The Blushing Rabbit

The day was beautiful. It had yet to become unbearably hot with air so thick you could almost cut it with a dagger. It was also quiet. A little too quiet beyond the sound of the cascades and chirping. Rikki swung lazily on a swing Mr. Beevor had hung many years earlier.

The young teenager couldn't get used to the American life. It had been two months since her and half of her siblings arrived in Georgia and the other half in Tennessee. Everything was too safe. She felt on edge, waiting for something bad to happen. In Abezra there was always something out there waiting to kill or harm her. It had to be the same here, right?

She understood that the older leaders would never leave them somewhere unsafe, but she knew better than to expect anywhere to be perfectly safe. Thus she swung lazily on the swing waiting and watching. Most of her siblings were still sleeping finally catching up on years worth of sleep. Or at least she thought most were until Mrs. Beevor came out in a hurry with a concerned look on her face. Upon her eyes falling on Rikki The foster mother's face relaxed in relief. She apparently thought the girl had run off. Of course it was short lived when the other foster child was not with her.

"Rikki dear, have you seen Orin? He is not in his room or the house." The poor woman tried to mime what she meant since she didn't speak Abezian and Rikki new very little English.

At the very least recognizing her brother's name, the young teen shook her head. Seeing the crestfallen look on her foster mother's face and not liking that she didn't know where her brother was, she started scanning the grounds. As the woman went in search of her lost child, Rikki got up. Suddenly in hunting mode, Rikki started tracking. Beginning near the grounds under Orin's window and worked from there. All of her training kicked in as she search for the lost card. It was late afternoon by the time she slowly walked towards a lone hunched over teen waiting by a bus stop.

Plopping down, Rikki asked,"Where ya heading? Heading without telling me or the others?"

Death didn't say anything right away. He kept looking at his lap as his sister waited patiently. "I can't take it there. It's too quiet. Our other brothers and sisters are in another state. We aren't safe apart." His fingers tightened around jeans slightly too big for him.

"So you run away? You leave me and the others behind?"

He suddenly looked up with anger. "If we are to be apart, it is safer for us to fully split. We aren't safe even if we are is the great America. We were taught if we were compromised we should all disappear!"

"You don't believe we are safe?"

"Do you?"

Present day

As days and weeks passed, the routine of life continued. Everyone was safe and in Rikki's opinion that made life great. All too soon, May arrived slightly disrupting the usual routine but giving way to end of the semester one. What did this entail that was different than the normal humdrum? All the students were going crazy with studying for finals, finishing up projects, and practicing for recitals.

One evening while Ez played a new arrangement he was planning on performing at school, five sharply dressed people walked into The Blushing Rabbit. The hostess sat the group while Rikki worked on two martinis. Sydney whistled lowly at the men as she waited for the drinks. "Damn, where can I get one of them. Especially the blonde one."

Looking up from salting the lip of the glass, Rikki cocked her head, "Huh, I think that's Slader."

"Wait you know him!"

"Keep you voice down, Syd. And yes, he comes in on occasion with his brother and he doesn't live that far from me."

"Lucky. Is he dating anyone?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Don't get in trouble." The bartender grinned as she loaded the waitress's tray with the drinks. Since it was a slow night, Rikki slipped out from behind the bar and went to take orders. "Hello gentlemen and ladies, my name is Rikki. I'm the bartender tonight, can I get you anything while you wait?"

Slader looked up surprised that she had left the bar while his colleagues looked through the menu. "I'll have a glass of water and a Blue Moon please." He offered a smile before the rest of the table ordered.

"Coming right up." She turned and started on the drinks while Sydney introduced herself. It wasn't until about an hour later that Rikki interacted with anyone other than the waitress.

"Hello again." Slader smiled as he approached the bar.

"Hello, how are you?" The young woman asked looking up from pouring two shots of Rum.

"Well. May I have another Blue Moon please?"

"Of course. You could have ordered it from Sydney instead of coming up."

He watched as she turned to get his beer. "I know, but I wanted to say hi and..."

"Get away fro your overly enthusiastic waitress?" She couldn't hide her grin. She'd warn the girl.

