"Hola!" A cheery voice said, and he raised his eyebrows to see a plump woman with tanned skin and dark brown hair and eyes standing over him. "I clean?"
He sat up, and she was holding fresh sheets for the bed in her hands. Sara walked by the room, and he streched his back and rubbed his face to wake up further. The woman stood by, and Sara gave a laugh as the woman stood by and smiled at him.
"Loki, meet Maria. She is the lady that will throw her shoe and cuss you out in Spanish if you get in her way." Sara said, holding her cup of coffee in her hands and grinning at him. He stood up, and the Hispanic Woman's eyes went wide as he streched and yawned. She was staring, and she hid her face a moment as she started to laugh as she pointed to his groin.
"Mr. Happy is rising and shining too!" Sara teased, and he turned his back and groaned to himself. "Maria, don't have a heart attack sweetie."
"I leave, you can dress Senior Loki. Come later.." She said in broken English, and wandered off as she muttered something in Spanish. Sara laughed, and leaned against the doorframe as she watched the woman leave.
"Dios Mio!" Maria exclaimed as she thought she was out of earshot, and Loki raised an eyebrow as Sara laughed as she grinned at him, and he wanted to throw something at her. He was humiliated enough, and now she had to poke at him worse. He glared at her over his shoulder, and she sipped her coffee.
"Leave!" He barked at her, and her eyes went wide. She tood a step back, and she reached for the door to close it. He gave her a look that would have killed her if he had any of his magic, and saw the fear in her eyes. She shut the door, and he could hear her hurrying down the steps as he forced the tension out of his muscles. He clenched his fists, and cursed himself as he stalked to the shower and turned the water on.
He would have to apologize later, but for now, she could live in her fear. He stood under the spray, and felt his tension melt off him, when a cold breeze drifted over his back. He turned his head, and saw nothing, and no place the air could have come from. He returned to bathing himself, when he felt it again. He turned around, and saw a shadow drift across the wall and vanish.
"I will apologize to her as soon as I am done here, not before." He said to the ghost, and began rubbing the soap in his hands. "I will not hurt her, and I know that you are only trying to protect her."
He turned around to soap himself, and looked down at the drain between his feet and sighed.
"I want to protect her too." He said, and turned off the water.
--‐--
She fumbled with the bottles of medication in her bathroom, trying to find the one for anxiety attacks and one bottle slipped out of her hands. She was breathing heavily, and he chest hurt as she sorted through them all. She couldn't find it, and she was fighting the tightness in her throat as she dropped another one. It rolled across the floor, and came to a rest against Loki's shoe, and she almost crawled for it, but her legs gave up and she slid to the floor.
They had thought she was crazy, the people in the house she saw and were not really there. They called her schizophrenic, and tried to medicate her, but it only made what she saw worse. Darla screamed at her when she talked to the ghosts in the house, threatening to have her locked up if she didn't stop. All she could do now, as an adult was cry about it all. She whimpered, her chest hurting worse and she sat against the wall and tried to breathe.
"I... I need... I need those pills." She said, and she reached out a hand that was going numb. He held the bottle, and she blinked back tears and shook. "Please... br... bring i... it here."
"You should not be unwell, the serum..." He started to say, and recognition of what was happening crossed his face as he walked to her with the bottle. She tried to get it open, and she screamed in frustration when her clammy hands would not grip the bottle. He saw the others in the sink, and he read the labels on them. He was judging her, finding out what a mess she was, and now he would be even meaner to her.
She felt limp then, and the bottle fell from her tingling fingers and hit the floor. He looked back, and he crouched down next to her and held her face in his hands. He took a deep breath through his nose, and then let it out through his mouth. She breathed with him, and he kept holding her face in his hands. She felt herself relax, and he sat against the cabinet behind him and let her rest herself.
"You can tease me about this... the anxiety disorder. I'm crazy, I know." She said, and she wanted to curl up and vanish into the tile. "I go to the doctor, and he just gives me more meds and tells me to exercise more. I don't need to fucking exercise, I need something that helps me! I see things, people that shouldn't be there, and most medications make it worse." She sobbed, and he took her hand in his. She looked at him, and he rested his head against the wooden door. "I just want to be normal, like you and Amy, and Mark..."
