Author's Note: I'm baacckk!
Again with the apology, sorry it took so long, yadda yadda.
Also, FYI, I don't own Spiderwick, disclaimer, ya'll know how it goes.
And apparently, I didn't mention it before, but I will do so now: this story is movieverse, at least until I read the books (shame, shame, I know), so the twins are like, what, 12, 13? And I guess Mallory's a few years older? However old they were in the movie, I guess they're about six months older in this fic.
Happy reading!
Mallory had just finished putting on the final touches of rouge to her cheeks, and began to hurry downstairs. What would Brad think if she was late on her first date? She just hoped he hadn't been waiting outside too long!
"Hey, Mallory," her brother, Jared, called out as she walked past his room, "where are you going, all dressed up like that?"
Where did he think? Ugh, he was such a moron! She had been talking about this date with Brad for days! I swear, the only thing that ever enters his head is faeries!, she thought.
She stuck her head in the door to his room long enough to say, "It's Friday night, you idiot, and I've got a date!"
Jared just hmphed, and blew the hair off of his forehead in response, as Mallory headed down the stairs.
"Headed out already, Hon?" Helen Grace asked her daughter as Mallory reached the door.
"Yes, Mom, and he's probably been waiting outside for twenty minutes already! I've gotta go!" Mallory reached for the door once again, in a hurry to be away from this crazy house and her crazy family.
Helen frowned.
"Shouldn't he come up to the house and knock, rather than just sitting out there in his car?"
Mallory sighed loudly, exasperated with her mother.
"Mmooom! That wouldn't be cool! I've got to go!"
"Alright, Mal. Just, try to be home before midnight, 'kay?" Helen called as her daughter ran out the door.
"Sure thing, Mom!"
Aah, there he was. Brad rolled down the window of his bright red corvette and stuck out his perfectly groomed head.
"Hey, babe," he called. "You ready?" he gave his trademark smile, and Mallory's stomach did a back-flip.
"Yeah," she replied, "Sorry I'm so late!"
She walked around to the passenger side and slipped into the leather seat as Brad started up the engine.
"Hey, no big! Now let's go have some fun!"
Mallory could barely contain her excitement as her date for the night gunned the engine and they sped off to what she hoped would be the first in a long line of dates with this high school heartthrob.
I hope that boy treats my girl with some respect, Helen thought, worriedly. Then again, Mallory does have a good head on her shoulders. She can take care of herself.
Ms. Grace glanced at the great grandfather clock in the hallway. Oh no! I'm running late again!
As she hurried to get ready to go to her meeting, she heard her eldest son descend the stairs.
"Hey Mom," he called, "do you think I need a—"
"Not right now, honey," she called breathlessly as she raced through the room, grabbing her briefcase and keys on her way to the door. She paused at the threshold, kissed Jared on the top of the head, and said, "Honey, I have a meeting to go to, Mal's on her date, and your brother's at his 'nature club' thing. Can you be in charge until I get back?"
Helen really didn't like leaving her temperamental son at home by himself, but at this point she didn't have a choice, much to her chagrin. Jared tended to be somewhat irrational without his twin to calm him down and make him see reason.
"Who'm I supposed to be in charge of? Thimbletack?!"
Did he have to bring up those infernal faeries again—now where were her keys?
"There's a good dear, just…don't break anything 'til I come home, 'kay?" Helen said, distractedly.
And then she closed the door behind her, closing her son in the great mansion as she drove to the office for her meeting.
Why couldn't her kids just get along? Mallory struggled to fit in at school, even though it didn't show. Her daughter didn't really have any good friends at school; they just hung out together. They were the popular crowd, and Helen was afraid of what lengths Mallory might go to in order to fit in with them. Like this Brad character. What did Mal actually know about him?
He was just some guy who made high school girls go crazy, and so when he asked Mallory out on a date, she said "yes" without a second thought.
Helen sighed.
And Simon. She knew all the fighting in the family disturbed him. That's why he grabbed at the chance to go on this 'nature club weekend' thing. He wanted to get away from it all.
Then there was Jared. He was the one who was always in detention at school, the one who always fought with his sister, the one who always caused problems. She loved her son terribly, but sometimes she just didn't know what to do with him!
Lately, he had even begun to wear more black, as he hung out with those skater kids at school. They were such a bad influence on her boy! But she knew she couldn't say anything. No, then Jared would just distance himself from her even more.
She wanted to blame it all on the faeries. She knew the secret her children harbored was the main reason for their isolation. However, especially in Jared's case, it was also, in a way, their salvation. It was the faeries who had brought her family together, at least for a short period of time. The faeries gave Jared purpose, and actually encouraged him to begin to study them, and take notes in the field guide. She knew Jared didn't care, but she noticed that lately his biology grade had gone up. The faeries had piqued his interest in learning.
But still, Helen rued the day she moved with her broken family into the Spiderwick mansion.
Why can't we just be normal?
