Disclaimer in chapter 1.
Thanks to all who reviewed and the input!
Episode 2
As Time Goes By
Chapter 7
Natalie and Lucy looked towards the doorframe to find the entire party gathered in the frame looking at the twins. Natalie looked back at Lucy, Natalie already knew Lucy's opinion, and she was just waiting for Natalie's approval.
"We shouldn't." Natalie defended
"Who ever said we couldn't." Lucy spoke up.
"It goes against what we have been taught!" Natalie gave her last stand, Lucy rolled her eyes, she couldn't believe who was defending the teachings of the temporal dynamic class, which was all theory to begin with. "Alright I know, I know look whose talking about temporal dynamics." She glanced back at the curious party at the door, She nodded her slow agreement, and moved to sit next to Lucy on the bed who scooted over to make room.
"You might as well come in and make yourselves comfortable." Lucy offered. "It's a long and complicated story." The party moved in with concerned expressions, Mac took the padded rocker by the window, Harriet and Coates sat perched on the foot of the bed. Natalie and Lucy sat against the bed frame right next to each other, cross legged like they use to do when they were little, putting some distance between them and everybody else. Bud took a seat on the chest at the foot of the bed next to Harriet, the admiral took the old lazy boy in the corner and Harm sat at the wooden chair at the desk. They all moved slowly, concentrated on the twins, who looked lost in thought. Little AJ and Susan were downstairs; they had finished dinner early and feel asleep on the living room couches. The room was silent; they were obviously waiting on the twins to start.
"I guess we should begin by explaining the tattoos." Natalie began holding out her wrist, and Lucy did as well. "We got these tattoos against our own will." Harm and the admiral looked on in concern.
"What do you mean against your will?" Harm asked, Mac looked over at him, giving him a look that read 'patience'.
"We got these when we were taken prisoner?" Lucy explained.
"Prisoner? What did you do?" Harm's couldn't believe his daughter's were in jail.
"I got shot down over enemy territory after chasing two of their aircraft away from our aircraft carriers that they had attacked earlier that week." Explained Natalie.
"I was bombing enemy artillery that was attacking our marines on the ground when I was shot down as well." Explained Lucy, they both looked at their parents. Mac looked flabbergasted as she rested her hands protectively over her stomach, while Harm's jaw just dropped, everybody else looked around in shock.
"Wait, wait… what are you two talking about…?" Bud interrupted Natalie and Lucy looked over at their parents and the admiral, waiting for them to give an explanation. The admiral gave a short and sweet explanation of all that had happened over the past few days, when he was done the Roberts looked back flabbergasted and in awe.
"You mean you two, are those two, just from the 'future'?" Bud clarified. The twins nodded in unification.
"Who is the enemy?" Mac inquired in typical lawyer fashion.
"That we
"But don't you want to prevent this war?" Bud objected. can not disclose." Natalie blurted before Lucy had the opportunity to speak up. "We don't know how much of the future we are effecting by just being here, we can't give away your future our history."
"More than you can imagine." Lucy spoke up.
"But who are we to change history." Natalie defended their actions; they looked at their parents for support.
"In our place it's hard for us to understand, but if roles were reversed, we'd probably take the same action." Harm assured his daughters.
"Can you tell us about the tattoos?" Harriet inquired reaching out to take Natalie's wrist; Natalie cautiously outstretched her arm to Harriet.
"They were a way for the enemy to keep track of the prisoners, you got them when you entered a camp for the first time, that way they can track you." Natalie explained looking at the letters and numbers permanently etched in her skin she cringed.
Natalie is jerked up by the collar of her flight suit, she tries to fight with what little strength she has left, pointless but it at least makes her feel like she tried. One guard holds her wrist as another rolls up the sleeve of her flight jacket, she tries to resist, she has heard the stories from former POWs, and she knows what to expect she can hear the drill. She has to look away as a third guard approaches, the second one is holding her wrist still on the table surface. The first guard forces her to look grabbing her by her hair and whipping her head in the direction, she closes her eyes just as the needle makes contact with her skin.
"Nat…" Lucy reaches out with concern to her sister. "I was just thinking…thinking about the day I was captured."
"What happened to you in that camp?' Harm asked, anger boiling inside him. Lucy wrapped her arms protectively around her sister, Natalie did the same thing, and they hadn't hugged like this since they were little girls. They both started crying, with the exception of mandatory counseling they had never shared their experience with anybody else. The counseling was only a few days after being released from the POW camp, so this was truly their first time to share their experience. Mac read the hurt and pain in her daughter's eyes and the worse case scenarios raced in her mind. The admiral was the first to ask the question plaguing everyone.
"Did they violate you?" Natalie and Lucy both hung their head, their silence confirmed their worse fears. "Did they torture you?" Natalie slowly nodded and everybody grew silent. Tears built up in Mac's eyes, Harriet and Coates were already crying, the men shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. Mac looked into Harm's face and all she could read was pure hatred towards those who inflicted pain upon their daughters.
"Harm…" She barely managed Harm stood up from his seat and in two strides was at the twin's bedside, without even thinking twice he sat on the bed and outstretched his arms, the girls rushed forward into the comfort of their dad's arms and cried, and cried, and cried…
I'm going to end here …pure evil I know, I will add more later I just want some feedback first, but this was just an opportunity to take a break from my studies!