The tiny elderly woman looked up with a tired smile when the X5s and Dakota walked into the pawn shop. "Hello," she called out to them, as she came up to their sides. "How can I help you tonight?" She shot Dakota a smile as she ducked behind Alec's side. "Don't worry, honey, I won't hurt you. I have young ones like you at home."
"She's just shy," Alec said, as he looked around. "We're looking for glasses."
"What kind? Sunglasses? Readings?" She went over to a drawer and pulled out all kind of seeing glasses.
"No, Ma'am," Max started as she put a hand on Alec's arm, as he started to move and shook her head. "He means drinking glasses. We just moved into our new place and the box with our drinking glasses didn't survive the move." Alec looked down at Dakota to see that she had moved away from them to over to where a collection of stuffed animals where. Max watched them out of the corner of her eyes. "We thought that maybe you could help us replace them."
"Of course, sweet heart. I have a lot of selection for you both to choose from."
"Cool," Alec said, as he came up beside Max and slid an arm gently around her waist. "So what we got?" He and Max went over to look at the glasses with the woman while he kept an eye on Dakota as she looked around the store.
The sound of a bell rang as the door opened and laughter brought the X5s' attention up to see a set of red headed children coming into the store. "Grandma," the girl called out, as she rushed up to the woman. "Toby knocked me down." She buried her face into the woman's side. Toby stuck his tongue out at the girl, who was about 8 or 9, who was probably his sister and took off into the back off the store.
"Toby, stop," the woman called out to him, before turning to face Max and Alec. "Would you excuse me for a minute." Then she was gone, leaving the girl alone with them.
"Okay," Alec said softly as he turns to face Max. "So you going back to your place tonight?"
"Probably," Max answered, as she moved more into his side, as she watched the little red-haired girl moved towards Dakota's side. "Now we get to see how Dakota reacts to others her own age."
"Let's just hope she doesn't attack the little one." Max elbowed him in the ribs. "Ow, that wasn't nice, Maxie."
"Behave, 452." She shot him a scowl and he simply smiled at her.
"Hey," the girl called out to Dakota causing her to jump and she quickly spun around to face her. "My name is Katie. What's yours?"
"I'm Pip," Dakota answered, using her nickname rather than her real name. She automatically looked over at her parents searching for signs for them as in what to do. Alec smiled to her telling her that it was okay.
"Pip's a nice name. Are they your parents?" She pointed over at Alec and Max.
"Yeah." Pip crossed her arms over her chest and looked at the girl. She didn't really know what to think of the older girl. "So?"
"Your dad's cute," Katie said, as she moved closer to Dakota's side, and she moved back away from the older girl. "Hey, I'm not going to hurt you kid."
"I'm not worried about me." Alec and Max shot each other a concerned look as they started towards Dakota and Katie. "I'm more worried about you." Katie let out a small laugh.
"You're worried about me. I'm older than you and bigger. You're out of your mind."
"Which one you want?" Alec whispered to Max, as he edged up behind her. "Pip or Katie?"
"I'll take Katie, you take Pip," she answered him, as she watched the scene open ahead of them. "Just remember not to use your speed, honey." He shot her a smile, as he moved over so that he was up behind up behind Pip.
"Just leave me be," Dakota ordered Katie, as she started to back away from the older girl. "I don't want anything to do with you." She then turned, only to have Katie grabbed her arm. Dakota flinched and went into action. Alec rushed forward, slipped an arm around Dakota's waist, and pulled her away from Katie, while Max did the same while Dakota tried to kick the other girl as she did the same. "I told you to leave me alone."
"Why in the heck did you try to attack me?" Katie screamed, as she fought to free herself from Max. "Let me go." She clawed at Max's arm, as she kicked at her, getting some kicks into her legs. "Now, freak." Max froze and so did Alec and Dakota. They stared at Katie. "Let go of me, now. You have no right to touch me freak."
Dakota broke away from Alec's loose grip of her and went up to Katie and slapped her. The sound echoed through the shop. "You can't call my mother that," she snapped, as she looked at Katie with fire in her eyes. "I'm not a freak."
"What's going on here?" the woman said, as she came into the room from the back. "Katie?"
"Grandma they're freaks," she said, as she tore herself from Max's grip and rushed towards them. "All of them. Even the little one." Alec went over to Max's side and placed a hand on the small of her back and was shocked to find her shaking. "I don't want them here. Tell them to go."
"So what if they are who they are?" the woman said, as she looked down at Katie. "That doesn't make then any different." She then looked over at Dakota. "But I've never seen one so young." Dakota then moved over to stand behind Alec. "Katie, why don't you go in the back. I'll be back there as soon as I'm done with these folks." Katie glared at the X5s then ran off into the back. "I'm sorry about her. She's been terrified after the attacks on the news. So have you found any that you like?"
"You're still going to do business with us?" Alec asked, as he shot her a surprised look. "Even after all that has happened?"
"Yes, I'm not one to judge."
"Yes, I think we have found that we like," Max said, as she placed her hand on Alec's arm. "And I think Pip may have found a toy she might like." Alec followed her gaze to the red dragon that Dakota was looking at. "That'll be all for us."
"All get that boxed up for you folks." She began to box up the glasses and turned her back to them.
"How did Katie know that we were who we are?" Alec asked Max in a whisper, as he moved up next to her.
"I saw your bar code," Katie's voice called out from behind him, and he looked up to see her. "I'm not that dumb. I put two and two together."
"Katie, that's enough," the woman said, and Katie went into the back. "Sorry about that." She then handed the box to Alec, after he paid for it. "Please don't come again. I don't want any more trouble."
"Oh course, Ma'am," Alec said, as they headed out side and then for home. "Okay, that didn't go the way I wanted it to.
"No, it didn't," Max said, as she gently picked up Dakota who wrapped her arms around her neck and held her new dragon the crook of her arm. "This isn't going to be an easy life, Alec."
"I never said that it would be an easy life, Max." They turned a corner and froze at the sight of a group of people with stick and chains coming towards them. "I don't think that they are friendly folks."
"Get the freaks," the leader said, as the horde started towards the them.
A little cliffy here.
TBC
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