"I see them too." He said, cutting her off and her eyes went wide. "The spirits that haunt this home. You have not gone mad, you are gifted with seeing the people who remain after they die."
"You are teasing me, I should have expected that." She said, and he stared back at her and shook his head. She looked as if she were going to say more, but stopped and he pressed his lips together.
"I am not, and a bit offended that you would accuse me of that. I can feel when they walk through the room, it is like a..."
"A cold draft." She cut him off, and he gave her a quick nod. She almost started crying again, and she hugged herself. "I'm not crazy..."
"No." He replied, and she smiled at him and let herself relax a bit. She was not mental, her brain was just wired a bit different. It felt good in a way, and she rested her head back. She felt tired, and she tossed the bottle of pills up and into the sink with the rest. He laughed at her, and she shrugged as she tried to fix her hair with her fingers.
"I'm sorry about teasing you... about... you know." She said, and he laughed and shook his head. He held out his hand to shake hers, and she took it.
"Yes. Mr.. Happy, as you called it.. That was a bit clever, and sometimes my body has a mind of its own. I apologize for barking at you the way I did. It was not fair of me to be so rude." He said back, and she gave him a smile. She let go of his hand and he offered to help her up. She was still too shaky to move, and she shook her head.
"I will fall over if I try to walk." She said, and he crouched down and lifted her up in his arms and took her to her bed. He lay her down, and pulled a light blanket over her. "Thanks."
She felt her eyelids droop, and all she head next was the door closing as he left.
--‐--
The rest of the week passed slowly, and Sara sat in the office that Friday and rubbed her eyes. She was proofreading the report for Fury, and correcting typos as she stared at the screen. She spent most of the week alone, the only other persons in the house was the ghosts that haunted it and the slightly louder ghost that was named Loki. The actual ghosts that remained forever a part of the house that was originally built in 1903, were strangely quiet, making her wonder sometimes if she would join them one day in haunting the home when she died.
She finished, closing with a remark that she would send him reports from now on on Fridays, that way he knew when they were coming. She then printed off a copy for herself, and started a manilla file that she labeled "Silent Asshole" and clicked send before she closed out the form on the computer and moved on to other tasks she had to get done.
She heard him climbing the steps through the heavy oak doors, and picked up the tablet and used her code and thumbprint to unlock it. She scrolled through her emails on the computer, and groaned to herself when someone knocked at the door. She let put a long breath, swiveling around in the office chair, and she stared at the doors.
"Come in, unless you are the ghost of Darla, then stay the fuck out." She sighed, and Loki opened the door and stepped inside. He looked around the room, and he studied the portrait of her Great Grandfather above a shelf of ledgers to her right and she gestured toward a chair in front of the desk. "Bored too? Or do you need instructions on how to operate the toaster again?"
"A bit, and I have mastered the toaster." He replied, sitting down and she swiveled back and forth in the leather office chair. She waited for him to speak, and she handed him the printed off copy of her report to Fury that she was going to put in her records. He read it over, and handed it back to her and she slipped it into the file and placed it in a desk drawer and followed it with the laptop and locked the desk with a key she kept on her ring.
"Yeah, me too. Everyone is coming over tomorrow to sear and consume the flesh of a cow, and Maria is going to be here later to do some light cleaning." She said, and she spun herself in the chair and waited for herself to stop. "Want to go out to Puyallup? There is a place we can get you some better shoes, and I can go for a soft pretzel in the Food Court."
"Sounds agreeable." He replied, and she laughed at him. She remembered being twelve years old, and talking to her dad in that chair, trying to get him to understand how mean Darla was to her over asking for a book from the store. He sat her in his lap, and held her as she cried, the welts from being spanked still on her thighs. She just wanted to know why being born was such a crime, and he didn't have the answers for her. He gave her a big hug still, and gave her a Harshey's Kiss from the jar he kept on the desk. She looked at the half full jar now, and lifted the cut crystal lid and offered one to Loki.
"You really need to work on that conversation bit, it may help me plead your case toward getting that chip out of the back of your hand. It also makes for better reports, instead of writing that you brooded in your room for most of the week like the Emo Kid you are." She shot back, and he ate the chocolate in his hand. She put the lid back on the cut crystal jar, chewing hers, and she let the chocolate melt over her tounge. She filled out the form on the tablet, and she put them as leaving immediately and gave them a few hours to walk around. It may do him some good to get out of the Town in general too, at least to where he was not judged.
