Chapter Four
Evelyn was beginning to wonder what was taking her husband and son so long at the pet shop. Their food had long since been there; both Evelyn and her brother had already eaten their meals. Evelyn looked over at her brother, Jonathan; he was ten years older then she was and taller and homely, though she would never say it to his face. His hair was brown and unkempt; his eyes matched his hair color.
"What do you think is taking them so long?" Evelyn asked her brother.
"Evy, they're just at the pet shop. Time must have gotten away from them, they're alright." Jonathan said, looking at his baby sister.
Evelyn nodded, sure her brother was right but couldn't shake the worry from her head.
Across the street, Rick had no idea he was worrying his wife so much. He had sent Alex into the pet shop to look with Jennifer, his aunt, while he discussed in his head what to tell Evelyn. To him, there seemed to be no other way then just to say "here's your long lost sister, ran into her by the pet shop." but he didn't think that that was the "right way" to go about the whole thing.
Inside the pet shop Alex was asking Jennifer all sorts of questions. "Where did you get Horus?" "How come you lived in America instead of with my mum?" that sort of thing and at the same time asking her if he could hold Horus and the kittens in the pet shop cages. Jennifer was overwhelmed by the small boy's questions; she was used to younger children, her adopted parents had two younger and one older, but Alex seemed to have so much more energy then any other child she had met. Jennifer had deemed it best not to let him hold Horus in the pet shop but didn't have a problem with him picking up the kittens and wriggling puppies.
Once Alex had run out of questions to ask his aunt he began to tell her about himself. He told her how old her was, about his slingshot -his pride and joy-, the things he liked to do and about the kittens that he wanted for his pets. Jennifer nodded every time the boy said something and looked up at her; she was really paying attention but kept getting distracted by Anubis.
"Capture the O'Connells, take me to Amh-Shre!" He cried over and over inside her head.
Jennifer did her best to ignore the angry Gods outbursts but it was no easy task.
Evelyn had finally gotten tried of worrying and waiting so she and Jonathan left the restaurant -Jonathan paying the check- and headed over to the pet shop. She saw Rick standing outside, debating with himself but Alex was nowhere insight; probably inside.
Jennifer and Alex had gotten bored inside the pet store so they headed back outside; the sight of a very angry Evelyn greeted them. She was yelling at Rick for leaving her and Jonathan at the restaurant for, what she was sure, over an hour. Alex guessed his mother was not just mad about the missing vase; Jennifer raised an eyebrow.
Horus screeched, Evelyn became silent and looked over to where her son and his "guardian" -of the moment- stood; Horus flapped his wings and began to preen his feathers, he didn't like an audience.
Evelyn and Jennifer locked eyes, which were the same color; without saying a word Evelyn knew that this was her "long lost baby sister". Jennifer felt a wave of happiness and content wash over her; she had never really had a family but now she was standing face to face with her sister. Jennifer and Evelyn embraced; the kind of embrace only sisters can give. Rick, Jonathan and Alex stood behind them.
Later, everyone -including Jennifer and Horus- were back at the O'Connell manor. Jennifer had never seen any place so big; she stood in awe in the threshold of the manor. The sitting room was the first room that one would enter from the door, there was a plush couch pushed against one wall, a table was placed directly in front of it and a bookshelf was placed against another wall, in between two large windows. The entrance to the very large kitchen could partly be seen from where she stood. To her right Jennifer could see a large oak staircase that led to the second story; also to her right was a large room that Alex explained was the parlor and the study.
Alex took Jennifer's hand and led her up the stairs to his room. Alex's room was large, Jennifer's own room back in America was nothing compared to her nephew's room.
"This is my room." Alex said proudly and began pulling his toys out to show her. He pulled his slingshot out of his rucksack. "This is my slingshot. I got it on my sixth birthday from my Uncle John." Alex told her. He handed her the slingshot.
