No YOU’RE yelling!

Later that evening after everyone ate and had exhausted themselves on each others company they slowly returned to their individual quarters for the evening. Colt was exiting the wash room where Cheyenne was waiting perched on the edge of their bed with that look on her face. “Heeeeeeey” Colt starts

“So… hows Corinne been lately, she seems, I don’t know, reinvigorated or something?” Cheyenne asks, clearly as a starting point for a larger convo she has already mapped out in her head.

“Yeah, no, shes good. I really think that last convo with ‘mother’ really rattled something loose in her… In a good way, I mean, I haven’t seen her this relaxed and hands off… really ever. It’s weird, but cool, but weird.”

“And Danny?”

“that’s a bit of a tougher read, you know, but he feels like he’s been carrying extra weight lately, but I can’t even imagine what he’s been trough so being a bit moody feels like a win, you know?” 

“And you? I don’t feel like we’ve really gotten a chance to catch up, come sit.” Cheyenne tapped the bed next to her telling him exactly where she wanted him. He obliged.

“Oh you know, this is all I’ve ever wanted for mom so, it feels like a relief in one aspect, but we’re not sure we’re out of the woods so to speak yet, so there is still trepidation. I want mom AND Danny to be able to move on, but there are still so many questions. Which is also kind of exciting from a certain perspective… is that selfish of me?” 

“Listen Colt…” Cheyenne began”… you are a lot of things, selfish is never one of them. You are the most complete kind hearted person I have ever met. It’s what drew me to you.”

“Here I thought it was your inability to keep your coffee off of me that did it.” he smiles as he says this and she elbows his ribs playfully

“This is a huge deal, your uncle waking up, your mom getting her brother back, -THE MOSS! It’s ok for emotions to be convoluted under the circumstances.” Cheyenne says this in the most reassuring voice she feels capable of.

“I know, it just feels like after so long of existing a certain way, and now like every week having to upend everything we thought we knew, and that being the best case, makes it hard, but the way the family has embraced the new and unknown, has made it all so much easier, I am so proud of our kids and you.” Colt says and leans in for a kiss on Cheyenne’s cheek “I’m ready for this day to be over.” He says as he continues around the bed and snuggles into the bed for the night. “Don’t stay up too late.” He says as his voice shifts through tenors to indicate he is already falling asleep. That annoys the shit out of Cheyenne, but she just says “Love you.” as she heads into the bathroom to get ready for bed herself.

The next morning Cheyenne awakes to that smell, the smell that tells her she’s about to receive breakfast in bed, from her best friend on this planet. The smile that hits her face engulfs her entire body and she sits up. Colt is standing at the door with tray in hands, smiling that smile she loves so much. “I knew that would wake you, hope your hungry” He practically beams.

“Starving” she says as she sits up against the wall behind their bed and readjusts herself to receive this bounty.

“Good, the kids helped, we know you’ve been preoccupied with the new families that you have under your care now, so…” he lets the rest trail off as he sets down the meal and sits down at her feet to watch her eat.

“You know you don’t have to do this bit.” she says waving her fork at where he’s sitting to let him know what she means.

“Can’t a partner just enjoy the fruits of their labor?” he asks mocking harm with two hands thrust over his heart as if shot.

“Not if those fruits involve watching her eat, no.” Cheyenne chuckles in a way that says I’m playing… but also I am not playing.

“Fine” Colt stands acting as if hes been punched directly in he chest, and staggers back towards the door.”Come find me when your done, I love you”

“And I you.” she says with a forkful of delicious headed towards her mouth. “NOW GO! SCRAM!” she mimes shooing him with said fork and out he goes. 

Later in the kitchen after she ate, dressed and got herself mentally prepared to engage with the day, she runs into the ENTIRE family. She immediately clocks Danny standing as far away from Corinne as is humanly possible while still technically occupying the same space. She also notices the shimmer that Danny’s moss has, its metallic in a way shes never seen before, hopefully its not what she thinks it is, but she was raised as a spy so it probably is. Thats not awesome.

