#everydayiris

“Babe, hurry up!” Her mom shouts from downstairs, her frenetic walking around very audible to Quinn’s ears, who is just nonchalantly choosing something to wear for dinner. “They’ll be coming soon!” Quinn rolls her eyes, scrutinizing carefully a bright yellow flowery summer dress.

There's a quiet knock on her door, then it opens, and she turns face to face with her dad who quietly slips through the door and shuts it close, then moves to sit on the very edge of her fluffy queen-sized bed.

“She’s stress-cleaning again?” Quinn asks, earning an exhausted nod from her dad. During these times Bentley Prescott’s a bit stressful to be around with; when she’s stressed, she cleans compulsively, a…lovely gift from her germaphobia. Especially when she has people over and buys new things, she has this compulsive tendency to clean everything more than once, this resulting in her being extremely irritated and over-controlling. Quinn often wonders, if she was her real child and not her adopted one, if she could have gotten this trait from her. Well, luckily in this thing only, she will never find out.

“Are you nervous?” Charles, mostly called Charlie, Prescott asks her as he watches his daughter choose what to wear from the flood of clothes she’s got stacked in her closet, which is also quite a big heap. Other than that, many discarded options are sitting unceremoniously on the floor, many pretty dresses that would've been just fine. Seriously… he kinda envies the man who'll get to be her other half in the future.

For a moment, Quinn continues digging for the perfect outfit, wanting to just ignore his question or lie about it, to say she's not bothered by it at all, but the almost oppressive feeling of nervousness in her gut says otherwise. She decides to just stop searching for the outfit of the century, moving to sit on the bed by her dad’s side. “I am… just a bit.” Of course she'd try to downplay this… she wouldn't be Quinn otherwise.

But what's to downplay about this? She's nervous, of course she is! She just reached out on her own accord after four days of pure silence, and this invitation of hers to dinner is basically a very clear message, one of wanting to grow closer to them. She isn't yet sure if she wants to get close to them to know about Lucille, to get them to help her find Clinton as well, or just because… she now has five step-brothers. They share a blood connection with her, they're kin, and… they know about Lucille more than what she could ever find out on her own. Is it because of that?

“I know you're overthinking this, like usual…” Her dad brings her out of her own thoughts, recognizing the blank stare she gets when she's deeply in thought about something, placing a comforting arm on her shoulders as he pulls her in for a half-hug. “But it'll be alright. We knew you had a family outside of this house, and we never stopped you from reaching out to them. We knew it the moment we decided to have you, it's your right to reach out to them and, if you want to, even have a bond with them. Whatever you will decide to do from now on… we'll always support you. You know it.”

She stays silent, just thinking about his words. She knows her family is supportive as hell, they did nothing but support her ever since they've given her the folder containing information about her real family, but this… the prospect of a second family of sorts… after all, would she have stayed if Lucille was still alive? Or was it simply the need to meet her, and that's it? “I don't know what I want to do, dad…” She finally mutters, looking down at all the clothes scattered on the floor, all the discarded options for this event that's come to be the event of the century. “I know I can stay and bond with them, but you're my family, and this means I should go back and forth between…”

“And where's the problem in that?” Charlie intercepts, showing that ever comforting smile of his, the same smile that makes him such a caring person. “Queenie, you have more than one family, and that's as clear as a sunny sky. They're your step-brothers, they're blood. We are your family, yes, but we won't stop you. In fact, we'll be quite happy to see you happy; that's kinda our whole purpose. And with them… nonetheless.” He pauses for a moment, an almost fond look of sorts in his gaze. Yeah, both families confirm they’re best buddies up to date. Must be nice seeing each other again after years of no contact. “I knew for the longest time where you came from, I was good friends with them. Jeff and Lucille. Good people… I even went to their second eldest’s baptism.”

This just proves how they’re going to be seeing each other no matter what, because these two families went through thick and thin together, from the sound of it. He shifts so that he now hugs her fully, squeezing her just like a dad does. It's comforting, as it always is. “Now, plaster that cheeky grin of yours on your lips and go pick something to wear. We'll meet you downstairs, okay?”

Quinn nods, showing the smile she's so known for, the smile she now knows she inherited from her biological mother, warm and sincere, then sighs once she's alone in her room again, her eyes moving towards the huge pile of clothes.

When the door rings, signaling their arrival, all three of them are ready and prepped, the house clean, the huge dinner table by the living room set, dinner ready. Dressed in a simple cream summer dress that matches perfectly with her skin tone, Quinn is the one who goes to open the door after she dried her sweaty palms over her dress, finding all of them standing behind it with huge grins spread across their faces, part of her family. She can't see the girl that was there last time, though, Kayo.

“Welcome!” She smiles despite how much nervousness churns her stomach, as she steps aside to let them all in, the whole Tracy procession. They're all dressed to the nines in fancy shirts and shiny shoes, yet they look so natural and move so freely in them, like it's second nature for them. Their eyes never leave her face for one moment the whole time she guides them to the living room, where her parents are, making everyone sit down on the couches first for refreshments.

"O-ho, Jeff, my dude! How long... how are you doing, my friend?" Charlie is the first to greet the head of the Tracy family, who smiles and goes in for a strong hug, complete with pats on the back that resonate throughout the living room. They act just like old friends, which apparently they are, given the smiles and warm welcome. Who would have thought that her parents had always known the person responsible for her lineage? She was certainly shocked when she found out… through Jeff, nonetheless.

"Ah, you know, work... I’ve been very busy these years, there’s been a lot to do." Jeff replies, making the fact that he is a world-renowned astronaut, the first to have landed on Mars (yes, she did her research), seem like a simple job like many others. The humbleness... "Listen, I think your daughter has already told you this, but I am so sorry to have cut off contact with you and Bentley. I wanted to keep it going, but…” Their daughter. He luckily didn't say anything like ‘my sons’ half-sibling’ or ‘Lucille's child’, no… she's still Charlie and Bentley Prescott's daughter. She could start crying right now.

"No, no, stop it! We’re the ones who have to apologize... if we’d known about Lucille, we would’ve reached out sooner." Bentley intercepts the conversation between grown-ups, while Quinn sits with the Tracy brothers on another couch next to them, throwing an ear to the conversation every now and then. "Truly, our condolences... we have never imagined…”

"No, it’s not a problem, don’t get upset about it all. In fact, I thank you... she too would have liked to see you again." Jeff answers, not hiding the sadness painted on his face in remembering her, the woman who started it all, her... biological mother. This time, her parents also share the same expression. "But you know how she was... always working behind the scenes, huh? Always hiding somewhere." Luckily laughter comes back as Jeff mocks his wife harmlessly.

