Chapter 34- Carly and the Dodo Bird
When Danny and Leo entered their new classroom, Emma, Josslyn, Trina, Georgie, and Jake were already seated and on the other side were a couple guys and a girl that Danny didn't recognize.
"Hey guys," Michael said from the front of the class. "Choose any seat you'd like, it's not assigned."
Danny sat next to Jake, and Leo sat beside Danny.
Michael exhaled deeply. "Okay, so most of you know me already, but for those of you who don't, just call me Michael. No need to be formal and call me Mister. Michael is cool. So, we're going to start with some algebra. Unfortunately, we only have one textbook. But I've written out the assignment in the notebooks in front of you. You each have a pencil. But we'll do a few practice questions up on the blackboard first. See what you guys remember."
Danny flipped through his notebook and grinned. He missed normal schoolwork.
GHGHGH
After school, Danny went over to the other side of the schoolhouse with Jake and Josslyn. Scout was digging in the dirt with Violet and Jonah, while Aiden stood talking to Rocco, and Carly was talking to Avery.
"Avery, I am your Momma," Carly said.
Avery gaped at her.
"Mom, stop it!" Josslyn walked over to them. "You're confusing her."
"Well, I think both of you, and Michael, should come home with me," Carly said. "We should be together."
"I'm not going home with you! You're trying to take over everyone's lives again. I wish I saw through you before!"
Carly crossed her arms. "I am your mother."
"Yes, and you're also Donna's mother," Josslyn said. "And you pay zero attention to her! Grandma's her primary caregiver!"
Carly shook her head. "Not anymore. I kicked Bobbie out. She was trying to force me to have a procedure that I don't need!'
"What? Then who's watching Donna right now?"
"Jason," Carly said. "He tried to refuse… honestly, V-Town has had a bad effect on his brain… but he finally agreed since he was finished work early today."
Josslyn shook her head. "What is wrong with you!?"
"Nothing…" Carly sighed. "Although, I must be cursed or something. I have all these boils covering me. My house is the only one in total darkness, the new electricians have tried to fix it with no success. And this morning, when I turned on the tap in my kitchen, instead of water, a swarm of flies flew into my face!"
Josslyn gawked at her
"What's going on?" Jax's voice announced his presence.
"I am here for my children, that's what," Carly said. "What are you doing here?"
"I thought I'd meet Willow and Joss, and see Willow's classroom," Jax said.
"Hey Scout," Danny said turning to her. "I'm just going to talk to Willow quick. Are you okay here for a minute?"
"Yeah," Scout said.
Danny walked inside and Willow was sitting at her desk writing something.
"Hey…" Danny said.
Willow looked up from her desk and swallowed hard. "Hey."
Danny walked up to her. "I was wondering if we could talk."
"Yeah. Sure. I was kind of hoping to as well."
Danny cleared his throat. "I'm sorry about the teasing and throwing my dirty clothes at you… all of it. I thought you were having fun." He shifted his feet awkwardly. "I'll try to cut back on that."
She nodded. "I guess it's been an adjustment for all of us. You didn't ask for another sister."
"I maybe didn't, but that's not true now," Danny said. "I want to be like real siblings. I care about you. That's why I was doing those things… I thought it would make things normal. But I was wrong. And Michael… I thought…"
Willow laughed. "I overreacted with that. Well, so did you… Michael would never hurt me… but I've been thinking about it a lot and it was actually kind of sweet."
Danny smiled a little.
"But I don't like the teasing," Willow said.
"I know… I'll try to stop," Danny said.
"Don't get me wrong, joking is fun. It was just… a lot. Like all day every day… just makes me not want to be there."
"But we all want you there," Danny said. "Scout was right, Mom was really upset yesterday. She thinks she's losing you all over again."
Willow frowned. "But it's just for a few days."
Danny's eyes grew wide. "Really? You don't want to live with Jax permanently?"
Willow laughed. "That's what I was about to tell Sam this morning before Michael and Jonah arrived. I needed a break from the teasing… and I'm having fun with Jax and Josslyn. But it would be cramped sharing a small room all the time. And I don't know… you'll think this sounds silly… I just want Sam right now… our mom."
"That's not silly. Maybe just don't say that in front of other people though…"
"But I still want to stay at Jax's sometimes," Willow said. "But I don't want to make Sam cry every time I do."
"I don't think she will anymore."
Willow smiled. "Thanks for standing up to Michael for me… even if you were way off about him."
"Well, I understand you a bit more." Danny sighed. "I know what that Shiloh did to you…"
Willow's face paled.
"That was awful," Danny said. "No one should have to go through that."
"You know?" Willow said barely above a whisper.
"Yeah. I'm glad I do."
"But… I didn't want you to know… I told Kristina and others who were there… but that was to help her. I…" Her eyes welled with tears. "So, Sam told you? That was supposed to… I didn't want you to know."
"What…?"
Squawking sounds from outside made Danny's head whip around.
"Ahhhhhhh!" a scream ripped through the air.
Willow scrambled to her feet and they hurried outside.
A large bird with downy grey feathers and a white plume for a tail, sat gripped on Carly's back pecking her head with its distinctive pale-yellow beak!
Danny's jaw dropped. Jax and Michael darted behind her trying to pull it off.
