It was the night before the Ball...
Mattie twisted and turned in her sleep, plagued by thoughts of what might happen tomorrow. Would Til not show up? Or would he...but with another girl on his arm?! Would he think her outfit was ridiculous? She did go a little over the top by putting ribbons on it...
Turning over to stare at the dress hanging off of her closet door, she couldn't help but wonder if maybe it was the wrong choice. The colors were her favorite, yes, but she didn't think it would bring up the wow factor. It would look nice for a gig, but a Ball isn't the type of shindig for a short skirted dress and vest combo, dig? She groaned, pulling her blankets around her in a makeshift cocoon before sitting up. What was she going to do? Probably take care of her dry throat first. Bare feet lightly touched down on the cold wooden floor, toes reflexively crinkling from the shock. She quietly maneuvered out of her room, the blankets making a hissing noise as they glided behind her.
Arriving in the kitchen, she fixed herself a small glass of water. Leaning with her back to the counter, she downed the cool liquid quickly, the blanket slipping from over her head. She rinsed it after she was done and sat it with the other drying dishes, careful to not let the glass clank against each other. As she made her way back to the entrance, her eyes caught a dim light down the hallway. Someone else was up? Probably her Pop, working on some case files...but the light wasn't coming from his study. Slowly creeping down, she could hear a faint clicking sound, ticks in extremely rapid succession. Her Father was a fast typist...but he wasn't that fast.
Coming up on the door, the sounds of mechanical whirring and a soft melodic humming joined the staccato of clicks. Peeking through the crack in the doorway, she saw her Mother, curly red hair pinned in a messy bun and her bed robe pulled around her, sitting at her sewing machine with a large mass of white fabric splayed out in all directions. Her hands danced from fabric to needle, feeding the cloth in an expert line. Her eyes were half closed, a shy, peaceful smile gracing her face and from what Mattie could tell, she was humming a lullaby.
She slowly opened the door, keeping as silent as possible so as not to startle her Mother, and tiptoed over to one of the chairs off to the side. Glancing up from her work to her daughter, she paused, giving Mattie a sheepish look.
"Honey...what are you doing up so late?" she asked, a tinge of concern in her voice.
Mattie shrugged, pulling the blankets tighter around her in the process, "I couldn't sleep, just a little worried about tomorrow I guess."
Giving a soft sigh, her Mother rose from her chair, stretching a little before crossing over to Mattie and sat in the chair next to her. Her hand wormed its way gently into her daughter's disheveled blond hair, smoothing out some of the forming tangles. She tsked, saying mostly to herself, "You really should comb this before you go to sleep..."
Mattie quietly giggled, leaning into her hand, this was a conversation they'd had many times before. Looking over at the fabric, she wondered what her Mother could be working on this late at night. Seeing where her daughter's ever curious eyes were, she waved her hand in the general direction.
"Oh...it's nothing you need to worry about. Just something I've been working on for special client of mine for some time." The tone was dismissive, but the body language was a little tense. She was trying to hide something, but before she could ask any more about it, a yawn escaped before she could even think about covering it up. Taking note of it, her Mother smiled and stood to her feet, pulling the tired 'detective' up with her.
"I saw that, Matilda. Now...don't you worry a thing about tomorrow. Just remember to enjoy yourself, and keep that rascal of yours in line...as your Father would say," she said as she led Mattie back to her room. Getting her settled into the bed, she noticed with a smile that the silly girl was already asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She'd learned from when she was just a baby that simply playing with her hair a bit would lull her to sleep if she was being fussy. Her brother on the other hand...she sighed, fixing the blankets on the bed and quietly crossing the room. Her eyes came upon the outfit that her daughter had picked out for the upcoming event...and wrinkled her nose in what could only be described as a Mother's disapproval. Oh no, her little girl would not be wearing that if she had anything to say about it.
Olivia Harsburg was determined to finish her work tonight, after all...it was for a very dear client...
