Maire's Story

Chapter 11

When all was said and done, Maire had a good Christmas. She and Monique exchanged presents in the morning — Maire giving her a drawing of StarWood that she had framed with Coleen's help — then they went to Magic Maple for Christmas dinner.

The surprise appearance of all her friends thrilled Maire and even a minor tiff with Nessa didn't cast much of a cloud. It seemed Maire was a bit too protective of all her gifts and Nessa didn't mind saying so. Then Frank stepped in with a few quiet suggestions and the sunshine returned almost as soon as it left.

After that came the new year, a new decade and a bout of serious, bitter winter. For weeks snow seemed to fall every second day and the temperature stayed so far below zero that few people ventured outdoors unless it was quite necessary.

For the children at Camp Tremblay's Ste. Adele Elementary, that meant spending recess inside, so it wasn't long before cabin fever set in. Maire seemed to have it bad, quarreling with Myona Connolly and being so insolent that Mr. Fossambault wondered if she was spending too much time with Nessa. At home, she knitted as much as possible, but most of the time she was like Banquo's ghost, ranging restlessly around the house and looking wistfully out the living room window.

Of course, none of this passed Monique unnoticed, but she couldn't do anything about the weather. Even if she could, there were so many last-minute things to look after before the opening of her big show in Quebec City that setting aside time to keep Maire occupied simply wasn't possible. Maybe Coleen sensed this; if she didn't, her offer to take Maire on a weekend shopping trip was positively serendipitous and Monique enthusiastically accepted.

Accordingly, Coleen left Little Meadows on a blustery, sunny Saturday morning and pulled up a few minutes later at StarWood. Intimidating snowbanks, made even worse by drifts, flanked the driveway like walls as Coleen shut off the vehicle and ran into the house.

"Oh my, but it's cold out there!" she declared, removing her mitts and stamping her feet.
"Well, hello there, Jamey," she said as the cat approached. "How about letting me use your fur to warm up these ice-cold hands?"

Coleen reached down to pet her, but Jamey seemed to sense what was coming and darted away.

"I've never seen such a warm-weather creature," said Monique with a laugh from the kitchen. "Will a cup of hot coffee do instead?"

"Normally I'd say yes. But I can't spare the time; the malls are likely to be jammed with people who just want to get out of the house, so I should hit the road while there are still parking spaces to be had. Now where is — ah, here she comes. Good morning, Sugar."

Maire ran up and hugged her, then reached into the closet and slipped on her coat, boots and mitts.

"Don't forget your hat," instructed Monique.

"Oh, do I have to? It always messes up my hair."

"Yes, you have to."

Maire sighed and grabbed a toque while Coleen said goodbye to Monique. Once they were on the road, Maire went to pull it off, but at that moment the car rounded a corner near the hall and encountered Conor Haugh trying to dig his car out of a snowbank.

"Keep your hat on," instructed Coleen as she pulled up behind him. They left the car and Coleen offered to help. Accepting gratefully, Conor had her take the wheel and hit the gas at the appropriate time while he and Maire pushed from the front. Eventually the car came free, eliciting a cheer from Maire.

Conor was full of thanks and waved a cheery goodbye as Coleen and Maire walked back to their car.

"Aren't you glad for the toque now?" asked Coleen slyly.