Saturday morning. 9 am.
An evil act was being plotted.
Dawn's hair was blond, her eyes light green, and her skin tan. She was eight-years-old, and a bit tall for her age. Justice was only slightly different, with dark blue eyes, medium skin, a tall frame, and messy, short brown hair with dark streaks. The two were sneaking very quietly out of his room after she'd woken him up; looking around to make sure no one saw them.
Justice opened his mouth to say something, but Dawn turned around quickly and shut him up. "Don't. Say. A. Word." She snapped quietly. "Just do what I say." The six-year-old nodded obediently. Dawn peeked around the corner carefully before motioning for Justice to follow her. They tiptoed silently into the room, careful not to wake the sleeping occupant. Dawn held up three fingers, counting down. Two. One.
Dawn and Justice hit and ran.
"DAWN!"
Dawn giggled. She loved it when Kevin yelled at her. For some reason, she gained an odd pleasure from the sound of his outrage. Justice tried to laugh too – he wasn't sure what he was laughing about, but he did anyway. The two were now hiding in the living room, wondering if Kevin would find them.
The sixteen-year-old was, in fact, looking for them. Kevin was built agilely, with sideswept, blackish-brown hair with a brown streak in his bangs, dark red eyes, and almost coffee-colored skin. As he searched the room, the other occupants of the house got up to see what was going on.
"Oh wait –" Cody stopped in his doorway. "It's Saturday." So then the twelve-year-old turned around and went straight back to bed. No one wondered if they should save the two children or stop the epidemic, they all just ignored it and kept on sleeping. It was the weekend – Dawn always did this on weekend mornings, dragging Justice with her, and picking a new victim each weekend.
This week it was Kevin. He sighed. "I'm too tired to be doing this with you, Dawn." He went back to his room, but Dawn, unsatisfied with his answer, jumped out from in between the TV stand and the chair, launching herself at him. "DAWN!"
She stepped back, grinning ever-so-sweetly. "Yes?"
"Go to sleep. It's almost nine am."
"Which means it's time to get up."
"No. It's not."
"Well, when are you going to get up?"
"Never."
"You gotta get up sometime!" Justice popped up.
"No." Kevin's voice was blunt.
"How about I let you sleep til eleven? Then will you chase me?" Dawn asked.
"Three."
"Eleven."
"Nope, sorry, gotta go." He turned around and started walking back to his room again.
"Twelve thirty?"
"No, Dawn."
"One?" She paused, but then crossed her arms. "One thirty. End of it."
"Yes, it is – I'm going to sleep, you're going to sleep, everyone's going back to sleep – or else."
"Or else what?!" Dawn asked hotly.
"Or I'll do the top-secret leader move on you."
"Oh, I'm so scared." Dawn rolled her eyes.
Justice walked up, looking thoughtful. "There isn't a top secret leader move, is there?"
"Yes, there is." Kevin insisted.
"I don't think so!" Justice countered.
"I think you're all going to get back in bed. And no, Kevin, you can't sleep til three. I'm waking you up in three hours – go enjoy it." The three of them sulked – well, Kevin mentally rejoiced – all the back to their rooms. Virginia sighed. Did they honestly have to do this? Honestly?
"STOP SLAMMING DOORS!"
"I DIDN'T SLAM THE FREAKIN' DOOR, AUDREY!"
"DON'T MAKE ME COME OUT THERE!"
"OH YEAH? YOU'RE NOT GONNA MOVE!"
"I'LL MOVE JUST ENOUGH TO PUT A BOMB IN YOUR PANTS!"
"Audrey, there will be NO bombs in this house!" Virginia yelled. Kevin snickered. "KEVIN!"
"YES MA'AM!" Virginia almost growled. They were so much trouble in the mornings.
"SCOOT OVER!"
"JUSTICE!"
"FINE! THAT'S IT! ALL OF YOU UP!" Virginia yelled.
"NNOOO!" Dawn exclaimed.
"AIN'T VIRGINIA!" Cody protested.
"PLEASE NO!" Justice pleaded.
"ANYTHING BUT THE WAKING WORLD!" Audrey screamed.
"GREAT!" Kevin growled. A large groan was all that signaled Alyssa had heard.
