4
Kurt startled everyone when he started crying and pleading in his sleep. To add to the strangeness of the situation, he spoke in English.
Margali rushed to hold him, Stefan and Jimaine brought her water to wake him, and together, they dealt with the after-math of his first nightmare of Amos Jardine's circus.
"Please don't make me go back to the bad circus," he begged.
"You're not going back, Kurti." Margali tried to comfort him, holding him close. "You're safe now."
The sounds of Kurt's subdued crying and Margali's sincere, yet desperate consolations filled the room. Stefan and Jimaine didn't know what to say, or even do, so they simply joined their mother and brother and embraced each them, holding each other and facing this trial as a family.
Finally, Kurt began to calm down, and Margali suggested dinner. Everyone agreed, though no one was really hungry.
The room darkened as the daylight faded and the little family ate their dinners in silence, lit by the glow of the television. It stayed that way for some time, everyone staring blankly at the T.V. for perhaps hours, until Margali announced that she was tired and was going to get ready for bed.
Kurt asked for help going to the bathroom.
Margali took him and readied him for bed, then had to deal with another breakdown when she tried to go change. Stefan had to hold Kurt back from trying to get up. He would most definitely fall and hurt himself were he to get out of bed unassisted.
Finally, once she was in bed, her youngest calmed down and cuddled up to her, aching for her comfort. Her other two children set about their nightly routines. Margali was weary. Bone-tired. She prayed to whoever would listen that she would have strength to get through the next day. Her life seemed to be one trial after the other. She wondered if it would ever end.
Exhausted, she resigned herself not to waste time worrying about what could not be helped and went to sleep.
Margali waited until Kurt was asleep, then extricated herself from him. He was doing much better now and she felt a bit more comfortable leaving him. He was getting over the fever, sweating, and vomiting, but he was still weak. She bet it had more to do with muscular atrophy from disuse rather than the drugs.
She dressed herself and brushed her hair, then went to wake her eldest. "Stefan, wake up, Liebchen." She shook his shoulder. "I'm going to go run some errands, all right? I want you to look out for your brother and sister. Can you do that for me?"
"Sure, Mama. Where are you going?" Stefan asked, sleepily.
Stefan was her eldest. He would understand. "To see Amos Jardine."
He sat up. "I want to go with you." The man had put his family through hell. He wanted to repay Jardine for every last bit of trouble he had caused.
"No, Baby. You need to stay here with Kurt and Jimaine. I'll be back soon." She brushed his hair back and kissed his forehead.
"Fine. Be safe." Stefan laid back down and closed his eyes.
Margali opened her bag and took out her headdress. Ram's horns. Every sorcerer or sorceress had their own totem, an icon of their spirits, and they wore a piece of it. The ram was her totem: headstrong, strong-willed, and tough. It suited her.
Her fingers closed around her wand and she grabbed her purse, stopping to take one last look at her sleeping children. Kurt was already curled up around a pillow in her absence. She sighed and quietly slipped out the door.
Part of her said this was a bad idea, that she should just leave him be, but the other part wanted justice, vengeance for the nightmare that her child had had to endure. She drove back to the circus rather than waste power by flying, and the time spent in the car gave her rage to grow even more. Eventually, her very skin started to turn green with the sheer power flowing through her veins, spreading to her hair and even coloring her eyes a bright, glowing yellow, similar to the mutant boy whose life she had saved.
When she got out of the car, she was a sight to behold and a force to be reckoned with. Amos Jardine would pay.
Jardine was asleep in his trailer when the door flew open and ominous green light flooded the room. He startled awake, consciousness coming quickly, and watched as the horned woman, her face set in a terrifyingly furious scowl, entered.
"Who is it?" He asked, shielding his face from the light.
"Margali Szardos of the Winding Way." She answered, raising her staff. "I am here to avenge my son."
The green in her skin and hair faded as she drove back to the motel, and her eyes lost their eerie, yellow glow. She hadn't killed Jardine, but she had assured him a fate worse than death, and, as recompense for the damage he had caused her and her family, she had taken all that he had of worth. Sadly, Jardine was not a wealthy man, full of debt, and he hadn't had much to give. It wasn't enough to get them back to Germany or get the circus back, but it was enough to start a new life in the States, and enough for one more thing that might make their lives a little easier.
