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The Broken Silence
Chapter 60
Camping
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"Why does the bathroom smell like cigarettes?" Dash demanded, "It's going to make all my cosmetics stink!"
Theodore shot a suspicious look in Siren's direction who was sitting up front with Roosevelt. Getting up from the couch, he approached the bathroom and stepped inside where Dash was primping in the mirror. He gave a long sniff and sure enough the bathroom reeked of cigarettes. He glanced around and spotted a bit of ash in the sink.
Narrowing his eyes, he left the bathroom and squeezed his way up front where Siren was fiddling with the radio. Siren glanced up at him and offered him a smile.
"I think we're too far to get any good stations out here," Siren commented, pointing to the endless trees outside, "I need a cord and headphones for my Ipod and so I can't listen to my own music right now. The only station I can get is some sort of tribal drum performance, but Roose said it was giving him a headache."
Theodore held out a hand expectantly and Siren gave him a confused look.
"Cigarettes now ," Theodore ordered.
"You already took them, remember? You made a big show of crushing them and tossing them in the trash?"
"You were smoking in the bathroom!" Theodore accused, "The whole bathroom stinks like smoke and there's ash in the sink!"
Roosevelt glanced over with a sharp look. "You're smoking, Del?"
Siren rolled his eyes. "Okay, I smoked my last one but I don't have any more."
Theodore gave him a skeptical look. "You lying?"
Siren went back to fiddling with the radio. "Of course not."
"You're not allowed to smoke," Roosevelt commented, not really knowing what had happened before, "Smoking causes impotence."
Siren glared at him. "Good to know."
Theodore wanted to believe Siren, but his every instinct was telling him that he was lying. Siren had always lied about absolutely everything when they were kids and so he was instantly suspicious. "I'm not letting you get cancer from smoking," he said firmly, "Show me what you have in your pockets!"
Siren rolled his eyes again and dutifully emptied his pockets. Other than a bit of cash, and his Ipod he had nothing on his person. Theodore still wasn't convinced, but he had no proof for now.
"If I catch you smoking, I'm going to be mad," he warned him, "I'm never letting anything happen to you ever again!"
"I promise I'm quitting," Siren lied, "You don't have to worry about it."
Theodore let out a deep sigh and then ruffled Siren's hair affectionately. "Sorry I accused you of lying, Del, I believe you."
Theodore went back to the living room of the rv and once he was gone, Roosevelt flashed Siren a warning glare.
"If I catch you smoking, I'm going to make you eat the entire pack," he vowed, "I'll shove them down your throat."
Siren blinked at him and said nothing. Roosevelt had always been the more unpredictable twin, and he wasn't quite sure whether he was serious or not. He was trying to figure out this new dynamic between himself and his brothers, and he was trying hard not to rock the boat. The twins had always been extremely overprotective of him growing up, but since his return they seemed to have stepped it up a notch further. He couldn't even spend ten minutes alone without one of them checking on him, and it was starting to get a bit annoying. Once things seemed to settle a bit, he'd start encouraging his brothers to leave this team and go into hiding with him.
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"This should be it…" Otterman said a bit uncertainly, "What do you see?"
"The road ends," Roosevelt replied, turning the ignition off.
"And?" Otterman prompted, "What else do you see?"
"Trees."
Otterman's brow furrowed and he glanced behind him at the others. "Graham? Do you see anything? There should be a cabin or some sort of building?"
Graham squeezed his way up front and leaned over Roosevelt's shoulder so he could see. They seemed to be in the middle of the woods with nothing as far as he could see. There was a frozen lake about thirty feet from where the road ended, but no houses or cabins in sight.
"Well?" Otterman demanded.
"There's nothing here," Graham replied, frowning, "Are you sure you wrote down the coordinates correctly?"
"Of course I'm sure!" Otterman snapped, feeling offended, "I read them back three times just to be sure. We're in the right spot."
Siren was starting to feel crowded and he leaned as far away from the others as he could in the passenger seat.
"It's winter," he pointed out like they were morons.
"It is…" Crackle replied, trying to figure out what he meant by that.
Siren stared at him for a moment and when it was clear Crackle didn't understand, he let out a huff and pointed through the window.
"The snow on the ground is probably covering a trail. If this is a secret drop-point for operatives, then it's safe to assume the cabin is probably somewhere out of sight."
Siren's tone was incredibly condescending, but Crackle knew he had a point.
"I'm going to check it out," Crackle stated, squeezing his way back to the living area, "Dash, Shiko, come help me."
Dash looked a little put out since he'd been curled up on the couch with a cup of tea, but he dutifully set it aside, and got to his feet.
"Watch out for polar bears you three," Neal teased, reaching for the abandoned tea.
Pulling on hats and coats, they left the RV and stepped down onto the frozen ground. The snow crunched under their boots, but otherwise the forest was completely silent.
"We're looking for a trail through the woods," Crackle told them, "It might be hard to spot because of the snow."
"Wouldn't we see tire tracks or footprints if there was someone else around?" Dash questioned.
"There may be another way to the cabin," Crackle replied, "Let's split up and search the area."
Paper Star gave a shrug and then turned to do as she was told. Dash made a big show of putting on his gloves, and adjusting his scarf before he did anything, and Crackle rolled his eyes but didn't comment. They each began searching the treeline carefully but the snow was thick and it was hard to tell if there was a trail or not. After ten minutes of searching, Paper Star whistled loudly and they glanced over at her.
"Found something," she called to them.
She was standing several feet down the road and when they approached, they saw what looked like a purple ribbon nailed to a tree. Crackle took several steps into the woods and saw another purple ribbon nailed into a tree about ten feet away.
"This must be it," Crackle said, stepping back out onto the road, "Wait here, I'm going to get the others."
Crackle turned and hurried back for the RV without waiting for a response. Poking his head inside, his gaze fell on Theodore.
"We found the trail," he informed him, "We have no idea what sort of situation we're walking into and so we need all able-bodied members of our team to come."
Neal glanced down at his casts. "I guess that means I'm staying here," he said in amusement.
"Come on, Roose!" Crackle called, "We're going to need you!"
Roosevelt squeezed his way back to the others and Siren trailed reluctantly behind him.
"Do you want to come with us, Del?" Roosevelt asked, clapping his brother hard on the back.
Siren winced at the rough treatment. "Hell no," he replied.
The twins exchanged worried looks and then turned their attention to Neal.
"Will you keep an eye on Del, Neal?"
Neal nodded. "Sure."
"I don't need a babysitter," Siren snapped, "What exactly do you think is going to happen to me?"
"Anything could happen," Theodore responded worriedly, "I'd just feel better if someone was here with you."
Siren took a seat on the couch as far away from Neal as possible. "There, happy?"
Theodore nodded with a smile and then reached for his coat. The rest of the team left the RV within a couple minutes, and a silence settled in the room. Neal glanced over at Siren and cocked his head curiously. It was obvious Siren didn't like him, but that didn't bother Neal in the least.
"Do you want to watch a movie with me, Del?"
Siren glared at him and then got up to approach the door.
"Wait!" Neal called after him, "Where are you going?"
Siren didn't answer and then flipped open a small compartment next to the door. Reaching inside, he pulled out a pack of smokes and then left the RV without another word. Neal wheeled over to the door and peered out at Siren who was watching the rest of the team disappear up the trail.
"It's cold out here," Neal informed him, "Why don't you come back inside where it's warm?"
Siren was used to cold temperatures from living in Siberia for so long and so he actually wasn't too bothered by the cold. He just wanted a few minutes alone for a while and so Siren turned and glared at Neal silently. Still not saying a word, he reached for the ladder on the side of the RV and then began climbing. Neal gave him an alarmed look and then leaned out the door as far as he could.
Once Siren was on the roof, he lit a smoke and then took a seat on one of the milk crates strapped to the roof for unknown reasons. Siren found being surrounded by so many people to be overwhelming and he just wanted to be alone for a while without being forced into conversation.
