“Oh just be quiet.” B’Elanna muttered as she sat up on the sofa, she looked around a bit then back at Erik and noticed that he had the Dragon book in his hands. “Can I have my book back please?”
“Yeah sure here you go. What are you reading about Dragon’s for anyway?”
B’Elanna took the book from him then looked down at the cover of it and said, “I don’t know, just found it and started to read it. You know it’s very interesting.”
“Yeah I’m sure. Say how about you stop inventing for two seconds and come down to the kitchen to have breakfast with Mary and me, and hey if you really want we can bring a horse into the place.” Erik said heading for the door.
B’Elanna thought about this for a second then decided that if she said no they might really start to worry about her, “Okay.” She said walking towards Erik, “Breakfast it is.”
“Great, cause I think Mary is fixing up her classic blueberry pancakes with bacon and well everything else there is.” Erik said. To B’Elanna it looked like he was drooling not wanting to wait to eat everything he could.
“You know what? I’d think you two plan this or something.” B’Elanna said and they went down to the kitchen. She didn’t bother to change out of her pajamas; she was quite comfortable as she was.
When they arrived in the kitchen Mary saw B’Elanna with Erik and almost looked ready to cry, “You’ve finally come out of that Lab of yours! And sharing breakfast with us? Oh what an honor!”
“Mary? Um, well it’s nice to see you too.” B’Elanna said as the overly excited happy cook practically danced her way around the kitchen getting plates and glasses. ‘Maybe I shouldn’t stay cooped up in the Lab all of the time.’ B’Elanna thought, ‘Perhaps I should try and spend more time out here so that they don’t get worried, but still work on the Dimensional Teleporter just a bit less. After all they are just like family and right now they’re all I’ve got.’
B’Elanna happily crunched on her last piece on toast and licked the jelly from the corners of her mouth. “Mmm.” She said and continued to slowly devour the toast while Erik beside her ate his remaining pancakes. Mary was peacefully sipping a cup of Coffee saying that she ate most of the food while she was making it and wasn’t hungry.
“Hey B’Elanna? You know that you’re like my little sister I never had right?” Erik asked, B’Elanna just looked at him and nodded, “Thought you did, anyway do you think you’d be up for going riding with me today? Then perhaps afterwards we could just sit and talk a bit before you go rushing off to that Lab of yours again.”
B’Elanna smiled, she didn’t even have to think about it, “Sure! That sounds fun.” She said and went off to get on her riding clothes, “You’d better be ready when I’m back though.” She didn’t really want to go riding, she wanted to work on the Teleporter more, but if it was going to make Erik and Mary think she was fine she would do practically anything. That way she would most likely get more time for work because they wouldn’t be trying to stop her from working. ‘All right. A little ride, a little talk and then back to work. Shouldn’t take that long.’ B’Elanna thought and grabbed her riding helmet as she ran out of her room and towards the stables.
When she got there B’Elanna Vawntika found that Precious and Stormie were both saddled up and ready to go. “Erik?” She called out and found her Butler poking his head out from the grain room.
“Yup! I’m here. Boy am I glad that the stable hands always get their work done or else this place would be a mess.” He said and started to walk towards Stormie. Stormie was a pitch black mixed horse with a wild personality and the only spot of white on him was a little lightning shaped spot right between his nostrils. He was getting to be 10 years old where Precious was only going on 7 and they both loved to race each other.
“Yeah well, I’m just glad that,eh, well for one they get here early and later so I never see them and have to talk to them. Second, I’m also glad that you take care of paying them and such. I just don’t like having to interact with others that much, which I know that you already know that, but I just had to remind you. Though don’t you see? I’m really improving, I reminded you nicely.” B’Elanna said snickering as she walked up to Precious and gave her one of the Carrots sitting on the stand by the door Erik had poked his head out of. The black and white Paint munched on it thankfully while Stormie through a fit because he didn’t get one too. “Oh relax you big silly black beastie you. Here you go, a Carrot for you too. Now behave will you two? I mean really your like my little kids or something. Brother and Sister. Fight! Fight! Fight! Ugh!”
Erik had finally come out of the grain room holding a bag he held it up and said, “Lunch.” Then walked to Stormie, “Yup, they are just like kids. Little, well, big buggers.”
“Lunch huh?” B’Elanna questioned as she got on Precious, when she was fully situated on top of her she turned to look at the Vawntika’s Butler again, “Do you really think that we will be gone that long?”
Erik grinned after he got on Stormie, “Well of course, I mean you don’t have anything to do except work in your Lab or read that Dragon book and I’m sure that you can make room in your soooo busy schedule to spend time with your favorite adopted Brother and Butler. And you know that I don’t have anything to do.” Erik said and smirked as B’Elanna mimicked his putting a long o sound on so. She had never really fooled around with words a lot and whenever he said something new in front of her she always seemed to want to try it out.
“Well, let’s get going shall we?” B’Elanna said and turned Precious towards the exit. “By the way, what did you mean by adopted Brother?”
