Chapter 3: Home and Steady
The bus departed from school, and Lunalei and Zelene sat next to each other in the back, their bags tucked away on the floor.
The first few minutes were quiet save for the bumpiness provided by the road, so quiet that Lunalei started to yawn and drift off.
Zelene sharply turned her head and with eyes wide in anticipation she patted her lap, "S-Sis! You can lay your head down here."
With an instinctual smile Lunalei began to sink towards her legs while murmuring, "Thanks, Zelene."
The moment before her head rested, she gazed at the squishy canopy hovering over her and grumbled internally.
She sat back up, grazing her head against the corner of her chest, "...On second thought, we're not far from home."
She then crossed her arms, while Zelene hung her head and sighed.
Lunalei tapped her fingers along her elbow and muttered, "Damn it all…Why did it have to turn out this way?"
"...I didn't want this either." Zelene murmured, staring at her body.
Lunalei glanced at only her face with her jaw slacked, "Eh? Oh no no, I'm not talking about…"
She grimaced while looking at her body, "Those."
She then shook her head, "I just wanted a nice class to work in…not a meeting place for a whole ass family reunion…"
Zelene remarked in timid worry, "Y-You're not going to change schools, are you?"
Lunalei brushed her hand up in an uncertain way, "Senpai put her neck on the line to get me this job. So like it or not, I'm gonna have to cope."
"I see…" Zelene murmured.
"I got you and Leo to rein in Serra anyways…Dunno what I'm gonna do about Goth McGigaTits though. Four years and an overdose on puberty really gave her an attitude problem…"
She pulled her hand up to scratch her face and grumbled, "Bah, forget it. I'll deal with it tomorrow. Right now I just want to go home, say 'Hi' to the family, and crash on my bed."
So out of respect for that, Zelene didn't say anything else the rest of the trip, but continued to tap her fingers on her knees.
The bus dropped them off at the bottom of the hill, which lay on the edge of a populated suburban area. The road home was elevated but easy to manage with a little patience.
It was just as she had left it. Two-stories tall with black tile roofs and white painted walls mixed with a little bit of green around the window frames and a hint of gray in the pipes. There was a small outdoor pool currently empty, and a garden behind it with two tall oak trees providing shade at the appropriate times of the year.
The house had recently gotten a fresh coat of paint, from the looks of things.
Upon approaching the doorbell Lunalei got some last minute jitters in her knees and took a deep breath to calm down.
In the midst of reaching for the doorbell though, Zelene put a key into the knob and opened the door.
Lunalei withdrew her hand with a mild chuckle of embarrassment.
Zelene was courteous in letting her take the first step inside. While mostly white inside, it was a warmer, uplifting kind of white. The foyer was open enough to see most of the second floor, part of the kitchen to the right, and the living room to the left where the fireplace was placed as well.
After getting their shoes off Lunalei caught the scent of pine in the air, mixed with a bit of cherrywood.
It put her in the mood to sit and read manga.
Lunalei paced around the foyer and her weary smile continued to rise. Poking her head into the living room, she saw the movie shelves had a new addition, and the placement of the movies had been rearranged in a few spots.
The movies weren't arranged alphabetically you see, but from favorite to least favorite.
She then heard small footsteps hurriedly approaching from the second floor.
When Lunalei turned to the stairs she fell for the ambush of the bouncy bundle of joy that was her little brother.
"BIG SIS!" He erupted in delight as he jumped at her with hands out, which she intercepted with her own, letting him push her back a little.
He had scruffy short white hair and a yellow and green striped shirt with blue jeans and black and white shoes. He had just turned ten years old this year, and was now only a few inches shorter than her.
Between her trembling of warmth she breathed a sigh of relief out loud, "Oh thank goodness…"
She then put on her sisterly smile and teased him along, "Well now, who is this rambunctious boy running through my house?"
The boy started hopping up and down while holding onto her hands and guiding her around, "You're finally home, big sis! I wanna show you all the new comics I've been reading!"
"Well before you do that, Xander…" Lunalei gently pulled her hands away and pulled the figure from her bag.
The boy closed his mouth and squealed internally before letting out a shout, "Decade Rider Millenia?!"
She let him have it while relishing in his joy with a melting smile, "Yep, picked it up from a store on my way out of town. Scanned it to the last detail, and it's 100% authentic! AND…it even has manga accurate boosters on the back!"