Jennifer took it and looked at it closely; it was worn and well cared for. She handed it back to him.
Alex took it and tossed it on his bed. He turned back to Jennifer, who he now understood was his aunt, his Mum and Uncle John's sister. He pointed to the bracelet around her wrist. "Where did you get that? It's pretty." He said.
Jennifer took the bracelet off and handed it to the boy, who took it very carefully. The charms dangled and caught the light. "I've had it for a long time, I found it in America." Jennifer answered.
Alex handed the bracelet back to her. "Why were you in America?" He asked.
"It's a long story." Jennifer answered.
Alex sat on the corner of his bed and patted a space beside him. "Tell me please." He pleaded, giving her his innocent smile.
Jennifer sat on the bed beside her nephew and began to tell him the story.
By the time Jennifer had told Alex about all her adventures in America and her life leading up to meeting them in the city today -leaving out meeting Anubis- the sun was setting. Alex was in-traced with her story, through the whole thing he had listened wide-eyed.
After finishing her story, Alex began to show Jennifer his trucks and toys. They sat on the floor together and played with his trucks; with Alex's large pick-up truck they pulled Horus around. Horus flapped his wings and climbed on top of the truck; Alex laughed.
There was a knock on the door and Rick came in. He smiled seeing that his son and Jennifer were getting a long so well so fast. "Dinner time, you guys." Rick said.
"I didn't know it was that late." Jennifer muttered. Rick closed the door and left.
Jennifer helped Alex pick up his trucks and together -along with Horus- they went down stairs. In the kitchen there was another room beside it, which was the dinning room. There was large polished oak table in the middle of the room; it was already set with white china plates. Evelyn and Rick were already seated, as was Jonathan. Alex ran to an empty seat.
"Sit by me Jennifer." He said and pointed to another chair. Jennifer sat down beside Alex; she placed Horus on her shoulder, hoping it was okay for him to be at the table.
The O'Connells cook served their food; Jennifer didn't realize how hungry she was until the plate was put in front of her. Steaming roast and vegetables were what was for dinner; everyone ate without much of a word.
When dinner was over, Alex led Jennifer outside into the large garden that dominated the backyard. "Jennifer, we can play kick ball." He said and showed her a soccer ball; it was no longer white but green with grass stains. Jennifer agreed, still looked at the beautiful garden; Alex saw her fascination with the flowers. He explained to her what all the flowers were.
"Jennifer, this is my favorite flower the poinsettia." He showed her a four-pelted red flower. He picked one of the blossoms and handed it to her. "Here, for you." He said and smiled.
"Thanks, I'll put it in water later." She said and rested the floor carefully on a bench.
Jennifer and Alex began to play kickball; it turned more into a game of catch because they didn't really have enough people to play a real game of kickball. Their game of catch ended when Horus flew onto the ball and began to roll it into the woods. Alex had a fit of laughter while Jennifer retrieved the ball and the bird.
When Jennifer returned from the woods, she noticed how dark it had gotten. "Come on Alex, we'd better go inside before it gets too much darker." She said.
Jennifer and Alex entered the house; Jennifer holding Horus on one fist and carefully in the other was her poinsettia blossom in the other. Jennifer and Alex were tried and sweaty and had dirt and grass all over them when they entered the house; Rick and Evelyn were playing chess in the sitting room. Evelyn took one look at Alex and Jennifer and told them to bathe immediately and get ready for bed.
Jennifer went upstairs with Alex and helped him draw his bath; after he was in the bath Jennifer went downstairs.
"Your garden outside is beautiful. Alex picked this for me." Jennifer said to Evelyn and showed her the blossom. "If that okay I'd like to put it in water."
"Sure. I guess Alex showed you around." Evelyn said and led Jennifer into the kitchen.
"Yeah, he showed me his trucks and his slingshot. After dinner we went out and played catch with his soccer ball. I didn't know it was so late already." Jennifer answered.