Neal stared for a few moments and then closed the RV door, deciding Siren was fine for the moment.
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"Do we know anything about the person we're meeting?" Crackle demanded.
Otterman nodded. "We're meeting a middle-aged man who goes by the codename Le Castor. I know nothing else about him other than he's a recluse who mostly keeps to himself."
"Good, so he should be alone," Crackle commented.
" Should be," Otterman agreed, "He's just the middleman for The Void and whoever hired them."
"If he knew we were coming, it wouldn't have killed him to shovel a path for us," Dash grumbled, the snow almost up to his knees in places.
Dash fell back a few steps so he could walk behind the twins who weren't having as much trouble getting through the thick snow. Every ten feet or so they found another ribbon and so they followed the markers, hoping the cabin wasn't too deep in the woods.
"The RV is getting low on gas and so we'll need to fill the tank as soon as we're back on the highway," Roosevelt commented.
"How low?" Otterman demanded in alarm, "Why didn't you mention this sooner?!"
"We still have a quarter of a tank so it wasn't an emergency yet," Roosevelt replied with a shrug.
"You're supposed to mention it before it's an emergency!" Otterman snapped.
Roosevelt gave him a confused look. "I just did!" he defended.
"I swear if we break down in the middle of nowhere, I'm going to make you regret it," Dash grumbled, "I hate the stink of this place"
"You mean fresh air?" Crackle teased.
"Revolting," Dash commented with a shudder, "I can't wait until we leave this damn country."
Crackle rolled his eyes and didn't bother responding.
"I found another ribbon!" Moose Boy announced proudly from up ahead.
Paper Star was on high alert and it was obvious she was expecting to be ambushed at any moment. She had several stars at the ready and she was glancing around, her expression tense. Roosevelt kept glancing at her every now and then and finally he fell back a few steps so he could place an arm around her shoulders. She glanced up at him in question but she didn't push him away.
After ten minutes of walking, they finally saw a large cabin ahead and Dash let out a breath of relief.
"Finally," he muttered.
They saw footprints everywhere around the cabin and so it was obvious Le Castor had been there fairly recently.
"Once we get back to the RV, I'm going to see if I can fix that stove," Crackle stated, heading for the front door.
"Maybe Del can help you?" Theodore suggested, "He's always been pretty good with fixing things."
"Oh, does he have experience in electrical?" Crackle asked in surprise.
"I dunno about that, but once when he was a kid he climbed the telephone pole and got us free vip cable."
"I'm always glad for help," Crackle stated, wondering if maybe this would be a way to make Siren finally relax around them.
Siren still refused to interact with any of them unless absolutely necessary, but the twins had assured them this was normal. Siren didn't trust them, and Crackle knew that trust would have to be earned. They still had no idea what kind of hell Siren had to live through for the last decade, but Crackle knew it couldn't have been good. He'd only spent a couple months at that lab and the memories were still some of the worse of his life. Siren had been there for ten years and Vess could have done almost anything to him during that time.
Crackle raised a hand and knocked loudly on the door. He waited a few seconds and then knocked again, slightly louder. He waited nearly a full minute but there was no response. Crackle frowned and then pounded on the door as hard as he could.
"Maybe he's not home?" Moose Boy guessed.
"And where would he go?" Dash snapped, "We're in the middle of nowhere!"
Crackle leaned in to look through the window but the glass was tinted and he couldn't see inside.
"Should we pick the lock?" Paper Star suggested.
"No, that would be rude and we don't want to antagonize anyone unless necessary," Crackle responded.
"Then we just stand out here freezing?" Dash snapped.
Crackle glanced around and saw several out buildings nearby. "Let's split up and search the property. Maybe he's just working in one of those sheds?"
"I'm not going near one of those dirty little sheds," Dash said stubbornly.
Crackle rolled his eyes. "Fine, then you check the surrounding woods."
Dash found that acceptable and turned to head behind the house to search as the others headed towards the small buildings. Adjusting his collar to better protect against the wind, Dash wandered about thirty feet into the woods and then began walking the perimeter of the property. There were footprints all over and it was clear someone had been through there a lot.
Dash suddenly stopped walking as he came to a sight that turned his stomach. A deer was strung up by its hind legs to a tree and it's abdomen had been completely hollowed out. A bucket of entrails was sitting nearby and the snow was red with blood. Dash's gaze went to the massive knife that was stabbed into a block of wood, and he slowly began backing away, a hand clutching his mouth as he gagged.
Turning away to head back to the others, he was met with the barrel of a shotgun inches from his face. Dash froze and he stared at the gun in shock before he glanced at the person holding it. The man looked like a wildman with a long beard and shabby clothing and his eyes were narrowed into angry slits. The man looked Dash up and down taking note of the fancy clothes and perfect looking hair. He then spat at Dash's feet.
"I warned you CRA agents to stop trespassing on my land!" he snarled, "This is my land and I'm not paying you a damn cent!"
"Wh-what?" Dash asked, slowly raising his hands in surrender, "CRA?"
"I've warned you time and time again but you yuppies won't fuck off! Maybe when your people start disappearing, you'll leave me alone!"
"I-I'm not-"
Dash didn't have time to finish his sentence because he saw the man's finger twitch towards the trigger and he ducked just as there was a deafening blast. Dash felt his hat explode off his head and he scrambled away, his ears ringing painfully. There was a second blast and a large chunk of the tree next to Dash seemed to explode. Dash ran for it as fast as he could and the man pursued him as he reloaded the gun.
Dash weaved in and around the trees having no idea where he was going but just wanting to get away from the man. Dash tripped and stumbled in his attempts to run through the deep snow and there was another shot that hit the tree right in front of him. He veered off to the side, and was absolutely terrified, knowing there was nothing he could do except keep running.
"Gonna getcha, you prissy little snob!" the man yelled, taking another shot.
This one caused the snow beside Dash to explode and it was close enough that the snow hit him in the face. The man had to slow down a bit as he reloaded, and Dash forced himself to run even faster, his chest already burning from the exertion. This was exactly like what happened to him in Russia all those years ago, and terror coursed through him. Everyone he was with had been hunted down and shot and he alone was the survivor. He had barely made it away, and now it felt like it was happening all over again.
"Run away, Sprinkle Twink!" the man mocked him, "Run, run, run!"
Dash dodged to the side just as the gun was fired and another tree exploded. Fighting his way through the deep snow, Dash was now so out of breath it felt like he wasn't getting any air. As he stumbled his way through a deep drift of snow, Dash suddenly realized the ground had disappeared under him.
Dash fell hard down the unseen hill but luckily he was unhurt as he rolled and tumbled to the bottom. Laying there for a moment stunned, he saw a small cave just beside him and he scrambled inside it. It was pitch black inside and he reached up a hand to his com as he fought to catch his breath.
"Where are you guys?!" he hissed, "Some maniac is trying to kill me!"
"We're almost to you, Dash!" Crackle assured him, "Did you get away from him?"
"I'm in some dirty cave!" Dash snapped.
"Stay put, we're tracking you and we'll be to you any second!"
Dash wheezed in silence for a few seconds and then reached down to brush the dirt from his pants. Dash felt warm fur against his hands and he jerked away, instinctively lashing out at the unknown animal. The animal made an aggressive grunting noise and then suddenly Dash was hit with liquid and the cave filled with a smell so pungent that it burned his eyes.
Dash let out a shriek and scrambled away so fast he didn't even think about how he was leaving the cave. Throwing himself into the snow in an attempt to get away he turned and saw a very angry skunk waddle out of the cave after him. It began stomping its feet and shaking its tail at him and Dash let out another yell and crawled away on all fours in an attempt to escape it.
Dash was suddenly on very smooth ice and he gave another glance back at the skunk who was now going back inside its cave. The ice was very thin and he could feel it bowing under his weight as he got back to his feet. When the ice began to crack and groan underneath him, Dash froze and looked down. Water could be seen under the thin ice and he realized he was standing on a river. He took a careful step and the cracking got even louder.
