3.11 The Mysterious Aging Up of Ottoline Slender

Cadmus smiled. It was the end of a long day.

It had been a joint birthday. Both Jackson and Ottoline had finally reached their adolescence and there were four teenagers roaming around the house, though for the moment it was suspiciously quiet save for the unusual creak and groan of the weathered floor boards. Two cakes nestled comfortably in the refrigerator and, at last, it was just him and his wife.

‘Well, another birthday come and gone,’ he sighed. ‘That wasn’t too bad, was it?’

‘I wish Al had lightened up a little.’

‘Oh, he was fine. He didn’t even pick a fight with Otto.’

‘She has gotten…taller, hasn’t see?’

‘Yes, all the better. Maybe now that they’re both older they’ll stop bickering. It could be worse! In a view years we’ll be seeing them off to college.’

Fawn rose to her feet.

‘Do you think Otto’s…different?’ Fawn asked.

‘That’s a silly question, dear,’ Cadmus chuckled. ‘They’re all different. Do you remember our shock when Al grew up?’

‘He didn’t change this much.’

‘She’s our little girl, Fawn, and she always will be.’

‘I just don’t know that I like this new Otto…’

‘She’s a teenager. Let her experiment! It’ll be good experience.’

‘I’m just wondering how long this will last.’

‘You’re making a big deal out of nothing.’

‘But…but it’s just that she was just an adorable little girl – she was always so sweet and innocent. I don’t know if being a teenager suits her.’

‘Fawn, she’s our daughter, and I think she looks beautiful.’

Cadmus frowned. ‘Please tell me that wasn’t our daughter who just walked through the kitchen.’

Fawn folded her arms dismissively. ‘I’ll find out where she’d hiding the black mascara if you find the hair dye.’

 

2.12 The Time Machine (But Not A Book)

You might have noticed when I was showing the house around that Gareth became an adolescent. It was rather quick and painless. He spent his last day as a child making an igloo. He’s the youngest, see, so once he ages up, no more SecondGen children. They’re all growing up so fast!

I miss Pierette when she was a child. I love her now, still, but she was so cute when she was a kid!

Gareth’s an Animal Lover now. Oh boy. The last thing we need are cats, lions, tigers, and bears running around.

oooo

Pierette had been working feverishly for days in the shed, so when she finally emerged after a long weekend in which there was a great deal of hammering, welding, and near-accidents related to fire, everyone took notice. None had the courage to actually approach and find out what it was that she had been working on.

So early in the morning, Cadmus finally took a stand. He’d heard her dragging something into the spare room late in the night. But when he opened the door, he was greeted with an unexpected sight.

‘Uh…Pierette,’ he said cautiously, ‘I know I’m going to regret asking but…what the heck is that?’

‘A time machine,’ she answered, as if he’d just asked a question about the weather.

‘A time machine,’ he repeated. ‘As in a “going-back-in-time” time machine?’

‘Don’t be silly, Cadmus!’

He let out a sigh of relief.

‘You can go into the future, too!’

‘Oh, boy.’

‘What’s your problem? Normally you love a little danger!’

‘Not when it involves my little sister building a time machine.’

‘It’s perfectly safe. Look, I’ll show you.’

‘Uh…Pierette?’

She didn’t come back for a few hours, after which she regaled the family with a tale of going to the future.

‘It looks a lot like now, but sunnier, and there are aliens running about!’ Pierette explained at the dinner table. ‘I had the most lovely chat with a girl named Clementine. I wanted to bring her back to meet you guys, but the people managing the team stream kicked me back into the present. I wouldn’t have minded so much but they gave me a fine!’

‘What kind of fine?’ Fawn asked, alarmed.

‘Five bucks – can you believe it?’

Fawn breathed a sigh of relief.

‘On account of inflation, in the future, five bucks in the future is the equivilent of 20,000 dollars! Good grief. Clementine gave me a present before I left, though – a guitar! It looks exactly like the guitars we have now, too! Isn’t that strange? You’d think they’d have…I dunno, space guitars!’

Eventually everyone managed to loose interest, on account of her exceedingly strange tale getting too tall to believe.

She got a medal from the mayor, anyways, so that counted for something. She hung it up in the gallery.

 

2.11 The Slender House

I just remembered that I forgot to show you all the new house!

I based it off of a Colonial design because it was simple, but very attractive, and fairly easy to make. Even if it did take me nearly a whole week to perfect the design before I could actually move the Slenders in. Whoops!

Here we have the hall. Our Val is clearly overcome with sheer beauty.

Oh, this is my favourite room! The billiard room! I wanted to put in a library to go with it, but I didn’t end up having enough room so I settled with lots of bookcases which are currently off camera.

