AMSL Ch: 5

Little Winging was quite possibly the quietest place on Earth. It was a small village in the Surrey region of England. As Mr. Reid drove Luke and his family through town, almost nobody could be seen walking the streets.

Gazing out the car window, Luke could see small groups of kids playing in the parks they passed, but other than them and a few adults watching over the smaller ones, the place was a ghost town—it was perfect. There were no crazy, powerful old men in sight.

Little Winging was the ideal place for Luke and his sister to grow their powers in peace.

"Quiet, isn't it?" Shannon said what they were all thinking.

Her casual observation didn't need an answer, but they got one. So, the Walkers listened when their driver, Mr. Reid, started talking. "It's the weekend; most people are relaxing at home or spending time in London. It’s the same for many villages this close to the city.”

“Have you been through here before then?” Luke’s father asked, trying to strike up a conversation.

“A few times," Mr. Reid lazily shrugged while keeping his eyes on the road.

Luke saw his mother perk up out of the corner of his eye. “In that case, do you know where we can do some quick shopping? We need a few things for the house," she politely asked their suddenly talkative driver.

“I don’t know every store in town, but there’s a Tesco off Main Street. People come from all around to shop there. Shouldn’t take you that long to walk,” Mr. Reid replied in his heavily accented voice.

Luke’s mother frowned in confusion. “Tesco? Do they sell bedsheets and towels? What about food?”

“Bedsheets, towels, food; you name it, they got it,” their driver idly noted.

“Oh, so it’s like a Walmart. That’s perfect,” Luke’s mother beamed.

“What’s Walmart?” Mr. Reid didn't know what Pandora's box he just opened.

Oh boy, the guy was in for it now, Luke thought. His mother loved shopping at Walmart; it was where she went for almost everything.

“Oh, it is just the best place to shop. They have everything at such low prices,” Shannon Walker started to gush about the store as if she were a spokeswoman for the place. She was sitting directly behind Mr. Reid, so she couldn't see his startled expression as she talked on and on about how amazing Walmart was.

“Sounds like a great place,” Mr. Reid could barely get a word in edgewise. Coincidentally, Luke felt the car speed up a bit.

Luke tuned out his mother, more interested in the subdivision they were driving through. The houses were all made of bland brick and looked the same, similar to newer subdivisions back home. The only thing that stood out was the front yards, which had some variety.

As they turned down different streets, Luke did his best to mentally track where they were and pick out which yards needed the most help. His goal was to grow his powers, but that didn't mean he wouldn't try to make some money while doing it.

As they passed by a street called Privet Drive, Luke spotted a group of kids ganging up on a lone boy with black hair and glasses on the other end of the block. The poor kid was trying to escape, and all Luke could do was sigh as they drove past. Bullies were never a good sign. Luke disliked them on principle and tried to avoid them at all costs, but his sister absolutely detested them with a passion.

Because she was an empath and could literally feel other people’s pain, Hailee took great offense to anyone who purposely inflicted it on others. And seeing how she made friends with everyone around her, it was only a matter of time before she got involved, and Luke would need to step in— Again. He would need to keep an eye on her, which would seriously cut into his training time.

They passed a few more streets when the car finally made another turn before stopping in front of a house that had a ‘For Sale’ sign sticking out of the grass on the front lawn. Slapped across the sign was a bright sticker saying ‘sold.’

“Here we are,” Mr. Reid cut off Luke’s mother, who was going on about how many shirts she could get her husband at Walmart for $20. “Number 8 Wisteria Walk. Little Winging, Surrey. Let me help you with your bags," the man practically jumped out of his car, rushing to unload their luggage and no doubt escape.

“Such a nice man,” Luke snickered at his mother’s cluelessness. She was sometimes too nice for her own good and often didn't realize when people were being less than kind to her in return.

One by one, the Walker family shuffled out of their taxi, and together, they stood in front of their new home. One look at it, and you could tell it was built in the late '60s. Almost everything was dated, from the windows and front door to the faded brick it was made of.

The landscaping wasn’t much better; everything was overgrown, and Luke quickly realized that the first yard he'd need to weed would be his own.

"Do we own this house, or does your company own it?" Luke eyed his dad.