"I will attempt to do better." He replied, and she rolled her eyes and laughed at him. He waved a hand, and shook his head as he talked and she almost laughed at it. "As in, I will speak to you more over meals, I do owe you that much."
"Cool, let me go change my clothes, we will go over to South Hill Mall and walk around for a bit. If you are nice, I will buy you a soft pretzel too. Out, so I can lock the door. She said, and they both left the office. Sara checked the door, and then walked to her room. She stood in her closet, and looked at the dresses she bought, biting her lip in thought and decided to wear one of them.
--
He studied row after row of new shoes on the displays, picking up one to look at it as Sara picked up a heel and admired it. She kept him in the corner of her eye, and he selected a heavy hiking boot to go with the pair of dress shoes he selected. She found the pretty shoe in her size, and tried it on, looking at herself in the mirror. Darla would be horrified at her waiting the dainty dress shoes, so she grinned to herself, knowing she would buy them and slipped her feet back into the pair of flats she had worn. Loki looked at the rack of athletic style shoes, and he flexed the sole of a Nike in his hands and selected a pair in black to wear around.
She was interested in what he was doing, and quickly looked away and picked up another really pretty pair of high heels to try on. She sat down, slipping on the shoes and she looked up with a start as he held the boxes under his arm. He was staring at her legs in the shoes, and he cocked his head and smiled with a curt nod.
"Those are attractive on you." He said, and she turned bright pink at the compliment, waiting for the but to come that came with an insult tagged to the end of it. It never did though, and she looked down at her already tiny feet in the platform wedge.
"I was just thinking of them, they are sort of cute. Try yours on before I pay, shoes are harder to return than other clothes, and I don't like driving this far for one errand." She replied, and pointed to the box of boots as he sat down on a bench and began trying on the shoes he selected. "You will not get far with that tracking chip in your hand, so I hope you don't plan to try and hike out of my place."
"They are sturdy, and good for all weather. I noticed the season, despite it being summer here, is rather fickle." He replied cooly, and she sat down to slip the shoes off and back into ther box. He tried on the last pair of shoes, and flexed his foot in them, nodding as he decided to get them. She picked up her selections, and they carried them to the counter with him behind her. The girl making sure they had two shoes of the same size, and the girl smiled at Loki as he put his boxes on the counter with hers.
"Find everything okay?" She asked, and Sara smiled and nodded. The woman gave her her total, and she handed the girl the card that drew from the account for her. She never saw bills, their accountant handled all that and she just had to enjoy the money she had. Which was hard for her to wrap her brain around, because she was always picked on by Darla for being a drain on their finances. It was not until she got older, that she learned about the wealth the Pruitt family held, and how much their company brought in.
"We found more than we expected actually, thanks. Is the Bath and Body Works still near the Macy's?" She asked the girl and she shook her head. She pointed in the direction to walk as Sara signed the slip, and Loki took their bags before she could protest.
"It moved down near the New Yankee Candle. If you look at the Mall as a giant T, it is right near where it all crosses." She replied, and Sara gave her a smile.
"Thanks! I am almost out of body spray, and may as well get some before we leave." Sara said, and walked with Loki in the direction that she was told. She soon found the store, and they walked in together and a girl handed them a basket.
"Hi! Welcome in! We have specials on our shea butter lotions, and our White Barn Candles." She said, handing Sara a coupon toward her purchase. She took it and thanked the girl, and started selecting more than she meant to get. Loki followed her, and she smelled some of the candles, and picked two of the Lavender Vanilla Candles and added them to the basket. Loki sneezed behind her suddenly, and Sara looked at him, not realizing that he was sensitive to scents as he set down a body wash and rubbed his nose.
"For all that is holy, avoid that one. It smells horiffic." He said, and she laughed at him for his reaction. She held the two lotions in her hands, covering her mouth and added them to the basket. Sara tried to stop, but the dam broke, and she had to let out the laugh she was holding back.
"You are good, I am a Black Amber girl anyways." She replied, and added a tube of Brown Sugar and Fig lotion to the basket. "I will give you that small mercy, and agree with you. Sweater Weather is too harsh a smell for me too."
