"You have no idea what you've let yourself in for," John shook his head sadly, already imagining the trauma she'd soon be enduring and the earbashing he'd have to hear after. "I can't believe this was actually your idea."

"What can I say, you guys aren't the only ones that like to live dangerously."

"There's dangerous and then there's just plain crazy."

"You say that like it's a bad thing…"

He ignored that. "Just promise me one thing, don't let Alan talk you into anything, you're the adult."

"Pffft, give me some credit," Selene pouted, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'll reserve judgement until you both get home in one piece."

She rolled her eyes. "I thought you were supposed to be the understanding one? Have a little faith in me and my ability to handle your brother."

"I do have faith i-"

"OH MY GOD, I WANNA COME TOO!"

John's eyes widened. "You're doomed, it was nice knowing you, I'll miss you." He gave her a quick goodbye kiss and shoved her out of his room, locking the door behind him.

"Fuck."

"I swear to the gods if you two try to swing me by my arms one more time, we're going home."

Gordon sniggered but let go of her hand. Alan didn't but she trusted him a little more than the other one.

How had she made the mistake of promising Alan they would have a day out and he could choose the activities? John was right, she couldn't be trusted to think for herself, she had a death wish. She was too stupid to live some days.

All she wanted to do was give the baby a little fun, a day out where he could be a kid and not have to worry about anything more than what to order at McDonald's. It had seemed like such a simple plan.

Parker had given her a sympathetic look when he'd driven them to the theme park. Honestly she appreciated it, because Virgil had dropped them off at the stately home with a wide grin and asked if he could have the donuts she'd left in the cupboard, since she wouldn't be needing them. She hadn't dignified that with an answer, besides, if he thought that Scott and John would leave them alone long enough to be there when he got back he was crazier than she was. Those two were like starving vultures.

Alan had chosen a theme park, which was fine with her, although she wasn't a massive fan of big rides or things that went zoom. Gordon had heard they were going and demanded he be allowed to tag along, she was powerless to resist any of them, let alone the two youngest when they turned those puppy dog eyes on her. She was weak, so very weak.

"Where are we starting?" Alan wanted to know, his eyes darting excitedly all over the map.

"Oh, aquarium!"

Figured Gordon would spot that and want to go.

"Sure, let's do the animals first then maybe some rides," Selene hedged, wondering if she could get away with pushing them onto some rides and just taking pictures from the sidelines.

"Cool!"

"Oh my God, how can you do that?"

"Do what?" Selene let the fluffy spider crawl across the back of her hand and onto the palm of her other.

"That, with that thing!" Alan pointed a shaking finger at the tarantula that was minding its own business as she cooed happily to it.

"Oh look at you, so pretty."

"You're so weird, Sel."

She nodded, not even bothering to argue. "I know. You wanna hold her?"

"Hell no! Keep that thing away from me."

"Fine, wimp." She carefully handed the spider back to its handler, then spotted the next thing she wanted to cuddle.

"Hey, Allie!"

Alan was focused on the young lady who was leading a tour through to the meerkat enclosure.

"Yeah? AHHHHH!"

Selene sniggered as he turned to face her and found himself nose to nose with the boa she had draped across her arms.

"WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU GOT THAT FOR?"

"To cuddle, obviously." She lifted the snake's head and dropped a little kiss on top. He was so lovely, a big, docile baby that just wanted to be stroked. He tightened his tail around her arm and lifted up, trying to get closer to Alan.

"Get it away!" He was gone before she could even blink.

"Fast little bugger, isn't he?" she chatted to the snake conversationally, smiling as the handler helped unwind him from her arm. "Thanks for the cuddle, slithers, but I have to go find my little brother before he causes any damage."

She glanced around to ask Gordon if he'd seen Alan…gone. Both of them. Shit.

"Alan!" she tore off in the direction the rest of the tour had gone, hoping to find him. "Gordon!" Maybe they were together. A Witch could hope.

