Iron Will

With a glance at the clock I saw it was almost 6 am so I decided to make breakfast. "Hey Zack, will you give me a hand making breakfast. I wanted to talk to you about something while we were there?"

"Sure thing Rei, what's up?" he said as he stood up and walked towards the kitchen.

As we entered the kitchen, I made sure we were alone when I said in a low voice, "We are gonna either loot or buy what we need to make sure that when we get back, we can build up a fortress around my house. I don't know if things will cool down in the end, but they will definitely go to shit first. People and Countries with grudges are going to let this stuff go to their heads and try to take vengeance or declare war. And I'm pretty sure whatever caused everything to go to shit isn't done yet. I think we might have much bigger things to worry about than some petty wars or fighting to be honest." I had read to many fiction books and played to many games to think lightly of any of this.

"I understand what you mean but what do you mean fortress?" Zack asked with a confused look on his face.

"You can move stone and I can move metal. If we put our powers together, we could stop nearly anyone from getting in. The only thing would be people that could use wind to either fly or leap to an extreme height and still land safely."

"Ohh, that makes sense." He looked thoughtful as he reached into my chest freezer. "So why you and me? I get that you can basically make a blender around you, but Kara could turn anyone into ash that caused trouble."

"I know you're her brother, but you have to at least be able to see that she's a beauty among beauties. Any less attention we can get the better. Plus, you should be able to basically make bullets out of stone. We could probably do something interesting once we learn how to work together better." I was a little surprised at his naivety but also kind of happy. It meant he hadn't even thought of a worst-case scenario for any of us. "Besides Kara has the only other offensive ability. We need someone to hold down the fort." I looked at him as he started cooking some bacon and I had finished the scrambled egg mix. "First let's eat and then we'll go from there. Oh! And I wanted to test out your fiancée's ability if you don't mind." I eyed his response and couldn't help but notice him jerk at that word.

"I... I didn't know how to tell you." He said. "We've spoken so little the last few years that when I fell for her and later proposed it was easier to just not say anything." He looked genuinely upset so I thought I would let him off the hook.

"First anything that happens to you is something I want to hear about and second, I know I've holed myself up in here for quite a while which has made it hard to reach me. I wasn't saying that you needed to tell me but it's my own fault even with everything you guys did for me after Lexi, mom and dad, I couldn't do anything but curl up and hide. I started to hide myself away and now I've got no choice but to come out of hiding. I know it's fucked up, but I definitely needed something to shake me loose." I told him the truth but held back a few parts of what I felt. "Just wish it would have been something a bit less drastic." I whispered more to myself than anything.

"Well... As long as you're not mad at me." I could see he was upset so I put an arm around him and gave a small squeeze.

"You're my little brother... I may get pissed at you, but it will never last long." I looked up into his brown eyes and reached up to shake his black hair with my free hand.

"Good." He nodded his head and gave me a small squeeze back. "now let's finish this food."

"OK, I gotta start this test out too." I reached up and grabbed a glass and poured some hot water and some salt into the glass.

As I started to stir the salt water Zack said quietly, "good idea." He realized I was trying to figure out the way her water ability worked and what will and won't move with the water. I reached and started mixing up different soluble items to see what would and wouldn't work. After filling about 10 cups with strange solutions and making sure breakfast was ready, we left the kitchen.

As soon as I reached the living room, I was a bit taken aback by the sheer number of tomatoes. "I think that should do it on the tomatoes Zack. Maybe take a breather before you hurt yourself." There were over 2 baskets of cherry tomatoes and Zack was sitting there looking a bit tired.

"If you say so Aunt Reika." He barely managed to get out a whisper.

I glared at Kara and she put her hands up and then pointed at me. She stood up and came to me. With a whisper she said, "He wants to impress you. He's had a crush on you for years and he hasn't seen you in 2 years. Think carefully about how you treat him OK?"

