Miss Enchanter - Ophelia's Story (3 page)

“Hi Thelma. Don’t you
guys have a T.V. anywhere around here?”

“No, never saw the
need for one really. Although, I did spend a lot of time watching
it with the Gaunter family.’ Thelma answered.

“So then, are we
going to get one?”

“One what, dear?”

“
A television
set”
Duhhhh
she added to herself.

“No. Have you given
any thought to what you might like to do, dear?”

“Do about what?”
Ophelia asked.

“
Have you given
any thought to what you want to do with your time while you are
here in Enchanted? Do you like to bake, or clean, or teach? Would
you like to be a sales associate, or do you prefer working with
your hands? There are a lot of opportunities for you.” Thelma
said.

“I thought that I
would start out by watching television and seeing what the local
channels have to offer. Are you saying that I have to get a
job?”

“If you want to eat
there are farmers and cooks, restaurant workers too. If you like
pretty clothes, there are people who sew them and sale them. We as
a people, like people everywhere, work as a team. We all do our
share.”

“Only we are not like
ordinary people, are we? We have special powers. Can’t you just
blink or snap your fingers or something and create dinner, or a
television?” Ophelia asked.

Patients was
never one of Thelma’s strong points. Ophelia was well past the age
where she should be babied, she had to be over ninety years old by
now
, even though physically
she was still a beautiful very young lady. Instead of pointing her
age out to her, Thelma took a sip of her coffee and continued to
read. “You don’t have to decide today, dear, take a day or two and
think about it if you wish.”

“I met Sebastian
earlier, he was taking the rest of his stuff from the smaller
house.” Ophelia said.

Thelma was glad
that the conversation turned back to n
eutral ground. “Sebastian and his family are very
nice, he did a very good job around here too, kept everything in
tip top shape.”

“Who is going to be
doing all of that work now?” Ophelia asked.

“
There is not
that much to do in the winter months. We are not usually in town
then, but there are special exceptions, like this year. Sebastian
has already made sure that enough wood is cut for the fireplaces
and there is always plenty of cooking and baking supplies and other
necessities here. If you need something that you don’t see, just
let me know and we can obtain it for you.” Thelma said, looking
down at her book and adjusting her glasses, a clear signal that she
intended to get back to her reading.

“Sebastian said that
you gave his son Twinkle the cat.”

“That is
correct.”

“How? I mean, I
thought you were the cat when his wife and her son lived in this
house, wasn’t that part of the deal, they watch the cat and you
watch them?”

“Yes, but when Luna,
Hugo and I left here, we placed a regular cat in the house so that
was not a problem. It was the actual cat that Cody took with him to
their new house.”

“That makes sense.
Where does Luna and Hugo live?”

“They have a
beautiful home deep in the woods. They prefer it to city life.”

“
Hugo as a deer
though, that it strange.” When Thelma did not comment on her
comment, Ophelia went into her bedroom, shed her clothes and fixed
herself a hot soapy bubble bath in the red clawed bathtub. She
found some very nice smelling bath salts, even better than Sarah
Gaunter had in her downstairs bathroom that Ophelia had gotten into
right before they left there.

When Ophelia
got out of the bath, she noticed that it was dark outside already.
She walked into the living room and then the kitchen, but did not
see Thelma. Ophelia was not tired, she had slept most of the day.
She wondered what people did for fun in this town. She started to
get dressed, but then heard the wind howling outside and saw the
snow falling heavily when she looked out her bedroom window.
Maybe it’s not such a
good idea to go exploring the town tonight.

This had been
only her first full day in Enchanted and true, she had slept away
most of it
, also true that the
weather was bad outside, but it was bad everywhere, even on the
other side. For the first time, Ophelia wondered if her mother had
been bored here as well. Was that why she left Enchanted? Ophelia
had been so busy blaming her mother for where they were living, and
why, that she never actually sat down and talked to her rationally
about it.

Truth was, Gertie
never spoke much about Enchanted either. Whenever Ophelia told her
mother that she was going to run away and find Enchanted, Gertie
would get a look on her face that was part fear, but also part
sadness. Ophelia knew that her mother had been a great beauty in
her youth. Flame read hair and very beautiful, by anyone’s
standards. Ophelia was always proud that she took after her mother
in that department.

Ophelia put on a pair
of silk pajamas and a soft robe and went to sit by the fire. She
was hungry, haven only eaten the toast when she woke up as far as a
meal goes. She got up and went into the kitchen to look for
something to eat. She found several good choices, but didn’t feel
like cooking, specially knowing she would be expected to clean up
after herself if she did.

When she was
stuck living with Mrs. Johnson, nothing was expected of her. Mrs.
Johnson did all the cooking and cleaning and all Ophelia did was
sleep and eat and keep the old lady company while she watched
television. It certainly wasn’t the kind of life that she had
wanted then, and she did not want that now.

Ophelia made herself
a sandwich and poured herself a glass of milk and went to sit by
the fire again. She had also found a supply of chocolates, but she
had eaten so much at the Chocolate Shop upon their arrival into the
Village, that Ophelia was determined to stick to a more healthy
diet.

She walked back
into her bedroom and sat on the window seat and watched the snow
fall as she ate. She didn’t know if having all of this time
to just think would be good, but it
occurred to her that it was the first time in many years, since she
had jumped into Mrs. Johnson’s vehicle right before it took off,
that thinking might actually be a requirement.

Oh it was true
that she brainstormed with her cousin Thelma when they were
planning their escape, but everything had happened so quickly and
Ophelia relied on Thelma so much, that actually very little of the
planning was due to any great skill of Ophelia’s.

Ophelia finished her
sandwich and milk and continued to watch the falling snow until she
finally became sleepy. She then walked over and laid on her bed and
fell fast asleep.

