You were with her as a child. You were with her as an infant. Now join Spirit on her passageway to adulthood in "Goes A Long Way". Once again, I don't own Six, Rex, or any of Man of Action's characters, locations, or machinery. If I did, Six and Rex would be having A LOT more sex…
Spirit reached out for her father's stern yet oddly gentle face only to have it crumble and turn to dust at her touch. It was as though he had grown so old that he merely ceased to exist. Her papa's charming smile was frozen on his face and she just knew that if she touched him he too would crumble and disappear.
She took in his appearance…
He was so old…
Just like her father…
'Why?'
Spirit looked around and saw that everyone in her family had aged drastically, even the youngest of her siblings! Her blood ran cold when she looked into a mirror and saw that she was still eighteen. A strong, frigid wind blew through the void and did away with the stone-like figures of her family.
Spirit fell to her knees before the mirror and screamed in silent agony. Her whole world disappeared just like that. In the blink of an eye it was all gone and she was left alone for an eternity.
The young woman awoke, bolting upright and sobbing violently as she flopped over into her side in a ball.
In the blink of an eye…
Her life changed in the blink of an eye…
It had been nearly six months since it happened…
Spirit eventually uncurled from her little ball of comfort and lay there numbly on her side. She looked to the clock on her nightstand. It was 2:30AM… This was becoming a habit of hers.
The constant nightmares were leaving her angry and hollow. Spirit never felt so empty and alone in her life!
The image on her screen switched from a "window" to a picture of her family. Everyone was in it, even grandma and Abuela. Spirit's lower lip quivered as she prayed for the millionth time for Cesar and Holiday to find some sort of answer…
Until then, there was only the attempt to enjoy life and the future promise of endless pain. Spirit sighed and ran her hands through her messy curls, as though she could yank the depressing thoughts from her brain. The image shifted into a "window" to the outside world. She stared at her simulated window, the screen though which White's fat old face typically appeared, and closed her eyes with a silent groan.
Spirit was back to seeing the same therapist that she had seen as a child. In fact, she had a session in a couple of days. It would be nice to share some of this pain with someone. She hesitated to do so with her fathers. They had enough to worry about. Though she loved her younger siblings, Spirit often wondered why they felt the need to adopt six of them.
'Was I not enough?'
She remembered the days when it was her that snuck into their bed…
Now it was Evy and James that did this. Sometimes even Armando and/or Rosa would sneak in, but it was usually the twins. The two-year-old "kittens" seemed to crave warmth and comfort on an almost nightly basis. Armando and Rosa needed that familiar feel of added warmth when they slept. They used to sneak into bed with their mom and dad when they were alive…
Lily was the one who snuck into Spirit's bed. The four-year-old was no fool. She knew that her sister was different from the rest. Six may be better skilled. Rex may be much stronger. But Spirit had an endless future.
The teen wasn't sure if she should find her little sister's comfort-seeking flattering or heart wrenching. Even if she found it heart wrenching who was she more broken hearted for? The little girl whose premonition powers caused her parents' death or her for an eternity of loneliness after an all too brief lifetime of love…
Spirit rubbed her eyes and sighed again…
She was being morbid…
Spirit sat up and stretched, wondering if her granny could use some help in the kitchen today. She decided to stop in later and see if she would appreciate some culinary company. For now, Spirit felt restless and needed to train. She quickly changed into a pair of yoga pants and a plain turquoise T-shirt then headed to the dojo. The young woman pulled her hair chin-length hair back into a ponytail and began to train silently on her own with her folding katana.
Spirit trained for a good two hours. The burning pain in her muscles soothed her restless mind. She all but collapsed as she decided to meditate for an hour. Her chest rose up and down furiously as she progressively slowed her breathing. Her mind eventually went quieted from a dull, yet painful roar to silent serenity. The nightmare was placed on the backburner but it forever haunted her mind…
She eventually rose from her lotus position on the floor and headed to her bathroom for a quick shower. The teen caught sight of her many scars. Most of them were from when she had been experimented on as a child. Some of them were newer and came from the many times she had accompanied her fathers to an EVO battle.
As a child she thought little of appearances and didn't mind her scars. As a teen, she was mortified. They were hideous! She stared at the one across her throat and wanted nothing more than to head butt the mirror or something. Punching it just didn't seem a strong enough expression of hate.
Spirit sighed and forced herself to look away.
'Since when did I become so shallow?'