"C'mon... Why me? I've never been nice to him and I am hardly ever around." I whispered back

"You of all people should know, the heart wants what the heart wants..." she said with a giggle and a smirk. "Just make sure you let him down easy when it comes to it OK?"

"Fine, whatever." I said as I sat down to eat. "But Jenny sits with me for every meal from now on." I said as I pulled her into my lap. "I forgot how adorable you were my little Sylph." I said as I hugged her close.

"What's a Sylph?" Jenny asked.

"It's a beautiful creature that could control the wind." I told her as I filled up my plate with scrambled eggs and some bacon. "They were renowned for both their kindness and their mischievousness. That means playing pranks." I added because she looked confused.

"Oh! Like Sylphid from that game you played with me, right?" she said as she reached for some bacon on our plate.

"That was a boy though." I said. "But the same race so good job remembering that." I replied. "After breakfast I was hoping I could borrow you for a little bit, so I could see what else I need to grab while we're out there, is that OK Delilah?"

She nodded and looked to Zack as she said "That's fine, but are you 2 leaving for somewhere? Wouldn't it be safer to stay here?"

"Short term yes. But unfortunately, we don't know how long it will take to get things back to normal. Or," I decided to be a bit more honest. "if they will ever go back. This could easily be just the first part of many which is why I am going to get some more long-term supplies."

"I don't like being separated from Zack in this chaos, but if he agrees with you then he isn't just running off to play games." She said with a long sigh.

"We'll be grabbing some stuff and coming back here." He said as he took her face in his hands. "I'm not dumb enough to set up a death flag for myself, so hopefully everything works out."

I couldn't help but chuckle a bit at that. "Good answer Zack." I said. "So much ridiculous stuff is already happening. Don't need to give the universe any more opportunities. With that," I grabbed Delilah by the hand and started pulling. "Let's see what you can do."

After playing with Delilah's ability we determined she can manipulate both water and water with something diluted in it. She can also separate water from anything else making her a way more efficient water filter. She can also pull the water from the air but that's not a lot so digging up a water source will be necessary for this fortress. I went into my bedroom and started to get dressed. As I looked through my clothes, I tried to grab masculine stuff to try to defeminize myself, but I have always preferred cute clothes so in that department I was lacking. I found some baggy clothes and threw them on. As I walked into the hallway I almost collided with Kara. "Woah Kara." I half yelled. I looked at my sister with her fair skin and brown hair and eyes. She was still scared, and I understood why. She looked at me and my clothes and I saw a bit of pity cross her face. "I've always bought cute clothes. Luckily I still had some of Lexi's stuff sitting in the closet." I said somberly.

"Oh, I thought I recognized that shirt and hat." She said as she tried to smile. "You may not think so, but they look good on you."

"Uhh, thanks." I replied. "We aren't going to be going far. I just want to get a few things and then we'll come back. I don't need to tell you that I need you to hold down the fort, do I?"

"I get it. I've got a pretty much useless except for hurting others kind of ability." She pouted.

"For now, since you can't control it maybe." I said. "But just like with Delilah's I have a few ideas for your ability as well. It's just not going to affect what I plan on grabbing today."

"Hmm? Is this what you did with your free time instead of studying?" she asked teasingly.

"Of course." I smiled. "When wasn't I reading some web novel or playing some game about weird stuff. In that regard I still haven't changed."

"That's true. It was near impossible to get you out of your room until Lexi showed up." She said hesitantly. Seeing I didn't jump she continued. "Everyone misses her just as much as Mom and Dad. I just thought you would like to know." She reached out for my hand and I let her take it. "Have the nightmares gotten any better?"

I can get a minimum of 3 to 4 hours of sleep every day for sure and after 2 years it feels like it is enough. The nightmares haven't lessened at all, but I can at least pretend for her sake. "Yeah, I don't sleep as much probably because of how long I had them, but I sleep better than before." I smiled at her and squeezed her hand. "But for now, I need to get ready."

"OK, make sure to take extra care out there. We don't know just how bad it is yet, plus the sun is about to rise. People are going to be waking up soon."

