"You'll get better, right Mama?" a little 4 year old asked.

"Of course, hijo" a woman with black hair in a braid said, smiling softly. Her dark brown eyes seemed a bit sad, and her face was pale and worn. "The hospital is just trying out this chemotherapy, and I need to stay in the hospital for it. I promise that as soon as I get better, we'll go out for ice cream. Rita can come too, si?" The woman ruffled her 4 year old's spiky black hair. "Don't give your sister and father too much grief while I'm gone, okay?"

"Alright Mama!" the 4 year old said, smiling widely.

The woman bent down and gave her son a kiss on the forehead, before allowing her worried husband to guide her to the car and drive her away.

Over the next few months, the woman seemed to get sicker and sicker. Every day after school, Rita would walk her little brother to the hospital to see their mother. They would stop every day at the store and with Rita's allowance money, they would buy their mother a small stuffed animal. The boy was always so sad when he saw his Mama, but he would nevertheless climb up on his mother's bed and give her a kiss on the cheek. He would then present her the stuffed animal Rita had bought. His mother would smile at both of her children and assure them that she would get better and that then they would get ice cream.

But then it took the turn for the worst.

One day, when the boy and Rita went to the hospital, the receptionist looked at the children when Rita asked for their mother's room's number.

"I'm sorry, but we can't allow you to see that patient." She said.

"Why not?" Rita demanded.

"I just can't" she said simply.

Rita sighed. Despite her little brother's protests, she took them home.

The little boy didn't know what was going on. Him and Rita hadn't gone to visit Mama in weeks. Wasn't she missing them right now? Why was Rita crying? Why was Papa avoiding him and Rita? What was going on?

Finally, after a few days, the boy was told that they would be going somewhere. Rita dressed him up in his nicest clothes and their father drove them to their destination.

The boy didn't like this place. It felt so dark and sad. It seemed that almost everyone there was crying. What was going on? He kept hold of Rita's hand. Rita sat down on one of the couches in what seemed to be a really big house. He saw that she was crying again. He thought that maybe it was because of Mama. But why was she crying?

He crawled up on the couch and took Rita's hand. "Don't cry, Rita. Mama will get better! And then she'll take us out for ice cream! Like she promised!" He said, smiling happily. He wanted to see his big sister smile again.

But she just seemed to get even sadder when he said this, which made the boy confused. Why was she crying? Mama would get better! He knew it!

Rita took a tissue and wiped her eyes. She picked him up and carried him to the other side of the very large room, where their grandmother was.

"Abuela? May you please watch Micos for me?" she asked.

"Of course, preciosa" the woman said, taking the young boy into her arms.

The boy was rather uncomfortable. He didn't like to be held by anyone other than his mother or Rita. He loved Abuela, he really did, but she wasn't Mama.

The boy wriggled out of his grandmother's grasp, and toddled off. His grandmother called his name to get him to come back, but he didn't listen. He was determined to find out why Rita was acting so sad.

He finally came into a large room , where so many others were crying. He was completely confused. He saw a large box on top of an alter in the front of the room. Surrounding it were pictures of his mother. There was a picture of her when she was Rita's age, all the way to her age now.

Curious, the boy walked up to the large box. He knew something was in it…

Climbing up on the step that was in front of the box, and peered over.

There in that box, was his mother. Same jet black hair, same facial features that made Rita look so much like her. But her saw so many differences.

She didn't have the healthy glow she used to have. Instead, she had a sickly appearance.

Gaunt cheeks.

Too thin frame.

Pale skin.

The boy looked in horror at his "mother". This couldn't be her! It just couldn't be! He touched her hand. It was ice cold. He didn't see any rise or fall of her chest. Nothing!

It was as if she was an empty shell…

The 6 year old started wailing.

"M-Mama! M-Mama!" he cried, his eyes welling up with tears that streamed down his cheeks.

With shaky hands, he started trying to wake her up. He grabbed her arm and tried to pull it, to get her to wake up. When it didn't work, he only cried harder.

He felt a pair of arms encircle him, pulling him away from his mother. The boy only kicked and screamed, causing a huge commotion.

"Micos! Calm down! You must respect the funeral home!" a voice hissed in his ear. The boy knew it was his father.

