Okay, here's Chapter 4. Sorry, for the delay. I wanted to make this even a little longer than the others. Mission accomplished, even though it was just a page longer. Well, that and lack of inspiration made this take a little longer than I would have liked. Anyway, here's ch. 4 and plenty of Pietro like I promised.
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Bruder Nicht Mehr- Courtroom Showdown
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1 week later, County Courthouse
Pietro tugged at his tie, annoyed, as he looked around for Lance and the others. Dismay filled him as he realized that he was probably an hour early. 'Stupid foster family. Punctuality is imperative. Please. I'm not punctual if I'm an hour early!'
Pietro had been cursed with foster parents that were the most conservative people he'd ever known. Dinner at five-thirty *exactly* every night, getting up at 6:00 a.m. every morning, and...it was painful to even think about...he had a *bedtime*. A nine o'clock bedtime. For Christ's sake, he wasn't five! As for having a curfew, he wasn't even allowed out of the house for more than hour. These people didn't even own a TV! Or a computer. They had a typewriter. And he wasn't even allowed to use it. Not to mention the fact that he had to keep his powers under control constantly.
Pietro was going out of his mind.
It wasn't just the stingy older couple either. Pietro really, truly, sincerely missed his friends. He missed Todd's lame jokes, beating Lance at video games. He even missed Freddy eating all the food. Their small, makeshift family was all he'd had. And today would be the day that decided whether he would have it again.
He was shaken from his thoughts as someone tapped on his shoulder. He turned around reluctantly, fully expecting to see the old fashioned couple from Hell. Instead he was confronted with a grinning Lance.
"Lance!" Overcome with joy, Pietro lurched forward to give his friend a clumsy but heartfelt hug. Lance looked surprised for a moment then returned the quick embrace. As he pulled back, Pietro noticed Lance staring at him. "What are you wearing?" Pietro took in Lance's nice but casual jeans and shirt and his cheeks reddened in humiliation. Lance's grin widened as he watched Pietro's embarrassment. "They made you wear a suit? You look like a-"
Pietro was spared from Lance's ridicule when the older boy spotted Todd and stopped making fun of Pietro long enough to call the small boy over. Todd noticed them and slowly made his way across the room. Pietro frowned as he watched his young friend. Something was different about him. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but...
Both he and Lance gave Todd quick hugs, but Pietro noticed he didn't return the embraces and that he was flinching when they touched him. "Todd? You okay?" The smaller boy nodded slightly. "Fine, yo." His voice was flat and lifeless, lacking any emotion at all. Pietro didn't believe him for a second. Any questions that he had, however, were put on hold when the Judge entered the courtroom.
'Here we go.'
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Lance swallowed hard as the lawyer, Mr. Thomas, got ready to question him. This was it. He looked over at his friends. Pietro was watching him steadily, his expression one of silent support, while Todd stared blankly in front of him, his face unreadable. Freddy just looked bored. Lance was growing angrier with Fred by the second. Did he not even care? He hadn't even acknowledged them when they arrived.
"Mr. Alvers." Lance snapped back to reality at the sound of the lawyer's merciless tone. "Mr. Alvers, how old are you?" Lance swallowed uncertainly. "Seventeen, sir." Mr. Thomas nodded slowly. "Seventeen." He repeated. "Tell me, Mr. Alvers. How long have you been living with Mr. Maximoff, Mr. Tolensky, and Mr. Dukes?" Lance thought quickly. "Um...About two years." The lawyer nodded again. "You told Social Services earlier that you did have a guardian, a Ms. Darkholme. What happened to her?" "She disappeared."
Mr. Thomas began pacing in front of Lance, looking thoughtful. He stopped abruptly and started talking again. "Mr. Alvers, when Social Services investigated your home, they were quite appalled at your living conditions. The were many large holes in the roof, none of the lights worked, there was no food in the house, there was no heat, there was evidence of rodent infestation," Lance frowned at that. 'I didn't know we had rats.' "...the list goes on and on." Lance swallowed hard. He could tell by the look on the man's face that he was going to show no mercy.
"Mr. Alvers, you're still in high school, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"That would mean you could only have an after-school job, therefore only earning minimum wage, correct?"
"Yeah..."
"Does Mr. Maximoff or Mr. Dukes have a job?"
"Um...no..."
"So, you mean to tell me, you and your friends were living on a single income, and that income was the minimum wage salary of one job?"
"Yes."
Mr. Thomas raised an eyebrow and smirked. "I'm sorry, but that's just insane. Mr. Alvers, you're seventeen years old. You have one more year of high school left. You are in no way prepared to take care of yourself and three others effectively. Not yet."
Lance felt like he had been punched in the gut. 'No! I can! I know I can! No...we're a family. We can work it out.' Any hope he'd had was slowly unraveling before him. The lawyer was staring coldly at him, a self-assured smirk on his face. He knew he'd won.
Lance watched dully as Mr. Thomas went through the same sort of questioning with Pietro, then Todd. Fred didn't even seem to want them to win. But it didn't matter what the others said. They'd already lost. And it was his fault. He blew it. Because of him, they'd never be a family again. They have to stay in these horrible foster homes. It was fault.
'All my fault.'