With a nod I turned into the bathroom.

"Dammit, dammit, dammit." I whispered into my reflection. "They were being so good about playing dumb. Why did you have to bring her up? It doesn't change anything." My whole body was trembling as I looked at myself in a camo jacket and John Deere hat on my head my black hair was spilling out. My almost black eyes were starting to form tears. Which didn't help the bags under my eyes. I reached into the drawer and pulled out some hair ties. I hadn't cut my hair since middle school, so it made it all the way down my back. As I took off the hat and started tying up my hair, I could hear Kara and Zack in the hallway.

"How is she holding up?" I heard Zack say.

"It's hard to tell." Kara replied. "She's always been so good at hiding her feelings and with everything that's going on its even harder to try to figure her out when my own emotions are all over the place."

I decided that was enough and stepped out of the bathroom and saw them both stiffen. "I'm not gonna say I'm all rainbows and kittens but I'm a lot better than I used to be." I said as I shot each of them a look. "But I know for a fact that having you 2 talk about me isn't helping in the least."

"Sorry..." they both managed to get out. But Kara followed up. "It's great to see you, even if it's an act, back to yourself Rei." She was so earnest and sweet that I couldn't help but hug her. Zack stood there, stock still expecting something from me, so I released Kara and gave him a small jab in his shoulder.

"Let's grab Lyla and get moving." I said.

I squatted down in front of my dogs and looked Rocko right in the eye. He never looked away even before today but now it felt strange. Almost like he was waiting for something. "I need you to hold down the fort with Kara, OK bud?" he placed one of his paws on my knee like he was agreeing with me and with that Zack, Lyla and I were off.

When we started off, I wanted to get solar panels and any and all seeds and food stuffs I could. "I want to hit up the farm supply store on the edge of town and then head over to the home supplies after." I said to Zack. "Is there anywhere you think we should go?" I asked

"I think that should do it for now. Just try to avoid as many people as possible and I'll be happy." He said. I could tell he was nervous about all of this and just trying to put on a show of strength.

"Remember. If something happens the most important thing is that we make it out alive. If you need to drop something or hurt someone else that's fine. You also don't need to worry about killing anyone. If you can incapacitate them that's enough for now." With that I saw a frown on his face.

"Not everyone is gonna turn to crime and I'm sure there are people that would prefer to keep living the way they were but that doesn't mean the people we are going to run into are friendly."

"It doesn't mean they are enemies either. Both of us are fairly impressive so I'm sure if we gave them a choice at the start it would be the better choice. I'm not afraid to take a life... But I would rather it not be an innocent." He trailed off at the end.

"I'm in the same boat. I was just checking where your mindset was. I wanted to make sure we were on the same wavelength." As I said that I pulled into the farm supply store. It was empty. "Here goes nothing." I said as I pulled around the side to hook a trailer up to the truck.

"Not even gonna pretend huh?" Zack exclaimed.

"If the world goes back to normal, I'll be sure to pay for the trailer if the owner is still alive." I said with a laugh. "I was thinking about buying one anyways."

"Sure sure. I totally believe you." He shot back with a shake of his head.

After hooking up the trailer I merged the metals together to make it easier to keep together and walked to the delivery door in the back. I felt around for the locks and pulled them loose and then lifted the door. Once I got it off the ground a little bit I slid under and let it settle back down and found the electronic switch to open the door up fully. As Zack backed the trailer into the door, I found a steel pipe and lifted it into my hand. It wasn't too heavy to carry but it had enough metal to shift for both a weapon and shield. First things first, I took every bag of dog and cat food and threw those into the truck bed. I could move the dolly without much effort, so Zack and I just loaded it all in as fast as possible. Next, I found the seeds and seedlings that were lined up. Luckily, it's about to be spring. I thought to myself. I started grabbing a few of each type knowing that Jason would be able to grow them, while Delilah could pull the water, helping the seeds blossom better. Next, I went over to the tractors and proceeded to pull as much metal from the first 3 tractors as I could without putting myself in a bad position later. "We'll load this up and head out." I said to Zack.

