Disclaimer: I don't own anything you recognize
Claimer: Marie is my character
Rating: Rated T just to be safe
Author's Note: It's good to be back! Ahhh, I haven't written in ages, so I hope this isn't rusty. I had written the first half earlier this year and then never got around to finishing it until today. I hope you guys like it, I know you've had to wait a long time for it. Also note, this chapter contains several quotes from different authors that relate to the content of the chapter. I'd also recommend listening to "Home" by Daughtry, or "All Good Thing (Come To An End)" by Nelly Furtado while reading. Those were the two songs I kept listening to over and over and inspired me to write and finish this chapter. Sorry for the long wait, sorry it's kinda short, I'll shut up now, and please, read and review!!!!!!
The Fifth Mercer
Chapter 10: Roads to Greatness
"We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative. We are mature in one realm, childish in another. The past, present, and future mingle and pull us backward, forward, or fix us in the present. We are made up of layers, cells, constellations."- Anaïs Nin
As time passes, secrets begin to unravel and life progresses onward. It takes time to forget the past, in some cases, years. Marie Mercer's case was no different.
"My will shall shape the future. Whether I fail or succeed shall be no man's doing but my own. I am the force; I can clear any obstacle before me or I can be lost in the maze. My choice; my responsibility; win or lose, only I hold the key to my destiny."- Elaine Maxwell
It was five years to the day that Marie's biological parents had come knocking on Evelyn's front door. That day was never forgotten, even though they had all tried to shove it to the back of their minds. Sometimes, however, things cannot be pushed aside. We must all move on, even if the tortures of our past continue to haunt us. It took Bobby, Jerry, Angel and Jack roughly an entire month before Marie spilled everything she had ever felt. Her stories had given them a roller-coaster ride of emotions.
As for Marie, well, even after five years, one never truly forgets the horrors of a life so tragic…so horrifying…so arcane.
"Nor need we power or splendor, wide hall or lordly dome;
The good, the true, the tender -- these form the wealth of home."- Sarah J. Hale
The year 2005 had come quite quickly for some, and rather slowly for others. May 28th Jack had turned 21 and had returned home for the weekend. In 2002, at 18 years old, he left Evelyn's home to pursue his music career with his band. He lived in Death Valley, California but later moved to Manhattan, New York in 2003. Though very successful and having released his second album, Jack was finally on the road to greatness.
"Nothing worth doing is completed in our lifetime;
Therefore, we are saved by hope.
Nothing true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history;
Therefore, we are saved by faith.
Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone.
Therefore, we are saved by love.
No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as from our own; Therefore, we are saved by the final form of love which is forgiveness." - Reinhold Niebuhr
In the following month, on the 5th o f June, Bobby turned 29. He had moved to the outskirts of Detroit and bought himself a little apartment in December of 2000. He kept his promise and visited every weekend, sometimes even staying an entire week. He had played hockey for a while until he had gotten the title "Michigan Mauler". He was also a heavy-weight champion- something he was very proud of. From the messed up little kid he had once been, Bobby now knew that true greatness truly did exist- all you had to do was look.
"It is easier to forgive an enemy than to forgive a friend." - William Blake
August 2nd arrived and found a now 23 year old Angel Mercer serving the American Navy. He had left the Mercer household in January 2001, five months after his 19th birthday. Though the others saw very little of him, he did get the chance to return home every Christmas and Thanksgiving. However, after serving nearly four years in the Navy, Angel wanted out and planned to resign just before Christmas of '05.
"We read that we ought to forgive our enemies; but we do not read that we ought to forgive our friends." - Sir Francis Bacon
August 30th found Jeremiah Mercer at home with his family celebrating his 27th birthday. His wife, Camille, and two daughters, 4 and a half year old Danielle and 2 and a half year old Amelia truly gave Jerry all the joy he ever wanted. He had been in the union, making drastic changes. Now, he was starting projects of his own. After all the struggles he had gone through in his past, Jeremiah had finally found solace in his life.
"I have learned two lessons in my life: first, there are no sufficient literary, psychological, or historical answers to human tragedy, only moral ones. Second, just as despair can come to one another only from other human beings, hope, too, can be given to one only by other human beings." - Elie Wiesel
It had been five hard long years for Marie Mercer. Trials and tribulations she had suffered. All in all, she had gone through more than any other foster child in Evelyn Mercer's home. But now her brothers knew, and though she had feared them leaving her alone, when they had left one by one, she had accepted it. As the summer months had flown by, Marie found herself celebrating her 20th birthday on the eighteenth of July. Everyone had come- even Angel- and Evelyn had prepared the biggest celebration Marie had every seen.
"I have but one lamp by which my feet are guided, and that is the lamp of experience. I know no way of judging of the future but by the past." - Edward Gibbon
Now as Marie stared out her bedroom window at the cold November weather of Detroit, Michigan, she thought back on five years of true happiness. And to the day five years ago where a dream she hadn't believed in had come true.
One month after the arrival of her biological parents, and Marie still wasn't talking. She had lapsed into silence, as if she was entranced by something. The trauma of her life had deeply impacted her, and though she was officially a Mercer, the burden of a past so horrible and cruel weighed heavily on Marie.
It had been Jack that had finally pried the information out of her. After weeks of her four brothers asking non-stop questions, she had finally given in when Jack wouldn't stop pestering her. And so, that night, just days before Christmas, they sat in the living room, huddled around the fireplace as Marie told them her story…
…Back to when she was four years old, and had witnessed her father hitting her mother. Her step-brother, a 15 year old Anthony, had taken her upstairs, but she would never forget the memories…
…And then the biggest trauma of her life. The one thing that had left her so emotionally wounded…. At six years of age, Marie had witnessed her father beat a man to near death and then deliver the final blow with a shotgun. She remembered her mother in a comatose state, so badly beaten it was a miracle she had lived. She remembered running from the house before her father got to her…running so fast and hard until someone had found her and brought her to the station. She remembered being told she could no longer live in her house, that she would be put in a foster care agency…
…But most of all, she remembered visiting her mother two months after the incident and seeing her lying on the hospital bed. She was near death, no way of surviving…
…And yet, Marie had seen their faces in front of her, her father still the same neglectful man he had always been. Her mother…always the kind woman who perhaps never deserved what she got…but who didn't deserve Marie either…
…And so, after going back through 15 years of painful history and telling them the story of her life, Marie finally felt at peace. It was time to move on, for all of them. Though it would be hard and they would encounter obstacles in their paths, the biggest roadblock was yet to come. One that would determine the true strength of their family…and their bond of love.
A/N: Hope you guys liked it. Please read and review, constructive cristicism always welcome and no flames please! I was going to make it a little different, but next chapter gets into the movie verse of the story, so stay tuned and I'll try to update soon. Summer's on it's way so I just might have more time. (As for my Covenant readers, I will try my hardest to update soon. I know you've all been so patient and thank you).