Cheyenne maneuvers herself over by Corinne as it appears she’s oblivious to Danny’s stares, and Cheyenne knows Corinne is not ever oblivious to Danny. “Hey, mom” she starts with a slight prod to the rib cage with her elbow.

“Hey yourself” she shoots back.

“Everything good?” she asks starting to worry

“What yeah no everything’s great, hey you talked to Danny yesterday right?” Corinne asks in that way that lets it be known she already has the answer and is actually fishing for something else entirely. 

“I did, he was very troubled about a dream he had, says he was back at ‘the incident’ and he can swear that he heard you and your dad arguing, but that can’t be true right?” she says knowing full well the truth, but hoping against hope that Corinne is still wanting to keep this particular secret.

“Fuck” Corinne mumbles under her breath, “Mother warned me this was going to happen.”

“I’m sorry, who warned you of what?” Cheyenne plays dumb because in this moment it feels like the best strategy, and based on everything that happens next she will ask herself if that was a mistake. Corinne looks at her as if seeing her for the very first time.

“Cheyenne I need you to come with me to the office right now.”

When they get to the office, and shut the door, Cheyenne couldn’t help but notice that Danny’s eyes never left them, and the shimmer coming from the moss was white hot looking. As she got into her seat, Corinne started. “What does he know, Know?”

“You’re gonna have to be…” she began but Corinne cut her off.

“Don’t play dumb with me right now. What does he know know.” she repeated the last bit at great expense to her patience.

Cheyenne begins to understand just how in tune with the world around her Corinne actually is and starts again. “Just that there were multiple voices on the other side of the door then a gunshot.”

“How does he know it was a gunshot?” Corinne asked

“He doesn’t fully, he just knows he heard the noise then a hole appeared in the darkness and light shone through.” Cheyenne says in a way that feels very much like a debrief.

“Ok, anything else, Cheyenne this is very important.” Corinne holds eye contact with her to emphasize further her point.

“Just that he’s pretty sure, I tried to steer him in another direction and he wasn’t mean, but he wouldn’t even entertain it.” Cheyenne says.

“What can I do?” Cheyenne asks knowing that whatever Corinne knows about her is enough for now to not try anymore ‘acting dumb’

“Here’s what..” Corinne begins then the door flys open no knock, or alert their was someone there and in the doorway stood Danny.

“Hey sis… we need to talk.” Danny practically growled.

“You’re right, please come in and sit down.” Corinne tells him, while trying to regain whatever handle she had on this conversation.

“WHAT THE FUCK HAPPENED THAT NIGHT!?!?” Danny demanded… he did not sit down

Cheyenne felt like a spectator at a volleyball match.

“What do you thin…” Corinne began

“DO NOT FUCKING DO THAT TO ME, DO NOT MAKE ME FEEL STUPID, NOT YOU PLEASE?!? I AM NOT A FUCKING CHILD SIS!”

Corinne puts her hands up as if ready to defend herself, but says in the most patient voice Cheyennes ever heard under such circumstances. “Ok Danny, you are right, I owe you the truth, I am sorry, and I love you with everything I have, I need you to remember that, please?” Then she begins her story.

Cheyenne had read about it in reports, but hearing her tell it was heartbreaking. The moss has gone from a shimmering replica of the sun to that Lavender color that she always found so calming. Danny, for his part, sat down on the ground right where he was in the doorway. Sitting cross legged in that way that small children do when being read to at the library. As the story unfolds Cheyenne can see that a crowd has developed behind Danny, and her heart breaks for the kids, and Colt. Cheyenne knows that nothing will ever be the same again. 