"Yeah this should help quite a bit but..." he was interrupted by squeaking.

My eyes lit up as I looked at Zack. "If we take some baby chicks, we can get a fair amount of meat and eggs without much worry and since Jason can grow plants, we won't have to worry about food either." I said excitedly.

"If we grab these chicks, we are going home to unload first otherwise you'll have a dead brother to deal with because I'm already annoyed, and it's been like 1 minute." He said with a moan. He was never fond of animals and I wasn't until I met Lexi and got dragged to her family's farm a few dozen times.

"Fine then let's load up some more stuff before we grab these things." I said.

We loaded up a lot of metal goods and some more food for the chicks. When I looked into the pen there were both chicks and ducklings, so I decided we should take both. I pulled out my phone and made a tab on how to stop ducks from flying. I knew it wasn't nice for the ducks, but I figured just in case. After rounding them up and the heat lamps we made for the truck when I heard shouting outside.

"I'll check it out." Zack said quietly.

I nodded and said, "be careful."

I put all of the stuff we collected into the truck and made after my brother. When I got near the front door there were 2 men standing over a girl. She looked like she was about college age and I could see blood trickling from the edge of her mouth. Before I could get enough information both men started to raise their hands. One had a small golf ball sized fireball over his hand and the other had a small knife, but it looked like something he made with an ability.

I raised my pipe and as I went to say something to Zack, I saw Lyla run out from the side of the building barking. The men both looked over and I saw almost evil grins form. As she got closer, I saw Lyla's fur start to flutter separately from the wind from her running. As she got closer her fur started to turn red and orange. She was starting on fire and it wasn't a bad thing. She was going to help this complete stranger and I couldn't understand why. I raced out to meet Lyla in case she needed my help and by the time I got out there both men had run off.

"Lyla!" I couldn't help but shout. "what were you thinking running out here like that." I was so scared just now as I approached Lyla her fur turned back to the golden brown it normally was and she sat down right at the girl's feet looking at me. I crouched down and glanced at the girls face who looked nervous but not scared as I grabbed onto and hugged Lyla. "you scared me so much you big dumbie." I said into her fur.

"My names Alice." The girl said and put out her hand.

"Reika." I replied as I took her hand. She had sharp features and blue eyes. Her blonde hair made a gorgeous contrast to her tanned skin. "And this little fireball is Lyla. Oh, and that's Zack my brother" I said as I pointed over my shoulder.

"Good to meet ya. We need to go Reika." He said it quickly. I agreed but Lyla was acting strangely.

"Hold on, Lyla was a tracking dog before Lexi adopted her, so there's a reason she's being like this." As I looked at Alice, she reacted to tracking dog.

"My brother and I were attacked, and I was trying to find supplies to help him. Could we maybe come with you?" She asked genuinely. "We don't have any way to pay you back, but I can move water and my brother can move earth." She said pleading with us.

"I think it's a good idea as long as it's not too far." I said checking with Zack.

"Agreed." He said, but quickly followed it with, "even though you yourself said to avoid people you stop as soon as a pretty girl needs help."

"Remind me to beat you later." I said as I felt my face heat up. "Anyway, where's your brother. We have a truck, so it will be easy to get back to my place.

"He's right over there. Part of our house was set fire to a bit ago, so we were squatting in a shed to keep warm."

"OK, we've got some blankets in the back seat of the truck and I know some basic first aid so let's get your brother and get out of here." As I said that Lyla stood up finally and started to follow Alice to the shed her brother was in.

As we approached, I said. "Just in case you're up to something, I want you to know I haven't let my guard down. I've read a few stories about these scenarios so if someone tries to ambush me, I'll kill them without fail." I would have a hard time killing but that's not something she needs to know yet.

"Don't worry. We just want to live our lives, but all the shitheads are already out and about." she said nonchalantly. "Besides just by looking at you 2 you'd probably kick our asses."

