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"We're off this afternoon. K unit are being deployed so we'd be alone anyway. We're spending one night in London then flying up to York. We have time to pack now." Ben announced entering the teens hut.
"ZARA!" The three Cherubs exclaimed seeing her behind them.
"Hey kids, getting along OK?" She asked smiling tiredly.
"Yeah." Lauren said enthusiastically bouncing off her bed and starting her packing,
"Where are we staying in London, a hotel?" James asked making a face,
"Nope. Ben has offered us his house for the night." Zara replied,
"Oh, has he really." Alex cocked an eyebrow. Ben rolled his eyes.
"I have offered the house I live in for the night. Happy?" He rephrased.
"Better." Alex flashed him a grin as he started packing,
"Huh?" Zara asked.
"Don't bother." The three cherubs told her in unison,
"We have up, the number of cryptic comments that fly between them is obscene." Kerry grumbled.
"Dudes, we have assault course!" Eagle exclaimed bouncing into the hut.
"Finish packing later," Leopard added from behind him then turning and gesturing for Eagle to leave the room first,
"Oh no darling I couldn't, you first." Eagle replied in a girly voice copying the gesture.
"No, no I insist, you first." Leopard gushed.
"Oh for fucks sakejust get out the door." Wolf growled, Leopard held out an arm and Eagle looped his arm through it.
"We know when we are not wanted." Leopard choked out feigning a sniff. Wolf buried his head in his hands as the two flounced away. Zara looked on incomprehension on her face.
"You need to sleep." Alex commented off hand to her. She blinked.
"And here I was thinking I had concealed that." She muttered, Ben took her elbow and led her to Alex's cot where he had moved after Leopard joined K unit three weeks ago. She allowed herself to be led then collapsed on the bed and shut her eyes.
Wolf was still in the doorway glaring after the two who had walked out seconds earlier. He now turned that glare on the ones in the hut. Alex walked up to the door with James.
"Ladies first." Wolf smirked, Alex adopted a confused face,
"Then why are you still here?" He asked. The glare deepened and Wolf stormed away muttering about 'bloody child spies, thinking they're better than everyone' and 'moronic smart arse teenagers these days.'
"I can't believe the words are coming out my mouth but I miss BB." Kerry sighed.
"I know, it grows on you." Lauren agreed.
"OK that's it three hours in a car and you are all crazy." Ben announced.
"You can say that again." Alex agreed. "You mean to tell me you miss the mud, the rain, the gruel masquerading as a nutritious meal, the fatigues, the angry Sargent, the-"
"OK, OK we get the point Alex." Kerry sighed hitting the teen over the head.
"MUM! Kerry's abusing me!" Alex mock complain causing the cars occupants to laugh, Ben's ring tone cut through the comfortable silence a few minutes later, Alex reached forward and slipped it from Ben's pocket,
"Hey Ben's phone." Alex spoke into it, a sheepish look crossed Alex's face, "Well... you see I had it, then it fell off the assault course, then it got hit, kicked, jumped on, trodden on, rained on, thrown across the room... I forgot to charge it." Alex muttered, Ben rolled his eyes.
"Phone Al. Yours not mine." He called, Alex passed his phone to Zara who plugged it in to charge.
"Yes Tom, I am a moron, we have been through this already, why were you so desperate to get hold of me anyway?" Alex said to the person on the other end of the phone. "You did what?" Alex gasped then gave a shocked laugh, "Tom that sounds like you're taking my legend at that school! Next thing you know you will be dumping a crane on top of the school... I know, I don't know how they managed to get that one out the multiple rumours... yeah I'm in London... Yeah sure, see you at five. Bye." Alex hung up shaking his head.
"Ben can we-" Alex was cut off.
"Go via Brooklands primary? Already doing so." Ben smiled at Alex in the mirror, "What did he do this time?"
"He flooded the science wing. Three weeks of detention, they can't pin the blame on him so they gave detention to those who made origami boats and floated them into Chemistry from Physics." Alex chuckled, "And you said I was the bad influence, Tom gets in enough trouble on his own."
"A crane on the school." James repeated shocked.
"Heh. Long story." Alex grinned.
"You forgot to charge your phone." Ben scolded.
"I know. But he got in contact with me didn't he?!" Alex defended himself.
"Come on, we're here." Ben pulled into a parking place.
"You can go, we'll walk." Alex told him sliding out the car.
"See you at home." Ben pulled away. Alex wandered up to the small brick building merging with the parents there to collect their children, Alex waited watching as the first teachers led their children to the doors,
"UNCLE ALEX!" Two voices exclaimed, seconds later two small bodies hit his legs and arms wrapped around him.
