WARNING, CONTAINS IMPLIED MATURE THEMES AND SOME MATURE LANGUAGE
It was a normal evening like any other in the household of Felonious Gru. Margo was in the kitchen finishing some homework; Edith was bothering some of the minions, while Agnes had a tea party with some others. It'd been almost 6 months since the incident with Vector and Gru was beginning to relax finally, sure that his girls were safe.
He walked into the living room and said "Edith, isn't there homework you should be doing?" She looked at him, a slightly guilty expression on her face and said "Finished it already." He raised an eyebrow in a look of disbelief, and Edith knew she wasn't fooling him. She sighed and went to go get her backpack. Gru smiled a little and continued into the kitchen to see if Margo needed help.
He'd just finished explaining how to multiply fractions when the doorbell rang. Gru frowned suspiciously, knowing that there were very very few people willing to come to his doorstep. "Dad door!" Edith yelled, causing Gru to roll his eyes. "Yes Edith, I can hear it as well."
He walked to the front door and peered out the peephole, narrowing his eyes in suspicion at the woman he saw, she couldn't be very old perhaps 20 or so. She had short brown hair in a punk rocker style, with long bangs that covered one of her eyes. "Yes? What do you want?" He asked. She looked up at the peephole, a slightly nervous look on her face, but who could blame her for being nervous.
"My name is Elina Patterson. I was told that a man named Felonious Gru lived here, could I speak to him please?" She asked politely. Gru got even more suspicious. "Dad who's at the door?" Edith asked, coming up behind him. He looked at Edith quickly and put a finger to his mouth to gesture for her to be quiet. Edith's eyes widened and she ran into the living room.
Gru opened the door and glared at Elina. She blinked in surprise at his sudden appearance but quickly regained her composure. "What do you want?" He asked again. "I'm assuming you are Mr. Gru?" She replied. He didn't say a word and she nodded a little to herself and let out a nervous cough.
"As I said, my name is Elina Patterson. I came to speak to you about a girl you have in your care, Margo?" She said. He narrowed his already thin eyes and said "What about Margo?" Elina looked even more nervous and said "I'm her older sister."
Neither person noticed the three girls watching from around a corner, the two youngest looked at the eldest's stunned expression, worried about her. Margo walked into the hall behind Gru and looked at the woman who called herself her sister. "Margo what are you doing?" Gru asked her. A small smile came onto Elina's face and she said "Hi Margo."
A huge grin appeared on Margo's face as she ran into the outstretched arms of Elina, yelling her sister's name in delight. Elina held her tightly, closing her eyes and kissing her cheek. Gru looked both confused and worried by the exchange, as did Edith and Agnes.
"Hello?" Gru asked, getting impatient with not hearing any answers. Elina opened her eyes and looked at Gru, standing up and holding Margo's hand. Gru raised an eyebrow and said "Explain to me what is going on here." Margo, a smile still on her face said "Mr. Gru, this is my sister. She was at the orphanage to but left when she was 18."
This seemed to make Edith and Agnes remember something and the two of them ran forward to, hugging Elina's legs. She looked down and gasped in surprise "Edith? Agnes? You girls are here to?"
"Hold on!" Gru said getting frustrated. Elina looked at Gru and suggested "Maybe we should sit down so I can explain?" He nodded and the group went to the living room. Gru did give her some credit; she didn't seem the slightest bit phased by the decor of the house or Kyle for that matter. When they were all settled, Elina and the girls on the couch and Gru in his chair, he looked at Elina expectantly.
"Well like Margo said, I was at Ms. Hattie's until I turned 18. Our parents died when I was 14 in a car crash, putting Margo and I into social services. A year after we got there, Edith came to the orphanage and was put in the same room as Margo and I, making me essentially her big sister as well. Agnes came another year later, only a few years old at the time and was put in our room so the same situation occurred.
When I left I wasn't able to get legal custody of any of the girls because I didn't have a home or any way to support them, I could barely support myself. That's why I left, to try and find some way to get the money to take care of us. I was lucky to find a job last year at a local bar as a waitress. I got enough to rent an apartment and went back to Ms. Hattie's to get the girls, only to find they'd been adopted, so I came to find you." Elina explained.
While she told her story Gru looked her up and down, noticing more than a few bruises and cuts that suggested much more hardship than she let on. She made eye contact with him, silently confirming some of his beliefs about her past. "I know you have legal guardianship of them and I know there is no way I'd be able to gain custody, and I have no interest in going into a legal battle. But I'd like to be able to come to some sort of agreement so I could see them."
He didn't reply at first, not sure how he felt about this. Part of him felt impressed that this woman had gone to such lengths to see her sisters, but at the same time another part didn't want to believe her, in fear that the girls would rather go with her than stay with him. "It's getting late. The girls have school in the morning. You and I can talk after they're in bed." He said finally. Elina nodded and then looked at the girls upset expressions.