Evelyn took a vase from one of the cabinets and filled it with water; Jennifer placed the poinsettia in the vase.
"So you came from Egypt; I haven't been there in a while." Evelyn said.
Jennifer set the vase on the dinning room table. "Well not much has changed. Lots of sand and still really hot." She said.
Evelyn chuckled, so did Jennifer. Alex, dressed in his bedclothes, ran down the stairs and joined his mother and aunt in the kitchen. "All clean?" Evelyn asked.
"All clean." Alex said. "Jennifer can sleep in my room tonight. Please can she?" Alex asked his mother.
Evelyn looked at Jennifer, who shrugged. "I can just sleep on the couch tonight. Don't bother about making a bed for me." Jennifer said.
Alex tugged Jennifer's hand. "No, sleep in my room please Jennifer. You can keep the ghosts away." He said.
"Alex, go tell your father goodnight." Evelyn said before Jennifer could say anything.
Alex scurried off into the parlor. Jennifer turned to her sister. "Ghosts?" She asked, sure it wasn't, as it seemed. Alex was nine, he was bound to believe in ghosts or monsters or something.
"Bad dreams. For a year or so Alex has been having bad dreams. It's nothing really. He usually has to sleep with Rick and I; it might be a good idea for you to sleep in his room. On the floor or something, just to make him feel 'safe'". Evelyn said.
Jennifer nodded. "Alright but I'd better get cleaned up before anything else." She said. Evelyn explained were the towels and stuff were. Jennifer took her rucksack -which held her clothes and such- and headed up stairs.
After showering, Jennifer changed into her nightgown and headed down the hall to Alex's room. Alex was already in bed, playing with Horus. Horus seemed to like Alex; he was flapping his wings, which was a sign that he was happy. Alex had a small rubber ball in his hand and was playing "find it" with Horus; Alex would hide the ball in his hand and Horus would pick the hand with his talon. When Jennifer entered the room Horus flew onto her shoulder; Jennifer noticed that Evelyn or Rick had made a bed with sheets and quilts on the floor beside Alex's bed.
"Ready for bed?" She asked her nephew.
Alex looked slightly unsure. "Can Horus sleep by my bed tonight?" He asked.
"He'll be by your bed, like I am. Right here." Jennifer said and pointed to the bed of sheets.
Alex still seemed unsure but then he nodded. "Okay." He said and lay down in his bed, pulling the sheets up to his chin.
Jennifer switched the light off and lay down in her bed; she lay looking up in the ceiling, the moonlight shone through Alex's window. Jennifer felt different then she had in a long time, for once someone cared about her; she had a sister, a brother and a nephew. As well as Rick, who was her brother-in-law; for once, she felt like she had a family. Feeling content and happy, Jennifer drifted off to sleep.
Down the hall in Rick and Evelyn's bedroom, the happy couple was also laying in bed. Evelyn turned to face her husband. "You don't like her do you? You don't trust her." Evelyn said.
Rick turned to face her, surprised at her question. "Who?" He asked, very well knowing she was talking about Jennifer.
"My sister, Jennifer. You don't trust her I can tell the way you look at her. The way you acted when Alex and Jennifer went outside together. You don't like him being along with her." Evelyn answered.
"It's not that Evy. All right, maybe I don't trust her that much but think about it, you haven't seen her in nineteen years and we have no idea where she was all those years. You don't know what she's like; I'm just saying we should be careful. After everything that's happened to us, I can't help but be cautious." Rick answered.
Evelyn sighed and looked at him. "Rick, she's my sister whom I haven't seen in nineteen years. I've thought about her a lot and now, we're finally a family again. Please Rick, give her a chance."
"All right, baby, I will for you." He said and kissed her.
Note: The Part in this chapter when Alex tells Jennifer about his slingshot doesn't belong to me. I got it from another fanfic by Eviefan; I hope she doesn't mind if I used to. So, it belong to Eviefan not me.