"Goodbye, Princess!" came a sudden loud yell from up the hill.
Dash looked up and saw the shotgun was aimed straight at him and there was no way to dodge it this time. Dash stared at the man in terror and once again raised his hands in surrender. It was then that the man was tackled hard by the twins and the gun was wrenched out of his hands. The twins got a few really good hits in before Crackle made them stop, and then the man was quickly restrained.
"You okay, Dash?" Crackle yelled down to him.
Dash was suddenly very very aware of how badly he smelled.
"No!" Dash wailed, slapping his hands to his face, "I've been ruined forever!"
"Eh?" Crackle questioned.
"Oh gross, what's that smell?!" Otterman demanded.
Dash groaned loudly and then began slowly making his way towards them, walking carefully across the cracking ice.
"It smells like a skunk," Crackle commented.
Dash had never been so humiliated in his entire life and once he clawed his way back up to the others, everyone gagged and clapped their hands over their noses.
"It's you !" Roosevelt cried out, "Dash got sprayed by a skunk!"
"Please just let the crazy hermit shoot me," Dash begged.
Crackle gave him a pitying look and then turned to their attacker. "Why were you trying to kill Dash?!" he snarled, "Are you our contact Le Castor?"
The bearded man seemed shocked and then looked at Dash with wide eyes. "I thought he was another tax collector trying to take my land from me!" he exclaimed.
"I'M NOT A TAX COLLECTOR!" Dash screamed out furiously, "YOU JUST TRIED TO MURDER ME!"
The man then shrugged. "You look like one of those frou-frou office people that like to slither around."
"I GOT SPRAYED BY A SKUNK BECAUSE OF YOU!"
"It was my mistake so I'll give you a few cans of tomato sauce to help with the smell," he stated, still not looking overly bothered, "I'm assuming you're the team that burned the sugar shack?"
Crackle nodded.
"You think giving me tomato soup is going to make things okay?!" Dash bellowed, clenching his hands into fists.
Le Castor rolled his eyes. "And what exactly do you want?" he demanded.
"Your head!" Dash snapped.
"Give us the deer you just killed," Otterman quickly said, "Butcher it for us and let us take the meat."
"You shameless penny-pincher!" Dash snapped at him.
Otterman gave an unapologetic shrug. "That's a lot of meat."
Le Castor seemed annoyed but he gave a nod all the same."Fine, take the deer, but let me go now ."
"If you try to harm any of us again, then we'll defend ourselves," Crackle warned him, motioning for the twins to release him. Once Le Castor was freed, he rubbed at his arms and then glared at the twins.
"Give me back my gun," he ordered.
Crackle removed the shells out of the gun and then tossed it back to him without a word. Le Castor stuck the gun into the rifle sling on his back, and then wrinkled his nose at Dash.
"Come on, fancy poodle, let's get you some tomato sauce."
Dash bristled angrily but he was far too embarrassed to say anything. They followed along behind Le Castor as he led them to the cabin and once they arrived, he held out a hand to stop them.
"I don't want my home reeking like skunk. The smelly twink has to stay outside."
"Oh screw this," Dash snapped, "I'm going back to the RV."
"Dash-" Crackle started, but Dash wasn't listening.
"Go with him," Crackle whispered to Otterman and Moose Boy, "Make sure he doesn't step a foot into the RV before we de-skunk him."
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Lady Dokuso stared at Earwig and frowned thoughtfully. Earwig was ignoring everyone and finishing off the last eggroll from supper as she stared out the window. The smell of her had filled the entire room and it was making everyone else gag. Tomorrow morning they were going to be in an enclosed plane with Earwig for hours, and the smell might very well kill everyone.
"We need to deal with this," Dokuso commented.
"Deal with what? The chips in our necks?" Spinkick asked.
"No, that !" Dokuso stated, pointing at Earwig.
Earwig paused mid-bite and glanced over at them.
"Yes, you !" Dokuso snapped, "Something needs to be done with her!"
"Let's leave her behind!" Spinkick suggested.
Flytrap shook her head. "No, then we'll all be killed for sure! They said we always need to be where we're supposed to be."
"I hate this, I really hate it!" Spinkick cried out, "How could they do this to us?!"
"It's because they wanted to make it abundantly clear that they don't give a shit about us," Rhino responded, "We're disposable."
Troll suddenly appeared on the screen nearby. "Speak for yourself!" he snapped, "I'm V.I.L.E's tech genius and I'm the best hacker they've ever had!"
"Sorry to break it to you, Sushi Roll, but you're not special. Nerds are a dime a dozen in this day and age. You're just as fucked as the rest of us," Rhino commented.
Troll frowned. "I'm not Japanese," he snapped, "And I've always made sure I'm invaluable to V.I.L.E!"
Dokuso let out a deep sigh. "I used to believe that too…" she said slowly, "I gave most of my life to V.I.L.E, but they threw me away so easily… It angers me, but it also disappoints me."
Everyone fell into a depressed silence and Troll seemed incredibly conflicted. "Let's just do our job and maybe we might actually survive this."
Dokuso crossed the room and motioned for Flytrap and Driver to follow her. Spinkick went to join as well, but she held up a hand to stop him in his tracks.
"Women only," she stated as they left the room.
"That's sexism," Spinkick muttered, glancing over at Earwig who had gone back to eating, "How come you're not considered a woman?"
"I don't think she's even considered human," Troll replied.
A few minutes later Dokuso returned and motioned for Earwig to follow. "Over here now," she ordered.
Earwig popped a chicken ball into her mouth and then followed her out of the room without question. Dokuso led her to the bathroom where Driver and Flytrap were waiting wearing bandanas over their faces and wearing rubber gloves. The bathtub was full of hot soapy water and both women were holding scrub brushes. Earwig abruptly stopped walking and stared at them with wide eyes, but Dokuso shoved her into the room and closed the door after them.
"Strip and get in the bath!" Dokuso ordered, "I am not living with an operative who smells like a dead thing."
Earwig stared at the foamy bath and didn't move a muscle.
Dokuso said something in Japanese that probably wasn't very polite, and then she reached out towards the other woman. She began ripping the rags off her none too gently, but Earwig didn't try to stop her. The clothes were old and dry-rotted and it didn't take much force to rip them. Dokuso tossed the disgusting clothes straight into the trashcan and then glanced at Earwig.
Earwig didn't seem to be the least bit embarrassed over being naked in front of the three women and was still staring at the bath in silence. Her entire body was covered in dark grime and Dokuso grimaced and then shoved her towards the tub. Earwig tried to back away but Dokuso wasn't having it and grabbed Earwig by the hair and forced her to step into the water.
"Sit," Dokuso ordered.
Earwig stood stiff as a board in the water and stared down, giving no indication she understood or heard the words.
"Oh, this is ridiculous," Dokuso snapped, "Force her down."
The other two women dutifully grabbed Earwig by the arms and yanked her down into the water and then held her there as she struggled. When Earwig finally stilled, they released her arms and began dumping liquid soap over her.
"Okay, let's get scrubbing!" Dokuso ordered, grabbing a scrub brush of her own.
Earwig didn't seem to be the least bit embarrassed and she didn't move a muscle as the three women got to work on her. The bathwater quickly turned black from the grime and they drained the water and began using the shower instead, the dirt seeming to be never-ending. Earwig's skin seemed to get paler and paler the more they scrubbed at her, and by the time they were done she was the pastiest looking person they'd ever seen.
"My god, when's the last time you saw the sun?" Driver commented, looking her up and down.
Earwig said nothing and simply sat there looking miserable. Now that the layers of grime were gone they could see that every inch of her body was covered in horrendous looking scars. She had so many scars that they looked like pale white stripes all across her body. Flytrap gently ran her fingers over the worst of the scars and she wondered what had happened to the other woman. The scars looked very deliberate and she really hoped V.I.L.E wasn't responsible for it. Driver frowned at the scars and then exchanged a look with Flytrap.