"You heard him, off you go." She said with a smile. "Will you sing us a lullaby? Like you used to?" Agnes asked with a pleading smile. Gru felt his heart drop a little, it was part of their bedtime routine for him to read a story and now they were asking this woman to sing them a lullaby, was he completely forgotten? Elina looked at Gru, silently checking if it was okay. "Whatever the girls want." He said weakly.
He stayed there as Elina followed the girls to their room, their excited chatter echoing in his ears. Was he being replaced? He was barely more than a stranger to them, and here was the woman who had practically been their mother for years. It was obvious who the preferred choice was.
A few minutes passed and Elina came back into the living room. "They said that they were ready for their story." Gru looked up, surprised for a moment before nodding and walking upstairs, ignoring Elina behind him. The girls were all tucked into their bed, not caring at all that they were old deactivated bombs. Elina leaned against the door frame as he read, silently watching.
Though the story was the farthest thing from Gru's mind, maybe the girls wouldn't leave him completely, after all they'd still asked for him to read them their story and kissed him goodnight when he finished. Elina smiled at them and took her turn, "What song should I sing for you girls?" She asked sweetly.
They thought for a second and Margo said "The star one, that mom taught you." Elina nodded and said "I think I can do that." She sat down and cleared her throat, not caring that Gru was just outside the door still.
"Constant as the stars above
Always know that you are loved
And my love shining in you
Will help you make your dreams come true
Will help your dreams come true.
The lamb lies down and rests it head
On its mother's downy bed
Dolphin plays in the moonlight's glow
And butterfly dreams of a violet rose
Dreams of a violet rose.
I'll cradle you in my arms tonight
As sun embraces the moonlight
The clouds will carry us off tonight
Our dreams will run deep like the sea
Our dreams will run deep like the sea
Constant as the stars above
Always know that you are loved
And my love shining in you
Will help you make your dreams come true
Will help your dreams come
True."
When her song ended, all three girls were fast asleep with smiles on their faces. Elina silently kissed each of their foreheads before leaving the room. She closed the door quietly and jumped when she found herself face to face with Gru.
He led her back downstairs, a selfish feeling finding its way into the pit of his stomach. She obviously loved the girls very much and he was not even considering giving her a chance.
They sat back down and were both silent for a second before Gru spoke up. "You didn't just work at the bar did you?" Elina looked at him in surprise for a moment before looking away. "No. I had to do a lot of, things I regret. But I did what I had to to survive." She said softly, subtly pulling down the hem of her shirt and sleeves to try and hide some of the scars.
"But I have a stable job and life now. Eventually I'll get the money to take some college classes to try and get a degree of some kind. And like I said before, I don't want full custody of the girls, they are happy here, that I can see. All I want is to be able to visit every now and then" "Of course you can." Gru suddenly interrupted her, surprising both of them.
"I wouldn't prevent you from seeing them; all I want is for them to be happy. And if seeing you makes them happy, then by all means come and visit." Elina smiled and nodded "Thank you Mr. Gru. I appreciate that more than you know." He allowed himself to show a small smile.
Suddenly Elina's phone rang and she glanced at the caller ID, a visible frown coming to her face. "Excuse me for a moment." She said, standing up and walking into the hall. Gru couldn't help but eavesdrop, the caller nearly yelling.
"Where the hell are you?! You were supposed to be here a half-hour ago bitch!" A man's voice said over the phone. "Sorry, I got caught in some traffic." Elina lied. "Well don't expect me to pay for the time if you're not here! And you'd better give me something extra to make up for it." he growled angrily. "Fine, just don't call any of your friends this time. If you try that again I will call the cops." Elina replied, sounding upset.
Gru frowned at what he was hearing as he put two and two together. Obviously her waitressing job wasn't paying enough if she had to turn to 'things she regrets' in her own words. She came back in and said "Sorry, um work call." one of her hands clenched into a fist though her expression remained positive.
"Elina, are you being hurt by this man?" Gru asked, not sure what possessed him to do so. Elina looked surprised again and bit her lip. "Fine, you caught me. I'm not just working at the bar. But I don't have any other choice, no one will hire me. The only reason I have the job I do is because a friend's dad owns the place. And since everything is coming out, I don't have an apartment either. I live with a friend and her boyfriend, both drug addicts."
Her face fell into her hands and he was able to get a good look at the scars crisscrossing her neck from the various things 'customers' had wanted her to do. Something went off in Gru, causing him to feel great pity and remorse for this girl. He suddenly found himself hugging her, consoling her like he would one of the younger girls.
"Stay here." He said quietly. "I'll protect you. You don't have to worry about them anymore." She looked up at him, stunned. "What? You really mean that? But you barely know me." She said. "You are my daughter's sister, which means you are essentially my daughter as well. And I take care of my family."
Elina let out a soft sob of happiness and hugged Gru back, burying her face in his shoulder "Thank you Mr. Gru." She whispered. "Dad, call me Dad."