Maniac’s Mayhem

Sometimes, the things we can fix hurt more than the things we can’t. Because we can understand feeling powerless but not having the time, money or energy to fix things feels more like a ball and chain around your neck dragging you down.

–Katherine noir

(Cierra)

I wake up from the wiggling of a small figure in my arms. I open my eyes feeling both a bit groggy and confused, as instead of seeing the blond hair I was expecting to find, there was only black.

“Cali? What are you doing here?” I ask, still feeling out of it.

“Mom said it was okay to sleep here. Is it not?” The little girl asks, sounding rather unsure.

“No, it’s fine. Whenever you feel scared or lonely, feel free to crawl into bed with us.” I say, stroking her silky hair. “Was just surprised.”

“Okay,” Cali says as she seems to mull over something. “I, uhm, I am hungry.”

I laugh, placing a kiss on top of Cali’s head. "Okay then, let's go make some breakfast.”

I slowly sit up, allowing Cali to crawl out of bed. As the child leaves the room I move up to Evelin, who is still asleep, and start shaking her awake.

“Hey beautiful, it’s time to wake up.” I say.

Evelin’s eyes snap open as she winces. “Auw that hurts.”

“Sorry, I did not mean to.” I say, wondering if she has a bruise I did not know about.

“Not you, I think that Crow just fell out of bed,” she says, holding her face. “I think she broke our nose.”

“Wait, really, you feel each other's pain?” I ask, suddenly feeling a lot more concerned about Crow going out on her own.

“I am pretty sure that we all feel Crow's pain, and you know they don’t feel ours,” Evelin explains. “Lyssa, how is Crow doing?”

They are fine. Lyssa would also like to inform you that Crow only bruised the cartilage and did not break the bone; the pain should subside soon.

“I am starting to regret allowing her to leave without a safety helmet.” Evelin complains as she stands up.

I give Evelyn one last pat on the head and then follow Cali out of the room. Don’t want her to eat the frying pan after all. But instead of finding Cali in the kitchen, I find her opening Shinon’s door.

“Sister, want food?” The little girl asks.

I hear something falling, and the next moment, a mop of red hair appears in the door. “Food?”

“Yes,” I say with a smile, “I was thinking some eggs and bacon, maybe some hash-browns.”

Both of the kids nod at me. “Do you girls want to help?”

“Help?” Cali asks in her adorable little voice.

“Yeah, help me cook,” I say with a smile, leading them into the kitchen.

“Okay,” the children say in unison.

After some minutes and one huge kitchen mess, which I will make Maniac clean up later, we do have a big breakfast ready that the kids are happily consuming.

“Girls,” I start, not sure where to start. “We are going to have some friends over tonight. They are good people, but if you feel scared or don’t want to be here anymore, feel free to go to your rooms. Those are safe places, and they won’t go in there, I promise.”

“Why won’t they go in?” Shinon asks.

“Because if they did, they would have to deal with me, and your mother, and trust me, they don’t want that.” I say, trying to look tall and dependable.

“Also, Daisy will bite their ankles off.” Maniac says, walking into the room.

Both kids turn to the hyena in question. Daisy gives both of them a short nod, which somehow makes them look less worried.

"Why do they trust Daisy more than me?” I whisper into Maniac’s ear.

Maniac leans into me. “Simple, she is not human. Humans have lied to them their entire life. I don’t think they believe anything … that's it!”

“What?” I ask, feeling confused.

“Let’s call Apocalypse to babysit.” Maniac says with a smile.

“Apocalypse is a human.” I point out.

“Yes, but she doesn't look like one.” Maniac says with a maniac grin on her face.

“Neither does your mother.” I argue.

“I guess she has the whole tail thing going on, but she still looks human.” Maniac says with an unsure gesture.

“Your other mother.”

Maniac snaps her fingers with a smile. “The red panda, now there is an idea. I’ll give her a call to see if she can come over.”

I let out a sigh, smiling softly at my overly excited fiancé. “Calling both probably can’t hurt.”

Maniac nods emphatically at that. “Good idea, I will…” she pauses, looking at Cali, who has grabbed her shirt. “Something wrong, munchkin?”

“No food?” Cali asks.

“You want more food?” Maniac asks Cali, patting her head.

“No, you food?” Cali says, pulling at her clothes some more.

“Ah, I am just digital,” Manaic says, letting half her arm disappear and reappear. “I am actually eating, but it is complicated, so don’t worry.” Maniac continues patting the girl's head.

Cali nods slowly, then turns back to her eggs and continues trying to eat them with her mangled fork. At least we don’t have to worry about her iron intake. I slowly stand up and walk back into the kitchen to get my girl a new fork. I should put in a bulk order for kitchenware at some point.