"Come on, don’t you leave your poor gal a bit of peace even in heaven? Always commenting..." This time, the matriarch and head of the family years before Jeff returned, Sally Tracy, joins in the conversation as well, approaching them as she sits next to her son, her tone as playful as always. Always commenting... always causing a smile after another. Just what they needed. This topic has always been so hard for them, but now it seems like it could change, like they could speak about Lucille without that pressing dread. It's what she would've wanted.

"Mrs Tracy! It’s a pleasure to see you again, you’re always so lively! Truly, you look in very good shape." Bentley gets up to greet Jeff’s mother warmly, with a double kiss on the cheeks and a warm hug, naturally following through with her string of praises, to which Sally smiles, conversing with her parents about a bit of everything, the time that had passed, children and grandchildren, all the such.

It’s so strange to see all of them having such a warm and friendly conversation, and when Quinn turns to the boys, she sees the same surprise painted on their faces. Their father had said that he and her parents were close friends, but they did not think they’d be to this point. The way they sit together, chatting and joking with each other... they can swear they see their father age back by a few years, the years lost up in space recovered, that flicker of life returning to his eyes with just a little of the right company.

“You really had the best idea, to host this dinner here at your place.” Scott is the one who speaks, turning to face her with a dimpled smile, all the wariness he reserved in her regards long gone now. “I've never seen dad so active in a long time.”

As Quinn smiles a shy smile, Virgil hums in agreement with a vigorous nod. “Indeed… he looks like he might recover overnight now.” Quinn hums, not quite understanding the whole dynamic behind his… disappearance. She knows from the internet that he just recently returned after a long time in space, some sort of accident with some sort of ship, but she doesn't know much more than that. Virgil senses this, ever the empathetic person, and decides to add a few words to explain further. “Ever since he came back from space, he slowly fell back into his usual routine, taking over International Rescue, taking care of business… but the time up in space really messed him up, and he's been trying to recover slowly from the complications his body overwent. It’s been a hard time for him, up there…”

“I see. It must've been really challenging… not that I understand.” One thing she notices is that she always manages to bring a smile on all their faces. Those smiles are a bit fond, a bit playful… a bit nostalgic.

“Maybe you understand a little, because you had the brilliant idea in taking this initiative. For all of us.” Scott adds, feeling closer to her, to the way she speaks, to her sharp wit… to the way she's just like mom. Their half-sister… united by blood, their mom's only female child.

“Ah, no biggie… I just thought about your dad's words, you know? He did say he and my parents were close friends, so I figured this would be better than one of those shabby restaurants downtown.” She replies with a shrug, acting as humble as ever. She might look like mom, and even act a little like her, but her wit is in a league of its own.

“Hey, shabby they are, but have you ever tried their fish sandwich? I can't think of a better sandwich, and I've been to many places and tried lots of them!” Gordon chimes in, matching her liveliness with his own, and she suddenly feels a lot… lighter. She never imagined her conversation with them would go this way; she just found out she's got siblings from her biological mother's side, and thought she had little to nothing in common with them. And yet… the conversation just flows freely, topics shifting and changing, but those warm and familiar smiles never leave their faces.

And this dinner proves to be quite the success. They all get along perfectly, and the atmosphere is quiet and jovial, the guys even getting confident enough with her, while always remaining civil and polite. All the doubts that she had fly out of the window the longer she's in their company, finding out that... it’s not bad. That she almost wants to hang out with them a third time.

"I heard you like to program," John asks her at some point at the end of the evening, getting together after a long and very good dinner. Her parents are outside with Jeff and Grandma Tracy enjoying some fresh air while they stay inside, sitting on the sofas while chatting, countless cans of sodas and bags of chips as an after-dinner keeping them company in this quiet chat. It is strange that he starts the conversation on his own initiative, as he has been almost all the time on the sidelines observing and keeping to himself. "Have you already created any programs of your own?"

She's not surprised by his question, expecting someone would ask her about her studies at some point during the evening; she just expected Jeff or Sally to ask her, though. But she sees that glimmer of joy in his eyes, as if he's found someone he can finally converse about such things with, someone who understands without getting bored over all the tech talk, so she nods with a sincere smile. “Yeah, I do have one. Nothing much though, just an AI assistant browsing through the internet for me and keeping track of my deadlines.”

“Oh, really? Can I have a look into it?” He immediately asks her, maybe a bit too enthusiastically, earning a weird look from his brothers and an almost melancholic smile from the eldest, Scott. It looks like she truly changed them for the better too, not just Jeff… John hasn't been this open and sociable in years, probably ever since their mom passed. It might also be the fact that she can start being considered as family in their book; they're over this shocking event, finally accepting it and accepting her, and this implies a fraternal treatment, if she allows it. They could start treating her as their sister without any issues… sure, half-sister, but still. Family is still family. “Well, if you want to show me, of course…”

“Of course, no probby! But I've got to give you a heads up… its language is a little… colorful.” She quickly adds with a lopsided smile, feeling slightly embarrassed. Her Pot is certainly not your typical AI, all formal and perfect; just for fun and to make it different, she's added in its program quite the colorful vocabulary and slang. From there on, Pot started sounding like it has a conscience of its own, sometimes deciding not to help her, getting offended at some snarky remarks of hers, even judging her when she asks its opinion on some outfits. It acts like there's another person behind the program, and she's gotten used to it, but presenting it to someone like the Tracy's, with a much more advanced technology and freakin’ ships?

“Oh, colorful language, you say? Bring it on! I bet it'll be really… refreshing.” John smirks, still eager to see a program coded to be so blunt, wanting to know just how much it differs from EOS, his program. Quinn still hesitates for a moment, but then she shrugs, grabbing her phone and turning it on, tapping a couple times on its screen.

“Potty! There's someone here who'd like to meet you! You better be nice!” She says into the phone, calling her Pot to life. It doesn't take long for the hologram of a… potato to appear, having the cutest little stylized face on and even a little yellow bow on the side. She even codes accessories for it; it shows that she’s thoughtful.

“Yeah? Wassup?” A slightly robotic but almost true to life voice chimes in from this cute potato, and Quinn turns the phone for John to interact freely with her program, still keeping a slight smirk on her lips.

