Why Lorie? Part II

Chapter 5: Bonding with Peter

The first few days after Viktor's departure, Bartholy Manor seemed exceedingly quiet.  Josette was lonely and depressed, and spent most of her time in her bedroom.  Lorie often found her sitting by the window and watching the snow fall, a blank look in her eyes.  It was hard to believe that Christmas was just three weeks away, especially since Josette hadn't bought a tree yet.  There was much she had to do before her parents' arrival, but she lacked the stamina... and the motivation.

Josette pined for Viktor's strong, protective presence.  She felt like a lost kitten without him.  She also longed for Nicolae's reliable shoulder that she could always cry on in the past.  Her thoughts often drifted to Drogo.  The last weeks he spent at home, he was cold and distant.  Josette knew it was for the better, but she missed his mischievous smile and flirtatious personality.  She couldn't help but remember the time he had almost seduced her... the memory of his lips against hers still made her heart flutter.

In her loneliness, Josette didn't feel like doing much... especially if it involved going out into the frigid December weather.  Since she mostly stayed indoors, she took her meals upstairs, lounging in her silk pajamas by the cozy fireplace. 

Lorie joined her mother some of the time, but she also ate in the kitchen, with Ana.  The maid seemed to enjoy the little girls' cheerful presence, even though they could only communicate in German — the one language they both knew... just barely.

"Ana, I am going to teach you French," Lorie announced one morning.

Ana gave her a blank stare.  "More food?"  She asked in broken German, as she picked up a piece of toast and waved it in front of Lorie's nose.

"No," Lorie shook her head vehemently.  "French -  blah, blah, blah," she tried to explain.  She pointed to herself and said:  "Je suis Lorie."  And then to the maid.  "Tu est Ana."

"Ah," the maid apparently caught on.  "Not food."  She touched her chest and said "Ana," followed by "Lorie" as she poked the little girl with one long finger.

Lorie clapped her hands. "Oui! Tres bien!" She proceeded to point toward various objects around them, and named them in French.  Ana tried to imitate her to the best of her abilities.  They both giggled when the maid's pronunciation was terribly inaccurate.

"What are you two doing?"  Peter asked as he entered the kitchen.

"I am teaching Ana how to speak French," Lorie informed him.  "Because my German isn't that great... and neither is hers," she pulled a face, glancing toward the maid.

"I see," Peter smiled.  He turned toward Ana and told her something in Romanian, making the maid grin sheepishly and shake her head.

"What did you tell her?"  Lorie asked indignantly, putting her hands on her hips.

"I told her that you are now the boss and you'll tell her what to do around the house — in French," Peter replied.  "But I reassured her that I would translate when necessary."

"Peter, how many languages do you speak?"  Lorie was curious.

"Hmmm, let's see," Peter said pensively.  "Romanian, Hungarian, German, French, English and Italian come to mind," he counted on his fingers.  "So that's six, if I'm not mistaken."

Lorie raised her eyebrows incredulously.  "Six?  That's a lot!  I only speak French and English, and a tiny bit of German... but that's not too bad for my age, I guess."

"Not bad at all," Peter said.  "When I was your age, I only spoke Romanian, and some Hungarian.  Those are the two main languages used in Transylvania.  Later on, I also learned German, because there are people with an Austrian heritage there too."  He grinned.  "I suppose that was lucky, since I now live in Vienna!"

"Can you teach me some Romanian?  I'd like to surprise Papa when he returns," Lorie asked.

"Of course.  I'd love to," Peter replied.  "And I'm sure that Ana would appreciate it too," he looked toward the maid.

"That would be perfect!  I will teach Ana French, and you will teach me Romanian, and soon we will all understand each other perfectly," Lorie said.

"Speaking the same language and understanding each other can be two entirely different things," Peter murmured.  "But you're right.  It would certainly help."

"You're weird sometimes, Peter," Lorie remarked, making him chuckle.  "But I still love you!  Let's go practice piano," she grabbed his hand and pulled him behind her.

She suddenly stopped in the doorway and looked at her brother:  "How do you say goodbye in Romanian?"

"La revedere," Peter replied, enunciating clearly.

Lorie turned toward Ana and said:  "La revedere, Ana," as she waved her little hand, startling the maid.

"La revedere," Ana smiled shyly.  She obviously liked that Lorie tried to communicate with her in her native tongue.

Lorie had decided she would learn how to play the piano as well as Peter.  And once she put her mind to something, there was no stopping her.  She was unusually patient and could last through a whole hour of lessons each day, no matter how tedious they were at times.  Peter was grateful for her natural talent because it made his job a lot easier.  He loved the way Lorie stuck out her little tongue when she focused on something new or more difficult. 

"Do you always do that when you concentrate?"  Peter asked Lorie one day.

"Do what?"  She asked, widening her eyes.

"This!"  Peter demonstrated, sticking the tip of his tongue out while playing a jingle.

Lorie started to giggle.  "I do that?"

"Yes, you do," Peter chuckled as he closed the lid on the piano.  "It's actually pretty cute!"

"I never knew I was doing it," Lorie replied.  "But I better learn not to... that would look pretty silly if I was older and performing on stage."

"I wouldn't worry about that too much," Peter said.  He then quickly added:  "For the moment."

Lorie scrutinized him for a while.  She then asked out of the blue:  "How come you don't have a girlfriend?"

Peter was taken aback. He wasn't expecting that kind of question from his little sister.  He ran a hand through his hair and cleared his throat.

"I guess I haven't met many girls lately... none that I've been interested in, and vice versa," he answered awkwardly.

Lorie tilted her head to one side, not giving up.  "But you are very handsome and nice... and talented.  I'm sure there must be lots of girls who like you."

Peter shrugged.  "Maybe I haven't been paying enough attention..."

"But have you ever been in love?" Lorie persisted.

Peter sighed.  "Yes.  Once.  A long time ago," he said wistfully.

"It couldn't have been that long ago!  You're only twenty-something, aren't you?"  Lorie wasn't easily fooled. 

"Why are we talking about this?"  Peter was growing uncomfortable with the subject.

"I don't know... I guess I was just curious," Lorie replied nonchalantly, while twirling her hair around a finger.  "Drogo has girlfriends, doesn't he?"

"Yes... more than he can handle," Peter rolled his eyes.  "But Drogo and I are very different.  He's always been more confident... he has no trouble talking to girls."

"What about Nicolae?  Does he have someone special?"  Lorie asked.

"I hope not," Peter replied.  "Because if he does... she's all alone now."

"I didn't think about that," Lorie said pensively. 

"Why don't we return to our piano lesson?"  Peter suggested.  "We can talk about relationships another time... maybe when you're older."

"Alright," Lorie agreed.  "But one day, you'll have to tell me all about the girl you loved."

"Perhaps I will... one day," Peter said wistfully before reopening the piano lid and placing a new music book in front of Lorie.