AN: I have no idea whether Penkala even had all these siblings but I read somewhere that his oldest sister (who I think was called Irene) was left to look after the family when their mother died in childbirth. Jessie is my own and nothing is meant by this story. I fully admire all the men who died for the world in the war and no disrespect is meant by this story. The letter is bold italic and flashbacks just italic. The present is normal font.
"Irene, Irene! Allie's wrote me a letter. He's okay!" 10 year old Jessie ran into the kitchen where her oldest sister was cooking dinner for her and most of her siblings. She was waving a letter, written on thick cream paper with a massive grin on her face. Irene smiled at her vaguely and nodded.
"Yes dear. I got one too. I told you, you were worrying over nothing. Why don't you sit down and read it while I cook, then if you get stuck on a word I can help."
"Yes Irene." With that Jessie slid onto the old wooden dining table and carefully opened the letter with a knife, staring at her brother's jagged writing fondly. She withdrew the paper and was at first disappointed at such a short letter. Irene clearly noticed her expression as she wiped her hands on her apron and came over to stand behind her little sisters shoulder.
"I don't know what you're complaining about dear. You've got an entire page. The rest of us got a half at most." Jessie felt her heart swell with warmth and looked up at her sister through her eyelashes almost guiltily. Irene laughed quietly and kissed her head. "But you always were his favourite."
"He loved you too Ire." Irene tsk-ed.
"He loved my cooking." Jessie laughed at her sister who went back over to the stove. Smiling softly she looked back down at the letter and began to read.
Hello Squirt.
How are you? Being good for your sister I hope. Before you ask, or think I suppose, I'm fine. We're being moved to a location called Bastogne so do not worry if this is my last letter for a while. It's a wood in the middle of Europe, the trees might remind me of home. I just hope the weather improves before we leave. It's snowing at the moment. Big, large snowflakes the size of your head. You'd love it. Are your nightmares any better? I hope so now I'm not there to chase the evil dreams away.
Jessie shook her head at the letter. The nightmares had not decreased, just changed. What were once evil monsters under her bed that could be chased away by her older siblings was now her brother's body, lifeless. She thought back to the last night Alex had spent in the house when he was still around to bid the nightmares away.
"Allie. Allie. Are you awake?" A seven year old Jessie poked her head around the door, brunette hair mussed at all angles, teddy bear clutched in her hand. Alex, who had been asleep, sat up and blinked blearily at her silhouette.
"Jess. Is that you? What's wrong?" Even as he asked the question he was moving across the bed and opening his arms. Jessie ran across the room, teddy bear forgotten, and threw herself into his embrace, in tears. "Hey hey baby. Shhh. What's wrong?" Jessie sobbed into his shirt, scared to move her head away in case the nightmares returned.
"I had a bad dream." She managed to mutter at last, relaxing into the safety that consumed her as her brother tightened his arms.
"A bad dream? What about?" Jessie sniffed, raising a puffy face to look at her brother's.
"They took you. The monsters. I couldn't stop them. I tried I really did." She started sobbing again as Alex pulled her up against his chest. Whereas all her sibling's usually went to Irene or one of their other older siblings, she ran to Alex. Alex who made her laugh, made her feel safe, who chased away her fears and worries and held her through the hard times, when she needed him so much.
"The monsters? I thought I got rid of those buggers last time." Jessie offered him a watery smile.
"Maybe you missed one." Alex nodded thoughtfully.
"Maybe I did. Will you be okay for a moment while I go and beat them up for scaring my favourite sister?" Jessie giggled and nodded. Alex disappeared out the door and Jessie collapsed into giggled when she heard a war cry, followed by clanging coming from the room next-door. It was silent for a few seconds before Alex came flying back into the room panting and threw himself onto the bed besides her. She giggled at him."Are you ... laughing ... at me?" Jessie quickly shook her head but as Alex's eyes narrowed, she didn't have time to move before he jumped on her, tickling her mercilessly. When he stopped she managed to squeak out.
"What did you do with the monster?" Alex grinned at her evilly and pulled her onto his lap.
