(no subject)

[mid_nite_green]

They hadn't even opened the door when she showed. She'd brought notes home, surveillance tapes, whatever she could think of to show that Christie was now different. She said she'd do whatever she could to bring her little sister home. All it did was make Mom cry more. Dad was silent the whole time. She'd plead with him, but, ultimately he was the one that shut the door and locked it.

At least she was disowned with some support. Sand had driven and as much as she loved cars, Tara was glad he had.

That's why when she hears her phone play "Born to Run," in the middle of her homework two weeks after everything, she dives for it.

Comments

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

Mark was waiting for a time when he didn't feel anxious about this, but that time probably isn't going to get here. There's also something to be said for the stupidity of waiting around for something to happen. No one's been stupid here, but there has been an awful lot of waiting.

"That took two seconds longer than I thought." Ice-breaker, right?

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, I'm slipping," she admits. She is stupid happy to hear from her little brother. "What's up?"

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

"I think you know under half a dozen people who could talk fast enough to get all of it," he says like a joke even though it's really not. 'Home' has been a buzz of conversation, at least behind closed doors where the "kids" can't hear.

He's the only one now, and you'd think he was completely dumb and not just deaf to miss all this. "Everybody's acting like christmas fruit cake. Nothing's up to panic about, except maybe to talk to someone who's not panicing?"

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"With or without the rum balls?" It's not a much of a joke. There's a sigh. "Okay, you're talking to me. Is anyone else inclined?"

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

"Without, which is scarier. They're still arguing over what to tell everybody. 'Art school' is leading over 'knocked up and sent to relative'." That gets a roll of the eyes; yes, it's ridiculous.

"Mom and dad still ask if I did my homework. It's July, Tara." It's not quite so bleak. There's a shrug on the other side. "They're just not out of 'panic' yet."

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

She'll raise him one pinched nose. "Okay, have they told you what happened, or should I, or would this not be helpful?"

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

"Told me? No. I'm not deaf, either, though. Snapping off a conversation when someone walks in works about as well as telling the jury to disregard on those law shows."

Mark knows very well it's an attempt at 'protecting', but there's been enough protecting already. "That boyfriend and your patient helped her run away, and now she's something else weird and older and made a run for it. I don't know if they believe it, but they're trying to stick the boyfriend blame somewhere. I think they're just blaming the laptop itself and the internet as a whole so at least that's over."

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"They haven't figured out you can get e-mail on your cell yet, huh?" Because she's pretty sure they disconnected the 'net for Mark even though he hasn't done anything. Life with Crystal was sort of like that.

"Yeah...that's a good rundown. Sort of leaves out the going nuts and trying to kill me and the other Outsiders. Oh, and the boyfriend is the older brother of one of the team that's currently missing and presumed...changed by the experience."

"Oh, and Travis ditched me after a fight with the Chimp - while I'm trying to recover Christie. No fucking clue why that happened."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

"Instant messaging, too. And it's not that they don't care, you're just the big girl who can take care of herself." The unspoken says 'Christie, not so much'.

"Sounds like a barrel of laughs." He stops at the part about Travis. He's about to ask 'why?' but she already answered that. "Suck, sis. Major suck." After a second, "I guess if he's gonna be a jerk you're better off without, right?"

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"Um, didn't know if you saw Mark, but the door got shut in my face. Dad didn't even talk to me."

There's a loooong sigh at the next bit. "Yeah...I'm hoping when things chill out around here I can see if this was a space thing or a dump thing. I remember everything about the incident, but emotional crap can get the message garbled."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

She just answered him with that stuff about messages getting garbled. "They'll get over it."

He actually sounds confident about that. "We all could'a noticed something before we did, right? It doesn't make sense to be mad at each other about it. And mom went to church, and that's what the Father said, too." Not that he believes everything they say at church, but he's pretty sure they're right about that forgiveness thing.

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"Mom will believe Father Russel." Just not sure if she believe in me.

"So how about you? College coming this Fall."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

There's a silence that screams 'what now?'

"Yeah, but." He is excited, and it'll be nice to get away from all the drama. New things tend to move people on and it could be a very bright spot for the family. It's not that he's not embracing it. "I guess it's-- I dunno, it all sounds sort of creepy. I don't want to say it to them, but I guess I'm worried if Christie comes home, is it really a good thing? And what if I'm not home?"

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

She sighs. "Good question," she notes soberly. "I can't be there nor the cops all the time. I wouldn't let her in the door. Maybe I can ask Sand for something like those Life Buzz things where you can fall and someone else will come get you back up." There's a grim humor to her voice.

"Christie isn't Christie anymore. That's the big thing." There's a sigh. "Maybe I'm not as much 'Tara,' anymore. I think that might be what happened out there. I mean, I wear a mask and all that but I think after two years some people are putting it together. Sucks, I know."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

Mark's not surprised to hear they have security stuff like that, but it's still weird to be someone who needs it. He's trying to think about it like Tara is his sister, and she's protecting her family, and not that his family is suddenly under 'hero' protection.

But the guys is special forces have to live a lot like that, don't they? That's a lot easier to think about it, and he just wishes maybe his parents would. "It's your job," he says matter-of-factly. "The guys in special forces and secret stuff have that same problem, right? It's not your fault."

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

She snorts. "And Uncle Louie." That would be the uncle that's actually more like a cousin that never gets invited to family reunions because he's suspected of having another "family."

"They do - and thanks for saying so, but it is. They wouldn't have wanted Christie's little schemes if she wasn't our little sister. I she hated me so much during that fight."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

"Tara," he says solidly. There's a purposeful beat to make sure she's listening. "You don't live here. I'm not saying you're not still family, but this isn't the place you call 'home' anymore even if it used to be. Your home is wherever you're needed, that's the job you took and makes you feel full at night, and I get that. I know you know more about that place than I do.

"So trust me when I say I know what's been 'home' in your absence. You were a convenient excuse. Christie hated a lot of things, but she didn't have the gall to work it better for herself. If it hadn't been you, it'd be me. I could have a lot of gripes, too, but you don't see me running away and doing stuff that could kill people. Let's forget the stuff mom and dad tell themselves about this. I love her, too, Tara, but this is her call, and she's dead wrong."

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

Ouch.

There's a long pause at the end of that, but Mark can hear her breathing on the other end.

"Thanks, Mark...really."

[jla-extras.livejournal.com]

Mark chuckles mostly at himself. Sometimes it's scary how easy it is for him to sound like a grown-up. "Hey, even us C+ averages know a smart thing or two."

[green-shield.livejournal.com]

"You know you can do better than that - and the teachers know it." Back to big sister mode.

It damn scary how much he's grown.