"How did these happen?" Driver asked, her tone gentle, "Who did this to you?"
Earwig glanced up at her but said nothing.
"Did V.I.L.E hurt you?" Flytrap demanded.
"No," Earwig replied quietly, this being the first thing she'd ever said to them.
"What happened?"
Earwig remained quiet.
"It doesn't matter," Dokuso stated, "The past is in the past and there's no point in bringing it up."
Lady Dokuso lowered the bandana from around her face and leaned in to give Earwig a sniff. She winced and pulled away.
"Ugh, you still smell like a sweaty foot," she commented angrily.
Dokuso then began running a new bath and added tons of liquid soap directly into the water.
"You stay in this bath and soak for a while," Dokuso ordered, "I'll be back to check on you in an hour. Don't you dare leave that bath or I swear I'll drown you!"
Earwig gave a violent flinch at that, Dokuso unknowingly touching a nerve.
The bathroom door then opened and Spinkick strolled in.
"Hey, Pet, did you pack our-"
"Out! Get out you perv!" Driver scolded, shoving him out the door.
"Ow, geez!" he complained from the hallway, "I wasn't being a perv! I just wanted to know where the-"
"I don't care what you were doing!" Dokuso snapped, blocking Earwig from view, "You don't walk into a bathroom without knocking!"
Flytrap slipped out of the room, disposing of her gloves and bandana as she did so. She took Spinkick by the hand and then pulled him away down the hall.
"What do you need, Kit?" she questioned.
Driver and Dokuso also threw away their gloves and bandanas and headed for the door. Dokuso turned to glare at Earwig.
"Stay in that bath!" she warned, "I'll be back soon."
Once everyone was gone from the bathroom, Earwig glanced down at her clean body and then down at the soapy water. With a sigh of resignation, she leaned back in the bathtub to get comfortable and then closed her eyes.
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Dash was standing outside the RV looking absolutely furious when Crackle and the others finally returned. The twins were each carrying enormous sacks, and Crackle was carrying an armload of things as well.
"Sven won't let me inside!" Dash yelled out angrily.
"You'll make the entire RV reek like skunk if you go inside," Crackle responded unapologetically.
"Then what am I supposed to do, bathe in the frozen lake?!" he yelled back.
"Calm down, Dash," Crackle ordered as he approached, "We're going to deal with it."
Neal was watching from the doorway of the RV and it was clear that he thought the entire thing was hilarious.
"Don't worry, stinky, we still love you."
"Don't you say a fucking word, Neal, or I'll slit your greasy throat!" Dash snarled, turning a glower in his direction, "It's not funny!"
"I don't know, I think it's pretty funny," Siren commented from the roof of the RV.
Everyone looked up at him in surprise.
"What are you doing way up there?!" Theodore asked in alarm, setting down the massive sack he was carrying.
Siren shrugged.
"Neal, you were supposed to watch him!" Roosevelt snapped.
"I did!" Neal defended, "I watched him climb up the side of the RV. He's fine, and I was here the whole time."
The twins didn't look happy and approached the RV.
"Del, you could fall and get hurt!" Theodore said worriedly.
"I'm only like 8 feet up," Siren pointed out, "I'm fine."
"Please come down!"
Siren glanced down at the lit cigarette in his hand. "I will in a bit, I'm just enjoying the fresh air."
The roof would never hold the weight of either of the twins and so they couldn't do anything about it.
"Well, just be careful," Theodore pleaded.
"Yeah," Siren replied, flopping over onto his back out of view so he could finish his smoke.
Crackle approached Dash and set down everything he was holding. Dash glanced down and saw it was a massive box of baking soda, a jug of hydrogen peroxide and a bottle of dish soap. Crackle turned to the twins who were setting the bags inside the RV for Otterman to deal with.
"Help me gather firewood," he ordered, "We're going to need a large campfire."
"Why?" Dash demanded suspiciously.
"It's to keep you warm while we de-skunk you," Crackle explained, "Stand here and don't move."
Crackle and the twins grabbed as much wood as they could find in the immediate area and then Crackle used his Crackle Rod to ignite it. Within minutes there was a roaring fire. Crackle poked at the fire a bit and then turned to Dash.
"Strip and toss those clothes into the fire."
Dash flushed in embarrassment. "You want me to strip naked outside?!"
"Your clothes are soaked in skunk spray and we don't have a choice," Crackle replied, "Now hurry up before that spray soaks in anymore."
"Everyone is staring at me!" Dash snapped.
Crackle glanced over and sure enough the entire team was watching everything.
"Alright, everyone inside and give Dash a bit of privacy!"
"Aw, Graham, but this is hilarious!" Neal whined.
"Fuck off, Neal!" Dash snarled.
Neal gave Dash a salute and then wheeled back into the RV out of view. The twins went inside as well, and Crackle was left alone with Dash. Once the RV door was closed, Crackle pointed towards the fire.
"I'm going to help cover you with the baking soda and peroxide so you can then enter the RV without spreading the smell."
Dash let out a humiliated groan and then began unbuttoning his coat. Grumbling something about name brands, he tossed the coat onto the fire, wincing at the smell of himself. Dash edged a bit closer to the fire as he stripped off layer after layer, and once all clothing had been thrown into the fire, Dash stood there shivering and hugging his arms to his chest. Crackle put on a pair of gloves and then picked up the peroxide. He added the entire bottle of dish soap to it and then opened the box of baking soda.
"Keep your eyes closed," he ordered, "You don't want this getting in your eyes."
Dash let out a miserable groan and obediently squeezed his eyes closed. Crackle poured some of the liquid directly over Dash's head who let out a curse at how cold it was. Crackle then shook the baking soda over him until his entire body was coated in a thick cream.
"Le Castor told us this is the best thing for getting rid of most of the smell," Crackle explained, pouring a bit more into Dash's hair.
Crackle kept pouring the mixture over Dash until it was all gone while Dash stood there shivering in the cold.
"Okay, now we just have to wait twenty minutes for that to rest and then you take a tomato bath," Crackle set, removing his gloves and tossing them into the fire, "I'm going to go grab you a towel, I'll be right back."
Crackle walked away from him and Dash let out a deep and miserable groan.
"Does this sort of shit happen a lot to you guys?"
Dash's eyes snapped open and he looked up at Siren who was still on top of the RV.
"You little pervert! You were watching me!" Dash snarled, reaching down to cover himself.
Siren rolled his eyes and tossed his cigarette butt aside. "A little full of yourself, aren't you?" he replied, "Believe me, I wasn't looking."
Dash's face was burning in humiliation and he gave Siren a furious look. "Well, you're looking right now!" he accused.
"Yeah, and there's not much to see," Siren replied, carefully climbing down the ladder.
"Ex-cuse me?!" Dash yelled.
Siren ignored him as he made it down to the ground, and Dash stamped a foot angrily.
"Go on, get out of here!" he yelled.
"I assume you're the team bitch then," Siren stated, opening the RV door.
"What did you just say?!" Dash bellowed.
Siren didn't bother answering and disappeared into the RV. Dash glared in his direction and then let out a curse. Crackle then came out and observed Dash's anger in confusion.
"What?" he demanded, "Did you burn your arse on the fire or something?"
"No!" Dash yelled, "Double Trouble's rude and perverted little brother was spying on me!"
Crackle glanced towards the roof of the RV, realizing he'd forgotten Siren was up there. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, he was staring straight at me and then called me a bitch and went inside!"
Crackle frowned. Siren had been nothing but rude and aggressive with everyone, but the twins had assured him their brother would quickly adjust.
"I'll speak with him," Crackle promised, holding out the towel.