John's reaction is priceless to say the least, eyes wide in surprise and delight, even leaning slightly forward, interested in seeing an AI so faceted and chill. He smirks too, then calmly crosses his arms on his chest, now looking plain amused. “Would you look at that… wassup.” The slang exits as something alien from John's lips, but at least he's matching the approach with no problems.

“Yo, who are you? Ron Weasley wannabe?” Pot asks, making Quinn instantly mortified on her program's behalf, making her cover her face with a hand as her face reddens like a tomato. To her defense, she did warn them beforehand. John doesn't seem to be fazed though, just smirking and not budging, while his brothers, the two youngest especially, all erupt in a booming laughter, bordering on the hysterical and tummy-aching; Gordon even instructs the youngest to write that down, prompting Alan to bring his phone out and begin typing furiously on it, all with a hearty laugh still. Such a reaction immediately calms her worries down, seeing they didn't get offended from Pot's… outburst. Well, she can drop the punishment consisting of feeding Pot old updates, then. “That funny?” Ha! Even Pot seems surprised.

“Oh, that was nice, yeah. But you gotta try better… it's nothing I haven't already heard from my brothers before, and I've got four of them. I like your approach though, brotato.” It seems like everyone has that mischievous streak in them, even if the way they’re dressed would cost much more than a penthouse alone. Some are funnier than others, but… now she knows she got her natural charm from her biological mother’s side.

“Ha! You're a funny one.” It’s rare for Pot to be so interested and family-friendly with someone… it is somehow friendly with Laurie whenever they chat, but it’s more of a respectful politeness; here, it truly seems like Pot is intrigued and interested, finding its snark matched. “I’ll skip you when I conquer the world.”

John’s smirk turns into a full blown smile at that, something sniding glimmering behind his eyes. “What an honor. Though… it’s not really new. I have an experience or two about programs trying to conquer the world, I already went through that once.”

“Oh, really?” Quinn can’t help but butt in the conversation, suddenly curious about the way John answered in response to Pot being Pot; her little chime-in earned a string of laments from her Pot and a small smile from John, who simply nods and fishes something out of his pocket.

“That’s a story for another day.” What he fishes out and holds in his hands is a… button of sorts, compact, sleek, and simple enough. “But that’s why I think your program would get along with EOS.” EOS? Is that… his program? A program he built from scratch, just like she did with Pot? And it’s in that black button of sorts? Compact and efficient, huh? Well, now she’s definitely more interested in the dudes who partly share their blood with hers.

That little button chimes to life once it’s mentioned, with a halo of led lights shining around the camera nested in the middle, green lights and a female voice, rather young from the sound of it. And from the sound of it, the program’s got sass. “I thought we weren’t supposed to speak about that anymore. Maybe you’re still thinking about world domination, John? If that’s the case…” Oh, this EOS is not a waitress, but she’s serving!

This prompts Quinn to move so that she now sits beside John without even realizing it, finding herself very interested in this EOS she’s hearing; the others realize, and Scott even gives his spot up to her without a word, smiling as he lets her sit beside his younger brother. Normally, a little harmless mocking would be allowed in situations like these, but that’s their half-sister, and it makes them happy to see her open up so much and be able to discover more about her interests. About… mom’s interests, in a way. They know it won’t be the same, that Quinn is a whole another person with her own life and interests… but even the way her eyes gleam as she shares some programs and codes with John looks so much like mom.

“Oh yeah, she’d get along very well with my Pot!” Quinn hums amusedly, shifting her phone so that the two programs can chat. “Hey Potty, meet EOS! Maybe you can scan your codes and get along.” Just like she’s getting along with the brothers? The parallels are not lost on her, but she finds she doesn’t mind. Not yet, at least.

“Pot?” EOS is the first to speak, her led lights now flashing a confused orange, the slightly childish tone taking on a doubtful edge. “Why are you called after a ceramic piece usually used to hold plants?”

Pot’s little programmed bow falls right off at that question, the potato sketch taking on a set of big eyes; it seems like she programmed her little assistant so that its ‘physical’ form changes in different circumstances, much like EOS does with her light halo. “Girl, what you on about? My full name’s Potatoer.”

It must’ve been the slang, or the fact that it called her ‘girl’, or the name in itself, but after that revelation delivered in such a… curious way, EOS’ lights shut right off, no more reaction from the camera lens or those lights, for the matter. Quinn raises an eyebrow, wondering what could be going on, but John seems to know by the way he smirks down at the camera, and her Pottie seems to know as well by the way it changes form.

“Girl - did she just hang up on me?” Pot protests, making Quinn understand and explode in a giggle fit, very amused by the way EOS just thought to dip, not even bothering with the conversation further. Oh, she’s a gem indeed. Too sassy for a program… and here she thought her Pot was bad in that matter. “I’m so going to infect her with a virus.”

“Oh, it’s best you don’t do that.” John chuckles, taking the threat very lightly. “I’ll have to be the one unpacking your little gift if you do, and that’ll be wasted resources and codes.” Listening to him implicitly boast his smart brain with a smirk, she can’t help but wonder just how similar they are, even if only in the interests. That sarcasm… it’s a family trait, isn’t it?

This setting feels familiar, in some way. It’s familiar, and it’s warm, and it’s homely, for all of them. It’s not just the fact that she looks and acts so much like mum… she brings a sense of peace, some sort of continuation to what has been lost so many years ago. She brings closure. And she, for her part, is completely in her own element, happy with being the center of attention and being surrounded by the people she’s been closest with aside from her parents; the doubts are still there, and a small part at the back of her brain still wonders if she’s doing the right thing, but right now? She soaks in the attention, the stories, the funny moments, letting herself be included in this family she didn’t know she had until recently.

None of them notice their parents moving back inside the house, stopping by the door as they take the scene in without making themselves noticeable right away; Quinn sitting right in the middle of the couch, surrounded and faced with her half-brothers as they share laughs, stories, interests, advice, all of the sort. Charlie looks toward Jeff, sharing the knowing grin of someone who knows it’s going well. Leaning on his trusted cane, Jeff moves a hand so that he’s patting Charlie vigorously on the shoulder, sharing the feeling of relief. She’s fitting in well, and the others are accepting her right away. It could be the best thing that ever happened to the family… if she allows it. Jeff smirks, his gaze lost in Quinn for a moment; Lucille’s always been the one calling the shots, wasn’t she? Ah… that stubborn woman never ceases to amaze him, in whatever way she manifests herself.

