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Petals and Owl – Part 03

Sir Bradley Jr., the most foolish son in London, raced to the harbor on his twentieth birthday in 1901 without his mother’s knowledge. What was he going to do? The answer was: board a ship. To become an adventurer? To travel? Neither. Junior wanted to be a sailor. This decision was beyond what Londoners in bars and the cynical English gentlemen could have imagined. No one saw it coming.

Junior had a childhood sweetheart named Daisy Bell, whom he was engaged with since they were fifteen. He used to sing her name while giving her a bouquet of bright-red daisies. Daisy was a sickly but sweet little girl with honey-colored hair and round eyes. So when Junior told her he was going to be a sailor that day, she was dumbfounded, standing on the wharf with her mouth hanging open. Boarding a ship bound for South America as a grunt, Junior shouted that he would be back in about five years.

But the moment they set sail, Junior jumped off the deck of the ship, swam across the waters, and returned to the shores of England.

“Wh-What’s the matter?” Daisy asked, surprised for the second time now.

“I changed my mind about being a sailor. I want to be way more awesome than my dad. So I’m going to dig a tunnel under London!”

Upon hearing this, Daisy fainted.

When Junior boarded the ship bound for South America, he saw a shipworm that made tiny holes in the vessel. The sight of the worm, with its long, thin body wriggling around as it made holes, gave Junior an idea.

At that time, railway tracks were being built left and right, and people started talking about the possibility of digging underground tunnels to build railway lines in cities with high population density. However, the technology for digging tunnels had not yet been established.

Junior had always done well academically. He was not good at memorization, which required a lot of effort, but he was insightful. And so, Junior caught Daisy with one arm and wrote down the idea that came to him with the other. Then, with Daisy on his back, he pranced into a railroad company.

His idea was quickly adopted. When he announced that he was developing a tunneling machine that would mimic the movement of a shipworm, the newspapers jumped on it, as it was the work of Junior, a celebrity. A subway train, a new-age vehicle developed by an eccentric young man, was all the talk in high society, and the fundraising was going well. While all of that was going on, Junior decided to marry the lovely Daisy. His father was away on an adventure to the North Pole, but he congratulated his son and daughter-in-law by flying a flock of pigeons into the church with the message, “I wish you all the best.”

After getting married, Junior was busy, scrambling west and east to get the tunnel open. Daisy gave birth to and raised their daughter, Frannie, while her husband was away most of the time. Junior no longer gave his wife bouquets of daisies or jokingly sang her name. He was too busy running around, the shadow of his great father always on his mind. At last, the construction of the tunnel in London began. But something unexpected was waiting to happen.

There was a cave-in during construction, and the project was halted. The newspapers and the London high society that used to sing Junior’s praises suddenly turned their backs on him. Instead of surpassing his great father, he had brought shame to the family name. Disgrace and a huge debt burdened him. While he was struggling to make ends meet, the sickly Daisy fell ill. She passed away shortly after, promising that she would be there when his dreams came true.

After his wife’s death, Junior fell into despair. But even though the whole of England had turned its back on him, his family remained. Junior’s brother, Avril’s father, looked after him, while his daughter Frannie went to boarding school. After a while, Rennie, sister of the late Daisy, came to the house to be a housekeeper, since Junior was still unable to take care of things. Rennie was the opposite of her sister Daisy. A large, stern-faced woman who did not smile much, she did the housework and provided nutritious meals. The house was filled with gloom, occupied only by an irritated Rennie and a man crying “Daisy, daisy,” all day and night. When the great Sir Bradley disappeared somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean in a balloon, Junior sank even deeper into the pits of despair.

But ten years later, after many twists and turns, the tunnel was finally completed, and Junior’s honor was successfully restored. A ceremony was held in London, with the members of Sir Bradley’s family all invited.

---

Avril finished her story.

“The ceremony was a few days ago,” she said.

Moonlight shone once more, illuminating Avril’s blooming face. Victorique, sitting beside her and fanning her face, looked up at her, a little exasperated.

“Ahuh.”

“Right at the end of summer break, I attended the ceremony with my grandmother, the same woman famous among Londoners for chasing around her son with a frying pan.”

Avril pulled a newspaper out of her things. The headline read, ‘Sir Bradley Junior Finally Completes London’s Underground Railway!’ Upon opening it, there was a picture of ladies and gentlemen lined up in what appeared to be a tunnel.

“This right here is my uncle. This is my Aunt Rennie. This is his daughter Frannie, my cousin. Look, I’m right here too!”

Junior was wearing a tailcoat. The lady standing beside him was as Avril described, a large woman with a stern face. She was wearing a puffy, old-fashioned dress that reached all the way to her ankles. Avril and Frannie were dressed in simple blouses and knee-length skirts. Her grandmother, too, was dressed modestly.

Pointing to the photo, Avril lowered her voice. “Actually, something happened during the ceremony.” Her voice dropped even lower, down to an eerie level. “Aunt Daisy’s ghost appeared!”

“No, she didn’t,” Victorique denied.

“She did,” Avril insisted, taken aback.

“No, she did not,” Victorique denied once more, with confidence.

Avril pouted. “And how do you know that?”

“Because there is no such thing as ghosts.”

“There is!” Avril stamped her foot. “That is one thing I’ll never concede. Ghosts are real. They definitely exist.”

“What a petulant child. Talk to me, then.”

“You’re a child yourself! Fine. Listen very carefully. It happened right after this photo was taken.”

Avril rolled up her sleeves.

Despite the absence of wind, flowers scattered petals in the air, falling to the ground and stirring as though alive.