Evelyn was beginning to wonder what was taking her husband and son so long at the pet shop. Their food had long since been there; both Evelyn and her brother had already eaten their meals. Evelyn looked over at her brother, Jonathan; he was ten years older then she was and taller and homely, though she would never say it to his face. His hair was brown and unkempt; his eyes matched his hair color.
"What do you think is taking them so long?" Evelyn asked her brother.
"Evy, they're just at the pet shop. Time must have gotten away from them, they're alright." Jonathan said, looking at his baby sister.
Evelyn nodded, sure her brother was right but couldn't shake the worry from her head.
Across the street, Rick had no idea he was worrying his wife so much. He had sent Alex into the pet shop to look with Jennifer, his aunt, while he discussed in his head what to tell Evelyn. To him, there seemed to be no other way then just to say "here's your long lost sister, ran into her by the pet shop." but he didn't think that that was the "right way" to go about the whole thing.
Inside the pet shop Alex was asking Jennifer all sorts of questions. "Where did you get Horus?" "How come you lived in America instead of with my mum?" that sort of thing and at the same time asking her if he could hold Horus and the kittens in the pet shop cages. Jennifer was overwhelmed by the small boy's questions; she was used to younger children, her adopted parents had two younger and one older, but Alex seemed to have so much more energy then any other child she had met. Jennifer had deemed it best not to let him hold Horus in the pet shop but didn't have a problem with him picking up the kittens and wriggling puppies.
Once Alex had run out of questions to ask his aunt he began to tell her about himself. He told her how old her was, about his slingshot -his pride and joy-, the things he liked to do and about the kittens that he wanted for his pets. Jennifer nodded every time the boy said something and looked up at her; she was really paying attention but kept getting distracted by Anubis.
"Capture the O'Connells, take me to Amh-Shre!" He cried over and over inside her head.
Jennifer did her best to ignore the angry Gods outbursts but it was no easy task.
Evelyn had finally gotten tried of worrying and waiting so she and Jonathan left the restaurant -Jonathan paying the check- and headed over to the pet shop. She saw Rick standing outside, debating with himself but Alex was nowhere insight; probably inside.
Jennifer and Alex had gotten bored inside the pet store so they headed back outside; the sight of a very angry Evelyn greeted them. She was yelling at Rick for leaving her and Jonathan at the restaurant for, what she was sure, over an hour. Alex guessed his mother was not just mad about the missing vase; Jennifer raised an eyebrow.
Horus screeched, Evelyn became silent and looked over to where her son and his "guardian" -of the moment- stood; Horus flapped his wings and began to preen his feathers, he didn't like an audience.
Evelyn and Jennifer locked eyes, which were the same color; without saying a word Evelyn knew that this was her "long lost baby sister". Jennifer felt a wave of happiness and content wash over her; she had never really had a family but now she was standing face to face with her sister. Jennifer and Evelyn embraced; the kind of embrace only sisters can give. Rick, Jonathan and Alex stood behind them.
Later, everyone -including Jennifer and Horus- were back at the O'Connell manor. Jennifer had never seen any place so big; she stood in awe in the threshold of the manor. The sitting room was the first room that one would enter from the door, there was a plush couch pushed against one wall, a table was placed directly in front of it and a bookshelf was placed against another wall, in between two large windows. The entrance to the very large kitchen could partly be seen from where she stood. To her right Jennifer could see a large oak staircase that led to the second story; also to her right was a large room that Alex explained was the parlor and the study.
Alex took Jennifer's hand and led her up the stairs to his room. Alex's room was large, Jennifer's own room back in America was nothing compared to her nephew's room.
"This is my room." Alex said proudly and began pulling his toys out to show her. He pulled his slingshot out of his rucksack. "This is my slingshot. I got it on my sixth birthday from my Uncle John." Alex told her. He handed her the slingshot.