She made her way to the checkout and paid for her selections, carrying back a blue and white checkered paper bag and he walked next to her and wrinkled his nose as they passed a display of the fall scents. She laughed again, and she looked at him as they made their way to the Food Court.
"You sort of stop being scary when you wrinkle your nose like that." She teased, and he laughed to himself and gave her a smile. "Wow! You can smile too, alert the press!"
"I can do many things Mortal, mind how much you tease me." He said, and Sara shook her head as she got in line for soft pretzels. She poked the bracelet around his wrist, and gave him her best shit eating grin.
"I'm an Aires, a fire sign, I'm a brat by nature. Good luck on that one, but now that I got you to smile once... I am going to become relentless Spooky." She replied, and she grinned. "Found your group nickname, we are now calling you Spooky. Get used to it."
"I hate it." He replied, and she grinned wider at him. She ordered them two soft pretzels with mustard to dip them in and she pointed to the chairs in the center of all the different food vendors.
"Deal with it, could you find us a table so we can eat?" She asked, and he took her bag and walked over to find one for two people. He sat at one, and she waited for their order, realizing how lost he looked as he sat there. He had to feel out of place, and a bit alone even with them. She let out a breath, and took her phone out of her purse. She tapped out a group message, and sent it off to her friends.
Maybe lowering herself to twenty percent bitch would help everyone.
"Hey guys, how do you all feel about just playing a board game tomorrow before the barbecue and movies? Maybe we can include Spooky." She sent and Robert replied with a text.
"Who the hell is Spooky? You find and adopt another friend to add to the group?" He sent back and she smiled to herself and sent the reply.
"Loki. His nickname is Spooky now, he hates it." She sent out, and Emily replied with a laugh emoji.
"It fits him! We can play Zombies or Munchkin. Those are easy to learn." Emily sent back and she replied with a picture of a thumbs up. She put her phone away, when she heard the order being called. She picked up the tray, walking carefully and setting it in front of Loki. He picked up one of the paper wrapped pretzels, and she took the other, dipping it in the mustard and taking a bite. She didn't notice that she had the sauce smeared in her upper lip, and Loki brushed it away from her upper lip suddenly with his thumb. She felt her brain short circuit for half a second at the contact, and her eyes went wide at the tingle it left as he wiped the mustard onto a napkin.
"I apologize, I had my mouth full of this food and didn't think you would want it to stay there. I did not mean to startle you." He said, and drank some of his water from the bottle in front of him. She nodded at him, but the lingering ghost of the touch was still there. She was not used to it, and she took another bite of her pretzel.
"No... Um... thanks. I would have looked ridiculous with that on my face." She agreed, trying not to let her brain short circuit again as she thought about it. She shook her head, letting out a calming breath and tried to ignore the sound of Darla in her head calling her a whore.
"Yes." He replied, and they ate their food silently. His eyes on the area around them, and Sara realized he looked uncomfortable. She cocked her head, and he drank a bit more of the water and she frowned.
"Are you okay?" She asked, and he pressed his lips together and shook his head.
"I need to relieve myself." He admitted and she have a small laugh and pointed toward the restrooms. He looked over, and she raised an eyebrow.
"I can't go into the Men's room with you. I would get into trouble, and that's the last thing we need. I will stay here with the bags, and you can go pee." She said, and he rose from his chair, walking away and heading to go and urinate. She watched him check the signs, and then walked into the hallway and turned to enter the toilets. He emerged a few moments later, and tossed a paper towel from washing his hands into the trash can. He sat back down, looking better and he continued to eat his food.
"I imagine the configuration of so many men urinating at once, and a woman walking into the room would have caused a scandal." He said then, and drank more of his water. Sara laughed at his observation, and almost choked on a bite of her pretzel as she sat and ate. She gave him a smile, and he watched people walking past them.
"I think it would." She agreed, and he kept his eyes on a group of teenagers that were goofing around at a table nearby. He looked at her again, studying her, and she suddenly wished she had a hoodie to cover up the fact that she was not wearing a bra and her bare shoulders. She finished her food, and sipped some of the water as he stared. "Uh... so I asked everyone if we could include you in playing a board game before the barbecue tomorrow. You just seem sort of lonely, and it would be nice to have you participate in a few activities so I have something to tell Fury in my reports. I hope I didn't embarass you."
