A/N: I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. I know I did. I got a kitten!!!!! I've been begging for one since my last cat passed away, so now I have my little Mara Jade (a name that only makes sense if you, like me, adore Star Wars).
Also, assume that when alone together (i.e. without Kimberly) Sam and Dannie speak Yiddish unless otherwise noted. I would write the conversations in Yiddish, but I thought you might find that tedious to try to figure out what was going on.
I was planning on more Don time this chapter, but I leave in the morning and won't be back until next week, and I really wanted to get this out for you guys before I leave.
REVIEW RESPONSES: To FindaHappyPlace: thank you! I'm glad you're enjoying it. Dannie is very advanced, but unfortunately, not Charlie. Here' the update. To Rogue Honey: Yeah, I don't envy either Don or Sam. Thanks. To luvnumb3rs: I'm glad you're sticking with it. this story is going to be Sam and Don centric, so there will be other characters (especially Charlie and Alan, as they will be majorly affected by everything the twins do), but they will not be focused on. The first five chapters are all happening in two days, where major emotional journeys are going on for Sam and Don, neither of whom are very open about their feelings, so don't expect them to be very chatty with their friends about what they are going through. Charlie and/or the team should pop up in chapter six, but as of now, just enjoy the Sam/Kimberly/Dannie set up and Don's little discovery. To Printandpolish: I'm glad you're enjoying it. Thank you so much; it is difficult, so I'm glad to read that I'm pulling it off well. I'm trying not to make it too AU/OOC, so I hope I'm managing that as well. To Ash-rox: thank you! Merry Christmas to you too! To DD2: thank you! Here's the update. To KJFlygirl87: thank you. Here's more!
Homecoming
Chapter 5:
Once Sam finally managed to get Kimberly and Dannie off her back about the supposed relationship she had with Anthony Brune (the two got so far as to name their three children), the subject switched to Dannie, who was pleased to announce she passed all hr classes with top marks and to inform them of who failed what and the prank Melanie and Katie played on Headmistress Waterfield that landed them in detention for three weeks.
Sam usually enjoyed spending time with Kimberly, but that night she just wished Kimberly would go home; eventually she did, giving each a peck on the cheek and commanding Sam to give her a ring in the afternoon to finalize plans for the holiday parties Sam had been invited to.
Dannie immediately went to the piano to practice her latest concerto piece. Sam jumped in to correct her from time to time, but mostly sat and listened to Dannie play. It was refreshing to hear someone besides herself play, and especially lovely to hear Dannie play.
At eleven, after playing to duets, Sam sent Dannie to bed.
Once she was sure Dannie was asleep in bed, Sam went into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of brandy. She rested the cool glass on her forehead between sips. Sam couldn't figure out what it was about Anthony Brune that had gotten her so riled. It couldn't have been Kimberly's and Dannie's teasing – she'd endured worse with Donnie. Steven was the easiest scapegoat of course, but Sam knew it was more than that. She polished off her second glass of brandy and poured a third, going into the living room. Sam had innumerable tchotchkes littering her flat, and intermixed with them were photographs. Photos of Steven and Sam's family were placed around the room on a higher level than the others.
She picked up her favorite of Steven and her, taken the night he proposed. God, they were happy that night and every night after until the accident. Her eyes were already filled with tears. The accident had been all her fault. They'd fought, and she'd stormed off, and he'd died. She didn't even know how the discussion over whether or not to tell her family had become a fight. She sniffled and brushed away the tears, trying to stop the flow to no avail. She never thought of that night. Never. She learned a long time ago that it was the only way she could survive.
She collapsed onto her piano bench and picked up her favorite photo of her brothers. In a rare moment of brotherly and sisterly love, captured forever by their mother's camera, the twins were teaching Charlie how to bat (since they had already discovered he couldn't throw straight). Don was guiding Charlie for the swing while Sam wound up to pitch. She often thought of them as they were, reminiscing on old times like that, but more and more recently, she couldn't help but wonder how her baby brother had grown, how her twin had gotten along for the near two decades they'd been apart. It was in those times when she lost it completely.
She set the picture back on top of her piano, where she kept it, as the sobs began to rack her body. She tried being quiet, tried not to wake Dannie, but nothing could stop Dannie from waking when she slumped onto the piano, causing a loud bang crash from the keys.
She didn't hear Dannie's bedroom door open, or her soft footsteps as she made her way over to the piano, but she did feel Dannie's small arms wrap around her torso and her soft whispers of "don't cry, mummy."
