Spring Cleaning
by Birgit Stäbler

"Oh, man! Dust Central!"
The exclamation was followed by loud coughing and a low curse. A red mop of hair moved between stacks of boxes, trailing a small cloud of dust. Cosmo hefted a box onto another, grimacing as more dust rose.
"When was the last time someone busted those dust bunnies down here?" he muttered, more to himself than to the other person in the basement room.
Ace Cooper smiled, looking no less dust-ridden than his younger friend. "I think that was before my time," he said, smiling.
Cosmo eyed the stacks of boxes. "Uh-huh."
The basement belonged to the house Ace owned in Whitewater Springs, the house where Kate Morrigan lived and worked in. She was a mutual long-time friend and an encyclopedia of magic facts on legs. Things she didn't know, she could research. Things research didn't unearth, she had sources to ask about. And now she had come into possession of a large amount of old magic books and tombs, older than Cosmo could ever hope to be, and she needed help to store them.
Kate and Ace had long since planned to turn the basement into a kind of research library, but that project had been set back by several uncontrollable events and the sheer amount of work Kate did to earn her living. While she held a doctorate in History and specialized in Myth and Magic, she also did extensive work for the magical community for which she earned little to nothing at all. It was her passion and her calling, Cosmo knew, but it had little reward sometimes.
Now, with the summer season providing a lack of work for Ace show-wise and Kate having no real backlog work, they had started to work on their library project. While the old library upstairs would remain, showing off all the harmless books and some old novels, the downstairs rooms would be the magic library. Kate was currently selecting the books from upstairs that would be moved while Cosmo and Ace were logging boxes around.
One of the large basement rooms was already filled with sturdy shelves Ace had bought. Boxes had been shoved into that room to be unpacked.
"Okay, those are all," Cosmo announced and wiped some sweat off his brow.
"At least all for the first load," Ace added with a grin.
Cosmo grimaced and ineffectually dusted off his red shirt. Man, he felt like he had played in a sandbox! A small sneeze alerted him to another visitor. He looked down and discovered a gray, striped kitten prowling around his feet, its fur just as dust-covered as his hair.
"Hey there, little fellow." He bent down and picked up the kitten. It gave a little 'mrow'.
Kate had been given two kittens by a friend in town and the two were running around the house, getting into everything. The gray one, Peek-a-boo, was the more adventurous one, always right in the middle of where you didn't need her. Her brother, Ace, named so because of the white spot on his chest, was a much calmer cat. Peek-a-boo looked at him with her emerald eyes, then wriggled out of his grasp to jump onto his shoulder. Cosmo chuckled. The kitten looked around, then slid down his back, leaving a few mild scratches, and landed on a box, looking proud as could be at her achievement.
Helping Ace carry the boxes, the two men walked over to the other room, which was by far the largest of the basement rooms. It had been renovated, the walls paneled in wood, the floor tiled, and there were lamps on the ceiling. Rugs would be placed over the tiles to make all of it more homely. Kate had shown Cosmo the plans and he knew that when the room was done, it would make a great reading room. The shelves lined the walls and reached up to the ceiling. A movable walkway could be rolled around to access the top of each shelf. In the middle a large desk would be placed, with chairs, reading lamps and the possibility to connect the modem of a laptop.
Currently, only the naked shelves greeted them and Cosmo knew they had a lot of work ahead of them. Setting down the box he wondered where to start. Peek-a-boo had followed and now jumped onto the next shelf, surveying the work. Cosmo finally just opened one labeled 'Healing Magic' and took out some books. They were old and new mixed together, some with really outrageous titels.
Ace glanced at the box. "Those go over there," he said and pointed to the left.
"Gotcha, dude." And Cosmo set to work.

