The Hutchins and Mojica Renovacy, Chapter 6

Chapter 6 Locking Horns.
“We’ll come and meet you at the library,” Uiara had said. “And do our homework there.” Now, walking past Reggie, she looked over her shoulder and read what Reggie had written about the joy and the sacrifice. Instinctively, she refrained from commenting on it, but filed it away.
“Later,” she thought. “When we can be on our own together.” That would mean getting out for a walk together. There wasn’t a lot of privacy in the house! Regina moved on to writing her next cookery book, blissfully unaware that Uiara had seen her blog. Next to her, the six children were busy with their homework, the older ones helping the younger ones where necessary. “We need to go back soon.”
One by one, as they’d finished their homework, the children had drifted over to the games tables.
“This was fun, though. Let’s do it again tomorrow,” Tesni said.
“Viriato used to bring us here to do our homework,” Uiara said, remembering.
“Yeah,” said Desmond. “But we couldn’t play games afterwards. It was all homework and then more work.” At the mention of Viriato’s name, Henrietta and Charlie’s faces changed from being bright with fun. Charlie’s went resentful and mutinous and Henrietta just looked sad. Had Regina missed something between those two and Viriato? She must watch more carefully. He needed to learn to cook, Viriato decided. He couldn’t expect Uiara to do it all. Not and hold down a good job. And how hard could it be? He’d start with mac ‘n’ cheese (thought the actual truth was that he didn’t know what to do with most of the contents of the fridge). Shaving the cheese for the sauce – that was easy. Viriato didn’t see what all the fuss was about with cooking. The song and dance Regina made of it… He cleaned up as he went along – none of this, “I’m focussing on the cooking times, the cleaning up will wait,” nonsense for him! Okay, maybe this wasn’t so simple. Coming out of the bathroom, having showered off the day’s dirt, Viriato was pleased to see Tesni home and already starting on her homework – and then he realised that there was someone else with her. Someone male. All his protective elder brother instincts kicked in straight away. Tesni couldn’t get involved with anyone! She was too young! She was going to go to university – by the time she was old enough, they should be able to afford it. Desmond and Uiara and Eugenio would be earning by then, getting up their career ladders. Uiara would have to plan the timing of her children round her career… He sat down at the table with them and read, slightly to Tesni’s disappointment. But Viriato was determined to keep an eye on her. “Gosh, Henrietta, you’re as fierce as Tesni when it comes to playing dominoes,” Desmond said, laughing. “Where is she tonight anyway?” The library trips post-school had become a winter feature of their lives.
“She went back home with Marcus – you know, Marcus Malifa? They said they needed to work together on something,” Uiara said. “She asked me if it was okay, and I said yes. But we’d better go soon.”
“Can we finish the game first?” Henrietta asked hopefully. If she wanted any time at all with Marcus, it was going to have to be outside in the snow, Tesni decided.
“Come on Marcus! Let’s build a snowman!” She deliberately tried to sound as young as possible as she dragged Marcus outside.
“What’s with the snowman stuff?” Marcus asked, shivering slightly.
“Silly. I wanted some time alone with you, and without my big brother glowering at us both.”
“Ah,” said Marcus, and set to making the snowman in case Viriato was spying on them. Which he was – through Tesni’s bedroom window. But all he saw was two children making a snowman. Luckily, he couldn’t hear their not-so-childish conversation. “Really in the spring?”
“Yes. We’ve saved enough money, you and I, and Reggie hasn’t needed it this winter.”
That had been the deal with the horse money – winter was always the hardest time financially, and if the family had needed the money, then they would have given it gladly.
“As long as there’s no major disasters like the cooker exploding.”
“And what’s left, if I find a cheaper horse, Reggie can have.” The twins high-fived each other and went back inside. This Christmas, finally, they had more than one decoration! And enough spare money to buy a family present or two – they chose board games. Currently, Desmond was staring in disbelief at his Scrabble letters – and at the board where Reggie had just put down ‘prolix’. On a triple word score. Mind you, Henrietta and Charlie were being just as fierce over the Ludo board. “Where is everyone, Desmond?” Viriato asked, coming in from the cold.
