And I'm back! I don't know how I manage to forget the seasonal stress that comes around this time each year, but boy, it's like listening to Mariah Carey at 10,000 decibels with horrible audio quality while being chased by Thomas the tank engine because I decided to buy a house during all of that which wound up being a fixer upper that I'm still working on. That being said. Hi, I finished this chapter out of sheer spite to stress because you beautiful beans deserve a cute chapter after the last two messy ones, and I ain't a quitter. Lets GOOOOO!
Song suggestion: Hurt Somebody by Noah Kahan & Julia Michaels
Disclaimer: I own nothing. I'm a broke-ass bitch, and Capcom owns what's left of me. They also own all of Resident Evil. Please don't sue.
Rose sat at her desk, staring out the much more interesting window. While the building was stifling and panic-inducing, it still provided shelter and warmth from the looming ides of March, which only promised inconsistency and irreverence. One day would be tolerably comfortable, and the next would be plagued by howling frosted winds making the option of ditching school less appealing. Rose watched as the winds relentlessly tossed around the branches of a nearby tree that was trying to produce buds of spring. Today she'd have to stay in school.
The grating sound of the school bell filled the air, and woke rose from her distracted stupor as it announced that it was time to switch classes.
"Remember you have homework. It's due on the 14th. That's this Thursday. You have two days, so I don't want to hear that your dog ate your homework," The teacher warned as everyone packed up.
Rose similarly packed away her mostly ignored textbook and empty notebook before digging out her handkerchief so she could fiddle with it while walking through the halls of the school. True to Chris' word, a doctor's note was written and provided to allow Rose to continue carrying her handkerchiefs with her. However, it was easier to keep the peace and only have it out when teachers weren't looking.
Keeping her head down seemed to be working, at least, now that her black eye and bruises had healed up. She could still hear the whispers and laughter around her clear as day and feel eyes burrowing into the back of her skull even when no one else was around, but at least they left her alone to follow her routine. As Rose thought about this, she made her way through the school to the cafeteria and looked between the door to the bathroom and the cafeteria.
While the bathroom offered her privacy, she was reluctant to allow herself to be cornered like that again. The school would overlook one fight, but two would be a trend with consequences that Chris and Emma couldn't save her from.
So with what bravery she could muster, she pushed open the cafeteria door and cautiously walked in. Her shoulders hunched forward as she glanced around, following a trail of whispers while navigating her way to the lunch line. A heavy tray was collected, and cardboard-esque pizza was selected alongside mushy fries, which were paid for shortly after. The process went smoothly enough that Rose had finally allowed herself to relax for a moment, only to feel a harsh shove from behind as Lucy walked past.
Rose stumbled forward to regain her balance and managed not to drop anything. Her expression sank as she watched the once friend, whose bruises were still healing, walk away.
She didn't even bother to spare a pacing glance or even a glare of disdain at Rose. Doing so would mean recognizing Rose existed after all. To Rose's embarrassment, it seemed others did notice her.
A few students at a nearby table seemed to be staring at her before leaning to talk to each other. The sounds of whispering became hard to ignore over the thunderously loud lunch hall causing Rose to walk away as quickly as she could. She tossed the food she'd just bought in the trash in favor of being allowed to leave and decided to roam the halls toward the school's library instead.
The numerous shelves of books kept her hidden and entertained until the final bell rang a few hours late. The call of freedom was happily accepted and the bright yellow prison carriages that waited in a line outside of the school were a welcomed sight. While she couldn't get away from this place fast enough, she'd waited this long to go home, so what was another 30 minutes?
Rose seemingly counted down the seconds until that metal folding door opened in front of her stop, where she briskly exited and made her way down the sidewalk to her one safe haven. She took a deep breath as she opened the front door. "I'm home!" Rose called as she closed the door behind her.
"Welcome home!"
"Osee!"
Rose smiled upon hearing the response and kneeled to wait as smaller footsteps, and padded paws rushed over to greet her. "Hey guys, did you miss me?" She asked without needing to hear an answer, thanks to the return of the routine greeting that fought off the loneliness that used to fill the house after school.
