody else did either.
Theirs was not the only notable marriage though. On Decius 17th, Gabrielle Bassett married Mr. Kaspar Drake. Benny and Hero Markham served as the best man and the matron of honor, while Senta and Dutty Morris served as bride’s maids.
Seifer Caldell was tried and convicted of willful destruction of public property, attempted mayhem, and criminal anarchy. He was executed by hanging Decius 25th. Mrs. Wardlaw who had been injured in Caldell’s bombing fully recovered and returned to work as Governor Staff’s secretary, working out of the governor’s home until the Gurrman building was restored.
Senta held numerous get-togethers at her home during the fall months, though she found little reason to step beyond her gates. Her little dragon, Zoantheria, flew off to hunt in the forest, but like her mistress was seldom seen in Port Dechantagne. By contrast, Kieran Baxter could be found around town on a daily basis, usually with baby Senta in his arms. They frequented the cafés and as the baby began to walk, the parks, sometimes with Senta’s brother Peter Bassington in tow.
* * * * *
“I’m sorry. I never even had the chance to get close to her. Those two idiots tried to steal her power, as if they had any chance of containing that kind of magical energy. All they did was ruin it for me. There is no way that she would trust me enough to let me get close to her now.”
Pantagria stood up and crossed the distance between them, as the purple flowers stretched to get out from beneath her feet, their all-too-human eyes looking up pleadingly. Her hair had grown back out and the great scabs that had covered her naked body were almost healed.
“It’s all right. Don’t fret. I know you did your best, my little wizard.” She ran her hand over Obed Bell’s sunken cheeks. “The sorceress will pay eventually. But first I need to find my way to your world.”
“I’ll do anything I can for you,” he said.
“I know you will. I know you will. It will take time, but someday we will be together. I will breathe the air of the real world. I will taste and feel and exalt in all the sensations of the real world. With your help. With your help, and that machine…
The End