Birthday and Money Issues

Now along side his mother, Peppercini was to turn 14. He was a little nervous in front of all of the Tea clan's family friends, especially the family's babysitter Sonja who he had a little crush on.

Everybody watched as Pepper thought of a wish to make, even Sonja.

Everyone: Happy birthday to you happy birthday to you dear Peppercini, happy birthday to you! *horns blow and everyone claps*


Everyone: Whoo! Yay!


After blowing out the candles, Peppercini began to feel a little weird. He felt his voice get deeper, his muscles seemed to stretch and he could swear he grew a foot-and-a-half.

Ta-da! Not to shabby if you ask me. Sonja and Melon don't seem to mind. In fact Melon was quite taken aback to how handsome Pepper had grown up to be and Sonja was rather excited.


He was a little uncomfortable about all of the positive female attention he was receiving, especially when Thistle turned to Mint and said something about him looking so handsome just like his dad.

That night after the festivities had started to wind down, Peppercini noticed his Aunt Mint outside playing the guitar. He became really interested and asked her a few billion questions. She even taught him how to strum a few cords. Mint told Pepper if he found a way to get a guitar, she would give him further instruction.


The next afternoon while he was at school, Thistle had one of Strawkiwi's old roomates come to redo Peppercini's room to be one worthy of a teenage boy.

After overhearing the conversations with Mint, Thistle had also browsed through the paper that morning and called up the local music store, Strings and Things. The owner had kindly recommended an excellent additional present for Peppercini and Thistle wanted it ready for Pepper when he came home for school.


When he walked in to the room, Peppercini's eyes grew wide and his mouth flew open. He was speechless, he picked up the guitar as if it were made of tissue and would crumble in his hands. Thistle couldn't help but grin from ear to ear. She could not wait until Strawkiwi got home from work so that she could tell him about the guitar. (Thistle also hoped that he wouldn't be mad, beings she had not consulted with him before buying it o_o)


Thistle was very tired and a little worried after cooking dinner that night. Having two infants and a toddler was a bit wearing on the nerves. However, grateful as he was, Pepper jumped in to help his mother and fed Honeydew her night-time bottle and put her to bed for Thistle.


Little did Thistle know as she slumbered peacefully, that Strawkiwi was struggling with some issues himself that would affect the whole family. He was not turning out the novel that he had been given an advance on as quickly as his publisher and his agent would have liked him to.

In fact the night of Peppercini's birthday, Tutti Frutti, Strawkiwi's publisher, had pulled him apart during the party and told him that her editor was getting very short about his lack of progress on the book and that they were pushing her to tell him to get on the ball or to give the money back and find another publishing house.

Strawkiwi was taken aback by this and it had not helped with his writer's block. He was also afraid to tell Thistle who seemed happier than she had been in a long while. He had to tell her but he couldn't, not just yet.