Jennifer took it and looked at it closely; it was worn and well cared for. She handed it back to him.
Alex took it and tossed it on his bed. He turned back to Jennifer, who he now understood was his aunt, his Mum and Uncle John's sister. He pointed to the bracelet around her wrist. "Where did you get that? It's pretty." He said.
Jennifer took the bracelet off and handed it to the boy, who took it very carefully. The charms dangled and caught the light. "I've had it for a long time, I found it in America." Jennifer answered.
Alex handed the bracelet back to her. "Why were you in America?" He asked.
"It's a long story." Jennifer answered.
Alex sat on the corner of his bed and patted a space beside him. "Tell me please." He pleaded, giving her his innocent smile.
Jennifer sat on the bed beside her nephew and began to tell him the story.
By the time Jennifer had told Alex about all her adventures in America and her life leading up to meeting them in the city today -leaving out meeting Anubis- the sun was setting. Alex was in-traced with her story, through the whole thing he had listened wide-eyed.
After finishing her story, Alex began to show Jennifer his trucks and toys. They sat on the floor together and played with his trucks; with Alex's large pick-up truck they pulled Horus around. Horus flapped his wings and climbed on top of the truck; Alex laughed.
There was a knock on the door and Rick came in. He smiled seeing that his son and Jennifer were getting a long so well so fast. "Dinner time, you guys." Rick said.
"I didn't know it was that late." Jennifer muttered. Rick closed the door and left.
Jennifer helped Alex pick up his trucks and together -along with Horus- they went down stairs. In the kitchen there was another room beside it, which was the dinning room. There was large polished oak table in the middle of the room; it was already set with white china plates. Evelyn and Rick were already seated, as was Jonathan. Alex ran to an empty seat.
"Sit by me Jennifer." He said and pointed to another chair. Jennifer sat down beside Alex; she placed Horus on her shoulder, hoping it was okay for him to be at the table.
The O'Connells cook served their food; Jennifer didn't realize how hungry she was until the plate was put in front of her. Steaming roast and vegetables were what was for dinner; everyone ate without much of a word.
When dinner was over, Alex led Jennifer outside into the large garden that dominated the backyard. "Jennifer, we can play kick ball." He said and showed her a soccer ball; it was no longer white but green with grass stains. Jennifer agreed, still looked at the beautiful garden; Alex saw her fascination with the flowers. He explained to her what all the flowers were.
"Jennifer, this is my favorite flower the poinsettia." He showed her a four-pelted red flower. He picked one of the blossoms and handed it to her. "Here, for you." He said and smiled.
"Thanks, I'll put it in water later." She said and rested the floor carefully on a bench.
Jennifer and Alex began to play kickball; it turned more into a game of catch because they didn't really have enough people to play a real game of kickball. Their game of catch ended when Horus flew onto the ball and began to roll it into the woods. Alex had a fit of laughter while Jennifer retrieved the ball and the bird.
When Jennifer returned from the woods, she noticed how dark it had gotten. "Come on Alex, we'd better go inside before it gets too much darker." She said.
Jennifer and Alex entered the house; Jennifer holding Horus on one fist and carefully in the other was her poinsettia blossom in the other. Jennifer and Alex were tried and sweaty and had dirt and grass all over them when they entered the house; Rick and Evelyn were playing chess in the sitting room. Evelyn took one look at Alex and Jennifer and told them to bathe immediately and get ready for bed.
Jennifer went upstairs with Alex and helped him draw his bath; after he was in the bath Jennifer went downstairs.
"Your garden outside is beautiful. Alex picked this for me." Jennifer said to Evelyn and showed her the blossom. "If that okay I'd like to put it in water."
"Sure. I guess Alex showed you around." Evelyn said and led Jennifer into the kitchen.
"Yeah, he showed me his trucks and his slingshot. After dinner we went out and played catch with his soccer ball. I didn't know it was so late already." Jennifer answered.