"Ye," Piers happily answered as he clung to Rose. "Up!"
"Aren't you a little big for that?" Rose asked, but the child clung to her, and she stood up all the same so she could walk further into the house. Floors that would typically have been covered in toys and stray tufts of dog hair were now spotless. Dishes that once lined the counter were cleaned and put away, and a warm scent of a slow-cooked stew filled the air.
"Hey mom," Rose greeted as she walked over to Emma, who was sitting at the dining room table with her laptop. "Are we having an early dinner again?"
"Hey. Sorry, I'm still trying to get the timing right." Emma admitted with a weak smile. "I was thinking I might let it stew a bit longer so we can wait for Chris." She added before raising an eyebrow. "How was school?"
The question caused Rose to wince internally. There was probably another parental 'your kid screwed up again' slip in her future for cutting class. "It was school... Chris is going to be home tonight?"
Emma frowned as she noticed Rose trying not to make a face. "Yeah, he should be. He has to bring back some gear for you, remember? You have trained with Hound Wolf Squad over the weekends starting this Saturday."
Rose openly grimaced at the reminder. "Can I just stay home?"
"Sorry. We put it off as long as we can, but they're insisting that you need to stay mission ready like the rest of them now that things are getting back to normal," Emma reluctantly replied. While she was against the idea of Rose having to fight, if it was inevitable, then she at least wanted her daughter to know enough to stay safe.
"Chris is hardly ever home. That's supposed to be normal?" Rose mumbled as she walked away so she could put Piers down in the living room.
"It used be..."
"What was that?" Rose asked as she thought she heard Emma reply.
"hm? nothing," Emma replied as she got up and started to clear the table. "Do you need my laptop for your homework?"
"Um," Crap, she skipped English class... She probably had homework. "I think I only have reading to do tonight, so I should be fine."
"Alright, I'll let you get to that then. Laundry calls." Emma said as she packed away her things.
And Rose instantly regretted making up an assignment she didn't have when she could have just said there was no homework... She could have played video games instea- "Can Summer come over for a sleepover at least?" pleaded the hopeful teen.
Emma paused a moment to think on the question. "I'll give your Aunt Chel a call while I'm working on the laundry and see if Summer is free. She might have homework or a karate tournament."
"She switched to Judo last I heard. Said it's more practical." Rose corrected.
Hearing this caused Emma to jokingly roll her eyes. "My point stands. I'll see if she's free but don't be too surprised if she's busy because it's short notice," With that said, she walked over to give Rose a quick hug and started to make her way down to the basement.
Once the washer and dryer were busy again, and a pile of clean clothes was ready to be folded, Emma took a break to keep her promise and took out her phone.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Chelsea." Emma greeted as she moved to lean back against the laundry room counter. "How's life?"
"Oh, it's testing me," Chelsea laughed. "How are you holding up? Is the hubby still on work arrest?"
"Pretty much," Emma sighed. "He seems confident that it should get better by the end of the year..."
"It's march."
"I know... Anyways on to a better topic. Rose was wondering if Summer is free for a sleepover," Emma asked as she pushed for her smile to return.
"Oh... Um. So how's she feeling lately?" Chelsea hesitantly asked. "Is the um, goo, problem still a thing?"
"It's not really a problem anymore. Just a side effect of her medicine, and it's been slowing down, I think." Emma quickly insisted. "And the doctors are saying it's not contagious."
"Mhmm."
The hesitant humming caused Emma to pause in stunned silence.
"Emma you know I adore how close Rose and Summer are. I couldn't be happier to see our kids are friends... but I still need to be Summer's mom too, and keep her safe. This is a new development for Rose, and it's only been going on for a few weeks. Let's give it a bit more time to be sure that there aren't side effects." Chelsea hesitantly pushed back. "I can't agree to let Summer be a guinea pig to find out that they were wrong. She's already almost been infected once."
Emma cleared her throat. "Right. I completely understand. Another time then."
"Right, another time," Chelsea confirmed through an awkward silence hung in the air after. "I think Jack just walked in. I'll call you back later, and we can catch up."
