Happy Mother's Day! Thank you for your reviews and support.
I do not own.
"I love visiting the particle accelerators at Cern." Holiday said wistfully.
"I know." Six said.
"It's amazing what you can learn when you force particles to move at the speed of light." Holiday sighed.
"So… do you want a particle accelerator, mom?" Jasmine asked.
Her mother chuckled. "I wish. But it's just not practical."
"Well, we visit Cern once a year so you can play with them." Her husband said with a smirk.
Rebecca shoved her husband jokingly. "I wasn't playing. I was doing research." She said with mock indignation.
"You say po-tay-toe, I say po-tah-toe." Six replied.
"Who says po-tah-toe?" Jade wrinkled her noise.
"Probably the British." Kenji shrugged.
While her family continued to talk, Jasmine's mind started working. She knew what to get their mother for Mother's Day.
0o0
"We're doing what now?" Kenji frowned at his sister. Usually Jasmine was the level-headed one, the calm one, the one that didn't have the crazy scheme... in other words not Jade.
"We need to get into the school's science lab and get that powerful electromagnet that an alumnus just donated to them." Jasmine said excitedly.
"What are we going to do with a rusty old magnet?... And what is an alumnus?" Jade asked.
"You know someone who graduated from the school." Jasmine said.
"Okay, focus people. Why are we stealing the school's magnet?" Kenji interrupted.
"The school's not using it. It's just gathering dust in the closet." Jasmine said. "But we can use the electromagnet for a noble cause… mainly a Mother's Day present."
"What is mom going to do with a magnet? We have enough of them on the refrigerator." Jade said unimpressed.
"No! I'm not giving her a magnet! I'm using it to build her…" Jasmine lowered her voice to just a whisper. "A particle accelerator."
"So what?" Kenji asked. "Anyone can build a particle accelerator. Heck, there're at least 10 different sights on the internet telling you how." He pointed out.
"I'm not going to build mom one of those dinky particle accelerator! Then dad would be right. She'd just be playing with atoms." Jasmine shook her head. "No, it has to be a real particle accelerator, like at Cern.
Jade gasped and Kenji choked.
"Are you crazy?" Jade asked. Kenji would have too, except he was too busy coughing.
"No, hear me out. All we need is a powerful electromagnet, a nuclear generator, and 2 tons of scrap metal." She listed.
"Oh is that all?" Kenji asked sarcastically after his coughing fit. "Why don't we all go down to the local hardware store and pick those up?"
"Shut up, Kenji. If Jasmine wants to build a particle accelerator, she should! I mean how many times has she gone along with our plans?" Jade told her brother.
"She's never gone along with my plans." Kenji interjected.
"That's because they were all stupid!" Jade snapped.
"Guys, guys." Jasmine interrupted. "Are you going to help me, or not?"
"No way," Kenji shook his head. "I'm not getting involved this time,"
"I'm in." Jade declared glaring at her brother. "Because I know mom's going to love this."
"Sure, keep telling yourself that when you're grounded for life." Kenji scoffed getting up to leave.
"Fine, we don't need you anyway." Jade said as Kenji closed the door behind him. They were quiet for a second before Jade turned to her sister. "We're going to need him aren't we?"
"Yes." Jasmine said. "But I have an idea."
0o0
Kenji looked at the note from Hailey. It said that she wanted to meet him at the back of the school. He wasn't sure why. The letter was on her special note paper and the signature looked authentic. But it was typed, something she didn't usually do. When he got to the back of the school there was no one there. His training with dad kicked in. He became hyper aware of his surroundings. Looking around he began assessing whether he should leave. He walked closer to the school building trying to keep his back against the wall so that no one can sneak up on him.
"Heads up!"
Kenji looked up just in time to stick out his arms to catch an incredibly heavy load. "Oww, crap! What is this?" He cried angrily.
"Shhh!" Jade jumped down beside him. Glaring at him, she covered his mouth. "You want to get us caught?"
Kenji pulled away from her hand. "What the heck are you doing throwing things out the window? You're in so much trouble."
"So are you." Jade said smugly.
"What are you talking about?" Kenji demanded.
Jade just smirked and subtly nodded to the bag.
Kenji stared at the bundle in his arms. One glanced told him what it was. "This is the magnet!"
"No kidding, Sherlock." Jasmine responded.
"You stole the magnet and threw it out the window?" Kenji's voice was getting more frantic. "How did you know I would be there?"
Jasmine shrugged. "You're predictable. I knew you'd meet your girlfriend if she asked."
"You wrote that note didn't you?" Kenji asked darkly.
"Yup." Jasmine said proudly.
"Nice forgery. Does she know?" Kenji inquired.
"Who Hailey?"
"No, the Pillsbury Doughboy. Of course Hailey!" Kenji snapped.
"Shhh, you guys are loud enough to wake the dead!" Jade appeared next to them. "Come on, I jimmied the lock to the basement."
"Why are we going to the basement?" Kenji lugged the magnet as he followed his sisters.
"I've been bringing pieces of metal that I've welded together down to the school's basement. I told them I was working on a project." Jasmine explained.
"Why the school basement? Can't you have brought it to someplace else?"Kenji asked exasperated. They arrived at the door to the basement that was slightly ajar.
"Well, the school's basement is the only place that's big enough to hold all the pieces… andthenuclearreactor." The last phrase ran together.