Neither of them were with the tour, which ruined all her plans. She retraced her steps, ran here and there for a good ten minutes, but they were nowhere to be seen.

She didn't have any of her tools with her so she couldn't simply dowse for them as she would anything else.

"Damn it." She really didn't want to have to do this…

She tucked herself into a corner and lifted up her comm that hung around her neck in pendant form. She tapped the round quartz in the middle.

"John?"

His torso popped up in small hologram form, showing him reclining in mid-air in the middle of the monitoring station. She should have known he'd vanish up there the second her back was turned.

"Still alive I see. Everything OK?"

"Why would anything be wrong? Maybe I just missed you and wanted to hear your voice?"

One sleek eyebrow rose in disbelief.

"I did miss you! But, purely hypothetically, if you'd lost two brothers, what would you do?"

"You lost both of them?"

"No! I said it was hypothetical. And I didn't lose them, they wandered off and lost themselves. Technically they lost me because I stayed in the same spot."

He just stared at her, not bothering to dignify that with an answer.

"So, what would you do?" she wondered if she'd have to resort to begging, or flashing the twins at him, anything to get him to help.

"Well, hypothetically speaking, if I were in your situation, I'd have tried calling their comms rather than calling me."

She facepalmed herself so hard she almost knocked herself out.

"Babe, that's makes too much sense. This is me we're talking about."

"True."

She shot him a glare which he ignored, sitting up to tap at one of his monitors.

"Gordon appears to be in the aquarium and Alan is out by the gazelles. Personally I'd go get the smallest one first, though honestly, I wouldn't worry too much, they can look after themselves."

"Thank you, I love you." She blew him a kiss and swiped the comm off before diving out of her hidey hole and tearing off towards the African area.

"Alan?"

She couldn't see him by the gazelles but, upon turning around, she spotted a suspiciously large crowd nearby.

She raced over, hearing the chattering as she neared.

"What's he doing?"

"Is he allowed in there?"

"Is this part of the show?"

"What fresh hell is this?" she groaned as she pushed her way through the crowd to see…

"Alan! Get down from there! What the hell, boy?"

She whipped out her phone and snapped a quick picture, just in case she needed proof that he hadn't succeeded in his task.

The smallest Tracy was hanging from the neck of a giraffe, one foot still balanced on the fencing of the enclosure, his other leg half over it's back. One arm was slung around the long neck, while the other was reaching up to the animal's head, trying to grab the wrist comm that dangled from its teeth.

"Get down!"

"But…my comm."

"I'll get it, just get down before you get hurt, or worse, caught by security."

Alan gave her the look that all teenagers had mastered by midnight on their 13th birthday, all cocky self belief, knowing that they could do whatever they wanted and you were simply being boring and unreasonable.

She gave him a look right back, the one that even Scott didn't dare argue with.

John could likely have heard his brother's epic sigh from space, but Alan knew when he'd been beaten and carefully climbed down, dropping down to land beside her.

"I don't know how you're gonna get my comm back…"

She raised an eyebrow at him, then stepped forward, lifting her hand up to the giraffe. Gathering her psychic energy, she reached out to the animal, connecting with its own.

"Can I have that back, please?"

Alan snorted, crossing his arms. There was no way that was going to work.

The giraffe opened its mouth, the comm dropping into her hand.

"Thank you." She handed the comm to Alan and grabbed his hand, dragging him away.

"Come on, I lost the other one too."

"How the…how did you…what was that?"

"Witch." It was her standard answer to most things, it saved her having to explain and honestly, she liked to be mysterious now and then. It was fun to watch their confused faces. Not that she had time for that right at that moment.

She towed the baby towards the aquarium, refusing to let go of his hand. She didn't know how the giraffe had gotten hold of his comm, or why he'd thought climbing the thing was the best way to get it back, but she wasn't taking any chances that he might suddenly be overcome by the urge to ride a shark or some other shit that would give her a heart attack.