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Ya like? REVIEW!!!!!! In the next chapter we'll be finding out exactly what has been going on in those foster homes. Until then.
______________________________________________
Bruder Nicht Mehr- Courtroom Showdown
______________________________________________
1 week later, County Courthouse
Pietro tugged at his tie, annoyed, as he looked around for Lance and the others. Dismay filled him as he realized that he was probably an hour early. 'Stupid foster family. Punctuality is imperative. Please. I'm not punctual if I'm an hour early!'
Pietro had been cursed with foster parents that were the most conservative people he'd ever known. Dinner at five-thirty *exactly* every night, getting up at 6:00 a.m. every morning, and...it was painful to even think about...he had a *bedtime*. A nine o'clock bedtime. For Christ's sake, he wasn't five! As for having a curfew, he wasn't even allowed out of the house for more than hour. These people didn't even own a TV! Or a computer. They had a typewriter. And he wasn't even allowed to use it. Not to mention the fact that he had to keep his powers under control constantly.
Pietro was going out of his mind.
It wasn't just the stingy older couple either. Pietro really, truly, sincerely missed his friends. He missed Todd's lame jokes, beating Lance at video games. He even missed Freddy eating all the food. Their small, makeshift family was all he'd had. And today would be the day that decided whether he would have it again.
He was shaken from his thoughts as someone tapped on his shoulder. He turned around reluctantly, fully expecting to see the old fashioned couple from Hell. Instead he was confronted with a grinning Lance.
"Lance!" Overcome with joy, Pietro lurched forward to give his friend a clumsy but heartfelt hug. Lance looked surprised for a moment then returned the quick embrace. As he pulled back, Pietro noticed Lance staring at him. "What are you wearing?" Pietro took in Lance's nice but casual jeans and shirt and his cheeks reddened in humiliation. Lance's grin widened as he watched Pietro's embarrassment. "They made you wear a suit? You look like a-"
Pietro was spared from Lance's ridicule when the older boy spotted Todd and stopped making fun of Pietro long enough to call the small boy over. Todd noticed them and slowly made his way across the room. Pietro frowned as he watched his young friend. Something was different about him. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but...
Both he and Lance gave Todd quick hugs, but Pietro noticed he didn't return the embraces and that he was flinching when they touched him. "Todd? You okay?" The smaller boy nodded slightly. "Fine, yo." His voice was flat and lifeless, lacking any emotion at all. Pietro didn't believe him for a second. Any questions that he had, however, were put on hold when the Judge entered the courtroom.
'Here we go.'
__________________________________
Lance swallowed hard as the lawyer, Mr. Thomas, got ready to question him. This was it. He looked over at his friends. Pietro was watching him steadily, his expression one of silent support, while Todd stared blankly in front of him, his face unreadable. Freddy just looked bored. Lance was growing angrier with Fred by the second. Did he not even care? He hadn't even acknowledged them when they arrived.
"Mr. Alvers." Lance snapped back to reality at the sound of the lawyer's merciless tone. "Mr. Alvers, how old are you?" Lance swallowed uncertainly. "Seventeen, sir." Mr. Thomas nodded slowly. "Seventeen." He repeated. "Tell me, Mr. Alvers. How long have you been living with Mr. Maximoff, Mr. Tolensky, and Mr. Dukes?" Lance thought quickly. "Um...About two years." The lawyer nodded again. "You told Social Services earlier that you did have a guardian, a Ms. Darkholme. What happened to her?" "She disappeared."
Mr. Thomas began pacing in front of Lance, looking thoughtful. He stopped abruptly and started talking again. "Mr. Alvers, when Social Services investigated your home, they were quite appalled at your living conditions. The were many large holes in the roof, none of the lights worked, there was no food in the house, there was no heat, there was evidence of rodent infestation," Lance frowned at that. 'I didn't know we had rats.' "...the list goes on and on." Lance swallowed hard. He could tell by the look on the man's face that he was going to show no mercy.
"Mr. Alvers, you're still in high school, correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"That would mean you could only have an after-school job, therefore only earning minimum wage, correct?"
"Yeah..."
"Does Mr. Maximoff or Mr. Dukes have a job?"
"Um...no..."
"So, you mean to tell me, you and your friends were living on a single income, and that income was the minimum wage salary of one job?"
"Yes."
Mr. Thomas raised an eyebrow and smirked. "I'm sorry, but that's just insane. Mr. Alvers, you're seventeen years old. You have one more year of high school left. You are in no way prepared to take care of yourself and three others effectively. Not yet."
Lance felt like he had been punched in the gut. 'No! I can! I know I can! No...we're a family. We can work it out.' Any hope he'd had was slowly unraveling before him. The lawyer was staring coldly at him, a self-assured smirk on his face. He knew he'd won.
Lance watched dully as Mr. Thomas went through the same sort of questioning with Pietro, then Todd. Fred didn't even seem to want them to win. But it didn't matter what the others said. They'd already lost. And it was his fault. He blew it. Because of him, they'd never be a family again. They have to stay in these horrible foster homes. It was fault.
'All my fault.'
___________________________________________
Ya like? REVIEW!!!!!! In the next chapter we'll be finding out exactly what has been going on in those foster homes. Until then.