FANFIC: Missing Sister, the next generation (15 years after) (Chapter 5)

[creativeannie]

TITLE: Missing Sister, the next generation (15 years after)
CHAPTER: 5/?
PAIRINGS/CHARACTERS: Most of main cast feature in this. As for pairings, some you might be able to guess, others will surprise you. A lot has happened in 15 years.
RATING/WARNINGS: I'll go with PG-13, just in case.
SUMMARY/NOTES: A next generation fic. Three years ago Brady was kidnapped by the Chosen, and the Mallrats still don't know where she or the Chosen are. Now things are set in motion, bringing the Mallrats and the Chosen towards their final battle, while the next generation of Mallrats are forced to come to terms with their parents' past.

As a way to make it easier to keep track of timelines in terms of flashbacks, I'll be using Year (insert number) AV in the headings to let you know when it takes place. AV = After Virus, so s1 is year 0. S1-s5 lasted about 3 years in the timeline of this story.

CHARACTER PROFILES
(my advice is to try and read the story before looking at the profiles, they are there mainly to help avoid confusion with the amount of new characters.)



CHAPTER 5: A long time coming

Tore it up and walked away, what you wanna go do that for?
Threw your Lego in the lake, what you wanna go do that for?
And you’re a long time coming, a long time coming home.
Do you see me reeling off the lines I've seen your, I've seen your eyes.
How can you grow old, you were my triumph.
-Long time coming (Delays)

Outside they had only walked around the corner when Jayda fell to her knees and threw up.
“Try not to get anything on my jacket.” Lex asked, grimacing at the noises coming from the girl.
As she stood back up, Jayda felt a little dizzy and leaned on May to keep from falling.
“You take her home, and I’ll wait here for the others and help break up the party.”
It had been a long time since the sheriff himself took any part in the dirty work of small things like this. May knew he only wanted to avoid facing Trudy again. May loved the thrill of jobs like this, the kick she got out of bossing people around and scaring drunken kids that she would tell their parents what they had been up to. It was much more tempting to stay behind and let Lex take the girl home, but it hadn’t been a question. Despite him being her boss it wasn’t often May let him order her around, at least when the two of them were alone, but she had a feeling he wasn’t in the mood to argue.

The walk home took longer than normal, with Jayda struggling to walk straight. Inside the mall they were met by Trudy. She had been waiting at the staircase, jumping up the moment she saw her daughter. Before Trudy could reach them however, Jayda threw up again. Instinctively Trudy hurried to hold her hair back as she patted her forehead carefully.
“Sweetie, are you sick?” Trudy’s voice was compassionate now, though lined with worry.
“She’s drunk, Trudy.” May sighed.
Trudy looked horrified at that suggestion at first, but could soon smell the alcohol. She pulled Jayda gently to her feet. Jayda looked up, looking as guilty as a person could possibly look.
“Feeling better?” Trudy’s voice was no longer compassionate or worried; the anger was seeping through, though she kept it together. Jayda nodded carefully.
“Go to bed. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”
Even in this state, Jayda knew better than to reply when hearing her mother’s tone of voice. Slowly and carefully she started climbing the stairs, Trudy following a couple steps behind in case she would fall.

The room was dark when Jayda stumbled inside. She aimed for her bed and threw herself on it. It came as a surprise that only part of her body hit the bed, and soon all of her crashed to the floor between them. She just lay there, hearing movement above her and soon Riley peered over the edge. Suddenly Jayda burst out laughing.
“I missed the bed!” She said loudly, trying to pull herself up with one hand but laughing too hard to manage it. “Did you move it?”
“Shh!” Riley hissed. “Allie is asleep!”
“I can’t get up!” Jayda whispered back, before getting another giggling fit.
“You’re drunk.” Riley sighed, sitting up. She moved out of her bed, and helped Jayda off the floor and onto her bed.
“I want to go watch the sunrise!” Jayda objected as Riley lifted her feet into the bed.
“That’s hours away, Jayda. I’ll wake you up for it.”
Jayda nodded and let Riley push her head down on the pillow and pull the covers around her.
“Go to sleep.”
“O-kay.” Jayda whispered pointedly. Riley got back into her own bed.
“Love you.” Jayda whispered.
“Yeah, whatever.” Riley mumbled in reply.