Erik also turned Stormie towards the exit then turned to his young Mistress and said, “From this day on you are my new little Sister and I am your big Brother and no matter what, no matter what you can always come to talk to me about anything. I’m here for you B’Elanna, just remember that okay?”
B’Elanna looked at Erik a bit shocked at how serious he sounded and when she gazed into his hazel colored eyes she found that he really truly meant every word he uttered, “Okay. I’ll remember that.” She said then added, “Big Brother.”
Erik smiled along with B’Elanna and they both looked ahead, “Let’s go!” Erik said and urged Stormie into a walk. B’Elanna and Precious followed soon they were heading up a trail on the nice spring day. With the temperature just right and the birds twittering their happy songs. Nearby a small stream trickled down the hill and all was calm as two horses with their rider’s headed up the trail.
Erik glanced at his watch to find that it was nearing 12:45 and then he heard his stomach growl, he turned to look at B’Elanna who was grinning apparently she had heard his stomach, “Guess we should stop and get something to eat eh?”
B’Elanna looked at Erik and grinned, “Yeah. I’m a bit hungry too.” She said and got down off of Precious. She tied Precious up and watched as Erik did the same with Stormie. Then the two were quietly munching on sandwiches and sipping on their bottled up drinks.
B’Elanna finished her meal a bit sooner and slowly turned to look at Erik still munching on a piece of his sandwich, “Erik? Do you ever think, well, about my Mother? Did you know her that well?”
Erik stopped everything at that moment so that he had a piece of lettuce hanging out of the corner of his mouth, he quickly ate the lettuce and set everything aside, ‘This is it.’ He thought to himself, ‘She’s talking about her Mother, I better not say something bad.’ Then he looked straight into B’Elanna’s deep brown near black eyes and said, “Yes, I knew your Mother quite well. And yes I think about her from time to time. Why do you ask?”
“What if there was a way to bring her back? What do you say to that?” She said which surprised Erik, but he didn’t know which scared him more the way she was talking or the anger and sadness building in her face. ‘She better not become a nervous wreck. She still has that appointment that she doesn’t know about with Mr. Peter this evening. I hope she can be civil about that.’ Erik thought.
“I don’t know what to say about that B’Elanna, but I do think that we’d better get back to riding. I bet you anything that Stormie can outrun Precious back to the stables.”
B’Elanna shrugged and got up, she went over to Precious took a piece of Carrot out of her pocket and gave it to the black and white Paint mare. B’Elanna then got up on Precious turned to look at Erik and said, “Your on. You. Will. Lose.”
Erik gathered up the food and hopped on Stormie, “Ready! Set! Goooo!” And they were off. Erik took the lead first but neither Precious nor B’Elanna would put up with that, together as one Precious and B’Elanna seemed to have fused together into one being. They both went flying past Erik and Stormie reaching the stables minutes before them.
When Erik got back he was surprised to see Precious already back in her stall and B’Elanna standing there waiting for him. His young Mistress looked up at him and said, “I’m going to work in the Lab, I will implant a doorbell on the Laboratory so that you can get my attention if you abuse the privilege then I will remove it. Thanks for everything it was fun. Goodbye.” With that said and done she walked off leaving Erik wondering what he had said that made her so mad.
B’Elanna wasn’t completely sure why she was being so mean towards Erik, but she just couldn’t help it. She burst into her Lab angrily immediately she grabbed the little modified doorbell she had worked a little on when she was at a dead end with the Teleporter. Lucky for her that dead end hadn’t lasted very long. In next to know time she had the doorbell installed and was back to working on her number one most important goal.
Erik waited with Mary in the large living room for Mr. Peter to arrive. The butler sat in a large lounge chair while Mary sat contentedly on the couch they both had a cup of tea resting on a Coffee table or in Eriks case a plain end table. “Is he here yet?” Mary asked.
“Ha! I bet you anything that he won’t even find this place. Not with how hidden the Vawntika’s made it. You know what? I’m glad Mistress Sandy left her entire fortune to B’Elanna and not that shmoo guy. Of course what’s even more hilarious is that we’re the only ones that know about that little bit.” Erik said laughing quietly to himself.
All Mary could do was lift an eyebrow at Erik and say, “Shmoo?”
Erik stopped laughing and looked at her, “Eh, yeah. It’s a word I kind of created.”
“Okay. You know what? It looks like it’s going to rain out there. See look at the clouds, oh, this is going to be one really large storm.” Mary said looking out the little window near the door. “Oh look I think that’s his car. I’ll go out and greet him, I think it’d be best if you go and try to drag B’Elanna out of that infernal Laboratory of hers.”
“Yup, I’m on it.” Erik said getting up and walking to the Lab. He got there and pressed a little red button with a sign saying doorbell above it. It a little bit a TV camera came out in front of his face scaring the living daylights out of him. On it an image appeared of B’Elanna, but what confused Erik was the fact that he looked like she had been crying.
“B’Elanna?” Erik asked the screen.