The moment shifts when Grandma Tracy steps forward, a big smile painted on her face. “We leave you alone for a few minutes, and you’re already plotting something with those smart brains of yours?”

The dinner ends in the best way all of them could’ve ever imagined; in laughter, happiness, and the lack of that oppressing, heavy feeling hanging over everyone’s shoulders. Long after they left for the night and the house has been tidied and locked up for the night ahead, Quinn finds herself in her huge and fluffy bed, laying on her back as she stares up at the ceiling. She looks up at that ceiling, and she thinks deeply about everything that happened during this dinner.

It was surprisingly amazing, better than she ever imagined; all she expected was some awkward dinner with people she was meant to consider family friends and nothing more, but instead she got pure, wholesome moments, those five brothers glued to her as if she’s a beacon in a sea of darkness. Well, maybe she is to them, but there’s not to lie that she doesn’t mind that one bit, not when everyone is so kind and good and… ack, this is harder than she thought.

Aw. This wasn't the best outcome ever that she imagined. 

So donor mommy is dead, she ponders as she checks Lucille off her bucket list, this inconvenience making it impossible to ever meet her. She honestly didn't know what she expected until now, but she has no choice in feeling disappointed; after all, this woman gave her a chance to live, a chance into this world, and without her she wouldn't substantially exist. Like Jeff said, they and her parents knew each other from school, more specifically high school, losing gradually contact with each other once they got into college, so she was very pleased when she asked her parents about Lucille, receiving some answers about who she was and why she did this. She already knew why Lucille did this to her mom, because her mom wasn’t able to conceive, but it all gave her some more clearance.

“Basically you’re supposed to be the same age as his eldest son, babe…” She remembers her mom’s words as she scribbles the key parts of the conversation on a piece of paper, near some physics equations. “...’cos we decided to get pregnant together. But I had some heart complications, so she gave birth to her baby and the egg she gave me got frozen, some crio-crap or that stuff; so when I got better the egg had this defrost and I finally got the chance to have you in my life.” Her mom has never been this great with wording, despite her line of work needing a specific vocabulary- after all, it’s not like a flight attendant can use words like babe during pre-flight organization. Hm, she needs to scribble this important piece of information down too. After that, there hasn’t been much her mom was able to tell her, so she kinda has to resort to Jeff to get to know more about her. But, the question is, does she want to know more about Lucille?

She doesn't really want to be a part of that family, keep them close, because she already has one, the ones that grew her and educated her into who she is now, and it would be weird to go back and forth between a family and the other like it's normal business. But still...they're her half-siblings. Man, it's weird as hell hearing that, like it is coming to the conclusion she indeed has another family. Her parents hugged her when she bought her problems to them, telling her that, even if she has some more relatives now, this won’t mean they’re being replaced, on the contrary.

Her attention turns back to her list and her pen lands next on Clinton Smith's name, her donor daddy. She has yet to meet him, and Jeff promised he would find him upon her mentioning she has troubles doing so on her own. Well, she hasn’t asked him yet, but they basically live just next door; if she faces the window she can see the house’s silhouette, the same house her biological mother grew up in. Crazy how near she was all this time…did she get to even meet her, even if it was just a glance on the street? Did Lucille ever manage to see her, if from afar, if her parents accepted a meeting between them and she was too little to remember? Did…Lucille even want to see her in the first place? Sure, Jeff said that she wanted, but Sally also said Lucille never expected for her to come visit her. Let’s scribble this down.

"Man, I'm getting really sappy." She rolls her eyes, dumping unceremoniously the pen on top of the sheets spread all over her blanket, on the bed. She had always been a logical mind, and calculations have always been a passion for her. She would turn everything into something physics, logical, she would find a math formula in everything, a thing she now discovered she inherited from her biological mother. "Hm," she eyes one of those sheets, displaying lots of calculations and formulas scribbled messily. "I need to update Pot."

Her phone ringing, blasting a rock tune full sound, distracts her from the task she currently set herself to do now, her face lighting up at the caller ID. 

"Rie!!! My sis, my precious bestie!" She fake sobs into her phone. "I missed you!" 

"Are you crying?" Laurie's voice sounds cheerful, not seeming worried with that. "Is it me you're missing or tacos?" 

The reply is a moment of silence. "Now that you mention it..." 

"Traitor." She laughs it out. "Well, I'll be there in 5, so it's better if you find yourself ready." 

"Oooooh, I live to see the day Laurie Charter herself takes me out on a date, never thought the roles would reverse so much! Missing me so much already?" 

"You've been closed in your room for 4 days, now it's the moment to cut loose. Hurry up, I have a surprise for you." And with that, she hangs up. 

Quinn shrugs, hauling herself off the bed and going cheerfully towards her closet, her mind set on going eating. She needs nourishment, and if they're under the form of tacos then who is she to refuse them precious carbs? After 34 minutes, her mom’s advice on a hairstyle, Rie’s advice on what to wear after she came and knocked on her door several times, her not being ready in 5 minutes like Rie wanted, Quinn’s finally ready to come out of her room and accept Rie’s surprise- what’s supposed to be breakfast, that now turned into a simple brunch.

“So?” Laurie starts, taking a sip of her pomegranate tea. “What’s been on your mind lately?”

“Ah-” She messily spits out, her mouth full of tacos; after she gulps down what was in her mouth, she speaks again. “I was thinking of inviting them to dinner. Or to meet somewhere.”

“When?”

“I was thinking tonight? The sooner the better. I don’t know why, but I think of it as a band-aid I have to rip off ASAP.”

“Hm.” Laurie takes a gentle bite from her donut. “But how does this make you feel? The whole thing, I mean.”

“Well, I don’t know why…but I’m disappointed. I know I shouldn’t be, I mean, I have a family of my own that raised me to be the woman I am now, even if I don’t look like either of them. The fact one of my biological parents, if not both of them, is dead…it shouldn’t mean anything to me.”

“Hey, don’t say that!” Rie protests softly, getting up from her seat in front of her bestie to go sit near her. “Sure, they’re not the parents who raised you up, but without them you wouldn’t be here.” She places her arm around Quinn’ shoulders, pulling her into a half-hug. “And you don’t know if your biological dad is still alive.”

“Well, even if he is, what should I do then? I don’t picture myself staying with him or visiting him just because he contributed to my creation…I mean, I didn’t.”

“Finding Lucille, or her family, changed this thought of yours?”