She rubbed the bottom of her nose and felt proud, "Yeah, I'm the coolest big sis ever."
"Oh! That reminds me." Lunalei then reached into the bag again and pulled out a set of acrylic pens in a glass case.
"Here Zelene, you still do art right? These pens are high quality."
"O-Oh, well actually…I use regular paint now." Zelene muttered.
"Really?" Lunalei felt deflated until Zelene took the case.
"B-But, I can still…find a use for these." She tucked the case into her bag.
More footsteps approached them, descending softly down the stairs, punctuating their movement with a delightful gasp.
Lunalei turned to the stairs and there she was: Her mom.
Still as tall and beautiful as ever, her shapely appearance pronounced even in a modest choice of clothes, with silvery hair tied in a ponytail that went to the shoulder, her appearance left Lunalei tingling with intimidation born of her own inadequacy, but made her heart feel so warm that it managed to loosen a couple tears from her eyes.
She pulled her glasses off, wiped them on her sleeve, and then lifted her head back up to smile at her, "H-Hey…I'm home mom."
Her mom was fighting back the tears as well, "Look at you, all grown-up and even a teacher as well…"
Once at the bottom of the stairs she reached out and ruffled her daughter's hair fondly, then carefully rubbed down her cheek, holding onto something she desperately wanted to say, before choosing to go elsewhere in a more cheery tone, "Well! I'm sure you're tired. Feel free to rest as long as you want. I'll save some dinner in the fridge for you."
Xander presented his figure to his mom and declared, "Look at what big sis got for me!"
"A new figure?" Their mom turned with a hint of surprise, then glanced aside at Lunalei to giggle, "I hope that didn't cost too much."
"I got a little extra cash from part-time jobs. No big deal. And speaking of presents, mom!" Lunalei reached into her bag and pulled out a book written in another language.
"I got you this!"
"Well how about that!" Her mom took the book and gauged its authenticity, "I've been looking all over the market for the Spanish version of 'Garden of the Evening Gale'."
Barely holding back a giggle, she leaned in close to her daughter's ear and whispered, "I heard this version has a spicier tone in the 'you-know-what' part."
Lunalei blushed deep red and held tightly onto her glasses while in recoil, "M-Mom…!"
With a well-meaning teasing chuckle, her mom hugged the book against her chest, "Your dad and I will enjoy this later. Thank you very much!"
"Dad…" Lunalei murmured in a somber tone, finally putting her glasses into place and lifting her head back to make eye contact with her mom, "Is he home at the moment?"
"Yes, as a matter of fact, he should be upstairs getting ready for work," Her mom turned around and shouted, which even then managed to sound soothing, "Riku! Our oldest's finally home!"
There was no immediate answer, but movement could be heard upstairs.
Lunalei took another deep breath and waited patiently for even a hint of her father past the second floor railing.
Eventually he walked out, short black hair and a small grown beard giving him the presence of a calm and very patient man. His attire consisted of a doctor's outfit tucked behind a plaid coat and a black bowler's hat on his head.
He stopped at the top of the stairs and slowly opened his mouth in a silent gasp, then made his way down.
"Daughter." He said in a subdued, welcoming tone.
"Dad." Lunalei turned sideways and crossed her arms.
He stopped at the bottom and tried to reach out, but then let out a heavy sigh. Lunalei's hairs on the back of her neck rose, and her eyes winced partway shut.
He broke the tension by remarking, "You've been staying healthy. Good."
"...Well," Lunalei turned to look him in the eyes and had some humility, "I had to make do on my own. So I just remembered some of the stuff mom taught me."
Riku smiled for a moment, "I heard you've gotten a job as a teacher at Bluegreen High. Was it difficult on your first day?"
Lunalei nudged her glasses and puckered her lips, "To be honest…I really don't want to talk about it right now. Besides, you were just about to head for work yeah? …I wouldn't want to cost your patients any precious seconds."
"...Right," Riku solemnly nodded his head and then looked at his other two kids to say, "I will hear about ALL of your first days when I return."
"And Lunis?" Riku faced his wife and it was like watching bridges meet up in fog-filled night.