“They asked me how many bedrooms we needed and gave me a list of places to choose from,” Luke’s father awkwardly rubbed the back of his head. “They didn’t exactly send me photos….  They did cover the down payment in a way, but we bought it. At least it was for a good price,” he added as if that improved things.

“Now, now, let’s give your father a hard time after we see inside the house.”

"Exactly— Hey!" Raymond gave his wife a betrayed look.

“I’m kidding, Honey. Mostly—" Their mother started to apologize but added that last part at the end with a cheeky grin.

“Hardy-Har, let’s take a look inside.” Raymond Walker marched up to the front door, shaded by an awning and the lockbox hanging from its handle. He fiddled with the dials until the face popped off and retrieved two keys from inside.

Raymond handed one key to Luke’s mother before inserting the other into the door. His father had to jiggle a bit to unlock it, but other than that, he got the door open, and they were inside.

Objectively speaking, it wasn’t that bad.

The wallpaper was horrendous, and the kitchen, like the rest of the house, was small and dated, but Luke couldn’t spot anything overtly wrong as they slowly walked through the place. The only appliances were the oven and fridge, which, while old, were in working order. They’d needed to purchase a microwave and a toaster oven— rip out all the wallpaper, and with a few buckets of paint, they'd have a decent little house.

It only took them ten minutes to walk through every room. The master bedroom was downstairs, while Luke and Hailee’s rooms were upstairs. There was a bathroom in the master bedroom and another between Luke's and Hailee's rooms. The house had a backyard, but it was small and overgrown like the front.

The house was barren. The kitchen cupboards held a few pots and pans and a limited number of utensils, while each bedroom only contained a simple mattress on a metal bed frame with no sheets, pillows, or furniture. Luke also noticed a distinct lack of built-in closets in the bedrooms.

But what really sucked was like in Tacoma, people here didn’t have much use for air-conditioning, so there was no way to deal with the heat other than to open all the windows.

While the Walkers were doing that, Mr. Reid was kind enough to bring their suitcases inside for them.

Once everyone had finished opening windows and Mr. Reid had hauled their luggage into the entryway, the Walkers gathered at the front door. “We can’t thank you enough,” Luke’s father said, shaking Mr. Reid's hand before reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. “How much do I owe you?”

Mr. Reid raised a hand. “I’ve already been paid, Sir.”

“Then, at least let me give you a tip,” Luke’s father insisted, opening his wallet. He pulled out a £20 note and wouldn’t take no for an answer.

Reluctantly, their driver took the money. “Much obliged,” Mr. Reid tipped his hat in a gesture of goodwill before reaching into his back pocket and pulling out a folded-up map. “I hope this is of some help to you and your family." He handed a map of London and the surrounding area, including Little Winging, to Luke's father before turning and leaving without saying anything further.

The family watched him hop into his black sedan and drive off. They stood together and watched until he disappeared around the corner. Once the car was fully out of sight, they looked at each other as if asking, 'What now?'

"It's—forgot to change my watch," Luke’s father grumbled, frowning at his wrist. "Alright, it's 11:17,” he proclaimed after adjusting the tiny dials. “There’s no food in the house, so I say we start making our way to Main Street and stop at one of the cafes we saw coming in. After that, we can go to that store Mr. Reid was telling us about."

“Tesco, Dear," Shannon took joy in reminding him.

“Yeah, that place. I can already feel my wallet getting lighter," Raymond joked, but his wife didn't laugh.

There was an awkward silence, but Shannon didn't hold it over her husband for too long. That said, no one had any better ideas, so after they moved their luggage into their new bedrooms, the Walkers locked up and started following the map they were given.

They made their way down Wisteria Walk, pausing momentarily to glance inside a small convenience store at the end of their block. It was full of snacks Luke had never seen before. A few looked familiar with different names, but that was only a handful of the colorful snacks.

Luke was just happy it was close by in case they needed anything.

To pass the time while they walked, Luke asked his father some questions that had come to mind. "So, Dad, is there anything else your company gave you?"

“Hmm, what?” Raymond was caught flat-footed by the sudden question.

“I mean, they've done so much for us, and you said we each get a thousand pounds to decorate our rooms; is there anything else?” Luke clarified.