“Eugenio, Tesni and Uiara went out. The library, I think. Or maybe the Art Gallery – I forget which. The rest of us are here, in the warm!” That was okay, then, Viriato thought. Tesni would be in the library with Uiara, studying, he hoped. Or possibly watching Eugenio paint. Tesni, however had gone out with Marcus to the winter festival. She knew Reggie wouldn’t mind, Uiara knew where she was – and it was none of Viriato’s business.
“What shall we do first?”
Marcus wasn’t quite so keen on the cold, but he was very keen on Tesni. In fact, for the sake of being with her, Marcus would even get up early on a holiday and go and throw snowballs just for the fun of it. “You two should be doing some cleaning,” Viriato hissed in Henrietta’s ear as he went past her on his way to clean the dirty cooker that Regina was obviously leaving for him to do.
“The outside bathroom’s filthy. And so’s the sink.”
Charlie went over to clean the sink as Viriato attacked the cooker, still not sure why Viriato seemed to dislike him so much now. Desmond took his defeat gracefully and Regina left him to tidy up the games while she went outside to check the mail and tidy up any old newspapers. Just in time to see her daughter cleaning the outside sink in the freezing cold. “Henrietta! It’s freezing out here. What are you doing?”
“Viriato said I had to…” “There is no way you have to do this in this weather. Summer, yes, it’s one of yours or Charlie’s jobs, but not now. Go back inside and tell Desmond I want him to take you and Charlie to the library. Right now.” Regina gave herself a little while outside to take the edge off her anger before going back in. Desmond had tidied up neatly before he’d left with the two little ones, games away, tables back in the right place. Even in her crossness, Regina was softened by this thoughtfulness on his part. But it didn’t put her off her purpose.
“Viriato!” she called. “I want a word with you. Now.” Tesni, skating with Marcus, wished that the day would never end. But it would have to.
“I need to go and meet the others at the library now,” she said. “But it’s been a brilliant day. Thank you so much for coming out with me.” Regina looked Viriato straight in the eyes. And it was he who looked away first, secretly ashamed of what he’d done, but unwilling to admit it. “You. Do. Not. Ever. Send the children out into the snow to clean things. Do I make myself perfectly clear? That was totally unacceptable.”
This was a Regina Viriato hadn’t seen before, almost majestic in her controlled anger. She reminded him of someone – and then he realised that it was his mother, Aurora, confronting a group of boys who’d been tormenting a stray kitten.
No. No. Regina was nothing like Aurora, had nothing in common with her… Uiara could read her brother like a book. And he wasn’t happy. Henrietta was nearly in tears and Charlie had gone into his withdrawn mode. And now, when she thought back to Charlie as a toddler, always laughing and so outgoing, she realised how far from normal this was for him. “Okay, what’s wrong?” And as no one spoke, Uiara went on. “Tell Auntie Uiara all about it. Uiara is wise. Uiara is all-knowing…” This did produce a rather watery smile from Henrietta. “It’s Viriato,” Desmond said bluntly. “He sent Henrietta out in the snow to clean the outside bathroom.” Henrietta hung her head, nearly in tears again. Uiara sat down suddenly, her eyes grave. “Hadn’t you noticed?” Tesni had come up behind them in time to hear what Desmond had said.
“Now that I’m older, now it’s not the three of us together any more, Viriato doesn’t want to know these two. And it’s not fair.” Tesni was very close to both of them. They’d shared a lot of childhood together. “What are we going to do about it?” “Let me talk to Regina,” Uiara said. “As soon as we can get out for a walk together. I’ve got quite a lot I want to talk to her about.”
“My horse,” said Desmond firmly.