His cheeks tinted a rose color. "Yeah. She gets uncomfortably close sometimes."

"She finds you attractive."

"Oh gosh." Slader dragged his hand over his face.

"I can ask her to back off if you wish."

"Please, normally I would but I don't want to say anything in front of my colleagues."

"Understandable."

"Your husband sound great tonight. If I don't get a chance to say anything, please let him know."

Utterly confused, Rikki asked, "My husband?"

Cheeks lighting up even more, Slader pointed a finger towards the stage. "Ezra?"

"Ezra? My husband?" Dumbfounded it took her a minute to process her friend's words. "Oh. Oh! No," She chuckled embarrassed. "How embarrassing. Ez is my brother."

"Oh god, I'm sorry!" He covered his face as it got redder by the second.

"It's fine, I'm just confused to why you thought we were married."

"I guess part of it is you don't look much a like."She looked over at Ez as he played masterfully. It was true, he was darker than her by a few shades, his hair was black where Her's was a honey brown, and his eyes looked almost black. "Take that into account and then add that you two live together, have the same last name, have a dog, and how close you two are it was an honest mistake."

"I guess I can see that, but you and Kai are all that and you two aren't a gay couple."

"Kai also has a girlfriend and although I am single I like women, not men."

"I suppose, but Ez has a girlfriend." Rikki pointed out.

"He does?"

"Yes, although she hasn't been able to visit since she goes to school in Boston."

"My apologies..."

"Honest mistake? I think." She patted his forearm. "Well, best be off before your lawyer friends start to think your hitting on me."

"Will it stop the waitress?" Slader groaned.

Pretending to think for a few seconds, Rikki shook her head slowly, "Nope. She already knows I probably don't have feelings for you."

"Not your type?"

"Something like that. I get more of a platonic vibe from you." She smiled as she rested her chin on her palm. "Now go have fun with your work friends."

Chuckling Slader waved and headed back towards his table where he apparently was getting teased. The rest of the night was quiet with a steady stream of people coming in for a meal or drink. Around ten she was relieved from duty allowing the siblings to walk to the station together.

Two weeks later found the Stykes siblings getting ready for Ezra's recital. He nervously fiddled with his bow tie while Rikki tried her best to fix up her hair. The unfortunate part was not having Mrs. Beevor in close vicinity. The woman always knew how to mold hair so it looked breath taking. Rikki never quite figured out how to do it usually trotting over to her foster mother for help. The boys always made fun of her for it, saying she was terrible at being a girl. Of course, being the sassy young girl she was replied that knowing how to use hairspray and barrettes was not going to help her kill someone. They patted her head, snickered, and then ran off to play some game. Now she regretted never learning.

"I give up on this thing!" Ez was frustrated and he was going to let his sister know. He marched into the bathroom where she had six bobby pins in her mouth.

Letting the bobby pins fall into the sink, She looked at her brother. "Come here." She easily looped the pieces of fabric into a nice simple bow. "Boom."

"Calm down killer. So you can tie a tie but not do your hair?"

"Quiet you, tying shit is more important than knowing how to make my hair look nice."

"Right. What if you end up with some big wig where you have to go to parties all the time? Hmm?" Ez grinned teasingly.

"I hire someone, or go see mom." She replied stiffly. "Besides, who would want to date an ex kid soldier?"

"Um, you do realize I'm dating someone. Abbarron had a girlfriend. Some of our other siblings have significant others. Hell, Mishka is married and has two kids. I think it's safe to say it's possible for even you to find a nice someone."

"If you say so, I'm also not one to find an interest in most people."

"And that is how you'll know they're the one."

"The one? Really, Ez?"

"Hey, mom and dad did."

"They're different."

"Hardly. Now turn around. You may not have learned anything about hair, but I did." With a pout Riiki did as her brother asked and patiently waited for him to finish. "Wha-la, you are gorgeous my sister."

"Thank you, dearest brother. Now shoo, I have makeup to apply and you need to put on the rest of your suit." Closing the door she, she quickly began the ritual of putting makeup on. Although she knew nothing about hair, she had learned to apply eye shadow, liner, lipstick, and foundation. She's not quite sure how it happened, but she didn't care enough to question it. Looking at herself, it felt surreal because she didn't quite look like herself. Sometimes it was nice not being yourself.

