Introduction: This story is the third, the penultimate, in a series within a series. The overall series is the “Cynthia Chronicles”. This story is directly connected to “Simoné and the Second Time Around” and “Marti and the Doppelganger”. The latter left many unanswered questions. Some of those will be answered, some probably not. There are many references to previous stories in the series. If you are confused by some of them, just put it off to my senility. The Cynthia Chronicles takes place in a universe very similar to ours. Unfortunately, it might be too similar.

For any who read “Myrna and the Genetic Disaster”, this is the same story, only with the political rantings and scientific explanations removed. There may also have been a few edits and additions.

This is the sixth part of ten.

The Morrisons have moved to Bridgeport, Connecticut. Sydney wants to find the people who helped her so much. She didn't even know them. Edna Millet, her friend in California had told Marti about her trans girl friend. Marti told The Wizard, and strangely enough, the Morrisons met The Wizard the next day. The rest is history.

The young girl, no, young woman looked around the mall that was totally unfamiliar to her and her parents. Edna Millet had told her that her cabin mate the summer before last lived in Bridgeport. She had also said that she thought The Wizard worked out of this area quite frequently.

When her father was transferred to Bridgeport, with a substantial raise, she had no trouble convincing her parents they should try to find Marti and her family. She thought the best place to start looking would be the city’s large mall. The mall was a bit of an alien environment. There were subtle differences from the malls she was accustomed to in the Silicon Valley. After all they had come all the way across the country to a place that was a bit alien.

Sydney Morrison certainly wouldn’t have stood out in any public gathering place. She was fairly ordinary looking: tall, a bit slender, but with a definitely feminine figure. Unlike some teenagers her age, she eschewed some of the over the top cosmetic additions. She would have been quite at place in a Norman Rockwell magazine cover from seventy or more years in the past.

“Mom, I did quite a bit of research about The Wizard back before we met him. One of the things I learned was his shop would appear just like it did in Los Altos. When it did appear, there was usually a reason. Well, we know for sure that is the case. He seems to prefer some of the chain stored like GNC or Hallmark. If that is the case, I would expect him to be down that way. There is a Hallmark store down there according to the mall directory.”

“I think your dad and I will follow your lead. You certainly know more about these sorts of things than we do. You have been right so far. We certainly don’t have any reason to doubt you.”

“Let’s just take a break here and get an Orange Julius,” Sydney said. “I haven’t had one since we left California.

“Why don’t we just sit down for a few minutes, and see what we can see.”

“Sydney,” her mother said as she looked down the walk, “those three women coming this way are looking right at us.”

“I think I know who they are. Just a minute; I’ll talk with them.”

Sidney approached the three women who obviously knew who she and her parents were. “Before you say anything, let me guess.

“You,” she said reaching out and grasping the redhead’s hands, “have to be Marti Lewis. I just know it. Edna described you perfectly.” Sydney threw a major hug on the redhead, and gave her a passionate kiss.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Marti giggled and returned the hug and kiss. “This is my mother, Marissa and my sister Randi. Randi can’t stay very long, but she wanted to meet you.”

Randi gave Sydney a similar hug and kiss to the one her sister had bestowed on her. “I know we will see you many times, but I have to get back to Boston. I have to sit in on an oral examination. The examinee is very good. She will have her PhD, but I need to be there to support her. One of the professors on her committee is a bit of a chauvinistic jerk. We’ll see you at the party.” And with that comment, Randi disappeared. There was a faint sound of an implosion, but no one in the area batted an eye.

Marissa gave Sydney a similar greeting before Sydney pulled the mother and daughter to meet her parents. All the introductions were done correctly.

“His Wisdom asked us to meet you here. He can’t be here for another 15 minutes. He’s run into a group of trouble makers in Bruges, and is reorienting them to the way of proper conduct. I don’t know exactly what he has in mind for them, but I imagine it will be transformative.

“It’s so nice to meet you. The Wizard had nothing but the best things to say about you. He was so glad he could help. I know that had to be a special time for all of you.”

“It was,” Jack Morrison, Sydney’s father said. “We knew very early that Sydney was our daughter. I think we knew it before she was a year old. When we saw his shop, Sydney’s excitement was barely containable. We just went along with her. She had talked about him in the past, but we just thought it was a lot of wishful thinking. We were certainly wrong. That had to have been among the best days of our lives. And now, Sydney’s college education is taken care of. I don’t know how we will ever be able to thank him for what he did.”

“Usually, a hug and a kiss will suffice, or in your case, a good firm handshake. There is little compensation for what he does other than making the world a bit of a better place. For someone who might be a thousand years old, he has learned quite a bit over the last few decades.”

Marissa looked over her shoulder towards the area where the SRU shop usually liked to settle in. “I think he will be here at just about the time we arrive at the Hallmark Store. Let’s head that way.”

When they were about ten feet from the Hallmark Store, the image of the store shimmered a bit, and suddenly became the SRU store where anything could happen. Sydney led the way through the door. Her parents and the others could see and feel her euphoria. It was the place of her reconciliation. The conflicts had disappeared the last time she’d entered there.

The rattling of toe nails on the floor preceded Wolf, Padrona, and their nearly grown children. The children were attending school at the time. Charli was giving them instruction in magic, and they were quick learners. Puppies, or adolescent dogs sometimes had difficulty keeping their emotions under control, and they were giving Sydney a tongue bath.

“Wolf, see if you can control the little ones for a few minutes. We can’t stay here very long,” The Wizard said.