*

Kate sat in the middle of a ring of mailboxes, all of them addressed to her. The delivery service that had brought them here had taken almost half an hour to get them all inside and she had offered the two men some coffee or soda because they had been so nice. They had gratefully accepted.
"Okay, let's see. Magic Stones, Rock Magic, Stone Magic, Mountain Magic..... all in that box." She jotted notes on her notepad.
The next box contained some old charts and maps, an ancient magical map with strange hieroglyphics she would have to study later, and some handwritten notes. Kate took inventory of it all. She knew she would have a lifetime of work ahead if she really wanted to go through each of these boxes and find out what was inside.
Footsteps announced a visitor and she looked up, smiling as she discovered a dust-covered Ace. "Need a duster?" she joked.
He gave her a mock-annoyed look. "More like a vacuum cleaner," he chuckled then.
"That bad?"
"Worse." He sat down on a chair, eyeing the other boxes. "At least those boxes are relatively dust free."
Kate sighed. "Yes, but they are full of stuff I don't even know whether or not it's already down there. Anna had piled all her books downstairs and she always wanted to go through the chaos and sort it, but it would never happen." She smiled ruefully. "Now she left it to me."
"Us," Ace corrected her.
Suddenly there was a slight tingle of magic reaching his senses and Kate's eyebrows rose as she recognized it as well. Ace frowned and rose, tilting his head as if listening to something.
"Cosmo?"
He nodded. "Cosmo."
Both magicians walked downstairs and Ace stopped as he witnessed a box wobbled past him, then settle down. A book followed, much less wobbly than the box. The box started its trip again when the book had settled and floated into the new library room. Kate chuckled.
"That's one way of moving stuff."
Ace sighed and they followed the box. Both arrived just in time to see the box lift higher, guided by a fiercely concentrating Cosmo, then settled on an already high pile of books and boxes.
"Oh-oh," Kate mumbled and Ace winced as the mountain of stuff started to tilt.
"Hey, Ace," Cosmo called, grinning at his friend. "Neat, hm? Training and working in one!" He grinned even more.
Ace chuckled. Levitation was a spell Cosmo was just getting a hang of, but it proved to be tricky nevertheless. While other magicians learned levitation as one of the earliest spells, Cosmo had always had trouble with it.
And now as well.
The box had settled down on a rather unsteady surface and wobbled, then started to tilt slowly. Cosmo's grin transformed into a mask of shock and horror. He gave a gasp and flung out one hand, but he misjudged the amount of energy necessary. Instead of righting the small tower of books and boxes, he gave it a shove and everything flew backwards, slamming into a shelf. Cosmo gave a yelp as the boxes broke open and books fell all over the place.
Kate broke out laughing at Cosmo's mortified expression, her laughter increasing as he threw her a dirty look. Ace just chuckled and shook his head.
"I think the traditional method is less..... intense," he remarked.
"Oh, man!" Cosmo wailed. "It worked so well!"
"For the whole five seconds it lasted," Kate hiccuped.
"Die," Cosmo muttered, increasing the dirty look.
She snickered, well aware of how he meant the remark. "You know, for some things, even magicians have to use mundane methods. Sorting books and stacking them is one of them."
Cosmo mumbled something under his breath. "Sorry, Kate," he then sighed.
"No problem," she replied good-naturedly. "How about we take a break and go for some food? Rob's Restaurant makes a mean Steak&Shrimp platter."
Cosmo's eyes lit up at the mention of food. Ace chuckled and briefly drew on the Magic Force, cleaning off the dust clinging to him. It wasn't enough to make Kate uncomfortable and she gave him a quick once-over.
"Missed a spot," she teased and flicked at his white lock.
Cosmo snickered and tried to dust off his own clothes, then gave up. Ace raised an eyebrow, then snapped his fingers and Cosmo was briefly bathed in magic, then he was free of the annoying dust as well.
"Wow, I'm the luckiest girl in town," Kate remarked, grinning. "Come on, boys, let's feed you."

