The Magician's Witch

Reconciliation and Whisky

The next several years culminated in a repetitive schedule of airports, venues, practice sessions, and planned downtime. Eilis became a professional packer, teaching Aria and Ronan how to pack their bags efficiently, learning what they could live with and what they could live without on the road. They learned how to sleep in cars, on a plane, on a bus, and how to get through airport security as quickly as possible (Eilis had to warn her kids to not pet the bomb-sniffing dogs; both of them had inherited their father's love of animals).

During that first year, they mostly performed at local venues, gradually expanding to out-of-state sites. The agent Father Frank had found—Mr. Mark Graves—was a decent guy who had a sense for business and was also understanding of his clients' young ages. He himself was a father of two boys and knew how to navigate the tightrope between Agent and Dad.

As the demand for Aria and Ronan's performances spread and increased, Mr. Graves took on an assistant to help him direct business. Todd, the assistant, helped to schedule events and book travel, while Mark—along with Eilis—negotiated contracts and dealt with other financial transactions.

Eilis, after leaving the Cravens' house and after Ronan was born, had set up accounts for her children; each of them had a fund that they wouldn't be able to touch until they were twenty-five. The bulk of their salaries earned from their performances went into those accounts, with a small percentage going into a more accessible savings account. Eilis also got a cut for being a co-manager.

Amidst all the chaos, Eilis managed to purchase a bigger house. Aria and Ronan had outgrown their bedroom, and with adolescence looming in the distance, Eilis knew they would need their own individual space.

The house they moved into was a two-storey farmhouse only a few minutes further away from Bakhita's house. The house had a couple of acres attached to it, a kitchen and living area with an open floor plan, a spacey master bedroom and two bedrooms, two and a half bathrooms, an unfinished basement, and a study. Eilis had to purchase all new furniture for the house, since the furniture at the house she had been renting belonged to the landlord. The only things she and Aria and Ronan brought with them were their personal belongings.

For a few weeks, they all got settled into the new house, arranging and rearranging the furniture. Eilis sought the assistance of Bakhita and Laleh to help maintain the house while she and her kids were on tour. Bakhita would send Aleah over to check on things once in a while; Malid or Dara mowed the lawn once a week during the warmer seasons. When she was home, Eilis repaid them with a lavish dinner, even inviting Mark Graves and his assistant to join them.

Eilis liked Mark, and they got on well. They had only gotten into one argument when Eilis refused to allow her kids to be photographed for social media.

"People want to see who is performing," Mark informed her brusquely when she had put her foot down.

"Absolutely not," she told him, refusing to budge. "There are far too many creeps out over the Internet looking at pictures of little kids. My children's picture will not be among them."

Mark sat back in his chair, exasperated. "People take pictures and videos of your kids while they're onstage," he pointed out.

Eilis shrugged. "I have no control over that. However, I will not expose Aria and Ronan to the world of arbitrary Likes and Dislikes that mean absolutely nothing in the real world, and receive death threats and threats of bodily harm in the comments under their pictures just for being young and playing music. People are ugly on the Internet, Mr. Graves. They are ugly and cowardly. Being behind a keyboard gives these cretins an unrestrained sense of bravado. My kids will not be exposed to that viciousness until they are old enough and mature enough to handle it. Period."