AN: And no, I don't own anything except for the OCs and story idea. Rated for mild language only. Remaining stories will possibly be reedited soon. Thank you for reading. ~k~
#1. Her Light
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"THE HELL'D YA HAVE ME STAY FOR IF-FIN YA HATE ME SO MUCH THEN—HUH?" Jessamine Lucianne Zephyr (or the child as she was often called by her mother's family) demanded more than asked of the adults that just stared at her coldly. "I coulda just went with Mother when she was called away to do her JOB that most of you would not have the stomach for!"
As usual, she might as well be speaking in Chinese for the way her brothers grand-parents and their offspring were looking at her. Small fists clenched at her side as Lucia was determined not to give into the shivers as dark blue eyes flashed at their typical cold indifference. *What have I ever done beyond being born?* Perhaps that was it because from the moment she had been born Jessamine had been excluded, at best, to the point that if she was referred to by name there was so much scorn attached to that first name that she had begun to hate it. It was one of her mother's aunts that used all of her names stating that parents take a lot of time in naming their children not for the ungrateful wretches to shorten them. But mother called her her light—Lucia...
"Fine. I don't need you—any of you—now or ever! You've gotten your wish!" She hissed with cold fury that tried to shake the preteen's slight, coltish frame. And once again the large 'family' refused her right for answers in that overcrowded sitting room of the main house. Also no one shivered when the icy blast of winter air accompanied the oak door's loud bang.
Long, dark gingery brown hair streamed behind Lucia as she ran through the, until then, unbroken snow. By the time she reached her mother's special place, Lucia's breaths came out in heavy pants that looked white in the frosty air. As always the small log cabin, just a stone's throw away from the usually rushing water of the rather large creek, remained untouched. A nice warm, but faded, quilt still waited for her in a plastic storage bin along with assorted books and the old sign that clearly stated it's intent in a child's crayon scrawl: GIRLS ONLY...NO BOYS. Her mother once told her how proud she had been that summer of childhood when she found her own place after being excluded from her brothers and cousins' tree house fort.
Lucia laughed at the 'no boys' portion of that old sign as this place had also been shared with her two older brothers. Other than Abby and her mother—even her mother's mentor, Dr. Duck—they were the only ones that she even considered family. Christmas just hadn't been the same without her familial buffers. But Christian had been unable to get away from his firehouse in New York and Beniamo had went skiing with his frat brothers from Ohio State. They each had decided to follow in their respective father's steps—Christian's had been a firefighter while Beni's had been a cop—and she supposed that would follow hers if she only knew...
A shrill scream almost drowned out by the awful cracking of ice jolted Lucia from her thoughts. "SOMEBODY HELP ME! PLEASE"
Thank God her mother had been a scout wanna be! Adrenalin galvanized her into action; grabbing the rope that her overly prepared mother kept on hand. She raced in the direction of the child's crying just in time to see the pink hooded head sink once more under the icy water. Despite how cold the winters of Pennsylvania had gotten, the rather swift currents of the 'crik' seemed to keep it from ever freezing completely. Small fingers trembled at they fought the glove tips in order to make the knots that her mother's newish Naval husband had taught Lucia in an effort to bond with her and her brothers. It would come in handy now as one end was tied to a sturdy oak and the other to her waist.
The frigid water was a shock to her system as the almost thirteen-year-old girl jumped in after the head that had not returned to the surface. It took her several moments to make her eyes focus enough to see the bright pink form of the child that had been swept into the darkened depths under the ice. By the time Lucia reached her, her ears had already begun to ache along with her lungs. The current must have carried them further—Lucia pushed aside that thought as there was no time to dwell in overwhelming odds as she pulled the limp child close to her. She was grateful for the brightness of the rope as well as the something else that seemed to guide them back to the surface. Later, neither girl would be able to say just how they had made it out of the water and onto the bank.