“Oh, well, actually, all that was a part of my signing bonus, along with helping me with all the legal documents I needed to fill out."

“And how much was that?" Luke asked, doing his best not to sound as if he was being nosy.

Raymond, Luke’s father, chuckled as they turned down a new street. “I suppose it isn’t that big of a secret. My signing bonus was twenty thousand pounds. Twelve of it was used as the down payment on our house. I paid roughly a thousand for our tickets to fly here. Then there was shipping our things over. Two thousand is set aside for you and Hailee, while the rest will be used to furnish our room and the rest of the house.”

Luke’s eyes widened. They planned to spend five grand to furnish the house? That was almost ten thousand dollars when converted to USD, and that was in 1990’s money, the equivalent of twenty-four thousand dollars in 2024.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Luke’s father playfully tapped Luke on the head. “We’re not spending all of it on furniture. We might use half of it to furnish the house; the rest will go towards getting your mom a car."

“Not you?” Luke was confused; after all, it was his father who had to commute to work.

“Well, that’s the last bonus I haven’t told you about yet,” Luke’s father clarified. “Other than helping me with the paperwork and the twenty grand signing bonus, the company is lending me a car for the first year.”

Luke nodded along; he supposed that made sense. His father’s new employers wouldn’t pay for everything individually; it made way more sense to give him a lump sum and let him handle most things from his end. Still, twenty thousand pounds, that was a lot of money.

That meant Luke's father was the one who sprung for their upgraded airline tickets and the shipping to bring their stuff over. He could've been a lot more frugal with it, but instead, he did his best to cater to his family's wants and needs, even if that meant shipping a bunch of Hailee’s stuffed animals halfway across the world.

“What are we doing next?” Hailee chirped in as she skipped down the sidewalk.

“What do you mean? We get lunch; do some shopping,” their father tried to ruffle Hailee’s hair affectionally.

“Not that,” she ducked out of his reach, hiding on the other side of their mother. “I meant tomorrow and the day after that?”

"Oh, that's a little more complicated," Raymond grimaced.

“We take things one day at a time,” Shannon stepped in for their floundering father. “First, we pick up necessities and food for the house. We'll be roughing it the next few days, but your father has a meeting in London on Monday, where they'll be giving him his company car. After that, we can take a trip into the city and find a furniture store," she told them.

“And then?” Luke’s sister pressed, skipping ahead of their little group.

“Then we get you signed up for school.”

“And then?” Hailee smiled like a gremlin back at their mom.

“We get the house up to snuff," Luke's mother answered, fully aware of what Hailee was doing.

“And then?” Hailee pressed her luck, earning a small laugh from their father, which he tried to hide behind his hand but was unsuccessful.

"Then—" Shannon paused, seemingly unsure herself. "I suppose by then, our stuff should've arrived, and we should hopefully be settled. Maybe we could see the sights before your father starts work.”

“And th—"

Hailee was quickly shushed by their mother, "Okay, that's enough."

Luke’s sister burst into laughter, and it was contagious.

The Walkers continued cracking jokes and enjoying the summer sun, content to put off their problems until they were ready to deal with them.

Eventually, they reached Main Street. They passed by several small shops, one of which was notably a tool store that offered paint.

Luke had no intention of living in a room surrounded by floral wallpaper for the next five years. It would take some work and liberal use of his abilities, but he was sure he could remove it if he had the right tools. But that would have to wait until later.

The Walkers passed a bookstore, a deli, and many other mom-and-pop stores dotting either side of Litle Winging's Main Street, eventually stopping at a little café, where they experienced their first bout of culture shock.

They had already become desensitized to people driving on the opposite side of the road, and there were a few quirks to their new house they weren’t expecting, but other than that, everything had felt standard up until now.

At first, the Walkers didn't even notice it; they just sat at a table outside and patiently waited to be served. Luke was the first to catch on, but his parents quickly noticed it as well. The cafe’s atmosphere was different from places back in Tacoma.

The servers weren’t rushing about, making everything feel much more laid-back and calm. Unlike restaurants in America, the other customers were relatively quiet at their tables and avoided raising their voices while they talked to each other.