Allie was far from asleep, and she heard the whole thing. Within minutes Riley’s heavy breathing mixed with Jayda’s snores. Allie got out of bed, and snuck out of the room. She knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep, and she wanted to know what was going on in the rest of the mall. She heard voices coming from the café, and quietly walked closer. Amber had returned with Jay, and now the adults, minus Ebony who was barely a Mallrat anymore, had gathered in the café.
“I think we should make a real statement, show that we will not accept behaviour like this.” Jay looked at Trudy.
“What do you suggest?” She asked with a sigh, the anger having gone out of her and been replaced with disappointment.
Jay hesitated, looking from Trudy to his wife, before finally making his suggestion.
“Send her to the Ecos for a couple weeks, with the hunters. Kind of like military camps back in pre-virus days.”
“What?” Trudy stared at him.
“I think we should listen to what she has to say before doing anything that drastic,” Jack objected, but Jay kept his focus on Trudy.
“It sends a real statement to her, and to the city. You know there will be talk about this, the best we can do is send a clear message that we do not tolerate this. It’s for her own good; you know there are people always out to have something against Mallrat-kids. And frankly, with that horrible article in Mode Mag last month about Mallrat kids getting away with murder, we really can’t be seen giving her a free pass to do whatever she wants.”
“She’s not a political pawn, Jay!” Jack objected.
“Look, Jack, I appreciate your input, but I am her father, not you,” Jay snapped at him.
Silence fell over the café. Jack stared at Jay with his mouth open.
“Jay!” Amber practically hissed at him, but Jack found his voice again before she could say anything more.
“Excuse me?”
“I just mean that…”
Jack interrupted him. “You just mean that you’ll let me deal with the everyday stuff, but as soon as there’s something bigger, something that could affect your political status, it’s all your decision. You’re no better than Slade!”
“That is not an issue we need to drag up, Jack.” Amber gave him a warning look.
“Never was, was it?”
No one answered, and Jack opened his mouth to keep talking.
“Jack, don’t…” Trudy tried stopping the stream of words she knew was coming. Jack ignored it.
“I-I’m the one who’s there every day. I have always been the one to care for her when she’s sick, who fixed her toys. I made things better when she was sad. I’m the one who helps out with homework, who she comes to when she needs something. When was the last time you even spent any time with her outside of running into each other in the mall, huh Jay?”
“I have a busy job…”
“Oh, and I don’t?” Jack was so angry that his face had turned almost as bright red as his hair used to be in his younger days. “I’m being pulled in every direction by every department in the city to fix every little problem because no one else even knows how to find the on-switch on a computer, but I still find the time to care for your kids!”
He took a very short break to breathe, before he continued. “The last five birthdays the presents she got from her dad were actually from her mother because her dad forgot all about it. Do you even know why she gets up to watch the sunrise every day?”
Jay glanced around the room uncertainly, before shaking his head.
“Because Brady did it, because she misses her sister. You don’t even know her, Jay. So don’t tell me you are her father. Even Jason comes to me for help if he needs it, because he knows you’re never around!”
“You’re going too far, Jack!”
Both men were standing now, staring each other down. Suddenly Jack turned around and almost ran out of the café. Allie only just managed to hide before he saw her.

Jay turned to Trudy now that Jack was gone.
“I won’t accept being talked to like that!” He roared.
A snort from May turned his attention away from Trudy.
“What?” He snapped at her.
“I can’t help thinking you’re so angry because you know he’s right.” She replied.
“Oh, you’re one to talk.”
“Hey, I never claimed to be any better.” She held up her hands. Jay turned away from her again.
“We’re not sending her anywhere, Jay. She’s our daughter, and if you think I will send her away just for making a mistake, you’re deluded. I will talk to her tomorrow, and decide what to do about this. That’s final. You can go back to work in the morning and worry about your politics, and let me worry about this.” Trudy’s words were calm but firm, and the anger was seeping through every word. Jay didn’t dare say another word to her as she walked off to find her husband.

Allie kept still for a while, in case someone else would be coming out of the café, watching as her mother disappeared inside the workshop. Soon everyone but Jay and Amber had left the café. She could hear Amber’s low hissing at Jay inside, but Allie was more interested in what was going on between her parents down in the workshop. She crept silently down the staircase and walked slowly over to the doorway. She could see her parents inside.
Jack was pacing back and forth, while Trudy quietly leant back against the wall and let him rant.