"Sounds good. Talk to you then. Bye," Emma replied and waited for a parting Bye from Chelsea as well before hanging up. She stared at the phone in contemplation before putting it back into her pocket and getting back to work on the laundry.
The distraction only lasted so long before she had to carry the basket of neatly folded garments up to the main floor of the home.
"Did you call summer yet?" Rose immediately asked upon seeing Emma exit the basement.
"Oh! Um yeah. Sorry sweetie. You were right. She did switch to Judo, and she's going to be busy for a while because of it," Emma nervously replied, and her heart broke as she saw Rose's excitement deflate.
"Oh..."
"Aunt Chel agreed another time would be fine, though. So I'll check again in a few weeks," Emma insisted.
"It's okay. Don't worry about it," Rose replied as she shuffled over to the couch once more and plopped into her usual seat by Duke so she could pull out her phone and start up her game.
Rose waited until Emma was out of sight to pull up the chat function of the game and messaged Summer.
[WinterRose_21] Sooo. Mom says you can't come over because you have Judo.
[AzureW01f] Whaaa? That's so lame, no I don't. That's not fair.
[AzureW01f] I'll just ask my mom to call your mom then. That should straighten it out.
Rose smiled as she read the message from Summer. It would be nice to see her. Rose continued to play her game as she waited, only to knit her eyebrows in confusion as another message arrived shortly after.
[AzureW01f] Ummm. My mom says you're going to be on a mission for a while.
[WinterRose_21] What the hell? I'm not, and we can't even go on missions right now anyways. Chris is the only one staying at the BSAA...
[AzureW01f] Uuuugh I swear it's like they think we don't talk to each other at all... So lame...
Rose stared at the screen a bit longer before thinking over what to say next.
[WinterRose_21] Mom probably found out that I skipped classes again.
[AzureW01f] ... You shouldn't do that.
[WinterRose_21] I know.
Before much else could be said, Duke quickly jumped off the couch and hurried to the garage door as the metallic clanking and grinding announced the return of the final family member.
The elderly dog contently sat by the door as his tail brushed the ground behind him in anticipation of the soon-to-open human portal. The second the door opened, Duke sprang into action and started sniffing at Chris's legs, causing the tired man to laugh.
"I'm home!" He announced.
"Welcome home!" Emma called from upstairs.
"DADDAH!" Piers cheered as he hurried over next and clung to Chris's leg.
"Hey, kiddo. Well, that's three of four. Rose?" Chris called as he walked in with a stiff leg thanks to the toddler still happily stuck to him.
Rose Lazily raised her hand while continuing to lie on the couch. "Sup."
"Good to see you too. I have some gear for you for Saturday," Chris replied as he made his way to the living room. While he wanted to sit down and rest too, the tiny parasite stuck to his leg made that difficult.
"You can keep it. I don't want it."
"Rose," Chris Grumbled as he still tried to sit down.
"Nooo, Play!" Piers whined.
Chris heaved a tired sigh but gave up on his attempt to sit down to appease the smallest of the group." If you want something, what do you say?"
"Please?" Piers replied with doughy eyes.
Well, that was one thing the kid certainly inherited from Emma... Chris shook his head and turned his attention back to Rose. "I'll keep the gear in the trunk." At least that way, there was less opportunity for it to 'magically go missing.' He heard a few more grumbled complaints from Rose as he stiffly walked over to the small toy chest in the corner of the room.
As he did so, a small dust-covered plastic box on the TV stand caught his attention. Inside of it was a well-preserved baseball that had never been used. Chris looked between the ball and the attention-demanding tot. Piers was almost two-and-a-half and had decent enough hand-eye coordination now. The kid throws things pretty easily, so catching should be a developing skill too. Right? Right.
With that fallacy accepted as fact, Chris picked up the plastic container and worked on getting the league-grade baseball out of the container, then offered it to Piers. "Here."
Upon seeing this, Rose cautiously sat up to keep an eye on the duo and avoid any misfires from her younger brother.
Piers happily accepted the new toy and quickly ran off with it, only to stop as he heard a loud warning "ah!" from Chris.
"No, Come back here," Chris stated as he moved to sit on the ground. "Can you throw me the ball?"