"No, I am quite used to being more solitary however, and am comfortable being alone with a book or some other field of study." He replied, and she nodded and looked at her water bottle, trying to ignore the way he was studying her again. She never felt like anyone really saw her before, and with her Stepmom, she felt more comfortable just hiding in the basement or pretending to be busy with chores.
"Oh! We can play then, you don't have to join in, you know... like... you can do your own thing." She managed to get out, and she shrugged. Finally she broke, and she groaned as she waved her hands. "Why are you staring at me?"
"You have some mustard on your breast, I was trying to find a way to tell you before you got it on your clothes. I am many things, but a lecherous man is not one of them." He replied, and she looked down at the glob of mustard she dropped onto her skin and she turned bright red as she wiped it on a napkin. She hid her face, wanting to just cry at how embarrassed she was at how she acted just then. "I believe I will take part in your game, I believe it would be nice to participate. I have a competive streak as well, and enjoy a good sport."
"Oh! Well cool! We can pick an easy game, that why you don't get really confused by the rules." She blurted out and he nodded, she gave him a thin smile and she realized he was staring again as they sat together. He shifted in his chair, and his clothed knee bumped the inside of her bare one, and she jumped at the contact. She scooted back, but the table was small enough to keep his knee between hers. He moved back also, realizing what he had done on accident and looked ashamed for a moment.
"My apologies again, I should not have been so crass and collided with you." He said, and Sara gave him a smile. He watched her, and she felt herself flush at his words.
"It's okay, I know it wasn't on purpose." She mumbled, and she stared at his long fingers. He had really nice hands, and she blinked at how elegant the digits were. The only thing that marred them, was the scab from where they put the tracking chip in, and a small scar across the back of his left index finger. Her hands were calloused, her nails not at all neatly trimmed as his and it made her feel like she was not very attractive. He looked at the silver and abalone dragonfly necklace she wore, and gestured toward it.
"That is an interesting trinket, the colors in the wings are facinating." He said, and she covered the necklace with her hand. She laughed, taking it off so he could see it closer. He held it in his hands, being careful with it.
"My real mom gave it to me, she loved walking around Greenlake, and seeing the dragonflies there. She told me that they were the insects that angels rode on the backs of when the souls of the dead wanted to see us again." She said, and he smiled at her story. "She... She was in Immigrant, from the Ukraine, and on a Visa to work here. She had to go back to her home country when her sister got sick, and she left me in the care of a neighbor. She... she died there, the neighbor she left me with couldn't be bothered with someone else's kid, so she threw me out and told me to fend for myself. The food ran out, and the Landlord found me while serving Eviction Papers on the property. Long story short, that is all I have left of her."
"I am sorry for the loss of your Mother, Sara." He did, handing her the necklace back. She put it back on, hanging it around her neck again.
"It sucked, and I turned into the quiet kid who was not afraid of bugs. The Court found letters my Mom wrote to my Dad, and they tested my DNA against his..." she said, and Loki nodded as he listened to her. "Darla was pissed when they found out about me, so I became the dirty secret in broad daylight. She didn't want to be bothered with someone else's kid either, but my Dad was happy to get confirmation he had me."
"Father's do have a different bond with their Daughters." He said, and Sara smiled at him. She shrugged, taking out the tablet and tapping in the code and using her thumbprint to unlock it.
"Why don't we go to Half Price Books? Just, enjoy the day and head over to Tacoma and see if we can't build on the Library?" She suggested, and he nodded, and she typed in their next destination before they left. She noticed something in his eyes as she talked about Darla, an understanding that he knew a bit about how she grew up. Part of her wanted to ask, the other wanted to keep him at a distance, not know what turned him into a murderer.
He was so weird sometimes, and others, he creeped her out.
--
Sara sat in the den with Robert and Amy, all of them quiet as they shared bored glances at their reading materials. They were quietly reading, when a loud thump from upstairs got all of their attentions. The looked at the ceiling above them, and Sara debated seeing what it was. Robert took the initiative and got up, walking to the second floor, and returning a minute later and grinning.
