Call Me Cal

Calixto stared at Iris back, hurriedly retreating to the basement. He was not mad at her for roaming around the mansion. He would be glad if she would get comfortable in this house since she grew up in this mansion but was stuck in the basement. He understood Theo's thinking because he was doing the same. The basement is the safest place in this house for her—safest significantly when the night fell but not totally safe. Someone powerful enough could pass through the incantation and spells that were written in secrets on the basement walls.

He heaved a sigh, Augustus had good thinking for teaching his son that the part of the safest mansion was the basement because it was where his body was laid in slumber. He had no idea who put those spells on the basement walls and Augustus and his son and his son did not put the information in the diary that he had asked them to keep.

One of the rules that he had given to Augustus, his butler when he was slowly moving his wealth away from his father was to keep a diary and in those diaries, the carnal rule is never to lie. Thus, he could not think of a possible reason why he did not write that specific information that was of importance in the record that he had asked him to keep through the years.

He had already finished reading the records that they had to keep down to Theo's generation and still he could not see any piece of information about the spells. He was running out of time because his father already knew that he had awakened the existence of Iris who happened to be a descendant of the Flora Sangria. And he could swear to himself that Iris's resemblance to Fleur was getting prominent each day.

'Must be just your thinking,' he thought to himself as he stapled his hands on his back and turned on his heels to head for the library. Nowadays, he has been staying in the library, looking for some answers.

"Master Calix!"

He hadn't taken a step further to the library when he heard the annoying shrill voice that now became too familiar in his ears. He tried to avoid her and most of the time he was successful but it seemed that he was not so lucky today.

He waited for her to reach him and when she was within reach, he released a loud sigh to let her know that he was annoyed by her presence. This child, as much as he did not want to do anything with her, had no choice but to keep her in the mansion because she was Theo's daughter, an only child to his disappointment. He had promised Augustus in exchange for his loyalty and his service that all his blood relatives would be taken care of by him. Something that did not seem to know because he was scared to be thrown away by him.

"Hello, Master Calix. Where—"

"Calixto," he said in between clenched teeth. "Do not call me by another name."

He had reprimanded Monette time and time again but it appeared that this girl had a problem listening or she simply just did whatever the hell she wanted.

"Sorry," she quickly replied without much thought. "I just think that Calixto sounds like an old man's name, that's why I'm calling you Calix even when I think Cal is much better sounding. It sounds like a name appropriate for you in this new world," she added the two words with a grimace. She could not understand Calixto calling this year a new world. It is not a new world. Just a year. However, she did not say out loud her other thoughts because she did not want to push her luck. Calixto was not fond of her the way he was with Iris who was the apple of his eyes.

Calixto stared at Monette, processing the explanation that she gave him. It was the first time that she gave her reasoning for calling him, Calix.

"Hmmm," he mumbled and waved his hand. "What do you want?"

Monette, who was feeling confident because Calixto did not get mad at her, smiled and asked. "Can I go back to regular school?" She asked without preamble. She didn't like being home-schooled and really wanted to return to school.

"Why do you want to go back to school…other than being with your friends?" He decided to ask because he realized that he would learn a lot from her because she was a more regular kid in this new world than Iris. Iris was home-schooled from the beginning, she did not have any real friends because her life revolved inside her computer. She could not blame her because of her situation.

However, he was only four years older than Monette and he had to blend into this new world. What is the best way to learn things other than reading and watching the black box that they called TV, rather than by observing the way people around his age live.

"Well, we are going to be viewed as creepy people living in a huge mansion that looks like an abandoned building, where people around us have no idea why."

Calixto squinted his eyes and he heard a small tick at the back of his mind. He knew that his cousin Marietta was now calling herself Love because the name love sounds more appropriate and she was active on social media because that was what people around her age in this new world do. Monette was saying it differently but they both mean the same thing. He had to adjust to this new world if he wanted to live through it.

"I have some errands for your father. We'll talk about what you told me once he came back. For now, give me a reason why you wanted to do those things, including calling me, Calix or Cal. Write them down and I'll read them."

Monette jumped in excitement, shouting yes while clapping her hands like a seal. He left her to continue to the library as she kept on shouting yes by herself.