Visiting the Family [closed]

"I'm sure they're having fun," Cheshire reassured her.

~~~~

"I do not look like--" Kit was about to say when Bell's last statement registered in his mind. His eyes widen and his body was shaking. "P-P-Pa-" he stammered, "WHAT?! In love??!! HOW!!!??"

Bell looked rather taken aback by Kit's shock. She frowned.

"What's the matter? Papa loves Mama. It's only natural for parents, isn't it?"

She sighed and shook her head. "You're weird."

The backdoor opened and Liseran emerged from it.

"Bell, Kit? Having fun over there? Do you want me to bring the snacks over there?"

Kit spun around and pointed a shaky finger at Liseran, his eyes as wide as bowling balls. "When did you have a baby with my big brother??" Kit exclaimed, all sign of his previous stiff composure gone. "What have you done to my big brother??"

Liseran stood frozen, her eyes almost small as dots as her face turned pale.

"Uh..uh..huh?" Liseran blurbed. Bell frowned at Kit and pushed him slightly.

"Don't you dare talk to my Mama that way! Why are you such a bully!?"

Liseran couldn't intervene and only managed to turn around to the kitchen.

"Uh...Cheshire...!"

Cheshire was long gone, appearing out of thin air right behind Kit, his arm raised just before he brought it down, hitting the little boy over the boy with a resounding bonk.

"Don't ask embarrassing questions!" Cheshire exclaimed, his face redden.

"Gah!" Kit yelped as the fist hit him lightly on the top of the head and pressed down. "But big brother, how?? You said women were scary! You always retreated from girls and- mmmph!"

Cheshire cupped a hand over Kit's mouth, muffling him abruptly. "That's enough out of you..." Cheshire grimaced. Then placing both hands on Kit's shoulders, Cheshire turned him around and knelt in front of him, looking him straight in the eye. "Look kid... A lot of things happened and... I'm in love now. Liseran is a wonderful, amazing lady. She far too good for a guy like me and I'm lucky to have her. Don't ask about the details but Bell is our daughter. I love her and Liseran very much. So be nice to both of them and stop being a military jar head. Now play nice."

With that, Cheshire disappeared, appearing at Liseran's side again. He gave a quick kiss before leading her back into the house.

Kit turned to stare at Bell, his posture stiff and straight once again, but his eyes were looking at her awkwardly.

"There's... there's no way you can be their daughter..."

"What do you mean?" Bell said with a shaky voice, her eyes almost scared of the thought. "They're my parents...of course I'm there daughter."

The little girl's fists clenched tightly and her shoulders hunched up.

"Why are you such a meanie?" She said, trembling. "Why are you saying such hurtful things?"

She lifted her face, tears rolling down in frustration, her face white with rage.

"I...I hate you! You're a big bully and I hope the chivalry demon eats you!"

With that, Bell disappeared. When Kit would look around, he'd see her on the roof hugging her knees.

***

Liseran bit her lip nervously. "I'm sorry about all this...Kit..must be really confused and upset. I would explain to him, but Bell..."

"I wouldn't worry about him," Cheshire said plainly, shrugging indifferently. "That kid may be too stiff for his own good, but if there's on thing I know he is, he is a born gentleman..."

~~~

Kit looked around until he spotted Bell on the roof. His ears drooped over his head and he looked off to the side at the ground for a while, shuffling his feet awkwardly.

A few seconds would pass before Bell would hear wood creaking from someone climbing up the wall and the clack of tiles as someone walked up the roof. Kit sat next to Bell, silent at first, just staring into space for a while before speaking.

"I.. I'm sorry..." he apologized stiffly, his eyes averting to the side, his ears drooped over his head sorrowfully. "I was wrong... if big brother says he's your father then he's your father... And he really seems to love you... I'm sorry for saying a bunch of mean things. I didn't mean to, I just..."

Kit wrapped his arms over his legs and hid his face behind his knees, hiding the embarrassed blush on his cheeks and the pout on his lips. "... I'm just... not good with talking to people..."

Liseran smiled and kissed Cheshire sweetly. "Just like you."

