H geocities.com /lashapadfootofgondor916/Dynasties13 geocities.com/lashapadfootofgondor916/Dynasties13.html elayed x +WJ o _ OK text/html / _ b.H Tue, 06 Jan 2004 19:38:15 GMT Mozilla/4.5 (compatible; HTTrack 3.0x; Windows 98) en, * *WJ _
Gavin didnt let go of her until he was gently setting her down on the sofa in his office. He sat on the floor next to it. Are you alright? He asked quietly.
Ihe just walked right inwalked right into our home like
he belonged here
Were moving, Gavin said firmly. There were too many memories in this house
now. Someplace quiet, maybe a little
bigger maybe a little closer to
II dont understand why he killed him.
He killed him to take you, Gavin said gently. To hurt us. And because he was mine. If
Its my fault I justI *stood* there, I knew what was going to happenI just let him shoot our baby
Shh. You didnt let anyone do anything. Were not set up to fight them off anymore, beautiful. We did everything but put a sign on the front lawn announcing that we didnt have anything to do with the organization anymore. But they wont just leave us alone they have to make sure they win. They dont quite know what to do about me, I think.
He was sick,
I didnt do anything.
I just stood there. I couldve
done something.I could have
There was nothing you could have done. And if Id been home, there wouldnt have been anything I could have done either. He kissed the top of her head. Shhh.
Im sorry
You dont have anything to be sorry for, honey. Im just glad youre alright.
Butour baby
He gently rocked her back and forth. I know,
~*~*~*~
Get your little butts on that couch NOW.
Yes,
Now,
Good boy.
Did not!
And he took my turtle out of the toilet!
SHUT UP.
Im putting you in charge of cleaning up the house. He told his daughter in a fairly softer tone. We have to help your mother out, and that means helping her clean the house. I want you to go through every room that is a mess and assign your brothers and sisters jobs to do and clean up.
But
What did you break?
Well Kayla flushed a frog down the toilet and now its broken the one upstairs, I mean and Michael scribbled all over the wall with the markers from your study *and* with Mommys lipstick and Garrett got chocolate pudding all over the white carpet in the living room and it wont come out, I even tried, and then Ella tried to fix it with the bleach but she dropped it on the tile in the hallway
She hesitated, then shook her head
no. Umm
Mommy told them that they wouldnt get dinner for a week but that was when she was crazy.
If they go near my office, Ill give them more than no dinner for a week, and Im *not* crazy.
She paused a minute, as if she was afraid to ask. Are you drunk? Cause well youre kinda scary, and we get scared when youre drunk
She nodded and got to her feet, but she gave him a hug before she left the room.
~*~*~*~
A few days later,
When
Yes she is, Im going to get her
once I finish checking the house.
He pushed open the door to reveal the bathroom, and opened the bathtub curtain. What is this?
The tub was full of water, almost to the point that it would
overflow, and within the tub, there were fish, tons of them, a few already
floating along the top. Theyre fish,
I know that, what are they doing in the bathtub? He asked.
Swimming.
Why arent they swimming outside in the pond, where they belong?
They didnt want to play outside anymore, it was raining and cold and they didnt want to get wet, she explained, as if this should be obvious to him.
Well it was still cold outside, she insisted. Theyre happy, see? Some of them are sleeping.
The child seemed to be very upset at this. No theyre not, theyre sleeping! She cried, running upstairs to her room.
Mommy *likes* fish, she used to like it when I showed her
my turtles, I thought shed like the fish,
Really?
Yeah, and a little tank to keep it in. It can even stay in your room.
It can?
Yeahyoull be in charge of ityoure going to have to feed
it and clean the tank when it gets dirty.
I can do that! And Mommy could play with him too!
Yup, but Ill only get you the fish if you do something for me.
What? She demanded, sounding rather like her father.
Youre going to have to promise me youll keep all your other pets out of the bathroom. Mommy doesnt like it when she finds your frogs on the toilet.
She didnt like the turtle I put in the washing machine, either and the turtle didnt like it in there
He nodded. When had she put a turtle in the washing machine? You have to keep them in your room and make sure they stay in their tanks or Ill have to take the goldfish away.
How did you get them into the house?
I borrowed mommys bowl. The big heavy one she uses when your friends come over it fit all of them at once, and it held all the water, but I had to move them slow. I almost broke it, she admitted. But I didnt. And I cleaned it up after.
Good girl. Get
I can get one, itll just take longer to move them,
She looked up, startled, and didnt really relax when she saw him. Hi.
She shrugged. Alright, I guess. Theyre letting me leave, arent they?
He nodded. I came
down to get you He stood by the bed and wasnt sure if shed let him get any
closer.
She simply nodded. It wasnt alright, he had scared her and she wasnt looking forward to what was waiting when she got upstairs five horribly messy little kids and a trashed house
Doare you ready to go?
Yeah I guess.
She left the room and let him lead her upstairs to the door that separated their living quarters, the house so to speak, from the headquarters.
Little footsteps pattered down the hall and
Where are we going, little man? She asked him, astounded as she glanced
around. It was clean there were no empty bottles in the kitchen, no toys
tossed in the way, and
Mommy! We made something for you!
Come look what we did!
You made something? She asked as he pulled her toward the playroom.
Look, look, look! He pointed to
The sign, made out of glued-together construction paper,
read Welcome home Mommy! in multicolored letters. It seemed to be made of honest-to-God craft
supplies, and sure enough the room was clean.
Each of the kids seemed to have colored in addition to helping with the
letters, for she was sure
I made the cars!
She glanced around at the spotless house and the tidy children and the banner, and then she dropped to her knees and gave her son a hug. Its beautiful, she told them.
Well go later, sweetie.
Cassidy, upon lowering herself to child-height, had fairly
been tackled by
Well youre just getting to be a grown up girl but youre still little enough for a hug, get yourself over here.
Oh, kids, it wasnt its okay, she assured them. Its not your fault. She sat down on the floor, half expecting someone would knock her over soon anyway, and gently kissed each cheek in turn. Its okay.
Well be good for now on. Little
You *are* good. Youre such good kids She suddenly wanted to cry. Shed missed them
Why dont we all go have some lunch?
Go get your jackets, its raining outside, Cassidy told them, and the kids trooped upstairs to get their raincoats. Cassidy stayed on the floor.
Thank you for looking after them She seemed to ignore what hed said.
Theyre my kids too I just had to explain that you werent feeling well and they needed to help clean up. He told her, trying to get her to look at him.
Theyre good kids, really, but theyve got a lot of energy and with five of them and other things to do its hard She trailed off.
I tried, I tried to take care of them and be there for you and still do things God knows I wanted us to be perfect
I should have helped youshouldnt have expected you to just handle it like you always do
I wanted everything to be perfect for you, she told him, finally looking up at him.
I know, baby, and I want to make it up to youI never should have I had no right to he couldnt make himself say it, as much as he wanted tohe couldnt make himself say hed hit her.
I didnt know what was happening to you, to us, and it scared me, and then
Let me make it up to you, somehow, please, I love you,
She slid closer to him, sitting on the floor by his side, and rested her head against his shoulder. I love you too
He helped her stand up after a minute. I want to protect you. He told her.
She seemed to hesitate and then kissed him softly.
There was a giggle from outside the door.
Shh! Mommy and
Again?
Yup, Little Garrett told them.
Cassidy picked him up. Well then come on, little man, lets go.