When she arrived back at the motel, all was quiet. The kids were still asleep; everyone was safe and sound. She went back to the bathroom to change into her nightgown, then rejoined Kurt in the bed.
She was doing all she could for her kids.
"Do we have everything?" Margali asked, taking one last look around the room.
"Yep, that's everything." Jimaine confirmed, grabbing her pillow and blanket off the bed.
It had been three weeks since they had first arrived at the motel and taken Kurt away from that horrible place, and now, finally, he was recovered enough to travel, and travel they would, for Margali and Stefan had just gotten back from buying a new home for the four of them. It was a lot like their old home, an RV with one bedroom and bunk beds built into the wall, and it even had a bathtub in it, just like their old place. It still looked like a generic motor home, but they would make it their own. In time, they would.
Stefan rigged the sedan to the back of the RV and Jimaine finished loading their few possessions. Margali walked next to Kurt, making sure he didn't fall, as he made his way out into the bright sun for the first time in weeks. He was still a little wobbly, but much stronger. They had done their best to exercise him inside the room, making him get up and walk around as often as possible. He was nowhere near the Olympic-level shape he had been in before he had been taken, but he was walking on his own now. He could feed himself, toilet himself, bathe himself, and dress himself. He had regained his independence, little by little, just like his mother had promised him he would.
He was, however, still having nightmares. In fact, that particular aspect of his multitude of issues had actually gotten worse. Not only was he dreaming about his time in the bad circus, as he called it, he was also dreaming about what had happened a couple years ago back in Winzeldorf. Then, he had been chased through the streets and nearly lynched. If his teleportation had not manifested at the last second, he would have been dead a long time ago.
In addition to his nightmares were odd, waking attacks, in which he simply panicked for no discernable reason, or felt that he was reliving his torment all over again. He feared he was going crazy, sometimes seeing his cage or the faces of the crowds; hearing the taunts and degrading guesses as to what he was, since he obviously wasn't human; smelling the foul odor of his own filth and fear; or tasting the bitter water in his bowl. All of this had prompted Margali to look up his symptoms on the Internet, during the times she got out the laptop they'd brought to look for work or suitable places to live. She could treat illness of the body, but she was unequipped for any illness of the mind. Her searching gave her a possible answer, but not a solid diagnosis. Kurt's symptoms matched those of people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. He would need to see a doctor for help, but she wasn't entirely sure that she could even take him to one, much less get him in. She didn't have insurance, at the moment, and it kind of presented a problem.
"You got it, Liebchen?" She asked, watching Kurt ascend the few stairs to the door.
"I got it." He answered, making his way inside. The place gave him mixed feelings. On the one hand, it comforted him because it reminded him of home. On the other, it upset him for the same reason. He missed home, but he was tired of feeling sad all the time, so he was trying to make the best of it. "It could use a paint job." He mused as his mother joined him inside.
She chuckled. "I agree, but we'll get to that later. Do you want to see your bed?"
He nodded, walking with her to the little nook that held a set of bunk beds. "I get the top?"
"If you want it. Jimaine will take the other one, and Stefan will sleep on the couch. It pulls out into a bed."
He nodded again. It made sense. Stefan was a pretty big guy, tall and muscular. He wouldn't fit comfortably on one of those bunk beds. He reached a three-fingered hand out to touch the navy curtain that separated his bed from the rest of the room. "Can we hang up a different curtain? This one is very…dull."
She laughed and wrapped an arm around him, pulling him to her. It would seem he had acquired her decorating style. Bold, bright colors were preferred. "We most certainly can. Don't worry. We'll make it look like home."
"Good."
Stefan and Jimaine joined them, and Margali went to turn in their keys and officially check out. None of them would likely ever want to see the inside of another motel room again after this experience. Once she got back, the kids all settled into their seats and she started the engine. They were on their way.
((My apologies for the lengthy wait and the drag of this chapter. I spent it mostly trying to get back into the groove of the story. Thanks everyone for all of the favorites, follows, and reviews! Ya'll are the best!))