"Put him in Edward's room." Jessie laughed as she thought of her badly behaved brother who had stole her ribbons earlier in the day. "I think it will be good punishment don't you?" She nodded and curled into his strong chest. He laid them both down and ran a hand through her hair. "Sleep little sister. I'll stay here and look after you tonight." As she drifted off, safe and content in her brother's arms, she caught his words and painfully noticed how he had added a time limit to the usually open sentence.
One of the men who sleep in the same room had a nightmare the other day. I woke up and had to chase his monsters away. Good job I had all that practice with you little one. How's Irene's cooking? Yummy I bet. We've been living off beans for a while now, I'm just glad Edward isn't here because he and beans do not mix as we all know. Though I have a friend here, Malarkey, who can empty a room just as quick if you get what I mean. Me and Muck were searching through a house a couple of weeks ago and I found a teddy the exact replica of your Daisy. Did you know Daisy was running across to Europe when you sleep? I suggest you keep a better eye on her from now on. But don't worry Jess. I picked Daisy up and carried her to my bed and when Muck asked, so I had to tell him all about Daisy and her wandering off.
Jess looked up and glanced in the direction of her bedroom where Daisy currently sat and smiled. She had told Daisy to look after Alex and was glad that she had listened. Jess made a note to inform Alex of this in the next family letter so he would stop telling poor Daisy off for escaping. A habit, the teddy had a very bad habit of, right from the day her and Alex had brought her.
"Come on slow poke." A four-year old Jessie glared up at her laughing brother as she trailed along, dragging her new teddy bear that was over half her size. Alex glanced down and seeing the predicament scooped his sister up and sat her on his shoulders. She squealed and grabbed his head as he tucked the newly brought Daisy under his arm and kept a tighter hold on his little sister's legs.
"Where we go'ng?" Jessie asked happily.
"Well ... I was thinking ice cream." She giggled and kicked her legs slightly in Alex's hold happily.
"Yay! Thank'ew Allie!" Alex, missing his sister's smiling face already, shifted the new teddy into his bag before swinging the toddler into his arms, causing her to giggle louder and cling to him, burying her small head in his neck.
An ice cream fight later, a proud brother and giggling toddler left the parlour in a joyful mood. Jessie leant forwards and raised a small hand to Alex's nose. "Allie. You gots ice cream on you nose." Alex moved the hand not holding the toddler to his nose before blinking at her in an overdramatized way.
"How did that get there?"
"It was when you felled into your ice cream 'mem'er?" Alex shook his head seriously.
"No. I don't remember that."
"You did Allie. Like ... splat." Jessie waved her hand in a way he assumed demonstrated his actions before he laughed and moved her into a more comfortable position. As she leant against him and blinked contently he looked around for her teddy, and then froze.
"Jessie ... where's Daisy?" The tiny head flung up and looked around panicked before she fixed tearful, worried eyes onto his.
"I fink I forgost her." Alex, sensing the tears that were about to fall, swung his sister more securely into both his arms yelling.
"We must go save Princess Daisy before she gets kidnapped by the ice cream man!" He then took off towards the ice cream parlour at a jogging pace. It was only the first time Daisy would go missing that day. The poor teddy would be left in the furniture store, park bench and the toy store, each time resulting in some heroic rescue being made by a chivalrous Alex and a giggling Jessie.
Speaking of Muck he said he would come and visit when we get back. Something about he hears too much about a certain little angel and wants to meet her. I told him Irene wasn't that good. You're glaring at the letter now aren't you? Don't. Frowning doesn't look good on your pretty face. Of course I was talking about you. I told Muck and Malarkey all about home. About all of you, about the swing in the back garden, the tree house, the chair on the porch. And in return they tell me about their lives. Apparently Muck swam across the Niagara once. Can you imagine it? Swimming across that river, it cannot have been fun. But that's Muck for you. No common sense. If you ever do anything that silly Jessie I will lock you in the tree house and leave you there until you beg me to release you. Have you still got that blue diary of yours? I have a diary now too. I write all my tales in it. I shall bring it back and let you read it when your older maybe. I wear your cross everyday and I never take it off. It makes me think of you. I hope you still have my bracelet on. Remember, as long as you wear it, actually even if you're not wearing it, I will be thinking of you and will keep you safe.