“He thinks that just because she has his genes it gives him more rights, even though he’s never around. He’s no better than Slade. But hey, let’s not talk about him! We couldn’t when he was alive, and now we can’t disrespect the dead, can we?”
“Jack…” Trudy finally spoke. “You know Jay didn’t mean it like that.”
“He did!” Jack objected. “He meant it. Just like Slade he thinks he has some right just because she has his genes, that he can just take control when his kid becomes a problem for him and be absent every other day. I’ll never forgive Slade for trying to send Riley away, and now Jay tries the same. They’re my girls, and I will not let anyone take them from me! I’ve already lost Brady…”
Allie was rooted to the spot. When had Slade tried to send Riley away? She heard her mother’s voice, soft and comforting, but she couldn’t make out the words any longer. Whatever she was saying seemed to calm him down though, as she heard no more than mumbling from her dad and then just quiet. Allie dared herself to look inside, and saw her mother with her arms around her father’s neck, their foreheads leaning against each other. Silently Allie walked away and snuck back to her room, climbing quietly into her bed.

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Monique awoke very early that morning, the sun had only barely risen in the sky. Her eyes felt puffy and sore, and her stomach ached with hunger. She realised she hadn’t eaten since the morning the day before. She took of her father’s jacket and tucked it under the mattress again, before heading for the kitchen. She opened every cupboard, but found nothing edible. Everything was either half rotten or rock hard in the case of the bread. As she fought the urge to throw the bread through the closed window, she noticed her mother’s door was open. She knew she had closed it the night before, so she hurried over to look inside.

Ebony was lying on her stomach in her bed, completely naked. Next to her was some guy, him also completely naked. The sheets were bundled up on the floor next to the bed. Monique again had to fight an urge, this time the urge to cry and shout. That was all it took for her to decide to head to the mall for breakfast. She quickly grabbed her jacket from her room and left without another glance back.

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Sundays were never the most exciting of days in the Mall. It was often spent doing homework that should have been done the week before, with Salene guilt-tripping them into it. This Sunday however, things were even more quiet than usual. Even Chris was quiet for once, sneaking back into the mall early in the morning to get some sleep, only to find Monique on his bed.

Jayda awoke with a massive hangover, not helped by a moody younger sister who only talked in grunts, and the silent treatment from her best friend. When Trudy entered the room, they both tried to hurry off, but Trudy asked them to stay.
“First of all, I want to know why you two lied to Jason and us.” She looked from Riley to Allie. The two girls exchanged glances before Riley took command.
“I lied to Jason because I wanted to get him out of there quickly. I just thought it was better that way. I didn’t think Jayda would be in any danger. She’s a big girl, it’s not my job to take care of her.”
Riley didn’t even glance in Jayda’s direction, though Jayda seemed to shrink a little with every word.
“And why couldn’t you tell me where she was when you were back at the mall?”
“We didn’t want her to get in trouble.” Allie replied quickly.
Trudy looked from Riley to Allie, contemplating their replies for a moment, before sighing in defeat.
“Fine, but if it ever happens again I won’t go easy on either of you. It’s dangerous out there, we have to stick together, always. I have to be able to trust you.” The tears in her eyes made the two girls look away quickly, nodding silently with their heads down.
“Okay. You can go now.” She sent them both her strictest glare before nodding towards the door. Riley and Allie scattered as quickly as they could move their legs.

“And you? Do you have anything to say for yourself?”
Jayda sighed. “I didn’t know the party was illegal, I thought it was arranged by the adult Demon Dogs, just like Chris and Bray said…”
“We all did, but you should have left as soon as you realised. You let your younger brother and sister and your best friend walk home alone! You left yourself in the hands of a half-criminal teenage boy! I expect better from you than that, Jayda. After everything that’s happened, after Brady, I expect my kids to take more care!”
“I know, I’m sorry!” Jayda was in tears now. “I just wanted to be longer with Chris, I didn’t think...”
“You will not be involved with him, Jayda. He uses girls for his own entertainment and cares only for himself.”
“That’s not true!” Jayda stood up.
“I don’t want to hear it!” Trudy held up her hands. “You are grounded. Nothing but school, your room and the café for meals, for a week, and then we’ll see if it’s enough.”
Without another word, Trudy turned around and marched out of the room.