"B-But, Mama!" he started.

"is dead! Now shut up and be quiet!" his father hissed again.

This froze the boy's movement. Dead? B-but that wasn't possible! This was MAMA they were talking about!

The boy was finally let go, dropping him to the floor. His eyes welled with tears again. He had found out what death was, but he never knew it would happen to his family!

He crawled away from everyone, going to a corner and sobbing. Rita found him and held him in her arms, comforting him the best she could. She knew that he would take it the hardest. After all, he was younger than her, and didn't know how to handle this situation.

The boy only cried, shaking and not moving away from his big sister's lap.

What a horrible way to spend your 6th birthday.

16 year old Micos was working on a project he had in school. It was a project he had to do with a partner. Luckily, he had been partnered up with Xiang Li, so they were way ahead of everyone else in his class. He just needed to type up this last portion, and Xiang and him would be finished!

He heard Rita shut the front door as she came back from her job, going straight to her room. Micos had been a bit worried about his sister lately. She was more tired than usual, and had been a bit moody. He DEFINITELYA knew that a woman's "time of the month" didn't last this long. 3 months? Seriously? Please. He wasn't THAT dense.

He had also noticed that she was starting to gain a little bit of weight. It wasn't much, but Micos definitely noticed it. He was surprised Papa hadn't yet. But he did go to work at 10 in the morning and come back at 9 in the evening. He was mostly sleeping when he was home.

"Micos? Could you come here for a moment?" Micos heard Rita ask from her room. It was a good thing their rooms were right next to each other.

"Sure!" Micos yelled back. He saved his document, closed his laptop, and walked to his sister's room.

Rita was still in her McDonald's uniform, and she looked really tired. Rita hated working at McDonalds, but it was the only place Rita could go to after college that accepted part time. It wasn't much money, but she would be able to at least put in some income to help their father.

Rita sat up from her sprawled out position on her bed, and motioned Micos to come over and sit next to her. Micos did just that.

"So, what's going on, Rita?" Micos asked.

"Well.. you know Tomas, si?" Rita asked.

Micos gave Rita an "are you kidding me?" look. Of course he knew who Tomas was! Tomas was Rita's Mexican boyfriend of one year, who had been her best friend since she was 10 years old. Micos had always liked him, even calling him "hermano mayor" since that was what pretty much was to Micos. Their father had been a little wary of Tomas due to him being from a different country, but had been too busy to protest much.

"Si. I know very well who Tomas is" Micos said. He didn't want to use sarcasm with Rita.

This was when Rita started to look a little nervous, and looked down at her hands. "W-Well.. I-I don't really know how to say this, but…"

"Come on, Rita. If something happened, you can tell me about it" Micos said, smiling sweetly at his older sister.

Looking a bit more confident, Rita looked at Micos in the eyes. "W-Well… I-I'm pregnant… and Tomas is the father…"

Micos seemed in shock, but then pretty much jumped on Rita, hugging her. "Hermana! That's great! He's really really nice and I'm sure you two will be happy together!" Micos said, smiling widely. "Did you tell him yet?"

"Of course I did! He seemed very happy about it." Rita said, smiling. "He said that we didn't have to get married just yet, but that we would work this out. Oh Micos, I'm so happy!"

"Si~! And I'll be an uncle!" Micos was excitedly. "I will be that child's best uncle ever! I'll buy them presents, and I'll take them places when they're older! And I'll babysit if you need me to! Do you know if it's a boy or girl yet?"

Rita sighed. "We don't know for sure, but I think it'll be a boy. A woman knows these things. Tomas and I agreed on the name Cesar if it's a boy. We're not sure about a girl name yet."

Micos hugged Rita again. "What about Papa? Are you going to tell him yet?"

Rita sighed again, but this time it was one that you would do if you were tired. "I was going to tell him tonight when he came home. Hopefully he won't be mad…"

Micos felt the smile come off of his face. Oh yeah… Their father was very strict about a woman's place and about sex before marriage. He always told Rita to not do anything like this until she was married, which, she obviously did do. He always kept on ingraining it into her head to not do anything like that. But… She was 21. She was an adult, and at least she wasn't like those girls who got pregnant at 15 or 16. And she could always go to college online. Sure it might be a bit harder, but Papa couldn't be THAT mad…

"Will you be there for moral support when I tell him?" Rita asked Micos, looking very nervous.