***

No response came from Bell...until Kit would feel her small hand scratching the area behind his right ear. When Kit would look at Bell, her dark eyes would be looking at hin sadly, a sorry smile on her face.

"You're not mean..." she said quietly. She dropped her hand and hugged her knees again. "I was just scared...so I got mad at you."

The little girl shifted in her spot uneasily as she lowered her head.

"I lost Mama and Papa long ago and I was very lonely. But now they are back and I'm happy. I don't want to lose Mama and Papa. Mama said to think before I speak but I didn't and I called you bad even if you didn't mean anything bad on purpose. I'm the mean one...the chivalry demon should eat me instead..."

Bell heaved a big sigh.

"I love Mama and Papa very much. I never want to lose my family..." she turned to Kit. "You're Papa's family so that means you're mine too."

Bell hesitated again before lifting out a hand and smiling sheepishly.

"Can we be friends, then?"

Kit stared at the hand hesitantly, glancing at it and up at Bell repeatedly. He seemed to shrink back as if shying away from the girl. He glanced about until he started looking at Bell who continued to smile at him.

"T-The chivalry demon wouldn't eat you..." he murmured shyly, "Because you're... nice..."

Raising up a shaky hand, he gingerly took Bell's hand and gently held it.

"Let's never be mean then," Bell said.

It was around the same time that the door opened again and Liseran came out fron it carrying the platter of leftover cookie bars. She looked aroumd but saw no children in sight and turned frantically to see them on the roof. Liseran dropped her tray.

"BELL! KIT! WHAT ARE YOU DOING UP THERE!?" she practically screamed. Bell crooned her neck to look closer at Liseran.

"I telepo-"

"No excuse! And don't you dare move or you'll fall!" She said nervously. She reached for Cerinthe but it wasn't there. And with a panicked cry, she called out. "Cheeeeeshiiire!"

Cheshire ran out of the house the moment he heard screaming. "What? What??" Cheshire looked around frantically. Everything seemed to have been normal but Liseran couldn't be screaming for no reason. It was then he noticed that she was looking up at the roof. Turning around, he looked up and his eyes immediately widen.

"WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING UP THERE??" Cheshire yelled. "KIT! I THOUGHT YOU WERE AFRAID OF HEIGHTS!"

It was then that Bell would notice that the grip Kit had on her hand had been steadily increasing and his body was shaking rapidly. He was still trying to hide his face behind his knees.

"Kit...?" Bell asked.

Liseran bit her lip and turned to Cheshire. "Keep an eye on them while I go get Cerinthe. I can get them down."

Before she went in, she looked up at the two children again.

"Don't you two move, okay?" She said. "Just stay calm. I'll have you two down in a moment."

Liseran rushed inside the house and into her room to fetch Weeping Cerinthe, her bell and dagger. She rushed out again.

"Okay, I'm bringing you two down," she said calmly. "Stay still!"

Swishing her bell in a figure eight, Liseran created a black glyph under the two children before ringing her bell again in her direction. The glyph turned blue as it hovered over the roof like a magic carpet before moving away from it and slowly lowerinh down onto the grass.

Liseran disabled the glyph and ran to Kit and Bell.

"Kit, Bell, are you okay? Did you get hurt? What happened? What were you two doing up there?"

She spoke rapidly like the frantic mother she was, gently examining Kit and Bell for cuts and bruises kf any sort before sighing in relief and hugging them as she waited for an answer.

Kit was silent the entire time and as Liseran brought the two kids down, the little boy pressed himself against Liseran as if holding her for support, his shoulders shaking as if he was fighting the urge to cry.

Cheshire sighed in relief, shaking his head in disbelief. "The boy is terrified of heights," Cheshire stated. "Honestly, what could have brought you to make yourself climb up there?"

Kit remained silent, still trying to hide his face from everyone.

"Hush, it's okay, Kit," Liseran said soothingly as she stroked his back. "You're on the ground now. You're safe. Bell, are you alright?"

Bell looked at Liseran solemnly and nodded.

"Mama, Papa, it was my fault," she said sadly. "I got upset and teleported to the roof so Kit followed me. I'm sorry I made you worry. Kit, I'm sorry I made you go up there..."

Now it looked like Bell herself was resisting the urge to cry as well.

