RP Log: Revelation

[sherrybomb]

Who: Sherry, William, eventually Annette
When: Present day, mid-morning
Where: Raccoon City, Birkin Residence
What: An unexpected turn of events changes the fate of the Birkin family. Also, William struggles to understand Hannah Montana, and is guilted into going to the beach.



William Birkin was absolutely furious.

Those idiots. Idiots! Making him take two weeks vacation while they move the entire company to Gotham!

a) Moving the entire company - the labs, the experiments, everything! - would be a major undertaking, one that could have disastorous outcomes if not handled with absolute care

b) What was he going to do for two weeks without the lab?

The man slammed the door as he entered the house, angrily pulling at the knot of his tie.

Now that summer was here, Sherry was often left with a list of educational activities that she was expected to complete throughout the day. Needless to say, considering the early morning hour, the 6th grade BrainQuest cards were sitting untouched on the kitchen counter and she was plopped in front of the TV, channel surfing between Nickelodeon and Disney, downing a big bowl of corn flakes (with added flavor from the sugar canister on the shelf above the fridge).

She never would have expected anyone to be home at this hour.

Sherry leapt up from the couch, nearly dumping the entire bowl of cereal from her lap onto the hardwood floor. She caught it at the last second, placed it as carefully as she could on the side table, and ran full speed to the foyer, sliding in her socks while rounding a corner.

It was her father.

Sherry couldn't believe her eyes. After a second of shock, she let out a squeal and charged, completely oblivious to how angry he seemed to be. "DADDY YOU'RE HOME!!" she shrieked, her voice reaching an octave and pitch only prepubescent girls could achieve, and she plowed right into him, wrapping her arms around him into a vise-like grip for a hug. She was short for her age, and her head didn't reach higher than his chest.

Birkin flinched, wondering how a human child could make a sound more horrifying than a Hunter.

"Oh Jesus, Sherry," the man sighed with a roll of his eyes as the blonde attached herself to him. He patted her on the shoulder almost dismissively - there were only so many things he could handle at a time.

"What are you doing home?" Sherry asked, face still buried in her father's shirt.

"We're moving," Birkin said then, forgoing the needless sit down explanation.

That got her to let go.

Sherry stared up at him, confused and horrified. "WHAT? Why?!"

"Sherry," Birkin reprimanded, staring down at her, "Could you watch your volume? Please, I've already got a headache." He started for the kitchen now that he was free to move. "Because a very rich man wants a new hobby and he bought Daddy's company to do that. People like that are self-centered, Sherry, and are only interested in the money and politics, remember that. Don't ever trust them."

"Oh," Sherry said, feeling immediately guilty for adding to his headache.. As he moved toward the kitchen, she jumped ahead of him, seizing his hand and pulling him the rest of the way into the room, all the way over to the table, where she tried her best to push him into a chair. "Sit down, I'll get you the aspirin!"

She liked being helpful. She grabbed another kitchen chair and dragged it over to the microwave, above which her mother kept all the antiseptics and over the counter pills. Scrambling onto the chair, she opened the cabinet and pulled out the aspirin bottle, while still trying to follow her father's explanation, although in truth it confused her a little. "Money and politics," she repeated, to show she had been listening.

She leapt down to the floor, fetched a glass from a more reachable cabinet, and filled it with tap water. She returned to the table and put down the water glass and the aspirin bottle in front of Birkin, then drug the chair back next to it and plopped down in it herself, arms crossed on the table with her chin on top of them. She looked up at her father with blue eyes similar to his own. "Sooooo, where are we moving?"

With the initial shock worn off, Sherry realized that although Raccoon City, Colorado was the only place she knew to be home, that didn't necessarily mean she would be miserable if they left. This realization was helped by the fact that she had no friends she'd be leaving behind -- as long as she was with her mother and father, she would be just as happy anywhere as she was here.

William Birkin -- though he imagined most other parents would say he gave Sherry a hard time -- was immensely impressed by his daughter about 70% of the time. The aspirin and water was a clear example. His daughter was attuned to others and knew what to do to fix the problem, how many other children could assess the situation so correctly and then follow through with a solution?

He thanked Sherry and then swallowed down the aspirin. His blue eyes focused on her big ones and he said, "Gotham. It's a very dirty city with very dirty people. You'll be going to the best private school and Umbrella is paying for it, you better believe it."

Sherry, who had been studying US geography in school before it let out for the summer, said, "That's in Maryland, huh? It's near the ocean!" She had never seen an ocean and the excitement of being by one overrode her father's concern about how dirty Gotham was. "When are we moving? Can we go to the beach?"

"Sherry," Birkin said again with reprimand in his voice, "Weren't you listening to me? It's a dirty place, I can't imagine what the beaches must be like."