“Hello, good afternoon. My name is Emily. Are you new in town or just visiting?” A young woman with brunette hair, brown eyes, and an Irish accent greeted them after sitting at their table for a few minutes.

“New in town,” Luke’s father answered for them.

“Oh!” The waitress was shocked by Luke’s father’s accent. “Americans?”

“In the flesh," their father joked. Hailee giggled while Luke's mother gently shook her head, all too familiar with her husband’s sense of humor.

"That's so cool. Are you all here on holiday?”

“Umm,” Luke smiled at his father’s troubled look.

"Dad, she's asking if we're on vacation,” Luke knowingly smirked.

“Oh! No, sorry, we moved here for my work," Raymond apologized to their hostess.

“That’s great,” Emily seemed to glow in the sunlight. "There isn't much to do here, but it’s a short bus ride into London. Listen to me prattling on; what can I get you to drink?"

“Can I get a soda?” Hailee asked their mom politely.

“Go for it, Honey.”

“Do you have Coca-Cola?” Hailee asked their waitress.

Emily smiled brightly at Luke’s sister as if she were the most adorable thing ever. "We sure do, but so you know, we call it pop here. You can also ask if we have any fizzy drinks," she politely corrected.

“I’ll take a water, please,” Luke ordered while his sister was still processing what she’d just been told.

“One water and one pop. And you two?” Their server turned her attention to Luke's parents.

“Can I get a coffee? I’m still a little tired from the plane,” Luke’s mother sheepishly smiled.

“I’ll take a coke, too, please. Pop!" Raymond had fun correcting himself at the last minute.

"I'll have that out in a minute. In the meantime, here are your menus. Take your time." Luke and his sister were passed kids' menus while their parents got the adult version, and with that, she walked off at a slow and steady pace to get their drinks.

“Wow, this feels totally different than back home," Shannon commented as she looked over her menu.

“Tell me about it,” Luke’s father agreed with their mom. “I feel so relaxed right now. What are you guys having?” He asked the kids.

“I think I’m going to try the fish and chips. I mean, I sort of have to, right?” Luke smiled at his father. This would be his first meal in England, and Luke felt it was only fitting that it be the most stereotypical British lunch possible.

“You know, I think you’re on to something,” Raymond shared his enthusiasm. "I think I'll get the same thing," he proclaimed loudly, drawing attention to their table and practically screaming that they were Americans. At least he noticed his goof and mouthed sorry to the other patrons, who rolled their eyes at him.

While Luke did his best not to laugh at his father, he spotted his sister having trouble from the corner of his eye. “Need help, Hailee?” He offered when he noticed his sister staring at her menu with a lost expression.

"What are chicken dippers?" She asked, pointing at her kids' menu.

“I think that’s just what they call chicken strips here,” Luke patiently explained. “And chips aren’t chips; they mean French fries."

"This is confusing," Hailee growled in frustration.

“You’ll get used to it,” Luke’s mother reassured her. "As for me, I'm getting one of these delicious-sounding salads."

“Gross," their father pretended to gag, only to look apologetic when their mother shot him a look that could cut diamonds.

“Says the man who flies halfway around the world just to get something deep-fried,” Shannon bit back, rolling her eyes exasperated.

“Hope I’m not interrupting," their server chose that exact time to return with their drinks.

“We’re fine,” Shannon waived Emily’s concern, looking slightly embarrassed.

“That’s good. Two pops, one water, and one coffee," Emily narrated as she passed out their drinks.

Luke took a sip of his water while Hailee just stared at the cup in front of her.

“Where’s the ice?” She asked innocently.

Again, Emily smiled at Luke’s sister. “We don’t typically put ice in our drinks.”

“But you have to have ice in your soda,” Hailee stated as if it were fact.

“Hailee, don’t complain,” their mother stated to admonish her, but their server interjected.

"It's okay; I can get her some ice. On a hot day like this, it makes sense.”

“Thank you for being so understanding.”

“It isn’t a problem; I'll be back in a minute," she told them with a perfect server smile before walking off again.

“Man, we must stick out like a sore thumb,” Luke chuckled at Emily’s retreating figure.

“Who doesn’t put ice in their soda?” Hailee crossed her arms in front of her chest and pouted.

The Walker family didn't have much time to discuss cultural norms before their server returned with a small glass of ice. "Here you go," she said, placing it beside his sister's drink.