Kit pulled away from Liseran, his demeanor calming down a little as his expression looked more apologetic than anything. Cheshire couldn't help but smirk and walk up next to Bell and crouched next to her, placing a hand on her head reassuringly.

"Don't cry now Bell," Cheshire whispered low enough into her ear so that only she would hear, "He worked hard to make himself get up there so you won't cry. You want to make all his effort pointless?"

Bell shook her head and wiped her tears away before leaping over to hug Kit.

"Thank you, Kit," she said hugging him. Liseran let off a small giggle as she tousled Kit's hair.

"That was pretty brave of you. Thank you for looking out for Bell," she smiled before stroking Bell's own hair. "But both of you, please don't do that again. You could've gotten hurt."

She gave the young ones a small squeeze before standing up.

"Well, that's over,"  she sighed in relief. "Kit, Bell, Cheshire suggested we go on a picnic today just to relax. We can all freshen up again before we do and we'll go by the flower fields. Would you like that?"

Bell beamed and nodded.

"I love picnics!" Bell said, not yet letting go of Kit.

While everyone waited for Kit to respond, Cheshire was coughing into his fist, bringing up their attention.

"I wouldn't hold him like that Bell," Cheshire said in monotone. "He uh... he's a lot like me..."

Kit was frozen stiff, stuck in a permanent position at attention, his mouth gaping and his face as red as a cherry.

"D-D-D-Don't get the wr-wr-wrong idea!" Kit stammered, "I-I-It's not like I did it f-f-for you or anything!"

Liseran giggled seeing Kit flustered, but Bell puffed her cheeks and let go. She crossed her arms and turned away from him.

"There's nothing wrong with hugging," she said crossly. "Geez, you sure are weird. And just so you know, I was fine by myself! At least I'm not a scaredy cat."

Liseran couldn't help but chuckle this time.

"Bell, that's not a nice thing to say," she said trying to keep a serious face. But Bell merely pouted her lips.

"He's not being nice either," she muttered. Liseran sighed.

"You two..."

Liseran turned to Cheshire.

"Well, I guess we should get ready," she said. "Does Kit have other clothes? Oh, and I guess we'll need either both Rae rae and Bandersnatch or a car. We could use Aunt Faun's but...I don't know how to drive."

Cheshire was looking off to the side, his hand cupped over his mouth as he tried hard not to laugh.

"I guess I could drive if that's okay," Cheshire said once he managed to calm down.

Liseran smiled.

"Alright then," she said. "I'll call my godmothers. I'm sure they won't mind us getting some fresh air. You should ask Kit if he'd like to freshen up and change into lighter clothes. It's pretty warm. Same goes for you, mister."

She said the last part poking Cheshire teasingly in the chest before heading inside to fetch her scroll. Meanwhile, Bell had stood up and moved back to the willow draped table with an upset look on her face. She appeared to be reading in order to get her mind off things.

Cheshire smirked and examined himself, looking at his attire. "I guess I can make do without the coat for once," he said, popping the collar up. He glanced over noticing Bell looking upside beneath the willow tree. He looked to Kit and nudged him on the shoulder before going back into the house.

Kit glanced around hesitantly, eyeing Bell once in a while before slowly making his way to her and stood in front of her on the opposite side of the table. "What's wrong with you now?" Kit asked.

Bell ignored Kit when she heard him pass the willow leaves and pretended to continue reading. When Kit asked her a question, she didn't look up at him, but spoke.

"Nothing," Bell said flatly, though her cheeks were red in frustration. "But you can sit down here as long as you don't bother me."

***

As Cheshire would enter the house, he would see Liseran with a scroll between her ear and shoulder as she began rolling a piece of dough with a pin on the counter.

"Yes, I'm fine..." Liseran said exasperatedly into her scroll. "No, I'm not being stubborn. Besides, do you really think Cheshire would even be letting me ask if I still felt too sick? Yes, I promise not to overdo it. I just want to help out since Kit deserves time with his big brother. A nice family outing...uhuh. Okay, love you all, too, Aunt Flora."

She put the scroll down and smiled at Cheshire. "It's settled. We can use the car to the fields. Where are the two? Still at the back? Is that really a good idea?"