She reached out to him first and patted him on the shoulder while asserting her right to confidence as a mother, "Just go do what you do best. I'll have dinner waiting for you in the fridge."
Riku smiled and reached out to kiss her on the cheek, and whispered back to her, "Extra oregano?"
"As if you have to ask." She said playfully before kissing him back and flicking her finger against his nose.
"I look forward to it."
She then pressed the new book against his chest and told him, "That's not all you can look forward to."
She then winked.
He then turned and made his way out the door. While passing Lunalei, she took a moment to glance back with a frown, and tried to approach him.
But she stopped herself, and turned back around to fiddle with her glasses some more, her eyes dimly lit.
"I thought our time apart would solve the issue. But it seems our formulas are simply too…incompatible in this equation."
And then it struck her right in the head, causing her to pull another book out of her bag and run out the door after her father.
"Wait, dad!" She managed to catch him right as he opened the garage.
"Hmmm?" He looked down as he presented the book to him standing sideways.
"H-Here…It's a book on medicine. T-Thought you might learn some new things."
Once she felt the weight of the book leave her hand she crossed her arms and returned to avoiding eye contact.
He remarked sincerely, "I can always learn new things. Thank you."
"...No problem."
"Lunalei…" Riku reached out again, holding himself back by barely an inch, "...Though I may not be as expressive as your uncle, I want you to understand just how proud I am of you for getting this far in life so soon."
"All I'm concerned about…is that you won't leave enough time open for yourself."
"...Dad, I know better than that."
"...Ok." He gave a light nod and then made his way to the van, departing for work.
Lunalei then headed back inside where Xander had already joined their mom in the kitchen, while Zelene was heading up to her room.
Lunalei scooped up her bag and slowly climbed the stairs, passing a few family pictures along the way.
"Hard to believe there was a time when I was an only child…" She said, smiling at a picture of her when she was born, cradled in her mom's arm as her face was flooded with tears of joy. Her dad stood close by, his face pale, but his smile the brightest she's ever seen in.
From there, their family grew and grew, and was at one point six members big.
…At one point.
Lunalei stopped near the end of the photographic timeline and saw a recent picture framed in cherrywood and a bit of gold.
It had her mother and father standing side-by-side with Zelene, Xander, and the one born in-between standing in front of them.
She was a very average looking 13-year old girl with clean combed brown-hair down to her waist, a buttoned white shirt, and a sparkling dark blue skirt.
Her name is Stella.
Lunalei paused and remembered a conversation with her mom over the phone a few months back.
"What? Stella ran away from home?!"
"Shit…! Don't worry mom, I'm gonna buy a plane ticket back home and help all of you find her!"
"Stay here? You'll handle it on your own? Mom, are you SURE? With senpai's tech I could easily…"
"...Right. Yeah, I do have finals this week but mom…"
"...Ok, ok, you don't have to keep bringing up reasons to convince me. I'll leave this up to you."
But as Lunalei finished climbing the stairs and looked down the hall to her left, she saw a door closed shut and not a peep to be heard coming from it.
"Sometimes I forgot Stella was even here, but damn it…That doesn't matter now. Our family's incomplete without her. Whenever I get a chance, I need to try and find her. I REFUSE to believe something bad happened to her."
She carried this determination into her room at the opposite end of the hall. Opening that door made the final wave of nostalgia come rushing in.
The dresser, her TV, the bed, even the lilac colored flower sheets were still where they should be. The dome light on the ceiling was shaped with the ridges and bumps of moon craters, and the walls were covered in posters of her top five favorites animes with personal signatures from the seiyuu and VAs of her favorite characters.
On the desk beside her bed was a custom-designed mechanical Rubik's Cube, which would reassign the colors if it wasn't completed in a fast enough time.
Lunalei threw her bag down on the floor and dove onto the bed while swiping the cube up. She then sat on her back and completed it in a matter of seconds, proudly smirking, "Heh, still got it."
She then planted the cube down, breathed a heavy sigh of relief as she sank into the cold, thin sheets, and then reached into her vest for the phone.
She tapped in a phone number at a record pace and then pressed it excitedly against her ear.
One ring, and then came the answer in the form of an overly peppy voice, "Ha ha ha! How's my primo supremo student doing?!"
Lunalei's voice did a complete 180 into relaxation as she had a friendly confidant to confide in, "Uuuuugh, could've been better."
