-Part 2-
5:00 PM
Kore woke up apprehensively. She sighed in relief when no sound emanated from Jacks room. She looked at the bed to see Jill getting ready for work. “It's good to see you awake."
Jill nodded tentatively at first, paused, then looked up and gave Kore a smile. “Thanks, I have to go, don't forget to remind mom about coven meeting at eight."
Jack stirred and rolled over, putting the pillow over his head to block out the last rays of sun that blinded him.
“I promise." Kore said. "I'll probably stick around here if that's alright." Kore got up and stretched her cramped back.
“Yeah, yeah, you know it is. Later." She grabbed her coat off of a chair and left, saying goodbye to her mom on the way.
Korelia lay still for a moment, letting her ears tell her what was going on in the house. Dr. Skal was in his laboratory making preparations. Jack stirred and rolled over in his room. Mrs. Skal was cleaning the Kitchen floor. She waited a few moments feeling very alone and thought of Jack in the other room. Quickly she left Jill's boudoir and went into Jack's opening the door as little as possible. She then shuffled over to Jack's bed so that he knew it wasn't his father. She slipped under the covers next to Jack.
Jack jumped immediately at the feeling of something touching his skin. Sitting up quickly he looked at Kore whose eyes were speaking in iambic pentameter at full volume and he calmed down. After a few seconds he pulled the covers up a little higher over Kore and tucked back in, his back facing her.
Kore scooted as close as she could, spooning up against him. She softly placed her hands on his back and nestled into his hair. She gave a soft and muffled sigh of momentary content. Jack smiled and they both slipped back to sleep.
7:30 PM
The door creaked open, letting the light slither along the floor up to the bed. An eye peered in behind it. A harsh snigger could be heard as Brad threw the door open and swaggered over to the bed. He starred at the two sleeping figures and grabbed the comforter with both hands, whisking it away from them. Jack was up and crouched in front of Kore before his eyes were even open. His only instinct to take the blow coming. However, Kore was in the same mindset and mode as her brother and she was desperately trying to make herself an easier target than him by pushing herself to her knees and locking her arms around Jack's neck. Brad was frozen for a moment, then suddenly erupted into an odd laughter at the two wrestling children.
"How wonderful!" He sputtered as his mirth grew louder. "Are you two trying to protect each other?"
Jack turned his attention back to the twisted man before him, sneering in contempt and launching his body at Brad, attempting to tear out his larynx.
Even though Kore felt like doing far worse things to this demented and pathetic excuse for humanity, she grabbed Jack and pulled him away.
“No, Jack." She said in her firm and matronly voice. "You have to go for he jugular and pull to the side. Like this!" And she flung herself at Brad who was still doubled over with laughter.
At exactly this moment, Jill entered the room and caught the flailing girl, just before her deadly descent. "Dinner's ready."
Kore growled deep in her throat and swung out of the room, trying to look like a petty child. Maybe that way, Brad would take everything as more of a game and not punish them later. It was doubtful, bet her back still hurt from her last punishment and she really wanted to sleep face up for a change.
Looking bored and put out, Jill simply let her go, picking up Jack and shrugging him into a robe. As she led her brother out, she cast a venomous look back at the scientist still laughing on the floor. Brad was still giggling and pointing as the three of them left the room.
Janet, however, smiled as her three children entered the kitchen. She set out three courses, most grown from the garden or harvested from the local herds of animals. Her natural ability, the same as the other women in the household had, could make even the crudest of conditions pleasant.
Kore smiled blurrily and stumbled over to Janet. She straightened her torn shirt over the boxers she was wearing and placed an arm around this woman that was feeling more and more familiar as time went on. "Anything I can help with?"
Janet smiled down at her surrogate daughter, shaking her head. "Nothing, it's all done." Her face darkened lightly as Brad entered the room, mysteriously wiping tears from his eyes and smiling all the time.
Kore looked in his direction and smiled pleasantly, doing the best she ever had at hiding that fact that she wanted him to suffer. "Anything to drink, Dr Skal?"
"Water perhaps?" He answered with a grin, ignoring Jack with all but a hand under the table.
Kore nodded and filled a glass with water before walking to the refrigerator to find ice. She peered into the deep freezer at the empty ice trays before giving a nervous smile to Janet. "Was I supposed to fill those today?"
Adapting to everyone else's sunny dispositions, Jill placed herself across from her brother, propping her feet up on either side of Jack's legs. Smiling wider, she turned her head back to the kitchen as Brad nursed a hurt hand. "No, that was my job today. Sorry I forgot, sometimes the noises in the room next to me make me distracted with thoughts of homicide."
Kore smiled and blew into the glass which fogged and then frosted. She straightened a bit more, proud of her achievement and set the glass in front of Brad. Is she was lucky, his lip would stick to the rim. She smiled again and went back to the kitchen to fill two glasses with milk and the third with a mudslide.
Carefully wrapping his napkin around the glass and lifting it pour the liquid into his mouth from a higher angle, Brad drank his water. Janet rolled her eyes at the family and took her seat at the table across from her husband.
Korelia pouted slightly and set the mudslide infront of Jill before sitting to Jack's left and handing him his glass. She smiled at everyone at the table. Anyone who would have seen this would have said that they were a normal family. That really sucked.
Jack never let his scowl fall, even as he took the glass, dipped his finger into the milk, and flicked white specks all over his father. Even then, the impish smile was sufficiently smothered.
After the silent dinner was concluded with the dismissal of the food, Jack made his way back to the bathroom to shower and dress. As Brad stood up to follow, he cast a look at Kore, and deciding otherwise, withdrew to his lab.
Kore huffed and carried most of the plates to the kitchen with Jill and Janet.
"Why don't you go work on your healing dear?" Janet asked sweetly. "Jill and I can finish here."
"Are you sure?" Kore asked looking from Jill the Janet.
"Yeah, sure." Jill said nonchalantly. "Go. Scat."
Kore smiled and went though the side door and into the Herbarium.
As soon as the door shut, Janet put down the dish she was working on in the sink. A long sigh escaped her, as she lowered her head and shut her eyes. It was several silent moments before she spoke.
"I swear, each day I'll do something and it'll be over..." She said sadly.
Jill rubbed her mother's shoulders in a comforting manor. "I know. I do the same thing."
Shaking her head, Janet turned to her daughter. "But you actually intervene! I just stand here and smile like I'm on a 'script of laudanum."
(TBC...)