A Touch of Magic

Chapter 12: Other People's Hair and Hellishness

I grabbed Pete's hat as he came through the door.

"Oi, Minta, give my cap back, I've not washed my hair." 

Even better, essence of Pete should waft off the greasy strand. I playfully put it on my head, he didn't look impressed and lunged forward to get it back. 

"Pete, do you want a drink?" Zara called out from the kitchen. 

Luckily, Pete had a short attention span and the grubby hat was forgotten as he trudged off to the kitchen. Zara's hair had been easy to take; I'd brushed past her on the way home, but heaven knows how I was going to twist Pete's grade three fibres around her lengthy strands? One tiny piece of hair stuck firmly to the Velcro at the back of his hat, I'd need glue to stick their strands together or they'd end up having dates on the same night, but in different towns. The memory of page nine-hundred and one was still very fresh. 

I could hear laughing as I slipped into Zara's mum's office and, laying Pete's hat on the desk, ransacked the draws for glue. Big sigh. I'd forgotten again. 

"Ætberan." A role of sticky-tape appeared in my hands as a draw full of crap fell onto the floor. Feck. I needed more lessons. "How much easier life would be if I remembered I can do that."

"Minta?" Zara looked in, concerned. "What are you doing? Mum will kill me. You know no ones allowed in here."

"Yeah, sorry," I said thinking fast. "I needed this to... stick a page back together in one of the books Mum gave me for Josie."

Pete cracked open his can and glanced around the office. He flicked his hat of the desk and tossed it on his head in one smooth move. "Needs some work done in here. The plasters coming off the celling; could be damp." 

"Give me the book Minta." Zara, conscientious as ever, gave me the disappointed parent look. "I cannot believe you've managed to deface a new book."

Pete put his drink can on the mahogany desk and waltzed off towards the stairs. "Let's go check under the bath. Is it the bathroom directly above us? Bet it is."

Zara turned white. "No, Pete! That's my mum's room; wait."

Feeling I should be diligent in Zara's absence, I placed a packet of post-it-notes under the bottom of the can and picked up my bag. "I'm off Zar, have a great day." And made it out of the door before she'd could register my disappearance.

I'd no idea what the sticky-tape would add to the equation. Zara wasn't into kinky stuff, so hopefully, nothing too bad would happen. The hairy tape reminded me of a piece of nursery school artwork.

"Thou be thine. Thou be thine. Thou be thine." I resisted the temptation to do one for luck and tucked it into my bra on the side of my heart. There was no other safe place.

Now for cousin Josie.

*

Going to Aunt Tracey's was more stressful than a library full of screaming children.

"Araminta, darling." Tracey squashed me to her ampule and surgically enhanced bosom. "What brings you here?" She led me into the house, her fingers encircling my wrist. The house smelt of Tracey: detergent and fragrance spray. It hadn't smelt that way when Uncle Dave was alive.

"Erm." The truth would be easiest. "I've got some books for Josie."

Tracey's mood changed and body stiffened. Red rag to a bull. "Well, I hope she's thankful. You know what she's like. When did you speak to her? I thought you didn't see each other at school. Did she go around to your mum's? The cheek, after not attending the funeral. That really upset your mother. Of course I expected it."