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“Hello,” Yasmine said calmly.
“Thank you,” Olympia squeaked, scrambling out from underneath. “I don’t care for music class.”
Yasmine stifled a giggle. Barely.
She was going to have to get serious very quickly if she was going to be a good example to this little girl.
“Who are you?” Olympia asked suddenly, with a suspicious expression.
“I’m Yasmine,” she replied. “I’m your new nanny.”
“I thought so,” Olympia said wisely. “The other nanny had this room too. She said purple gave her a headache.”
“I like the color,” Yasmine said, hiding her smile behind her hand. “It’s soothing and cheerful at the same time.”
“My daddy picked the color,” Olympia said proudly. “He likes it too.”
“Your daddy has exquisite taste,” Yasmine told her.
“Exquisite,” Olympia echoed. “That means good, right?”
“Yes, it means absolutely perfect,” Yasmine agreed. “You have an excellent vocabulary, Olympia.”
“I’m called Pia,” the girl said. “Olympia is my grown-up name. It will fit me better when I’m bigger. Like mom’s headpiece.”
“Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Pia,” Yasmine told her.
Pia smiled and suddenly looked like a child from a storybook. She seemed tall for four, but of course Thyphians were naturally larger than Terrans. Her hair was gathered up in a long ponytail that went all the way down to her bottom. The golden circlet on her forehead glimmered.
“Why were you hiding, Pia?” Yasmine asked. “Was it just because of music class?”
“I like hiding,” Pia said. “And music class is the opposite of hiding.”
“What do you mean?” Yasmine asked, entranced.
“The vibraforte is big,” Pia said. “And it’s noisy. When I play it, everyone knows exactly where I am.”
“I see,” Yasmine said, feeling even more mystified than before.
But the little one didn’t seem inclined to explain further, and instinct told Yasmine to be satisfied that she had shared her reasons at all. Hopefully, everything would become clearer over time as they got to know each other.
“You’re very good at hiding,” Yasmine said.
Pia grinned up at her in delight.
“But it’s important for your grown-ups to know where you are,” Yasmine continued. “I think your music teacher looked pretty worried.”
Pia looked down at her feet in a way that made Yasmine think this wasn’t the first time she had heard the same lecture.
“You know,” Yasmine said thoughtfully. “If I could hear you play the vibraforte, I’ll bet it would put me in just the right mood to play hide and seek with you after your class, if you wanted.”
“Really?” Pia asked excitedly.
“Yes,” Yasmine decided. “Definitely.”
“Jax doesn’t play hide and seek with me anymore,” Pia said suddenly. “He says he’s too big.”
Her little voice was so sad, so suddenly, Yasmine was reminded of a spring shower interrupting an otherwise sunny day.