*

Ace walked down the stairs and into the living room, dressed in civvies. He had dumped his usual outfit when they had started working on this library project, now preferring jeans and an old shirt. Right now he had a towel slung over his shoulders, his hair damp from the shower he had taken. Dinner had been great, but they had cut it short due to general exhaustion of all parties. After his shower, Ace felt slightly more refreshed, but he knew he'd be in bed soon tonight. Especially since they had a lot more to do tomorrow.
Kate sat on the rug in front of the open fire place where a small fire crackled. Her back was against an old, heavy couch and she had her laptop on her knees. Peek-a-boo was playing with a fluffy ball not far away, chasing the object of her affection around in wild leaps and circles. Her brother was watching her antics from the couch's arm. Kate was frowning at something, then typed a few things. When Ace approached she looked up.
"Hey. Where's Cosmo?"
Ace jerked a thumb upwards. "Out like a light upstairs."
She chuckled. "Too much physical work?"
"Too much toying around with magic and work," Ace said, grinning.
"Want some tea?" She gestured at the thermos and the three mugs on the couch table.
Ace took a mug and poured himself some tea. "What are you working on?"
"I'm trying to make a list of what I've got down there." She sighed. "It's quite a task." She shut the laptop and placed it beside her. "I've sent off an email to a friend who might help me with the other artifacts. I don't know why I got all those sculptures and an empty frame of a mirror, but well..." Kate shrugged.
Ace settled down on the couch and stretched. "At least we've got the library set up." Well, the shelves, that was.
Ace the cat decided that his namesake was as good a pillow as everyone and stalked onto Ace the magician's lap. He settled down and started to purr, the purring increasing as Ace began to scratch the black kitten.
"To keep me busy for the rest of my life," she groused.
Ace laughed. "Kate, you live for this kind of work. I know of no one who's more into research and books than you."
"I suppose that's a compliment."
He smiled. "So, what was that about someone staying here over autumn and winter?" he then asked.
"Oh, that." Kate leaned back, shrugging.
They had talked about someone visiting Kate and staying for a longer period of time weeks ago, Kate checking if Ace needed the house for something or other. Ace had been mildly surprised about the request. Now he wanted to know what Kate had planned.
"Well," she now said, "a friend of mine called me a few months back, asking about magic and how it manifested in a person. I was, of course, surprised and curious, and after a lot of prodding she told me what was going on. Apparently her niece Lynn had started to show some strange talents."
"Magic?"
"Looks like it. Nature magic, to be precise. From Maddy's explanations over the phone, Lynn can shape or influence an already burning fire and flowing water. I convinced Maddy to let her spend the winter semester here."
Ace shot his friend an amused look. "Kate, why, you want to take on an apprentice?" he teased.
She gave him a dark look. "No, Mr. Magician, I won't! This is just to get a better impression of Lynn's talents and help her. If she decides she wants to learn more, I might think about it. I have a friend in England who is a mage as well and who could help her."
"Oh, I think you can teach her a lot, Kate. You are among the strongest nature magicians I know."
"How many do you know?" she asked pointedly.
Ace grinned. "Including you? Round about....one?"
Kate threw a pillow at him. "If I make the step and take on an apprentice, I'll make sure she know what she's getting into."
"Do you think I believed it was my calling? But it is well worth the backlashes." Ace smiled gently. Ace the cat had ignored the low flying pillow and was snoozing.
"I know, I know. And I was talking about you, Mr. Cooper. If the poor girl comes here, I know she'll sooner or later run into the star of the show magicians."
The pillow sailed back and was deflected by a swift display of wind magic.
"No playing with magic inside the house," Ace chastised, wagging one finger at her.
Kate stuck out her tongue. Finally she said, " Well, might be fun to have someone around the house. I'll let Lynn decide, one way or the other. She has the talent and if I can help her shape it, I'll try....."
Ace still smiled and she shot him another grumpy look. "If you want to make a dry run, I think Cosmo will volunteer himself."
Kate laughed. "You'd entrust the poor boy into my magic care?"
The other magician grinned. "After giving him ample warning."
"Oh, you!" And the pillow sailed back.
Only to explode into a myriad of bubbles that floated through the half-dark living room.
"There goes another throw pillow," Kate sighed, amusement in her grayish blue eyes.
Ace kicked his legs up on the low couch table, watching the bubbles burst or float around. He yawned and smiled as Kate raised an eyebrow.
"I think it's better you get some shut-eye as well," she remarked.
"Looks like it. Don't stay up too late."
"Yes, Dad."
Ace was reluctant to get up. The armchair was way too comfy and the cat on his lap, small as it was, gave off a familiar warmth.
"I'm not carrying you upstairs, you know," Kate added with a sly smile. "Ad you'll have one hell of a cramp tomorrow if you sleep here."
He sighed deeply and finally got up. Ace the cat shot him an indignant look, then curled up on the warm spot where he had just sat. Peek-a-boo joined him, vigorously starting to clean her brother's ears.
"Okay, okay. Good night, Kate."
"Night, Ace."
He walked upstairs again and Kate returned to her filing work.