Pier's looked from the ball to Chris with a wide smile. "Okay!" He happily agreed. Mom usually told him not to throw stuff. This was awesome! Pier's happily tossed the ball to Chris with all the strength he could muster, which allowed the heavy ball to fly a good foot before landing on the ground with a solid thud.
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Rose questioned as she watched Chris reach for the ball.
"It's fine." He assured before turning his attention to Piers. "Ready? I'm going to throw it to you. So try and catch it."
A blank stare was returned before an overconfident nod.
Chris gently arched the ball over to Piers, and the toddler quickly clapped his hands together to catch it after a decent delay since it had already hit the ground.
"I did it!" Piers cheered as he picked up the ball, hoping the others would be none the wiser, and smiled as the two laughed.
"Good job, Try throwing it again," Chris instructed before turning his attention back to Rose. "It's still a little too heavy for him, so he can't throw it too far. It'll be good motor skill development for him." Chris insisted as Piers flubbed throwing the ball again, and once more, Chris reached to grab it so he could toss it back.
"Yeah, that was not my only concern," Rose admitted as she watched Piers fail to catch the ball again.
The game of failing to catch and throw continued on all the same, and with it, Rose cautiously watched and waited as the attempted game continued on for a while longer.
Piers was slowly improving as determination kicked in with an understanding of the new game but the child also inevitably began to get tired from using muscles he wasn't used to using. So, all it took was one mistimed toss from Chris that slipped passed Pier's tiny hands, the perfect angle as it landed, and an unfortunate bounce for the ball to smack Piers in the face with a solid thud and knock the child over.
Chris winced as he waited to see Piers' reaction, and after a 5-second delay, Piers began to wail and scream while holding his face.
The pained shrieks caused quick footsteps to be heard from upstairs as Emma rushed down. "What happened? What's wrong? Is everyone okay?"
"Piers took a baseball to the face," Rose bluntly stated as Chris turned to glare at her for more or less throwing him under the bus.
Emma hurried over and tried to gently move Pier's hands away from his face only to hear a string of 'ouchie!' 'nooo' and 'ooowie' through sobs as he insisted on hiding his face and batting away any attempts to move his hands away.
"Okay, everyone in the car," Emma insisted as she picked up the screaming child. If they were going to have to put up with BSAA doctors, they were going to have to deal with being the emergency room too.
Chris got up and went to get the car started with Rose following closely behind. Once Emma moved dinner off the burner and turned it off she quickly got Piers into his car seat, and the family was off.
By the time they made it to the BSAA the screaming and crying had subsided to an occasional sniffle and a swollen face of tears. All the same the group briskly made their way to the medical ward. Upon seeing a nurse walking through the halls, Chris waved to flag them down.
"Captain Redfield sir. Good to see you. I thought you had an off day scheduled," The nurse stated as he adjusted his clipboard.
"Yeah, well. Things happened. Are any of the doctors available for a quick check-up? The kid might have broken his face. And well. You know the rules," As much as it annoyed Chris, It was increasingly clear why Ethan and the rest of the Winters didn't always go to the BSAA now that he had to follow the same rules.
"Right. Um, let me put in a call and see who's free," The nurse agreed before quickly hurrying off.
With no official waiting area, the four were left to stand in the hallway and wait for the nurse to come back. It took a good 15 minutes before that happened, but eventually, the nurse and doctor rounded the corner.
"Hi there. I understand we have a little soldier that needs a check-up?" the doctor jokingly asked as they walked over. "What seems to be the problem, little guy? Did you hurt your face?"
Piers pouted and nodded as crocodile tears started up again, thanks to being reminded that he was in pain.
"What happened? can you point at where it hurts?" The doctor asked in return.
"Here," Piers pointed at his still, very swollen nose, and the babbled explanation that came after was more difficult to understand than usual.
"I see," the doctor replied all the same. "We'll just have you come with me then, and we'll take a closer look." with that, they held out their arms and patiently waited for the child to be handed over. "Mom and dad are going to wait here. We'll be right back." the doctor added before walking away with the child, who loudly protested.
