Hypothesis Incorrect Chapter 24

Hypothesis Incorrect – Chapter 24 ‘Hard Truths’: 

Hypothesis Incorrect – Chapter 24 ‘Hard Truths’ Hello, hello! Welcome back to Hypothesis Incorrect. Well, this chapter we’re back with the main progression; there’s lots of birthdays, as you can see above, and lots of new personalities coming out. There’s still plot, and generations 1 and 2 have a lot on their plates, but this is undoubtedly the beginning of generation 3. Hold onto your hats, they’re a whirlwind… 

Slide 2: 

While the Andersen family were listening to Tommy’s story on the afternoon he came back, around Pleasantview there were many birthdays taking place, all between 4 and 5.30 in the afternoon, so that the members of the extended family could all go to the Main House for Olive’s birthday at 6pm. First to age to child, and oldest of the new generation, was Lucas. This time it was Donnie who was transitioning his son, and with his parents standing behind him and cheering, Donnie thought over the past few days.

Slide 3: 

Lucas had been a very good toddler, eager to learn his skills and very outgoing. Also, to the confusion of Donnie, Lucas had been nice to everyone, cuddling his parents and grandparents, and asking questions about his baby sisters. The twins, Isabella and Maya, had been well behaved too. Donnie had spent time with them while Mehrissa sat with Lucas, and then they had switched while Donnie repainted Lucas’s bedroom ready for him to become a child. Lucas’s room had been given the whole racing car make-over, with his favourite colours on the bed and dresser, while the young twins had been given a pink and purple joint room until they were older.

Slide 4: 

All in all, it had been a very calm and peaceful few days since Issy and Maya had been born, and the family had enjoyed every second. But then, with two family sims as parents, even the hard times when all three children were crying had been wonderful moments that they shared together. Looking down at his only son for the last time in this cute, small life stage, Donnie smiled. Lucas got so much from Mehrissa, and Donnie couldn’t wait to see what he would be like as a child. Probably just the same but with more chatter and more energy, he mused. And so, with Oatley, Deanna, Mehrissa and Sadie looking on, Donnie and Lucas blew out the candles and Lucas sparkled into his child years.

Slide 5: 

And just as Donnie had predicted, Lucas was very much the same, only bigger and faster. On transitioning, he had immediately run upstairs to his new bedroom, found his new favourite outfit, and run back downstairs to pose for the camera. While he did get a lot from his Mum, it was obvious from the neat way he chose his outfit and left his room tidy that some of Oatley and Donnie’s personality traits had been passed down. And when Lucas then asked if he could play chess, Donnie’s grin extended, with him merely replying ‘That’s my boy’, and leading Lucas to the chess board.

Slide 6: 

Meanwhile, over at the Hart House, Latané and Felicity were stood with the twins at the dining table. With no sign from Ariella other than the mysterious phone call the night before, Latané and Felicity had decided to go ahead with the birthday, knowing that ‘Other Grandma’ wasn’t going to come. The twins had been very excited about their birthday regardless of who was attending it, and as soon as they got near the cakes, Melody wriggled in Felicity’s arms, trying to reach the candles. ‘Well, better get on with it then.’ Felicity smiled, leaning towards the pink cake with her daughter.

Slide 7: 

While Felicity struggled to blow out the candles without Melody getting too close to them, Latané waited for a few moments before ageing Leo. Looking round at all his wonderful relatives, Latané sighed. He hadn’t forgotten Ariella’s phone call, and her strange words. He had to wonder if she was outside somewhere, watching her grandchildren as she claimed she had watched Elle’s birthday the day before. But James was here, as were all the members of Latané's immediate family, so the occasion had all the attendance it needed. And with one last sigh for his absent mother-in-law, Latané threw himself into the party spirit, and blew out the candles with Leo.

Slide 8: 

Everyone stood back and cheered as the twins grew up excitedly in unison, the noise of all the visitors drowning out the fact that Felicity was slightly distracted and James was a little over-enthusiastic to compensate for it. To Bandura, Shaun, Rose and Piaget, this was another happy occasion, but to the members of the Hart-Psychologist branch, it couldn’t help but be a reminder that one of them was missing, still. And it didn’t help that when she grew up, Melody was like a living reminder of Ariella.

Slide 9: 

She had the Psychologist nose from Latané, and his brown eyes too, but there was something about her countenance and immediate commands to her parents to ‘Photograph me, it’s my turn first!’ that had Felicity looking worriedly at her husband. But as she smiled for the photo, it was obvious that Melody was very pretty and photogenic, and although she was unavoidably confident and self-assured, it was impossible not to love her.

Slide 10: 

Leo, meanwhile, spent the first few moments of his childhood looking eagerly in the mirror. Without warning, just like his Dad’s, his hair had turned blue on ageing. It was the coolest thing Leo had ever seen, and he stood in front of his Mum’s full-length mirror turning round and shouting ‘Wow!’ over and over while Melody commanded their parents on the other side of the door. And after five minutes of grinning at his reflection, Leo was summoned. ‘Leo, you need to join me for a picture!’ Melody called. ‘We need to document our ageing.’ Smiling one last time at his hair, Leo wordlessly joined his sister, and the two of them posed for their parents.

Slide 11: 

‘Can you get us both on the picture? Are we close enough together?’ Melody was asking as Felicity manoeuvred her art camera. Rolling his eyes, Latané replied ‘Melody, smile please, otherwise we’ll just get a shot of you talking. Let Mummy work the camera, you just sit and smile.’ ‘Sorry Daddy.’ Melody replied angelically, putting on her best grin for the camera as Leo patiently said ‘Cheese!’ from the other side of the bookcase.

Slide 12: 

And with the photo taken, the twins were left with their Grandad in their joint bedroom, listening to him read them a story. James cherished these moments with Melody and Leo, and as the rest of the family left to prepare for Olive’s birthday in the Main House, he sat down with his only grandchildren and animatedly relayed the well known story to them. With James taking care of the twins, Latané and Felicity were free to go with the main family to the biggest party of the day, leaving just the Andersens to join them when the party started.

Slide 13: 

Back with the Andersens, all of that line of the family had congregated at Isaac and Marla’s house, ready for Alex to age. It was the first time Penny had got a chance to meet her grandson, and before any of the cheering had started, she took a minute to stand next to Isaac and admire Alexander in his last moments as a baby. ‘Andersen through and through.’ was her verdict, before she took her place with the party horn, and joined in the celebrations.

Slide 14: 

In the hours leading up to his birthday, Alex had been sleeping a lot, and had mostly been cared for by the Servos, Gravity and Spectrum. Isaac and Marla sat together a lot when they were at home, reading and researching, but that day they had been with Tommy, so the Servos had been in charge of the house. Because Alex was a heavy sleeper, the Servos had also spent some time on their own. They had worked together on a restorable car, taking hours to polish the bodywork and fix the engine, providing the family with a mode of transport, as well as now having a joint project that they had accomplished as a couple.

Slide 15: 

Perhaps it was because of Tommy being back, or possibly just because it was the first birthday in an Andersen house since Tommy and Jamie had become teenagers, but there was a real air of celebratory happiness at Alex’s birthday, with so many people present, and the Servos loving the novelty of cheering through party horns. Isaac and Marla were so proud of their little boy already, and it was with a huge, proud, fatherly smile on his face that Isaac held Alex and sang along with the happy birthdays.

Slide 16: 

But not everyone was so enthusiastic. After putting the phone down on Lydia on the way to the party, Tommy had spent his time in quiet reflection. He was there in body but not really in spirit, and he blew his party horn and looked on at his nephew in a distracted way, nothing quite getting through to him as it should have been. Questions plagued his mind. Was he going to have a baby like this soon? Would he be a good father like Isaac seemed to be? Or was he being used again, drawn back to the house with Lydia when she was lying to him about being pregnant? He had no clue what to do about Lydia, and at such an important event as this, his own life was put into sharp relief. What would he do next?

Slide 17: 

Near to Tommy, Cale could sense his son’s distracted state, and despite Marla enthusiastically whirling her noise maker and singing behind him, the moment wasn’t quite the same for Cale, who was mentally making a note to talk to his youngest son while he watched Isaac blow out Alex’s candles and transition the baby into his toddler years. Cale’s family tendencies were torn as he watched Alex become a toddler before his eyes. What now; did he focus on his newly sentient grandson and join in on the post party celebrations? Or did he need to go to his son and talk to him first?

Slide 18: 

His questions were soon answered when his wife grabbed his arm and pulled him over to their daughter-in-law, clearly with a plan in mind. As Cale stood by, seemingly as back-up while he silently watched Marie approach Tommy on the other side of the room, Penny launched into a monologue at Marla. ‘Marla, Alex is so cute!’ she began, quite out of character. ‘But you see, I’ve been doing some research, and I couldn’t help but notice the colour of his eyes. Has he by any chance been closing them a lot, sleeping all the time, looking confused?’ Marla sighed at her old university friend and mother in law. ‘Penny, he’s been a baby. Yes, he’s been sleeping all the time, he’s been confused, but that’s what happens with babies.’ ‘Not to the extent that I theorise Alex has.’ Penny insisted.