“Would you like to go
into town today, Ophelia?” Thelma asked her when Ophelia walked
into the kitchen the next morning.

“Sure! Are we going
to go shopping?”

“
If there is
something that you need, you can get it. I just thought it would be
fun for you to see the Village. The hotel has an indoor pool if you
like to swim, we could go by there. The weather is supposed to be
better today, so it would be a good day for you to see what
Enchanted has to offer.” Thelma said, handing Ophelia a mug of
chocolate coffee.

“This coffee is
excellent, but do you have any other flavors?”

“
How about
caramel, mint, vanilla, hazelnut, coconut, cherry, pumpkin, orange,
even blueberry and that is only a partial list. There is also
caffeine free, has to be with all the coffee consumed around here.
Is there any place you would like to start the tour in
town?”

“How about a
restaurant to get some breakfast?” Ophelia said picking up a
blueberry muffin from the table.

“We can do that.
Ophelia, would you like me to show you how to cook? At least some
basic dishes? It just occurred to me that you probably haven’t
cooked in a very long time.”

“The last time I made
cookies, there was a board in the stove that we put the cookies on
to keep from falling off. Is there any healthy food in Enchanted?
All the chocolate and sweets are wonderful, but a girl has to watch
her figure.”

“
Of course.
Especially in the warm months, we have quite an extensive garden in
the back here, and none of our meats have preservatives in them. If
you are ready to go into the Village I will go round up
Caramel.”

“Sounds good to
me!

Thelma and
Ophelia made their way to the hill in the wagon which was being
pulled by Caramel. Each time they hit a slight pothole Ophelia
would make a remark. Thelma held her tongue, but it wasn’t easy.
When they got to the hill and walked up it, Ophelia noticed a
building that had a sign indicating that it was a Recreation
Hall.

“A rec hall, do they
have dances there, Thelma?”

“We had a very large
Halloween party last time I was here, we had dancing and games and
it was a very big festival. You would have loved it.” Thelma told
her.

“So, when is the next
big blow out party going to be?”

“
With this
winter the way it is, I am not sure. Like I mentioned, we do not
usually stick around in the winter time. I am sure they probably
schedule some sort of Christmas party or New Year’s Eve party
there.”

“
Christmas is a
long ways off. I was thinking of somewhere I could go tonight to
dance and have some fun.” Ophelia said. “I haven’t had any fun in
decades!”

Thelma and Ophelia
walked into the restaurant and Ophelia’s eyes immediately zeroed in
on a tall young man with blond hair and blue eyes. “Hello.” She
said as she brushed past him to get to a table.

“Hello. Oh, hi
Thelma, this must be your cousin Ophelia.” The young man said
turning to look at Ophelia for the first time. “My name is Tom. I’m
just leaving, but Jill should be here to take your order in a
moment or two. Take care.”

O
phelia shook the young
man’s hand as he offered it to her, then watched as he walked out
the door. “O.K., Thelma, don’t tell me he is married
too.”

“
Not yet, but I
am working on it.” Said the young lady with a big smile walked up
to their table. “Hi, I am Jill, I see you’ve met my
boyfriend.”

“Jill, this is my
cousin Ophelia.” Thelma said.

“
Hello, Jill,
nice looking boyfriend. I am starving! What is the special for
today?” Ophelia said looking at the menu Jill handed her and
feeling a bit embarrassed that Jill had overheard her talking about
her boyfriend.

Thelma and Ophelia
each ordered a large breakfast and then Thelma studied her cousin’s
face. “Why the glum look, Ophelia?”

“Enchanted just isn’t
what I expected is all.” She answered.

“So tell me what you
expected.” Thelma questioned.

“I had the impression
that Enchanted is a wonderful place where all your dreams can come
true and that you and Luna had a big part in making that
happen.”

“
That is true.
But to be happy, truly happy, you have to know what you want and
understand what it takes it get it and to keep it. Nothing is just
handed to you on a silver platter here.”

“Well, maybe
somethings.” Thelma laughed as Jill walked up with their order
which she was carrying on a large silver platter. After Jill walked
away from their table, Thelma continued. “What is it that you are
looking for, Ophelia? What would make you happy, truly happy? “

“
I want to have
fun, I want to dance, I want all the things I have missed out on
when I was living with Mrs. Johnson and forced to be a cat all that
time. The only excitement I had there was when I would cough up a
fur ball!”

“You had all the
dances and boyfriends and fun in the world when you were living
with your mother, and from everything I know about you, you were
not happy then either. Maybe you need to look deeper to find what
it is that you want and need. Everyone needs fun in their lives,
but Enchanted is a place for reflection and understanding
yourself.”

“Well that sucks.”
Ophelia said.

“I’m going to go over
to the Chocolate Shop when we leave here, you can come with me, or
if you would rather, you could explore on your own.”

“Sebastian’s wife
works there, right?”

“Catherine, yes.”

“Maybe I will just
look around town on my own.”

“When you are ready
to go back to the house, remember to ring the bell near the top of
the hill and Caramel, Ace, or Zippy will come to take you back.”
Thelma reminded Ophelia.

After eating their
breakfast, the two women parted, walking in different directions.
Ophelia enjoyed looking into the shop windows and when she turned
the corner and saw a red building with a bright sign that read “The
Spa”, Ophelia picked up her pace and walked in the front door.

The first thing
she saw was an almost full sized painting of a woman
with long dark red hair wearing a red
evening gown with diamond straps. Ophelia had three thoughts in
rapid succession.
What a beautiful woman, she looks like me,
and quickly thereafter
, that is my mother!

A very pretty
young lady walked up to Ophelia. “She is very beautiful, you take
after her.”

Ophelia looked at the
young woman who had shiny black very long hair. “Thank you, it is
just a shock, I have never seen this painting before.”