AN: Hi! Thanks for continuing to read. This is going to be a long story, so please bear with the character development. I've also written these chapters very quickly, so I haven't had much time to edit typos and such. Apologies. Would love to hear what you think, so review away.

JJJJJ

Chapter 3

The front entry burst open with new life. Laughter and the echoes of children filtered up the grand staircase, down the long hallway, and into the last room on the left. Jessica looked up from her book and then to the window curiously. The others must have finally returned.

The field excursion was to last two weeks in Scotland, the children visiting the west coast and major cities. They were to see castles and lochs and munros, learn the proper history of the Scot-England conflict lasting hundreds of years, and eat local delicacies the set of youngsters probably turned their collective nose at. The girl smiled briefly when she peered out of the bay window onto the gravel driveway below. Mr. Whammy was exiting the car, seemingly delegating the collection of luggage abandoned by his charges. Miss Roberts was out to greet him, her cheery face bobbing up and down in conversation with the old man. Jessica pulled back from the window as the clacking of shoes trailed into the hallway. Doors banged and loud chatter filled the air.

The past ten days was quiet in the house. Andrew and BB were off doing other things, leaving the girl alone to idle in the library, which on its own was immense. The space was even bigger than her grandfather's it seemed, and she immediately delved into the selection placed on her bookshelf in her bedroom. English authors from Victorian Era to the Renaissance – classics from Dickens to Shakespeare among lesser known entities – flittered across her fingers as she perused which novel she might start with this year. There was surely plenty to occupy Jessica's time for the entire summer, if she was content enough.

But stories were only a past time, as were the walks she would take in the garden when the weather permitted. Already, the summer was warm and dry, drier than expected this time of year. She missed her friends in Switzerland, with whom she would play silly games, scare boys, and idly gossip. She missed her grandmother's cookies and the rounds of poker surrounding by old gentlemen. She missed her grandfather most of all. That thought alone reminded her of the foreboding shadow, and a renewed anger surfaced. If she only just consented to the visit, then she would be there and not here, alone, in a large house with two strange boys.

Andrew was polite though and cute. He would greet her in the morning at breakfast with a fixed smile that made his blue eyes sparkle and altogether seemed a bit too mature for his age. The greeting, at first, made Jessica blush furiously, as a boy had never formally received her before, let alone pulled a chair out for her. He kept their conversation simple after the dissertation the first day they met, and instead they played cards and built puzzles when he was ready for a break. A break from what, Jessica wondered, but the boy was rather elusive on the subject, shutting himself up in his room during the afternoons.

BB was a different kettle of fish. Quiet and shy, he traversed the halls silently, spying on everything and nothing all at once. He generally had nothing to say outside of observations murmured aloud, more for himself than anyone else. He usually spent his time hunched over complex games, positioning himself like an owl surveying his domain. He had a penchant for jam, Jessica observed, and would always have a spread with crackers for lunch. He must be younger than Andrew, she surmised, for all of his childlike behavior that seemed at odds with the budding wisdom emanating from the other child. But that also meant he was extremely smart, given how quickly and easily he solved three dimensional brain teasers, or when he keenly observed Mr. Ruvie in an error from the doorway. The attention made him smile, but also chased him away.

One day, Jessica was alone in the sitting room bored and lonely. It had only been her fifth day, and she could already feel the regret tug at her heartstrings. Around her neck was an oval golden locket gifted on her fifth birthday. It was the one piece of jewelry she was allowed to always wear, for the inside of the pendant held pictures of her grandparents, forever there to look after her. She opened it, stroking the edge fondly when a shadow loomed over her shoulder.

Jessica glanced back in surprise to find BB staring at the pendant, his eyes wild behind his tousled dark bangs. On such close inspection, she could see the ruby tint against the rim of his otherwise black irises, seemingly made purer by the pristine white of his eyes. He adjusted himself, a frown etching his delicate, thin lips.

"BB, what ar-"

"He is going to die very soon."

All sound lodged in her throat as Jessica gaped back at the boy. He smelled of laundry detergent and baby powder, his babyish expression completely oblivious to his surroundings. BB sat back on his haunches to gander out the window as though nothing was ever said, as though the statement was yet another observation only meant for his ears.

"How could you say such a terrible thing?" She managed, a thick lump forming in the space that was just blocked. The boy glanced her way unsure, his fingers tugging at the seams of his trousers. Jessica's brows knit together, anger seeping into her words, "Didn't your parents teach you any manners?!"

His eyes widened just a fraction, and BB removed himself from the windowsill in silence. Instantly, Jessica realized her mistake, and she whirled around before he reached the door.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it that way, BB."

But it was too late, his frame clipping the door panel on his way out. The shy boy was never in the same room alone with her again for the following week.

Jessica felt the need to climb down from her private quarters and meet the others she has heard so little about, aside from their names. Miss Roberts passed her in the hallway and smiled broadly, "Do be a dear and head downstairs. Mr. Whammy is there to meet you."