Micos nodded. "Of course!"

Rita smiled, ruffling her little brother's hair. "you're such a good little brother."

At 9 o'clock sharp, their father came home, trudging through the halls into the master bedroom. After a few minutes, he was out of the room dressed like he was ready for bed, and trudged back to the living room, turning on the tv and sitting in a chair.

Rita and Micos came out of Rita's room, ready with what they were about to say. They saw down on the couch across from their father.

"Um… Papa?" Micos started. He got a grunt in reply. "U-Um… Rita needs to tell you something…"

Their father paused the tv and looked at Rita and Micos, raising an eyebrow. He had prominent bags under his eyes, and his face looked tired.

"Rita looked down at her hands. "U-Um.. Papa… I need to tell you that… I-I'm pregnant.." She looked at him, trying to see how he was taking this news.

Their father's face was emotionless at first, but then his facial expression changed. His eyes hardened, and his hands clenched. "…What did you say?" he asked with an eerily calm voice.

"S-She said that she was pregnant…" Micos said softly, trying to be careful with what he said in Rita's defense.

"You… ungrateful… SLUT!" Their father suddenly yelled, standing up. "I tell you time and time again to never let this happen and look what you do! You get pregnant! I'm sure you've slept with your other boyfriends before, huh?"

Rita's face twisted into a look of anger. She stood up as well. "For the record, I have NOT slept with any of my other boyfriends! It happened ONE TIME! And at least I didn't get pregnant at 16 or something! I'm 21 years old!"

"Pfft, please! You expect me to believe this? You better get rid of that baby!"

Rita's face became furious. "NO! You expect me to just get rid of my child? I'm not going to abort it! He deserves to live!"

"it would just be a bastard child! A thing from hell! You better get rid of it!"

"Never!"

"Then you better find another place to live! Because I will not have a slut live in this house!"
"FINE THEN!"

Micos looked in shock as he saw his sister storm out of the living room and come back 20 minutes later with a suitcase. She stormed out of the house, and Micos heard her car turn on and drive away. He turned at his father in anger. "What the hell!"

"Don't talk to me like that, boy. You go to your room."

Exasperated, Micos stomped out of the living room and to his sister's room. There were so many things in there that she had left behind.

The next day was Saturday, and Micos' father had already left for work when he woke up. He heard the front door open and he looked to see who it was.

Rita had opened the door with her key and walked in.
She was immediately tackled into a hug.

"Rita! What are you doing here?" Micos asked.

"I came by to get all of my stuff…" Rita answered.

Micos looked sad. "So… you're not staying?"

"Sadly, no… you know how he is when it comes to decisions. It's final" Rita said, looking sad as well.

"Do… you at least have a place to stay?"

"Si. I'm moving in with Tomas. He has his own apartment, and I'll help him pay the rent."

"Alright…" Micos said, looking upset. "Let me at least help you move out…"

Rita sighed. "Okay… "

Micos smiled a bit. "I don't care what Father says. I'll be right there with you when your baby is born"

Rita smiled. "I'm sure Cesar will be pleased to meet his uncle."

A week later, Micos was presenting his project with Xiang when one of the teachers, Mr. Fernandez Carriedo, came into the room.

"Um… Micos?" he said. "Micos Johnson?"

Micos looked at him. "Si?"

"The Principal Señor Kirkland would like to see you." He replied. The normally excited Spanish teacher was looking serious for once, his emerald green eyes showing no joy in them.

Confused, Micos left the classroom with Mr. Fernandez Carriedo. After thanking him, Micos walked into the principal's office.

Mr. Kirkland was originally from England, and had sandy blond hair and green eyes. He also had really thick eyebrows, and was considered insane by the other students in the school. Micos didn't really mind his odd appearance and behavior, however. In fact, he thought it made him more approachable.

"Sit down Micos" Mr. Kirkland said in his thick English accent.

After sitting down, Mr. Kirkland started talking again. "Micos, there's no easy way to say this… but… your sister Rita… has died in a car accident."