Within minutes of her mother leaving, Jayda broke the rules by sneaking downstairs to Chris’ room. She was too distraught to notice the sounds coming from his room before she walked straight inside, only to find two naked bodies moving on the bed. A strangled sound escaped her throat, and the two stopped and looked up.
“Excuse me, is a little privacy too much to ask?” Monique snapped.
Jayda only stared at Chris.
“What?” He asked annoyed. “You’re shocked and surprised? It’s not as if I didn’t warn you.”
Monique let out a laugh. “Have you been a bad boy again, Chris?”
Jayda didn’t hear his reply; she turned around and ran back to her room in tears. Riley and Trudy both seemed to lose their anger the moment they saw her crying. Riley did her best to comfort her friend. By the time Trudy marched downstairs to have a word with Chris, he had vanished again.

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Audrie had stripped down to her sports bra and pulled her trousers up above her knees. She was lying on the riverbank with her feet dangling into the water, enjoying the sun on her face and sound of birdsong above her in the trees. Charlie sat next to her, throwing pinecones into the water and then trying to catch them with a fish-catcher he had made of netting, soft wood that had been bent into a circle to attach the netting to, and string to throw it out and draw it in with. River came up from the stream, dripping water on her as he passed her. She glanced up carefully, taking in the sight of him in his underwear and soaking wet. His eyes caught hers and she quickly closed them again. It used to be so simple this. When they were kids they had gone swimming in their underwear or even butt naked with no awkwardness coming from it. Now she and River could barely even look at each other unless they were fully dressed without being embarrassed. Charlie didn’t make it any better either, with his stupid grin and dumb comments.

Charlie wasn’t in that mood today though. Audrie and River had deliberately gotten him quickly out of the mall as soon as things started unfolding with the Jayda-drama. Otherwise they would have been stuck at the mall all day with Charlie comforting the girl. As if she deserved it. Audrie was tired of that whole family; Trudy blaming her dad for everything that went wrong, Jayda with her drama, Riley snapping at people whenever in a sour mood, Allie going around sulking all the time for no apparent reason. Jack was alright, even if he sometimes talked about things she had no understanding of, and he too often failed to understand the Ecos’ worries about more generators taken in use. No, things were much better out here. She was going to live here someday, as soon as she was old enough to leave the mall. She saw no future for herself in the city, and knew Charlie felt the same way. She looked up and met River’s eyes again, this time giving him a smile rather than looking away. She could definitely see her future here.

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Bray Junior was restless and a little worried as he paced around his room. Finally he grabbed his jacket and marched out of the mall, heading for a part of the city most Mallrats wouldn’t be seen in, though still a step up from the slum side of the docks. It wasn’t long until he found Chris in one of the usual spots, hanging out with a few Demon Dog kids, passing a bottle around to each other. When Chris saw him he said something to the others, and their laughter rang out. Bray knew they were laughing at him. Most of Chris’ friends saw him as a joke, but they respected Chris enough to pretend he was one of them. Chris took a swig of the bottle before handing it over to one of the others, and then he started walking towards Bray.

“Come to walk me home?” He asked with a smirk as he reached him.
They walked until they were far enough away from the others to not be heard.
“That was a really stupid stunt you pulled, Chris.” Bray sighed. “I mean, Jayda?”
“Not jealous, are you?” Chris winked at him.
“Don’t be an idiot. It’s just that this is going to cause trouble for both of us.”
“Aw, is Junior worried mommy won’t let him hang out with me?” Chris put up a pout, his dark eyes unable to hide his glee at teasing Bray. “That she’ll stop thinking you could be a good influence on me? Maybe she’ll start fearing that I could corrupt her precious little boy.”
Chris grabbed Bray by the arm, and dragged him into the abandoned alley.

“Stop it.” Bray looked annoyed. Chris smirked again, and suddenly pushed Bray up against the wall, holding him back with one hand placed on his stomach and the other on his shoulder.
“She has no idea who you really are…” his voice was gentler now, not spiteful like it had been before. Chris leaned in so close that they’re noses almost bumped together.
“If she knew the things I’ve already done to you…” He leaned in and kissed him, not gentle, but not roughly either. “Or the things you do to me…”
Bray moaned, as Chris’ hand moved further down. He was angry at himself for once again being distracted from trying to have a conversation with Chris, but that thought was soon lost.