She nodded and trotted down the stairs, hooked a right and headed back up toward Mr. Ruvie's office.

"Hello, Miss Lambert," Mr. Whammy grinned from his place beside the large, oak desk. His puffy, oval face was hidden in part by a pair of spectacles and a white bushy mustache. He bent slightly toward the girl, "I am pleased you chose to come for the summer."

She returned the smile and shook his hand lightly, her disposition better than she first arrived, "Thank you for having me, Sir."

He ushered her back to the hallway, "I assume you are settled? I spoke with your grandfather last month. He seems well."

Jessica nodded as they turned in the doorway to the sitting room, a group of children already waiting for them.

"Ah, here we are," Mr. Whammy began warmly, "Everyone, this is Jessica. She will be our special guest, so I expect each and every one of you to treat her well during her stay."

Before her were three children seated on the couch facing them, all considerably older. The two girls sat side by side in identical dresses, save the color – one was blue and the other was green. The girls themselves wore ponytails, but that was where the similarities ended. The girl in green was tall and dark-skinned, her pearly teeth gleaming with her smile. The girl in blue, smaller in stature and white as snow, pursed her lips as though in thought, her eyes narrowed on the youngster in front of her. To their left sat a blonde boy, lanky from a teenage growth spurt, acknowledging in her with a smirk.

"C, where is L?"

The girl in blue redirected her attention to Mr. Whammy, keeping her eye contact with Jessica intact, "He is in the game room."

The old man hummed in knowledge and dismissed the teens, taking Jessica's hand in retreat. He looked down to her, "There are two sets of children here as I am sure you have already noticed. Those three," he motioned back to the sitting room "are near completing their stay, and the other three are just starting their journey."

"How long have they been here?" her question was innocent.

Mr. Whammy paused at the open door to the game room and smiled, "Depends on the child. C and K started here during secondary, whilst Z was a little younger. You could say he was the first in this program. They are like siblings, very close, you see. As are the youngsters."

He ushered Jessica into the quiet room. Under the bay window sat two dark-haired boys, one she already knew. BB glanced from his position curled over the shoulder of the other. Both wore the same clothing, overlying large white shirts on dark slacks, and were huddled in similar crouched stances over a puzzle of some kind. BB blinked his large round eyes and turned back, whispering something in the other boy's ear. Slowly, the other boy turned his attention toward the entry, his expression wide-eyed but not as nervous as his twin.

"L, I would like to introduce you to Jessica. She will be staying with us-"

"-for the summer, I know," he quietly finished. With a reassuring pat on BB's shoulder, he motioned to stand and made his way over to the pair. The child's black hair was wildly unkempt, falling into his dark eyes. His face was delicate, but eerily blank as he took the older girl before him in.

"It is a pleasure to meet you," Jessica stuck her hand out in effort to ease the awkwardness. The boy looked at her hand and then into her eyes again as though he was unsure what to do.

Mr. Whammy seemed to know, however, and leaned over with a comforting tone, "Remember what we talked about?"

L peered up through his bangs and subtly sighed through his nose, barely taking her hand the moment necessary before releasing it again. He stepped back to resume his game, but stopped when the old man cleared his throat expectantly.

The boy swallowed and muttered, refocusing on the girl before him, "Pleasure is all mine."

The air in the room was thick from the forced introduction, and the pressure was suffocating to Jessica. In the background, she caught the other boy cautiously watching their exchange from the bay window, and suddenly it made sense. Coaxing all of the charm she possessed, she chirped, "Are you two brothers?"

L cocked his head to the side slowly, his fine brow furrowing just slightly, "Who?"

"You and BB." She chuckled and pointed behind him, "You two look so much alike."

"No."

"B has taken a liking to L as of late," Mr. Whammy interjected as though the situation was obvious and normal for the child. "He tends to imitate the things he enjoys."

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," L added flatly. He was already returning to his game. The brainteaser must have been new, as Jessica never saw it before among all of the others toys BB usually coveted. Both boys recaptured their attention on the object as though they were alone again, pointedly ignoring the pair left as ghosts in the doorway.

This was Jessica's introduction to the Whammy orphanage, an institute that Mr. Ruvie had, quite poignantly, touted as being The Best secondary/boarding school in England. It was all a little to strange for the girl, seemingly caught in age between budding adults and youths barely into primary. As she passed the sitting room again, she heard the giggles and quiet conversation between the older teens that sounded almost like another language to her. The older boy glanced at the doorway and gave her a wink as she passed. The dialogue dimmed as Krista peeked over the side of the couch and smiled. The silent offer would have been inviting if Catelin's icy stare not immediately sent Jessica on her way toward the main stairway.

How was she supposed to connect with any of them? She was clearly causing disorder by her mere presence. Her heart sank little by little as she returned to her room and sat on her bed. She should have just gone to Switzerland, she admonished to herself. She was going to write and apologize to her grandfather. Maybe he would let her finish out her summer, if she asked politely enough, and then all could be right with the world again.