"Hey, surprise." Alex grinned and picked up Alice Harris sitting her on his shoulders and ruffling Tilly's hair. They were Tom's six year old twin sisters, both identical with jet black hair with green eyes always twinkling with mischief. "I am afraid we are walking, Ben dropped me off. We have company for the night though, a woman, two girls and a boy, he comes across as a pain but he's alight." Alex told them, "How have you been?" Alex was them overwhelmed by the stories about painting and learning to write, school trips and learning to read, and lastly the boy in their class called Chad who was a pain and always teased the girls.
All too soon Alex was opening the door to his house and slipping his shoes off,
"Come on, there are some people you have to meet." Alex stated entering the living room where everyone had congregated,
"Uncle BEN!" The twins exclaimed Tilly rushing to him as Alex carefully took Alice off his shoulders,
"Shoes." Alex stated crouching in front of her then sitting her on the sofa, she stuck her legs out obediently a huge grin on her face.
"What's got you so happy?" Alex chuckled as the threw her shoes into the hallway.
"You. You're back." Tilly called from Ben's lap,
"Any presents?" Alice asked hope in her eyes, Alex held up one finger then vanished, he reappeared a few seconds later carrying two small bags which he handed to the twins on the sofa, Alex sat next to Alice who promptly clambered onto his lap and opened her bag.
"Chocolate!" They both exclaimed in unison, then pulled out two oversized tops, Alice turned the best she could and hugged Alex.
"Thank you." Tilly grinned while showing Ben her new top. The door to the house opened and there was a thud as a bag was dropped on the floor, Tom wandered into the living room and picked up Tilly to take her place on the sofa then sat her on top of him.
"Hello, you must be Zara, Lauren, James and Kerry." He smiled at the new comers, "I am the infamous, unbelievably wonderful Tom." Alex laughed,
"Sure you are Tom."
Alice smiled at her brother then her eyes widened,
"Tilly." She called, her twin turned then her eyes widened as well.
"Coin." They demanded in unison to Alex who rolled his eyes then fished a coin out his pocket,
"And here I was thinking you had forgotten." He teased.
"NEVER! Where?" Alice pulled Alex into the hallway, up the stairs and into her bedroom.
"What's going on?" Lauren asked bemused,
"Come on." Ben led them upstairs and into a bedroom with a double bed. Along one wall was a huge map of the world, opposite was another, above the one they were standing at was a plaque saying 'Alex' the other said 'Ben',
"Where?" Tilly asked standing on a chair to examine Russia.
"Novosibirsk." Alex told them pointing to the city on the map, the twins grinned and started scratching away at the map, a few seconds later they jumped off and ran to Ben's map.
"What is it?" Zara asked examining the map.
"Scratch a map, when they first moved in they wanted to know where I had been, this was a gift from Tom, one for me, one for Ben. Whenever I return they get the scratch off the area on the map." Alex explained.
"You've been to all these places?!" Kerry was amazed. Alex nodded,
"What are the red stars?" Lauren asked studying the map carefully.
"Places they have been on holiday with me. Come." He walked into the en suite bathroom and out the other side into another room.
"This is technically Tilly's room, but they share that one mainly. This is their map. Red stars are all of us, Blue the three of them and Gold just Tom." This map was much less scratched but still surprisingly scratched for just holidays.
"Come on, I do believe we have an overdue story time?" Alex asked ushering the twins into his room.
"He looks after them better than I do." Tom sighed. "And I had at least an idea of what parents should do. Mind you, it not as though my parents cared or anything." He added wryly.
"Tom, you should make the most of your parents and family, I am sure they do care they just-" Zara tried but was cut off,
"Ma'am with all due respect, and believe me I do respect you and what you do, you don't understand what it is like. You are a woman with a young son from what I can see who loves her husband and son. You understand how easy it is to loose them due to the fact that, for all intents and purposes, you work in an orphanage, but I come from a different background. My parents don't care." Tom stated flatly, his eyes flashed with anger and an old grief.
"Tom, I'm-" Zara was cut off again by said teen,
"Let me put my... relationship with my parents in a clearer light for you. Seven years ago my parents fell out, a year later they had the twins, Alice and Tilly, a literal last ditch attempt to save their marriage, it didn't work. As soon as she could my mum returned to work leaving them for me to look after, I didn't care they were a better my life, knowing I couldn't do it alone and would hate social services to take them away Alex helped and with Jack's assistance we enrolled them in a nursery and between the three of us we raised them, it was helped I pretty much lived with Alex, Jack and at a push because he was never there, Ian.
"Four years ago it was clear their marriage was never going anywhere and they had a huge fight. Jerry, my older brother, ended up in hospital trying to keep them apart. He left the day after he was discharged to continue his education in Italy. Two and a half years ago I was shot in school and admitted to hospital, I discharged myself without my parents even visiting me, went home told them I was going to Alex's for a while took the twins and left. Two months after that Alex reappeared on the map looking like he'd been to hell and back, which he had because Byrne is a bastard, and then vanished again. He was moving to America but promised we could go out to see them in the first holiday, flights funded by MI6. All this time my parents still hadn't realised I was never at home.