Dash snatched the towel and wrapped it around himself without hesitation. Now that he was no longer standing there naked, he felt a little better, but he was still upset. Crackle kept him company as the cream had time to neutralize the smell and after twenty minutes, he was finally allowed back into the RV. Dash then had to do a walk of shame past everyone inside as he headed to the bathroom. The tub had been filled with tomato sauce and Dash groaned but stepped into the cold goop without a word. Sitting in cold tomato sauce was a disgusting sensation and Dash grimaced and then looked up at Crackle who stood in the doorway.
"Make sure every part of you soaks in the tomato sauce. Le Castor said three or four hours should completely remove the smell."
Dash stared up at him in complete horror and then simply let out another deep groan.
"Sorry, Dash, but there's no other way," Crackle said, disappearing out of sight.
Dash slid down in the awkwardly small tub and laid there wondering if he should just drown himself to avoid the humiliation. After a while he glanced up and saw Neal was peeking inside the bathroom.
"Hi, Dashie," he greeted.
"Hi," Dash replied, looking very pitiful.
Neal had come over to tease Dash but after seeing how miserable he was, he decided against it. "How you feeling, love?"
"...cold."
"Graham turned the heat up and managed to win the fight with Sven about it. We're going to get going in a few minutes and head for a petrol station."
Dash nodded sadly.
Neal wheeled into the tiny bathroom. "Want me to keep you company?"
Dash sunk lower into the tomato sauce in defeat. "...yes."
The RV started up and a few moments later they felt it move and bump along the dirt road leading out of the clearing. It was only seconds later that the RV sputtered and then came to a stop.
"What's happening, Roose?" Crackle called up front.
"Dunno," Roosevelt called back in confusion, "It's acting like we're out of gas, but we still have a quarter tank left!"
Crackle let out a curse. "Pop open the hood, Roose, I'm going to take a look!"
Neal craned his neck so he could look out the door and then he gave a shrug and turned back to Dash. "Graham will deal with it," he said confidently.
"I'm going to die in these woods," Dash moaned dramatically.
Neal shook his head in amusement. Dash poured a bit of the tomato juice over his hair and then glanced over at Neal. His eyes were looking suspiciously bright, and Neal could tell he was seconds from tears.
"Neal?" Dash asked pathetically.
Neal decided to try a bit of humour in the hopes it would cheer him up. "Yes, Pepe Le Pew?"
To Neal's horror, Dash burst into tears and clapped his hands to his face. As he heaved with silent sobs, Neal instantly shifted out of the wheelchair to sit on the edge of the tub instead.
"Oh, geez, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Neal apologized, "I was only joking! Please don't cry, Dashie!"
"It's not you," Dash assured him, sniffing loudly, "I'm just really embarrassed about this whole thing."
"Naw, you have nothing to be embarrassed about," Neal responded, "You didn't do anything wrong and it could have happened to anyone."
Dash curled his knees up to his chest and hid his face.
"Some crazy mountain man tried to murder me with a rifle," Dash told him, "He chased me through the woods and he almost got me several times. I thought for sure I was going to die."
"Oh, Fancy," Neal said gently, "Why didn't you tell me? Did he hurt you?"
Dash shook his head. "He was stopped before he could kill me but if Double Trouble were even ten seconds later, I would have been dead."
Neal reached out and using two fingers, he tipped Dash's chin up so they were making eye contact. Dash's eyes were full with tears and Neal leaned in and gave him a gentle kiss on the lips.
"It's okay, Dash, you're going to be okay," Neal assured him, "I'm here for you, and it's okay to be upset. I'm sorry I teased you without finding out what happened."
Dash gave him a halfhearted smile.
"See? There you go, you're feeling a little better already!"
"Yeah, thank you, greaseball," Dash responded.
Neal grinned widely at him. "Now what were you going to ask me?"
"Do I at least smell any better?" Dash asked plaintively.
Neal leaned in and gave him an overexaggerated sniff. "You smell like spaghetti," he informed him.
Dash's expression looked absolutely crushed, and Neal quickly realized his mistake.
"It's okay!" he quickly assured him, "I love spaghetti!"
This didn't seem to have the effect he hoped, and Dash gave another loud sniff.
"Neal?"
"Yes, Dashie?"
"Will you do me an enormous favour?"
Neal nodded. "Sure, just name it!"
"Please burn down Canada for me," Dash begged, "Torch the entire fucking thing!"
Neal raised an eyebrow in amusement. "You want me to light the entire country on fire?"
Dash nodded. "Alaska too."
"Maybe we'd better take out some of the Northern states too just in case," Neal teased.
"SVEN!" came Crackle's furious yell, "Sven, get your arse out here now !"
Otterman looked up from his book and glanced towards the door. Setting his book aside, he made his way outside and found Crackle standing in front of the RV with the hood up.
"The RV is out of petrol," Crackle stated, narrowing his eyes.
"Why are you yelling at me over this?" Otterman demanded, "Roose was the one driving!"
"The tank is completely empty but the bloody RV says there's still a quarter tank left! You bought a vehicle with a broken gauge!"
Otterman grimaced. "Well, how would I know that!" he protested.
"Did this vehicle even pass inspection?"
Otterman averted his gaze and Crackle instantly lost his temper.
"You bought an uninspected RV?!" he yelled, "This shitty thing probably isn't even safe for the road!"
"It was cheap!" Otterman muttered, looking suitably ashamed.
"I don't care how cheap it was!" Crackle yelled, "You should have found an inspected vehicle! I can't believe you, Sven! We're taking this thing to a garage to be looked at and for your sake there better not be too much wrong with it!"
"I found what I could, but we have barely any money!" Otterman defended, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to manage funds for this team? We bleed money and sometimes it's impossible to keep up!"
"Well, guess what, Sven?" Crackle snapped, "We're out of petrol and the nearest station is over 25 kilometers away. Guess who I'm sending to go get us that petrol?"
Otterman hunched his shoulders and didn't make eye contact with him.
"You okay, Sven?" Moose Boy demanded from the door.
They glanced over at him and Moose Boy approached, not liking all the yelling that had been going on.
"We're out of gas and I'm going to walk to the nearest station," Otterman informed him.
"Oh!" Moose Boy exclaimed, "Sounds fun, can I come?"
"It will take us like 6 hours to walk there and then another 6 hours back," Otterman pointed out.
Moose Boy shrugged. "I love walking with you," he responded.
Otterman gave him a slight smile, knowing Moose Boy was still trying to butter him up after their fight that morning.
"Dress warmly, bring plenty of water, and make sure to wear reflectors for the traffic," Crackle instructed, "Give me updates every half hour so I know you two are safe."
Otterman nodded, knowing there was no talking his way out of this. Heading inside to get a bit of gear together, Otterman hugged Findus for a few minutes and then set her down, knowing he couldn't bring her with him.
"What happened?" Neal yelled from the bathroom.
"We're out of gas and so Henrik and I are going to walk to town to get some," Otterman responded, "We should be back by morning."
"Sucks to be you!" Neal called back to him.
"Oh, shut up, Neal!" Otterman snapped as he grabbed a warm hat and gloves.
"Bring me back a bag of Cheetos!" Neal responded.
Otterman rolled his eyes and had zero intention of doing that. Packing a backpack with everything he could possibly need, Otterman handed Moose Boy the empty Jerrycan and they left after bidding everyone farewell.
"Does that mean we're camping tonight?" Theodore wondered out loud.
Dash groaned loudly from the bathroom.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Dash stood clean and wearing a towel as Neal sniffed him over thoughtfully.
"Well?" Dash demanded.
Neal gave him a thumb's up and Dash let out a deep breath of relief.
"Thank god," he muttered, leaving the bathroom to get dressed.
The others glanced up as Dash walked by and Crackle gave a questioning look to Neal.
"We now have a stink-free Dash!" Neal announced.
"Shut up, Neal!" Dash snapped from inside his bedroom.
"Good," Crackle said, "I was thinking that we could start a new campfire and cook our supper that way. We can't turn on the RV and I don't really want to eat cold food right now."
The RV was freezing cold without power, and as the sun began going down it got colder and colder.