"They're two kids playing in the backyard and one of them is a textbook boarding school cadet," Cheshire shrugged, "It's not like there's a hundred ways they can get in trouble. Here, let me help you with that..."

~~~

"There is obviously something wrong," Kit said sternly, crossing his arms. "Just tell me already."

"I guess you're right...I'll be fine doing this," Liseran reassured.
"But you can put that chicken casserole in the oven. Speaking of which, does Kit have any favorites and do you want something particular yourself?"

***

Bell squinted. "I said you could stay if you didn't bother me," she stated as she flipped the book. "You're weird. You act all tough and then nice and then tough again. I don't get it. If you don't like me you can just say so."

Her face saddened a bit. "You wouldn't be the first..."

"We're not particularly picky," Cheshire stated as he put the casserole in the oven for Liseran, "But Kit does love fried food. Pretty much anything deep fried he would eat."

~~~

"Wha-" Kit yelped. He was a bit taken back by Bell's statement. He looked off to the side shamefully. "I-It's not like I don't like you," Kit muttered, "I'm just... not good with people... But... Well..." Kit continued being hesitant in his speech, not quiet sure what to say, his face reddening slightly. "People... People like you... I don't... I don't hate people like you..."

"Bell happens to be a fan of fried chicken," Liseran smiled. "I think that and some nuggets should do for the kids...though I'll pack some fruits and veggies to go with it. Heaven knows Bell needs it."

***

Bell looked at Kit curiously with a tilted head as he spoke and then finally stopped frowning to giggle. She shook her head as she closed her book.

"You're funny," she said as she began scratching the area behind his ears again. "But I'm glad you don't hate me. I want to like you very much because you're Papa's family."

She beamed one more time before getting off her chair and smoothing her skirt.

"Let's help with the picnic," she said with an extended hand.

***

For the next couple of hours, everyone would be busy. Food was packed in a multitude of containers before being placed in two large but dainty baskets tied with bows. Bell still wore her dress, but wore a straw hat with a white ribbon along with it while Liseran settled for a lace lavender summer dress with short sleeves.

Aunt Faun's vehicle happened to be a black van of sorts and soon everyone had gotten inside. Following Liseran's directions, Cheshire drove off of the hill and to the outskirts of the city proper, following a path the went past a variety of fields and forests. After passing a wood of evergreen pine trees, the car would reach a large black wrought-iron gate where an old security guard stood. Liseran lowered her window.

"Good morning, sir," she greeted. "We're here to see the fields."

The old guard, a scrawny man with thick round glasses looked a bit surprised at seeing her and squinted before jumping back and pointing a shaky finger.

"Rose Dormirse!? I-impossible! Is it my time? Am I really seeing your ghost??" the guard yelped.

Liseran giggled.

"Very funny, Oscar," Liseran said. "It's me! Liseran!"

The old man put down his finger and laughed in return before placing a hand on her head to tousle her hair a bit. "Yes, I know. You just look like your mother so much."

He looked inside the car, surprised to see all the company.

"Looks like you have quite some people joining you today," he said as he waved. Liseran nodded.

"Yes, it's a family outing," she smiled. Though Oscar raised a curious brow, he merely nodded and pressed a few buttons on the panel next to the gate and his post.

"Very well," Oscar said. "You all have fun. It's absolutely the perfect day! The sky is clear, the wind is just right, the flowers are in season..."

He sighed. "And the little dormouse has come back to the fields to play at last. Enjoy."

The gates opened and led down to a dirt path surrounded by green grass. It twisted downwards and downwards for a few minutes before steadily sloping back to a flat level. Bell gasped as she looked out the window as the trees gave way to an open sky and mountains. As the car stopped and everyone would get out, they'd see acres of soft tall grass and wild flowers of every sort on a vast field.

Moutains enclosed the field on each side and the small bodies of water scattered here and there were so still they reflected the clouds in the sky. A little cottage stood in the middle of it all with a red roof and pale walls. Liseran got out first and opened the door.

"We're here," she smiled.

Kit stared at the scene in awe, completely speechless.

"Liseran, what is this place?" Cheshire asked quizzically.