They sped through calm corridors made up of tank after tank of peacefully swimming fish, wandering lobsters, sliding snails and waving tentacles. She wished they had time to actually stop and look, but they were on a mission, and that was of utmost importance.

They rounded a corner, coming upon the tail end of a tour.

"Cool, shark feeding time!"

Would it be safe enough to leave Alan there to watch while she looked for his brother?

"Stay put. Do not move. I mean it!"

He held his hands up in an innocent 'nothing up my sleeves' gesture. She wasn't buying it but didn't have much of a choice.

She gestured to her eyes and then pointed at him, "I'm watching you." Alan just grinned that sweet, adorable smile of his that made her melt every time.

"Not fair, you little shit."

He smiled wider. "Love you, Selly."

"Shut up," there was no heat to her words and he was confident in the knowledge that she loved and adored him.

They wormed their way towards the front of the tour, looking for a spot to stand.

"Sharks are constantly in motion, every moving, you'll never see a shark that's still. Sharks breathe using their gills, water passes through these and for that to happen they have to be swimming. If they stop swimming, they die."

"That's not technically true…"

Selene closed her eyes, praying for a miracle. But no, that really was her lost brother and he really was arguing with the tour guide.

"Some sharks can stay still, or have a rest, by means of careful positioning. If they tuck themselves into the right spot they can allow the water to simply flow over their gills. And that's not even including the Wobbegong species that use their cheeks as pockets, holding the water in their mouths and pumping it over their gills themselves. Honestly, species that actually have to keep moving are in the minority."

The tour guide narrowed his eyes at Gordon but his tone remained polite. "I think you might be a little confused there, young man."

Gordon grinned. "I can assure you I'm not."

"Excuse me a moment, ladies and gentlemen," the guide smiled, stepping down from the feeding platform to corner Gordon. "You need to shut up, son. Let the experts talk."

Selene saw red, how dare anyone talk to one of her boys that way. She pushed her way through and grabbed the guide by the shoulder, spinning him round.

"Who the hell do you think you are getting up in my brother's face like that just because you don't know your job?"

The guide's face turned thunderous but she refused to back down, mostly because she was a couple of inches taller than him and he'd annoyed her with his attitude.

"No, madame, who do you think you are? I suggest you step back before I call security."

Selene's eyes flashed dangerously as she lowered her voice, hissing under her breath. "And I suggested you back the fuck off before I tell your manager that your bachelors is actually bullshit because you quit university. Apologise to him, now."

"How did you…?"

"Witch. Now, say sorry, I'm waiting." She stepped away, reaching a hand back to Gordon who grabbed it, a shit eating grin on his face as he waited for his apology.

"I am sorry that I told you to shut up."

"Like you mean it," Gordon pushed, clearly having the time of his life.

"I'm sorry that I said you were wrong."

"And if I'm not wrong, I'm…"

"Right," the word was squeezed out from between gritted teeth, but it would do. He turned on his heel and practically ran for the feeding station, happy to be free.

"Aww, Sel, you called me your brother," Gordon tried to hug her but she squirmed out of the way, pushing his face out of her personal bubble.

"Get the fuck, little weirdo."

"Your little weirdo brother!"

"Hush your mouth."

She didn't bother to wait any longer, dragging Gordon out by his hand, collecting Alan on the way, although he protested madly at having to miss the feeding show.

"You live on a tropical island! You must see sharks all the time!"

"Yeah, but it's not the same."

"It'll have to do, I think we're on the verge of being kicked out if we don't leave. Come on."

"Can we get food?"

"Yes!" Bless the boy's ability to be distracted by his stomach.

She had watched in horrified fascination as both boys started on their second double stacked burgers and third order of fries before she was even halfway through her single cheeseburger.

Alan was slurping on the largest milkshake known to mankind and Gordon was acting like the unlimited free coke refill was a personal challenge.