Micos froze. No… there was no way…

"Y-You're lying…" Micos said, his voice quivering. "Y-You're just trying to play a joke on me. W-Well it's not funny!"

Mr. Kirkland sighed. "Micos… I know how much you love your sister and how hard it is to hear this, but your sister was in a horrible car accident and died instantly."

Micos was shaking his head now furiously, tears welling up in his eyes. "N-No! she can't be dead! S-She was going to have a baby!"

Mr. Kirkland's eyes shone with pity. He wished that he had had this kind of relationship with his siblings. "Come on, lad… chin up. Here… It is almost time for school to end anyway, so how about you leave school early, yes?"

Micos was still trying to fathom what was going on. He needed to see his sister! He needed for her to laugh and say how silly an idea it was that she died. He needed her to say that Mr. Kirkland was just pulling his leg and that she was healthy as ever. But deep down, he knew that this wouldn't happen. That his beloved sister had… died…

NO!

Micos sat up from his sheets, feeling clammy, and he felt like he was in a cold sweat. He looked next to him and saw that his tail had broken off! And it was still twitching quickly, as if it was still alive and a part of him!

Micos screamed and jumped up from his sheets, feeling disgusted and disturbed.

"Micos! What's going on!"

"W-What? What the hell?"

Micos felt himself being hugged tightly yet comfortingly by a female form. He realized that it was just Luisa. Alejandro had been woken up from sleep and was a little disoriented.

"Micos… tell me what happened…" Luisa said soothingly while stroking his hair.

"M-My t-tail… i-it fell off!" Micos stammered, feeling so disgusted.

"Sweetie… that's natural… When a lizard gets scared, their tail falls off and it twitches so that predators get distracted.." Luisa said softly, still holding him.

"O-Oh…" Micos could only say, feeling like an idiot. Of course that happened! He should have known that.

Micos saw Alejandro stalk up to his dismembered tail on all fours, and sniffing it.

"Alejandro. Stop that. That's disgusting." Luisa deadpanned.

Alejandro suddenly realized what he was doing and got up on two legs again, creeping away from the tail, ashamed of himself. "Sorry…that was just my Lion instincts kicking in again…"

Luisa sighed, before hugging Micos again. "But your tail doesn't just fall off. What happened?"

Micos brought his hand up to his cheek, and felt a wetness on them. It seemed that he had been crying in his sleep. "I-It's nothing… just… remembering things…"

"Ah, I see what you mean." Luisa said softly. Micos couldn't see what color her skin was right now, because of how dark it was in the trailer.

Luisa continued. "it happens to everyone here. We all seem to have had something happen to us that still haunts up. The night after Ivan transforms you, you get nightmares about it. It happens to everyone…" She hugged him tighter, still trying to be as comforting as she could.

"W-Will my tail grow back?" Micos asked, trying to change the subject. Just thinking about what happened in his dreams, or memories, was too painful for him to think about right now.

"Si. It will grow back in about a day, That's the upside of being part lizard, I guess…" Luisa stated.

Micos nodded. He saw Pelucha come out of the closet she was sleeping in and pad over to where Luisa and him were. She laid down next to Ema, curling into a ball.

Luisa pet Pelucha and then set Micos down next to her.

"Don't worry. I've found that Pelucha is really good for comfort when bad memories come up." Luisa said when she saw Micos' confusion.

Micos nodded, getting tired again. He laid down, leaning against Pelucha. She really was soft…

He closed his eyes and started falling asleep, hoping that he would dream good memories this time…

Uh… hi guys… *hides behind a chair*

I… was trying to find something to write… and also, I was just being lazy. I'm sorry for not updating in so long! DX

So… consider this a President's Day present. And for those of you who don't live in a country that celebrates President's day, Happy Monday! (Or Tuesday, depending on which part of the world you live in).

So… anyone else want to murder me for putting Micos through this pain? *raises hand* yeah…

So… I am really against abortion… just a thought…

And Cesar is Chiapas, who is Guatemala and Mexico's kid. Sadly, he died with Rita…

God, I feel like an ass.

And Tomas is Mexico.

So… review please?