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Jay knocked on the doorframe to the workshop. Jack looked up, and sighed loudly when he saw who it was.
“What?” He asked sharply as he turned back to his work.
“About last night…” Jay took his reply, short as it was, as an invitation to come inside. “We were angry and upset and said things we didn’t mean. We can’t let this get between us all now, we’ve done so well for all these years with a… complicated family situation, and…”
Jack interrupted him.
“Save your speech, Jay. Forgive and forget, right?” Jack finally turned around to face the other man.
Jay frowned. “Right. So we’re good?”
Jack nodded.
“Okay then…” Jay hesitated.
“I have a lot of work to do, so…” Jack indicated towards the door.
“Oh, right. So do I. Well, see you around then, Jack.”
Jay gave him an uncertain smile, before he finally walked out. Jack leant back in his chair, angrily kicking out at a box of things at the floor next to him. He watched as it smashed against the wall and its content spread on the floor around it.
“Oh, very clever, Jack,” he muttered to himself as he got up to clear up the mess.

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Allie was tired of the drama, and didn’t feel like facing her father in the workshop after listening in on her parents’ conversation the night before. Instead she left the mall, walking aimlessly around the city the way she liked to when she wanted to escape. Sundays were always so quiet, so few people around. She loved walking around when it was like that, it was the only way to sort through her thoughts without interruption from the countless other Mallrats. Her head was filled with all she had heard her father ranting about, and her anger at Jayda for being her usual naïve self.

She quickly hurried behind a wall when she noticed a group of kids from school. She hated people her own age, at least the ones outside her closest friends and family. They would usually tease her, make fun of her clothes or her hair, or lack of shape. Girls were the worst, and these girls were the kind that dressed like Monique. Annoyed she walked down another route, going back on auto-pilot while her thoughts raced through her head.

Allie suddenly looked up, realising she was in a part of town she didn’t recognise. With shock she realised she was at the north side of the docks. The slum. The one place in the city she had always been told to never ever go. Not far in front of her was a group of men in weird wire hats standing over a metal bin with a fire in it. They all stared at her, a couple of them with disturbing smiles on their faces, one suddenly lifting his hand and pointing at her. Quickly Allie turned to run, their laughter ringing in her ears. She ran into someone, and would have fallen to the ground if the woman hadn’t caught her, dropping some very unappetising food to the ground in the process. Allie glanced back towards the men, they hadn’t moved but were still laughing and shouting something in her direction.

“Don’t worry about them. They’re the Jackals, what’s left of them anyway. Think they’re still on top of the world, even though they never were.”

Allie looked back at the woman. Her clothes were worn and dirty. A poncho covered most of her, and under she had what looked like a long skirt sown together by several pieces of fabric, and she had some black fabric tied around her hands. Most of her dirty brown hair had loosened from her ponytail and was hanging around her face in chunks. Allie glanced down at the scraps of food lying around their feet, and quickly pulled an apple out of her bag and held it out to the woman.
“Sorry for making you drop the food.”
The woman smiled at first, though as soon as her eyes fell on the Amulet mark on Allie’s outstretched hand, it faded. She let go of Allie, taking a step back.
“I don’t want your charity, Mallrat!” She spat out the last word.
Allie shrugged. It wasn’t the first time she had met people who backed off when finding out she was a Mallrat. Not everyone loved them, though the majority did as was evident at every election.
“Fine.” Allie put the apple back in her bag. “Just go hungry then.”

The woman was examining her face, her eyes narrowed as she looked Allie in the eyes.
“Who is your mother?”
“Trudy.” Allie answered quickly.
The woman repeated the name as if it was venom. “And your father?”
“Jack.”
The woman looked surprised. “What? How did that happen?”
Allie winced. “I don’t really want the details. They got married and had kids, that’s all I need to know.”
“They’re married? He married her?” The anger was seeping through every word. “How could he forgive her?”
The woman’s eyes were focused on something behind Allie, as if she was miles away in her thoughts.
“What? Forgive her what?” Allie asked, slightly wary from the woman’s strange behaviour. The woman finally focused on Allie again.
“So you don’t know? No surprise there. Go home, child. This isn’t your world.”
Without another word she walked away. Allie was tempted to follow her, but those Jackals were still there, watching her. She watched as the woman disappeared around the corner of a warehouse, before she turned around and hurried out of there. Usually going for a walk calmed her mind and gave her a chance to focus her thoughts, now she was more confused than she had ever been.