"Two years ago I was in a car with the twins, Emma, Daniel and Daniels older brother. The car went out of control and crashed. Emma and I ended up in comas, mine was three weeks, Emma never woke, she was an orphan as well, one who didn't make it into your school. Still my parents were not aware I was in any danger. When I finally woke it was Ben in my hospital room who had been raising my sisters, not my parents. Daniel and his brother," Tom sighed, "Their family moved away three weeks after that. My parents still weren't divorced. They couldn't spend enough time in the same room together without trying to kill each other. I was still in Alex's house, now with Ben.
"Then I find that Alex, my idiotic best friend had gone and gotten himself kidnapped, my parents who were both so fond of him didn't give a damn. I went to grab the last of my things planning to stay with Ben until Alex was back. The house was empty because neither of my parents wanted to be the 'bad' parent who chucked the other out so had both left the house. Each believed I was with the other, and I was in no hurry to correct this. Unfortunately when I went to get the last of my stuff my dad was dong the same, he was drunk. I ended up in hospital again. Ben picked me up and discharged me. Then, thank god, Alex was found and came back. I have never seen those girls so happy, and Ben. The bad side was the state he was in.
"A year and a half ago my dad was denied the right to look after me due to violence and three days later my mum emancipated me and the girls. Jerry was too engrossed in his work and life and I didn't want to ruin it so, as an emancipated twelve year old Ben went the extra mile and adopted me twelve months after he had Alex, fully understanding that I came with two extras." Tom paused as Alice ran into the room, he gently picked up his sister and sat her on his lap,
"Can you go back to Alex, I'll be there soon." He asked her gently, she pouted but nodded, Tom kissed the top of her head and ruffled her hair. She ran out and Tom smiled hearing shrieks of laughter. "I declined Ben's offer at first saying he didn't understand what he was doing."
"When I really did you moron." Ben sighed fondly exasperated,
"And," Tom glared at his guardian, "For that I will ever be in his debt. Mrs Asker, you may tell me to make the most of my family, and I do believe me, in all ways I have two little sisters and six brothers due to the fact K unit were taken with me, but I will never make the most of my parents, I tried that and it resulted in me in the hospital and a truly broken family.
"As I said before ma'am, I do respect you and your career just don't tell me I'm wrong when I make comments like I did about my parents not caring, because I can safely say my biological ones don't, don't say you understand because despite what you think you don't understand me or Alex, me because I have parents who don't care and you were a cherub, therefore an orphan, and you don't understand Alex, he may be and orphan like yourself but at least you remember your parents, at least your only living family member didn't spend his entire life lying and inadvertently training you. Sorry, but it's true, and in case you hadn't guessed I am sick and tired of people telling me they 'understand'." Tom finished. Zara sat on the bed in shock.
"Family isn't always blood, it's the people in your life who want you in theirs, the ones who accept you for who you are, the ones who would do anything to see you smile and love you no matter what." She murmured,
"Precisely, though I think I read that on a fortune cookie once." Tom sat back and grinned, Ben laughed lightly.
"Probably, it was on the card I was given when I left Cherub." Zara smiled fondly.
"TOM!" There was a shout, they all turned to the doorway and saw Alex with a huge grin on his face,
"Thomas, your sisters are going to be the death of me." He teased.
"HEY!" Tilly exclaimed from her perch on his back,
"Alex is going to make us tea!" Alice announced jumping into Ben's arms.
"Is he now?" Zara smirked,
"Well I'm not, and Tom can't." Ben stated matter of factly.
"Ah Benjamin, that statement implies you can." Alex teased.
"I can!" Ben huffed,
"When it comes out a military ration pack." Alex grinned, "And tastes awful."
"You are the only human being on the planet who can make the stuff out of those packs taste nice." Ben complained heading to the kitchen the others following like lost sheep,
"So the humans who aren't on the planet can as well?" Tom cocked an eyebrow.
"You've been spending too much time around Alex." Ben groaned.
"Yep. Only ten years, give or take." Tom nodded.
"And my sanity is already destroyed." Alex announced from where he had sat Alice on the side and was handing her food from the fridge.
"What is for tea?" Zara asked,
"What do you want?" He asked.
"Pasta!" Kerry and James exclaimed.
"Pasta." Lauren agreed.
"OK, what's on the pasta?" Alex asked turning around.
"Don't care." James shrugged. Alex looked at the group congregated in the kitchen.
"Vegetarian." Alex pointed at Lauren, "Nuts." He pointed at the twins, "And Tom doesn't like green pepper."
"How did you know I was veggie?" Lauren demanded.