By the time they had ordered a super sundae each she was sending heartfelt prayers to Scott for his insistence that she take the card linked to the household bank account because hers would have been screaming a protest at the abuse it was receiving.

Wanting to remember the moment, she snapped a few sneaky pictures of them chatting together and playing around.

As soon as lunch was over they declared it to be time for some rides. She groaned inwardly. This was the part she had been dreading. She wasn't a big fan of things that spun you really fast or didn't seem to have much of a side to it.

The boys merrily discussed the merits of the different rides, each one sounding more terrifying than the last.

"I've always liked the log flume," she commented hopefully and, being the sweethearts that they were, they decided to do that one first.

They weren't impressed, declaring it boring and too slow. She felt her hopes of getting out of this park alive dwindling by the second.

"What about that one?" Gordon pointed to a terrifying looking thing that seemed to involve seats attached to chains that dangled in mid air from a weird mushroom looking contraption that span like a top, sending you swinging out in all directions.

"Erm, no. Not for me. But you two go ahead, I'll just wait here. We've just eaten and if I go on that I'll be sick."

Thankfully they didn't try too hard to convince her, obviously not wanting to risk the results, running off to join the line. She settled down on a bench to watch them, thankful that things seemed to be going smoothly again.

She took out her phone, snapped a picture of the boys waiting in line, chatting animatedly amongst themselves. Smiling she send the picture to Scott, Virgil and John.

John text back first :Both together I see.

Scott was next: They look so innocent…

By the time Virgil's name popped up she was dreading reading it: I ate your donuts.

"Lovely, thanks V." She wasn't too annoyed though, they were just a typical family, and she loved that she was a part of it. Her own brother was just as awesome but she didn't get to see him anywhere near enough since he had left to go travelling. She had left home when she was quite young, her parents never really understanding her magic, her lifestyle or her in general. She still saw them at birthdays and holidays but was used to fending for herself. It felt strange to be back in a family unit, especially one as large as they had, but it was a good strange.

"Sel! We're getting on!"

She waved at Alan, holding up her phone to show she was filming them as she had promised.

She filmed as they were strapped in, zoomed in on their delighted faces as they were winched up into the air and laughed was them as they yelled and cheered, clearly loving it.

"Little weirdos," she muttered affectionately. She adored those boys, adored them all really, she'd do anything for them. Weak, she was so fucking weak.

They came running out to greet her, checking she'd gotten some good footage before dragging her off to the next ride.

"Come on, Sel, it's the last ride of the day, the parks closing soon. Just one ride?"

"No, I'm really not into them."

"Are you scared?" Gordon teased.

"No! Of course not!" She wasn't scared, she was fucking terrified!

"I think you are…"

"Screw you, boy!"

"I dare you! In fact, I double dare you!"

Oh dear, Gordon had done gone fucked up. Because if there was one thing she could never, ever turn down, it was a dare.

"Little fucker!"

She turned on her heel and marched for the line, both boys cheering madly as they trotted along behind her.

She was so going to regret this.

They had managed to pick the fastest, most loopy, spinney, up and downy, stop and starty fucking thing in the entire park, possibly even the world.

She stared up at it in horror, praying to Zeus and Thor for lightning to strike her down and put her out of her misery.

"It'll be fun!" Alan hugged her from behind. She glared over her shoulder at his freckled face, wishing he wasn't so damned cute and that she could abandon him somewhere, preferably somewhere remote with wolves.

"I hate you."

Alan's face crumpled for a second before Gordon spoke up. "Ignore her, she says that to John all the time."

"But she loves him!"

"Exactly."

Alan thought about it for a second then hugged her again. "Love you too, Sel."

"I'm doomed."

The burly ride operator locked the metal chest harnesses in place, shaking it to make sure it was solid.

She'd tucked her pendant down into her top but was clinging to Gordon's arm, holding his wrist up to her face.

"John! John! You have to help me, fake an emergency, come and get me!"

"No. You wanted to go out with them. You're on your own."