The shower, or artificial rain, as she liked to think of it, was her favorite place to think. It was the only place that was totally hers in this crazy, child filled military base. Spirit's mind drifted towards a hopeful future. One where she wasn't destined to outlive everyone she loved. One where she found love and had children of her own…
Spirit had long since decided that she would train her children in martial arts and meditation just as her father had. Six trained her so that she would be able to defend herself in the terribly violent world that they lived in. It was Spirit's hope that the war would finally end. The EVOs were human once again. She would be human. There was no dire need to train her children but she wanted the knowledge and tradition of her father and "grandfather" to live on.
She wanted their unfortunate legacy of violence to become one of strength and honor. Spirit was never fortunate enough to have met One but she knew, she just knew that he was a good person deep down. He had to be if he took so many orphans in…
So she wanted his memory to live on…
Or more importantly, she wanted her father's memory to live on…
Spirit wasn't quite sure how to preserve her papa's memory…
'Maybe I could write about our family. That way everyone will live on even if it is only on paper…'
She shook her head. She was depressing herself again. So Spirit finished her shower and changed into black yoga pants, hot pink sneakers, and a turquoise tank top that had a lotus cut out of the side. She used her cherry blossom hairclip and a series of bobby pins to pin her unruly, wet curls up and out of the way. Spirit grabbed her keys, sent a note to her fathers, and headed to her secret hiding spot.
Her daddy went all out when she got her license…
He bought and helped her restore a 1956 Chevy Coupe classic car just like his. While Six's was emerald green, Spirit's was sapphire blue.
Spirit LOVED her car.
She didn't think she could love anything as much as she loved her violin. She was surprisingly wrong… This thing was just as much her baby as Magic Fluffball was. Spirit smiled as she thought of the old cat. He was likely asleep on Six's head or something. The overly affectionate feline still adored the frequently grumpy old man. Spirit smiled as she uncovered her car and took off.
It was a lovely drive to grandmother's house, so to speak. The only "wolf" she knew of was her beloved uncle, Conri, who was more than likely tucked away in bed, drooling on his pillow. He and his wife…
Yeah…
It's amazing but Holiday and Conri had been married for couple of years now. Holiday had wanted just one normal day. She just wanted one day where she could slip out of her lab coat and slip into something beautiful. She wanted to feel beautiful. Surprisingly, Conri decided that the best way of doing that was getting her into a wedding dress.
The hacker was not the "commitment" or "marrying type", but dammit! He loved that woman for all that he was worth!
Holiday was utterly speechless for a change…
They got married at sunset on Cabo Luna and it was perfect. Holiday looked like an angel in a simple white dress with a bouquet of lavender roses and her hair down in lose elegant curls.
Spirit had hoped that she would look that beautiful on her wedding day but that dream was dead before it was even born…
'Ugh…'
She turned on the radio to some George Phillip Telemann and attempted to drown out her morbid thoughts with his lovely, upbeat viola concerto. Spirit took the scenic route with a sigh. She found it sad to see how people tried to turn the desert into something it was not. Arizona was meant to be dry and sandy. It was not meant to have lush green grass nor support the kinds of foliage that people decided to plant. Transforming it into lush, green suburbia detracted from the natural beauty of the desert in all its red rock and gold sand.
Spirit pulled up just before the Cajun Moon was set to open. There was a pretty blonde. She had tan skin, beach curls, and a willowy figure. The blonde wore jeans and a black T-shirt with the café's crescent moon logo on the back. She was undoubtedly a waitress.
Spirit watched with a frown for a moment as the other girl wiped down the tables. She paused to pull her unruly hair out of her cerulean eyes and into a messy bun
'She looks familiar…'
Spirit stepped out of her car and set its alarm with an obnoxious "beep". The blonde looked up and her jaw dropped when she saw the girl coming out of the car. The noirette blushed a bit. She still wasn't used to the looks her car got her. It was unusual to see a "kid" with a classic car.
People see it and automatically think "money" and "privilege". Spirit had money but it came at the price of her freedom. Working at Providence was no privilege. It was a nightmare of uncertainty and paranoia.
Spirit headed for the door only to have it opened for her by the red-faced, cheerful waitress.
"H-Hello! Welcome to Cajun Moon. I'm Alex and I'll be your waitress today," Alex choked out.
The blonde jumped as she heard Rosemary's laughter. She turned and gave her boss a curious look.
"Alex, this is, Spirit, my granddaughter. She's here to help this old lady in the kitchen," Rosemary said fondly, "Those siblings of yours driving you nuts?"
Spirit sighed and nodded.
"Well, let's get an apron on you and get you to work."
