Threads

Chapter Twelve- Part 1

Chapter Twelve

Alecto and Megaria

            Alice’s phone rang. She ignored it, turning over with a grumble and shoving a pillow over her ear.  When the message indicator began beeping insistently, she groaned and flung the pillow off, fumbling for her phone. Her bleary eyes told her it had been her parents calling, and they had left a message.

            “Shoot.” Alice flipped open the phone to listen to the message.  Her mother’s voice made her smile, until she got around to explaining why she had called.

            “…it’s the strangest thing dear, but Jason just showed up at our door this morning. He looked quite upset.  He was looking for you. I don’t blame you if you didn’t tell him you were moving, but when I explained how you inherited the shop and everything, he was quite shocked.” Alice bolted up in bed with a gasp of horror. Would he go to Douglas Street to find Threads?

Her mother’s voice continued, “I didn’t tell him were the shop was...” Oh thank God.

“…but I did tell him to call you if he really needed to talk, not just show up at our door.”

Oh crap. “…good luck honey, I hope…”

            Her voice was interrupted by the call waiting signal, and Alice reluctantly took the phone away from her ear, eyeing the screen in dismay. The name display read: “Jason calling”.

“You’ve got to be kidding.” She spent an agonizing moment wondering if she should pick it up. What was she afraid of? She took a deep breath. Okay, here goes.  It stopped ringing.

“Shoot…” Alice put the phone down on the side table. There was no way she was calling him back. She looked at her alarm clock. 11:30 - she’d slept in.  She grumbled and hauled herself out of bed. It was her day off, and she intended to do absolutely nothing.  After choosing a plum coloured sweater and a pair of blue jeans, Alice threw her jacket on and descended the stairs.

            Azura and Gabriel greeted her, Gabriel masking a yawn with one sleeve. “What are you doing up so early? I expected you to be asleep till the afternoon.”

            “I got a call from an ex,” she said sourly.

            Gabriel looked curious, but he didn’t ask.

Alice shrugged. “High school boyfriend. It didn’t end well.”

He made a sympathetic face. “Ah.”

            Alice resolved not to think about it. It didn’t hurt as much anymore, but it still didn’t pay to dwell on it. She decided to take her book and sit in Isabella’s café for a while.

“I’m going across the street to grab some breakfast. Anyone want anything?”

            They both declined, so Alice snagged the novel she was working on from behind the desk and made her way across the street. There was a short line up, and she jumped in behind a tall, severe looking man in midnight blue robes. He was wearing a Wizard’s hat, and a thin thread ran around the brim, making the stars and half-moons shine. Alice stared at the hat. People actually wore those? It was a good thing that Regs were blind to anything magic, because they would think the entire magical world was nuts.

When Isabella saw her, the chubby little woman beamed brightly, her cheeks dimpling. “Alice!”

            “Hi Isabella.”