Chapter Two : Making a cake
What now? Locke thought while walking in the corridor. The storm sounds like it isn't stopping anytime soon. What are we going to do? He scratched the back of his head, his brain working at full speed. Nothing, he couldn't thing of anything to do with Lara. Someone help me please… anybody…
It seemed like his prayer was heard, because suddenly Athair ducked in the corridor they were walking in. Upon seeing Lara, the flying echidna smiled broadly and sped up toward them. "Little Lara!" he exclaimed, tackling her in a bear hug. "I'm so happy to see you!"
"So am I, Athair," she smiled, returning the embrace. "So am I."
He put her on the ground and floated in mid-air. "What did you come for? Is there a party somewhere? Are you going to move in Haven? Tell me, tell me!" he cheered, making big gestures with his arms.
Lara couldn't help but chuckle; that was Athair, all right. Always imagining the best and jumping to his happy conclusions. Even if he was rarely right…
"No Athair," she gently corrected. "This is actually our twentieth anniversary of marriage and-"
"Anniversary!" the flying one exclaimed while turning in circles. "Oh fun, fun! Can I have a piece of cake?"
"Cake?" Locke raised one eyebrow at his second father, dumbfounded. "There isn't any cake, Second father."
Athair got an horrified look on his face and shook Locke's shoulders. "No cake? But you can't have a decent party without a cake! I know, let's make one!" He didn't wait for their answer and, grabbing Locke's left hand and Lara's right one, began to float down the corridor toward the kitchen.
Wow… and I wondered what we could do… Locke thought while being dragged.
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The kitchen was quiet and empty, except for a dark echidna finishing his glass of orange juice. He set it on the table and raised his head, acknowledging the three newcomers.
"Hello Grandfather!" Athair greeted cheerfully.
"Morning," Spectre growled, rubbing his aching forehead. Something about his slightly bloodshot eyes and ruffled fur on his face hinted that it wasn't a good time to mess with him.
But Athair just couldn't take a hint.
"Why the long face?" he asked innocently. "Did you fall off your bed again?" Lara giggled under her breath at that; the thought of Spectre falling out of bed and landing on the floor had her ready to crack up. Spectre, however, wasn't in the mood for jokes.
"No, it's because there isn't any coffee left, thanks to the one who didn't fulfil his shopping duty." He then noticed Lara-Le's giggling and frowned. "And that one time was an accident! Leave me be!"
"Of course it was… Now out, out!" Athair motioned to the door. "We need space!"
Spectre got a suspicious look on his face and, tilting his head on a side, asked: "What for?"
"To make a cake!"
Spectre instantly felt sorry for Lara-Le and turned to her. "I hope for your sanity that you're immune to madness-filled minds… however I'm not, so I'll take my leave." Wasting no time in saying good-bye, he got up and out of the kitchen. Athair simply shrugged. "He's grumpy because he didn't have his coffee. But let's get started!"
The brown echidna happily went through drawers and closets, throwing the objects he needed on the table. Opening the little fridge, he took the butter out and set it on the table beside the spoons.
"We'll need sugar, flour, eggs…" He stuck his head in the closets again and threw the food over his shoulder. Locke jumped and caught every egg, every item before they hit the floor. Struggling, he made it to the table and dropped everything on it, letting an egg fall in the process. The red echidna winced when he heard the 'sploch' the egg made when it splattered on the floor. He grimaced even more when he inhaled the smell coming out of it: rotten.
"Second father! I think the eggs are spoiled," Locke said, his nose twitching.
Athair floated closer and bent toward the egg. He backed up brutally and clasped his hands over his nose and mouth. "Phew, it stinks! I wonder what the chicken that laid that egg looks like…" Lara and Locke looked at him strangely, but if he was aware of their stares he ignored it.
"What are you waiting for? Clean that up!" Athair said, his voice muffled by his hands.
"Me? But you're the one who wanted to make a cake in the first place!"
"You're the one who dropped the egg!"
"Well if you weren't throwing food in the air maybe it wouldn't have fallen!"
Lara sighed and put herself between the two males. "Stop acting childish, both of you. Now we'll just-" Whatever she was going to say was cut off when the eggshell achieved cracking. Athair widened his eyes and pointed at the crashed egg.
"It's ALIVE!"
"No, Grandfather, don't!" Locke exclaimed, but too late. Athair pounced and began stamping the rotten egg furiously. Locke shut his eyes as eggshell and stinking substance splattered on his face, and Lara chuckled at Athair's antics and at Locke's disgusted face.
Athair finally stopped and wiped his forehead. "Done. No more danger."
Speak for yourself, trouble maker… Locke slowly and disgustingly brushed eggshell pieces away from his nose and eyes, before opening them again. He was angered by his second father's proud smile, and then little and innocent Locke did something he would have never done under normal circumstances…
He grabbed an egg, and juggled with it all the while glaring at Athair. The older one stopped smiling and backed up in the air. "No, Second son, you wouldn't dare…" he warned, wagging one finger.
"You bet I would," he smirked, finally throwing his egg full force in Athair's face. The flying one squeaked and pawed at his eyes, trying to get rid of the stinking substance. Locke, however, cracked up in laughter. "Serves you right!"
Growling under his breath, Athair picked up the flour packet and opened it. He winced when he caught the smell emanating from it: spoiled as well. He took a handful of flour and let it fall on his second son. Locke coughed, turning white because of the flour covering his red fur. He jumped to catch Athair, but the flying one flew away.
He was a quite amusing sight, too. He soon lost interest in colouring Locke in white and began floating across the kitchen, throwing flour every now and then. The entire room was soon covered by a thin layer of flour, and Athair still kept on throwing white powder everywhere, singing under his breath. "Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way…"
Locke walked up to Lara, shaking flour off his fur. He sighed. "Now, how are we going to explain that one to Spectre?"
Lara simply shrugged. "Tell him the truth." "The truth? You mean that his fourth son is an old weirdo – which, I think, he already knows - and the kitchen is looking like a snow-covered field? That truth?"
"Yes, that truth. Unless we can clean this up before he finds out."
"Works for me!" Locke exclaimed, not wanting to face a coffee-lacking Spectre. "Fourth father, get down here and listen!"
"Here comes the bride, all dressed in white!" Athair sang happily, still casting handfuls of flour in every way. He was pretending to throw rice on the bride, in a marriage.
I think from now on I'll be seeing flour in my nightmares… "Get down quick before Spectre finds out the state the kitchen is in! Come on!" Locke shouted.
He turned when he heard a gasping sound behind him; and nearly slapped himself. There a sleepy-looking Sabre stood in the doorway, jaw dropped, eyes widened. His sight shifted from Athair, to the kitchen floor, to Locke, to the kitchen floor again… He rubbed his eyes and looked again, not wanting to believe what he was seeing. Locke decided to step up. "Father… I can explain," he said, trembling slightly.
Glancing at his son's flour-covered body, Sabre gave a yelp and jumped backwards. He then took off running in the corridors, yelling at the top of his lungs. "Grandfather Spectre! Grandfather Spectre! It's snowing in the kitchen! And some flying god has turned Locke into a walking and speaking snowman! Grandfather!"
Locke rolled his eyes and sighed. "Great, just great…"
XXX
Sorry it took so much time, but I couldn't find time and I was lacking ideas. So… please forgive me? Chapter Three will be up… well someday! Soon I hope!
