Seek | Fontaine's

Odille had packed her things - her red Power Ranger, her five barbies, her 64 pack of crayons, and her Disney Princesses coloring book - and headed for the road, determined to track down her brother. Her friend, the pretty one who brought the presents, had told her in a really really quiet voice where Lian was, and she was going to go see him. He was at Ninny-we-can't-call-Ninny's house, and that wasn't that far, if you stuck to the sidewalk for a few streets and were very careful on the side of the street for a few more. She had even drew a map for herself, in pretty pink crayon, that showed the way. She wasn't really looking at it, though. She remembered from the last time she'd gone.

The training wheels on her bright pink bike scrapped against the ground as she made a turn onto Nine's street, her bright blue eyes taking in the houses around her. They all looked the same, and none of them looked like Juli's friends....

Or, at least, not that she remembered...

The houses here all dwarfed her, and she didn't know what to do other than keep pedalling.

"LIAN!!" She yelled, looking around, panic starting to bubble in her chest. "LIAN! HELP!" She felt tears start to well in her eyes as she failed to recognize anything familiar. "LIAN! I'M LOST!"

"LIAAAN!!"

Stretched out on his bed, Julian hummed to himself as he read through his Enchantments textbook. With OWLs and an incompetent teacher, he'd need all the help and studying he could get.

Zoning out for a moment, he sighed, flipping the page. This was oddly relaxing, the studying. A little boring, but relaxing all the same.

And then, practically out of nowhere, he heard his name. Frowning, he would've brushed it off if it hadn't been for the voice.

Pulling himself up into a sitting position, he muttered to himself, shaking his head softly "Dilly?" But - but what were the chances that she even knew where he was or - or -

Wincing at the volume of her voice, and the terror in it, he jumped up, running downstairs and out the front door.

Glancing around him, his gaze softened as it fell on his little sister. Giving her a little smile, he walked over to her, enveloping her into a hug, "Hey Oddish," he muttered into her blonde hair, "I've missed you."

"Lian!" Dille cried, tumbling off her bike and running to him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as her feet left the ground. Her bright red rainboots dangled but she didn't mind, surrounded by the familiar comfort of her brother's arms. Her small, helmeted head stayed by his shoulder, and she squeezed him tightly. "Where were you hiding? Mama was worried, she said you won't come back, but I know you will. I found you when no one else could. Don't worry, though. I won't give away your hiding spot." Her small arms had locked around his neck, and she wouldn't be letting go anytime soon.

"I missed you too, Li-Li." She said, her hold on him tightening. "I brought you the pictures I drew while you were gone, and my letters, I've been practicing them. I can almost read all of Scooby-Doo all the way through. And-and..." She paused for breath, and pouted. "I'm hungry. I forgot to pack a sandwich. I'm sorry."

Grinning at her, he held her tightly. God, he'd missed her. Though he wouldn't admit missing everyone else, a part (a very small part) of him had. "Oh you know," he shrugged, his eyes feeling somewhat wet, "Ninette's nice enough to let me hide out here." Expression blanking slightly, he smiled. He hadn't - well he didn't think his mother hated him - but - it was nice to know she cared. Somewhat.

"Did she? That - that's nice." Nodding, he added, "And thank you. I can't have everyone showing up here. It'd drive the Fontaines nuts." Laughing softly, he shook his head.

Grinning, he hummed softly, nodding in time to her speech. "Wait," he asked softly, "what are you apologizing for? You haven't done anything wrong."

Dille went very very quiet very very fast. "You said run." She said softly, her hold tightening instinctively. "But I was hungry. I was almost done my sandwhich, but the jelly was all the way on the top shelf, and I could reach it." She buried her face into his shoudler, pouting. "Don't be mad, Lian. I tried to run. Daddy throws really really fast though. I tried. I tried so hard Lian don't be mad at me...." she whimpered slightly. "You said run when Daddy gets mad but I wasn't fast enough..."

"I'm sorry..." she whimpered. "I don't wanna go back, Lian. It hurt...."