Spirit grinned and quickly followed her grandmother.
Alex felt as though she wanted to scream! She was getting to spend the day with her crush! Well, they would be working but still…
'She's so much prettier when she gets to smile…'
In all those cell phone videos and news reports, Spirit never smiled. She never looked free or happy, just relieved. She looked so light hearted when she smiled. It was beautiful. She wanted to do everything with Spirit…
Caress her skin and trace her scars…
Tell her that she was beautiful…
Celebrate her triumphs…
Mourn her losses…
But mostly the exploring her skin thing…
"Alex! Get a move on, girl," Rosemary called as she saw the starry-eyed blonde lost in her daydreams.
Spirit came alive in the kitchen from what Alex could see from the dining room. She hoped that she'd get the chance to talk to her or something… Maybe she'd grill Rosemary about her granddaughter and see just who she's crushing on and what she was dealing with.
Alex sighed and continued to wipe down tables. This had been done the night before but Rosemary was a fastidious woman when it came to cleanliness and organization. She liked everything fresh smelling. The cleaner the overall smell of the café, the more it enabled the aroma of the food to be enjoyed as the clients ate their fill.
So she continued to clean the tables…
It didn't matter much to her that she had to do this so often. It helped her arms to stay in shape. Alex wasn't fit like Spirit but she wasn't skin and bones either. She looked to the opened shutters that acted as a kind of divider between the dining area and the kitchen. Spirit worked with a sad smile on her lovely face.
Alex pouted a bit and wondered what was weighing her down…
Meanwhile, Six awoke from an afternoon nap with that damn cat curled up on his head. It made him feel old but it was the only way the twins would agree to go to sleep. They were in that annoying "why" and "no" stage where they argued everything. He found it mildly horrifying that children seem to regress back to this stage once they hit puberty.
Spirit was relatively easy to deal with. She was a determined and disciplined child. It was almost disturbing how well behaved she was… Six knew it had something to do with her abandonment issues. She hadn't worked all of them out with her therapist. Some lingering fear of not being good enough remained despite the love and affection she had been showered with.
The agent swatted the cat off of his head and received a swat on the nose in return. He muttered in sleepy annoyance. Rex giggled as he watched the two of them lazily bat at each other.
"Hn?" Six grunted as he glared blearily at his husband.
"I never thought I'd see the day where my sexy ninja was taken out by his daughter's cat."
The older man yawned, "He fights dirty…"
Rex chuckled. The toddlers between them began to squirm and fidget in their sleep. It was just about time for them to wake up. James stretched in his sleep; his shirt rode up and exposed his little stomach. Rex smirked and blew raspberries on his two-year-old's stomach. The boy shrieked with joy and came alive. Evy startled her papa by tickling his side.
Rex yelped and popped up only to be doubled teamed by his twins. Six lazily watched his husband being tickle attacked by the two hyper kittens.
"Six!" Rex cried out.
"James. Evangeline," Six said in a calm, yet serious tone.
The two-year-olds sprang away from their red faced papa. Rex sat up and quite frankly was a little annoyed at their children's willingness to obey Six like little soldiers. They never did that for him! Then again, he didn't have the heart to command them. He was the fun daddy after all…
Sure, Rex could do serious…
He could do discipline…
He often did…
But Six was just so much scarier at it…
A note appeared on their screen with a "blip".
'I'm cooking with gram-gram in town. Text me a dinner request!
-Love,
S'
Six frowned when he saw the time stamp. It was 8AM. He knew his daughter well enough to know that whenever she had a nightmare she would train and meditate to calm her. It was as though she would find the answers to all of life problems at the end of a sword. Six had lived that way when he was her age. It took him ten years to realize that life was much more complex than that. It took him twenty years to find a reason and a will to live.
He looked to his beloved husband…
Rex was his reason to live. So were their children. His life had been so empty and so painful. Each life he took left him emptier… Quite frankly it amazed him that someone was wonderful as Rex fell in love with him. What did he see in him? It was still a question that would run through his mind from time to time.
Rex gave his husband a questioning look as Six's eyes had softened a touch despite being tired and mildly grumpy. The two loves shared a tender kiss. The twins looked on with bored expressions. They were totally over with staying in bed. It was time to play!
Impatient little voices urged the two men to get up and play. Rex instead flopped back down into the bed and began to snore loudly.
"Ooof!"