Evelyn took a vase from one of the cabinets and filled it with water; Jennifer placed the poinsettia in the vase.
"So you came from Egypt; I haven't been there in a while." Evelyn said.
Jennifer set the vase on the dinning room table. "Well not much has changed. Lots of sand and still really hot." She said.
Evelyn chuckled, so did Jennifer. Alex, dressed in his bedclothes, ran down the stairs and joined his mother and aunt in the kitchen. "All clean?" Evelyn asked.
"All clean." Alex said. "Jennifer can sleep in my room tonight. Please can she?" Alex asked his mother.
Evelyn looked at Jennifer, who shrugged. "I can just sleep on the couch tonight. Don't bother about making a bed for me." Jennifer said.
Alex tugged Jennifer's hand. "No, sleep in my room please Jennifer. You can keep the ghosts away." He said.
"Alex, go tell your father goodnight." Evelyn said before Jennifer could say anything.
Alex scurried off into the parlor. Jennifer turned to her sister. "Ghosts?" She asked, sure it wasn't, as it seemed. Alex was nine, he was bound to believe in ghosts or monsters or something.
"Bad dreams. For a year or so Alex has been having bad dreams. It's nothing really. He usually has to sleep with Rick and I; it might be a good idea for you to sleep in his room. On the floor or something, just to make him feel 'safe'". Evelyn said.
Jennifer nodded. "Alright but I'd better get cleaned up before anything else." She said. Evelyn explained were the towels and stuff were. Jennifer took her rucksack -which held her clothes and such- and headed up stairs.
After showering, Jennifer changed into her nightgown and headed down the hall to Alex's room. Alex was already in bed, playing with Horus. Horus seemed to like Alex; he was flapping his wings, which was a sign that he was happy. Alex had a small rubber ball in his hand and was playing "find it" with Horus; Alex would hide the ball in his hand and Horus would pick the hand with his talon. When Jennifer entered the room Horus flew onto her shoulder; Jennifer noticed that Evelyn or Rick had made a bed with sheets and quilts on the floor beside Alex's bed.
"Ready for bed?" She asked her nephew.
Alex looked slightly unsure. "Can Horus sleep by my bed tonight?" He asked.
"He'll be by your bed, like I am. Right here." Jennifer said and pointed to the bed of sheets.
Alex still seemed unsure but then he nodded. "Okay." He said and lay down in his bed, pulling the sheets up to his chin.
Jennifer switched the light off and lay down in her bed; she lay looking up in the ceiling, the moonlight shone through Alex's window. Jennifer felt different then she had in a long time, for once someone cared about her; she had a sister, a brother and a nephew. As well as Rick, who was her brother-in-law; for once, she felt like she had a family. Feeling content and happy, Jennifer drifted off to sleep.
Down the hall in Rick and Evelyn's bedroom, the happy couple was also laying in bed. Evelyn turned to face her husband. "You don't like her do you? You don't trust her." Evelyn said.
Rick turned to face her, surprised at her question. "Who?" He asked, very well knowing she was talking about Jennifer.
"My sister, Jennifer. You don't trust her I can tell the way you look at her. The way you acted when Alex and Jennifer went outside together. You don't like him being along with her." Evelyn answered.
"It's not that Evy. All right, maybe I don't trust her that much but think about it, you haven't seen her in nineteen years and we have no idea where she was all those years. You don't know what she's like; I'm just saying we should be careful. After everything that's happened to us, I can't help but be cautious." Rick answered.
Evelyn sighed and looked at him. "Rick, she's my sister whom I haven't seen in nineteen years. I've thought about her a lot and now, we're finally a family again. Please Rick, give her a chance."
"All right, baby, I will for you." He said and kissed her.
Note: The Part in this chapter when Alex tells Jennifer about his slingshot doesn't belong to me. I got it from another fanfic by Eviefan; I hope she doesn't mind if I used to. So, it belong to Eviefan not me.