Slide 19: 

Conceding that Penny might have a point, Marla smiled and encouraged her with a ‘Go on.’ ‘Well, he has your eyes, and you’ve always had glasses. Isaac’s got Cale’s, which has cancelled out my problems, but with your eyesight and mine, I think Alex is going to have trouble seeing both long and short distances.’ ‘You think he needs help?’ Marla asked. ‘I think he needs glasses.’ Penny smiled. ‘And that’s what I have a lab for. Can I see him, and we can test it out before he gets too confused with his sight?’ ‘Ok, you win, let's go and sit with him’ Marla sighed, leading Penny off to Alex’s room, where Isaac had put him after his transition.

Slide 20: 

Meaning that Cale was free to listen in on the conversation between Tommy and Marie. As Marie had cornered Tommy right after Alex transitioned, when Cale started listening the conversation was already underway, and he had missed the opening sentences. ‘…but we don’t want you back there, you could get hurt again.’ Marie was discussing with her brother. ‘But how else will I know if she’s pregnant?’ Tommy asked. ‘I can’t just assume she’s lying and then leave my baby with her, if there is one.’ ‘You’re right’ Marie agreed, ‘we have to find out whether she is pregnant or not, somehow. Perhaps REMAG could look into it.’

Slide 21: 

‘It’s nice of you to offer, Marie, but I don’t think there’s anything Makoto and Heidi can do this time. They got me back and they gave me the space to think, which is what I’ve got to do now.’ Marie’s face was serious, thinking through Tommy’s dilemma. ‘We just don’t want to lose you again.’ she sighed. ‘If you can somehow find out about Lydia without going near her house, it’d make all of us a lot happier.’ ‘So say we assume she is pregnant.’ Tommy then suggested. ‘What would we do then?’ ‘Well…judging by what you told us about her treatment of you, we’d have to get the baby out of that house and away from Lydia.’ ‘And how would we do that?’ Tommy was asking, just as Cale walked over and joined them.

Slide 22: 

‘We’ll have to plan it as a whole family unit. After the birthdays tonight, we can all sit and think this through. From now on, your problems are our problems Tommy, as they always should have been. We go through all this as a family.’ Cale insisted. ‘Thanks Dad.’ Tommy replied. ‘I appreciate you all helping me. It looks like I’ll need all the support I can get to put my life back on track.’ ‘And you’ll get support.’ Cale agreed. ‘We’re all here for you, in everything you go through. We will help in any way possible.’

Slide 23: 

‘I’ll come back to yours later, if you need me too.’ Isaac added from behind Cale, also joining in on the conversation. ‘You shouldn’t have to face anything alone.’ Cale reiterated, before moving the conversation along. ‘Right then,’ he began ‘before all that, we’ve still got two birthdays. And once we get Penny out of Alex’s room, we’ll be off to grow up Zoey. So before you get to our house, I should tell you about Jeannie.’ Cale decided, thinking that preparation would be the best idea for Tommy. ‘Now, zombies are nothing to be afraid of…’ he began, explaining about his adopted family member the best he could.

Slide 24: 

And next door in Alex’s room, preparation had also paid off. ‘Well, I’m glad I made those mini glasses.’ Penny was smiling, looking at her grandson from her position behind Marla. ‘The scaling was difficult at first for the lenses, but that’s why I have the microscope.’ ‘He does look confident and spatially aware.’ Marla agreed. ‘I’m so grateful to you for this, Penny; you’ve saved us a lot of trouble by providing Alexander with glasses.’ ‘Glasses!’ Alex repeated as he chewed on his block, able to play with his toys now that he was able to see everything more clearly.

Slide 25: 

‘I never gave you enough credit for your science, Penny, but you’ve done wonders today.’ Marla smiled, turning round to face her mother-in-law. ‘Alex would have been completely lost without you and your insight.’ ‘Well, from someone who needed glasses suddenly as a teen and who’s watched her daughter go through the same disorientation, I wanted to make sure that Alex never suffered that confusion.’ Penny explained. ‘I took the chance on his eyesight, he might have been fine, but it turned out that he needed help, and I’m glad to be here to give it.’ Marla reached out for a hug, grateful yet again to her mother-in-law. First helping her through uni, then introducing her to Isaac, and now this. Was there nothing Penny couldn’t do?

Slide 26: 

And after the celebrations at Isaac and Marla’s house, Alex was left with the Servos again as the Andersen family went to their main house for Zoey’s birthday. Marie was the one to grow up her daughter for this birthday, and she held her only child and grinned down at her as her relatives all blew their party horns and cheered. Zoey had been a quiet baby, and with the family all preoccupied with Tommy’s reappearance, her parents had only really seen her during the nights so far. Jeannie had been a star looking after her, and as such, Zoey had no fear at all for the blue skin and groaning noises Jeannie still made.

Slide 27: 

On arriving at the house, Tommy had also been very accepting of Jeannie, not at all scared by her zombie appearance or worried about her link to Lydia. Instead, he had chosen to stand near her and his Mum, again at the back of the party, but joining in a lot more now that he had a slight plan of action for Lydia. Makoto was also at the back of the party, but only so he could take in the perfect picture of his wife and daughter. He was absolutely devoted to the two of them, their every need and mood, and he looked forward to the rest of Zoey’s life with dear excitement. He and Cale were ecstatic about every moment with Zoey, but both of them knew that with the odds being what they were, they would soon have another headstrong girl on their hands.

Slide 28: 

But despite her strong Andersen personality, in looks Zoey was all Makoto. Her tiny features were his in miniature, and her green eyes looked back timidly at all the guests. She had Marie’s hair colour and she had been put in Marie’s toddler dress for the time being, the red suiting the slide they had put in her hair. With all that done, Jeannie was then left to care for the now considerably more active Zoey for the rest of the afternoon while the family went to the main house. There was one birthday left that day, and it was an important one.

Slide 29: 

In the midst of a big gathering of relatives, Olive was going to become a child. The kitchen was as crowded as usual, and this time Piaget was in charge of the transition. Elle was sat patiently in her high chair ready to watch her sister grow up, and Zara and Mihaly, the alien twins, were fast asleep in their cots in the music room. Although everything was ready in time for Olive’s party, the main house had been no quiet place to live in the days leading up to the big event.

Slide 30: 

The night before, after Elle had become a toddler, Piaget had immediately set to the difficult but rewarding task of teaching her to walk. It took a little longer with Elle than it had for Olive, but step by step, Piaget worked through it. Bandura spent the evening with Olive, teaching her to play the xylophone and getting to know her oldest granddaughter. Shaun and Chloe had used the quiet time to pursue their hobbies, both with an ear out for the alien twins in case they cried, but focused on enjoying themselves and achieving their potential. The next day, the hours leading up to Olive’s party passed in a blur of crying babies, skilling toddlers, family meetings, and lots of balancing wants. Every adult was needed to keep the four children happy at their current ages, and it was with a feeling almost of relief that the main house reached a point when there was at least one child over the age of 5.

Slide 31: 

Not that Olive wasn’t adorable as a toddler, but when Piaget looked down at her ear-to-ear smile, he knew that his daughter was ready to grow up. And with lots of cheering from the family and happy shouts from Olive, the party was underway and the transition could begin. Piaget talked to Olive as he blew out the candles, placing her on the floor and stepping back to watch from a distance as his oldest child gained her independence. Full of confidence in front of her relatives, and impatient to become a child, Olive stood up and spun happily; running off to change as soon as she was aged and giving the adults of the family time to mingle, chat, and of course, clean up the inedible cake.

Slide 32: 

Piaget immediately cornered Donnie and started catching up on both of their family lives. With the exception of Elle, who was in the middle, Piaget and Donnie’s children were exactly the same age, and the possibilities of play-dates were immediately mentioned for the future. Bandura calmly cleaned up the cake and chatted to her guests, while Shaun went to get Elle out of her high chair. The toddler looked sadly up at Grandad asking about why Olive was so big, and while he picked Elle up from her seat, Shaun slowly explained to her about the process of ageing, and all the different cousins she had at various stages of life. Chloe came over to join him and took Elle from his weary arms, joining in on the discussion, and making sure Elle understood that Olive was just the same, only bigger.

Slide 33: 

And just as they got that point across, Olive came bursting back into the room with her usual timing, and showed Elle that she was indeed just the same ball of energy that she always had been. So many people to meet, she thought, names to put faces to, conversations to have, and family members to ask about. Olive ran into the party, looking round for a good starting point, and noticed the shiny new ring on the left hand of the nearest woman. Perfect.