"Uh-oh, I sense delinquency afoot in the halls of learning!"
"Yeah, and you won't believe who's causing a fuss! It's the Dark twins! Well…moreso ERIN, but still-"
"Oooooh, yeah, I probably should've given you a heads-up about that!"
"S-Senpai you knew?!" Lunalei stuttered.
"Just found out from some harmless eavesdropping, no big deal!"
"H-Hey, don't worry, I TOTALLY get why," Lunalei then kicked up her feet and groaned, "Uuuugh, but guess what? My sister AND Uncle's twin kids are in my class too!"
"Oh no!"
"Oh yeah!"
"Well gosh darn it, isn't that a kick in the teeth? You going to be alright?"
"Well...heroes need to meet some challenge on their journey, right?"
"But there's no way this'll be a challenge for YOU though, Lunalei!"
"...T-Thanks for the morale boost, senpai."
"Ha ha ha! Anytime, prized pupil! Remember, you can always dial me up if ever you get into a pickle!"
"I'll make you proud. You just keep taking names in politics, alright?"
"Of course! That's my third specialty! Now, before I go, let me impart one important lesson!"
"Crime never sleeps, but that's no excuse to not get some yourself! So take the rest of the day off, and conquer tomorrow with style!"
"I will, senpai. You get some rest as well."
"Ha ha ha! You strike a good point, my student! I will be sure to dream of electric sheep! Ta-ta for now!"
Lunalei hung up and put the phone against her chest with a huge smile on her face.
Then she looked around and could finally accept, "I'm home."
She then sat up, adjusted her glasses back into place, and put on a firm expression, "Alright…I'll take a little time off, and then, it's back to work."
—-
With her school day wrapped up, Serra took off running back home through the familiar streets. She picked up a second strawberry smoothie for good measure, and still managed to make it back to her neighborhood before the bus.
The neighborhood consisted of four streets with a house on each side. Zely and her family lived on a hill close by.
Her house was a two-story wooden yellow building that's seen some better times, but there's nothing that beats coming back here after a long jog!
She did a few jumping jacks until the bus rolled up beside her and let Leo and Damian off. Leo once more tasked with carrying her forgotten backpack.
He handed it off without a word and then the siblings faced their friend, who seemed to be in good spirits.
"Well…that wasn't a bad first day. Sorry it didn't work out with the football team, Serra."
Serra kept an idealistic view of things, "Yeah! Really weird that they suddenly didn't have a spot open after promising, but oh well! There's plenty more teams to challenge!"
Leo shook his head to accept things as is and then shook Damian's hand, "See you tomorrow."
"Y-Yeah. I'll see if I can borrow one of mom's music chips for you."
Serra then snatched at the opportunity to shake his hand, "Hope you get to finish that picture, buddy!"
Damian's face turned red and he made a quick turn around, moving his legs like a nutcracker doll, "L-Later…guys!"
Serra propped her hands on her hips and remarked, "Heh heh, I dunno why he gets so shy."
Leo glanced at her briefly, then walked past and gestured towards their house, "Well, since it's just us for the evening, how about I cook up some garlic butter steaks?"
Serra jumped forward into a walk and shouted, "Woo hoo! Load'er up with onions, Leo!"
"Unfortunately, we're out."
"Awwwww!"
"But we have asparagus."
"Ok cool, but keep'em RAW!"
"Ha ha, as you wish, sister." Leo then unlocked the door for them and upon entering the familiar, humble homefront they were hit by the presence of an unexpected guest.
Standing six feet tall with his brown spiky hair and familiar black shirt with the flame on it and blue jeans was the former main character of this story himself, Mew Whiter.
Arms crossed and a loving grin spread across his face, he left even Leo pausing to collect his thoughts, "Dad? I thought you had-"
Mew gestured his arms out and approached his kids, "What, and miss out on your first day of high school? Nah, the crew bought my excuses and I jumped right over here to see how it went!"
Serra ran past Leo and threw her hand out to greet her dad with a powerful handshake, "It was half-fun, half-boring, pop! I almost got to join a football team!"
Mew raised his brows, "Hoooo! Atta girl!"
The two's grips grew tighter, and their eyes began to narrow, shooting sparks out between them.
"Heh…!" The two smirked, and began to arm wrestle in place.
