The Aquarium

"Wow," Yves whispered, staring wide-eyed up at the largest tank in the center of the aquarium. He was holding one of Trace's hands and one of Uriel's, and a few feet away, a small group of girls and boys were staring at them. Yves was used to this; his mother always said that when they stood together, the eldest Benedict's looked like they could be in a gang or something. Trace and Uriel often found it irritating, but they were too used to Yves's explosions to completely relax when alone with him, too worried that they'd suddenly be exposed as Savants, but Yves didn't mind. He thought it was nice of people to treat him like a normal kid.

Yves's first ever school year was about to begin, and while his mom and dad were talking to the school about his temper, Yves had ridden down to Denver with Trace and Uriel to see the aquarium. It made him happy to think that even if they were slightly scared by his explosions, that his brothers liked to spend time with him.

"We'll buy you a toy one in the gift shop if you like," Uriel whispered.

"What about an octopus too?" Yves asked eagerly, looking up at his brothers who glanced at each other then back at their younger brother.

"Maybe," Trace said slowly, "if you can find one."

Yves enjoyed being a kid, but he didn't really feel like a kid. As his mind worked faster than most other people's he often wondered if he was just a grown up in disguise, not a kid the way non-Savants thought he was; just a six year old admiring the shark tank. Mom and dad could understand how old he was mentally, and his brothers tried their hardest too. And besides Yves was happy, so to him, that was all that mattered.

After staring at the shark tank for a few more minutes, Trace and Uri picked him up by the arms and swung his as they walked towards the gift shop and the cafeteria. Yves laughed, delighted, as his feet left the ground.

"You hungry, squirt?" Trace asked, staring at the menu. There wasn't much on there that Yves would like, given that he was fussy with his food.

"Only a little," Yves craned his neck to look at the menu. "Do they have spaghetti with hot dogs?"

"I don't think so. How about an ice cream," Uriel offered, "then you can have spaghetti and hot dogs when you get home."

"Well, I won't say no," Yves said happily. First, Trace and Uriel took him into the gift shop and bought him a stuffed octopus and a shark. And then, because Trace was feeling generous, they picked him up a large Yves-sized octopus, that had eyes that lit up when he pressed the button on a tentacle.

Then, because it was warm, they took him to an ice cream van by the river and bought him the biggest ninety-nine, with sauce and sprinkles, they could and Yves leaned on the railing, staring at the river below while he ate.

"Do you think there are sharks in there?" He asked, melted ice cream dripping down his hand and staining his jacket sleeve. He wondered how easy it would be to jump into the water and find out, but a firm hand on his shoulder stopped him.

"Probably not," Uriel said, "but let's not find out today. Mom will skin us alive if we bring you home in wet clothes."

"And what would dad say about you jumping in rivers without knowing the direction of the currents or whatever?" Trace asked with a smile. Yves rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically.

"He'd say, "Do me a favor and wait until you're a few inches taller," like when I tried climbing that tree alone or when I wanted to go rafting with you guys."

"Yeah, well, I think we'll all feel better when you get a bit bigger," Uriel said quietly. "I'm mean you're pretty indestructible, what with your flame throwing and all that, but given you size... Well, you look very breakable."

"So you don't want to see me wrestle a shark?" Yves asked.

"No," Trace and Uriel said firmly. They looked at the dripping cone in Yves's hand and sighed. "You want another ice cream before we go?" Trace took the cone and dropped it in the bin, while Uri wiped down Yves's hands with a tissue.

"Trace, he'll be sick." Uri said quietly.

"No, he won't," Trace replied.

"I'm not saying no!" Yves piped up. But rather than risk Yves throwing up in the car, Uriel bought him a lolly to suck on; it was orange, his favorite. Yves sighed happily and leaned back in his seat. He loved his brothers.