He - that bastard - he'd actually hit Dilly. Swallowing hard, Julian's fists clenched. He was going to kill his father. You didn't go around hitting kids. Not when they couldn't fight back. Glancing down at Dilly, he tightened his hold around her. "It - it's not your fault." he choked out, shaking his head. "You didn't do anything wrong."

It's all his fault, he thought darkly. All his fault. "I can never be mad at you, Oddish." he blinked at her, a tiny little smile on his lips. "Ever."

The Fontaines, they - they'd let her stay, right? Ignoring the nagging little voice in his head that asked what they'd do once break ended, Julian offered, "You can stay here. I mean, I'll have to ask Nine and her mom, but -" he winked at his sister, "they won't be able to say no."

Dille blinked up at him, her eyes wide and innocent. "Promise?" She asked. "Mama said... she said..." She fell silent again, looking around her. "Army told me a secret." She said proudly, lowering her voice. "She told me your hiding spot. I'm not allowed to tell you so shhhhh." She pressed a finger against his lips, a bright smile flitting across her face. Odille never could stay down for long. "Guess what she got me for Christmas! Guess Guess!" She looked at her backpack in what she thought was a sneaky glance, grinning.

"She said I could stay with her if Quatre said no. She said you could come too! Army's really nice." The young girl nodded, looking around again. "She said... 'Tell your brother I've got you and him covered'. I thought it was funny. She didn't buy me a blankie, or even an umbrella. Army says weird things sometimes." She pouted. "She wouldn't even show me her fangs!"

"Of course." he said softly, smiling at her. Tilting his head, he wondered what exactly his mother had said. Deciding that he really didn't want to know, he frowned. Army? Who was - Karma? But - well, he wasn't all that surprised that she showing up at his house all unexpected and Karmlike. Smirking against Odille's finger, he nodded gravely, "I know nothing."

Pausing to think, he caught her glance towards her bag, "I think," he said slowly, grinning, "that whatever she gave you is in your bag." Expression softening as she told him what Army had said, he smiled slightly. That really was nice. Maybe she really wasn't all that bad. At the fang comment, he couldn't help but laugh at Odille's expression. So Army was most definitely Karma. "The next time you see her, tell her thank you from me, alright?"

Dille shrieked, her hold on him tightening. "How did you know?" She said excitedly. "Are you psychic?" She wiggled in his hold, glancing around. "I'll show you when we go inside!"

"Okaaaaays." She said with a grin. "Don't forget my bike! It's brand new! Army got me that too!"

"I know things, Dilly." Julian grinned mysteriously. Placing her back down on solid ground, his grin widened, "Psychic? Maybe. But I'm most definitely magical." Winking at his little sister, his grin grew.

"I won't," he said with a little amused shake of his head. Strolling over to the bike, he hummed softly, wheeling it up the walk to the front door. Pulling it open, he gestured inside, "After you, Princess Odille."

Dille ran into the house, her red boots plopping over the semi-wet ground. She ran straight through the house and into the kitchen, heedless of the mud she tracked throughout. She climbed up onto a chair and pulled off her backpack extra carefully, as to not hurt her back, and dumped it contents onto the kitchen counter. Her eight-year-old hands waded through the pile of toys and crayons, heedless of the ones rolling precariously close to the edge of the counter, and picked up her brand new Red Power Ranger action figure. "Isn't he pretty, Lian?" She asked excitedly, holding him up for her brother to see. "Look! It the one where you can take off his helmet!" Extra careful, Dille fumbled with the small mechinism on the toy for a bit, before pulling off the red helmet, completely entranced by the toy's absolutely dreamy face. "Isn't he pretty?"

She reached into the pile and pulled a folder from the bottom - this also decorated with the Red Power Ranger - and held it out to him. "I drew you pictures! See?"

Wincing slightly as he watched Odille run into the house, he rubbed his temples, praying that Ninette wouldn't kill him for letting her muddy up their house. Sighing softly, he followed her footprints, resisting the urge to pull out his wand and Scourgify away the mess. Flopping down in a chair across the counter from his sister, he watched amusedly as she dumped the contents of her bag out in front of her to rifle through it.

