If I could only have his strength. Victoria mused to herself, observing the great power of her father as he ripped the mostly grown oak tree out of the ground. Dezra had decided to redecorate the garden and expand it, this caused a need for her husband to rip out some trees for the expansion. As Victor took a quick break to wipe the sweat off his brow and take a sip of water he glanced over at Victoria and gave her a small smile. She enjoyed watching him work since she was a baby; it calmed her to know that he was strong even when she was weak. As he resumed his strenuous work, Victoria watched in silence as her older brothers Taris and Lance exited the house to join their father in the work.
Taris had the same build as their father: broad shoulders, barrel chest, great height, and thick, corded muscles. He had the blonde hair as well, but he kept his short for convenience. Dark blue eyes shined with the sparkle of a knowledge that not many had. Victoria knew from experience that when he transformed into his white tiger alter-ego, the blue eyes stayed the same, seperating him from all other natural creatures. Lance on the other hand was tall like their father, but had the slim build of their mother and the almost feminine features. Blonde hair and blue eyes kept the similarities to their father, and he also had the immense strength of the Canadian man.
Enviously watching them haul the very large trees from the places where they laid on the ground, Victoria dreamed of having the same strength. The curly haired woman was not weak by any standard, but she knew she would never have the same power as her father and older brothers. She had the build of her other brother Eric, the playboy. Slim figure, feminine facial features, and long willowy length of body. They both had their father's eyes, but that's the only similarity they had to him other than the blonde hair. She dreamed of having the power to rip full grown trees from their well rooted places in the earth, of being strong enough to conquer all their enemies. Strong enough to take on Juggernaut and have no fear.
She knew her father had limits, but never having been in his presence when he reached them, Victoria could easily imagine her father being the strongest being alive. She was snapped out of her day dream when her youngest brother Tyler had a seat beside her. The ten year old boy had sharp grey eyes that peered into a person's soul and his black hair clearly showed his alternate paternity. He had the superior attitude of their mother before she was humbled by her husband, but his obvious unusual looks portrayed that he wasn't the same as the others. His story was long, twisted and very convuluted, but Victoria, her siblings, and their parents could not love him less.
"You have no reason to envy him Vicki," He whispered, voice soft and gently questioning. Victoria loved that quirk of his voice and his pet name for her. He was the only one she allowed to call her Vicki, for everyone else she was Tori. Pondering how he knew exactly what was on her mind, she raised a blonde brow and gave him a curious glance. He merely gave a slow smile and touched her bare knee with a soft hand. Victoria almost shivered with the chill that came with contact; he was always cold, and couldn't help that he radiated it. She just accepted it as one of his peculiarities.
"Hey Tori!" She switched her attention to Taris, who had yelled at her, "could you get me a water bottle please?" He asked, lowering his volume slightly. She nodded his direction and rose. She gently pulled her jean shorts down a little so they wouldn't rise up as she walked. Tyler grabbed a handful of her dark blue tank top and followed behind her patiently. From the time he was born, he had always preferred to be held by Victoria rather than any of his other siblings.
Victoria heard Tyler give a soft sigh when they entered their immense house. The air conditioning always forced his body temperature to change in an uncomfortable way, but he had grown used to the change and tried to ignore it. When they neared the kitchen, they both could hear their mother, Dezra, singing softly to herself. Random moments through the day, she could be found humming or singing lullabies from her home planet; songs that reminded her of simpler days before she was sent to earth to find humility. The children knew that she deeply missed her home planet and wished that she could return some day, but they tried to keep her distracted to avoid her becoming home sick.
"Need something honey?" The red haired woman questioned of her daughter as she entered the room with Tyler attached to her side.
"Yeah mom," Victoria answered with a nod to accompany, "a couple water bottles for the guys since they're not intelligent enough to remember them before they leave the house." Dezra gave Victoria a look that said more than words before reaching into the fridgerator and tossing her several water bottles. "Thanks." She mumbled as she caught them and passed some to Tyler for easier portability.
When they were outside again, the two siblings headed towards their brothers and father. The large men stopped their work to graciously accept the water bottles from them. Taris immediately started guzzling the fresh water but stopped when Victor whapped him up side the head with one very large hand. The blonde choked for a quick second before he caught his breath and rubbed the back of his head. Victor gave him a "you-know-better" look before speaking.
"Slow down boy." He mumbled before taking a sip of his own water. Lance was standing to the side chuckling but stopped when he too received a look from the massive blonde. He quickly silence by taking a sip of water. Victoria and Tyler shared a look and a quiet giggle.
Victor set down his water and reached down a hand to mess up his youngest son's perfect hair. Tyler grasped his father's hand and closed his eyes as a vision passed through his mind. They were all used to the random bouts of future sight that plagued the young boy. Every once in a while, he experienced singularly harsh ones that made him seizure, but they too were taken in stride along with all the other unique traits of their large family. When the moment passed, the child leaned into his father and allowed himself to be picked up. Victoria was sometimes baffled by the connection that her father and her brother shared, despite the fact that he was not the natural son of Victor. When the large man started humming a familiar song that they knew calmed Tyler, the three other blondes joined in. They were so deeply engrossed in the song, that they hardly noticed the rest of their family halting their actions to join in.
As the song came to a close, Victoria came to a realization. Despite all the strangeness of her family, and the akward moments that they shared, they were more connected than any family she knew. No other family shared the peculiarities that made them so special. She also felt guilty for a brief moment as she realized that not long ago she was wishing she had the strength of her father. She knew that if she had the strength that he had, she would not be the same person. She also knew that she should be thankful for the blessings that she had, because not all of the people in her family were as lucky as to be perfectly healthy. She was undoubtedly better off than any of her siblings.
Smiling, Victoria leaned forward and gave Tyler a kiss on the forehead and her father a kiss on the cheek. She smiled at her siblings and then turned around and started walking into the forest. She suddenly felt the need to count her blessings.