"Oh," Sherry said, excitement deflating a little. "But -- maybe there's a beach outside the city that's nice! The whole state can't be dirty, can it?"

"I can't even start to tell you the murder rates, the STD rates, the drugs! in Gotham and Maryland!" Birkin shook his head at his daughter but hearing the excitement in her voice diminish, he felt a bit bad. "Fine, we can go to the ocean," he gave in. Fucking hell, the beach!

Sherry's face broke into a giant grin, showing off teeth in need of orthodontia. "Really?! Thank you, Daddy!" she squealed, launching herself on him to hug him again.

Birkin groaned as his daughter attached herself to him again.

"Okay, okay," he said, patting her gently on the back, "You're welcome. You better be good or we won't go."

"I'll be good!" Sherry insisted. "Really, I will. I'll help you pack and everything." Without letting go, she lifted her head to look at Birkin's face. "When are we going?" It was her second time asking but she knew with all the important things her father had on his mind, sometimes not everything she said filtered through.

Birkin sighed. Two weeks to pack up their house and his lab, he obviously needed oversee both, you could never trust hired help. "I guess as soon as we can," he said giving her small blonde head a rub, "Idiots," he grumbled again.

"Is that why you're home? So we can start packing?" Sherry asked, hoping he wouldn't just have to leave again. "Is Mommy coming home too?"

"Yes, she'll be home soon," Birkin answered. He had stormed off in a verbally loud huff as soon as the news was delivered in the meeting and he was sure his wife was cleaning up the mess he left behind like she always did. The man, he admitted, was not good with people.

He looked around the kitchen and thought about everything that needed to be packed. Why did they have so much stuff? What did they need the crap for anyway? "Are you partial to any of your furniture, Sherry?" he asked his daughter.

Sherry's eyes widened. "My bed!" she cried. It had a princess canopy and everything. "And some of my toys..." She had way more "educational" toys than normal ones, but she could part with the really boring ones. But there was no way she was giving up Barbie and Ken, now that she finally had them.

As soon as Sherry mentioned her toys, the man had the disconcerting hunch that she was thinking about those monstorous Barbie and Ken things.

"Surely we can buy you new toys when we get to Gotham," he tried to urge in hopes that, once there, he could refuse to replace them.

Sherry shook her head vehemently. "I'm keeping Barbie and Ken!" It was bad enough she wasn't allowed Bratz dolls for their encouragement of low class minority culture. "And my My Little Ponies. And the Hannah Montana DVDs." All the ones she had fought the hardest for.

Birkin rolled his eyes and let out a defeated sigh. "Your mother, I swear," he shook his head, then confused, looked at his daughter and wrapped his arm around her waist to pull her closer, "What in the world is Hannah Montana?"

Sherry giggled and squirmed into his lap, a habit from her single digits she hadn't yet outgrown. "Oh! It's this show on Disney, about a girl who has two identities, one is Miley, who's totally normal, and then the other, who is Hannah Montana, which is this pop superstar. She goes on tour and does photoshoots and has VIP parties and no one knows she's really Miley. It's so she can have a normal life and a famous life. And her dad's really funny." As an afterthought, she added, "But not as cool as you."

Birkin had to stop listening. He closed his eyes.

The alternative was his head exploding.

"Thank you," he said first to her added comment and then took a deep breath, "Why..." There was a full sentence somewhere but the man was too appalled to think right then, "Why?"

"Why what?" Sherry asked cheerfully, tilting her head back so she could see his face, although it was upside down.

"Why is that appealing at all?" he said, opening his eyes and blinking back at his daughter.

"Because it's funny!" Sherry replied. "And cool. I wish I could be like that! She has a giant revolving closet. And fans! She signs autographs. People love Hannah, Daddy."

"Well I love you," Birkin nearly shouted, "That's more important than a million people loving a silly little girl who sings," he said the last word as if it could very well be the most revolting thing in the world.

Sherry let out an exaggerated sigh, although it was easy to see how pleased she was to hear him say I love you. "It's just a show, Daddy," she said. "But I love you, too."

"You're right it's just a show!"

It was her mother's fault, absolutely, just letting the child have anything she wanted!

Birkin then pulled Sherry abruptly into a hug, protectively wrapping his arms around his daughter.

Just about that time, the faulty mother arrived home. Annette pushed the door open, carrying some files and shut it behind her with her foot. Setting the files down on the nearby desk, she brushed the hair from her face and looked at the scene before her.

"Oh, just look at you two," she sighed, smiling.

Sherry hugged her father back tightly. If moving meant a lot more days like today, she decided she liked the turn of events.