Stepping out into the living room, Rikki patted Sam on the head as she looked for her shoes. "How much longer until you have to go?"

"Ten minutes!" Her brother called from his room. Nodding to herself, Rikki finished getting ready and was waiting by the door when her brother flew out of his room. "And ready! Let's go. Sam be good, we love you, and don't eat anything except your food." And like a whirlwind of anxiety that he is, the siblings were off in a dash. At one point, Rikki had to remind him that she in fact wearing heels so slow down. Upon the train, she had to talk him down from getting off at an earlier stop. He had practiced far too hard to skip his own recital. And once finally at the music hall, she had to tell him he wasn't allowed to bail once she was no longer in his vicinity. She would hunt him down. He balked at the thought before kissing her on the cheek and heading in to wait for his performance.

Staying outside for a little while longer because being in there with dozens of stuck-ups was far worse than being in battle. This wasn't her cup of tea... or coffee... or scotch. Ez was more suited for this world of Ritz and glamour than her. Sucking it up however because she loved her brother, Rikki squared her shoulders and headed up the stairs. Giving her light jacket to coat check, she walked slowly down the aisle finding her seat. It wasn't long before she heard a slight increase in volume that dragged her attention to three familiar faces.

As she stepped closer Christine looked mad. Her mouth moved sharply before she stalked off towards back stage leaving a smirking father and, from behind, a very tense boyfriend. "Oh look, if it isn't Riley." Mr. Vance greeted like a snake staring down its next mean.

"Rikki. Hello, Mr. Vance. Kai." She greeted already feeling uncomfortable.

Kai's eyes widen in surprise while Mr. Vance looked at her as if she had just walked out of the sewer. "It is a pleasure to see you. I see Ezma is performing quite a few songs tonight."

"Ezra and he is. I'm beyond proud of him. He has been working hard for the honor that has been bestowed upon him." Rikki smiled back quite pleasantly although her eyes were clearly challenging the man to say otherwise.

"He is quite talented. Christine and Tara would not allow just anyone to accompany them." She could tell it almost physically pained him to allow such a compliment to pass his lips. "Well, I should be getting to my seat. Mr. Henley?" His eyes lit up with sadistic joy as they landed on the young man.

"I'll be with you in a moment." His usual confidence shattered from whatever happened prior to Rikki joining them. Turning, the older man left for his seat. "That was painful. He's like a viper or something."

"I think you are being rude to the viper for comparing it to that man."

Kai chuckled, finally turning to face her. "You look... You look beautiful."

Feeling her cheeks light up, Rikki looked down at her dress. "Thanks. Consider yourself lucky, I rarely dress up for anything. It makes me uncomfortable."

"Well, you shouldn't be." There was a pregnant silence until he coughed and tried another topic. "So here for Ezra?"

"Yeah." She licked her lips as her stomach started doing tumbles. "He's been working nearly night and day practicing, composing, and arranging. Is that the right word?"

"Beats me." Kai grinned with a chuckle. "I don't know much about that. I play, but most of it is by ear and I'm only here because Christine invited me."

Just like that her stomach plummeted. "You play?"

"Mainly viola, but give me any string instrument and I can most likely play it."

"Impressive. I wish I were that lucky but alas I'm not."

"Rather your talents lie with bottle opening and dancing?"

"Among other things." She smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "Well, I must be going. I have a seat to find."

"Please take me with you." He quietly begged.

Wanting nothing more to say yes, but instead she ignored whatever her body was screaming and looked at Mr. Vance. "I wish, but it looks like your date is waiting for you."

Taking a quick glance at his girlfriend's father, he turned sad eyes onto her. "I feel like an escort that got the raw end of the deal."

"At least you look handsome doing it. Everyone will be jealous. I can see it now, everyone wondering how he got such a... what is the word... catch? Yes, how he got such a catch as yourself."

Kai barked out a laugh. "You think I'm a catch?"

Her face lit up at being caught. "No! Well, yes. I just call it as I see it." He was smirking at her being flustered. "Shut up. That is the correct word?"

