Not What You See
A/N: *is crying* I'm sorry, Lady Ann Kenobi! I didn't mean to break up the family, really I… okay, maybe I did. BUT IT'S ALL FOR THE SAKE OF PLOT! It's building of human character. And I will get them back together in the end… not all of them but most of them… *continues crying* Oh man! I just gave you guys a spoiler! *groans*
DISCLAIMER: I own only whom I own.
Chapter 11: There Is No Replacement For Those Before
"Oh, hello, Stanley," Kirk said distractedly one night as the remaining members of the Toshiro household were sitting around the sadly empty table two weeks later. "What is it?"
"Daddy, why's Mr. Dickinson calling us?" Marina asked plaintively.
"Yeah, he already taked Rei and Saadii and Max and Leif and Starr and Jesse." Griff chimed in. "Is he takin' Kai too? Or is he takin' Chloe and Bronwyn now?"
"I see." Kirk said heavily. He paused momentarily. "Stanley, we may not be able to. I need to get back to you on this." He hung up and turned back towards Regine. "Stanley wants to know if we can take one of his new cases for a while, until the child custody battle between the families is over."
"Which would be?" Regine prompted.
"Anywhere between a month and a few years." Kirk sighed.
"That's a pretty wide range," Kai said softly.
"How old is this kid?" Regine asked.
"About three years old." Kirk responded. "There's actually two of them. Stanley told me he obtained a temporary waiver for the limit for us for this one case."
"They're both three?" Regine asked.
"Yeah." Kirk said.
"What's the problem?" Kai asked.
"It just seems a bit callous to me, to lose six of our other foster children because of an overabundance here, and to take two new ones two weeks later." Regine murmured.
"It's life," Kai said. "People come, people go. There's no replacement for the ones who were there before them, they just take the place that the previous ones didn't really need."
There was complete silence in the kitchen before Kirk cracked, "You were talking to Tala again, weren't you?"
"Yeah." Kai admitted, grinning slightly.
"That's what I figured." Kirk smiled, and picked up the phone once Regine finally nodded.
"Kai, can you go get the door?" Regine called from the nursery, where she was trying to change Chloe's diaper and get Bronwyn dressed without much luck.
"Sure," Kai called back, standing up and taking off for the door before Griff tried to open it himself. "Griff, step away from the door," he ordered.
"You're no fun," Griff pouted.
"I'm mortally wounded," Kai said dryly as he swung open the door to find Mr. Dickinson standing outside with his briefcase in one hand and the hand of one twin girl firmly in the other. The second twin was clinging to her sister's hand.
"Hello, Kai," Mr. Dickinson said, smiling slightly. He got that he was no longer the favourite person in anybody's books in this household. "Is Kirk or Regine home?"
"Yes, I am," Regine called tiredly from the nursery. "Come on in, Stanley."
"She's in the nursery," Kai told him coolly.
"A nursery's for a baby." One little girl announced, wide grey eyes gazing solemnly at Kai.
Her sister, identical right down the length of their jet-black hair, nodded in silent agreement.
"We have two babies," Kai said. "Chloe and Bronwyn. They're identical twins."
"I'm Brylee." The twin on the right said importantly.
"And I'm Brietta," the twin on the left added.
"We're identical twins too," Brylee informed Kai.
"I couldn't tell," Kai commented, rolling his eyes.
"Lotsa people can't," Brietta assured him.
"Stanley, I know you've probably got a lot to do, so unless there's something desperate you need to tell me in person, just drop the files on the living room table, Kirk can put them away later." Regine sighed, exiting the nursery with Bronwyn on one arm. "Kai, can you go get Chloe for me? Oh, no. Not more identical twins. Is it just me or is this family drawn to identical twins? Chloe and Bronwyn, Kai and Saadii. Okay, you two aren't exactly identical, but you are still really similar; and…"
"Brylee and Brietta." Mr. Dickinson supplied.
"Oh, boy, they even match." Regine groaned. "All right. Kai, can you bring them up to—"
"Sure," Kai said quickly.
"More identical twins?" Kirk said dryly that evening. "Ugh."
Griff was eyeing the two little girls with great curiosity. "How do we know who's who?"
"I'm Brylee," the twin on the left of Kai said.
"And I'm Brietta." The twin on the right of Kai added.
"Try one name. If it doesn't work, try the other." Regine muttered under her breath. "That's going to be my approach."
"I'm different from Brylee 'cause I got a ear hole." Brietta announced, pointing to a semi-closed earring hole. "Brylee don't got a ear hole."
Thank you, Kirk mouthed to the ceiling. Kai cackled.
"What are you going to do when that hole closes up?" he asked.
"Scream." Kirk grumbled.
The doorbell interrupted just then. Growling under his breath, Kai got up and took off for the front door. A second later, he reappeared in the kitchen, closely followed by two young Chinese women not too much older than Kai…
And a cheerful-looking Rei.