---

Junior was beaming during the gorgeous ceremony, but Avril thought that her uncle was feeling a little down. She and her cousin Frannie were talking about going shopping since they were in London, when she heard Junior mumbling sadly, “Daisy, oh Daisy.”

I knew it. Uncle’s thinking about Aunt Daisy. She prayed fervently for the tunnel’s success, but passed away of an illness a long time ago.

“Daisy. Oh, Daisy!”

Junior’s tone changed. Curious, Avril looked over her shoulder. She sensed surprise on top of the sorrow.

Then, everyone’s breath caught, including Avril’s and Frannie’s.

Deep inside the tunnel, like a light shining in the darkness, were bright-red daisy flowers, scattered all over the place. As though saying, “I’m right here.”

“I’ll be by your side when your dreams come true.”

Junior stood there stunned for a while. Then, he tottered over and picked up the daisies one by one. Holding the flowers to his chest, he fell to his knees.

“Daisy, I’m sorry it took so long. I was so focused on surpassing my father that I ignored everything else. I was a stupid son, but you stayed with me the whole time.”

Avril and Frannie joined hands, shivering. Avril’s aunt and grandmother were hugging each other.

The wind howled inside the tunnel, as though announcing the presence of something not-of-this-world. The temperature seemed to have dropped. Everyone was frozen still, and none uttered a word.

I’m here…

Over here too…

Daisy, daisy…

---

“They must’ve been very close,” Victorique said.

Avril’s mind was spaced out after telling her story.

“Who?” she asked eventually.

“Daisy and Rennie.”

“Hmm. I’m not sure. Aunt Daisy died when I was young, so I don’t really know. But I think they played a lot together when they were kids. Why?”

“What do you mean ‘why’? Daisy’s sister was the ghost.”

“What?” Avril cocked her head, baffled. She was holding her half-eaten chocolate.

Victorique looked astounded. “It was most likely Rennie who scattered the flowers in the tunnel. She stuck by her sister’s husband for a long time to fulfill Daisy’s promise to be there when his dreams came true. But it was taking a little too long, which left her irritated.”

“H-How do you know that?”

Victorique frowned. “Through a simple process of elimination,” she said tiredly. “First of all, there is no such thing as ghosts. Then someone has to be the culprit. The photo showed that your aunt is the only one in the family who could have entered the tunnel while hiding a bunch of flowers. Men were dressed in tight-fitting tailcoats and most of the women wore simple skirts. Only your aunt was wearing an extravagant, puffy dress. She brought in a lot of flowers secretly by hiding them under her dress, then scattered them in the tunnel unnoticed. Look.” She pointed to a section of the photo. “Your Aunt Rennie has a weird-looking tail.”

Avril studied the photo. “Ah!” A flower was peeking out from the bottom of her dress. “You’re right! Oh, Auntie. Looking so deadly serious while hiding a bunch of flowers. I didn’t even notice! Darn it. Frannie and I were squealing because we thought it was a ghost.” She sounded disappointed for some reason.

Victorique nodded, slowly, languidly. “She must be a kind-hearted person.”

“I suppose you’re right. Ever since I was a child, I always found her scary. It’s why I never took a liking to her. Aunt Daisy looks so much nicer in the pictures. I guess I can try talking to her next time we meet.” Avril nibbled on her chocolate. “Oh, yeah. I heard that after this incident, my uncle and Aunt Rennie got a lot closer. Frannie found it odd.”

“Your uncle probably realized who brought the flowers. They weren’t staying under the same roof because they were good friends, but because of their love for the same person. An odd relationship, to be sure.”

“Is that even possible?” Avril asked uneasily, perplexed.

“Who knows?” Victorique stood up.

A cold autumn wind blew, and Avril closed her eyes. Flowers shook wildly, their petals squirming like flood, creating a tiny tornado.

Victorique’s magnificent golden hair billowed up, and her green eyes gleamed coldly. Moonlight shone darkly on her blue velvet dress.

“It’s a difficult subject for kids to understand,” Victorique mumbled.

Buffeted by the wind, Avril kept closing and opening her eyes. “What are you on about? You’re a kid yourself.”

“Good question.”

Her voice just now—no, her voice the whole time did not have the same huskiness that it always did. It was clear, low, and soft.

“Vi…” Avril closed her eyes. “Victorique?”

There was no reply.

Opening her eyes, she saw Victorique, her blue velvet flaring like a cloak, about to leave. The wind died down, and Avril rushed after her, flicking petals off the flowers as she went.

“Wait, Victorique!”

Avril caught up to Victorique and tried to step on the hem of her dress with her legs, which were long and slender as an antelope’s. She thought the girl would fall face-flat on the ground and cry about the pain. But her plan failed.

Sensing Avril’s presence, Victorique nimbly dodged and resumed walking about two steps ahead.

Huh? Avril put her foot forward.

Victorique dodged easily once more. More agile than usual, Victorique trotted away, turned a corner of the flowerbed and disappeared.

“I said wait!” Avril called. “You’re acting kind of strange tonight…”

She turned the corner and froze, astonished.

It was a dead end. There were flowerbeds in front, to the right, and to the left. And yet, Victorique’s figure had vanished like a phantom.

Avril was flabbergasted.

An owl hooted nearby.

“V-Victorique?” Avril shuddered. “That was her just now, wasn’t it?”

Moonlight illuminated the empty dead-end.

“She felt like a ghost. She just disappeared with the wind.”

Terrified, Avril retreated a few steps.

The owl hooted again.

Clouds hid the moon, and the night sky turned darker.