Leo calmly walked past them to take their bags into their room in the back.
Mew grunted and wiggled his arm back into place, "Not bad…! Glad to see you're still rarin' to go, Serra!
"This time, I'm gonna beat you, pop!"
"Oh yeah?"
"YEAH!"
As the two engaged in playful shows of confidence, Leo re-entered the scene by detouring into their small kitchen, slowly picking out ingredients from the fridge.
"Oh by the way, dad, you'll never guess who is back in town."
"Did Gabriel finally bring his one-man tour back home…?" Mew said, breaking into a bit of a casual tone while putting his might into this competition.
"No, actually. It's Lunalei."
Mew turned his head back and remarked, "Get out! My favorite niece?!"
As Leo put the steak on the cutting board and started cutting it into strips, he added to the good news, "And not just that, she's teaching class at our school now."
Mew whistled, "Heh, I bet Riku bawled his eyes out when he heard that."
Serra then commented, "She's still as funny as ever!"
Mew looked her in the eyes and after a couple grunts to take the lead back, told her in a firm but well-mannered tone, "Serra, don't give your cousin trouble while she's working."
Leo then resumed where he left off, "And that's not all. Erin and Alex moved back.
He started washing his hands, rightfully predicting where Mew would go next, "Wow, haven't seen THEM in a long time."
"And they're our classmates." Leo added.
"No shot? Well good for you all, you guys were great friends!"
His expression then soured upon realizing, "Oh but wait, that means she's back in town too…oi…"
Leo popped around the corner with a picture of the two inside the school on his phone.
Mew's eyes widened, "Huh? That's them? Whew...! Talk about a growth spurt."
A bit of nostalgia tickled the side of his mouth, "Heh, but she's taken after her father."
Then was able to shift right into muttering in worry, "But hopefully...not after her mother…"
Serra swung her head over to look at the picture and comment, "Hey, where'd you find her? I was looking for her all afternoon!"
"Zelene and I just happened to run into her while she was on her way to class. I snuck a photo, figured dad would want to see them." Leo then returned to the kitchen.
"Also, they had afternoon classes, remember?"
"Oh yeah, ha ha!" Serra chuckled.
"So dad, I take it you won't be sticking around for dinner then." Leo remarked.
"Yeah, sorry, only bought enough time to say hello and chat for a bit," Mew then looked at the counter and bemoaned his decision, his mouth moistening as he talked, "Aw man, garlic butter steaks?"
He then looked back at his daughter, pulled her arm down for defeat and quickly walked off his victory towards the kitchen, "Leo, if you save me one, I'll buy you whatever music album you want when I get back."
Leo smiled and nodded.
"Dang!" Serra uttered, shaking the trembling from her wrist, "I lost again!"
Mew turned around and patted her on the shoulder as he walked by, his voice pushing her forward with pride, "You're getting there, keep at it!"
The two smirked at each other, then proceeded to bump knuckles.
Mew then walked over to the living room while realizing, "Oh wait, hang on, your mom should be on TV right about now."
He bumped the remote on the part dangling over the table to send it flipping and flying, then snatched it out of the air and thrust it towards the TV.
It turned on to a global news channel, where front and center, Serra saw her mom covering a story.
Kairi Aurora, or more appropriately now, Kairi Whiter, was an up-and-coming newscaster with the tenacity, bluntness, but equal parts fairness to chase the truth down on every news story she covers.
She's cut back her hair to the shoulder and shaped it into a short angled bob style. Currently, she wore a green jacket with a black belt around the waist and large black buttons. It had a lime-green shirt underneath.
"Where's she at now?" Serra wondered.
Mew crossed his arms and thought, "Looks like somewhere on the east coast."
He was smiling at the sight of her, fighting with grit in her element.
Serra kinda blocked out a lot of what was being said because she was really happy to see her mom was doing well.
After a bit though, Kairi placed her fingers on her ear and paused her news coverage, "Hold on…Ok. We're shifting focus to the White House for a moment, where our President is making a vital speech regarding the recent 'Funds Towards the Future'' bill."
The camera jumped away from her and towards the speech podium at the White House. Journalists were all in a buzz as the President made his way onto it.
He had sleek black hair with only a few strands straggling in the front. Dressed in the standard President's attire, he looked very dapper. And though there were some bags under his eyes, he was projecting an overall powerful and kind aura.