“And you will ask her about me getting a part-time job, won’t you,” Tesni added.
“Yes,” Uiara promised. But part of her concern was for her older brother, who seemed to be going so badly astray.

The Hutchins and Mojica Renovacy Chapter 5

Chapter 5 Turning A Corner “You want to do what?” Uiara said to her twin.
“Buy a horse. It’s all I’ve ever wanted. And look – we have a stable!”
“Stable, yes. Money, no. How could we possibly do this?”
” “I don’t know. You’re the smart one. And I could enter competitions – some of the prizes are worth having.”
Uiara liked her brother’s touching faith in her abilities. “Let me see what I can come up with.” In the meantime, Desmond sat down at the table with the younger ones, to finish his homework and help them with theirs. The more useful he was, the more likely it was that Aunt Regina would look with favour on his outrageous request. Step one: Earn some money. Uiara totally sympathised with her brother’s desires. She loved horses too, though it wasn’t quite the monomania with her that it was with Desmond. But that had been one of the reason their parents had bought this house.
“Stabling attached,” Lincoln had said, reading the estate agent’s details. “Desmond, Uiara – as soon as we can afford it, you can have that horse you’ve always wanted.”
She’d like to make that promise come true for her brother. She had a day’s work today (courtesy of the mother of one of her friends) and she hadn’t told Regina about it, wanting to surprise her with the pay. Now she was rethinking what to do with the money. The twins’ unsuspecting aunt, meanwhile, was at the library. Uiara had found the copy of Regina’s recipe book on the bookshelf , read it, loved it, and told Regina she should write some more.
“At the weekend at least. We’d sort out the garden, the younger ones…Go to the library, where you can have some peace and quiet.” He couldn’t really go and sit at the other table on his own, Viriato thought. He’d look too much like a sulky boy. The others weren’t back yet – busy hunting round for things to sell, painting things to sell…Regina’s veggie rolls smelt really good – and probably were, too. She’d found a couple of cheap tables, painted them cheerful colours and added candles. Eating outdoors in the summer was so much better than eating indoors in the winter. The chairs were still the same old logs though, but hey, they worked. The summer was almost over. But the extra time in the day, time the younger ones had spent hunting for things to sell, time spent on the garden, on painting, on writing (Regina’s book had been accepted. And the publishers wanted more) had brought in enough spare money to build a second bathroom. Inside the house! The bath had been moved in from the hut in the garden, renovated, cleaned up, and they had a second toilet. Cheap, but functioning. At the moment at any rate. “Breakfast’s ready,” Regina called to the older four, all busy in the garden before it got too hot.
“Great,” Uiara called back. “I’m starving!”
“Me too,” Eugenio chimed in. “ Reggie, can I go paint when we’re done here?”
“Don’t see why not.”
Viriato ground his teeth at the easy was Eugenio called her Reggie. As though she was family. “I thought I’d find you here. How’s it going?” Uiara asked her aunt.
“Coming along nicely. This one’s going to be about desserts, and then they want one on food children can grow and cook themselves, or with a bit of help.”
Uiara looked at her aunt, all scruffy hair and second-hand dungarees, and remembered what she used to look like. A sudden wave of affection, appreciation – call it what you will – suddenly swept over her. “Reggie. Log out. We’re going somewhere. I earned some money, I’ve got a present for you. Come with me.” A haircut! Uiara’s present had been a haircut! Regina leaned in close to look at herself. She’d been able to cut the children’s hair, but all she’d been able to do to her own was keep the split ends at bay. And now she had a style again – simple and easy to manage, unlike the elaborate styles of her former life. Which seemed an age ago now. “We won’t be able to eat outside for much longer,” Regina wrote in her blog. She still wasn’t letting on that this was their only eating option.
“But it’s been a beautiful summer and a lovely autumn. And seeing my sister’s children grow up has been such a privilege.” That bit was totally honest.