I smiled as we opened the door but as soon as I smelled blood the smile faded. I could see her brother breathing heavy and holding his stomach. I glanced at Zack to make sure he would cover me and then approached. "Hey I'm Reika. I told your sister I might be able to help." I spoke steadily and calmly since he was holding his side, so it was pretty likely he would be fine once the wound was closed up.

"The names Will." He eked out through his teeth. "Do what you can. I don't expect much so don't worry about letting me down."

"Cracking jokes in a situation like this." I couldn't help but smile. "If I was anyone else, I'd say you were a man after my own heart." I chuckled and then took a look. "It's not too bad. Alice, run to my truck and grab my first aid kit." I started to clear the area, so he could lay properly. "A tiny cut like this and your acting like it's the end of the world. Don't be a baby." I gave the wound a tap and he sighed out in pain. "Nothing's necrotic and since I can turn metal inside out, I can guarantee you won't get an infection from the needle."

"Well whatever then." He rolled a bit to give me better access to the wound and completely let his guard down. "Just don't go touching anywhere weird and we'll be fine." he said with a smirk.

Alice returned with the first aid kit and I first cleaned and sterilized the wound and then pulled out the needle. "I've never had stitches without anesthetic, so I guess this is the part where I say this is gonna hurt." I tried to smile but I'm not good with another person's pain. As I went to work with the stitches Alice was next to Zack and they were talking and keeping watch. "Zack go get the truck, so we can head home as soon as I finish up here."

"OK, I'll be right back." He headed off and then I said to Alice. "Your brother is going to be fine now, so how did this happen anyway?" I wanted to ask her without my brother because he was being quite cold and thought we might be able to talk more freely.

"Some idiot was throwing stones that were sharp as knives all around and one of them hit him." She said.

I could tell it was a lie, but I didn't think it was time to push when her brother said. "Your still gonna protect that asshole? It was our little brother. He got a little power and immediately started attacking everything. When I tried to stop him, he did this." He had anger, sadness, and despair on his face.

"He's gonna get himself killed and no lie is gonna save him!" He shouted at the end.

"You don't know what's wrong!" Alice yelled back. "Something could be wrong with his head. For fucks sake you can move metal with your mind and got attacked by stones floating in the air. How can you dismiss his mind being damaged so easily!" She had tears forming in her eyes. "How can you give up on Seth so easily!" She was screaming. Crying and angry I couldn't have been happier to see Zack.

"Well." I said awkwardly. "Looks like our rides here. Someone gimme a hand getting him up." I said after I finished dressing his wound and packing up the supplies. "I've got some baby birds to get home."

After a bit of a drive we got back to my house and things were still pretty awkward. I wanted to say something but decided that I was the least qualified for that job. After pulling into the driveway Lyla jumped out of the truck and ran straight inside. After a few seconds Rocko came out with Jenny in tow and then Kara and Jason.

"All good here?" I asked.

"Yeah. You weren't gone nearly as long as you guessed." Kara narrowed her eyes at me. "What did you do?"

"I'm offended. This is because somebody..." I glared at Zack. "Didn't want to listen to some baby birds chirping for a little bit."

"Baby birds!" Jenny said as her eyes lit up. "Can I see them? Can I Mom?" She asked Kara.

"Let's get the truck parked and figure out where to go from there OK honey?" She replied back as she lifted the little girl.

"Do you need a hand with something Aunt Reika? I'm feeling a lot better now that I've slept a bit." Jason said.

"Thanks Jason. We have a guy that's hurt here so could you help Zack get him to the guest room. I'm gonna have to figure out lodging now that I think about it too huh?" I said more to myself than anyone else. "Well first let's start with what's in front of us."

"So not only did you take in a bunch of baby birds but your bringing two people into the fold as well?" Kara sighed. "You tell us to do or not do something and then immediately do the exact opposite. I don't think I'll ever be able to keep up with you Reika..." She trailed off at the end, but I got the gist of what she was saying.