Slide 34: 

‘Hi, I’m Olive!’ she introduced herself. ‘Are you one of my Aunties? I love your shiny ring, what’s it for?’ Desperately trying to overcome her shy nature, Jamie smiled and blushed, and regarded the confident curious face before her. ‘Hi Olive, I’m Auntie Jamie. And the ring is for an engagement, it means I’m going to get married soon.’ ‘How soon? Like really soon, with a big dress and lots of shiny things?’ Jamie laughed. ‘Yes, hopefully soon. I’ll be marrying Daryl, that man there.’ Jamie explained. Olive waved over at Daryl, and then excused herself, knowing she had a lot of people to meet in a short space of time. Next, she chatted to a blonde woman standing near Grandma.

Slide 35: 

The blonde woman introduced herself as Auntie Felicity, and said she was married to Daddy’s brother. She then went on to tell Olive the most exciting news of the day. ‘I’ve also got two children, who are the same age as you.’ Felicity explained. ‘They’re your cousins, Melody and Leo, and I’d be happy for you to spend as much time with them as you like.’ ‘Melody and Leo.’ Olive repeated, before the excitement took over. ‘Do they look like me? Can they come round soon? Do I get to see them all the time? Will they like me?’ Felicity laughed at Olive’s incessant questions, and merely replied. ‘I’ll ask your Mum. Hopefully they can come over tomorrow, and you’ll be able to find out all that for yourself.’

Slide 36: 

And for the rest of the evening, Olive met all her other Aunties and Uncles. Grandma quickly introduced her to what she called ‘The Andersen Branch’, which included a cool old woman called Great Auntie Penny, and lots of people wearing glasses, before all of those people went home to discuss a woman called Lydia. Olive then met her Auntie Rose, who had cool blue hair like Grandad. She also had a daughter that Olive and Elle could play with, called Violet, but she was a bit younger. And finally, Olive met an older man who was Grandma’s brother, and said he was called Great Uncle Oatley. He explained that his son was the man in green who had spoken to Daddy all night, and he said he had a grandson who was Olive’s age, and could he come over to play at some point. Like Olive, all of cousin Lucas’s siblings were tiny, and he had no-one his age to play with. Olive could hear Grandma agreeing behind her, and she grinned up at her Great Uncle, envisioning all of these cousins that she was soon to meet.

Slide 37: 

Once all the extended family members were gone, Olive and the adults moved into the living room, where she found Elle playing with her old xylophone toy. Following on from what her Grandma had taught her the day before, Olive sat in front of her younger sister and patiently sang along with her. Elle was very happy to have Olive back. She may have been bigger, but she was still Olive, and the wide smile on Elle’s face was genuine as she listened to her sister’s voice and watched the notes from the xylophone float through the air.

Slide 38: 

From her seat on the sofa, Bandura watched her granddaughters playing together, reminded so much of Latané and Piaget when they were that age. Olive was obviously trying her best to stay patient with Elle, but the toddler’s attention span wasn’t long at the best of times. ‘Don’t eat the stick Elle, there’s a good girl.’ Bandura called over. ‘Olive, point as you teach, it’ll show Elle more of what to do.’ Obediently, Olive tried to engage her sister’s interest again, and soon their childish singing could be heard over the adults’ conversation. Happy with the children’s playing, Bandura turned to listen to Chloe, who was pitching an idea.

Slide 39: 

‘So Felicity was saying that she talked to Olive earlier and she’s happy for her kids to come over and play.’ Chloe was explaining. ‘Would you mind if we had them round to play in the sandpit you built, Shaun?’ ‘Well, it’s not mine.’ Shaun shrugged. ‘It belongs to the children, and the more we have here, the merrier. It’s great to use it in this weather.’ ‘Yes, summer’s a lovely time of year for them to play outside.’ Chloe agreed. ‘And what about Donnie’s son, Lucas?’ Piaget then added from his seat on the other side of Bandura. ‘He could play too?’ ‘Great idea.’ Chloe replied. ‘We could have them all over tomorrow, if it’s not too much trouble on a Sunday?’

Slide 40: 

‘No trouble at all.’ Bandura replied, while Shaun grinned with happiness. ‘A nice, relaxing Sunday while they play outside.’ Piaget agreed, almost slipping into a reverie before being brought back to reality by the twin wails of his alien babies in the next room. ‘Right, who’s on bottle duty with me?’ he asked his parents, standing up from the sofa. ‘I’ll do it.’ Bandura replied, while Chloe offered to call Felicity and Mehrissa and invite the children over. Shaun stood up too, taking his usual place at the easel, and keeping one watchful eye on his granddaughters.

Slide 41: 

‘You hear that Elle?’ Olive asked her sister as all the adults moved about and got on with their tasks. ‘We’re going to have our cousins here tomorrow.’ ‘Cousins?’ Elle asked. ‘Melody, Leo and Lucas. They’re my age, and they’re coming to play. Do you want to play in the sandpit with us?’ Elle considered the question, not sure of the meaning behind the list of names, but eventually settled on the pivotal word in the sentence. ‘Sandpit! Yes!’ ‘Good, it’s going to be a nice day then.’ Olive replied, before going back to her xylophone lesson and teaching Elle where the C key was.

Slide 42: 

Meanwhile, next door, the Andersen family were all poised for another meeting. This time, Tommy was chairing, as it was about his life, and he sat in the middle of his siblings and parents, unsure of quite where to start with his current problem. In the end, it was easier just to come out with it. ‘So, Lydia. What can we do to find out if she’s pregnant or not?’ he sighed. There was silence for a moment, before Cale replied. ‘Well, do you think she is?’ Tommy sighed again. ‘I really don’t know. There’s a chance she might be, yes. A good chance. But with her personality and penchant for lying, there’s a pretty equal chance that she’s just trying to get me back to the house so that she can keep me to herself again.’

Slide 43: 

‘And if she is pregnant, what would you want to do?’ Makoto asked. ‘We could try teleporting the baby, but with such a limited range of teleportation, and such a fragile body to transport, it wouldn’t be so easy as it was with you. There’s a high risk of it not working, or going wrong.’ ‘No, I don’t think I’d want to take that chance.’ Tommy agreed. ‘But how else could we get anyone near the baby, if there is one?’ ‘Suppose we assume there is.’ Marie replied, repeating the statement from earlier that day. ‘Would you want to rescue the child? Would you accept it as yours, even though it would be half Lydia?’ ‘Of course.’ Tommy replied vehemently. ‘My child would be my child, and ignoring any feelings I have for Lydia, she isn’t in the right state to bring up a child. She isn’t in the right state to even be remotely near one. But there’s really no way to get onto that Sim Lane lot without harming someone.’

Slide 44: 

‘She’s definitely left the electrics on?’ Isaac asked. ‘It’s a shame; my Servos could have coped with anything in a rescue attempt, except electrics and water. The last thing we want is them running amok, so they’re out if the electrics are on. Their programming would be fried on impact.’ ‘As are any humans. We don’t want anyone to get hurt, fried, electrocuted, anything.’ Penny listed. ‘So that leaves us with two choices. Either we do nothing, and hope that Lydia doesn’t have a baby and is lying. Or Tommy goes back to her to save the baby and we lose him again. I vote for the first option.’ ‘What?’ Tommy immediately shouted. ‘You’re saying we have no other plans?’ ‘What else would you suggest? It’s you or the possible baby, Tommy.’ Penny replied at equal volume, before slumping back in her seat, and adding an uncharacteristically defeated ‘Please, don’t leave us again.’ Tommy growled, forced to make a decision that no-one should have to make. There really was no other way.

Slide 45: 

No-one could go onto the lot, for fear of being injured or killed by the electric currents. They didn’t want to get Lydia off the lot, in case she either took Tommy or harmed one of the family. They had no way of reaching any possible child, or of knowing if it existed. If Tommy took the chance and went back to Lydia, and there was no child, then he would have sacrificed himself for something that didn’t exist. Tommy threw his arms up in frustration. ‘But we can’t just do nothing!’ he lamented. ‘What choice do we have?’ Jamie eventually said into the silence. ‘I can’t lose my twin again. I just can’t. We’ve just got you back, Tommy, I’d rather believe that Lydia was capable of lying about such a thing than losing you to that monstrous woman again, child or no child.’ ‘But the baby. If she had a baby, its life would be ruined. Imagine having her as a role model.’ Cale couldn’t help but add, protective of all his grandchildren. All of them sat and contemplated that, dumbfounded by the horrible situation they all found themselves in.

Slide 46: 

The tension was awful, and everyone’s minds were working over-time, trying to come up with a solution. Tommy could think of nothing, and was about to admit defeat when Marie’s face began to light up. ‘Wait, can you see any other houses from where Lydia is?’ she suddenly thought. ‘That address sounds familiar.’ Tommy looked up, hope in his eyes. Funny how one question could spark a memory, he thought. ‘Er…yes.’ he replied, almost laughing with the simplicity of the idea, all of his memories flooding back to him. ‘Yes, there’s a big faux-Tudor house opposite with a red room downstairs and a purple room upstairs.’ ‘Rose.’ Marie replied. ‘Sim Lane, that’s where Rose lives.’ Unable to believe his good luck, Tommy smiled. ‘So we could look from Rose’s house, see if Lydia looks pregnant?’

