Washington, D.C.
Winter, 2008.
A young blond girl ran on the snow covered park. It was a Sunday afternoon, a few days before Christmas, but somehow the park was almost empty.
Dressed in a black outfit, her golden curls stood out, under her . Chocolate brown eyes sparkled mischievously as she bent down, grabbing a handful of snow in leather gloves, and turned around, aiming for the little brunette a few feet away.
The other girl, dressed in a similar outfit, also black, oblivious to the world around her, looked up just in time to see the snow ball flying her way, hitting her on the stomach and disappearing into her clothes. She took her time to glare at her attacker, who was too busy having a fit of laugh to even notice the deadly look, before she grabbed a ball and threw against the girl, giggling as the ball hit the blond on the shoulder.
Smiling, the small brunette made a bee-line to the other girl, blue eyes lit in excitement, as she whispered something on the blond's ear, before grabbing another handful of snow, her act mirrored by her companion. Slowly, they made their way towards the bench, where an older woman sat, apparently too busy reading a book.
Trying to control their giggles, the two girls counted together until three, before throwing the snowballs at the woman in front of them.
Noticing the attack, the seemingly oblivious woman, leaned a bit to the side, and dodged away from the balls, making the two girls pout.
"That's not fair, mommy!" the blond one said, marching to sit on the bank, arms crossed and legs bouncing.
"What isn't fair, Alex?" the older woman asked, an amused smile playing on her face.
"You moved away!" the little brunette answered, plopping on the other side of the bench.
"I certainly didn't!" the woman exclaimed in mock hurt.
"You did too!" both girls said at the same time, faces holding the exact same expression.
They weren't that different. Of course, there was the fact that they were twins, but still. Despite the blatant difference on the hair color, one had a dark hair, as completely opposed to the other, who's hair had a golden color, they were practically the same. The same ivory skin, with very little freckles, almost unnoticeable. The warm smiles, in contrast to the aristocratic face.
Strong expressions blended perfectly with their child's face. Sure, there was innocence, a child's most possessed virtue, but there was also something that showed that those girls weren't normal kids. That they didn't have a regular upbringing. Not in a bad way, no. They had everything a child could possibly dream of, but there were expectations. Their eyes, another of the few differences between them, were the window to their soul. Every single emotion reflected in bright blue and dark brown eyes. And of course, there was their personality. The same as any other woman of their family before them, strong and secure, even in the young age of 7.
"Well, it's not my fault you two have a terrible aim!" teased the woman between them. Her face held the same expressions as her children, but there was of course, the weight of a lifetime. The experiences, and it weren't few; some good, some bad, some she couldn't remember, all reflected in her beautiful face. Light red lips, that stood out in the pale face, inviting and mysterious at the same time. Strong dark eyes, that despite everything they'd seen, never lost its glow. Black hair falling to her shoulders, drawing the perfect picture. To say that the woman was beautiful, would be an understatement.
"But you moved!" Alex, the blond girl, said, throwing her hands in the air. "It was going to hit you!"
"Then I suppose I had a very good reason to move, didn't I?" the older brunette smirked, as her daughters threw her a dark look. "It's cold, I wouldn't want my clothes all wet."
"Very funny, mommy." the young brunette muttered under her breath.
"I heard that, Sophie." she said, but her tone was playful. "How about I make up to you two by taking you to the mall?"
The twins' face lit up in excitement.
"Christmas shopping?!" Sophie asked, hopping off the bench. Her mother nodded, grinning.
"Does that mean we can get a new iPod?!" inquired the blond girl, her legs swinging while she clapped her hands in excitement.
"What happened to the ones I got for you two last Christmas?" raising an eyebrow, the older woman looked between her daughters.
"Too small!" "We need more space!" they shouted at the same time, making their mom shake her head, amused.
"I suppose we could get new ones." she sighed, rolling her eyes. Standing up, she took each girl's hands and started to walk outside the park. "Now let's go. Your Grandmother won't be very pleased if we're late for dinner."
"I thought Grandmother was in France." Alex stated, as they reached the car. Sophie nodded by her side.
"Well, she was." her mother agreed. "But you two know your Grandmother. There's no way she would ever cancel the weekly Prentiss' dinner. Besides, I think she brought presents."
~*~
East Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Winter, 2008.
The black SUV came to a halt in front of the familiar house, and the blond driver hopped out of it, taking her time to breathe in the cold air of December.
It felt weird being home after so long. Well, if she was being true to herself, home wasn't really what she would call. Sure she grew up in that place, she knew everyone in there; in a city of nearly 3k, it was hard not to, but she never felt like she truly belonged there. Thus, the reason why she had left.
In the years after her departure, her parents and sister had always flew to visit her in Virginia. The place she now called home. But for some reason, when her father said he didn't want to leave that year, she agreed to come back to the place that haunted her for so long.
It wasn't like she hated the small town; she just didn't like it. It always felt like every single person in that city scrutinized her for leaving, for wanting something better than what she was offered in East Allegheny.
Sighing and kicking the snow, she made her way towards the entrance door and rang the bell. She had a key somewhere, after all this had been her house for a long time, but she just didn't want to go through all of her bags trying to find it.
The moment the door opened, she felt herself being tackled to the floor.
"JayJ!" screamed a teenager as she saw the other blond. "Oh, sorry."
Lifting herself up, she then proceeded to help the older woman getting up, who pulled her in a hug.
"I see the training is doing you good, Ali." She said, rubbing her back. "Too bad for me, huh?"
"Well, it's not my fault you can't handle it anymore, sis." the younger one teased, as they walked into the house. "What kind of FBI agent are you if you can't even handle being tackled?! Tsk, tsk, tsk."
"The kind of FBI Agent that doesn't get tackled all the time." JJ replied, smirking.
"Lame!" her sister snorted, pulling her to the kitchen. "Mom, Dad! JJ's home!"
The older blond cringed at how the word 'home' floated easily through her sisters tongue. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and opened them again, a smile plastered in her features. Despite not liking the place, she did love her family more than anything.
"Jaybird!" the deep voice came from behind the blond, and the smile in her face grew wider as her father came into view. Running to his arms, she fought the urge to tackle him, just as her sister had done with her moments before.
"Dad!" she nearly shouted, hugging the man tightly. "I missed you so much."
"Ah, I missed you too, Jaybird." he said, ruffling her hair affectionately. "How was the trip?"
"Uneventful," JJ shrugged. "Where's mom?"
"Probably stuck in the kitchen." The younger blond answered, snickering. JJ laughed, and rolled her eyes, just before another figure showed up on the kitchen's door.
"I heard that, young lady." the older woman said, making her way towards her older daughter. Pulling her in a hug, she continued. "I'm glad you're here, sweetie. Mom's making a special dinner."
"Of course! Do I get special dinner? Of course not. I'm here all the time. Why make me a special dinner?!" the teenager exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. "No fair."
Smirking, JJ ruffled her sister's hair, very aware of the fact that the younger girl hated that. "Next time, try to be the older sister."