* * *

One week proved to be just enough time to unpack everything and fill the new shelves, as well as clean up the rest of the basement to a resemblance of order. There was a lot more to do, especially since a box of a lot of weird stuff had been unpacked. Kate was now not only a librarian, but also a keeper of antiques as well. Ace and Kate had discussed the stay of Lynn Cranshaw and Kate had called the girl's mother, letting her know that Lynn was more than welcome.
Cosmo was currently busy loading their stuff into the Magic Racer -- not using a levitation spell. Ace and Kate were still in the house.
"There's something I think you'd appreciate having," Kate said as she held out a small, gray box.
Ace took it, looking curiously at it. He lifted the lid and blinked. The box was full of old photos and photo disks. Anna had been a firm believer in the old-fashioned paper picture, but there had been a few cassettes of digital pictures as well. Ace picked up one picture and found himself smiling. It was himself, about seventeen, posing for a picture with a dark-haired Derek Vega and a thin, shyly smiling Kate Morrigan. There were more, some of them quite normal, others attesting to wild adventures and little overtures.
"Where did you find these?" he asked, amazed.
"Anna had stuffed them into one of the shelves, all the way up on the top. I also found that." She held up a grayish black, stuffed animal. It was a sitting, winged cat. The wings had suffered a bit, but they weren't drooping completely yet.
Ace remembered the stuffed toy. There had been a flea market in Whitewater Springs and he and Anna had gone there to sell some of her own old things. While he had wandered around, looking through the goods the others had, he had found the toy animal. It had been handmade and he had bought it on a whim. For some reason, the emerald colored stones of the eyes had drawn him to buy it. Anna had just smiled and said nothing, but Kate had teased him mercilessly. When he had returned to Electro City, this stuffed toy had remained behind.
"Thanks," he said softly, brushing over the slightly dusty material.
Kate grinned. "Thank for helping, Ace," she then said. "And drive carefully."
He groaned. Why was it everyone thought he was a bad driver?! "Yes, Ma'm."
He left the house and walked over to the waiting Racer, the stuffed toy in hand. As he jumped inside, he placed it on the dash. The box went into the back with Cosmo. Cosmo opened his mouth to say something but Ace raised one finger.
"No comment, okay?"
Cosmo grinned. "Gotcha, dude. Cute, kitty."
Ace started the engine and pulled away from the house. The drive home would eat up some time.
"Whatcha got here?" Cosmo looked curiously at the box.
"Memories. Pictures," Ace said with a smile.
An even more curious light lit up the gray eyes of his apprentice. Ace sighed. He knew by the end of the trip, Cosmo would know the contents of the box, and laugh about some of the more hilarious photographs. Oh, well, in a few years, someone else would laugh about Cosmo's teenage years pictures.