Slide 47: 

‘We could. But we have to wait until the morning. Obviously, Rose’s daughter will be asleep now, and I assume that Lydia will be popping into her second trimester tonight. There’s no point looking until we’ve got something to see.’ Tommy’s face looked pained again. ‘How on earth am I going to sleep tonight?’ he moaned. ‘I’m no good with waiting.’ ‘With the pregnancy being three days, you might have to get used to waiting.’ Marie commiserated. ‘But at least we can find out first thing in the morning. I’ll ring Rose on her mobile now to let her know we’re coming over.’ And, knowing that would be their cue to go home, everyone slowly began to leave the room and either go home or go to bed. For Tommy, it was going to be a long night.

Slide 48: 

The next morning, at the main house, spirits were considerably higher than at the stress-filled Andersens next door. Olive had woken up early that morning, full of excitement and energy, having spent half of the night demanding that her and Elle’s rooms be switched so that she could live surrounded by yellow. Having got her way, Olive had a happy night’s sleep, and had woken up full of the joys of the upcoming play day. And to make things even better, Grandma called her for grilled cheese breakfast as soon as she’d got herself ready.

Slide 49: 

Olive loved being old enough to join the adults at the breakfast table. Grilled cheese was as wonderful as Grandma and Daddy had described it, and it was so interesting to hear what the members of her family thought about the various happenings in the town. They talked about Uncle Tommy and the scary woman he had fallen in love with, and they mentioned Auntie Jamie’s postponed wedding, and chatted about all the young cousins like Violet, Zoey and Alex. But what Piaget loved most was mentioning the alien babies, Mihaly and Zara. He talked about their development and their ways, and smiled from ear to ear while he did it, especially as today was their birthday, and that evening at 6pm they would become toddlers.

Slide 50: 

After breakfast the twins joined them for a bit while Grandma fed them, displaying the proud smile she always wore when she was with her grandchildren. Bandura put the twins down for a nap while the rest of the members of the house got going with their day, and Olive’s excitement began to build about her incoming cousins. Apparently Felicity was walking across Pleasantview with her children, and she would collect Lucas as they went past his house, so that everyone would arrive together. What surprised Olive was that Grandad didn’t spend the morning with Grandma and the babies. He didn’t even stay around to meet his other grandchildren. No, as Olive went to answer the doorbell, she found Shaun heading out of the door, dressed for work. In answer to Olive’s surprise, he merely replied ‘People need saving on Sundays too, Olive.’ and with that, he was gone.

Slide 51: 

And next door that morning, Rose had been keeping watch on the house across the road from her. When Marie had first told her that the grand house opposite was where Tommy had briefly lived with Lydia, Rose had been wracked with guilt for not noticing before, or being able to do anything. But, as Marie had then pointed out, Rose had been so busy with her young daughter Violet that keeping an eye on her neighbours had been the last thing on her mind. And now, at least, Rose was able to make use of living opposite Lydia. ‘Anything?’ Marie’s voice asked as she entered the room behind her cousin. ‘Still nothing.’ Rose replied, not taking her eyes off the house. ‘But she’s got to walk past a window at some point.’

Slide 52: 

‘Yeah, she can’t hide from us all day.’ Marie added, before looking down in worry as her brother entered the room. ‘Still no sign?’ he asked, already knowing the answer. ‘No, but she’s got to appear soon.’ Rose reasoned. ‘How long have we been keeping watch now?’ Tommy asked, with no clock in the room for reference. ‘Er, about two hours.’ Rose replied. ‘If she is pregnant, she’ll have popped by now.’ she added.

Slide 53: 

Bravely, Tommy kept on walking towards the window, passing his eyes over every part of Lydia’s house, looking for a sign of her or for a bit of movement. Seeing the pond with the dead fish in it and being reminded of what had happened to him there, he shuddered, and could look at the house no longer. He groaned, hating the wait and being in this room. There was something horribly ironic about watching out for his unborn child from the window of a nursery; but Rose maintained that the best view of the street was from Violet’s room, so that was where they were.

Slide 54: 

Putting his back to the house and facing his sister, Tommy continued muttering and being impatient, while Marie and Rose kept watch. ‘What time do we need to leave?’ he asked, the tension getting too much for him again. ‘We don’t need to be at the main house until 6pm for Piaget’s twins to grow up.’ Marie replied. ‘Hopefully we’ll see Lydia long before then and you’ll know where you stand.’ ‘Won’t have long to wait now.’ Rose suddenly pointed out. ‘I see movement.’

Slide 55: 

Rose stood completely still, not wanting to catch Lydia’s attention as she saw some curtains twitch and a shadow moving around in one of the rooms. Hearing Tommy and Marie freeze in place behind her, Rose kept her eyes on the house, not wanting to miss a thing, and the seconds dragged on as she waited. All she needed to see was a bump, or some maternity wear, just to tell them what situation Tommy was dealing with. All the house seemed to have shiny net curtains in the window, screening the inside from view, and Rose sighed and started to give up hope, when slowly, it all panned out.

Slide 56: 

The was only one set of windows upstairs with no curtains on the other side, and that was those belonging to the bedroom door that opened out onto the balcony. Watching with baited breath, Rose observed Lydia undoubtedly waddling across her sightline, past the door and onto the right hand side of the room, presumably to relax on the bed. Whispering because it seemed like the stealthy thing to do, Rose tried to catch the attention of her cousins. ‘Psst, guys. I see her.’ And before Rose could prepare Marie or Tommy for what they were about to see, Marie had joined Rose at the window and just simply announced ‘Oh dear god she’s pregnant.’ all in one breath.

Slide 57: 

Tommy turned around to look, but by the time he had located the window, Lydia had moved out of direct sight, and he could just see the shape of her. But he could tell from the colours he could see through the window that she was pregnant. Gone were her usual jeans and trademark blue, and instead, she almost blended in with the cream bedroom. ‘There. That window on the end.’ Marie said, tilting her head so her glasses caught the glass at the right angle. ‘She’s relaxing, so you might be able to see her shape on the bed. Definite bump.’ Steeling himself, Tommy looked, and had to really concentrate not to let his legs go out from under him as he spotted the shape Marie was referring to. Yes, he mentally agreed, definite bump; before his mind went into overdrive and he could think coherently no longer.

Slide 58: 

Lydia sighed with exasperation, seeing the dark shapes moving in the window across the street. How obvious could they be? But it didn’t matter who they were anyway, spying on her from that wide window; what was done was done, and she had a memento of Tommy, whether he himself came back to her and the baby or not. Placing her hand on the bump, Lydia tried to ignore the photo of her and Tommy smiling down at her from the wall. They’d taken that before he’d moved into the Greek House, right at the beginning of their relationship. So much had happened since then, so many other people and outside influences involved. Lydia almost wished they could go back to that moment, but then she looked down at her stomach, where the baby was growing, and hastily changed her mind. She wouldn’t give this up for the world.

Slide 59: 

‘So what will you all do now?’ Rose asked, turning away from the window and addressing Marie, both of them knowing that they would get no reply from Tommy while he was obviously in shock. ‘Well, we can’t really do anything until the baby’s actually born.’ Marie reasoned. ‘There’s no-one to physically save until then, just a bump.’ ‘What will you do in the mean time?’ ‘Plan. Find distractions. Jamie even mentioned that her and Daryl wanted to get married soon, so that might happen. And then when we have a plan of action, we’ll save that child from the world’s worst mother.’

Slide 60: 

All of this was background noise to Tommy, as he tried and failed to take his eyes away from the house. Lydia was pregnant. With his baby. Those two sentences alone were too much to take, and for a while he merely stood, stunned. He should have expected it, really, there had been enough probability of it being true. But deep down, he had always hoped that Lydia was lying. Somehow it would have been better for her to have lied to get him back, rather than using their child’s existence to get him back. One question now remained. Would she get him back?

Slide 61: 

Having met them at the front door and shown Felicity into the main room, Olive had told her cousins to go round the edge of the house, and she ran out of the side door to greet them in the garden. First to arrive was Melody, and on first sight Olive felt like she was looking in a mirror. Although there were obvious differences between the two girls, Olive knew that they were similar personalities just from the way Melody walked, and the expressions on her face. It was clear that the two of them were going to get along. Following Melody with a grin on his face was her twin Leo, who looked nothing like her. Olive giggled at the cool blue hair Leo sported, and turned to greet the final cousin to arrive, Lucas. He had red hair, unlike the rest of them, and was a bit more serious than they all were; but he was a welcome addition to the party.

Slide 62: 

And once all of her cousins were in earshot, Olive gave them the details of what she planned for the day. ‘So, we’ve got swings, a sandpit and slides to play on, but my parents said we’re a bit young for going in the swimming pool on our own, so we’ll leave that today.’ ‘You have an amazing garden.’ Lucas replied quietly, taking in the huge play area and trying to block out the vision of his house and comparatively empty yard behind it. ‘So what shall we do first?’ Melody asked Olive, leaning in with excitement. Knowing that she and Melody would get along anyway, Olive decided to try and include everyone, and suggested pairing off in opposites first, heading off to the swings with Lucas behind her.