Wolf and Padrona both gave a little snarl. There was no question what it meant. The pups quickly sat with their tails wagging.

“Give all of them a doggie treat. They’re in that jar on the counter. They can’t open it because they don’t have opposable thumbs.

“Mr. and Mrs. Morrison, it is so nice to see you again. Sydney, I must say you look positively radiant.”

“Your Wisdom,” Marissa said, “I’ve never heard you say anything like that.”

“I know, but Cindy said it would be the right thing to say.”

“I think Cindy was setting you up. But you’re right, Sydney is radiant.”

“Folks, please come on back. I have some refreshments for everyone.”

As they parted the curtain they saw two adult and four half grown weasel-like but much larger creatures. The adults were resting on the backs of two chairs, and the younger four were roughhousing back by the rear door. A disassembled skeleton was scattered across the floor.

“Pardon the mess. The pups and the young Rikki children were having a bit of fun. The Rikkis are visiting for a while. We became good friends years ago after a tsunami destroyed their home in Indonesia. If I remember correctly, that was about the time I was introduced to Myrna. She has exceeded all expectations. She has really taken charge with a little problem we’ve been working on.”

“Your Wisdom, you were talking about the Rikki family,” Marissa said trying to get the conversation back on its original track.

“Sorry, I sometimes get distracted. Yes, I happened to be visiting their home area again, and asked them if they would like to take a trip around the world with me. I’ll have them home next week. They’re having a lot of fun. Last week we were in Miami, and they went out to the Everglades to hunt Burmese Pythons. They were quite successful. Some of those snakes are huge.”

“Your Wisdom ….”

“Oh yes, have a seat. I think I have everything right.

“About your move here,” he said to the Morrisons,” I had nothing to do with it. Well, I might have, a little. I knew there was an opening here, and your resumé just happened to show up at the main office. I think there were some folks in California who were less than understanding about Sydney’s condition. That’s not like most folks in that area. They may have forgotten about it, but I didn’t. I know you are looking for a home. That apartment is barely adequate for you.”

“We’ve been looking, but everything is almost as expensive as Silicon Valley. We don’t want to touch the money we put away for Sydney’s College.”

“I don’t think you will have to worry about that. I have it on good authority that Sydney will be getting a significant scholarship for her pre-med education at Boston University. Not only that, your stock portfolio has done quite well. You made some excellent choices for your 401-K, and putting your lottery winnings in similar funds was a good idea.”

“But ….” Jack Morrison started to say. Marissa put her hand on his. He got the message.

By this time, everyone was enjoying a snack. Wolf and Padrona were having a large stick of pepperoni, each. The pups were having smaller portions of the same. The mongooses were enjoying something that Ellen Morrison wasn’t too sure she wanted to know what it was. She could see what looked like small crustacean legs being rather noisily being crunched.

The mongooses spoke English quite well, although their southern Asian accent was a little difficult to get used to.

“Now, about your new house. I understand there’s a very nice home available on Beaver Pond Road. I think you will find it quite acceptable. With that little nest egg doubling in the last two years, I think you will be able to make a substantial cash down payment up front, and keep your payments well within your budget. I’ll bet Marissa will be willing to take you right by it. I think it will be open for another two hours.

“Now, I have to be moving this decrepit shop to Moscow.”

“Your Wisdom,” Marti spoke up, “this shop has never looked better. Randi has made it look better than it has for more than 500 years.”

“I know, I was just being self-deprecating. The shop has never looked better. I just have trouble getting used to it.”

They exchanged affectionate hugs and kisses before leaving through the front door into the mall. They turned around to see the Hallmark store full of customers.

“Why is he doing this?” Ellen asked.

“Because you are good people. You never once doubted Sydney,” Marissa said as she looked down the hall to see her daughter and Sydney holding hands as they moved out in front of the adults. “You did something that, unfortunately, many parents never do. You believed in your daughter. You did get counselling, not to contradict your daughter, but to support her. You did it to help her through some tough times. Fortunately, she had some great friends who supported her through those tough years. Fortunately, she was never outed. Edna Millet and her other friends protected her. They still know what happened.

“You might ask why. The reason is they will support others they find who need help. They don’t know it, but if the situation ever arises, they will be able to contact The Wizard. They will be rewarded.

“Now, I want you to follow me to see if this home meets your needs. We have lived on Beaver Pond Road for over twenty years. It’s a wonderful area, and you will find some great friends who know what you’ve been through. We are not all magic, but we do understand each other.

“I have a question, but maybe it’s none of my business. Sydney is an only child. Was that by choice?”

“Yes it was. Because of our financial situation, we decided to not have more children. We wanted to put one hundred percent of our effort into making sure Sydney was being supported and taken care of properly.”

“How do you feel about her now?”

“Things couldn’t be better.”

“Would you like to have more children?”

“We’ve talked about it, haven’t we, Jack?” Ellen said giving her husband an affectionate nudge.

“I have the name of a good gynecologist/obstetrician. You might want to make an appointment. By the way, this house has four bedrooms.”

They spent more than two hours at the open house, an hour after the closing time. Ellen checked their funds on her phone. They made an offer. Two days later it was accepted.

The next Saturday they met their future neighbors at a nice cocktail hour held by the Lewises. A much smaller group stayed for dinner. The Morrisons knew they were home.

Next, we learn quite a bit about Penny as she adapts to being a young woman. It didn’t take long to find a boyfriend, nor for him to find her. She realizes she has to tell him about her past. He already knew.