When she is finished, Danny stands up, says nothing, and walks away. Rain follows him and Cheyenne gets up to go as well, as shes leaving she passes by the rest of her kids and Colt and they don’t appear to know what to do. Then Colt heads past her to his mother and the children follow. Cheyenne stands for a second to make sure that she’s seeing what she thinks she is, and sure enough Colt then the rest of the kids all hug Corinne as tight as you can possible hold another human being without squeezing the breath outta them. Cheyenne turns and follows Rain and Danny.

Cheyenne finally catches up to them walking silently about a block from the house. She pulls up next to them then paces her strides to match theirs and says nothing. They don’t ever even really look at each other they just walk. Finally Danny says “Is there any place to sit down?”

“We can sit anywhere you want Danny.” Cheyenne says and Danny lashes out with “I just want to sit in some fucking chairs or a goddamn bench. Fuck!”

“I know a place.” Rain says touching Danny lightly on the elbow, Cheyenne has never been prouder of them, and debates leaving them alone, but she has other reasons for being here, so she stays.

“Cool” is all Danny seems capable of responding in that moment without completely losing his shit, but the moss appears that same steady Lavender that means calm, so Cheyenne just keeps pace till they get to the spot Rain was leading them to.

It’s a creek with a lip overhang and a tree that looks like it grew just to be sat on like a bench looking over the lip. They all took seats even though Danny clearly was not happy because he wanted “real” chairs, or a “real” bench. The look on his old face is so childish its almost comical, but Cheyenne understands the moment and leaves it be, she has decided that Rain should take the lead with Danny and she will support them when necessary.

“I know this isn’t quite what you meant, but it was the best we could hope for under such short notice.” Rain said after what felt like hours, but had actually been like 3 minutes.

“It’s… its actually cooler, I just wanna be mad. Can’t I just like be mad in this future, FUCK!”

“Of course you can, do you not think the rest of us are angry at Mima right now? Cause I can assure you that we are, but we also sympathize with her, she was just a girl.” Rain said then put on the brakes as soon as Danny looked at them.

“I know that” he growled “But they were her parents too. She left them to die, shit she killed dad, I know they never got along, but killing him? What the fuck?!?! And trying to say she did it for me, I would never ask her to do that, I would never be ok with that, how dare her make assumptions on whats best for me like that. They’re MY parents.” at this he completely broke and all of his feelings came out of his face in the ugliest, most therapeutic way possible. Rain and Cheyenne both just hold him, and each other until he finally comes out the other end.

“Either of you have a tissue, or like a beach towel, or something stronger so I can clean myself up?” Danny asks smirking.

“Actually, the way the fabric of your shirt is made you can just use it. It will absorb all of it like it was never here.” says Rain

“No shit” Danny says with a chuckle then buries his face into his shirt without waiting for any kind of reply. “Would you look at that” he says mostly to himself as he pulls his face away.

“Is there anything we can do?” Cheyenne probes.

“Not unless you got a time machine” Danny quips then his face goes serious and he adds. “I can’t forgive her, not ever, I don’t know what to do though, she is literally all I have.”

“Thats not true uncle” Rain adds.

“Thanks” Danny says looking at them. 

“I just don’t know what I’m supposed to say to her, all I want to do is scream, like forever, and hide out from everyone, and everything. This is all so much bigger than me, I haven’t even graduated High School and I look like fucking Gandalf. My sister killed my Dad, and there aren’t even fucking roads anymore!!”

“Hold up” Cheyenne butts in “First off you look nothing like Gandalf, maybe Aarogon or Boromir, maybe.” too which Danny laughs the kind of laugh you only get when all of your emotions are keyed up to 11.

Rain looks back and forth between the 2 confused “Who?!?!”

Cheyenne looks at them with a mixture of pride and shame that says, ‘you poor, young thing’.

“Seriously though, what am I supposed to do, just let her get away with it?” Danny asked

“She already has” Cheyenne states then continues “What you have to decide is are you going to let this new information control you, or are you going to come to terms with it, and keep living… with the living?”