Mattie twisted and turned in her sleep, plagued by thoughts of what might happen tomorrow. Would Til not show up? Or would he...but with another girl on his arm?! Would he think her outfit was ridiculous? She did go a little over the top by putting ribbons on it...
Turning over to stare at the dress hanging off of her closet door, she couldn't help but wonder if maybe it was the wrong choice. The colors were her favorite, yes, but she didn't think it would bring up the wow factor. It would look nice for a gig, but a Ball isn't the type of shindig for a short skirted dress and vest combo, dig? She groaned, pulling her blankets around her in a makeshift cocoon before sitting up. What was she going to do? Probably take care of her dry throat first. Bare feet lightly touched down on the cold wooden floor, toes reflexively crinkling from the shock. She quietly maneuvered out of her room, the blankets making a hissing noise as they glided behind her.
Arriving in the kitchen, she fixed herself a small glass of water. Leaning with her back to the counter, she downed the cool liquid quickly, the blanket slipping from over her head. She rinsed it after she was done and sat it with the other drying dishes, careful to not let the glass clank against each other. As she made her way back to the entrance, her eyes caught a dim light down the hallway. Someone else was up? Probably her Pop, working on some case files...but the light wasn't coming from his study. Slowly creeping down, she could hear a faint clicking sound, ticks in extremely rapid succession. Her Father was a fast typist...but he wasn't that fast.
Coming up on the door, the sounds of mechanical whirring and a soft melodic humming joined the staccato of clicks. Peeking through the crack in the doorway, she saw her Mother, curly red hair pinned in a messy bun and her bed robe pulled around her, sitting at her sewing machine with a large mass of white fabric splayed out in all directions. Her hands danced from fabric to needle, feeding the cloth in an expert line. Her eyes were half closed, a shy, peaceful smile gracing her face and from what Mattie could tell, she was humming a lullaby.
She slowly opened the door, keeping as silent as possible so as not to startle her Mother, and tiptoed over to one of the chairs off to the side. Glancing up from her work to her daughter, she paused, giving Mattie a sheepish look.
"Honey...what are you doing up so late?" she asked, a tinge of concern in her voice.
Mattie shrugged, pulling the blankets tighter around her in the process, "I couldn't sleep, just a little worried about tomorrow I guess."
Giving a soft sigh, her Mother rose from her chair, stretching a little before crossing over to Mattie and sat in the chair next to her. Her hand wormed its way gently into her daughter's disheveled blond hair, smoothing out some of the forming tangles. She tsked, saying mostly to herself, "You really should comb this before you go to sleep..."
Mattie quietly giggled, leaning into her hand, this was a conversation they'd had many times before. Looking over at the fabric, she wondered what her Mother could be working on this late at night. Seeing where her daughter's ever curious eyes were, she waved her hand in the general direction.
"Oh...it's nothing you need to worry about. Just something I've been working on for special client of mine for some time." The tone was dismissive, but the body language was a little tense. She was trying to hide something, but before she could ask any more about it, a yawn escaped before she could even think about covering it up. Taking note of it, her Mother smiled and stood to her feet, pulling the tired 'detective' up with her.
"I saw that, Matilda. Now...don't you worry a thing about tomorrow. Just remember to enjoy yourself, and keep that rascal of yours in line...as your Father would say," she said as she led Mattie back to her room. Getting her settled into the bed, she noticed with a smile that the silly girl was already asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. She'd learned from when she was just a baby that simply playing with her hair a bit would lull her to sleep if she was being fussy. Her brother on the other hand...she sighed, fixing the blankets on the bed and quietly crossing the room. Her eyes came upon the outfit that her daughter had picked out for the upcoming event...and wrinkled her nose in what could only be described as a Mother's disapproval. Oh no, her little girl would not be wearing that if she had anything to say about it.
Olivia Harsburg was determined to finish her work tonight, after all...it was for a very dear client...