“My oldest niece surprised me by buying me a haircut – I hadn’t felt I could spend the money on myself when the younger ones needed new shoes, but she’d earned some of her own…” “I want a photo of you all in your school clothes.”
It wasn’t the world’s greatest photo, but it was a memento. Even if Desmond was mostly dreaming of the horse he might have one day in that stable. He’d got some work too – maybe with their money pooled, he could buy a horse. And ride to glory! Viriato finally admitted to himself that he could take a day off without the world coming to an end. He’d impressed on the other older ones that they’d need to see to the garden for him – and then been annoyed when Uiara had said, “Yes, sure. Reggie can’t do it all.”
That wasn’t what he’d meant! Regina quite liked it with Viriato out of the way. The others she got along fine with, but Viriato’s condemnation and dislike of her hung around like a thunderstorm. She was writing her blog again, taking a photo before putting in a hard day’s work.
“Autumn again. We’ve been here for so long now, some of these fruit trees need replacing. I think we’ll plant some now, give them a headstart for the spring.”
Isn’t that what we all need, she thought, as she signed out. A headstart for the spring, for the times of growth that follow the winter of loss. And I think I’ve given it to the others, but not Viriato. After shopping, the first place Viriato went to was the graveyard where his parents were buried. With no-one around to see him or hear him, he could finally open his heart.
“I’m sorry Dad, sorry, Mum. I haven’t been able to look after them on my own. I haven’t been able to get rid of Regina – and those conceived-out-of-wedlock brats of hers. I so feel like I’ve failed you.” He went down to a lonely beach and stood staring out to sea, now losing its summer blueness and fading towards the grey that would be winter. The solitude and loneliness suited his brooding mood – but wasn’t doing him any good. Finally he went to the library, nostalgic for the days when he would take Uiara and Desmond there and make sure they did their homework, make sure they studied. Fern Annan was there too – clever, pretty and sophisticated as ever. Viriato felt like a country bumpkin next to her. But she was still as friendly as she’d been when they were at school together, challenging him to a game of chess, asking after him. It was good to be with someone of his own age. “You’ll be fine, Tesni.” His youngest sister was going to secondary school for the first time. That little baby had grown up now – well, maybe not grown up, but she wasn’t a child any more. And Uiara and Desmond would be truly grown up soon: grown up, graduating and able to earn. Uiara was bright and organised – she could get a good job in business. And Desmond could go and work at the science facility: his science grades had always been high. A germ of an idea was beginning to form in Viriato’s mind. The builders had been again! The summer harvest had been good, and there was enough tucked away in the bank to see them through the winter as well.
For the first time ever, there were no more than two people in a bedroom! And there was a new indoor bathroom as well. Okay, Charlie could only go to bed by going through Desmond and Eugenio’s room, but that didn’t matter. He went to bed first anyway. The girls had the blue and yellow bathroom (and the bath! Essential at times!) and the boys had chosen green and white for the bathroom on their side. And a shower.
“Quicker,” Eugenio said. “Who wants to spend ages in the bath anyway?”
Uiara, who was suffering from major stomach cramps at that point, just gave him A Look, and then exchanged knowing glances with Reggie. The main room was bigger too, and they could all actually eat at a table indoors! Three tables, really, and the same log seats, but still it made such a difference. As did the indoor sink, the re-painted units.. “It’s definitely winter now,” Regina wrote on her blog. “Sadly, our pond’s too small for skating on, but maybe at the weekend we’ll find one that’s big enough and where the ice is bearing. Being so close to the sea, we need to go inland a bit as well.” The library computers were old-fashioned, but they worked. And it was warm in the library. Regina paused and then went on.
“If I had known how long I would be here and how hard this would be, back at the beginning, then I really would have run for the hills. Which was my first reaction anyway: to run for the hills. But now – now that I’ve come so far and gained so much, I’m glad I didn’t know. Because I would have missed out on so much joy as well as so much sacrifice.”