The living room, obligatory chess set included. Cadmus was pleased about having it moved indoors. In the cramped house they lived in previously it was outside, and he had to go play out in the snow!

He was not, however, pleased about the inclusion of a TV. I don’t hear anyone else complaining! Mostly he just leaves the room when it’s on, though, I guess that “Good” trait discourages him from sabotaging it.

The kitchen. Gareth is on the prowl for food, I presume. Hey, look, I managed to get a shot of the sky.

My other favourite room: the dining room! I missed the music room from the old slender house quite badly so I kind of kept the idea of a piano surrounded by plants. Hey, look, I managed to get another shot of the sky. Normally I’m good at avoiding those…

An office. Not much to see here.

Upstairs hall. I loved the “open” feeling.

Harry, Val, and Gareth’s bedroom from two angles. They left the beds unmade. How messy!

Harry is currently sleeping and dreaming of microscopes.

Pierette and Hana’s room. They also left their beds unmade…and Hana is also asleep.

A playroom at the very end of the hall. There’s two doors that lead onto balconies in the rear and front of the house, while the staircase seen just around the corner leads into the office downstairs.

The Master Bedroom. The bed is also unmade. What a bunch of slobs.

Hugh’s apartment is in the basement which is accessible through the shed in the backyard. No pictures of that because it slipped me mind.

He is also asleep.

And now, the main course…

…

…

…

…

…

…Wait for it…

…

…

TA DA!

A BIG EMPTY ROOM.

No seriously, this part is under construction. Since the whole “portrait” schpeel wasn’t going all that well I decided to opt for something different: a family gallery filled with “tributes” from each member of the family.

Monet and Faust (rest their souls) are unfortunately too dead to contribute everything, but each of their ten children’s tributes will be in the form of their birthstones. Here they are, all lined up. I’m going to have Hana paint a whole bunch of paintings to decorate this hallway with before she moves out with her brother when she ages up and I’ll think of something unique that each generation can contribute. By the end of the legacy, who knows? Maybe we’ll have a real work of art!

Oh, in case you’re wondering what birthstone belongs to who: (I’ve mostly forgotten myself)

From left to right of the picture:

Ruby = Cadmus

Yellow Sapphire = Eldridge

Tanzanite = Robin

Flourite = Esau

Vampire’s Eye = Carmen

Opal = Pierette

Amethyst = Valentin

Sunstone = Hana

Moonstone = Harry

Jade = Gareth

I wonder what I’ll get the other generations to contribute? More birthstones, perhaps…? Something they created? An award they won? Diplomas? Degrees? Trophies? Something…? Anyone else got ideas?

Hey, I just thought of something that Monet and Faust can contribute!

…Their graves! I could stick them right in the entryway!

That wouldn’t be creepy…

….Right? 😀

2.8 Home, Home Again

The house in question is an old Colonial style home situated on the edge of town. The property is large and there’s plenty of room for a garden and to accommodate Pierette’s mildly disturbing experiments, so Cadmus deduces that it’s the best place to call home. The family relocates in the matter of days.

Fawn is oddly quiet the whole time and when the family enters, he catches her staring absently at the faded wallpaper. But just as he’s about to ask if anything is wrong, he’s interrupted by Gareth.

‘Looks more like a museum than a house,’ said Gareth.

‘Well, it’s a house,’ said Cadmus. ‘And I plan for us to stay here for quite some time, so don’t burn it down!’

‘Tell that to Pierette. Well, I’m off to check out my room.’

Gareth was shortly followed by the rest of his siblings, with the exception of their resident inventor – who muttered something about “the shed” and vanished. Fawn, however, still hadn’t moved.

‘So…you do like it, right?’ Cadmus asked.

‘Oh, of course,’ Fawn smiled mildly. ‘It’s big enough for quite a large family, isn’t it?’

‘Yeah, enough to accommodate mine, that’s for sure! Though I’m not sure for how long…Hana and Harry will be teenagers soon. Can you believe it?’

‘Still, it’d be nice to raise our own children in this house. It has a welcoming feel to it.’

‘I’m not sure it will last that long. I’m sure my brothers and sisters will have fun tearing it apart. The furniture came with it, you know. The lady who used to live here said something about the furniture “belonging with the house”.’

Fawn sighed.

‘Are you sure you’re okay with this? You don’t look very happy.’

‘No, I’m happy. Trust me.’

Cadmus shrugged. ‘If you say so. But…you know, I can’t help but feel like we’ve forgotten something…’

 

‘…Uh…guys?’

‘You locked the door. Could you…possibly unlock it? It’s a bit cold out here.’

‘…Please?’