"Sven's not here and so let's pig out!" Neal suggested, "When will we ever get an opportunity like this again?"
Crackle sighed and knew it wasn't smart to eat all the groceries in the RV in one night, but he was annoyed at Otterman and also incredibly hungry.
"Alright, let's do it!"
Neal seemed shocked that Crackle agreed but he certainly wasn't going to question it. "Awesome! Someone get the campfire going, and I'll grab the food."
"We should cook some of that deer," Roosevelt suggested.
Neal clapped his hands. "Oooo, Good idea!"
Dash came out wearing a new outfit and he looked incredibly upset over something.
"What's wrong?" Neal asked.
Dash crossed his arms and let out a long and dramatic sigh.
"Steve didn't recognize me! I must smell a bit different because she hissed at me when I tried to pat her!"
Neal rolled his eyes. "You'll get your own unique Dash-stink back, don't worry. Cats are just dumb."
"My what ?" Dash hissed, "I do not stink!"
Crackle rolled his eyes as Neal and Dash bickered and turned his gaze to the twins. "It will be warm next to the fire and so we should all come outside. We're going to need a lot of firewood."
"Roose and I can get lots of wood!" Theodore bragged, "It will be a good workout! I'll go get Del and grab blankets and stuff."
Theodore squeezed his way to the very back of the RV and slid open the bedroom door. Siren was thumbing through a magazine on the bed and he glanced up with a glare which softened when he saw it was his brother.
"Come on, Del, we're all going outside to have a bonfire!"
Siren flipped a page in the magazine. "No, thanks, I'm good."
Theodore frowned, knowing very well Siren had been avoiding all interaction with the rest of the team. "We're going to be cooking supper over the fire and it will be a lot of fun!"
"Not hungry."
"You haven't eaten at all today," Theodore pointed out, "You keep saying you're not hungry."
"And I'm not," Siren insisted.
Theodore hesitated, not really sure how to deal with this situation. They'd only just gotten Siren back, but Theodore had a lot of concerns about him. He didn't want to seem like he was immediately picking on him, but the lack of eating and socializing was concerning.
"There's no heat in here," Theodore stated, "It's going to be way too cold to stay in here by yourself."
"I'm fine," Siren said without interest.
Theodore let out a huff, having a feeling Siren was being difficult on purpose. "Come on, Del, you need to come get warm and eat something. You've spent long enough in here!"
"I'm tired and I don't really feel like mingling with the rest of Team Failure."
Theodore narrowed his eyes and then snatched the magazine out of Siren's hands. "If you're tired then you can sleep next to the campfire!"
Siren could not express just how much he did not want to camp outside. "Ted, no," he said firmly, "I just want to be alone for a while."
Theodore shook his head. "No, it's not good for you! You need to spend time with other people!"
Siren pulled a face. "When have I ever willingly spent time with other people?"
Theodore paused and knew this was true. Siren didn't like other people, and it had always been a huge fight to get him to do anything social.
"Well, you're not a kid anymore and sometimes you have to do things you don't like," Theodore responded.
Siren glared at him. "Says who?"
Theodore sighed. "Please, Del? Roose and I just want to spend some time with you. We only just got you back but you keep hiding away from us! Please come sit with us for a while."
Siren felt a twinge of guilt, knowing that by avoiding the rest of Team Crackle he was also avoiding his brothers. Letting out a sigh of resignation, he slowly sat up.
"Fine," he agreed, "but just for a while."
Theodore grinned at him, and Siren felt nothing but dread. Team Crackle were too loud and weird for his liking, and they kept trying to talk to him. Theodore grabbed a huge pile of blankets and then carried them out with Siren trailing reluctantly. Crackle had started a new campfire and Roose could be seen taking an ax to a nearby tree.
"Where did Roose get an ax?" Siren demanded.
"We had one on the RV in our weapon stash, and we found the other one at the hermits house."
Siren cocked his head. A weapon stash? What kind of weapons did this team carry around with them?
Someone had rolled logs over to sit on and Theodore wrapped a thick blanket around Siren's shoulders and then encouraged him to take a seat. Siren sat as far away from everyone else as he could and had to admit the heat from the fire was nice.
"Okay, I'll be back in a bit!" Theodore announced, turning to walk away.
Siren was scandalized. "Wait, where are you going?!"
"To help Roose with the firewood!"
Siren scowled up at him. "You said you were going to be here!"
Theodore didn't see what the issue was and waved him off dismissively. "I won't be long. You can always help us with the firewood if you want?"
Siren glanced over where Roose was swinging the heavy ax and it looked like really hard work. He then glanced at the nice warm fire, and the soft blanket he was wrapped in, but knew if he stayed he'd have to stay with strangers. On one hand he was lazy, but on the other he was also extremely anti-social. There was no winning in this situation.
Theodore didn't notice the look Siren was shooting him and turned away to pick up his ax. "Be back in a few minutes!"
Siren watched him join Roosevelt, and then hesitantly turned his gaze to the rest of the team.
"Hiya, Del," Neal greeted him with a wave.
Siren said nothing and looked away. Dash was glaring at him, and was clearly still angry over what happened earlier.
"I bet this has been a huge change from the lab, eh?" Neal prompted.
Siren gave a non-commital shrug, but Neal was used to dealing with rude and cranky people and wasn't deterred.
"What did V.I.L.E have you doing for them?" he asked, "Are you a doctor or something?"
Siren shrugged and began picking at a seam in the blanket.
"Come on, love, you don't have to be scared of us. We're not going to hurt you."
Siren instantly bristled. "I'm not scared of you!" he snapped.
"You look like a terrified little mouse, love," Neal pointed out, "It's okay and I promise there's no judgement. We don't know what you had to go through, and it's okay to be a little wary at first. We'll be friends soon enough!"
"Don't count on it," Siren muttered, pulling the blanket more tightly around his shoulders.
"Neal's right," Crackle stated, "You're part of our little family and you'll get used to us."
Siren looked up and his gaze was furious. "I am not part of your shitty little team!" he snapped, "I'm through with V.I.L.E, through with Volkov and I'm through with everything ! I no longer want to be part of any of it!"
Crackle gave him a considering look and then he glanced over at the twins. Siren followed his gaze and he frowned.
"Well, you're stuck with us for now, and so how about we try to get along?" Crackle suggested, "I think that would make life much easier for everyone."
Siren knew Crackle had a point and despite wanting to be stubborn about it, he decided not to start any problems.
"I was a translator," Siren said, still not looking at anyone.
"Oh, that's cool," Neal commented, "What languages do you know?"
Siren shrugged.
"Come on, how many? Two? Three? Six? Twelve? A hundred?"
Neal said the last one in a joking tone of voice and it made Siren not want to say anything more. Neal however wasn't willing to let it go.
"I speak English, Moari and American."
"American isn't a language," Siren pointed out.
"Well, bless your heart, sugar," Neal said in a perfect Louisiana drawl, "I reckon you just never heard about how the good 'ol South speaks."
"Neal, you're an idiot," Dash commented.
"Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit!" Neal exclaimed, still using the over-exaggerated accent, "I reckon yer just sore about the whole critter incident earlier! In my opinion you was getting a might too big fer yer britches anyhow!"
Dash facepalmed and simply shook his head. Neal grinned and then glanced back at Siren who was staring at him like he wasn't quite sure how to react to that.
"So, Delano, how many do you speak?"
Siren paused and looked away. "All of them."
Neal simply stared at him in immediate disbelief. "...uh...what?"
"Yeah right," Dash commented, "There's like 200 languages!"
"Do you speak languages like Elven and Klingon too?" Neal asked with a laugh.
"Oh, nevermind," Siren snapped, "Fuck you."
"No, no, sorry, love, you just caught me by surprise. I've never heard of anyone speaking every single language before. I didn't even know that was possible."
Siren could tell Neal was just saying that to appease him and he found it infuriating.
