“Vicky, over here!” Greg shouted, laughing enthusiastically as he ran down the yard. She tossed the football toward him and he caught it excitedly.
“Good job, Greg!” Marie exclaimed, laughing.
He smiled as she watched the children playing. Even Michael was starting to have fun, waving his arms at his brother down toward the makeshift goal line. Greg threw the ball haphazardly toward Michael, who ran forward and seized it, and then made the goal.
“Awesome,” Victoria said, smiling encouragingly at Michael. “That was a good play, guys.”
She was surprised by how little interest the bear shifters had in sports, but it was something she found the young children responded to well. These types of games were fun for them and a clever way for them to start relaxing without having to try too hard to have a conversation. It was an icebreaker if nothing else.
“Do you guys want to play again, or you want to do something else?”
“I’m getting hungry!” Marie said.
“Me too!” Greg agreed.
Victoria cast her eyes to Michael, who nodded. She was inwardly surprised. The bear shifter children ate far more often than the human children did. And yet, they managed to remain sleek and muscular as opposed to the human child, who probably would end up looking out of shape.
“All right then, let’s go inside and have something to eat. Is there anything specific you want, or do you mind me picking something out for you?”
The truth was, Victoria had taken several culinary classes as a way to get out of the house and away from her mother and siblings. She enjoyed cooking, and had managed to master shifter cuisine, both wolf shifter and bear shifter. She had no idea how useful it would come in handy, not until she had begun being a childcare provider.
“You pick,” Marie said. “Can I play video games while we wait?”
“Video games?” Victoria asked.
“Yeah, they help with learning.”
“Oh!” Victoria laughed. She had thought that Marie had meant something else entirely. It was uncommon for bear shifters to engage in any of the type of pop-culture that humans did. Video games were the lowest on the list. The shifter culture protected their children by encouraging them to play outside and learn social dynamics as opposed to taking up excessive amounts of time in virtual realities that would ultimately damage the brain more than encourage you to grow. At least, according to them.
“What do you boys think, would your dad let you play video games right now?”
“Yeah, they’re okay for her. We don’t play them anymore, though, we already know everything they try to teach in them,” Greg said.
Greg had been especially helpful to Victoria, despite his brother’s reluctance to accept Vicky into their home. He was kind and gentle, and almost timid in a way, and she liked him very much. His rusty red hair stood out from his siblings, who both had dark hair and eyes. Michael interjected suddenly.
“There are other things we can do, though, and we should probably study,” he said. “Don’t you know that studying is important?” he asked, his tone somewhat accusatory.
Vicky raised her eyebrow at him. “Of course, I know it’s important,” she said. “Especially for a doctor. Would you like me to remind you to study, or do you think you can do it on your own?”
“I can remember,” Michael said quickly, looking down at his hands and heading upstairs. Greg followed. “Studying is important for an engineer too,” he said, nodding decidedly. “I will pull my blocks and study how high they can go before they fall down.”
Victoria couldn’t help but laugh to herself and turned to Marie, who was struggling with a small console system of her own. “Do you need any help?” Vicky asked.
“No.”
She watched the little girl continue to struggle, a small smile creeping across her face.
“It’s good to be independent, but it’s also good to know that when you need help, you can ask for it. Sometimes, you need help to move forward and there’s nothing wrong with that. But it is never a good thing to struggle on your own if you know there is someone you trust to help you to figure things out.”
“Okay. You can help me.”
Marie waddled over to Vicky with the cord to the little game dragging along behind her, and Victoria proceeded to help her to set the game up, so she could practice her ABCs. It was cute watching the little girl learn. Bear shifter children seemed far more serious about it than the other children she was used to taking care of. They took their positions in the world very seriously. It was an awkward thing to be new to Earth.
Humans tended to be biased and cruel, at least behind the backs of the races they didn’t understand. And the shifters were a mysterious race indeed. Understanding them took a special type of exposure to their culture that most humans weren’t invited to share in. There was a lot of mutual mistrust between them; not just the bear shifters and humans, but even among the different shifter species on Earth as well.
A rivalry between the bears of Oak Mountain and the dragon shifters on the mountain across from them, and even different types of wolf shifters, made it difficult to slack where it mattered the most. It seemed that being able to coexist among the humans was something very crucial and important to the bear shifters, even the children. They knew they had to fit in and get along with the rest of the world, or at least navigate it to the best of their ability so they weren’t taken advantage of.
