Day 131: 18 March 2026

 Short Story -- Monkshood Manor: Part 31

Teddy was eating breakfast when Mr Drey entered the dining room. ‘Mr Millings is here, Miss.’

‘Oh!’ Teddy said, scrambling up, a few crumbs from toast scattering and then sitting back down. ‘Please show him in.’

Mr Drey left and returned a few minutes later with Mr Millings in tow.

Teddy stood up. ‘Please,’ she said gesturing to the table, ‘help yourself to some breakfast.’ After a pause she added, ‘And hello!’

Mr Millings tentatively took a seat to Teddy’s left. ‘I’ve already eaten, thank you.’ Seeing her face fall a bit, he added, ‘But I will take some coffee if that’s alright.’

Teddy passed the pot to him.

‘So, what’s the plan for today?’ she asked.

‘Since presumably rooms for the orphans and staff are integral to your orphanage and school plan, I thought we’d start there. Today, we go up, strip walls, move debris and rubbish, and clean. Hopefully tomorrow we can start painting and repairs.’

Teddy brushed the last crumbs from her fingers and poured herself more coffee. ‘Let’s get to it then!’

Mr Millings grabbed his toolbox and a bunch of boxes that he’d brought with him. One was filled with rags and buckets.

And the two of them headed up to the topmost floor of Monkshood Manor.

The nursery space was first, followed by a hall with four rooms off of it.

The nursery itself was littered with old toys and covered in a carpet of dust. Paint was peeling and windows were nearly opaque with grime.

‘If you want to start with the toys,’ Mr Millings said, ‘I can start tackling that wall over there.’

And with that they were off.

Teddy noticed that Mr Millings hummed softly while he worked.

She decided to make three piles: toys to keep, toys to donate and toys to get rid of. The stuffed bear missing both eyes with its stomach ripped open and apparently a family of mice living in it went in the latter pile. A rocking horse was gently cleaned and set aside to keep. A jack in the box was dusted, tried and set aside to keep.

Hours passed while Teddy quietly sorted and Mr Milling softly hummed and tackled the peeling paint. She found it comforting that they could work together in silence.

Mrs Winter strode in, a pot of coffee in hand. ‘I thought you might want a top up,’ she said. And she surveyed the room. Nodded efficiently and added, ‘You’re making progress.’ And left.

‘She’s something else,’ Mr Millings said with a smile.

‘Oh, she absolutely is,’ Teddy agreed, ‘But in the best of ways.’

Teddy soon finished up with the toys. The ones she was keeping she put inside the large toy chest she’d just cleaned out. She noticed a wall of shelves and went to those next. Several were full of books. But before going through those, she started dusting the empty shelves.

‘You’ll need to put the books in boxes, too,’ Mr Millings said. ‘Everything will need to come out in order to repair things before bringing them back in.’

Teddy nodded.

Soon she turned to the books. She was happy to keep all of them and gently started backing them away.

Mr Millings stomach rumbled.

He looked embarrassed but Teddy just grinned.

‘Time for lunch,’ she announced.

And they headed downstairs.