"UP! NOW!" All six children filed into the hallway in varying states of drowsiness to stare at the gray-eyed woman with slightly curly light red hair. She sighed. "You guys…." They waited. "Go sit on the couch, I'm calling Lee."
"LEROY!" All of them exclaimed.
"HE'LL SAVE US!" Dawn smiled.
"THANK YOU, AIN'T VIRGINIA!" Justice grinned.
"Aunt Virginia, Justice. Aunt. I don't care what those three have told you." She glared at the three oldest. Starting with Kevin, then fifteen-year-old Audrey, and fourteen-year-old Alyssa: Audrey had short, sideswept reddish-brown hair, silvery-blue eyes, and light tan skin, while Aly had shoulder-length, brown hair, light brown eyes, and light tan skin. Next was Cody, with raven black hair, dark green eyes, and tan skin. Justice was youngest and Dawn before him.
While Virginia went to call Lee, the six clambered onto various furniture – fighting for the best spots, of course – and turned on the TV, then they fought over the channel. "If you all don't shut up I'm gonna put on the history channel." Kevin threatened.
Cody literally got on his knees in front of him. "Oh, please no! Oh merciful, mighty, wonderful, Kevin. Don't make me watch the history channel!"
"HANNAH!" Dawn argued.
"NO!" Audrey screamed.
"Batman!" Justice urged.
"LOOK! LOONEY TOONS!" Audrey and Dawn were too busy arguing to hear Alyssa's screaming.
"WE'RE WATCHING LOONEY TOONS!" Kevin yelled, yanking the remote from Audrey – very forcefully – and changing the channel.
"If you hadn't saved me from watching Hannah Montana," Audrey sneered. "Then I would kill you right here and now."
"Aly, go get the mail for me." Virginia called.
Aly made a shocked noise. "What?! I have to get….DRESSED?! On a SATURDAY?!"
"Yes, now go!" Virginia called.
Aly sulked, muttering all the way to her room. "Look, if it makes you feel any better, I'll get dressed too." Audrey sighed. "THE THINGS I DO FOR YOU!"
Aly grinned. "You rock." The two got dressed and then went outside, coming back in with a stack of mail. "Here." Aly sulkily laid it on the table in front of Virginia before the two joined the others in front of the TV. Virginia was very grateful that Looney Toons usually lasted an hour. The only quiet hour of the day until 3am when Audrey went to bed. From then until 9 – or 8 on most weekends, Dawn liked to rise and prank – the house was quiet. Unless Justice had a nightmare, or someone got sick, or someone else woke up in the middle of the night and decided to go annoy someone else. That was the most common case.
"If I was her, I'd blame Leroy." Dawn giggled.
Cody nodded. "He got her into this."
Kevin snorted. "You got her into this."
"Well, you got her into it first, you're the oldest!" Thus it began again, even during Looney Toons. Today was going to be one of those days.
"SHUT UP! I'M LISTENIN' TO BUGS!" Aly screamed.
"You're fourteen, you can get over it." Kevin told her.
"You're sixteen, you can drive away."
"Where?"
"Anywhere but around me." And Kevin got in another argument. He was good at that.
"Guys – don't make me call Leroy!" Virginia warned. They had to think about that a moment. At least here they had food all the time, instead of just that one night that Lee ordered twelve pizzas and wasted all his money. So it was food or fun. They chose the food and stayed quiet for another ten minutes, until they heard Virginia asking for Lee at his work office.
"NO! NO! NO! NO!"
"She called him anyway!"
"SHE LIED!"
"BAD AIN'T VIRGINIA!" The six ran in the kitchen, Virginia sighed.
"I'm not calling because of you guys, now run away before I do. Go outside. Enjoy the morning sunshine."
"BUT-"
"NOW!"
"Okay, okay, okay!" They ran like heck out the door. As soon as they were out, they looked at each other. "What do we do now?" Dawn asked. The others shrugged. And then burst out laughing.
"Well, that was a rhetorical question." Aly giggled. They stared. "FINE! No big words! Sor-ry!"
"Big words hurt my brain!" Audrey exclaimed, clutching her head. The others giggled, backing up and getting a running start.
Then they launched into the air.