Slide 63: 

‘So how’s life been for the two of you recently?’ Felicity was asking her in-laws inside. Piaget, always with a beaming smile at this time of life, immediately replied positively. ‘Oh, it’s all wonderful.’ he grinned. ‘The kids are great, the babies are really well behaved and Olive and Elle are getting along.’ ‘It’s been busy though.’ Chloe added. ‘Bandura and Shaun have been invaluable, with all the time they give, and the unconditional love they have for the children. They’re structuring their days around the alien twins at the moment, and it helps us to have more time with the older girls if they’re able to look after the babies a bit more.’ She relaxed, having said her piece, and turned the conversation round to Felicity with a ‘How have things been for you?’ Felicity sighed, wondering what to start with first.

Slide 64: 

‘Well, the twins are amazing.’ she began. ‘Leo’s so sweet and energetic, and he really reminds me of how Latané used to be at school, so enthusiastic about everything and everyone. My Dad loves them both and enjoys spending time with them so much. He’s got into a routine of reading them a story at night, and they love that time with him. Mother’s still not back, but we cope well enough.’ Felicity paused, wondering when to mention what. After some consideration, she decided to go with the good parts first; discussion of the difficulties could wait. ‘Latané's shooting up the career ladder in the army. We see him a little less in the day, but with the twins starting school tomorrow, it won’t matter too much, they’ll be out when he is. We’re doing fine financially with his wage, and it’s bringing us all closer being self-sufficient.’

Slide 65: 

Then her sighing took over. ‘But I just know the happiness can’t last. Latané had a phone call from Mother a few days ago, and she almost admitted to having an affair. I haven’t been able to tell Dad, he’d never take it, and he’s so happy at the moment that I don’t want to ruin it. But Mother will come back into our lives at some point and change everything. With the way Melody’s been so far, I’m worried Mother could be a bad influence on her when she comes back.’ Listening for a moment to check the children were still occupied outside, Felicity elaborated. ‘Melody’s so much like Mother. She’s got the same hair colour and features, but it’s the personality that has us worried. She’s very opinionated, and she’s been a little difficult to handle so far. Latané knows more of what to do, and Dad just accepts the way she is, but I can’t help thinking that she’s going to be too much for us. I don’t want her trying to emulate the grandmother she hasn’t met and hurting Dad, or us, or her brother.’

Slide 66: 

‘But do her and Leo get along?’ Piaget asked, remembering his childhood and his habit of playing shadow to the more outgoing Latané. ‘Does she act more kindly to him than to adults?’ ‘As toddlers she did.’ Felicity nodded. ‘But since they grew up yesterday, she’s been a bit….cold to him.’ she tried, searching for the right word. ‘I don’t think she quite understands him, and she’s just testing their relationship as twins, seeing how much she can get away with. I just don’t know when to leave them be, and when to step in.’ Chloe listened in contemplative silence. This was what they’d worried would happen with Olive and Elle, but with their children, both had been able to hold their own, and they were bonding despite their ages and differences. Nice little Leo, it seemed, was being a bit steamrollered, and Chloe hoped that the today with all four children involved, he would get a chance to join in.

Slide 67: 

Outside, Olive was thinking the same thing. After suggesting they pair up, knowing that she had least in common with Lucas, she realised she had left the twins to play together, and Melody had immediately launched into a rough game of cops and robbers. Leo, seemingly with too much imagination, was looking at his sister’s gun-holding stance in confusion, unsure of when she was going to pounce, and what the aim of the game was. Rolling her eyes, Olive stopped the swing with her feet and called to Lucas to do the same, making her way over to the slides and hoping that all three of her cousins would follow her.

Slide 68: 

But as she stood on the top of the slide after her enthusiastic run over to use it, she could see that her cousins weren’t paying attention to her and hadn’t followed her lead. Lucas was busy struggling to stop the swing, having never used one before, and on seeing Olive, he called over that he was on his way. He swung backwards and forwards, slowing the swing bit by bit and scuffing his feet on the grass to drop the momentum and get himself off the contraption. Well, Olive thought, that meant that she had the attention of one of them at least. Casting her attention to her other cousins, she stood in thought.

Slide 69: 

Melody and Leo had moved over to the other side of the garden, Melody in hot pursuit of her brother, alternating between the cop and the robber, and shouting to Leo to keep up. Leo’s face still wore the scared look, and Olive noticed that he hadn’t as yet worked out how to handle his twin, and with his nice and trusting nature had expected his sister to be the same. Watching as they neared the pool, Olive knew that she had to do something. They couldn’t all play on one toy together, so she had to think on her feet. This was her house, and she was in charge; it was up to her to solve this one.

Slide 70: 

‘It sounds like the older four kids will work well as a unit though.’ Piaget commented. ‘Olive’s similar to Melody in personality and looks,’ he added ‘but I think with her siblings being more resilient to her commands she’s toned down already. She spent last night calmly teaching Elle to play the xylophone, although she was under the watchful eye of Grandma. I can’t wait to see what Mihaly and Zara will grow up to be like, and how the dynamic between the four of them changes as they all age and grow together.’ Chloe laughed, playfully tapping Piaget ‘Always with the research on the children.’ she moaned good naturedly. ‘But you do have a point.’

Slide 71: 

‘Yes, you do.’ Felicity agreed. ‘I think Leo and Melody bring out the worst in each other with their personalities. Melody makes Leo quieter and more withdrawn, while he encourages her to take more liberties as he doesn’t complain to anything, he just tries to get away.’ ‘But it doesn’t have to be that way.’ Chloe reasoned. ‘Hopefully today will show them how to play with others, with different personalities. It’s nice for them to have so many relatives their age, and I think all of them will grow from today’s meeting.’ ‘I hope you’re right.’ Felicity sighed. ‘Well, I can go and check on them, if you like?’ Piaget asked. ‘I hear Elle crying down the hall, so I’ll get her out of bed and take her outside too. I’ll see what they’re up to.’

Slide 72: 

What they were currently up to was at that point in the hands of Olive. She had gone down the slide full of plans, and sat at the bottom for a moment, wondering what the best idea was. On seeing Lucas finally in control of the swing and making his way over, Olive put on her best big sister voice, and called to Melody and Leo from the side of the slide set. ‘Right, meeting time everyone! Let’s plan something we can all do, please!’ Leo’s expression changed to one of gratefulness, and he turned and ran over, speedily followed by Melody, who then had no-one to play with. And with all her friends assembled, Olive sat down and began the meeting.

Slide 73: 

‘Right, so what can we do that involves all of us?’ she asked, looking at each of her cousins in turn. ‘I don’t want anyone left out or upset in my garden, and I want to get to know you all.’ ‘Well you have so many cool things here, we could play with everything!’ Lucas replied, still full of awe for all the amazing toys the main house had. ‘But we can’t fit four of us on most things.’ Olive replied sadly, eyeing her favourite sandcastle and wary of it being damaged. ‘I want to play with you all.’ ‘Well couldn’t we switch partners and change round?’ Melody asked, but Olive could see the downsides to that and quickly put her opinion across.

Slide 74: 

‘We could; but it’d get too complicated, and we don’t really have all that much time to play before my baby siblings grow up at six.’ She looked round at all the garden toys for inspiration, imagining how they would play with everything and how she could involve all of them. ‘Oh, I wish we could go in the swimming pool. We’d all be able to play in there.’ ‘Yeah, but we don’t have swimming stuff with us, and we’d end up tired for the party.’ Melody pointed out. ‘But I like your thinking. Is there anything more active we can do? I like sports.’ ‘Me too.’ Olive agreed, before mentally noting that she would play sports with Melody in future, when they had more time.

Slide 75: 

‘Well I’m happy to go along with what you think is best, Olive.’ Leo added diplomatically. ‘What do you usually do out here?’ ‘Erm, well I’ve only been a child for a short time, like we all have.’ Olive floundered. ‘Everything looks fun to me, but then none of it’s made for a lot of us to enjoy together.’ ‘It’s nice to talk, too though.’ Lucas added. ‘Even if we’re not playing right now, it’s nice to chat and get to know each other.’ ‘Yeah, but it’s such a good day to play outside!’ Melody replied. ‘We can’t waste the day and the lovely weather!’

Slide 76: 

Olive nodded, taking in all the opinions. There was too much to think about, too many people to balance. But then, she realised, soon there would be this many children living in the main house, and she would be the oldest and still in charge. Hoping her sisters and brother would be easy to play with, Olive focused again on the current situation, and was about to give up when she saw the side door of the house open and a familiar figure emerge, hopefully with lots of ideas. ‘Daddy!’ she called to Piaget, as he came out to the garden with Elle.

Slide 77: 

‘Hi Olive, why are you all sitting on the grass and not playing?’ Piaget smiled, greeting his daughter and shaking his head at the funny picture the children made, surrounded by fun activities and doing none of them out of diplomacy. ‘Play!’ added Elle, from her position in Piaget’s arms. ‘Well we don’t know what to do to involve all four of us.’ Olive replied. ‘There’s too many of us for most of the toys.’ ‘Can you think of anything, Uncle Piaget?’ Melody asked.