"Like I could deny a beautiful girl asking me to help her brother. It's not every day a shut in like me gets to play the role of knight Kara. And besides they said they would work for us so it's a deal not altruism."

"Fine, whatever." She sighed. With that I started unpacking the supplies, so we could head back out.

When I had unpacked the majority of the supplies I went into the house and was instantly tackled by a little girl. "Where are the baby bird's aunt Reika. Mom said I could see them, and I bet they are just so cute huh?" She was so excited.

"I put them in the garage, so they could stay warm until I build them their own houses. They are still really small, so we need to make sure they get enough food and water and make sure they are warm."

I took her hand and walked her into the garage through the door in the kitchen. "OK. Leave it to me. I'll make sure they grow up big and strong." She was so confident it was adorable.

"OK. You'll probably need help from Jason when they get bigger because they like green food but let me show you how to feed and water them first." I said with a smile.

"Oh! Sorry." As we entered the garage Alice was leaning against the standing freezers, I had lined up staring at her phone. "I was trying to get my idiot brother on the phone." I could tell she was crying and saw her wipe her face with her sleeves.

"It's fine. If you can talk him back to himself, he's more than welcome to stay here. But that's only if he calms down a bit." I said as I lifted my index finger and thumb into a small gap. "Until he calls back do you mind giving me and Jenny a hand?" If there's one thing I'm good at its distracting. "I'm trying to show her how to feed and water them. We have ducks and chickens in here, but they are pretty young so as long as we give them food water and heat, they should be fine."

"Oh? I've always been pretty good with animals. You probably noticed that with your golden retriever though." She looked at me and then smiled at Jenny. "Are you gonna be taking care of these guys all by yourself?" she asked Jenny as she looked towards the makeshift pen, I set up for them.

"For now. When they get bigger and need more types of food, I'm gonna need my brothers help." She ran to the gate I made to get into the pens. "They are so cute!" She exclaimed.

"Be careful not to step on them Jenny." I called after her. "They don't know any better to avoid your feet."

"OK." She said. She stepped into the pen and raised her feet just over the wood shavings I spread out as bedding. She squatted down and started to coo the chicks and ducklings.

"She's adorable..." I heard Alice whisper.

"She's mine! You can't have her." I shouted to try to lighten the mood. "Although if you play your cards right, I might let you borrow her from time to time." I flashed what I thought was my best smile and gave a small nod.

"Then I'll definitely have to play my cards right." She said as she looked at me with a grin. "Can I come in there with you Jenny?" She asked while slowly opening the door.

"OK." She looked over her shoulder quickly to make sure the chicks weren't in front of the door. "Just don't lift your feet to high." As Alice went into the pen I stepped back inside.

"So, Zack just told me about Lyla. Why didn't you say anything to me?" I had barely gotten my foot in the door and was already being assaulted.

"What's there to say?" I said as I went to the fridge. "Lyla can start on fire. It's not like I can do anything about it and it's not like she is going to use it to hurt us. She's too much of a sweetheart for that. She didn't even attack the guys we ran into, just scared them off. And if you even suggest I do something to my Lyla you are out of your goddamned mind." I wasn't even going to let the idea float in her head, more or less let it leave her mouth.

"That's not what I was getting at." She said, a bit startled. "I just don't like being left in the dark. I haven't been able to get a hold of Darren except for right after you told me to call him and all this stuff is happening!" She was getting upset and I could understand why. "And you're just running around grabbing supplies and acting like this is normal and so is Zack. Why am I the only one having a hard time keeping up with what's happening." At that she started to bury her face in her hands.

As she sobbed, I walked over and started to hug her. "First, I can't speak for Zack but I'm just reacting like I always wanted the characters in my stories to when shit hit the fan and second, Darren was 4 or 5 hours away at 2am and he was out there for work meaning his phone was probably charging when you called. His phones probably dead and he'll be here around noon. It's gonna take some extra time but he'll make it here nice and safe. He wouldn't dare to piss you off." I said the last part with a small smile as I pulled her face up to look her in the eye. "Do you think I would lie to you?" I wanted her to know how much I meant what I just said, as well as calm down since her kids will only stay calm as long as she does.