"Thank you again," their mom felt the need to repeat herself.

“It really isn’t a problem,” Emily assured her. “I could only imagine what it’s like going to a new place and not knowing how they do things.”

"Thank you for being understanding,” their mother continued.

Now it was their server’s turn to look a little embarrassed. “Really, ma’am, it’s fine. There’s no need to apologize so much.”

"Mom, you're making her uncomfortable," Luke pointed out.

“Oh, I’m—" Shannon caught herself before accidentally apologizing again. "Thank you,” she said, full-on blushing now.

Emily took a second to collect herself, and after she did, she raised her notepad and pen. “Now, is everyone ready to order?”

Thankfully, that was where the awkwardness ended. Emily took their orders, and twenty minutes later, they were enjoying their food. Luke and Raymond compared their fish and chips to the same thing back home while Hailee tore through her chicken dippers. Shannon boasted about how good her English garden salad was but was disappointed when no one wanted to try it.

There was a tiny snafu at the end of the meal when Emily had to explain that her tip was included in their bill, but other than that, the Walkers' first British dining experience was a good one. There were things they would do differently next time, but that was given.

Now that they were full, it was time to do some much-needed shopping.

-X-X-X-

Tesco had everything the Walkers needed and more, though it lacked Walmart's diversity. It was a walk to get there, but they let their American impulses take over once they were there. They bought sheets, towels, pillows, more cooking utensils, food for the next few days, and other odds and ends they needed, like soap and trash bags.

It wasn't until they were checking out that the Walkers realized how much they'd bought and needed to carry it all home.

“Are you sure you are okay, Sweety?” Luke’s mother asked him for the fifth time as they walked back.

"Mom, really, I'm fine," Luke raised and lowered the four bags he was carrying to prove that it was nothing.

"Look who's a big, strong man," his mother cooed at the display, and his father gave him an approving nod.

Luke smiled, but inside, he felt bad about deceiving his parents. The bags he was carrying weren't that heavy, but they weighed almost nothing, thanks to him supporting them with his telekinesis. His sister’s hands were also full, but she didn’t need to do such things because she was carrying their pillows.

This was one of those moments where Luke wished he hadn’t decided to keep their powers a secret from their parents. It sucked, but Luke wasn’t going to be changing his mind now.

So, he gritted his teeth and pretended the groceries were heavier than they were until they reached their new home.

Again, their father paused at the door to jiggle the lock open, but while that was happening, Luke got the distinct impression that they were being watched.

He looked up and down the street and quickly realized who was spying on them. In their neighbor's window stood a slightly older woman with her hair put up into a neat bun. She was stroking a rather large-looking cat in her arms while Luke's family carried everything inside. He caught her smiling at him, and since he didn't sense anything from her, he didn't hesitate to return the smile with one of his own before making his way inside.

Luke worked with his family to put everything away, so when their doorbell rang, they were all together to greet the same lady Luke saw in their neighbor’s window standing on their front porch. She was still holding her cat, which looked even bigger up close.

"Afternoon," she greeted them with a smile. “I hope I’m not interrupting you, am I?”

"Not at all," their mother said, taking the lead this time and greeting their neighbor with a welcoming smile. We're still waiting for most of our stuff to come, so there isn’t much to unpack yet.”

The woman’s eyes widened slightly at Shannon's accent, but she chose not to comment on it like their server had. "I'm happy then, but where are my manners," the woman fanned herself as if flustered, though it was hard for her to do so while holding her large cat.

"My name is Mrs. Figg, and this handsome gentleman is Mr. Tibbles,” she introduced herself first before happily gesturing to the cat resting in her arms that somehow seemed to have a smug look on his furry face.

“Aww,” Hailee squealed. “Can I pet him?”

“Possibly,” Mrs. Figg gave Hailee a sheepish smile. “He can be quite temperamental at times; I don't know if he'll allow you to—"

She was interrupted by Mr. Tibbles hopping out of her arms. The cat glanced at all of them before focusing on Hailee. He circled Luke’s sister a few times, sniffing her, before standing on his hind legs, asking to be picked up.