“I don’t know…the fact I had a chance to meet her, and from this chance I gained some step-brothers…y’know, I regretted for some time the fact that I didn’t open the documents as soon as I got them.”

“Well, everybody can understand that, not everyone is ready to have their life turned upside down like this.” She pauses, and for a few minutes they both sit in silence, soft chewing noises that make it more enjoyable. “I think you should give them a call and have dinner with them.”

Quinn pauses, cleaning her dirty fingers with a napkin. “It’s stupid for a brilliant ivy league brain like mine, but…you don’t think I’m replacing my parents this way, right…?”

Laurie’s half-hug turns into a full fledged one, hug-crushing her bestie. “Absolutely not! Even your mom told you this.”

Quinn sinks into her bestie’s embrace, pondering. Her mom… “Hang on!” She detaches, a crazy glimmer in the brown eyes she inherited from her biological mother. “I can invite them to my house! Jeff said they knew each other, so they’ll have the chance to talk again, and I’ll treat them like family friends instead of family! I mean- until I’ll be ready to see them as family.”

“Well-” Laurie starts tentatively, not colliding with Quinn's plan. But after all, if that's her wish, if that's what makes it easier for her… “-sure, why not?” She takes another sip of her tea, finishing it. “When do you plan on calling them?”

“Honestly, I don't know if I should call them or go to their house…what do you think it's best?” Quinn ponders, playing with her straw and twirling it around the rim of her glass. Having another family to think about has never been so stressful.

“Well, personally delivered news is always better. You can stop by just to tell them and you'll see them tonight.” Rie replies, patting gently her bestie's shoulder. “You also have their contact numbers, right?”

“Yeah, but I think what you said is best. Wanna go now?”

“Oh!” She mutters, checking her clock. “Sorry, I can't. I gotta give an exam next week and I want to study a little, just to be sure. But if you want to go now you totally can!”

“Oh, well, that's perfect, no worries! Then I'll let you know what they said.”

Aaaand there she is again, in front of that fateful house that holds an important piece of her. This time she's not so nervous to let her presence known, so she knocks on the door, waiting for an answer. It takes a little, and she scrunches her nose; are they gone already? Gone where? Isn't this their home, where they grew up?

Just when she shrugs, about to step away from their porch and go back home to contact them via holocall and update Pot, the door opens, revealing one of her step-brothers. The one she shares the eyes with.

“Hi, how- oh, it's you!” Virgil's eyes glimmer at the sight of his new sibling, his first sister by blood- apart from Kayo, his sister by soul. “Sorry it took me a while…how can I help you? Do you wanna come in?”

“Oh, hi, Virgil! Yeah, it would be nice.” Unconsciously, her eyes glimmer too. “How are you guys?”

“Oh, all fine, thank you. How are you, how's your family?” Wow, this sounds exactly like a question a family friend would say, and not her family by blood. Hm, it'll be easier than expected to pretend with them a little before facing the cold, harsh truth.

“Oh, all right. Apart from some pretty stubborn calculations for my midterm, I'll eventually figure my way out of that one too. If I flirt with it, chances are that it might soften a little.” She jokes, allowing Virgil to crack a hearty laugh. “Is your dad home?”

“Ack, you just missed him! He had to go to Washington with Scott for a meeting. If you want you can leave me a message for him.”

“Ah, that's alright.” She accommodates herself to a comfy seat on the couch Virgil pointed her to, him sitting right beside her with some distance added for comfort. “Do you know when they'll be back? I want to invite you guys over for dinner…” For reasons unknown to her, she shies out a little, the words not coming out with her usual confidence.

“Oh!” Virgil is taken aback by this request of hers, finally happy she decided to reach out for them after giving her space. He thought about it, about her, in these 4 days she's been radio silent; they all sat down and talked together about this the same night after she visited, and after that there's been some chats between the three eldest, Scott taking the lead for the times he butted himself in wherever the topic or her name has been mentioned.

After much research on her and some records from their dad, all of them eventually became convinced she shares half their blood, therefore she's family, even Scott after a looooong while. Scott was skeptical at first, wary even, because she's still a stranger, a thunder in broad daylight, and just like that she flipped their lives upside down with their mom's perfect resemblance; it took a lot of time and evidence for him to relax his shoulders and finally accept her.

John, silent as usual, trusted his gut for once instead of his brain, his logical core receiving the proof he always seeks in everything upon seeing her face for the first time. He didn't do any further research, if not to calm Scott down, and that has been more than enough for him to trust her. He revealed to Virgil, in one of their 3 eldest conversations, that he's curious to get to know her, to know if she shares their and their mother's same interests, apart from the aspect.

Gordon…well he knows Gordy like the back of his hand, his well trusted copilot, and to say he was absolutely mesmerized by her from the first time he laid eyes on her is a misunderstanding; after all, if you place them side by side, it looks like they could be twins for how dangerously identical they are, just opposite sexes.

And Alan, what to say about him. His big sister!, he excitedly said, another part of his family! Yeah.

“Well,” Virgil starts again, recollecting his thoughts. “They actually have to eat dinner at some place or something, but they'll be way happier to dine back home. I'll call them and let them know to not make any stops.”

“Oh, but if they're busy dining somewhere else I can arrange for another night.” Quinn says, remembering the speech Rie gave her about who they are. Millionaires. Possibly freaking billionaires, that have countless houses, a freakin’ Island and giant ass ships, all in one! And here she got her suspicions confirmed, just by looking at this house she figured already they're rich, just not this important. Motherfrikin’ International Rescue!

“Nah, no worries! Their stop was kind of forced, since they're probably gonna finish late and want to rest a little, especially dad. You've seen him these days, haven't you?” He asks, finding that his dad's health is a great topic just to keep her here some more.

“Yeah…what's happening with him? If I can, uh, ask.”

“Of course.” He takes a deep breath, trying to lay this on her as gently as possible; it's probable she's been living under a rock, hence why she doesn't really know them and what they do, except from her best friend who seemed to vividly know who she had in front of her at their meeting. “He's had kind of an accident in space.”

???!!! “Space??”

“Yeah. He's slowly recovering now, so he'll get better, but the therapy is an exhausting path for him.”

“Yeah…” Quinn shifts her legs uncomfortably. “I'm sure he'll get better.”

“Thank you.” Virgil smiles at her. Just as he's about to say something else, he gets interrupted by one of his brothers entering the living room after what seems like a deep slumber.