He found himself being dog piled upon by the two kittens and tickled again. It was their favorite way of waking him. They did it to daddy too but Six didn't react as hysterically as Rex did. The Latino had the funniest giggle when he was being tickled. It was like a high pitched hyena wail. Six just chuckled and quickly evaded them only to turn the tables. They had no idea what hit them when they suddenly found that they had lost control of the situation and were in the receiving end of their father's tickling.
Evy pouted up at Six, "Up, up up!"
"Up, up, up!" James demanded, a little more urgently.
Six gave them a stern look, which they withered under a bit, "Let me contact your sister first. She's bringing home dinner."
Rex shouted something about crawfish as he chased after the hyper toddlers. They were inherently drawn to the aging cat. Magic Fluffball was having none of it. He didn't mind the twins most times but every once and a while he would either run away and hide or take up his perch on Six's shoulders like some sort of living stole. Six had long accepted the eccentric cat's habit. The agent didn't even bother to stretch or shake him off as he got out of bed.
Claws bit delicately into the bare flesh around his neck as he made his way to the bathroom. Rex fought his amusement. It was always funny to see how his harsh and stoic husband had changed over the years. Six was even catering to a cat!
It was kind of adorable…
"Do you think we should visit Rosemary's?" Rex asked.
Six was silent for a moment…
"Carino?"
Rex popped his head into the bathroom only to see Six with chipmunk cheeks as he swished mouthwash about. The Latino said nothing as he began to brush his teeth as well. Six nearly rolled his eyes as he heard the twins jumping up and down on their bed in the adjoining room.
"I think Spirit wanders off for a reason…" Six finally replied.
"She neds to haf faif dhat yey'll fine oan answer," Rex
The older man raised an eyebrow, "Come again."
"She needs to have faith that they'll find an answer…"
"Nightmares are a tricky thing… They bring to light all the darkness you try to hide."
"Well, how did you overcome yours?"
Six looked to him and raised an eyebrow…
"Me?!"
The older man blushed and looked away with a lazy shrug, "I was no longer alone after you… I was loved…"
The Latino's eyes positively lit up as he pulled his husband into a kiss. Magic Fluffball bopped him on the forehead as he got too close to the cat's comfy resting spot. He broke the kiss with a giggle and squeezed Six's ass before James and Evy came running in, begging to play outside.
"Out! Daddy, out!" James begged.
Evy merely nodded enthusiastically next to him.
"I agree that we should give Spirit her space, but why don't we have a picnic in the park across from Rosemary's? She can join us if she likes," Rex said.
Six sighed and reluctantly agreed.
He had the feeling that their daughter was pulling away from them a bit, which was understandable. She was a young woman now and nowhere near as dependent on them as she once had been.
But still…
She was his baby girl and she was so precious to him. All he wanted was for her to be happy. If exploring the world around her and beyond on her own was a step towards happiness then he'd gladly see her off to wherever her life may lead. He just hoped that it would lead her back home once and a while.
"Come on, let's go round up the kids," Six finally said.
"Should we invite anyone else?"
"On a Saturday?"
"…True… Think we could arrange a date night? Just the two of us? Or maybe we should invite Spirit… I'm sure she misses having our full attention to some extent…"
"Already planned it. Spirit requested D-I-S-N-E-Y W-O-R-L-D."
Rex laughed, "Okay! Just so the kids don't find out…"
"What?" Evy asked anxiously.
"Nothing, pumpkin," Six said as he picked her up, "Let's go find your brothers and sisters."
Magic Fluffball scrambled off of his shoulders and landed on the bathroom counter. He promptly curled up in the sink to continue his nap. It was always a chore, gathering up the children. Providence was massive and the children weren't one for staying in one place. They often roamed the halls causing mischief, begging someone to play, or in Rosa and Lily's case, giving out flowers.
'This was so much easier with one child…'
Spirit tended to follow them around like a curious kitten until she discovered the library and began spending more time there or in the dojo. Either way, unless particularly enthralled Spirit was a good and eager listener. She would come when called and not try to run off and giggle like a loon on a sugar high or be in the middle of plotting her next prank.
'We were so spoiled by how well behaved she was…' Six thought tiredly.
It was still early for dinner but that didn't mean that the kids couldn't play in the park. It was a bright sunny day and the fountains were bound to be shooting nice cool water into the air for children and childish adults to run under. Six was fully prepared to deal with a soggy mess. He took his government issued SUV rather than his sleek emerald baby.
His sleek emerald baby was only for date night. There was no way he was going to fit six hyper kids in it much less six soaking wet hyper kids. Not even Spirit used her car to cart the kids. She saved that for whenever she wanted to go shopping with the women of the family. Yes, by women he secretly included Cesar. The mad scientist loved shopping.