Powerful enough to distract anyone watching from his Vice President standing behind him. The energetic, purple-haired defender of justice in a black suit and draping white lab coat: Catherine, AKA, Aurian Saturn.
But who would she be backing, you may ask?
The President leaned onto the podium and one look at his eyes showed he wasn't just taking on the expectations of every journalist in the room, but every man, woman and child watching from home.
"I want to start off by saying how proud I am of my fellow Americans. You took the money we provided and built hundreds of new schools around the country. Each and EVERY one of them is full of the facilities and opportunities necessary to give them a fighting chance at thriving without fear."
"Currently, I am still working on getting a budgetary increase for all the new teachers that will be filling these schools. And after that, I want to look towards cutting back the requirements necessary for graduating students to get jobs, and offer many, many chances for them to receive training!"
"I know…this is a long battle ahead of me, but as your President, I will continue to fight this battle alongside the rest of you out there! So please! Continue to send e-mails to my office with suggestions, I will make sure your voices don't get drowned in the darkness!"
"Let us keep working to provide a better future for ourselves…and for our children. This is President Joe Dark, and I will see you all next time."
As the President waved the roaring crowd off, the footage went into a picture-within-picture shot and let Kairi resume her job.
After coughing to prepare herself, she said, "And there you have it folks. More promises. More changes. That's our President for you!"
She probably thought no one would notice her breaking into bias to smile at him, but Mew saw and smiled alongside her.
She brushed up her frontal bangs anxiously like the unison of feelings between them crossed the TV waves, and then focused on the camera to continue, "Now, in unrelated news, a shipment of sludge was reported sinking off the East Coast. We will be coming to you live with the captain and crew who barely survived the incident, after the commercial break."
"Having cravings? Then HOWDY DO, here's something new 4 U! Introducing New 4 U energy bars! The-"
"Alright, that's enough of that." Mew pressed "Mute".
He then looked at Serra and smiled, "If you'll excuse me, I gotta get back to my crew. You kids enjoy your first week of school. I'll see you and your mom again on the weekend."
Serra turned around and cheered him on, "And we'll see you on the racetrack! Burn some rubber, pop!"
Mew flashed a thumbs up and shouted, "You got it! And you...keep kicking butt and taking names, Serra!"
"Yeah! Next time for SURE I'll beat ya!"
"Looking forward to it…!" Mew grinned and then gestured his hand out to open a portal of darkness.
Before he left, Leo asked him, "One more thing dad, we're out of hamburger, should I pick some up from the store or…?"
"Nah, I'll handle that. There's a damn good meatery two cities out from where I'm at. I'll see about snatching some chicken liver too."
"Already got some yesterday."
"Dang you're good..." Mew murmured in pride, "Alright, how about ham? Spiral cut? Low fat?"
"Sounds good. Be safe out there, dad."
"Ha! Me? Catch you two later! Don't stay up too late! Brush your truth! Whatever other things parents say!" He then left through the portal and it sealed up.
With him gone, Serra could finally throw off her jacket and plop onto the couch to take a rare moment of relaxation before dinner.
She craned her head back and shouted, "Our parents are so cool, Leo!"
"They really are." Leo said as he began laying the meat on top of the stove grill.
The sizzling noises made Serra salivate a river, "Uuuunnngh…hurry up, Leo! That sound is killing meeeeee!"
Leo laughed fondly, and after a bit…Well ok a LOT of fidgeting on Serra's part, the two sat at the table and enjoyed a fantastic dinner!
Then Serra spent most of the night alternating between training on video games and doing sit-ups, while Leo was off in his room enjoying a podcast while practicing his harmonica.
Eventually night fell and Serra retreated to her room, jumping into the top bunker still wearing her sports bra and shorts.
She laid her hands behind her head and spoke up, "Hey Leo, you still awake?"
"Just barely." He murmured.
"I can't WAIT for tomorrow! All our family in one school! It'll be like old times!"
"Hmmm…" Leo subtly expressed his concerns.
"Pal-in and I are going to have so much fun together! And there's so many sports to try out! YEAH!" Serra pumped her fist into the air and put on a determined expression, "This is going to be the BEST year ever!
Next Time: New Faces in High School