Page 37 of Artemis

After Alexander’sbath and a shower for her, they got dressed and took their breakfast out onto the patio. Elati greeted them with a squeak, prancing across the yard.

“Lati is happy to see us, Mom!” Alexander exclaimed. “Can I share my pancake with her?”

“That is so thoughtful, sweetheart. Why don’t we give her one all on her own, rather than you sharing yours?” Artemis suggested.

“She needs a plate!” Alexander said reproachfully when Artemis placed a pancake on the clover nearest to them.

“Watch her.”

Elati eagerly trotted over to them and delicately nibbled on the edge of the golden brown pastry. Her long tongue licked over the entire thing and then she moved back to the edge, taking small bites and chewing.

“It’s better that she doesn’t have a plate because she might try to bite it by accident,” Artemis explained to her avid son. “If she takes a bite of clover, it won’t hurt her. Look how she’s claimed the whole thing by licking it. Aren’t you glad that you aren’t sharing yours?”

Alexander shrugged his shoulders and picked up his pancake with both hands. “I don’t mind.”

Artemis laughed. “Better you than me.Iwouldn’t want to share deer slobber.”

“Mom! Lati mighthearyou!” Alexander shushed her.

“I don’t think she’ll take offense, darling. Deer don’t think about these things the same way we do.” Artemis stabbed the last bite of her pancake with her fork. “Are you ready for your party?”

Alexander stuffed the rest of his pancake in his mouth and grinned at her, nodding enthusiastically.

“Thank you for not attempting to speak with your mouththatfull,” Artemis said with a shake of her head. “Chew, swallow, andthenwe can leave.”

They brushed their teeth and then walked over to the daycare. Balloons, tied to a stick stuck in the ground in front of the gate to the backyard, bounced in the breeze.

“Pretty!” Alexander exclaimed. “Can I have one?”

“Maybe later, on the way home,” Artemis replied. “Right now, they’re directing people to your party.”

“Okay.” Alexander seemed perfectly happy with that reasoning and ran through the gate to join the party. He came to an abrupt stop just beyond the wall of the building and stared wide-eyed at the backyard.

Artemis followed more sedately. She came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder. The backyard was a sight to behold. “Pretty incredible, isn’t it?”

There were balloons tied to the fence at intervals, and an enormous drawing of an elephant on the wall. In the large grassy space sat an inflatable climbing gym decorated with a giraffe, a lion, and a monkey.

“Mom!” Alexander gasped. “Do you see?”

“I see a lot of things,” Artemis replied, amused.

“The cake looks like Lati!”

Artemis looked past the brightly-colored decor to the food table near the back door of the daycare. The cake was a simple rectangle, but it was designed to look like a meadow, complete with delicate spun-sugar flowers on top. Topping the cake was a toy version of Elati. “She’s not made of cake. She’s a toy for you to play with.”

“Ohh. Good.” Alexander looked relieved. “I wanted to eat cake, but I didn’t want to eat Lati.”

“Even if she had been cake, you wouldn’t actually be eating her, you know that right?”

Alexander frowned at her. “I know, Mom.”

“Are you a threenager already?” Artemis asked, half-anxious.

“I’mthree.”

“Go play, sweetheart.”

Alexander immediately raced for the inflatable climbing wall and clambered up it with ease. At the top, he shouted with joy before swishing down the slide.

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