They somehow made it to the couch, with Dannie's face buried in Sam's chest and her arms clutching onto her mother for dear life.
Hours later, Dannie was asleep on top on her mother, curled in a ball, but Sam lay awake, looking at the ceiling. Long after the sun had risen, Sam was still awake.
"Dannie, Dannie, wake up," she whispered and nudged her daughter.
"What time is it?" she muttered, still asleep.
"Nine in the morning." Dannie picked her head off Sam's chest and looked around, before focusing on her mother.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm going to be. C'mon, I'll make breakfast."
"You cook?" Dannie asked after getting up. They went into the kitchen.
"Yes, I cook. I'll have you know I make the best reheated scones in the western hemisphere."
"I don't think that counts as cooking, Mum."
"Counts, schmounts, it's cooking," Sam waved off her daughter's insults and threw the scones into the microwave. Once they were finished, she sent them on the kitchen counter where two stools were, one of which was already filled by Dannie.
"Mum," Dannie looked at her mother. "Are you having a breakdown?"
"What?"
"Are you having a breakdown? Jessica Monroe's mother had one a few months ago."
"Who is Jessica Monroe?"
"A girl at school – actually I think she's a bitch – "
"Danielle!"
"You and Aunt Kimberly call people that."
"Aunt Kimberly and I also can sign legally binding contracts."
"Anyway, she was telling Amanda (who thinks she's absolutely fascinating) about how her mother had this breakdown where she was in tears one moment, raging the next, and then fine a second later."
"Well, I'm not having a breakdown like Jessica's Monroe's mother, thank you." Dannie's expression told her that she wasn't believed, but Dannie didn't say another word. "I want to go home," she said a moment later.
"Mum… we are home… do I need to call Aunt Kimberly?"
"I want to go home to Los Angeles."
"Are you serious?"
"Yes."
"For Chanukah?"
"Yes."
"When do we leave?"
-
Don stayed up all night reading her biography and music information and staring at her pictures. She certainly wasn't the same crazy haired tomboy she'd once been. He couldn't get one glimpse of his niece – all of her pictures were of herself and one, the album cover of 'Close to Heart' had her ringed left hand clutching the chain of a delicate heart shaped locket with the Star of David etched into the face. He had given it to her as a gift for her Bat Mitzvah; he couldn't believe she still held onto it.
Facts ran through his mind as he shut down his computer sometime around sunrise and walked out to his car. He didn't go to his apartment or to the house. Instead, he just drove around the city, like a lost boy wandering through the woods.
Finally, he parked his car. The music store on the opposite side of the street was just opening, and even the worried last minute shoppers hadn't managed to get there.
He slowly got out and walked across the street. Entering the building, he wandered around, not really sure where he should look.
"Can I help you?" the poor tired-looking, pimply-faced kid who got roped into working early that Saturday morning asked.
"Yeah, I'm looking for CDs by Samantha Mann."
The boy gave him an odd look but led him to where the CDs were. "Not many people come looking for her stuff, especially dudes."
"My sister," Don mumbled.
"Christmas gift, yeah, should have figured. Well, here you go." He indicated to the sectioned separated out for her music. "I'll be up front when you're ready to check out."
Seven CDs in nine years, the music store had all of them, except for the French one, but he hadn't expected to be able to buy that.
"You must really love your sister," the boy commented as he rang up the six CDs.
"Something like that."
Don paid and left, jogging over to his car and getting in. He didn't start it right away; instead, he opened the first CD and looked for the words he'd already memorized from the website.
"In loving memory of my mother, Margaret, and of my wonderful fiancé, Steven – I love you both for eternity.
"Dedicated to my baby girl for whom I live.
"My greatest thanks to my brothers (especially my twin) and father – these songs are for you, to Kimberly who keeps me sane and well nourished, to my producers for believing in this poor American Jew, to everyone who I may have forgotten, thank you."
-
A/N: Yiddish dictionary:
Schmounts: to add "sch" to the beginning of a word makes fun of the idea (i.e. "counts, schmounts" would be like saying "psh, who cares?")
Tchotchkes: knickknacks (i.e. statuettes, decorative souveniers)
Star of David: the six pointed star used as a symbol of Judaism in reference to King David of Judea, son of Jesse the shepherd, slayer of Goliath, writer of the Psalms, father of Solomon.