Chapter Four

Halloween Day (Steven's Awakening)


Jennifer's eyes opened and she blinked at the light, she was looking at an open window in a fairly nice house in a nice neighborhood in Boston. She stretched and turned, looked at her sleeping daughter behind her on the couch, then next to her, on her left, Kara, Dan asleep in her arms, regardless of his size. Then her right, Jamie, her head resting on the couch as she slept, finally straight forward to Tommy, the only other awake person in the room, watching the doors and windows intently.

He looked at her as she sat up and smiled. "Hey Jenni, how's it feel to be married to a normal man?"

She tried to chuckle but her voice was raspy, still waking up. She shook her head. "We don't know that, he could have chickened out."

Tommy shook his head. "No he didn't."

"How do you know?" her answer was quick and harsh, he looked at her, then Jamie.

"Only one way to find out. Wake her up, join hands. Let's see what's shakin'."

She looked at her younger sister, then slowly moved to her and nudged her awake. "Jamie, come on, we've got work to do."


It had been close to 6 ½ years since they had used their telepathic connection with Michael together, hand in hand. But it was going smoothly, both watched him wake on the docks and look at his son, sleeping nearby. Michael, sensing them reached to his arm and pulled up his sleeve, revealing a normal patch of skin, then he moved to Steven's, lifted it, and revealed the mark of Thorn.

A tears slipped from Jamie's closed eye and she broke it, tearing away to the other room to sit at the table. She was terrified, and Jennifer didn't blame her. She sighed, she could only see Michael in her dreams or when she and Jamie joined hands, so the connection was lost. She looked at her own wrist, sighed to see no mark.

She went to the kitchen and set to making coffee, Jamie silently cried at the table. Jennifer set a cup in front of her sister, sat across from her, and silently sipped it.

Kara came in. "We'll have the party for Ana, just to see is Steven will come, then we'll be like, 'Oh, he's back'. We cant just cancel."

"People are going to be hurt." Jennifer said harshly.

"I cant do it, I cant cancel this." Kara broke down into tears. "That's my baby!"

Jamie shook her head. "No, he's my baby. I gave birth to him at 15 years old, I almost died for him twice, I hid him in that bathroom for someone to find and I've missed him all of these years, and I've just been hiding and hiding." she buried her face again and Jennifer frowned, dug into her pocket and drew out a photo, handed it to her.

She calmed slightly. "Is this... a picture of him?"

Jennifer smiled. "No, that's my son, Jacob. He's five now."

Jamie frowned. "He got you pregnant... How long after Steven left?"

"Four months." Jennifer shrugged. "He's the sweetest little boy though, when this is all over I want you to meet him."

Jamie shook her head. "This'll never be over."

"Of course it will." Jennifer said softly. "Of course it will. It's going to turn out ok, you just wait and see. Michael's doing his best and believe it or not so are we."

Jamie scoffed. "What can Michael do about this?"

"More than you think." Tommy strolled in and grabbed a cup of coffee.

"What do you mean?" Kara asked, standing.

"Well all's he has to do is cut the skin with symbol from his skin, it wont 'grow back' and the skin'll heal in no time." He shrugged. "You think Michael doesn't know? Or that Jen didn't?"

Jennifer shook her head. "No, we know, Michael just wants to do this... The least painful way."


"Oh Kara it's all just lovely! Er... Where is Steven?"

"Oh he'll be here shortly. Very shortly." Kara moved from her guests to Jennifer, kneeling on the couch, eagerly watching as the darkness flooded outside. Her green eyes wept all over, ready for an attack.

"Oh there he is! And isn't he cute!"

Steven grinned slightly as he descended the stairs, Jamie, Jennifer and Kara all jumped. He wasn't armed, and was dressed in clean, new clothes.

"Here Steven! Auntie Barbara got you a costume!"

Steven grinned. "Thanks Aunt Babs!" He eagerly ripped it open and cried out. "Mom! A clown costume!"

Kara and Jamie both grinned sheepishly, but Jennifer's eyes were locked outside, on the sidewalk, where the Shape stood. She silently slithered out the front door and pulled him into the trees, where it was darkest. "So what's the plan?"

Michael shrugged. "We have to get that symbol off of his hand, before it's too late and without causing a big thing. Any suggestions?"

She shrugged. "No, I cant think clearly."

He sighed and moved closer, stroked her cheek. "I promise, it's going to be fine. I'm going to get in through the back and hide, all right? That way if anything happens we're both in there."

She nodded and pressed a kiss to his masked cheek. "Be careful."

"I will, you too."

They parted, she through the front he toward the back. Steven was in the costume and grinned at them as she entered again. He left to the kitchen with a quick. "I'm going to get some punch!"

She passed the mirror on her way to Ana, and couldn't help but notice how pouty she looked. She shook her head and scooped up the little girl, and spun around as everyone gasped simultaneously. Steven stood in the doorway of the kitchen, a huge kitchen knife in his hand, dripping with fresh blood.

"Michael." She murmured, he couldn't just be stabbed now! He didn't have the curse! Kara moved to him quickly but he raised the knife high, and as he did, Michael appeared behind him, snatched the knife and shoved him forward. He didn't look hurt....

Steven growled inhumanly and leapt at him, but was knocked to the floor again by his father. Quickly, the six year old grabbed the knife from his cake and hacked it into an older woman's back. She screamed and so did Kara, she lunged for him and he withdrew the blade and thrust it into his mother's chest. She fell and he stood above her, when all of a sudden Tommy leapt onto him, keeping him from stabbing his writhing mother again.

Jennifer felt someone tap her and looked over at Michael who beckoned his hands for the baby. She handed a screaming Ana to him just in time for a sharp pain to whirl through her shoulder, and she looked at Steven, then her bleeding flesh. She glared and kicked at him, when Jamie's soft voice called.

"Steven..."

He looked at her and his shoulders slumped.

"Come see your Mommy Steven..."

Steven glared at Tommy and Kara, then moved to his biological mother and raised his knife, her eyes widened.

"Jenni!"

"Jen come on..." Michael said from the doorway, she looked back and forth, then leapt to knock the six year old down, only to have something hard hit her head, and unconsciousness flow over her.

She was not so unconscious as to not hear her little sister's screams.


She woke to find Steven laying near her, his writ bleeding, a bandage around it. Jamie was near, quivering, still alive but banged up. Kara's body lay 10 feet away, lifeless and Tommy's right next to it. He was also a bloody mess. Where was Danny?

She stood and slowly moved to his bedroom upstairs, Dan lay on the bed, his arms and legs parted, he lay in a sacrificial pose. She heard Michael's voice call her from downstairs and turned from the body, felt her heart leap as she saw Steven in the doorway, knife in hand.

She uttered a wordless cry of fear and backed up, he slammed and locked the door behind him. Then he advanced and slowly stabbed her in the gut. She cried out, kicked him away and against the wall, where he groaned in pain, she ran to the door and began pounding on it.

"Michael! Michael help! Someone! Help me! HELP!"

The knife slammed into her back as she heard someone fly up the stairs and she fell back as Steven withdrew it. The doorknob turned, then the door slammed down. "God dammit Steven!"

She blacked out again as Michael disarmed his son and ran to her.

"Jenni? Jen?"


Mwa ha ha ha ha! I am evil! Well actually, *ahem*

Right then, review, should she die? Live with complications or just live and get over it?

SA