The sight of her mother entering the kitchen just made everything better. She grinned brightly, although she didn't make a move to escape Birkin's lap. She had always been much more clingy with her father, even as a toddler. "Hi Mommy!" she said brightly. "Did Daddy tell you we're moving?"

Annette followed Sherry's question with a small, slightly humorless laugh and smile, "From the way your father flew out of that meeting, I'm surprised he's even considering it."

She stepped further into the kitchen and began preparing for an early lunch.

Birkin nearly jumped when he heard his wife's voice break through his momentary lapse of sentimentality. He fidgeted in his seat, his eyes on Annette, and grumbled, "Not like I have much of a choice, do I?"

Annette pulled out ingredients from the refrigerator for sandwiches and a salad and placed them on the counter before continuing, "No, I suppose not. Sherry, you seem to be enthralled by the idea. Are you convincing your father it's going to be all right? That the world isn't ending?"

Sherry nodded. "I told him Maryland has beaches and they can't all be dirty, and he said we can go to one!"

"Just one," Birkin perked up in the seat and eyed Annette firmly, "One. That's it. And we're packing lots of sunblock and hand sanitizer."

It surprised Annette that her husband had agreed to such a thing, but his immediate reaction put it into perspective.

"William, there are plenty of nice areas around Gotham. The northern part is one of the richest areas on the east coast," she said, placing the sandwiches on a plate as she made them.

"Rich?" The man let out a small laugh, "Just because they're rich doesn't mean they're idiots and dirty idiots at that." He adjusted the girl on his lap, pulling her to his chest, "A horrible environment for Sherry."

Sherry roped her arms around her father's neck. "I'll be fine," she said pleasantly. "I'm big now, remember?"

Annette finished making the sandwiches and brought the plate over to where they were seated. She stood behind William and leaned down, wrapping her arms around them both.

"Whatever it is, we'll get through it. Sherry will be going to private school, that's a plus. Besides," she said, kissing the back of William's head, "a change of scenery might be good for all of us, even if you don't think it's a particularly beautiful one."

Birkin was going to grumble something about not wanting a change of scenery no matter how much good it might do them but he thought better than to keep up arguing that would do no one any good.

They were moving to Gotham and that was it, at least if he wanted to continue his research. And even if for some ridiculous reason he didn't want to continue work on the G Virus he had nearly sold his soul to Umbrella and the contract held even if some rich pansy bought the company out.

The man rested his hand on his wife's arm and squeezed lightly, "Okay, okay, I'll try to think positively about this horrendous decision." Then as an afterthought, "The best private school. Not like the one she was in here with all those girls." Girls who were brainwashing his daughter to like Hannah Montana.

"Excellent," Annette sat down in another chair and grabbed a sandwich. She understood how upset William was, but she also knew he'd never leave his research behind, no matter the situation. It had been their life's work, after all.

"Will it be much different than my school now?" Sherry asked, wriggling about so she could grab one of her mother's sandwiches. She didn't bother to correct her father -- the girls at her current school barely spoke to her, except to call her things like sissy and baby. They had little influence on her at all. They were all about things like training bras and lip gloss, which honestly didn't interest Sherry much, although she had a feeling if it did, it would upset Birkin more than Hannah Montana and her two Barbie dolls.

"It will be better than your school now," Birkin replied to his daughter matter-of-factly and thanked his wife for the sandwich before picking a slice up and taking a bite. He didn't think he would be able to eat at time like this but he never did get his bagel from intern... Steve? Sean? No, no, it was Rick... intern Rick before the meeting from hell. You needed sustenance to deal with all the idiocy going around.

"Thank your mother for the delicious sandwiches, Sherry," he corrected his daughter.

"Thank you for the sandwiches, Mommy," Sherry replied dutifully through a full mouth. "How will it be better?"

"I don't know, it will just be better, I - " he looked across the table at Annette, "We will make sure of it. You know what?" He bounced Sherry on his lap a little and then looked back at Annette, "What about a personal teacher?" So they could have complete control of what was influencing their daughter, "Homeschool her?"

That had definitely come as a surprise, "Oh...William. I...I don't know about that. She needs interaction with other children."

Sherry chewed her lip, not wanting to go against her father's brilliant idea -- she knew it had to be brilliant based on the tone of his voice -- she had been somewhat excited by the idea of starting fresh and maybe actually making some friends at her new school.

"Would you be teaching me?" she asked, looking between her parents hopefully.

Birkin, with all his amazing tact, looked at his daughter like she was crazy.

"Of course not, Sherry, we have work."

Sherry's face fell. "Oh..."

Annette sighed at the look on Sherry's face, "Can we at least talk to the private school before making any kind of decision? I just think a school environment is better. You want to make new friends, right, Sherry?"