Mrs. Figg looked dumbfounded as Hailee cycled some energy to help lift the large feline into her arms telekinetically. "He's so fluffy," she squealed happily, burying her face into his brown fur.

“Hailee has a way with animals,” Luke smirked at Mrs. Figg, still staring open-mouthed at his sister. Animals didn’t have the same spectrum of emotions humans did, but that didn’t mean they were emotionless. Hailee always knew if animals were happy or sad thanks to her abilities, which allowed her to connect with them far quicker and on a deeper level than most people.

“Is it okay if I pet him?” Luke turned away from Mrs. Figg, who was still stunned, and asked his sister.

"Sure, go for it. He loves the attention. Don't you?" Hailee happily translated for the cat.

Luke held his hand out, allowing the cat to sniff him as he would with any dog. However, the cat didn't seem very interested in him, or at least not as much as he was in Hailee.

When Mr. Tibbles didn't react, Luke took it as a sign of permission to pet him, and his sister was right. The cat's fur was incredibly soft—softer than any animal Luke had ever petted, like massaging a cloud. It felt almost unnatural, in fact—

Luke did his best not to react as he softly stroked the large brown cat with tringle-shaped ears, but Mr. Tibbles seemed to sense this because his head shifted to stare Luke directly in the eyes. There was far too much personality behind those slitted green orbs, not even by cat standards.

Luke could sense it now that he was in contact with Mr. Tibbles. It was small, even smaller than a child's, but this cat definitely had an inner flame or at least the animal equivalent. This was not your typical house cat.

From the corner of his eye, Luke scanned Mrs. Figg again while carefully scratching under Mr. Tibbles's chin, who was still staring at him. For a second, he thought he might have missed sensing her, but that wasn't the case. She had charred remains of an inner fire; she was your normal, average, everyday person. But then, why was her cat so special?

“What breed is he?" Luke lazily asked, pretending as if he didn't care.

Mr. Tibbles's eyes seemed to narrow a fraction, but since his sister didn’t say anything, Luke continued to pet him as if nothing was wrong.

“Oh, he isn’t anything special,” Mrs. Figg suspiciously glossed over Luke’s question. “Mr. Tibbles and his siblings are a mix of just about everything," she expertly deflected.

“You have more cats?” Hailee grinned.

“Quite a few, I'm afraid." Mrs. Figg made a sad face as if saying, 'What can you do?' “Ever since my husband passed over a decade ago, I seem to pick up more of them every year.

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Shannon held her hands to her chest as if her heart was breaking. “If you ever need any help, I’m sure our kids would be more than happy to lend you a hand,” she offered for them.

Hailee nodded excitedly, but Luke's reaction was more subdued, as he was too busy trying to see if he could sense the woman’s other cats in her house. Their signatures were so faint it was almost impossible for him to sense them even at this distance, but now that he knew what he was looking for, Luke could barely make them out, and when he did, he almost involuntarily gasped.

There were three other signatures as strong as Mr. Tibbles moving around Mrs. Figgs's house and over a dozen slightly weaker ones on top of that. Luke had never encountered an animal with an inner flame before, and this lady had an army of them!? He couldn’t believe it.

“I might just have to take you up on that offer,” Mrs. Figg nodded happily, seemingly blind to Luke’s surprise. “Especially if your kids get along with my other cats the same way they do with Mr. Tibbles. He’s an excellent judge of character, you know.”

Oh, Luke did not doubt that. This cat was far too observant, almost like it could sense his wariness. Well, there was a simple way to test that theory.

Mrs. Figg was harmless, and Mr. Tibbles had yet to do anything, so Luke did his best to erase any negative thoughts of the two from his mind, much like he did when trying to mute his emotions from his sister. His shoulders relaxed, and his hand became more steady.

The result was almost instantaneous. Until that moment, Mr. Tibbles hadn't taken his eyes off Luke, but once he cleared his mind, the cat finally looked away and relaxed in his sister’s arms.

Interesting, Luke thought. Could he sense emotions like Hailee, or was it just an animal thing? Further testing would be required.

“Well, I wouldn’t want to take up any more of your time. It's time to go, Mr. Tibbles," Mrs. Figg stretched her arms towards her cat.