"I shouldn't have said anything," Siren snapped, glaring in the direction of his brothers.
"Kia Ora!" Neal suddenly said loudly, causing Siren to glance back at him. "He reo Māori tōu?"
Siren frowned at him. "Āe," he responded.
"Ko Neal ahau! Nō Auckland ahau! Nō hea koe?" Neal asked.
"New Jersey," Siren responded.
"He reo Māori tōu?" Neal asked.
Siren heaved a sigh. "Kore rawa e rawaka te reo kotahi," he answered condescendingly.
It was clear Siren had no interest in chatting with him in Maori and so Neal decided to test whether Siren truly was fluent.
"Kī tōnu taku waka topaki i te tuna!" Neal exclaimed, grinning like a loon.
Siren's expression was completely bewildered and he stared at Neal like he'd grown a second head. Neal burst into laughter and Siren scowled at him.
"Haere atu!" Siren snapped.
"Okay, okay, sorry!" Neal said, still snickering.
"He actually speaks Maori?" Dash demanded in disbelief.
"Sounds like a native," Neal confirmed.
Dash narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "السلام عليكم كيف حالك؟" he asked in Arabic.
Siren narrowed his eyes in return, and then let loose the most colourful phrases he'd learned from Vess over the years. If there was one thing Vess taught Siren, it was how to creatively swear. Dash's face turned scarlet and he stared at Siren in horror.
Neal glanced between them and then snickered. "Wow, you made Dashie speechless! I dunno what you said but good work!"
The twins returned, both carrying massive armloads of lumber. Roosevelt ruffled Siren's hair in greeting, and then they made four more trips carrying firewood over to the campsite. When the twins finally took a seat next to Siren, he was relieved and hoped he no longer had to speak with anyone.
"Okay, what're we cooking?" Roosevelt demanded, "I'm starving!"
"We have venison, hotdogs, cheese, and all the toppings," Crackle responded, "I also brought out all the cold drinks we had."
"I brought out chocolate chip cookies, marshmallows and a few bars of Sven's chocolate," Neal announced.
"Sven is going to lose his shit when he finds out you took his food," Dash pointed out.
"That is a problem for future Neal."
Dash rolled his eyes. "How did you manage to steal his candy while in a wheelchair?"
Neal waved his fingers. "Magic!"
Paper Star moved so she could sit next to Roosevelt, and Siren glared at her, but he didn't comment on it. If she noticed, she chose not to say anything and instead simply sat there holding Roosevelt's hand.
The food was passed around and nearly everyone speared a bit of meat onto sticks and then stuck it over the fire to cook. Siren stared at the raw slabs of meat in disgust and simply watched everyone else chat and laugh with each other as they cooked.
"You're burning yours, Roose," Siren pointed out.
"Ah, shit!" Roose said, yanking his food out of the flames to look at it. It was a bit black, but still edible and he took a hesitant bite."
"Oh, it's really good, try a bite Del!" Roose said, holding the chunk of meat down towards him.
Siren leaned away from it. "No, thanks."
"Del, you gotta eat something !" Theodore scolded, "You haven't eaten since yesterday! Try a little meat!"
Siren wrinkled his nose as he stared at the greasy chunk of meat directly in front of his face. "No."
"Do you want a hotdog instead?" Theodore asked.
"I don't like hotdogs."
"We could toss a potato in the cinders to make a baked potato?" Crackle suggested.
Siren shook his head again, not liking the starchiness of potatoes.
"Tell us what you do want and we'll see if we have it in the RV," Roosevelt said.
"I don't want anything," Siren replied, "I'm not hungry."
Theodore frowned down at him. "Are you able to eat?"
Siren squinted up at him, not quite sure what Theodore meant by that.
"I mean, we know about the feeding tube and I just wanted to know if you're still able to eat the old fashioned way!"
Siren's hand reflexively went to his stomach self-consciously. "Yes, I can still eat fine," he replied, feeling a bit embarrassed.
"Then you have no excuse to be skipping meals!" Theodore scolded him, "Now what do you want to eat?"
"Nothing," Siren said firmly, "I'm not hungry right now."
Theodore wasn't going to let his brother starve himself and he remembered how the doctors had told them Siren was extremely underweight.
"No skipping meals," Theodore responded, "If you won't eat normally then I'll use your feeding tube."
Siren stared at him in surprise. He opened his mouth to argue but then thought better of it and instead let out an aggravated sigh.
"Fine," he agreed sullenly.
"What do you want?" Theodore urged.
Siren's gaze raked across the food nearby, none of it looking particularly appetizing to him. His gaze settled on the bag of hotdog buns and Theodore immediately reached for them.
"You want a hotdog?" he questioned, opening the bag to pull out a bun.
"No, just the bun," Siren answered, watching as Theodore pulled one out.
Theodore frowned. "You can't just eat plain bread!" he exclaimed, "You need something in it!"
Siren shrugged and Theodore picked up the package of cheese. "You like cheese, how about having at least some cheese in it for calories?"
Siren was tired of talking about this and so he nodded. "Fine."
Theodore stuffed the hotdog bun with as much cheese as he could fit in it and then handed it to Siren. Siren tuned out the loud conversations and laughter around him and took a bite of his odd supper. As soon as he began eating his body realized how hungry he was and he finished every bite without protest.
"You want another one?" Roosevelt asked him.
Siren shook his head and watched as Neal ate his third smore. Debating for a few moments, Siren reached out and took two of the chocolate chip cookies, a piece of chocolate, and a few marshmallows. Crackle passed him a stick and Siren stuck a marshmallow on the end and immediately lit it on fire.
"Fuck."
Passing the burnt marshmallow to Roosevelt, he tried again with a second one and was more cautious with it. When it lit on fire, he cursed again and passed it off to his brothers to be eaten.
"They taste fine a little burnt," Neal pointed out.
Siren shook his head. "I like it evenly browned but not burnt."
Dash rolled his eyes at Siren's antics almost certain he was doing all of this for the attention. By the time everyone had finished their supper, Siren had burnt around a dozen marshmallows and passed them all off to his brothers who ate them quite happily. Finally Siren had a perfectly toasted marshmallow and then put together his smore.
It was incredibly dark out now and the stars above were bright and clear and Siren found himself staring upwards as he ate his smore. It had been ten years since he'd last seen the stars and he couldn't seem to look away. He missed the sight of the sky, and in this moment he hated Vess all the more. Vess had taken everything from him, and Siren hated the fact he couldn't remember anything from their final encounter.
Siren longed to just sit in the sun for as long as he wanted, and he wished they were somewhere warmer. The winter sun was nice, but it just wasn't the same. Siren used to spend his summers lounging on the beach when he was younger, and he longed for that again. Siren's mind then tuned in to what was being said around him.
"And they had to remove the beer bottle from his rectum surgically!" Neal exclaimed, "I saw the pictures and it was so messed up!"
Siren choked on a bite of his smore and he began coughing. Roosevelt slapped him hard on the back and Siren kept coughing, unable to complain that Roosevelt had hit him too hard.
"Here!" Crackle said, tossing a bottle of water over.
Theodore caught it and removed the cap as Siren reached for it. He chugged the water fast and there was an immediate burning sensation in his mouth and throat and he sputtered and reflexively swallowed what was in his mouth. He let out a cry of surprise and clapped his hands to his mouth as he gagged and choked at the absolutely horrible taste in his mouth.
"Del?!" Theodore yelled out in a panic, "What's wrong? What happened?!"
"P-poison!" Siren cried out, gagging again, "I've been poisoned! Not water!"
Theodore picked up the dropped bottle of water and gave a sniff to it. His brow then furrowed and he took a tiny sip.
"Teddy, don't drink that!" Crackle bellowed out, "We don't know what it is!"
Theodore just seemed confused and he stared at the bottle with a frown. "It's vodka," he commented, "Someone filled this bottle with vodka."
Crackle frowned. "What?"