Slide 78: 

‘Well, with this weather, there is one thing. But you must all promise to be nice, to throw gently, and to stay calm and civilised.’ Piaget replied. Completely confused, Olive asked ‘What do you mean, Daddy?’ ‘A water balloon fight.’ he stated. ‘And trust me, I’ve played with meaner people than you lot, and I’m fine.’ ‘Really? We can play water balloons?’ Lucas asked. ‘Yeah, I’ve got loads of them. We used to have tons of fights as teenagers, and I’ll fill them up and tie the ends for you. But play nicely , because we’ll be sitting right here.’ he gestured to the sandpit. ‘Sounds great!’ Olive enthused, and the children stood up and ran over to play the new game.

Slide 79: 

And with Piaget’s help, they were soon stood on the grass at the back of the house, in battle formation. ‘Let’s all shout something about ourselves when we throw, so we get to know each other too.’ Olive decided, holding her balloon in the air. ‘I’ll go first. I have two little sisters and a brother.’ she told them, launching the water balloon at Lucas. ‘I have two sisters!’ he replied at speed, throwing his right back at Olive. Leo watched as the water hit the two of them and they laughed, convincing him there was no danger. Edging slightly closer to Lucas so that he had back-up, he picked up a balloon and joined in.

Slide 80: 

Soon, shouts of ‘I like reading!’ ‘I’m worried about starting school tomorrow!’ and ‘I like this game!’ could be heard ringing out across the garden as the four children ran around and hurled the balloons, some of them quickly learning to dodge, and others shaking water from their clothes as the sun rapidly dried them. ‘Let’s play boys versus girls!’ Olive then decided, moving the formation round slightly so that they had different people to talk to and the game stayed interesting. ‘How many balloons have we got left?’ Melody asked. Olive eyed the pile. ‘Daddy!’ she shouted. ‘We need more balloons!’

Slide 81: 

‘Coming!’ Piaget replied, before rolling his eyes at Elle. ‘I hope you’re not this loud when you grow up.’ he laughed. ‘Four demanding toddlers are difficult enough, but four children is a different thing altogether.’ ‘I’ll be good, Daddy.’ Elle replied, managing her first full coherent sentence, and making Piaget’s grin even wider. ‘I’m sure you will be.’ Piaget replied, before being interrupted. ‘Uncle Piaget, please! They’ve got the last balloon!’ Leo called, before Piaget knew that he had to go over and keep the game going in a fair way.

Slide 82: 

And after the stocks had been replenished, the game went back to being every person for themselves. Piaget sat with his back to the game, so that the kids knew he could hear them and that he was keeping an ear out for any foul play, but they also felt independent enough and as though they were playing outside on their own still. The game went on for hours, with everyone getting to know each other and gaining trust for the members of their family they would be going to school with the next day. And at four o’clock, Lucas was called home from across the street, as his baby sisters were about to become toddlers, and he was wanted at home for their birthday party. ‘See you guys later!’ he called to his cousins as he left the lot, before adding a polite ‘Thank you for having me over, Uncle Piaget!’

Slide 83: 

Lucas arrived just on time, as the birthday party was getting going. This time, it was Deanna and Oatley holding the babies, as Donnie was out at work. That morning, while Lucas had been at the main house, Donnie had been sulking and pouting as he marched around the house in his SWAT Team uniform. He was missing the birthday party of his twin daughters, Isabella and Maya, as they would become toddlers in the afternoon, earlier on so that everyone could go to the main house, and as such, while he was out. Donnie had gone, despite his moaning; and he had left while saying goodbye to his babies for the last time in this life stage. He would just have to wait and see what they were like when he came home, he told himself. And, he added in thought, he would then never miss a birthday again. Oatley and Deanna, however, were ecstatic to be ageing the girls into their toddler years. Oatley held Isabella, the blue eyed baby; and Deanna held Maya, who had her green eyes through the Lotharios.

Slide 84: 

Happily bouncing the babies and singing along with the happy birthday chorus, Oatley and Deanna looked at the small gathering of their lovely family. Right in front of the birthday celebrations, whirling his noisemaker with every effort he could muster, was Lucas. He took his role as big brother seriously, knowing that he needed to be a good role model to Issy and Maya, and to protect them and look out for them as well as loving them for who they were. His Grandad proudly smiled at him, knowing that Lucas was also trying to make up for the absence of his Dad, and he tickled Isabella as he remarked on how enthusiastic Lucas was.

Slide 85: 

And as Oatley blew out the candles with his granddaughter, he noted Mehrissa on his right, too. Just as enthusiastic as her son was, and successfully hiding her disappointment in Donnie's work schedule, Mehrissa was throwing herself into the party spirit. She had complained a little about the way things had worked out that day, but as Donnie insisted he wouldn’t let it happen again, she had accepted it. After all, Donnie was working towards his life’s goal and she was there to see the babies grow up, and was excitedly waiting to see who her daughters would grow up to be. As Deanna and Maya joined in blowing their candles out too, they didn’t have to wait long to see who the girls took after the most.

Slide 86: 

‘Daddy, Daddy, Isabella and Maya grew up!’ Lucas shouted an hour later, as Donnie arrived home and was greeted with an enthusiastic hug from his son. Fighting sarcasm at being told what was obvious, Donnie replied ‘Oh did they, and how do they look?’ ‘Well, Issy looks like me, and Maya looks like you.’ ‘They look like us? But they’re girls!’ Donnie laughed at his son’s no-nonsense comparisons. ‘But they do!’ Lucas protested, grabbing Donnie’s hand and pulling him forcefully towards the house. ‘You’ll see!’

Slide 87: 

And as he looked on at his children in the newly built playroom, Donnie had to admit, Lucas was right. Isabella was beautiful, even at this young age, with Mehrissa’s features and the same calm personality as her big brother. The blue dress she had been put in suited her, and her hair had been painstakingly plaited by Mehrissa. Maya’s hair had been plaited too, on the opposite side to her twin, and she had a ribbon in hers, green to match her eyes and her more active clothes. But there the similarities ended. When Lucas had said that Maya looked like her Dad, Donnie hadn’t been able to believe it. But looking at her, grinning away and throwing blocks around carelessly, she really was his spitting image, albeit with red hair and female features. Leaving the girls to play while their Aunt Sadie watched over them, the rest of the family then went back to the main house for the second birthday that day. And this one would be infinitely more busy.

Slide 88: 

Everyone had thankfully arrived on time to see Mihaly and Zara ageing to toddler, and the main house kitchen was once again crammed to the walls with people. There were some interesting thoughts going on, as everyone prepared for the birthday candles to be lit and the songs to be sung. Donnie was smiling, for once, full of the joys of his lovely daughters, rather than feeling bitter that he had missed their birthday. Tommy was slowly coming back to reality, standing near the back as always, with plans forming in his mind. It was, at least, easier to form a plan of action now that he knew the truth. Better to be a father-to-be than not to know the future at all, he realised, and now he had two whole days of preparation ahead of him. He was suddenly grateful for all these young relatives with birthdays, for providing something to do, and a reason to mix with the people he loved.

Slide 89: 

As with the last house, it was the grandparents doing the ageing, as Shaun hadn’t transitioned anyone yet, and Piaget felt mean showing a preference for one twin over the other. So it was Bandura holding Zara, while Shaun proudly held Mihaly. While Shaun rocked Mihaly over the cake and looked happily down at his grandson, Bandura took a moment to look at all her relatives as Zara giggled in her arms. It was so nice to have everyone here, and with the family so big now, they really felt like a solid, strong unit. Casting her eyes about as usual, looking for her son, Bandura’s gaze rested on Piaget as he stood calmly next to his wife.

Slide 90: 

‘Aren’t they wonderful?’ Chloe asked quietly in Piaget’s ear. ‘Mum and Dad, or Mihaly and Zara?’ Piaget replied. ‘Both.’ his wife smiled. ‘Yes, they are. I’m ready for the children to grow up, to take another step towards who they’ll eventually become. It’s so exciting to see who they all take after and what they get from us. I feel so lucky to have four wonderful children. And as for Mum and Dad, they’re invaluable. I don’t know what we’d have done without them.’ ‘No, me neither.’ Chloe agreed, looking over at their oldest daughter in resignation.

Slide 91: 

Singing at the top of her lungs, which was a considerable volume, Olive had gathered in all of the older children from the garden, and together they took up one side of the room. Whoever had given Olive a noisemaker needn’t have, as she made enough noise all on her own, and she was currently putting her arm on her cousin Leo’s shoulder, to comfort him in the presence of so many strangers. Rose caught Chloe’s glance and laughed, looking down at the raucous children she was lumbered with and laughing. ‘Sorry!’ Chloe mouthed, gesturing to her daughter and shaking her head with a smile on her face.