The sound of the phone ringing suddenly interrupted them. Marie leapt up from her spot and ran to the phone.
“Daddy!” she exclaimed, causing Vicky to smile.
They chatted for a while before Marie finally said, “Yeah, she’s right here. Do you need to talk to her? It’s for you.”
Vicky took the phone, her heart fluttering. “Bruce?”
“Hey,” he said, his voice a low rumble.
A flush deepened on her cheeks and she tried to keep her feelings out of her voice. Who knew what a shifter might be able to sense, even if they weren’t in the same room together?
“How’s the conference?”
Bruce had gone out of state to set up a meeting with the board of his company. They had been thrilled to find out he was actually able to make an appearance during the team-building activities and had chosen to fly him out immediately to try to set something up as soon as possible. That meant Victoria was left alone with the kids for the week. Michael hadn’t seemed too thrilled about it but that was all right. They were all still cooperating. Whatever Bruce had said to him had really stuck and changed his attitude for the better. Mike had tried to explain to her how things worked in the way that his father ran things, and that was something Vicky considered a small step toward progress. He was beginning to accept her authority, but in a way that still allowed him to assert himself. They were going to be all right eventually.
“The conference went well. They want to get me out to the center tomorrow, so I have another early flight. I just wanted to check on you and see how the kids are doing. I know Mike can be kind of a handful.”
“Actually, he’s been wonderful. I know this is probably hard for him.”
“He remembers his mom. Better than the other two do. I guess that might make things worse for him, but we trust you to do what you need to do to take care of things, even if it’s hard for him.”
“That makes a lot of sense. I’m just glad he’s willing to talk to me.”
“So am I. Nothing has happened that I should know about? I wanted to talk to you before I talk to him in case I need to put him back in line.”
“He’s been great, really. That won’t be necessary. Just let him know you’re proud of him for being a good help if anything.”
“I’m glad he has been. The idea of him being difficult toward you makes me angry.”
“Don’t be angry, he’s a good kid.”
She was touched by his concern for her and smiled privately. “Do you want to talk to him first or Greg?”
“Greg. I need to ask him if Michael’s been treating him fairly or taking his anger out on him.”
“All right. I’ll get him for you.”
“Wait-”
“What?”
“Are you…how are you?”
The question was surprising, and Vicky’s face grew hot. The question struck her as very personal for some reason; whether it was because he was showing concern for her well-being or because of the way he had asked, as if he were more interested than he knew how to let on. But she couldn’t allow herself to think like that. They were in a professional working relationship and had to do their best to keep it that way.
“I’m great, thank you,” Vicky said, trying to keep the stammer out of her voice. “It’s just been a little hard on the kids not to have you here. It’s a big adjustment but they’re doing great.”
“The kids…ah yeah. I know. But they will get used to it. And so far, they’ve been doing well, you’ve said, so that’s heartening.”
“Yes,” Vicky said, unsure of how else to respond. “I know it’s hard for you to do anything outside the home, especially worrying about your kids, but don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to them.”
Bruce’s voice was serious suddenly and Vicky’s heart tremored. “I know. They are in good hands.”
They were silent for a moment before Bruce finally spoke again. “All right, I should talk to Greg now before it gets too late.”
“Yeah. They’re studying right now.”
“Studying?”
“To be a doctor, and an engineer,” Vicky said. She glanced over at Marie, who was playing her game happily. “And to learn the ABCs.”
“Maybe I should call later then…,” Bruce said thoughtfully.
“No, I’m sure they would love to hear from you. I’ll get Greg.”
“All right.”
Bruce had a chance to speak with both boys, and by the end of the night, she could tell the difference it made. The kids were all significantly happier, as if a weight had been taken off their shoulders. They missed their father, but they were also understanding and wise children who knew it had to be done. It was inspiring in a way, and Vicky was glad she could be there for them.
They spent the rest of the night watching a movie before bed, and when Vicky was finally alone, she found herself pleased with the way the day had gone. It was hard for all the kids to be away from their father, but it would help them to build their characters and be independent, if nothing else. And until Bruce could be home, she would be able to manage to keep things rolling as smoothly as possible.