"No, not about something like this." she almost whispered. "You've always been a bit to honest about the big stuff." She sniffed one more time and then laughed. "You're probably right about Darren too." She started to giggle. Probably realizing she made a bit of a scene. "Oh man I can't believe I just did that." She looked down again but this time she had a little smile.

"It's fine. Everybody gets to freak out as much as they want for the next few days with no judgement as long as they come back from said freak-out." With that I started to pull away and she pulled me closer. "Well this is nice." I whispered into her ear.

"The same goes for you Reika." She said quietly. "I know it's been a long time, but you are allowed to freak out as much as you want. About Mom," her body straightened a bit. "Dad," she moved so she was still holding me but was looking into my face. "And Lexi." My body shuddered on its own.

"Using your own fear and regret to try to help me." I was starting to feel tears run down my cheeks, but they were not going to just stop. "This is not fair! I'm supposed to be over all that." With those words I broke down. I don't remember what I said or heard for the next few minutes, but I definitely started to feel better.

After our little breakdowns my sister and I split up. She went to play with Jenny and the birds and I went to get Zack. As I walked into the living room. I heard them talking. "If you think this isn't safe, you haven't heard anything I've said about Reika. After the accident she felt useless, so she started learning survival skills hand over foot. As soon as she had a handle on one, she would move to the next. If we are stuck here for 7 months the baby will be delivered by Reika and Kara with almost no problem. I mean you have 2 people that have learned as much about the human body as some if not most doctors as well as Reika knowing how to deal in a crisis. I saw how she handled that guy upstairs. She didn't flinch at the blood, she cleaned the cut out and sewed it up. I wouldn't be surprised if she could perform a C-section if need be."

"That's enough praise little brother." I said as I walked into the room. "It's nice to know how highly you think of me but it's pretty embarrassing." I felt heat in my face. "especially since I was just crying my eyes out not even 5 minutes ago." As his eyes narrowed questioningly, I said, "Don't ask."

"But everything I said was true. Especially after seeing you with that guy earlier..." He trailed off looking at the stairs. "It was an eye opener seeing how much you've grown these last few years. I don't know what else to say."

"All that and you're still not gonna bring up the baby? That's all I really wanna hear about. Is it a boy or girl? Is there anything you didn't pack for vitamins and meds? I'm gonna go get Kara to get her to make a list of stuff to get for our outing." As I walked back into the kitchen my heart was racing. That brother of mine just added so many damn objectives to get through the year. I thought to myself.

As I opened the door into the garage I was treated to a beautiful sight of Jenny, Kara, and Alice playing with the chicks and ducklings. It was a sight to behold seeing the cuteness of my sister and her daughter along with the striking beauty of Alice each with 1 or 2 baby birds chirping away in their hands. "So, I just overheard Zack and Delilah and apparently, we need to get Prenatal vitamins when I head back out, so could you write them down for me, so I know what to grab Kara?"

"Wait Delilah's pregnant? That's great." She said with a smile as she put the birds down. "Oh, but with everything happening I guess this is also terrifying." She started to pout as she grabbed some paper and a pen to write on. As she ripped off the sheet and handed it to me, she said. "Am I allowed to congratulate her even though she's terrified?"

"I congratulated you didn't I." I said with a laugh. "Just be yourself. That's always been more than enough." And with that she was off.

"Can I come with you for supplies?" Alice asked as Kara left with Jenny in tow. "I want to make myself useful while I'm here since you were so kind as to help me and my brother."

"Sure, I was hoping to experiment more with water abilities and since my former test subject is now under house arrest, you'll do fine. What kind of skills do you have otherwise?"

"Gee, thanks. I've never felt so wanted." She said sarcastically. "I was studying to be a vet, so I can help with most animals just not the big ones like cows, pigs, or horses. And I was an avid archer..."