“Hey Vì, who was at the doo…oh!” Alan gasps upon laying his eyes on Quinn, suddenly aware of the oversized Hard Rock Cafe shirt he's wearing, some neon red trunks that look like a punch in the eye in contrast with the plain cream shirt, foot bare and bedridden hair. Yup, that boy sure had the best reboot of his life.

“Hiii!” Quinn energetically waves at him, doing the same weird bro handshake they did the first time they met, Alan regaining his usual smile and playfulness.

“She has just been inviting us for dinner tonight.” Virgil says, smiling at their cute and natural interaction, like they knew each other since they were little.

“Ooooooh, nice! Where are we going?” He makes that happy puppy face, happy that he gets the chance to see her again, that she wants to reach out again.

“I was thinking over at my house, y'know? Your parents knew mine, so I think it's a perfect chance for them to meet again.”

“Actually that's a great idea, how thoughtful of you.” Virgil answers, making Quinn crack a smile.

“Hey, sometimes my brain seems to poop out these genius ideas, what to say?” She confidently says, swishing her hair again.

“Well, nothing more to expect from an ivy league brain.” Virgil laughs it out, totally on board with her confident sense of humor. “By the way, can we offer you something? Like some water, a snack?”

“Oh, yeah, some water would be awesome! Have you checked how hot is it today? It's like Hell on Earth today.”

“Not hotter than other days, you gotta see Hell on Earth next week or something.” Alan says, shrugging the upcoming sleepless and sweating nights off his mind, just for now.

“Ah, don't I know it…” She rolls her eyes, thanking Virgil who in the meantime just bought her a nice blessing disguised as a glass of water. After she gulps it down in some big chugs, she wipes her mouth, placing the now empty glass on a nearby tabletop. “Well, I'll go on my way now, I gotta prepare for later. Is it okay around 7PM?”

“More than perfect, actually. Do you want me to get you at your door?” Virgil offers, getting up from his seat, Alan instantly near him too.

“Me too!” The youngest adds with his usual puppy smile.

“Why not? So you can see where I live anyways, not that it's that far.” She gets up, putting her usual paperboy hat on, a necessary measure to keep her beautiful and brilliant blonde head from the scorching sun outside.

“Alright then, I'll put my shoes on. Allie, go get dressed.” He speaks to a puppy that precedes him, already up the stairs to freshen up and scroll the nappy time off.

And moments later, they all were at her door. “Do you want a snack? Some coffee?” Quinn says while unlocking the door, allowing them to get in first.

“Now you’re speaking my language!” Virgil smiles broadly, stepping aside to allow the housekeeper to enter first, ever the gentleman.

“Well, nothing wrong with a little snack!” Alan takes the initiative instead, strolling into the room just before Quinn. He stops a few steps later, not familiar with the ambience. “Uhhh…”

Quinn laughs it off, pointing them to her living room, while Virgil scolds him lightly for barging in and not greeting her family.

“Ah, don't worry, they're not home right now. They'll be back in about…” She checks the wall clock. “...2 hours? Give or take. Momma’s gone shopping, ‘cause tomorrow she works, while dad’s working right now. This evening they’re all gonna be there.” Her voice gets weaker and weaker while she goes into the kitchen to provide some coffee and snacks for her guests.

While they wait for their ‘sister’’s return, they look around the living room, commenting quietly on it. “This house is not too bad either. Very big…” Alan absentmindedly says, making a mental note that Quinn can know too what it’s like growing up rich, like them.

“It’s all in shades of gold, somewhat matching with everything.” Virgil’s artistic side breaks loose, his eyes scanning the room with a killer precision, stopping on a specific painting to admire it. Quinn is portrayed on this canvas, and you can see it’s handmade and mesmerizing, with her color palette very brilliant and vivid, the blues, reds and blacks of her graduation coat complimenting the gold, the brown and the blonde of her figure, pearly white teeth smiling at them and a very brilliant bouquet of colorful flowers that are so realistic you could almost smell them. For some reason, it’s almost as if he's looking at his mom smiling for him yet again. That smile she has in the painting is different from the one she usually sports in front of them, more genuine, warmer…mom’s.

“How much sugar in your coffees?” Quinn shouts from the kitchen, making both brothers straighten up and look towards the source of her voice, the kitchen.

“Alan doesn’t take it, mine with just some milk, cold if possible.” Virgil shouts back after debating quickly with Alan, him shaking his head.

“Comin’ right up!” And true to her words, some moments later Quinn returns into the living room carrying a big tray full of snacks and other drinks; Virgil is quick to jump up from his seat, helping her place it on a coffee table in front of the couches, where she sits down too. After a coffee with some milk for Virgil, a caramel macchiato for Quinn, some cranberry juice for Alan and some chocolate chip biscuits for everyone to feast on, they get back into conversation.

“What job do your parents do, by the way? If you don’t mind me asking, of course.” Virgil starts, the doubt not leaving his mind since she mentioned why her parents aren’t home.

“Oh, my mom is a flight attendant, while my dad is a game engineer, or some sort. He builds special plushies and games for children.” Quinn broadly says. “While yours?”

“Mom was an aerospace engineer, dad is a retired astronaut. Retired for obvious reasons.”

“Yeah, I get it. I suppose it was awesome to grow up with parents with these jobs.”

“Meh, partly yes. Sometimes, they were really busy or away from work to stay with us, and Grandma was with us most of the time. But on the other hand, yeah, it was awesome because they would always bring us lots of things and pictures from where they went and what they did.” Virgil explains, remembering fondly the old moments together. Quinn, though, doesn’t fail to notice Alan’s pained and awkward expression with the corners of her eyes, like he’s taking part in a conversation he can’t contribute to. “But after Gordon, mom left her job, staying at home full time with us. Then…things happened.”

“Yeah…can't say I get it, but in some way I suppose I do.” Now that she thinks about it, she doesn’t know the reason Lucille’s dead yet. Welp, it’s not like she can openly ask them, considering how they all shy out at even the mention of her name.

“How did it make you feel to know about mom?” Alan asks curiously, just to check if she shared or shares their same sense of loss.

“Well, uh…” She nervously chuckles. “...we can say I'm pretty sad I didn't get the chance to meet her sooner, especially considering the fact we lived so close to each other, but really I think I shouldn't be feeling like this. After all, I've got parents on my own.”

“It's perfectly normal for you to feel this way.” Virgil simply dissipates her doubts, leaving it at that.