Jessie looked at her wrist where the thick leather bracelet sat. It went round her delicate wrist twice, hers so tiny compared to Alex's muscular arms. The necklace she had worn for as long as she could remember was gone, given to Alex before he left, to connect the two siblings in a physical way. Her eyes stared at the black leather and glazed over.
"Jessie?" She looked up from her position lying on Alex's bedroom floor at the call. "Ah I should have guessed you would be in my room. What's wrong with your own?"
"I like yours more." The words were simple and Alex couldn't argue with such finality. He wandered in and sat on the bed, watching his sister trace a landscape with startling accuracy.
"That's very good."
"Thanks. I was doing it for you to hang up but Irene said it would look lovely on top of the fire. I'm going to do you something else for when you get back. It's going to be brilliant." She rolled onto her back and gazed at him with sparkling eyes and Alex couldn't help but smile fondly. He leant forwards and poked her with his toe causing her to wrinkle her nose.
"Jessie. Come up here please would you?" She blinked confused but did as asked, settling comfortably into his lap as she always did. She didn't speak, just watched as Alex gazed at her like he'd never see her again. It scared her slightly. She reached her arms back and took the cross necklace she had wore, that she had always worn, off.
"Here Allie. To keep you safe. To remind you off me when you're lonely." She slipped the necklace onto him and pretended not to notice the tears that slipped down his face. He offered her a smile.
"To remind me? I'm not going to forget you princess. Never." He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead and smiled tenderly at her. Glancing all over his eyes fell on the leather bracelet on his wrist, the one that Jessie had loved to play with, even when she was a baby. He slipped it off and onto hers, chuckling lightly when he had to fold it over just to get it to stay on. She gazed at it in amazement before raising shocked eyes to him. He ran a hand through her hair before pulling the small body close.
"Wear it. So you know I'm always there, always with you. I'll never leave you. Even while I'm away you'll be in my thoughts. Look after the others okay. While you wear that you'll be safe. I promise. Nothing will harm you, the monsters will stay away. You're everything to me Jessie and I want you to stay safe. Promise me you will stay safe no matter what."
"I promise Allie." Her voice was quiet, confused, but confident and serious.
"And listen to your eldest sister okay? She's usually right." Jessie nodded against his chest. He whispered to her softly. "I love you Jess."
"I love you too Allie." At that moment the door flung open and various brothers and sisters poured in the room. Jessie clutched to her new bracelet with a sinking feeling in her chest and watched as Alex was bombarded with family hugs.
I probably should finish this letter off. I still have everyone else's to write and I don't want them annoyed because you got one and they didn't, even though I'm sure you will tell them everything in this letter anyway, Maybe I should start writing a different piece of a story in each letter so you all have to sit together and talk about it to hear the whole thing. I think if I do that it'll be you locking me in the tree house when I get back. It's different here, and I miss you Jessie. We drink and play games but it's not the same of having a little sister around to help chase monsters, eat sweets and save teddies. I hope you're getting all your revenge on your brothers and sisters now I'm gone and not letting them mess you around. If they are tell me and I'll kick their bottoms when I get back. I have to go now, I can hear trucks and at this rate none of your siblings will be getting letters. I love you sister, and I hope you're okay. I'll be back soon, and we can be a family once more. Stay safe until then. I miss you.
All my love, your favourite brother.
Alex Penkala x
Jessie looked up with tears in her eyes and into the equally bright ones of her eldest sister.
"I miss him Ire."
"I miss him too Jess. Let's hope he's home soon." Anything else she had to say was cut off by a knock on the door. Irene quickly brushed her hands on her apron and strode over to open the door. An army officer stood on the step and Jessie felt her face pale. Rushing to Irene's side she froze, her eyes falling on the familiar eagle arm patch.
"Are you Irene Penkala?" At her older sisters nod the solider lowered his head.
"I regret to inform you that your br-" Anything else he said was cut off by a scream and it took Jessie a few seconds to realise it was her. It brought her sisters and few remaining brothers running into the room. She staggered back and when she collided with the back door, turned, and ran into the fields, leaving the final words behind her.
Your brother Alex Penkala was killed in action in the Ardennes Forest.