"You would if you loved me!"

"This was your idea."

The ride lurched forward and she yelped, eyes wide as it started to climb slowly upwards. She looked up, seeing the first loop looming so high it looked like it was touching the clouds. Oh…fuck…

"I want a divorce!"

Alan started laughing, Gordon dissolved into hysterics as their brother's voice rose to be heard over her screaming.

"We aren't married."

"I'll marry you, then divorce you, just to make a point!"

"She totally would!" Gordon wheezed, yanking his arm back as they crested the top of the loop. The car stopped there, their feet hanging with nothing beneath them but air.

"Oh fucking…shiiiiiiitttttttt," she screamed as the ride suddenly dropped, zooming them down a truly horrendous drop, twisting this way and that, barrelling into one loop after another.

She squeezed her eyes closed tight as the psychotic brothers laughed and whooped with joy, enjoying every second of the wild ride. She clung to their hands, practically breaking bones as she screamed and screamed, utterly terrified by the whole experience.

"Shitting, wanking thing!"

She'd left her stomach about six loops back and and was worried her heart was about to go the same way. The wind rushed against her skin, blowing her hair around in all different directions, whipping the boys in the face as the ride twisted around.

They climbed another stupidly high loop and she refused to look, feeling Alan squeezing her hand.

"Last one, Sel, it's almost over."

Her whole body was shaking, her hands clammy. She tried to breathe but feared she would hyperventilate if she tried much harder.

"Please let me live, please let me live, I'm too young to die, " she squeezed Gordon's hand to get his attention. "If I die, tell your brother I love him even though he's a shit to me, make sure you say it exactly like that."

"I promise," Gordon laughed.

"Hold tight!" Alan's face was one massive grin.

"Here we go!"

"You're both craaaazzzzzzyyyyyy!"

She refused to move for almost a minute after the ride stopped, only managing to stagger to her feet when the operator told her she'd have to go again if she didn't get off.

"I hate you both."

"No you don't. You love us."

"Debatable."

Alan grinnined and looped his arm through hers.

"Can we get some snacks for the ride home?"

Selene smiled softly as she carefully folded a tissue and eased it between Alan's cheek and her shoulder, where he was fast asleep and drooling freely.

"Thanks for today. I think we both needed it."

She turned to Gordon, keeping one arm around her littlest love.

"I still haven't forgiven you, but you're welcome."

He grinned cheekily and cuddled up to her side.

"You love me really."

"Debatable."

He turned his soulful little puppy eyes on her and she was sunk.

"Urghh you're so annoying." She kissed the tip of his nose, just because it was there and he was so cute.

"I know."

Well, how could you argue with that?

She nodded to her phone, which was in her backpack and he handed it to her. Stretching out an arm she snapped a selfie of her and Alan, then all three of them when Gordon shoved his head in next to hers. Taking the hint she cozied up to him and they both smiled for the camera.

All in all it hadn't been that bad of a day, they had survived and had some great memories to laugh at later. It had been nice spending some time with the two smalls and getting to know them better. They might have been pains in her butt, but they were the sweetest boys in the world and she wouldn't change them or their day out for anything.

She settled back against the seat and was about to toss her phone back into her bag when she had an idea.

Pulling up a website she placed a large food order to be delivered to Creighton-Ward manor, ready for when Virgil came to pick them up.

"Do I smell food?" Scott popped his head around the door, clearly following his nose.

Virgil grinned as he humped another two bags of containers onto the kitchen table.

"Selene ordered Chinese Food. Penny had it waiting when I got there and it we got it loaded for when Parker dropped them off."

Scott tapped his fist to his chest in an appreciative salute and started helping to lay out the containers while Gordon found plates.

"Food?" Kayo called over the comms, appearing a few minutes later to put together her own meal from the bounty provided.

Gordon and Alan had done the same, piling their plates high with a bit of everything she'd ordered, which was practically the whole menu. How they could continue to eat after the lunch they had packed away was a mystery only they knew.