"Spooky dropped his shirt off his bed, after he dozed off reading." Robert said, and Sara noticed that he had his unicorn cat socks on. Amy looked confused, and shook her head as she frowned at him.
"He drop his book too? That was damn loud." Amy said, and flipped the page in her magazine. He laughed a bit, and shook his head. Both girls looked at him, and he rubbed his face.
"He was wearing the shirt when it fell." Robert laughed, and Sara covered her face with her book and started laughing as Amy choked on her bottle of Coke. All of them started cracking up, and Loki made his way downstairs and into the kitchen. They heard him shuffling through the refrigerator, and they suppressed a laugh as he walked back out with a bag of frozen peas wrapped in a dish towel and held it to his shoulder.
"I am so glad you all found it amusing." He snapped, and Sara tried to look sympathetic to his injury. Robert rubbed some ointment onto the fresh, black outline of his Star Wars Sleeve and winked at him, Loki shook his head and started to walk back upstairs and Sara snapped her fingers.
"No food other than bottled water upstairs, thems the rules." She said, and he groaned and showed her the bag. She pointed to the couch, and closed her book.
"It is uncooked, and still in a bag. I think you gave all ridiculed me enough, I would like to go back upstairs." He argued, and she pointed at the couch again. Robert laughed, and he walked over and sat down as he began to ice his shoulder some more. Amy set her magazine down, and sighed as she looked at him.
"We trade insults like endearments, it is our love language in this group." Sara shrugged, and he rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, Bitch." Robert threw at her, and she grinned as she gave him the finger.
"Ass Goblin." She shot back, and he laughed as he crossed his arms.
"Cocksucker." He shot back and she laughed harder as he grinned, Amy shook her head and gave them the mom look as Loki sat on the blue couch and winced in pain.
"Shit eating rectal wart." Sara launched at him, amd he winced. He pretended to look offended, and put a hand over his heart as his mouth fell open. Loki snorted in amusement, and winced in pain.
"Damn." Loki groaned, and Amy set her magazine down and watched him grimace as he held his arm.
"Want me to take a look at it? It could be sprained if it hurts that that much." She asked him, and Sara looked at him. He lowered the bag of peas and the Nurse Practicioner stood up and walked around the back of the couch to stand behind him, and she felt along the joint. He winced as she moved his arm, and she pulled it back and then moved it to raise his hand above his head. She let him lower it, and he put the bag back on the injury. "You probably just banged it really good, and gave yourself a bad muscle tissue bruise. I guess you will be fine, I can only tell you so much without an X Ray, let us know if it hurts worse later though. It could be something else, and we will take you to the Clinic to get it checked."
"I will do that, thank you." He said and Sara smiled as Robert propped his feet up on the coffee table and wiggled his toes. Loki stared at his arm, and Robert stood up and turned it so her could see his Lord of the Rings sleeve.
"Pretty cool huh? I am having the other one done with Star Wars, they finished the outline today, and will go back and do the color next. You have to do this in stages sometimes, I can take you next time I go, and you can watch." He offered Loki, and they watched as he took hold of the wrist, and looked at the ink on his arm. Robert looked nervous, and Loki touched some if the details in the shading and nodded.
"It is well done, the shading and the way the light is portrayed us rather nice. I am fascinated by it, and would like to see it done." He said, and Robert pointed at Amy, and she pulled her loose fitting, black pant leg up to show him her tattoo of Skeleton Jack and Sally on her calf. He blinked at it, and then looked at Sara. She threw her hands up and shook her head, and laughed a bit.
"I'm a pain wimp, I do not have any tattoos. If you want one though, go ahead, it is your skin after all." She said, and he laughed a bit and turned back to Robert, she smiled at seeing them all start to get along and Sara set her book on the table next to her.
"I will get Bugs to pay for it too." Robert laughed, and she rolled her eyes. She threw a pillow at him, and it hit him in the face. He grabbed the pillow off his lap, and grinned as he aimed. "We are going to play a game of Wack Fuck now."
"What is Wack Fuck?" Loki asked, and Robert threw the pillow at Sara.
"Wack!" He shouted as he tossed the cushion, and it hit Sara in the face. She jumped at the sudden connection of the mass, amd groaned She jerked back, and held her cheek.