"You never ate food with meat in at camp, not that that was really meat as such, but the principal was there." Alex shrugged.
"Uncle Alex." Tilly said slowly.
"Yes..." Alex grinned.
"You know you just returned." Alice stated.
"Yes..."
"You remember what you promised us before you left?" Tilly asked, Ben had a smile growing.
"And here I was thinking you had forgotten!" Alex teased,
"No, does that mean we can have them?" Alice grinned.
"Well... I suppose if I must." Alex rolled his eyes.
"YAY!" Alex picked up Alice, "So, pancakes for tea or breakfast?"
"Al, seriously, both." Tom snorted. The three Harris' looked at him imploringly.
"Fine. Pasta, pancakes with no green peppers, nuts or meat." Alex laughed, "You want to help?" He asked Alice who nodded, "Let's go." He shooed them out the room.
"He puts me to shame every time." Tom bemoaned, "And your my sisters!"
"Hows school?" Ben asked running his hands through Tilly's hair, she had decided that since Ben was a novelty his lap was a better seat that Toms.
"Hell. Thanks to Alex and me getting my arse in gear I am getting straight A*'s across the board but taking fourteen GCSE's was never going to be fun." Tom sighed.
"Fourteen." Lauren breathed.
"Yeah, four early then the usual ten." He shrugged, "I'm enjoying it, French is the easiest thanks to Alex having it as a bloody safe language, also living with two multilingual people helps."
"Safe language?" Lauren asked, "K unit said the same."
"Long story." Ben skirted the answer. The conversation flowed through school to cherub to talents, never once touching on the cherubs orphan status or the fact Tom didn't live with his parents and the conversation that had occurred upstairs.
"Where are we sleeping?" Zara queried, "We should get our stuff out the car before it gets dark."
"Come on." They grabbed their bags. "This is my room," Ben pointed at the door, "That's Alex's." He pointed at the next door, "That's Alice's room, but Tilly shares it at the moment, this is you Zara. Tilly's actual room." She threw her bags on the bed, "That's Toms." He indicated another door by the stairs, "And a bathroom." A another door, then they headed up another set of stairs, "James and Lauren can share or Lauren and Kerry, two rooms of twin beds." Ben offered,
"I'll share with Lauren, James snores I recall. I heard them through the walls of my last mission with him." Kerry announced.
"HEY!" James sounded affronted.
"It's true." Lauren smirked and threw her bags on the bed.
"One bathroom up here, Zara you have a shared en suite. There's a general bathroom on the first floor and two on the ground, that one doesn't have a shower or bath, towels are on the beds. Make yourself at home."
They moved to their rooms but a few minutes later Alex yelled that dinner was ready. There was a stampede to the kitchen. On the table was a Caesar salad and pasta with Arrabbiata sauce.
"There are pancakes for pudding." Alex promised.
"Damn I missed you Alex." Tom grinned, "Or is it missed your cooking?"
"The chicken is separate for Lauren. Enjoy." Alex poured dressing on his salad then added croutons, the twins tucked into their pasta hungrily.
"There were someone else's clothes in my room, and not Tilly's clothes, a woman's." Zara stated,
"Oh, Tamara's, I thought they were all in your room now Ben." Alex told her.
"She came to stay briefly while you were away, they may be left from that time as Alice and Tilly didn't want her getting lonely so made her stay in the adjoining room." Tom told them.
"We missed her. She didn't say she was in England." Ben pouted.
"Yeah, something about a mission in the UK, CIA sent her." Tom shrugged.
"Whose house is this, it's huge, you said it wasn't yours Ben. Is it this Tamara's?" Lauren asked,
"Nope. Alex's." Ben nodded to his ward.
"It was my parent's then my uncles, now mine. I don't need the space, but Tom needed somewhere to stay so I kept it, it was let out but I got it back in such a state once and I don't have the heart to sell it." Alex shrugged. "Too many memories."
"Who is the red haired woman in the photos? Your sister or mum?" James asked.
"Guardian." Alex didn't say any more on the matter and in a rare act of sensitivity James left the topic alone. It was helped along by Kerry kicking him.
"This is delicious, can you cook anything else?" Zara asked, not a great cook herself.
"Anything and everything. He taught me to cook, but alas I am not as good as him yet." Tom grinned.
"Same here, he taught me. As I said, he manages to make military rations taste nice." Ben smirked, "Still don't know how." There was silence until the meal was finished,
"Damn Alex. Can I keep you?" James sat back hands on his stomach.
"Nope, but you can do the dishes." Alex flashed him a grin, James made a face. "Go, I'll do them." He stood and started loading the dishwasher then washed the pans, the group migrated to the living room, the teens pulling out homework grumpily.
When Alex emerged a few minutes later he ushered the twins upstairs with the words, 'Bath and bed.'
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