Sherry nodded eagerly.

Birkin rolled his eyes. His wife. His daughter. Why was it the females in his life always got their way?

Because he let them, that's why.

"Fine," he sighed, "You can try school first." He looked at Annette thoughtfully, seeking her support like he always did when he was finding the ground beneath his feet shaky.

Annette gave her husband a confident smile, before turning her attention to her daughter, "We'll have to go shopping for you, Sherry. I'll try to find some time to take you."

"Okay!" Sherry said, excited by the prospect of more time spent with her mother. "For what? New furniture?"

Annette looked questioningly at Sherry, and then William. How much discussion had taken place while she was gone, "New...furniture? What's wrong with our old furniture?"

Birkin paused with his sandwhich in his mouth and blinked at his wife. He slowly pulled it out and cleared his throat, "I was thinking we could just take the essentials, our weddings photos, the computers, apparently Ken and Barbie... and just buy new stuff in Gotham. Make it easy."

"That seems a little excessive, William," Annette muttered, looking around at their kitchen that she had never quite finished decorating the way she wanted. In fact, nothing in the house had been finished. She just never had the time. "If it's what you want, though. If it makes it easier on you."

"I wanna keep my bed too," Sherry reminded her father, "and the Hannah Montana DVDs and the My Little Ponies."

The man shrugged.

"Are you attached to any of this stuff?" he asked his wife, "I got you and I got Sherry, that's all I need." And his research, of course, but that didn't need to be said outloud.

"Not at all, you're right. They're just material things," Annette said, breathlessly. Of course, he was right. None of this mattered in the long run. She could start all over again with a new place and new furniture to match the place. Maybe she could finally completely decorate the way she wanted in the small amount of time they had to move.

Birkin nodded. Of course he was right. And it would make it easier for him to oversee things with the moving of the lab.

"Maybe I should call Albert and tell him the news..." That was not something he was looking forward to doing, his friend could be... unpredictable.

"Is Mr. Wesker moving too?" Sherry asked.

"Mr. Wesker is moving too," Birkin nodded and then added, "At least I hope he is." Despite Albert's psychotic behavior - and it was that - Birkin didn't feel like he could face Umbrella without him. They had been together since the very beginning.

Annette sighed, heavily. It was always a craps shoot with Wesker, but she knew how close the two of them were. "Well, that will be nice, at least having someone we know around."

"Yeah!" Sherry agreed, but although she was always nice to Mr. Wesker when she saw him, she was a little bit afraid of him. It was nothing she wanted her parents to know, however, especially her father. "That way we can keep having dinners with him!"

Birkin raised an eyebrow at his wife, taking note of her heavy sigh, and ignored the girl in his lap.

"You don't want Albert to join the rest of the company?" he asked curiously.

Annette forced as much of a sincere smile as she could muster, "Oh, of course I would like to have him near! I think it's wonderful that you'll have him around."

She picked up her plate and walked over to the sink, giving it a rinse before placing it in the dishwasher. It wasn't that she hated Wesker, there was just something about him that seemed secretive. Annette never liked someone she couldn't quite figure out.

Birkin was dubious of his wife's answer but it didn't exactly bother him. If the woman had a real problem with Albert, he could count on her to speak her mind. God knew that woman had no trouble speaking her mind...

"Okay, well then," he said, taking one last bite of his sandwich (leaving more than half still uneaten) and plopped Sherry down on the ground, "I'll be in my office." He looked directly at his daughter, "I don't want to interrupted, got it?"

Sherry pouted up at him, still chewing on her sandwich. "Not even to play BrainQuest later?" she asked, hoping if she baited him with an educational game, the chances of his agreeing would go up.

Birkin suppressed a sigh and muttered, "Later," before patting Sherry on the head and traveling over to his wife to give her a kiss.

Annette turned around when her husband approached, smiling and meeting his kiss, "I'm sure Sherry and I can figure out something to do. We have a lot to get ready for. Right, Sherry?"

"Yeah!" Sherry agreed, scrambling over to give both her parents a hug. "I can't wait to move!" Especially if it meant having her parents around more, even if temporarily.

"Okay, okay," Birkin murmured, patting the young girl once again on the head as if rewarding a good but tiresome dog, and quickly - before anything else was said - left the kitchen for his office.

Sherry looked up at her mother. "Should we start packing?"

"Sure! We'll figure out what we need to take with us, what isn't of use to anyone, and what we could give away to charity. Does that sound like a plan?" Annette smiled, heading back to the table and cleaning up the leftover sandwiches.

"Uh huh!" Sherry agreed, and rushed over to help her mother clean up the kitchen.