Hailee looked reluctant to let him go, but not as much as Mr. Tibbles was to leave her arms. When the cat refused to budge, Mrs. Figg was forced to resort to bribery.

“I have tuna," she sang.

“Aww,” Hailee whined as that was enough to get the cat to leap out of her arms and into Mrs. Figg’s.

"Don't be sad. You can come over and play with him anytime you want," Mrs. Figg assured Hailee. "Just make sure to get your parents’ permission first. Oh, and before I forget," she turned and addressed Luke's parents. “If you ever need a babysitter, I’m almost always available.”

“That’s so sweet of you,” their mother smiled appreciatingly. “Though, I’m a stay-at-home mom, so I don’t think that will come up very often.”

“Then whenever you and your husband want some alone time,” Mrs. Figg winked at her suggestingly, making Luke's mother turn scarlet. “Every couple needs some time alone,” she cackled as she returned to her house.

“I hope all our neighbors are that nice." Luke's father did his best to copy Mrs. Figg's wink, playfully nudging his wife's side and smiling suggestively at her. “Soon, we'll have a new bed to break in after all," he whispered a bit too loudly.

“Gross,” Luke deadpanned before turning and walking back inside their house, followed closely by his sister. The two left their parents on the porch while their mother scolded their father for his lewd behavior in front of them.

The two walked up the stairs together, which were right off the entryway.

“My room or yours?” Luke asked his sister once they reached the top of the stairs. Hailie's room was the closest, while Luke's was down a small hallway past their shared bathroom.

“Mmmm, yours,” Hailee smiled up at her big brother.

“Alright, let's go," Luke said as he led her to his room. He did his best not to wince at the floral wallpaper everywhere. He ignored his suitcase by the door in favor of plopping down on his temporary bed and groaning loudly, to his sister's amusement.

Hailee joined her brother on top of his bed. It was smaller than either of them was used to, but they were still small themselves, so it wasn't that big of a deal.

Apparently, the UK did things differently with their bed sizes, which made shopping for sheets in Tesco a nightmare for the Walkers, but at least they now knew what they would be dealing with in the future.

Both the beds in the kids’ rooms were small singles, the smallest size available, even smaller than twin mattresses.

“What a day,” Luke rubbed at his eyes. In less than twenty-four hours, he'd learned about secret meeting spots in airports, traveled to a new continent, made eye contact with a monster of an old man, moved into a new house, met one of their neighbors, and was judged by her supernatural cat. Luke hadn’t felt so drained since the day he regained his past life’s memories.

“It wasn’t that bad,” Hailee poked her brother in the side, making him flinch. “I can’t wait to meet the rest of Mrs. Figg’s cats.”

“Of course you are,” Luke rolled his eyes.

“What does that mean?” Leave it to Luke’s sister to recognize that something was bugging him. “Was it about Mr. Tibbles? You were weird around him for a bit?"

“First, let me ask you this: what did you sense about the cat?" Luke rolled over onto his side, locking eyes with his sister.

“Well,” Hailee brought a finger up to her lips in a thinking gesture like their mother sometimes did. "He was super easy to read, almost like a fuzzy little person. Mostly, he was curious about us, but most animals are like that. That's about it. Oh," Hailee exclaimed, remembering something she had forgotten. "He was mostly focused on me until you started to feel nervous around him, and then he was entirely focused on you.”

Luke felt his hair stand on end. "Hailee, I want you to think hard about this; do you think Mr. Tibbles can sense emotions like you can?”

Hailee seemed confused by the question and Luke's serious expression, but that didn't stop her from answering truthfully: "I don't think so. He didn't react when Mom became sad about Mrs. Figgs's husband or by how surprised she was about him letting me pick him up.”

“So, he wasn’t reacting to my emotions, just my body language?” Luke asked his sister for clarification.

“I don’t know what that is,” Hailee said, giving her brother the same blank stare she always gave when he used a word or phrase she didn't understand.

It took Luke a minute to explain body language to his sister, but once he did, Hailee happily nodded in understanding. "Yeah, that’s exactly what it was. Animals can sense things a lot better than we can. Well, you can,” Hailee playfully teased her brother.

"That's good," Luke sighed in relief while Hailee inched closer to him.