"WHAT!" Kenji yelled stopping in his tracks. "How the… did you get a nuclear reactor!" It wasn't so much a question as an exclamation.
"Shhh!" Jade and Jasmine shushed him. They beckoned for him to come in.
Kenji walked down the flight of stairs to a dimly lit room. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs. His sister had been busy.
"Can I assume that monstrosity is the particle accelerator?" Kenji eyed the huge hastily built thing in the middle of the large basement.
"Yes. And now that I have the magnet, all the parts are complete." She rubbed her hands like a mad scientist.
"Don't so that. You look like Uncle Caesar." Jade told her sister.
"Oh sorry. Well, shall we take her for a test run?" Jasmine didn't wait for anyone to answer. She pulled on a radioactive suit.
"Don't we need some protection too?" Jade raised an eyebrow.
"No, you won't be in contact with the uranium." Jasmine said.
"And you will be?" Jade asked.
"How did you get uranium anyway?" Kenji asked.
"Internet." She replied as she dropped her face mask down. Walking to the back of the machine, her head disappeared as she bent down. Kenji could hear her flipping on some switches. It started humming as the motor started up. The room grew brighter as the accelerator started glowing. Some sparks started shooting out.
"Ummm, is that suppose to happen?" Jade asked nervously.
Jasmine's head popped back up. "Oh, it just needs some lubrication." Her head disappeared again. Both Jade and Kenji took a step back.
"I don't think it should be smoking." Kenji's voice rose an octave.
Jasmine didn't answer as she reappeared and walked to her siblings. Pulling off her protective face mask, she had a crazy glint in her eye. "Now we see it in action." She pointed a remote at it and pressed a button.
The cylinder started whirling.
"It's alive!" Jasmine shouted with triumphantly. Then in a normal place she added. "I've always wanted to say that."
Kenji and Jade gave her a funny look. But the achievement didn't last long. The lights in the basement flickered and suddenly they were all plunged into darkness.
"Shoot. I must have blown a fuse." Jasmine muttered.
The basement door swung open. "Who's down here?" A flashlight shown in their faces.
It was a policeman.
"Busted." Jade groaned.
0o0
"Where are the children?" Six looked up from his paper.
"Jasmine said they were finishing a project at school." Rebecca said from the kitchen. "I hope they get home soon. Dinner's ready and it's going to get cold."
"That'll probably improve it." Six muttered under his breath.
"What?" Rebecca stuck her head out.
"Nothing." Six said as he hid behind his paper. The doorbell rang. "I'll get it." Six went to the door.
A police officer stood in the doorway with Kenji, Jade, and Jasmine looking sheepish. "Are these yours?"
Six thought about it for a second. "No." He closed the door. "Rebecca, it's for you."
"Six!" Rebecca admonished as she rushed to the door. She swung the door open. "I'm so sorry officer, what seems to be the problem?"
0o0
Six handed his wife some aspirin and water. "You okay?"
Holiday took the medicine and water. "Yeah, I have to be careful what I say, don't I?"
"I think that's a given." Six smirked as he sat down next to her.
"Did you have a talk with them?" She asked.
"Yes. And they promised to never do that again." He said.
"Where did they even get the uranium?" She said as if he didn't say anything.
"Internet." Six said flatly.
"I can't believe they built a real particle accelerator." She went on.
"Actually, Jasmine built it." Six interjected.
"It was really impressive though." Holiday said.
"Yes, it was." Six agreed.
"Thank goodness they aren't going to press charges." Holiday continued.
"We had to pull some strings." Six muttered.
"What am I going to do with them?" Holiday lamented.
"I can see this is distressing you. Why don't I take care of this?" Six said.
"Really?" Holiday looked at her husband.
"Of course." He agreed.
"Thanks. I don't think I can objectively handle this." Holiday said tiredly.
Six nodded. "Don't worry." He walked outside.
He found the children sitting on the couch waiting nervously for their parents. When they saw their father they straightened up.
"What you've done was incredibly stupid, dangerous, and not to mention illegal." Six began sternly. The kids hung their heads. "However," The children looked at him in surprise. "You did get us out of dinner, so although you will be disciplined, I will take that into consideration."
"Does this mean I won't have to wake up 5 in the morning to train?" Kenji asked hopefully.
"I didn't say that." Six stated flatly. Kenji's face fell.
"Kenji, you will run 5 miles every morning before breakfast. Jade, you will be cleaning the bathrooms for a week, and Jasmine, you will be doing yard work for 6 months. Consider yourself lucky that Providence was able to confiscate the uranium before the authorities could." Six paused. "That is all." He left them.
"Phew, we got off easy." Kenji sighed in relief.
"Says you! I hate cleaning the bathrooms… especially yours!" Jade complained.
"I'll make sure it's extra nice for you." Kenji smirked. Jade threw a pillow at him.
"We still need a present for mom." Jasmine spoke up.
The other two looked at her.
"I was thinking that she might like some… fireworks."
Wow, I never expected that this fic would get this much of a following. I'm glad you like it. I'm sorry, however, that I won't be updating much. Right now I'm focused on my other stories. But sometimes I feel like I've exhausted all ideas for this particular story. Then occasionally, my children do something that strikes me or I think of something. Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is it might be a while before the next update.
Thank you for reading.