The rest of breakfast goes rather smoothly with Shinon finishing her food and heading to the tv to watch some more stuff and Cali only eating the utensils and not the dish wear so that is progress; however, at some point, it does become time for my appointment, so I leave the girls alone with their mother with a heavy heart.

“You look like somebody fucked your dog and kicked your wife. Wait, I think that saying is the other way around.” Sam says, handing me a cup of coffee.

“Why does it feel like I exchange one crazy person for another?” I say with a small smile, taking a sip of the warm liquid.

Sam throws an arm around my shoulder. “That is because Evelyn and I are kindred spirits, so spill who kicked Evelin.”

“Nobody kicked her,” I say with a sigh. “Just wish I could be home with the kids, you know, play family.”

Sam pauses, making me turn around and look at her. “You have kids? With Evelin, I assume?”

I give her a short nod. “Yes.”

“I have so many questions now,” Sam says with a smile. “They are human kids, right? Daisy did not spawn a litter or something, and you decide to call them your kids.”

“No, they're human,” I pause, “at least mostly human.”

“What does that mean?”

“Means that some very evil people used them for human experiments.” I say, grinding my teeth. “That is what this meeting is about. We can talk more once we are inside.”

“You know, sometimes I do miss the soul-crushing numbness of a corporate job.” Sam muses, “Way less child torture.”

“You and me both,” I agree as I open the door to the meeting room, the rest of the people already waiting inside.

“Thank you for coming, everyone,” I say as I walk to the head of the table. “Also, I am sorry for being late.”

“It’s fine, Cierra, but I am curious why you called everyone?” Deatnite asks which, at one point in my life, I would have been happy about, being with Samurai, but somehow it does not feel so good when it comes with all the nastier stuff as well.

“This is about my children and the people who hurt them.” I say slowly, trying to find my centre. “A few days ago, Maniac, Yun Min, Bulwark, and I raided a facility where they were doing experiments on children. I have called this meeting to make sure we will find every last one of the people responsible, and put them behind bars or in a coffin.”

“Your children? Does this mean you are planning to keep the children that were experimented on?” Doctor Noir, the new therapist, asks.

“Yes, they are mine, and I will make sure nobody can hurt them anymore. Is that a problem?” I ask, feeling wet tears run down my face.

“Not at all,” the doctor responds. “Though I might not be the best fit, I do know a bit about child psychology, so I might be able to help.”

“Ah, right, thank you; that would be helpful.” I say, “And I am sorry for lashing out. I am just.”

“You're stressed, your children are in pain, and you don’t know how to fix it, and you still have to do your day job. I understand.” Katherine smiles at me, “Honestly I would be more concerned if you were acting completely normal.”

I nod slowly at her. “Thanks, and I am sorry.”

“I can do the briefing. I was there as well and know most of the details,” Yun Min offers.

I nod, sitting back done. “Thank you.”

The rest of the meeting just passes by in somewhat of a blur, and when it is finally over, I am not really sure what I achieved. I feel somebody touch my shoulder, making me panic slightly as I turn around.

“Doctor, yes, the kids, should we set up a meeting?” I ask, with a smile.

“We can, but first let's talk about you. How are you holding up?” The therapist says, gently rubbing my shoulder.

“I, uhm, I don’t know,” I say, dropping my head in my hands. “I knew parenting would not be easy, but every time I move a bit weirdly, they look at me with fear, like I am about to hit them.”

Noir nods along. “Would you ever hit them?”

“No, of course not. I may not have had them for long, but I care for them. I want them to be happy.” I defend myself.

“That is good,” Noir says, sitting down next to me. “This might be hard to hear, but the kids will be like that for maybe a few years. And all you can do is to be yourself and love them, and at some point they will realise that you’re telling the truth and not lying to them.”

“I know.” I sigh. “It’s just I don’t know... Is there a way to speed it along?” I ask, desperate for a solution.

“There is a way,” Noir says with a nod. “Patterns. We humans, connect things with patterns. If you make sure you always react the same, it would be easier for them to understand.”

I frown confusion “How would that work?”

“Like if every time they broke a plate you would say the same thing and then kiss their forehead, they would understand much quicker that those actions are safe for them to do since they know the consequences,” Noir explains.

“So if every time Cali eats a utensil, I give her a kiss and tell her to be careful and hand her a new one, that would help,” I wager

“Yes,” Noir nods, freezes for a second, and gives me a puzzled look. "She eats utensils?”

“And dish wear, apparently, she can do that.” I say, shrugging, honestly not the biggest problem at the moment.

“Right, well, I guess that is a good start,” Noir says. “Though I feel not correcting her dish-wear eating, it might become an expensive problem.”

“That is fine. I have a lot of money,” I say with a smile.