Slide 92: 

While all this was going on, Piaget hadn’t taken his eyes off the twins for a second, committing all of their baby traits to memory. These were the last babies that there would ever be in the main house, and while the family had made the most of them, Piaget knew that this birthday was the end of an era. And they were all ready for it. ‘Are you ready?’ Shaun was asking as he tickled Mihaly, and Bandura stood waiting, having blown the candles out with Zara and wanting Shaun to keep up. But, as Zara had been born first, she was inevitably the one to age to toddler first too.

Slide 93: 

With a wide silent grin Zara transitioned, safe in her Grandma’s arms and happy there. Bandura laughed at the picture Zara made, a beaming alien smile with Freud’s old telescope in the background outside. The challenge had finally met its aim, and Bandura thought she would burst with pride as she looked at her youngest granddaughter. ‘You’re perfect.’ was her immediate verdict, and then she stood back with Zara in her arms, waiting for Mihaly to age too.

Slide 94: 

Shaun had gone over to one side of the room to age Mihaly, being too cramped near the table to get a good look at his grandson. And it seemed that the young alien got a lot from his Psychologist side. With Piaget and Shaun’s eye colour and face shape, Mihaly had obvious differences in genetics to his sister, and he reminded Shaun of both Latané and Piaget at that age. But one thing had to change. ‘Let’s get you a new hairstyle.’ Shaun decided, to which Mihaly nodded. ‘I think you deserve your own style, don’t you?’

Slide 95: 

And when it became apparent that Mihaly was nowhere near as neat as all of his sisters, his hairstyle ended up reflecting that. Posing quietly, the twins sat together in the high chairs for a picture, while Olive said goodbye to all her cousins at the door and promised to see them at school the next day. From being full of people at the busy birthday, the house went back to being relatively quiet, with the eight residents having time to spend with each other. Each adult took one child each and then switched as the evening went on, with personalities to ascertain and conversations to have. It was going to be a fun night as a full family.

Slide 96: 

On the way back from the party, as members of the extended family went to their different houses and said goodbye, Tommy walked along a little further with Jamie and Daryl, as he was staying next door to them in the much larger house with the Rileys. As they reached the house, Daryl called goodbye and went inside, knowing that the twins wanted some time to spend together. It had been such a busy few days since Tommy came back that this was the first time he’d been alone with his twin sister, and he had a lot to talk to her about. First, they discussed the fact that Lydia was pregnant, and what Tommy thought of it, before Tommy decided that he’d rather not talk about the fact for a day or so, while they were merely waiting for Lydia to have the baby so they could rescue it.

Slide 97: 

‘So what will you do while you’re waiting?’ Jamie asked. ‘Are you okay at the Riley house? Do you have enough to do?’ Tommy shrugged, throwing his arms wide. ‘I don’t really know. I haven’t spent much time there, what with all the meetings, and birthdays, and family gatherings. I think either I’ll need distractions or something will come up to keep my mind occupied.’ ‘Well, see that’s what me and Daryl were thinking.’ Jamie replied. Tommy could already see where this was going, and stopped his sister in her tracks. ‘No, Jamie, don’t compromise your happiness and just rush through your wedding for me. You’re always putting yourself second to everyone, don’t do it now.’ ‘But we want to get married.’ Jamie insisted.

Slide 98: 

‘But for the right reasons.’ Tommy replied. ‘It would be for the right reasons. We have talked this through, Daryl’s been holding off the wedding until you were back; I love him so much and I want to show it. We’ve been engaged for years, Tommy, we want to get married.’ ‘Why now?’ ‘Because you’re back. I had an argument with Daryl when we first moved home, refused to marry him without you here. I wanted you there, my brother and my best friend. And now you’re back and you’re free. Once the baby’s born we’ll be planning how to rescue it, we’ll be so busy. Now is the perfect time for us to get married, nothing else is happening. There’s no birthdays tomorrow and nothing planned, just the kids at school.’ Tommy gulped. ‘You want to get married tomorrow ?’

Slide 99: 

‘Yes. The time is right, everything’s been planned for weeks and we’re ready for this. I’ve talked through it with Daryl, and his only objection was that we hadn’t been able to marry sooner. I promise you, there isn’t a couple to be found in hundreds of miles who are more ready to marry than we are. We just wanted everyone else to be ready at the same time as us.’ Tommy waited before he replied, regarding his well-meaning twin. It did seem that Jamie and Daryl had thought of everything. If they’d got it all planned and had been waiting for everything to fall into place, then now would be the right time. Jamie was right, this was not only the lull after all the activity of Tommy’s rescue, but it was also the calm before the storm of rescuing the baby. There would never again be such a good, quiet day for Jamie to marry, whether she was putting other people first or not. ‘Well, if you’re sure.’ Tommy finally said. ‘I would love to be at your wedding, and you’re right, tomorrow is a perfect day for it. Nice summer weather, all the family available, and no distractions. Go for it, J.’

Slide 100: 

‘Thank you.’ Jamie breathed, unconsciously relaxing as she gained her brother’s approval. ‘It means the world to us to have everyone we love at our wedding. It’s going to be wonderful.’ ‘So it will. When two people love each other as you two obviously do, then the day can’t help but be perfect.’ Tommy smiled. ‘So, do you want me to ring people up, or are you ok to do it?’ he asked, knowing of Jamie’s utter fear of the telephone. Jamie gulped. ‘No, I was going to let Mum do it. I’ll make one call to her, and she can do the rest. She’s got more contacts than me, and she loves calling people up.’ ‘Good idea. She’ll be so pleased to have something to celebrate.’ Tommy agreed, before congratulating Jamie again and going to his temporary home next door.

Slide 101: 

Leaving Jamie to confront the phone. She hated calling people up, hearing a disembodied voice on the other end and not being able to gauge any reactions of the person other than hearing the emotion in their voice. It was too much for her shy nature, and she usually only called people if she absolutely had to. And today was one of those days, as Penny needed to be brought up to date, and given the good news. Hearing the dialling tone give way to a click, Jamie took a deep breath and launched herself into the phone call, getting all of the facts out of the way in one go. ‘ Allo !’ Penny answered, random as usual. ‘Hi Mum, it’s Jamie. Um, I just wanted to let you know, me and Daryl are getting married tomorrow. Can you tell everyone please?’

Slide 102: 

‘Tomorrow?’ Penny asked, echoing Tommy’s sentiments. ‘You decided, just now, to get married tomorrow?’ ‘ We’ve got it all worked out. It’s been planned for a long time, I just got everything sorted today .’ Jamie replied, before explaining the same plan as she had to Tommy, and showing Penny why it was the perfect time for her to get married. ‘Well, I suppose I did get married on the day I graduated. By the standards of our family, you’ve waited a very long time!’ Penny laughed. ‘And are you sure you want everyone there? It’s a lot of people for you to handle, you know.’ Jamie gulped. ‘ I know. But they’re all family and they should all be part of it. I’ll just have to get past my nerves and focus on Daryl, which won’t be difficult. ’

Slide 103: 

‘So you’re really getting married tomorrow?’ Penny checked, allowing her smile to take over. ‘My youngest girl, finally tying the knot.’ she sighed wistfully. Cale could then suddenly be heard in the background cheering and shouting encouragement once he understood what the phone call was about and Penny rolled her eyes at him before telling Jamie ‘Well, your Dad definitely approves.’ Jamie giggled, listening for a moment to all of Cale’s woops and shouts, happy that he was pleased for her. ‘ And there’s another reason I called.’ she added. ‘I was wondering if you could spread the news for me. ’ ‘Of course, I’d be happy to.’ Penny replied. ‘I’ll call them all up. What time shall I say?’ ‘ Four. I know the kids want to come to the wedding, so I’ll give them time to finish school and get ready. ’ ‘Four it is then.’ Penny replied, before hanging up, and starting the marathon of phone calls to all of her relatives.

Slide 104: 

And she saved the best until last, calling Bandura as the sun was setting and she knew that the main house would be settling down and getting calmer. ‘Hey, B.’ she greeted her sister, a little worn out from all the tens of phone calls she’d made, but happy to talk to Bandura regardless. ‘Hi Pen, what makes you ring so soon after a party?’ Bandura teased. ‘Well, I’ve got some news; Jamie and Daryl are getting married tomorrow, at 4pm. You’re all invited; well, all of you who are old enough to don formal wear and walk over.’ ‘A wedding, how lovely!’ Bandura replied, before doing all the usual checking that Jamie was happy, Daryl had been consulted, and then being told about Tommy’s news and the baby that Lydia was carrying. ‘It’s a rather full week for your family, then.’ Bandura said gently. ‘It is,’ replied Penny ‘but we’ll get through it all together, happy and sad moments.’ and with fond goodbyes, the sisters put down the phone.