Catching a few of the rolling away crayons before they hit the floor, he twirled them around in his fingers, watching Dilly curiously. Grinning at her, he shook his head softly, "He's very pretty."

Taking the folder from her, he flipped through it, his grin widening at all the pictures, "You know something Dilly? You'd make an amazing artist. They could have entire galleries full of your work."

Dille beamed at her brother's praise, a bright smile gracing her lips. "Look Lian! Look! I drew you in this one!" She pulled a picture carefully from the back, where a rectangle-shaped person with a slightly rounded head and yellow scribbles for hair waved, his other hand clasped around a smaller version of the same thing, the only difference being the amount of yellow scribbles, and the height of the other figure. "Guess who that is!" She demanded, smiling brightly.

"I'm honoured that you'd take the time out of your busy life to draw me." Julian grinned, bowing his head slightly as he put the folder in his grasp down to peer closely at the offered drawing.

It was clearly him and her, but if Jul was anything, it was dramatic. A little dramatic suspense - it'd be fun. Tilting his head slightly, he looked from the drawing to Odille, "Hmmm, is that....Nine? No - wait, she's taller than me......hmmm, you?"

"YES!" Dille said excitedly taking a pink crayon off the table and beginning to doodle swirls across it. "See, see? I have yellow hair, and and a pink jacket!" She took the red crayon next, taking it and scribbling dramatically, glancing at her red Power Ranger and looking back at the drawing a few times before digging through the pile for her markers and adding more red.

"See! Like that. Guess who that is!"

Grinning at Odille, her enthusiasm and happiness infectious, Julian hummed softly, shaking his head amusedly as he watched her doodle on the table. You really couldn't be angry when she was so adorable.

Flicking his gaze from her to the Power Ranger she loved so much, he peered down at her drawing, coming up with a pretty good guess of what she was drawing from the amount of red on the paper.

"I think........hmmm, fire? No.....Mr. Red Power Ranger?"

Dille grinned and splayed her fingers over the massive red circle that was supposedly the Power Ranger's helmet. "Yeeees. It's the Red one." She grinned down at the circle adoringly, all the world as if it were the actor himself. "He's prettier than the Green one, definitely." Nodding, she scrambled to grab the rest of the crayons, adding the villans and the other power rangers behind him, smaller, and less impressive most definitely. The massive work of art took her nearly twenty minutes, in which she didn't talk, only drew, an innocent glee on her face.

"Lian!" She said finally, after dumping a small container of glitter over the whole thing. "I'm hungry!"

Ninette flounced into the kitchen, her mind on other things as she walked to the fridge openning it quickly and grabbing a bottle of sparkling water. She took the lid off, and was putting it to her lips when she actally looked around.

"Why's there a kid in my house?" were the first words out of her mouth, then her eyes drew to the mess, "And what did you do to my kitchen?"

"I'll take your word for it." Julian said, grinning at his little sister as he leaned back in his chair, watching her draw. She looked so happy drawing that he couldn't bear to say anything, instead opting to just watch her. Because if Julian was anything, it was patient. These things came easy for him. Twenty minutes was nothing compared to the hours he'd used to spend locked in a tiny room at home.

His grin widening, he shook his head slightly as Odille dumped glitter all over the counter. Ninette would kill both of them, but you couldn't really say no to someone so cute. "What do you want?" he asked, tilting his head slightly before spreading out his arms. "Because the Fontaines have everything."

At the sound of approaching footsteps, he grinned, "Speaking of Fontaines..." he gestured in Ninette's direction as the girl pulled into view. "Hey Nine," he said to her, giving her a little wave before gesturing towards Dilly, "You've met my little sister, Odille. She's decided to move in with us too." Biting his bottom lip, he glanced from girl to girl for a moment. Ninette wouldn't throw her out. Technically, she really couldn't, seeing as her mother would most definitely agree to letting Dilly stay.

"Dilly made your kitchen glittery." Julian said, grinning at Nine.