"Fuck!" She shouted, and Loki laughed at them. He shook his head, and she tucked the plush missile behind her back and gave Robert the finger. "Dick!"
"Yeah, I have one. It be big too." He said, and she rolled her eyes and Amy crossed her arms and shook her head. Sara laughed, and she yawned as she curled in the chair with her head resting on the pillow and Robert laughed. "You could probably sleep on a shoebox, that is how compact you are. My pocket sized friend, looking all cute."
"Fuck off Dobby, or I will refuse to give you any more new socks." She grumbled, and he got up and picked Sara up off the chair, and began singing the song from Lion King. She tried to get away, and he dipped his thumb in his beer and rubbed it on her forehead.
"Siiimba" he said, and climbed onto the coffee table and lifted her up. Under her arms and she curled her legs up and tried not to laugh. "Its the circle! The circle of liiiiiffeee!"
"Put me down." She said, and pointed at the floor. "I need to wash your spit and beer off my forehead. He grinned and grabbed one of her legs, and turned to the couch and she started screaming as he held her above his head.
"Short girl tossing!" He shouted, and dropped her onto the couch next to Loki. She screamed, and came to rest on the cushions as he leaned away from her flailing legs. She glared up at Robert, and he jumped off the table and walked back to Amy and pretended to trip. "Oops, I tripped on the rug." He said, and landed over Amy and gave her a kiss. Sara stood up, and rolled her eyes as she walked back to her chair.
"Jerk." She said, and flopped back into it. She pulled the lever, and Robert polished off his beer and put the bottle back and laughed to himself.
"I still love you Bugs, not in the naked way, but in the, I get to pick up my friend and toss her around way." He said, and she smiled at him. Loki settled against the couch again and he shook his head, everyone looking at him.
"Is this how you all are, all the time?" He asked, and Sara laughed as Amy nodded. Robert got up, and handed Sara a Nerf gun from a drawer under the television and he took another one. They started shooting darts at each other, and she laughed as she kicked her feet. Amy sighed, and they were both laughing as Sara dove from the chair and crawled around the back of it and and scooped up some of the darts as she moved.
"Only on days that end in Y." Amy moaned, and she ducked a dart that came at her. Robert laughed, and Sara returned fire again, Sara squealing as they had their fun.
--
"I got her, let's get her back to bed." Robert said and carried a limp Sara back into the house. He had managed to get his shoes on before running out into the night, and her bare feet were filthy from her walk down the driveway. Amy checked the soles for cuts or injuries, lifting them and she let out a long breath as she cleaned the dirt off them with a washcloth. "She was almost to the highway this time, I got her just before the gates. I don't want to think about what would have happened if she started walking down the road."
"At least you got her." Amy said, and Robert looked at Loki. He observed the scene in front of him, and they smiled at him for waking them both up when he realized that she was wandering in her sleep again.
"Thanks for telling us, and it is a good thing you wanted some water. She could have walked into trouble before we caught up to her." Robert said, and he gave the man a curt nod. He took her back up the stairs, being careful for her head and got her back into her room. Amy locked the front door, and rubbed her face.
"I really want her to start seeing a shrink, she has something going on that caused all this. She needs help with whatever it is, help we may not be able to help her with." Amy groaned, and Robert took her into her room, and he watched Amy as she leaned against the wall. She sighed, and looked at him. "Thanks for catching it before she got too far, she could have gotten hurt out there."
"My motives were purely selfish, to be completely honest." Loki said, and Robert came back into the hall toward them. He streched his back, and yawned as he smiled at Amy.
"She is back in bed Giggles, safe as houses." He said, and she sighed as she nodded. Loki let out a yawn, and shrugged as he started walking back to his bed. Sara could have been hurt terribly, and he was wondering if he should be put somewhere else if she was killed because of her nocturnal wanderings. "Lets all just get some sleep, we need it too."
"Yeah." Amy muttered, and Loki could see she had more on her mind. She pushed off the wall, and they walked back to their bed. Loki stared at the door down the hall from his, and yawned as he returned to his bed. He streched, and saw a shadow drift by the door from the corner of his eye. He ignored the sensation of being watched, and he knew, it was just one of the many spirits in an old house that a family built to display a fortune.