Theodore passed him the bottle and Crackle gave it a sniff and realized Theodore was right. Someone on their team had hidden vodka in a water bottle. He turned his gaze to Neal as he frowned in suspicion.
"Which one of you did this?" he demanded.
No one spoke up and Crackle looked from person to person, but he couldn't see any guilt. Siren was still gagging at the horrendous taste and he was mad . To everyone's surprise he had an absolute fit where he threw things, screamed and swore at absolutely everyone in a complete rage. The twins were trying to calm him down, but Siren saw the vodka incident as a direct attack on his person. After throwing a stick at Crackle's face, Roosevelt sat Siren in his lap and pinned his arms to his sides so he couldn't throw anything or lash out. Siren struggled and screamed for a few minutes but then to everyone's surprise he broke down into tears. Roosevelt then released him and Siren sat there sobbing, all fight having left him.
"I'm sorry," Crackle told him, "I swear I didn't know."
Theodore wrapped an arm around his little brother and gave Crackle a reassuring look. "Don't worry, he's okay, he was just surprised. Del just gets a little upset now and then."
Neal and Dash exchanged a look.
"A little ?!" Dash mouthed to Neal who shrugged.
Siren wiped at his eyes and felt a little embarrassed over his reaction. He was now starting to feel really calm, unusually calm, and he wondered if it was the massive amount of vodka he'd accidentally choked down.
"You okay, Del?" Roosevelt questioned.
Siren nodded and looked away.
"Can I have that vodka?" Neal asked.
Crackle was still certain Neal was responsible for this and he narrowed his eyes. "Not a chance," he snapped, "We need to stay alert tonight in case of bears."
Dash sat straight up. "Bears?! There are bears in these woods?!"
Neal shot him a smirk. "Don't worry, I'm a famous bear hunter. You're safe with me, Dashie."
Dash rolled his eyes.
Neal picked up the bag of marshmallows and then got a thoughtful look on his face. "I bet I could fit twelve of these in my mouth at once."
"You could fit them in your tooth gap alone," Dash commented in his snottiest tone of voice.
"You wanna kiss me so bad," Neal teased, leaning in towards Dash. The moment however was interrupted.
"Fags."
Instantly all eyes were on Siren in shock. Siren was still angry over the vodka incident and he was feeling petty and mean. Siren stared back at them unapologetically and Dash was instantly murderous. He jumped to his feet and took two steps towards Siren before Neal caught him by the arm and pulled him back.
"What was that, you little asshole?!" Dash snarled, "You care to repeat that?"
Siren shrugged. "Yeah, I called you a fag."
"Stop it!" Neal snapped, his expression deadly serious. "Don't you dare talk to Dash like that!"
Everyone was glaring at Siren in disgust and anger, and suddenly Theodore reached down and pinged Siren's ear incredibly hard.
"Ow!" Siren yelped out in surprise, clapping a hand to his ear. "What was that for?!"
"That was for using a slur," Theodore responded.
Roosevelt seemed incredibly bewildered and he was staring at Siren like he wasn't quite sure what to say.
"But, Del, you're gay!" Roosevelt said in confusion.
"So?" Siren responded.
"Delano!" Theodore scolded, pinging his other ear, "Stop teasing Dash, and stop using slurs!"
"Ow, stop that!" Siren snapped, "Okay fine, I'm just joking! I don't give a shit if you two are together."
The tension disappeared out of the rest of the team as they realized Siren wasn't being serious. Dash let out a huff, rolled his eyes and sat down a little too hard beside Neal.
"Idiot," he muttered under his breath.
Crackle frowned at Siren and knew this had to be addressed. "Teasing is one thing, Delano, but there's a line and you crossed it. Many people have been severely bullied and have been traumatized due to their sexuality and it's not something to joke about. You owe Neal and Dash an apology."
Siren let out a huff, but when he saw Theodore was about to ping him again, he nodded. "Fine, I'm sorry!" he snapped petulantly.
Neal didn't like the mood that had settled over the team and so he decided to lighten the mood.
"We're camping so let's sing some campfire songs!" Neal announced, instantly all anger gone from him, "We're in Canada camping and so let's play the part!"
"No one wants to hear you sing, Neal," Paper Star commented.
"It's fine to be a bad singer when you're camping!" Neal informed her, "It makes it more fun!"
Neal started singing a loud and off-key version of American Pie and Dash let out a groan of complaint. After a verse, Theodore joined in and his deep voice helped fix Neal's tuneless singing. Siren was feeling incredibly odd and he was leaning heavily against Roosevelt as he listened. He'd never tasted alcohol before and wasn't quite sure how much it took to get drunk. He was definitely feeling it and it made him feel relaxed and warm.
After three or four songs by Neal and Theodore, Siren had lost his wariness and started a song of his own. Everyone turned to stare at him in surprise as his soft and gentle voice filled the air. He sang Land of the Silver Birch and no one was expecting him to be such a talented singer. His voice was an easy tenor and he hit each note effortlessly, and everyone listened in awe. The twins looked incredibly proud, and when Siren began a new song, Theodore and Neal both joined in with him. Siren was getting drowsier by the minute however, and after three or four songs he fell asleep using Roosevelt's knee as a pillow.
"I think that vodka finally hit him," Neal teased.
Theodore covered Siren with a blanket and Neal started making another smore, humming contentedly to himself.
"Who wants to tell scary stories now?" he demanded as he shoved a marshmallow into the fire.
"I have one," Dash said unexpectedly.
Everyone turned to look at him.
"This morning I woke up to see Neal in my bed. The end."
Neal laughed loudly and wrapped an arm around Dash's shoulders. "Oh, Dashie, please never change!"
"I saw a ghost once," Roosevelt suddenly stated.
"Ooooo, first person tale!" Neal exclaimed excitedly, "Let's hear it!"
Roosevelt nodded and then began his tale.
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Otterman limped his way into the camp just as the sun was rising and he looked exhausted and incredibly disheveled. Moose Boy was carrying a full Jerrycan, but he seemed no worse for wear.
"Morning, Svenny!" Neal called over, "How was your stroll?"
Otterman glowered at him. "I fell like forty-two times, I got pecked by a crow, I got splashed by a car, and at one point lost my glasses in a snowbank."
"Sounds like fun," Neal responded, glancing at the rest of the team who were still sleeping, "You want some breakfast?"
"I'm going to bed," Otterman snapped, heading for the RV.
"What should I do with the gas?" Moose Boy asked.
"Wake up Graham and give it to him," Otterman responded, irritably, "I just want to sleep and so no one bother me."
Neal gave him a salute and Moose Boy approached Crackle who was curled up next to the fire. When he shook his shoulder, Crackle jerked awake and looked up at Moose Boy sleepily.
"We got the gas," Moose Boy informed him, "Sven went to bed and I think I'll join him if that's okay."
"Great!" Crackle said, shoving aside his blankets so he could get up, "Let's get out of here!"
Crackle went around waking the others but Siren could not be woken. They left him as they cleaned up the campsite, and then Theodore scooped him up and carried him into the RV.
"He's a very deep sleeper," Paper Star observed, "That's dangerous."
"He's always been this way," Theodore responded, "Although this time I think the vodka is to blame."
Once everything had been gathered, Crackle poured the gas in the RV and Roosevelt was finally able to get the engine started.
"I'm surprised Sven chose to walk to the gas station and didn't just use the extra gas on the roof," Roosevelt commented.
Crackle stared at him. "...what?"
"There's like six full Jerrycans of gas strapped to the roof of the RV, but it must be there for emergencies only."
Crackle stared at him with wide eyes and then left the RV without a word. Once outside, he glanced up and sure enough there was emergency gas strapped to the roof. Rubbing the bridge of his nose as he felt a migraine starting, Crackle let out a groan of frustration.
"...shit."
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TBC
I do not speak Maori or Arabic, so please excuse the mistakes that are bound to be there.
I will aim to have the next chapter out within 2 weeks.