As she trailed off, I said, "No way!" I rushed into the corner and opened the locker on the wall. "I refused to get rid of any of her stuff, so this compound bow has been sitting in her locker for almost 2 years. I haven't even looked at it, so it might need some maintenance... Actually, I won't need my crossbow either so if you want to try that?"

As I looked at her, she jumped. "I can actually use both, so whichever is in better condition is what I would prefer..." Her voice kept starting out at a proper level and then shrinking down like she was either embarrassed or shy.

"What's up with you?" I said as I eyed her up. "You've been acting strange for the last few minutes and it's making me feel weird."

She looked up at me and when we made eye contact, she looked back to the ground. "Is it OK if I use something of someone so important?"

Ohh she caught on to Lexi. I thought to myself. "She's gone and can't come back. She may have been my whole world, but I need to keep my friends and family safe. As long as you stay here, you are family." I said handing the bow over. It was still in great shape because I cleaned it once a month, even if I said otherwise. "That includes your brother upstairs..." I waited a second before continuing.

"I'll invite your younger brother in too if he is willing to sit down and talk first."

"That's not..." she cut herself off. With a shake of her head she continued. "Thanks, I'll keep trying to get in touch with him. You never know." She picked up the quiver. "This isn't like mine. How do you?"

She was struggling to put the quiver over her shoulder but since it wasn't designed for that the arrows spilled to the floor. "It's actually a belt. It loops around your waist for faster reloads and easier decision making on the hunt. Lexi was a farm girl through and through. That's why I've gotten so accustomed to sleeping with 2 dogs and cats every night."

After picking up the arrows I put the belt on to show her how to draw the arrows quickly and how to choose between the two sets of arrows. "Thanks." She whispered out as I put the belt on her and squatted down to make sure the arrows wouldn't fall. "I've never used one like this."

"To be honest she constantly tried to get me to use a bow." I pulled up my sleeve. "But the last time I drew a bow string it was poorly made and snapped and ripped my arm up pretty bad." I said showing her my forearm. The scar didn't look too bad, but it was definitely pronounced against my pale skin. "I couldn't use this arm for a few days at all. She felt so bad she did everything for me for about 6 days." I said with a smile.

"Ouch." She sized up the wound and then looked at my face. "how many days did you actually need her help?"

"I was good when I woke up the next day just a little sore." With a grin I continued. "but there's nothing wrong with wanting to be spoiled from time to time." As I was saying that I felt her hand touch my arm and jerked. She pulled back herself and apologized. "It's fine. I just haven't had much practice with the whole physical contact these last few years. Especially a girl as pretty as you." I looked her in the eye and she smiled back. "Why don't you go take a few test shots in the back while I figure out the rest of the list we are grabbing okay?"

"OK." She nodded her head as her ears turned a bit red. Is there a range or trees or something? Wouldn't want to shoot something of value." She said as she made for the back door of the garage.

"There's a range to the left it's set up for 50, 75 and 100 feet. Don't worry about the arrows since I can fix 'em or make new ones." I pointed out the door where the three targets I had set up were and then added. "I don't know a lot about bows but that one's entire frame is from a light weight metal and I think the same is true of the bowstring so don't put yourself out about damaging it." I wanted her to relax and get a real feel for the bow so that I could rely on her if I needed to.

"Well when you say it like that it makes me want to try to Robin Hood the arrows." She gave a gorgeous grin as she opened the door.

"Like you could..." I joked back.

Back in the kitchen I could hear Kara and Delilah, so I peeked in to get Zack's attention. When he saw me, he rushed over.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked nervously.

I looked him up and down and replied. "Wow if I didn't know better, I'd say my little brother is running away." I couldn't help but smile. As I brought my volume up his hand clapped over my mouth. "We're bringing Alice and she's using Lexi's bow, so we need a few minutes, so she can adjust how she holds herself and the bow." I looked at him and clapped his shoulder once. "We'll leave in 15."