Slide 105: 

No sooner had Bandura turned to put the phone back on the wall, she was surprised to hear a little voice next to her, as Olive had approached her unseen while she was on the phone. ‘Grandma, did you say wedding?’ she asked. ‘Yes, your Auntie Jamie’s; tomorrow after you finish school. We’re all invited, if you want to go.’ ‘Oh yes please!’ Olive said enthusiastically. ‘Auntie Jamie’s nice and I’d like to be at a wedding. Er, will Melody be going?’ she added, not too inconspicuously. Bandura smiled. ‘I imagine she will.’

Slide 106: 

‘Can I call her up now? Can I use the phone?’ Olive suddenly asked her, rounding on her with a wide smile as soon as Bandura had replaced the phone on its holder. ‘Um, well, you can, but what do you want to call her for? You’ve spent all day playing outside with your cousins; and your siblings would like to spend time with you too.’ ‘But I haven’t talked to Melody on her own yet, not really.’ Olive insisted. ‘I was balancing all three of them earlier, making sure they were all happy. I want to chat to Melody about school and hobbies, and discuss our dresses for the wedding.’ Seeing that this was a discussion with only one outcome, Bandura sighed at her outgoing granddaughter. ‘Oh go on then.’ she indulged her. ‘But make sure she’s awake and allowed on the phone first.’ ‘I promise Grandma!’ Olive replied, before being handed the phone with the number typed in, and waiting for someone to pick up.

Slide 107: 

‘ Hart-Psychologist house .’ A male voice that sounded vaguely familiar answered. Ever quick to pick things up, Olive realised the voice was familiar because it sounded like her Dad, and if the voice was similar, that meant it could only be one person she was talking to. ‘Hi, you must be my Uncle Latané. My name’s Olive, my Dad is Piaget and I’d like to talk to Melody please, if I’m allowed.’ Hearing a chuckle on the other end of the phone, Olive waited patiently while Latané composed himself, and replied ‘ Hi Olive, nice to talk to you in person. I’ve heard a lot about you; Melody and Leo have been telling me all about the amazing day they spent in your garden today. I’ll just check if Melody’s awake, I’m sure she’ll come to the phone regardless anyway. ’ The phone beeped as Latané put it on hold, and Olive stood in wait, before the line opened again and a young voice came on the line.

Slide 108: 

‘ Daddy what do I do with it? ’ Melody was asking. ‘ Just talk into the bit at the end, Olive will answer. ’ Latané explained. ‘ You’ll get the hang of it, and I’m right here if you have problems. ’ ‘ Hello? ’ Melody’s voice asked, a lot louder and closer to the handset. ‘Hi Melody!’ Olive replied. ‘Are you free to chat?’ ‘ Yeah, I am! ’ ‘Oh good!’ Olive enthused, hearing Melody sit down on something to get comfy, both of them knowing they were in for a long chat as the discussions began.

Slide 109: 

And after Olive had been on the phone to Melody for a while and talked until the adults told them to please get off the phone, Olive went upstairs to spend some time with her siblings. It was very different to the day she’d spent with others her own age, with all three of her siblings being younger than her and less talkative, but Olive found herself enjoying the time immensely. Elle was showing her extra age by chatting to Olive in almost perfect speech patterns, while the twins glowed with their smart milk, their first skills still being learned and their personalities just forming. ‘Cousins nice today.’ Elle was telling Olive. ‘Yes, they’re all lovely.’ Olive smiled. ‘I can’t wait until you’re older and you can join in.’ ‘Me too.’ Elle replied.

Slide 110: 

As the children fell silent for a moment, they could hear the adults’ voices booming up through the floorboards beneath them, their Dad and grandparents discussing the family, while they could hear the swish of their Mum turning pages of a book in the corner. The big topic of the moment was Jamie’s wedding the next day, with many members of the family disagreeing on whether it was the right time, if Jamie was putting Tommy’s feelings first, or how they were all going to make it to the wedding at such short notice. Looking at her siblings, Olive felt disappointed for them that they weren’t old enough to go, but then, if they kept waiting for everyone to be old enough, Auntie Jamie would be too old to marry!

Slide 111: 

For the rest of the evening Olive stayed up and played with her siblings, learning from the way they played and interacted that Zara was painfully shy and very nice, whereas Mihaly was very sloppy and very outgoing. As a unit of four they made a good team, Olive reflected. Looking to her right at Elle, who was now over halfway through her toddler stage and joining in more with conversation and sharing her thoughts more often, Olive smiled, thinking of the future. It was going to be a fun house to grow up in. Presently, their parents came up to get the twins ready for bed, and the noises of baths and stories could be heard, when Bandura then fetched Elle to do the same. Olive was then left alone, and with all the other adults occupied with the toddlers, she went looking for Shaun.

Slide 112: 

When she reached the downstairs rooms, many of the lights were off. Shaun wasn’t to be found in the music room, the study, or in the hallway on the computers, so as the main room was the throughway to the rest of the floor, that’s where Olive headed. It was eerie to see the main room of the house so quiet, with all the lights off, and for a moment Olive stood and focused on the laughter from her younger siblings that she could hear coming from upstairs. So much life in the young voices, and so quiet down here! Looking round, Olive was about to pass through the room and search the kitchen, when she noticed a light colour on one of the sofas.

Slide 113: 

Walking a little closer, she slowly discerned khaki fabric, a pocket along the top, a leg shape, and as she sighed and walked round the edge of the seats, she came upon the man she wanted to find. ‘Oh, Grandad.’ she sighed. Shaun was stretched out along the length of the sofa, at just gone half past eight at night, and it suddenly hit Olive with a direct contrast to all the chatter and life upstairs, with the rest of the family. She tried to scold herself, to play it down and make herself view it as Grandad having a power nap, but as she walked towards him and the automatic lights came to life around her and lit up the room, she couldn’t help but notice the dark circles around his eyes, the age lines etched on his face, and the downturn of his mouth.

Slide 114: 

Putting on a gentle but commanding voice and shaking the worry out of herself as she stood with her hands on her hips, she watched as Shaun woke up. ‘Grandad, why are you asleep down here?’ she asked him ‘You worried me so much when I found you! Are you ok?’ With his granddaughter’s light voice breaking through his sleepy countenance, Shaun sat himself up, rubbing his eyes in surprise at the strength of the now blaring lights. ‘Not ill…tired.’ he managed as he yawned and stretched himself awake. ‘Tired? But it’s only the toddlers’ bed time!’ Olive protested.

Slide 115: 

Shaun relaxed back and slumped in his seat, regarding Olive and her indefatigable stance. ‘I’ve had a long day, Olive. I was just taking a nap while you all spent some time together, don’t you worry about me, I’m just a bit worn out.’ Olive frowned. ‘But I am worried.’ she reiterated. ‘It’s quite early in the day to be sleeping, you’re still young and active for a Grandad, and you do so much!’ ‘That’s part of the problem, I think.’ Shaun admitted. ‘I’ve barely stopped. It’s been a lovely day today, don’t get me wrong, but perhaps I should have drawn the line somewhere. I just want to be useful, to save people in my job and be there for my family the rest of the time, and enjoy my hobbies.’

Slide 116: 

‘But you can’t do all of that every day Grandad, it’s no wonder you’re tired and falling asleep!’ Olive protested. ‘I’m a bit sleepy and I’ve just been running around outside a bit. You’ve been up early, then gone to work, then aged Mihaly and had twenty guests to entertain, then spent the night with the family. Grandad, you look tired. You act tired. What happens if you fly when you’re tired, or make a mistake?’ ‘I won’t make a mistake, I can’t afford to. The world needs a superhero.’ ‘You’re a super Grandad too. Maybe you need to let someone else do some of the saving at your work. Can’t you have some help; I mean, you can’t be the only superhero in the whole world, you’d never be able to sleep, or have a normal life!’ ‘I knew that when I signed up.’ Shaun sighed, remembering all of the days of his children’s lives he had missed, all the milestones, the birthdays, and the special moments. ‘I had a lifetime goal to be Captain Hero, and I can’t just give it up.’

Slide 117: 

Olive stamped her foot. ‘I’m not saying give it up, Grandad. Daddy’s told me you’re the only one who works and brings money in. But you can’t keep doing such a big job on your own.’ ‘Who else could I trust to do my job? If my wages go down, so does the lifestyle of everyone in this house.’ ‘Grandad.’ Olive commanded Shaun’s attention, boring her eyes into his in an effort to make him listen. ‘I might be young, but I know when someone’s tired and working too hard. I want to see you more and I want you to be happy. There must be a way around this; to give you more time to relax and enjoy yourself. You really scared me when I came downstairs and all the lights were off. You’ve always been the active one.’ Looking out of the window in front of him and over to the hills at the side of Pleasantview, Shaun sighed. ‘I think you’re right, Olive. There might well have to be a change’ he agreed.

Slide 118: 

So, no babies born this chapter (for once) but new toddler personalities were: Mihaly: 0,9,4,7,7 Zara: 6,0,10,0,10 Isabella: 10,9,9,1,7 Maya: 10,6,9,1,1 My thanks as always to all my lovely internet friends, and their wonderful stories for providing me with such inspiration. Thanks for reading; and join us next time for a wedding!!!!