Brains was called but proclaimed himself to be too busy to come and that he'd eat later, so they set some aside for him.

Selene was busy pouring them all drinks when a warm pair of arms wormed their way around her waist. Soft lips nuzzled at her neck, kissing gently at her skin.

"I don't know what smells nicer, the food, or you."

She turned in his arms, poking at his chest with her finger. "Oh no, you do not get to just turn up and cuddle me while saying sweet things and think I'll forget about the fact that you left me to die with your demonic brothers."

He caught her finger, wrapping his hand around it to protect his chest from her vigorous poking.

"I had every faith that you could handle yourself and them."

"I could have died on that thing!"

"You weren't going to die, besides, it was your idea."

She glared at him but as usual he remained unaffected by the epicness that was her death stare.

"Did you have a good day?" He reached around her to snag a spring roll, biting the end off and chewing slowly.

"Yes, but that's not the point."

He just grinned at her, the annoying man. She shoved a plate into his hands. "Load up, Star Boy, because I know you haven't eaten today."

He made a face at her but wisely did as he was told, besides, she was right. He hadn't eaten anything, having skipped breakfast and then promptly forgotten once he was in Five.

She made sure he had enough on his plate, heaping on a bit more rice, before starting her own. She was the last to join them in the couch area, even Grandma had taken a seat and was happily chewing.

Selene squished herself on the couch next to John and took her first bite. Heaven.

"Time to see pictures!" Gordon announced loudly.

Her head shot up, glare already forming.

He'd pulled out his phone and suddenly there was her face, filmed at the most unflattering angle imaginable, floating above the coffee table, mouth open in an epic scream.

"The fuck?" Dickhead! She took out her phone and retaliated with a picture of him with ice-cream on his nose.

Alan joined in and there on the screen was a picture of her and Gordon in the aquarium, her right in the face of the tour guide and Gordon standing behind her, using her as a human shield, the biggest grin on his face.

They alternated pictures, one of her and Alan checking out a map sign, Selene with the tarantula and then kissing the snake, Alan and Gordon both tucking into their burgers, her trying to bite some of Alan's candy floss by leaning over his shoulder, Alan and his mega milkshake, Gordon making faces at a large fish, the boys in the line for a ride, the boys on the spinney mushroom ride, Alan asleep on her shoulder with her grinning at the camera, Alan asleep with her and Gordon in shot, Gordon and Selene in the back of the car, one that had obviously come from the last ride - her looking terrified and them laughing and finally Alan climbing the giraffe.

But the end of it they were all laughing.

She didn't notice John moving until it was too late. The sound of her screams filled the room and suddenly there they were, her in the middle of the two boys, looking like she wanted to die.

"You fucker!" she leapt on the one that was supposed to love her, knocking him flat on his back. The same love who was holding his arm up out of the way so she couldn't reach his comm. He'd obviously recorded the whole thing from Gordon's while they had been talking.

She could hear herself begging him to save her, and then screaming for a divorce.

Virgil was in fits, barely able to breathe.

Selene straddled her spaceman, pinning him down as she tried to grab his comm, unfortunately Mr Lean-and-Long had a little height advantage and she couldn't reach. He was laughing, pure joy on his face and she couldn't help but smile too. Who could resist that? She gave up and collapsed down on top of him.

"You're such a knob."

"See, you should have swapped when you had the chance, you know I'm the better option," Scott grinned, sipping his beer.

John risked his life to steal a kiss. "You don't want him."

"Debatable," she tried hauling herself up off John, not wanting to squish anything delicate but he wouldn't let her, wrapping his arms around her.

Grandma Tracy, who had been mostly quiet throughout dinner, put down her empty plate and clapped her hands together, making them all jump.

"So, it looks like you had a good day, but I have one question."

They all looked at her expectantly.

"When's the wedding?"

Selene's eyes widened as she and John looked at each other in horror.