Hearing the shouts and cries while watching her brother get whisked away was difficult for Rose to watch as seemingly distant memories of being torn away surfaced. Rose taped her thumb against her other hand, which was balled into a fist. "Is he going to be okay?" Rose asked as she glanced at Emma.
The mother nodded. "He'll probably be fine. It seems like it's a tradition in this family to end up with a broken nose at some point," Emma answered with a tired sigh. "Even you gave us a scare."
Hearing this caused Rose to raise an eyebrow. "Really?"
"Yeah, you tried fighting the punching bag, and it fought back. Remember?" Chris chimed in.
"I'm starting to question if you guys know that you're supposed to keep kids away from heavy objects or not..." Rose stated as she moved to hide her face. "Chris beaned Pier's with a baseball, I got smacked with a punching bag," Rose listed off, which caused Chris to laugh.
"That was an accident. Baseballs aren't supposed to bounce, and you smacked yourself with the punching bag by pushing it."
"We had to bring you downstairs with us. We couldn't just leave you upstairs alone. You were too little." Emma pointed out in their defense.
"A likely story," Rose teased as she nudged Chris, who similarly nudged her back. With that, Rose curiously looked at Emma. "Have you broken your nose before?"
"She nearly broke mine shortly after we met. Considering she broke Gary's too, I'm starting to believe she thinks it's a greeting," Chris answered for Emma with a cheeky grin.
"Seriously mom?" Rose asked in disbelief.
"That was not on purpose. Well. Gary's was kind of on purpose, but that's not the point," Emma smiled through the embarrassment. "and that's big talk considering you're pretty much two for two with smacking the kids in the face with heavy objects since you accidentally beaned Rose in the face with the diaper bag that one time."
"Accidently is a keyword," Chris pointed out as Rose continued to relax and accept her parent's offered distraction from worrying about Piers.
"So I was here a few times then. Thanks for that." She shook her head while thinking about what it would have looked like for the two to panic over her getting smacked in the face like they had earlier with Piers.
"Hm? Well. Actually, you used to calm down pretty quickly," Emma said while thinking it over. "I don't think we ever had to bring you in for anything like that."
"Oh. I did?" Rose quietly asked with a slightly raised eyebrow.
"Yeah. We'd usually just give you a few minutes, and you'd be running around again,"
"They treat you differently," Sang a taunting voice that echoed in Rose's mind.
"Shut up," Rose grumbled.
"Excuse me?" Emma asked in disbelief, causing Rose to realize she had spoken out loud by mistake.
"I just don't believe you is all," Rose quickly corrected as she moved to hold her arms. What the hell was that voice, and why did it sound familiar?
Chris and Emma glanced at each other but decided to accept the answer for now.
'*'*'*'*'
As much as Rose tried to avoid it, Saturday eventually arrived, and with it came the expectation that she'd return to the BSAA, ready to work. While she knew the expectation was present, that didn't mean she had to be happy about it. So in her rebellion, the teen walked around the building and ignored the gym until she was sure she'd be late.
To her surprise, when she entered the gym, she found she wasn't the last person to arrive. Umber Eye and Chris were chatting off to the side while Canine and Night howl were standing idly by with no sign of Lobo.
"Hey, Street Wolf, welcome back," Canine greeted as he waved for her to join them.
"Hey k,"
Canine raised an eyebrow as the shortened nickname stuck around. "How's the exciting life of high school treating you?"
"It's," Rose paused to think of a good enough word to appease them without saying too much but found none, and instead, she sighed.
"uh-oh. That well?" Night Howl asked as his expression shifted to match Canine's frown of concern.
"Those kids aren't still bothering you, are they?" Canine asked.
"Something like that... Almost got expelled," Rose admitted in a whisper.
"Oh boy..." Night howl muttered.
"Eh well. You're in good company. The rest of us were troublemakers too. Still are,"
"Speak for yourself," Night howl laughed as he gave Canine a playful shove before noticing the gym door open once more. "Hey look who finally decided to grace us with his presence." Night Howl loudly announced, causing the others to laugh as Lobo gave an exaggerated bow and a wide grin.
"Oh god that face can only mean trouble," Canine teased as Lobo made his way over to join the group.