Rosemary heard familiar voices at the entrance. She stepped out of the kitchen and quickly scooped up her grandchildren into a big group hug. Rosemary affectionately ruffled Jack's hair. She was particularly fond of the little troublemaker. He reminded her of a certain green-clad foster son…
Jack absolutely adored his grammy and Abuela! They were the only non-pranksters who truly seemed to appreciate his talents…
They ordered a substantial amount of food and attempted to pay for it but Rosemary sternly refused so Six looked around for one of her waitresses. His eyes fell upon a tan, willowy blonde that kept staring at his daughter…
"Excuse me," Six ground out, not exactly thrilled by the girl's attentions, "slip all of this into the till when you get the chance."
Alex gave him a confused and slightly frightened look…
"Rosemary refused to let us pay," Rex offered, trying to lighten the mood, "She's my mother-in-law…"
"O-Okay?"
Alex nervously accepted Six's money and sneakily slipped it into the till. She watched the couple nervously and tried to ignore their children's curious glances. The poor girl could just tell that her face was beet red by how hot her cheeks felt.
The Latino was so much friendlier than his husband. He was actually pretty charming too, so how did he wind up with such an old grump for a husband? Alex's eyes widened in mild surprise as the older man smiled and held the door open for his husband and their kids. The warm look in the younger man's eyes spoke of someone who was completely and utterly in love…
She sighed dreamily…
It was so beautiful…
"We'll be at the park across the street, please bring us our food and tell Spirit where we'll be if she wants to join us," Rex requested.
"Uh… Sure," Alex replied awkwardly.
She nervously made her way into the kitchen where Spirit was stirring a massive pot of gumbo.
"Uh… Hi," Alex awkwardly muttered, her face growing redder by the minute.
Spirit gave her a curious look and wondered if the blond was unwell. She pressed her free hand to the girl's forehead to feel for a fever. The poor girl was very warm but so was the entire room. Spirit jumped when the girl gently captured her hand brought it away from her forehead.
"Um… Your d-dads are here with your brothers and sisters. T-They're in the park."
Spirit's heart plummeted into her stomach and she took a step away from Alex. The poor girl was afraid of her! She nodded and looked down as she felt stubborn tears stinging her eyes, waiting to be shed.
Spirit still wasn't used to the attention that her "fame" garnered. Some people admired her for her skill and ability to heal. But many seemed to fear her…
"Er… I-I'll just…"
Alex scrambled out of the kitchen with a racing heart.
She couldn't help but smile though…
'I talked to her!'
"Order up!" Rosemary called out, "Spirit, sweetheart, why don't you take a break and spend some time with your…fathers… Are you alright?"
Spirit bit her lip and nodded.
She gathered up her family's things and headed out.
The sensation of arms wrapping around his torso was the first thing that Six noticed when greeted by his daughter. The food set out on the picnic blanket came second. He placed a hand on top of her head and the look she gave him was heart wrenching.
It was all boiling over and pouring out. She was terrified of spending the rest of her unnaturally long life alone. Most people outside of her family either wanted to take her apart and study her or wanted to use her in some other way. The healer had many powerful and dangerous connections thanks to working for Providence.
Her childhood was happy though far from normal and certain aspects that she had been blind to as a child were now becoming more and more apparent. She was just as much a tool and a prisoner of Providence as the next person. No amount of running would ever truly set her free…
Six patiently held his eldest as Rex looked up from his game of Red Light, Green Light. The twins were the first ones out as two-year-olds don't seem to know the meaning of the words "stand still".
Six shook his head, indicating that he had this. Rex quickly ended the game with Rosa as the victor. Jack was the first to race over to the food. Lily seemed distracted… She stared at the blonde figure in Cajun Moon's window. The little girl quickly joined her depressed sister on the blanket.
"She's not scared," she said frankly.
Spirit gave her cryptic sister a confused look but received no further answers. Still, her heart felt just a little bit lighter. She gave her a sad smile and wrapped an arm around her small form. The small girl snuggled into her warmth to ward off the chilly night air.
Spirit's smile grew…
Where there was Lily there was hope…
As I mentioned to one of my readers before… I will NEVER abandon these. My posts are getting slower because I am looking for a new job. The company I work for is facing financial difficulties and is being sued. So I want out. I am ALSO applying to teach English in Japan through the JET program. There is A LOT that goes into that… If/when I go to Japan, I will STILL be working on these stories.