“Yeah…well!” She deems it safe to change conversation, trying to bring some lightheartedness to the ambience. “So this is my house! It’s not as big as yours, but it’s still a nice place to live in.” What a kickstarter…she quietly sips her coffee after that, somewhat embarrassed to be with them.

“Yeah! I honestly didn’t expect us to be so close, who knew we could have met a long time ago?” Alan adds, making it difficult for Quinn now to picture them just as some family friends. Dang.

“Yeah…” She laughs it out sheepishly, adding to it another sip of her coffee. 

Just as Virgil is about to speak, his holocomm rings, beeping noisily enough for everyone to notice. “Ah, sorry, gotta take this. It's dad.” And after excusing himself, he distances himself from them. Moments later, and many biscuits later, he returns with a smile. “Allie, we gotta go. They finished their meetings earlier and are heading home now.”

“Well,” Quinn gets up from her seat in unison with Alan, who approaches his big brother. “It's been a pleasure to welcome you home. I hope to see you later for dinner.” She smiles broadly.

“Of course! I already told them, we'll be all here this evening. 7PM, right?”

“Hmm-mh! But it's okay if you'll be late, at least it will make up for my stunt a few days ago.” She jokes, earning yet another laugh from both brothers. They look like they don't smile that often these days.

After waving them goodbye, her petite figure half leaning on the door, she closes it with a big sigh. Now, to let her parents know…hm, but what will they be eating? Her fridge isn't that full…maybe a pizza? Uhhh, pizza and tacos! “I'm a genius!” A beep on her phone notifies her that her beloved AI, Potatoer (shortly Pot), requests her attention. Girl, please update me. I hate it here, feeling like a grandpa.

"I knew it was your doing! Do you have sawdust in that brain of yours?" Strange, no one seemed to get curious and lean over to see what it was about. Could it be...? "My private comms rang off uninterruptedly with non-stop calls and messages!"

"Well, be grateful that I left your private line, so that people didn’t occupy the International Rescue one."

"In that case, I would be the one to receive non-stop calls and texts." John interfered, nibbling on a bagel.

Scott looked at him one second too many. "When did you get down here?"

"About an hour ago." John had this strange face, he seemed to stifle a grin. Or he was hiding it under his bagel.

"Anyway, I don’t hear any noise, no notifications, nothing. Aren’t you lying?" Alan pointed out, crossing his arms around his chest with a sly grin. "Don’t tell me you didn’t get any girl’s attention!" After that addition there was a chain of giggles that started from Alan and spread all the way over to Grandma.

"On the contrary." He replied half-proud but also half-annoyed, pulling out his iconic blue shirt; one of the buttons on his wrist continued to light on and off with every notification that arrived. "As you can see, I get too much attention, I just silenced my comms. How did you-?" He didn’t even have to finish his sentence, because John was watching him again, now without hiding a smile himself.

"Well, cheer up bro!" Gordon took Scott’s thinking break to resume the conversation. "Your birthday is approaching, so you will receive many wishes from everyone!"

"But you could have avoided the comms open 24/7, this thing doesn’t even stop when I’m in the bathroom, without the need to tell you what I'm doing in there." At Scott’s response Kayo made a small grimace, though she was accustomed to hearing these things, while the tinies were laughing silently, that vibrating torso type of laugh, and slapping the table lightly and repeatedly; Alan in particular was about to choke on the bite he hadn’t swallowed yet.

"Careful, Scott! You don’t want to express yourself with such colorful language with the ladies!" Grandma jokingly rebuked him. "Who knows what impression you’ll make on the poor fellas..."

"So you’re telling me that with all the times you’ve flown by it, you’re just now noticing it?" Virgil asked, smiling.

Scott facepalmed, sighing and snorting at the same time. "I woke up with this infernal noise, and I thought there was a rescue to be done, so without seeing who it was, as the line is private-" with that addition he turned to Gordon. "- I answered. I had to get out of the damn bed to go check out the damn billboard." That’s why Scott was so upset: he had a rescue that kept him out of bed all night, and just when he came back for lunch and took an afternoon nap, he was disturbed. Gordon grinned evilly.

"Wait." Scott remembered Virgil’s question. "How long has that billboard been there?" His voice returned low and calm again.

Virgil stopped looking at his brother, focusing his attention on his plate.

"Ah, so you made a girl hear your sexy, powerful, bed voice! What a chance!" This day has just become a tease Scott Tracy day and Gordon was its founder; the others were too busy laughing to say anything.

"I can’t believe you all united for this amazing prank, good job you guys." Scott crossed his arms to his chest, visibly offended and sarcastic. "Which one of you should I blame the most?"

Gordon stood up at that last question, beaming. "Oh, I’m glad you asked!" Then he pulled out a holo list. "So, let’s see...Alan and I had the idea, John took care of the qr code and the link to your private line, and Kayo took care of the design! That love you is awesome."

"Thank you!" Kayo smiled at him.

"You forgot about me." Virgil corrected him.

"And me." Brains followed.

"Ah, sorry..." Gordon checked the list again, as Scott looked at the duo with a distraught expression. He understood Virgil doing this, but not Brains. Why would Brains do this to him? "Here we go, here we go. Brains offered to test the upgraded version of Thunderbird 1's drones, taking them on a fly test around the world to hand out fliers."

"Fliers?" Scott tried to interrupt him.

"And Virgil mentioned in those a free coffee date with you; you’re the one offering, of course."

"Free coffee?" Scott repeated this word too, now dumbfounded.

Gordon looked at him as if to say, what are you, a parrot? "Well, you see...this is called revenge."

"It’s revenge." Virgil repeated, high-fiving with Gordon.

"Revenge...?" Scott repeated, trying to remember. "What did I do this time?"

"Do you remember that time you painted my face while I was sleeping, and then you pulled me out of bed and made me dress up without even looking in the mirror because Penny was in the living room? That's it! You forgot to tell me Penny was in the living room!"

"No, I can assure you that I have not forgotten." Scott snickered, teasing the pufferfish.

"Eh, I didn’t forget either if this is the case. Enjoy your ladies." After that sentence, almost conveniently, the comm sounded once again, only this time it wasn't coming from his shirt.

"Oh no, not again!" Scott yelled, letting go of some curses under his breath too. Luckily Grandma didn’t seem to notice as she was answering the comms to see who it was; it was Penelope and she was smiling too.

“Scott! I was looking for you!”

"Let me guess, you saw what happened." Now that he noticed, Scott was still in his suit. It was starting to pinch his skin.