"Normally you'd be right," Lobo admitted. "but nope, not this time. I have a date tonight."
"... So how much did you pay her?" Night Howl asked, only to wince as he was instantly punched in the arm.
Rose chuckled at her childish uncles. "What's her name? Is she pretty?"
"Drop-dead gorgeous if I'm being humble, and her name's Keeshya," Lobo answered before looking over at Chris and Umber eye, who seemed equally unamused. "So uh, cap, if I gotta do laps for being late, mind if I start those now? I don't wanna keep her waiting after all."
"I was gonna say 15, but you can make it 30 since you're asking," Chris stated. "Rose. 15 laps. You were late too."
"You're going easy on her," Lobo accused.
"She didn't mouth off; make it 40," Chris ordered. "Before you do that, Everyone, line up."
"Sir, yes sir!"
"We've got the gym scheduled for the next 4 hours before Silver Colt shows up to use it. I expect everyone will be putting in 150% today. We still have a long way to go before we're mission-ready." Chris stated while walking up and down the line of 4 soldiers and a child. "At this rate, we may get called back in, so we need to be ready to leave as soon as yesterday. BSAA Asia's team has made some progress following leads to locate the Duke, but they're approaching the end of their rope. So with that said. Lobo, Rose start your laps. Canine, Night howl start on the machines. Umber Eye, you'll start off sparing with me. Rose, join Canine and Night Howl when you're done with your laps. Lobo. You'll be with me and Umber Eye. If you don't finish your 40 before we rotate out, add 40 more."
"Sir, yes sir!" the five called back before immediately hurrying off to do as they were told. Even Rose didn't hesitate to follow orders.
"Does the captain seem particularly crabby today to you?" Night howl whispered as he worked on setting up a weight training machine.
"We've pretty much been stuck at work for what? five months now?" Canine asked in return while setting up the machine next to him.
"Four,"
"My point stands. Four months. The organization he helped build is currently being held together with duct tape and spite, his team includes his sixteen-year-old daughter who's struggling at school, he can't be there to help, and now he's dealing with the beginnings of a stir-crazy Lobo while being stir-crazy himself. Cut him some slack. We're all a little on edge."
"Yeah yeah," Night Howl reluctantly grumbled under his breath. "Would help if we knew anything else about who we're supposed to be looking for."
"True. Pretty arrogant to just run around calling yourself 'the duke', It's the same fat bastard that showed up for the trial all those years ago right?" Canine asked before getting settled into the machine.
"Probably," Night Howl wheezed back while struggling against the machine.
"Easy man, you're going to hurt yourself," Canine warned.
"Nah. Captain said 150%. I'm doing exactly that."
"I don't think he was being literal..."
Night Howl waited until he finished another set. "If you want to test that. Be my guest. I don't want to run 40 laps."
Hearing that caused Canine to pause before shifting to adjust his machine to a heavier setting.
"I'm surprised," Canine paused to pull at the machine. "The BSAA. Is still. Letting Rose. Go to school."
"She's got one nice thing." Night Howl eeked out in response. "Just let her have it."
At this point, Canine stopped. "You heard her before. It's not exactly going well for her. I heard it firsthand. She's getting picked on. She almost got expelled. She'd be better off here helping us."
Night Howl sighed and begrudgingly stopped as well. "Look 'Uncle K', it's not our call. What would she do besides sulk and practice at the firing range?"
"She's connected to the Megamycete, and that's what they're after based on what was missing so far."
"Keep quiet," Night Howl warned through a hiss. After a moment's pause, he started to pull at his machine. "I already tried pointing that out to the captain. If you want to try too, it's your funeral."
Canine's frown deepened as he looked between Chris and Rose, shook his head, and got back to work.
Well, okay. It wasn't a completely cute chapter, and it was a little short, but it was mostly cute. We're entering the Shadows of Rose next, so that chapter will be hecka long I'm sure ;) And hopefully, in a week or two like my usual posting schedule since I kinda had two months of crazy, and I've missed this a lot. I promise I'll reply to all the messages I've missed. Please know that they made me smile and gave me strength during the last two months.