Fear that she had still been too late dogged Lucia as she worked on getting the water out of the little girl's lungs. Her small face was so blue but she just could not bear to allow—that wonderful sound of water being coughed up would forever be etched within her mind. But no more so than the frantic calls of a mother for her lost child. "KELLY! KELLY, WHERE ARE YOU?"
"HERE!" Lucia managed to call out only to double over coughing up water herself.
A large, comforting hand rubbed her back as the red haired woman gathered the now crying girl into her warm embrace. Tears shimmered in green eyes as she looked at the trembling form of her daughter's rescuer. "Thank you! Thank you so much for saving my daughter! How will I ever repay..."
"Just continue to love her." Lucia answered between heaving breaths even as a small smile lifted the corner of her lips. "And do the same should the opportunity be given unto you."
The older man wrapped her in a blanket as he added his own thanks. "What name should we use to thank the good Lord tonight?"
"LUCIA!"
"BENI!" She cried out in surprise as her brothers appeared from nowhere to fall down beside her and envelope her into their arms. "Christian, what're you doin' here?"
Brown eyes showed their relief as well as indignation. "Why for your birthday of course as it's not everyday our little sister becomes a teenager."
Beni glared at the water behind them with dark green eyes. "Though it looks like you made it entirely too close to missing..."
"She might anyway if we don't get her back into the warmth." Christian pointed out.
"You can take her to my place, I live pretty close."
"That will not be necessary as one of our cousins is a doctor and our grandparents' place isn't that far."
Before parting, the older man laid his hand on the already too warm forehead of the girl he felt a strange connection to. "Thank you so much for my granddaughter's life and we'll be checking in on you later. Remember you'll always be in Jackson's prayers."
"Wouldn't talk bout yourself in third person if I were you or people'd might get the wrong impression." Her only answer was hearty laughter heard within the strangely warmed wind.
In the days to follow that warmth would turn into a raging fire that took Lucia's body temperature well beyond what it should be. Cool hands became her world: some familiar some not with one particular pair missing from the mix. There was also a sense of sorrow that hung within the air, but all their tears and pleading went unheard from the slight figure on the hospital bed. Much would be lost to Lucia before the new year could be ushered in...but she was not alone.
The world Lucia finally returned to was, to her horror, a silent one. Only her cousin, Abby, was able to calm her by a gentle touch. Tears ran down the younger girl's face; dark brown braids stark against the backdrop of white. Lucia drew in a sharp breath only to wrinkle her nose at the cool sterility of the room's processed air. Her voice felt scratchy once it finally came out: the pain being the girl's only indication that she had spoken. "Damn hospitals-hate em."
A smile trembled on Abby's lips, her pigtails bobbing along with her head. Lucia's tired attention was drawn to her cousin's expressive hands as they utilized the only other form of communication the two girls used when in Abby's parents' presence, as they were deaf. "IT'S TEMPORARY, OR SO DOCTORS SAY. ONCE SWELLING GOES DOWN THEY WILL KNOW."
"Good thing I already know ASL." Was her tired answer as her arms still felt like lead.
"YOU SCARED US ALL. YOUR BROTHERS WANTED YOU CLOSE TO BATON ROUGE AS THEY'RE BOTH TAKING TIME..."
There was something in her cousin's eyes that unsettled her—something was wrong just as certain that someone was missing. "Mother?"
Abby's face paled further as her expression turned stricken—her tears fell heavier from her reddened eyes. "I'M SO SO SORRY."
"No nononono."
"THERE WAS A BILOGICAL BOMB IN THE BODY SHE WAS CALLED BACK TO EXAMIN-"
Lucia didn't need to see more-the ability to left her for a time as tears blurred her vision. Arms wrapped around her then, sharing in her grief until she felt asleep once her tears were spent. Eventually she would heal as would some of her familial relationships while the loss would rip others to irreparable shreds. However, she did not lose everything as her hearing returned to her even in a delicate state. There would remain a future possibility of permanent hearing loss should she re-encounter pneumonia; or any dangerous decibels for that matter. But for now, Lucia could face the future along with its trials knowing she wasn't alone.
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END