"Yes, that’s why I was looking for you."

Scott raised an eyebrow. "Hm?"

Penny raised a flier into sight, smiling. "Is the offer also valid for a cup of tea? Iced tea, perhaps?"

Scott squinted his eyes. Grandma turned to Gordon. "Gordon... run to my signal."

"Sure, it’s available for all drinks!" Virgil answered Penny’s question, chuckling. This episode would not be easily forgotten.

It was midnight, and Alice couldn’t sleep. She was on Tracy Island that day to spend some time with Virgil and the others, naturally after having entrusted her home in Los Angeles to a dear friend of hers. Now she didn’t notice the jet-lag, because she went back and forth as she liked between the US and Tracy Island, but she couldn’t sleep anyway that night.

She didn’t have any weird feelings or bad feelings. She just needed to get out a little bit, to get some air. She looked from out the window at the ceiling. As with every time she was in her room, the various constellations painted with fluorescent paint and the great White Moon welcomed and guarded her thoughts, and often even her worries.

That night he was in her room because she wanted to be alone to think; Virgil had fully approved, arguing that every now and then everyone needed to be alone to think. After all, during the afternoon they were completely alone cuddling lazily on his bed all the time, they had enough time for them.

Alice sighed deeply. Evidently not even her room was made to be alone to think that night. So she sat on the bed after having affectionately greeted with her eyes her stars, slipping the soft slippers to the feet. She wanted to get out and so she would.

Turning the abat-jour on the bedside table, which made a warm and faint yellow light around the room, she looked around to accustom her eyes to that little light, then she got up from her bed, heading towards the door leading to the closet, located not far from the en-suite bathroom and opposite the glass wall that led to the balcony.

She entered the small room, lighting the light there too, and then headed to a precise drawer and pull out her two-piece swimsuit, the one that Virgil loved so much. She took off her silk pajamas and black underwear, quickly but quietly putting on her costume, starting with her underwear and then slipping on her bra, quickly binding it just under her shoulders. Then she covered himself with the silk shawl that was part of the pajamas.

She turned off the light from the walk-in closet and went out, closing the door behind her. Then she changed the slippers with a pair of flip-flops, heading to turn off the abat-jour. She headed to the door holding the flip-flops in her hand. She didn’t need any noise now that everyone was asleep. She calmly opened the door and then left. She tiptoed down the hall, making sure not to make any noise. Luckily, the parquet floor underneath her did not creak, so her presence was not even felt.

She calmly went down the stairs and then proceeded to the living room. She was somewhat surprised when John did not appear as a hologram to greet her, though she expected it. Maybe he was asleep, like everyone else in the villa. She went to the kitchen to get a glass of water, and could clearly smell the chlorine in the pool first thing. She smiled a little and then drank the water in one breath.

Then she went out, clenched in her shawl, and was surprised to sense movement in the pool. At this time of night...?

Of course she knew it was about Gordon, and in fact her suspicions were immediately clarified when his twin brother pulled his head out of the water after a dive.

"Hey, you. Yes, right you." Alice whispered to Gordon, who looked at her surprised.

"I didn’t expect to find you up this late, Litchi. Can’t you sleep?" he whispered back.

"Don't call me Litchi." she murmured sternly. "No, I can’t sleep tonight, so I thought I’d take a stroll to the beach."

Gordon was about to replicate something, his glowing look of excitement, when Tiger, with a slight meowing, dived into the water right next to Gordon, who chuckled.

"Sometimes I seriously doubt he’s a cat." he said, pointing to the young tiger cat swimming comfortably in the pool, as if he were in its natural environment.

"True. It looks like he’s made for water. I’ve seen cats swimming like Tiger online, so it’s not totally impossible. Just hard to see." replied Alice, lifting her shoulders, and then lowering to put on her flip-flops.

"If you want, I can go down with you to the sea." Gordon whispered right away.

"If you want, yes."

"Then turn around. I have to put my boxers on."

"You mean you’ve bathed naked so far?" she whispered maliciously, then giggled, turning her back to her twin brother.

She immediately heard him coming out of the water, and when he whispered the ok she turned again.

"Nice abs, bro!" she whispered.

He rolled his eyes, but not after posing. "If Virgil hears you then he becomes jealous of me." When Alice rolled his eyes he continued. " I go inside to get a sweatshirt. If I’m not back in 5 minutes it means that Scott caught me."

She widened her eyes. " Scott is awake? But I haven’t met him at all!"

"I saw his room light go out just before I dived in. He retired recently, but that doesn’t mean he’s asleep. You have to be careful."

"Go then."

"Anyway, do you have the communicator?"

Alice nodded her head as she followed him into the living room. "How could I not have it? I wear it even when I sleep!" she whispered and then showed the bracelet that was on her wrist, so thin that it did not even look like a communicator.

"Wait for me outside." Gordon whispered, and Alice nodded on her way back to the pool, sitting on a deck chair nearby.

She could hear the crickets and the bubbling of an owl in the distance. She stopped to listen to that angelic sound for so long that she did not notice how much time had passed. When she looked at the wrist clock, she noticed that 15 minutes had passed. She got up from the deckchair and then walked a little, until she found a small underground path in front of her. Without thinking twice she took that path, arriving with some trouble at the beach in front of her. She headed toward the still warm sand and without thinking twice sat down on it, comforted by its warmth. She turned to put her black shawl on a rock in the pine forest, and what she saw at that moment took her breath away.

As she had walked in the woods to get to the beach she had never noticed the thousand fireflies that filled the trees with small lights, numerous and beautiful. They looked like stars came down to earth. Some of the bright insects even arrived on the beach, also illuminating the golden sand and, shortly after, the sea.

When she returned to the sand, this time to lie down on it, she realized that there was no moon in the sky. There were several stars bright enough but, although there was no cloud in the sky, the bright star had not yet made its appearance.

She sighed, and then stood up and walked safely to the water, leaving the flip-flops near the shawl and enjoying the sound of the sand creaking under her feet at every step she was taking. She began to immerse herself in the water little by little, comforted by the heat that was releasing from the sultry day just passed.

Everything looked different at night; even the living room of the villa was different at night. There was more room for nocturnal sounds, such as cicadas, crickets and owls, sounds that during the day could not be heard with various commitments. It was as if the world really took on life during the night, revealing this dark but charming side of her, or at least that’s what Alice has always thought since she was little. She liked to walk at night, she always liked it.