Josslyn stood there crying and so did Scout and Jonah. Jake had apparently taken Aiden and Violet home already.
Danny hugged Scout tightly, while Willow picked up Jonah trying to shield his eyes.
"A dodo bird?" Willow said exasperated. "I thought they were extinct!"
"Get it off me! Get it off me!" Carly cried out.
Avery stared at Carly with wide eyes.
"What is going on!?" Ava's voice announced her presence and she scooped up Avery in her arms.
Jax and Michael managed to yank the dodo bird off Carly, but blood dripped down her head.
The dodo bird dropped to the ground and walked away like a duck, then smacked beak-first into a tree. It squawked, then took off into the woods.
"Ahhhh…" Carly cradled her head.
"Come on, you need to go the new medical clinic," Jax said.
"No!" Carly groaned. "If I go there, they'll force a procedure on me!"
"Mom, you have to go!" Michael insisted. "You might need stitches!"
"Please…" Josslyn said softly. "Go."
"No!" Carly said.
Jax shook his head, then scooped up Carly in his arms.
"What are you doing?" Carly asked
"Taking you to see a doctor," Jax said. "Willow, I'm sorry. I wanted to see your classroom. I'll come again tomorrow. Meet you and Joss at home?"
"Yeah, of course," Willow said. "Don't worry about it."
"Joss, Willow," Michael said. "Can you take Jonah home? I want to go to the clinic too."
GHGHGH
Danny sighed as he walked to the pond with Sam. "Mom… I have homework."
"You can do it when we get home," Sam said.
The pond was a little cold when Danny and Sam first hopped in, but it didn't take long for them to get used to it.
"How was school?" Sam asked as she tread water.
"Fine," Danny said.
"Just fine?"
"I don't know… um… Michael seems like a cool teacher. Even if half the class is related to him."
Sam sniggered. "I really never imagined our lives ending up like this."
"Yeah, well, it did."
Sam sighed. "I'm sorry I put you and Scout through so much."
Danny frowned. "It wasn't all your fault."
"Well, a big chunk of it was."
"You were mind-mapped," Danny said. "It's fine."
"I should've fought it," Sam said.
"You did. I remember… before you ever had the reverse-procedure you fought to stay away from Jason. You did choose us. I just didn't see it right away."
Sam smiled.
"So, what did you do today?" Danny asked. "Clean?"
"No, actually. Spinelli and I were working on a little… project, I guess you can call it. We went to Wyndemere to hunt for some things."
Danny raised an eyebrow. "What kind of project? What sorts of things?"
Sam grinned. "I'll tell you when we're finished. I don't want to jinx it."
"Okay. So… I talked to Willow after school."
Sam swallowed hard. "You did?"
"Yeah. I have good news… well, and bad news."
"Okay… what's the good news?" Sam asked.
"Good news is she really was just planning on staying at Jax's for a few days. She wants to live with us… well, with you."
Sam smiled. "Really?"
"Yeah. She really just wants to spend some time with Jax and Josslyn, and needed a break from me teasing her… I apologized. We had a good talk."
"I'm proud of you, Danny."
"Well, don't say that yet… I think I blew it."
"What do you mean?" Sam asked.
"I overheard you and Willow talking the other day," Danny said. "About what Shiloh did to her."
Sam frowned.
"So, I told her that I knew and that I understood her more. She went white as a ghost. She thinks you told me."
Sam's eyes grew wide. "But you corrected her, right? Please tell me you corrected her…"
"I was going to, I really was," Danny said. "But then the dodo bird attacked Carly and I didn't get a chance."
Sam scrunched her face. "What?"
"This dodo bird… they're supposed to be extinct. But it just attacked her."
"Is she okay?"
"I guess." Danny shrugged. "Jax and Michael took her to the new clinic. But she said lots of weird things are happening to her… flies coming out of her kitchen tap, her electricity isn't working, boils on her skin…"
"Oh my gosh…" Sam's eyes grew wide. "I wonder if Mom's… er… Helena's curse worked on her." She shook her head. "But back to Willow… she really thinks I told you about what Shiloh did to her?"
"Yeah..."
Sam rubbed her temples. "That means she thinks I've betrayed her confidence… Oh, Danny, I'm still trying to earn her trust."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I'll go over and explain after we go home and change… but I want you to come too. Otherwise she might not believe me."
GHGHGH
Shivering in their towels, Danny and Sam ran inside. Drew and Scout were sitting at the table sipping on hot chocolate.
"Hey," Drew said. "Did you guys have fun?"
"Yeah," Danny said.
"What did you guys do?" Sam asked.
Drew grinned. "We climbed a tree."
"We climbed really high," Scout said. "We could see above the houses."
"That sounds fun," Sam said.
"Yeah, and we saw Michael on our way home," Drew said.
"How's Carly?" Sam asked.
"Fine, the dodo bird…" Drew cleared his throat. "Feels weird to say that… didn't peck her too deep. It just broke the skin a little. Anyway, while she was there, they put her under… Michael and Bobbie insisted to use the opportunity for a forced procedure."
Sam's eyes grew wide. "Really?"
"Yeah," Drew said. "Your mom and Nikolas authorized it. She's having the procedure done now… it might even be over."