“Yes? What is it that you need?” B’Elanna asked with an angry voice.
Erik scratched his head with one finger and said, “Well, I would like it very much if you would come out of there and come downstairs to talk with somebody? Please?”
“Will it take long?”
“Nope.”
“Fine.” She said then the little TV and Camera retracted. In two minutes B’Elanna opened the door to the Lab and came out.
Erik started to walk down the stairs with B’Elanna following close behind, but before she got all the way down the stairs she saw Mary talking to some man. “Who?” B’Elanna whispered to herself so that Erik could not hear her questioning out loud.
They got downstairs and B’Elanna walked up to Mr. Peter coldly, no emotion showing in her now completely black eyes for they seemed to change a bit at the fact somebody was in her home, her dark hair was sprawled out ragged looking. “Who are you?” She asked, “And what do you think you are doing in my house?”
Mr. Peter looked a bit shocked, but quickly smiled and said, “Hello to you too. My name is Mr. Peter and I am here to have a little chat with a Mistress B’Elanna. Do you know her?”
B’Elanna stood in front of the chair Mr. Peter was sitting in and glared at him, “The one that you speak of is the one in front of you. What is it that you want to “chat” about?”
“Well, are you going to sit down?”
“No, now what is it that you wanted to talk about? I’m getting impatient if you would kindly speed things up a bit either that or leave.”
“B’Elanna!” Mary said angrily at her Mistress. “This is your guest haven’t you a bit of respect in your body? He is here to talk with you. Help you.”
B’Elanna looked at Mary who was shocked when she couldn’t see anything in her eyes, no emotion, no life the young Mistress seemed dead without life. “He is more your guest than mine, as far as I am concerned there is a stranger sitting in a chair in my, repeat my house. I shall not respect him for he has not earned that. He may talk to me if he would like that, but one slip up and I shall not have anything to do with the man sitting before me. I am not in the mood for visitors and you of all the people in the world should know that I do not, do not! Like to be with other people, no crowds, no nothing like that. And what do you mean help me? I do not need help.”
“But he’s not a crowd, he’s just a man here to talk.” Erik said.
Mr. Peter turned to them, “Um, could you two leave us alone perhaps to talk?”
“Um, sure.” Erik said.
B’Elanna watched as Erik and Mary left the room then turned back to Mr. Peter, “Well? Talk.”
“Um, well I understand that your Mother died when you where little?”
“How do you know that?”
“And that your Father is never around right?”
“How do you know that?! Answer.”
“Well, I’m here to help you realize that your Mother is dead, and she isn’t going to come back.”
“Yes she is.”
Mr. Peter looked up at B’Elanna, “No dear, she isn’t.”
B’Elanna went over and sat down on the couch, “Yes. She. Is.”
“I’m sorry but she isn’t coming back.”
“Get out.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“I said. Get. Out. As in. Get. Out. Of. My. House. Now.” B’Elanna said rising up to her feet.
“Miss, I’m only here to,..” But he couldn’t continue. B’Elanna had just had enough.
‘What right do Erik and Mary have bringing a complete stranger in my house to talk to me about my life? How dare they!’ B’Elanna thought and when she saw that Mr. Peter was still sitting in the chair she grew even more upset, “GET OUT! NOW!” She yelled and hollered, “I’ll call the police, I’ll have you arrested! You get off my property! Now!”
Mr. Peter stood up and looked over to see Erik and Mary bursting into the room, they both looked first at Mr. Peter then at B’Elanna who was continuing her yelling. Mr. Peter turned to them and said, “I don’t think this will work.” Then he ran to the door claiming that the family residing at the mansion was odd indeed.
When B’Elanna saw that the man was gone she turned to Erik and Mary, “How dare you. How dare you both. Bringing a complete stranger into my home to talk with me about my Mother and Father, about my life! Mine! You two should be utterly disgraced.” To Mary she said, “Shame.” To Erik she said, “Would a big Brother really do something like that? Would they? Or would they try and talk to their little Sister before sending a, a weird guy to talk to her? Tell me! Oh please tell me Erik!” After yelling that to both of them who stood speechless B’Elanna stormed up to her Lab.
Erik looked over at Mary, “Don’t worry, she’ll calm down.” But he was wrong and as the storm outside the mansion grew more and more intense so did B’Elanna’s temper.
B’Elanna paced about her Lab in rage, “Why did they do this? I don’t need any help, and I certainly don’t need them. That’s it; I’m trying the Dimensional Teleporter tonight. And nobody is going to stop me.”
The angry girl then walked over to the computers and activated the Teleporting sequence, then she went and got into the Teleporter as the computer counted down, “Five, Four, Three, Two, One. Teleporting.” B’Elanna watched as the lights flashed everywhere, but when she could see again she wasn’t anywhere different. She was still back at the mansion. The sliding doors opened and B’Elanna sank to her knees then fell forward. She laid that way for the longest time, until finally her eyes closed and she sank into sleep, but not before promising that she would get it tomorrow.