"Yes, although it's not used as much anymore. It's times like these where you remind me that English isn't your first language. Are you ever going to tell me?"

Rikki tapped her lips in a faux thinking manner. "I don't believe you're a high enough level yet. Au revoir." As she turned to leave she heard him chuckled and say good-bye. Seven rows later, she found her seat. The chairs were nice and plush with leg room to spare. Unable to resist the urge, she looked back to find Kai sitting uncomfortably next to Mr. Vance. She felt bad, she only had the pleasure of being in the man's presence five times and those encounters equaled a grant total of about seven minutes. She didn't make a habit of conversing with people she didn't particularly like. Ezra deserved an award for interacting with that man on a weekly basis.

Not long after her sitting, the master of ceremonies walked on stage to greet everyone. She gave a speech about the talent and hard work of the students over the course of the year. With a smile she welcomed the first performer and so the program began. Many were talented with songs that kept you interested. while others almost had Rikki asleep. Persevering through some of the softer lullaby music, she found herself enjoying this year's recital.

The last to perform were Christine on vocals, Ezra on piano, and Tara on flute. Unlike most of the other songs performed, this one was more modern. The young woman vaguely remembered hearing it before, but didn't know where from. Probably her brother but she couldn't be sure. Surprisingly, the flute didn't play through all of the song. The main instruments were the piano and Christine's soprano voice. At the end the trio bowed together and walked off with their heads held high. Rikki of course was up on her feet cheering for her brother and the rest of the performers; mainly her brother. Her grin was wide with pride.

Weaving through the crowd, Rikki was one of the first ones in the atrium. She bounced giddily trying to look over heads for one in particular. "You're like a kid in a candy store." A deep voice said from behind her.

Spinning around, her smile did not dim when she saw who it was. "Kid in a candy store?"

"He means you are too antsy like a child waiting for something they are overly excited about." Mr. Vance clarified.

Not taking it as an insult, Rikki nodded, "I am. Ezra did wonderfully tonight. As did Christine and Tara. They continue to amaze me with their abilities."

"One of the best."

"I'm proud of them." Kai contributed with a far off smile. "Christine is amazing."

"I would hope so, she has been singing since she was five." Just then the Vance sisters walked out. "My beautiful girls!" Their father called with open arms. "You were the best tonight." He kissed both their cheeks and handed each a bouquet of flowers.

"You'd think I would remember to bring some for Ez." Rikki tilted her head as she watched the open display of affection.

"Yeah, I didn't think of it either. Does that make me a terrible boyfriend?" Kia bit his lip.

"If you can cook, make her something. That'd win me over."

The young man grinned. "Thanks. Off to congratulate my girlfriend." He winked and then went in to swoop Christine into a kiss. Rikki wanted to cringe as she watched. Not really due to the stereotypical stomach drop of watching a crush shower someone else with affection, but because Christine looked reluctant through the whole thing.

However, Rikki didn't have too much time to think about it as Ezra looped his arms around her waist and spun her. "Did you see!"

Laughing jovially, Rikki replied, "Of course, how could I not! You were marvelous dearest brother!"

He beamed with pride. "Totally worth all those late nighters. Thank you for not allowing me to run."

"Always." Her eyes flicked up for a moment to see Kai disappear through the Performers Only doors. Receiving a weird look from Ez, she merely shrugged before looping her arm through his. "What shall we do now?"

"I'm not ready to go home yet, let's go for a walk and see where we end up! Let me grab by things and we can head out." He kissed her cheek before darting out back. As Rikki grabbed her coat and waited, she congratulated some of the performers that she knew. It didn't take long before Ez reappeared by her side with an embarrassed look. "Let's go."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just walked into awkward. You know how we crazy musical types can be." He smiled and then dragged his sister out into the cool night. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

"Not much until work, why?"

"Let's go to Central Park. We can see if Seth and the guys want to come. Make a day affair of it."

"I'm okay with that. We can bring Sam, he'll enjoy it."

"Yes! A nice break before I return to memorizing everything musical theory and composition." The siblings laughed as they enjoyed the night. It was a beautiful alive night. Musicians played all night and the light twinkled as they lit up.