“If you’re asking me all this, then does that mean Mr. Tibbles is like us?" She asked excitedly.

“I don’t know if he’s exactly like us,” Luke felt the need to point that out to his sister. “But, yes, he has an inner flame like we do, though it's tiny and hard to sense."

At this point, Hailee could hardly sit still. "Do you think other animals are special, too, and you just missed them?”

“I don’t know, maybe?” It hurt Luke’s pride to admit it, but he wasn’t sure. He couldn’t sense Mr. Tibbles or Mrs. Figgs's other cats without explicitly focusing on them, and even then, it was tough. For all Luke knew, he'd passed hundreds of other animals like Mr. Tibbles and was none the wiser.

“This is so cool,” unlike Luke, Hailee was happy about the discovery. “Does this mean Mrs. Figg is like us?”

“I’m surprised you didn’t ask that sooner,” Luke teased his sister back, if only to remind her to take things a smidge more seriously.

“And, is she?" Hailee glared but otherwise ignored her brother’s taunting.

Seeing that she wouldn't fall for his taunt, Luke sighed and decided to answer her question. "She's clean. Mrs. Figg isn't like us."

“Are you sure? If you couldn’t sense Mr. Tibbles, then maybe….?” Hailee trailed off, implying Luke might have made a mistake.

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that,” Luke grumbled as he shifted to laying on his back to stare up at his ceiling, the only part of his room not covered in floral wallpaper beside the floor.

A heavy silence filled Luke’s empty room. From the corner of his eye, he could see Hailee nervously shifting in place, watching him like a hawk.

“Are you okay, Luke?” She finally asked.

Luke wanted to lie and say he was to put his sister at ease, but Hailee would pick up on it if he tried. She was already staring at him with wide, concerned eyes, looking like a sad puppy.

"It's— Been a long day," Luke did his best to mute his emotions as he spoke. “The people in the airports put me on edge, and the old man pushed me off it. Mrs. Figg and her cats were just the icing on the cake.”

Seeing that Hailee didn’t quite understand what he was talking about, Luke took the time to explain everything that happened in great detail today, but she didn't get it as he expected. Her reaction wasn't the same as his.

Hailee did her best to appear concerned, but Luke could tell his sister was thrilled by everything he told her. The secret spots in the airporters, the powerful yet kind old man walking the streets of London, Mrs. Figgs' cats, and the possibility that more animals like them were out there—it was all one big adventure to Hailee.

"We need to be careful going forward," Luke reminded her.

“Do you think we’re in danger?” Hailee asked, the barest hint of concern bleeding through her excitement but not enough to quash it outright.

Luke thought about it, and wasn’t that the question he’d been asking himself all day? Were they safe?

“I think we’re okay,” Luke eventually answered after thinking everything over. Other than the old man, no one had noticed them. There was no reason for them to be concerned. That didn’t mean Luke wasn’t going to prepare.

“I’m going to practice more,” Luke vowed aloud.

Hailee looked concerned for her older brother momentarily, but her expression quickly hardened into something more resolute. “Can I join you?” Hailee asked, placing a comforting hand on Luke’s shoulder.

“Any time,” Luke smiled at her, feeling better knowing he wasn't alone in this mess. "That is, only if you aren't too busy making new friends,” Luke couldn’t help himself. His sister looked too serious for his tastes, and while he appreciated her desire to help, he'd rather see his sister smile and be happy.

Luke was done with all these negative emotions dragging him down. He wanted an adventure, and he got it. It was too late to back out now. All he could do was meet the future head-on, and that's what he would do.

He'd keep an eye on their surroundings, but Luke wouldn't let his fears hold him back from living his second life.

It was time to live.

It was time to push himself like never before.

-X-X-X-

Author's Comments:

Happy Friday, I hope you liked this chapter. I had fun writing about Luke and his family's interaction with Mrs. Figg and her cat, Mr. Tibbles.

For those unaware, Mrs. Figg is the woman at the bigging of the fifth movie who shows up after Harry and his cousin are attacked by dementors. I won't spoil anything, but she plays a slightly more significant role in the first book. I won't say anything more than that.

A quick heads up: I won't be posting AMSL chapters over the weekend but will continue on Monday.

Thank you for reading, and as always, please tell me what you think below.