unspoken [five hargreeves]

:2.1:

Grace gently set the record into the gramophone, setting the needle down onto it and turning it on. A man's voice began to play throughout the dining room.

She picked up the small bell that sat next to the gramophone, walking to the doorway of the foyer and shaking it lightly.

At the sound, the children were quick to gather, for fear of the consequences of being late for mealtime.

They all stood behind their seats, Vanya at one end of the table. The head was reserved for their father, while everyone else was placed around the sides. Jade was to the left of Five, which made sneaking him the foods she didn't like a whole lot easier.

They stood in wait as Reginald entered the dining room seconds after them, pulling out his own chair and taking a seat.

"Sit." He instructed, and all of the children followed suit.

They began to dig in, though each of the children had their own way of misbehaving during mealtime.

Allison and Luther were stealing glances at one another, smiling to themselves at some unknown inside joke.

Diego dug one of his knives into the arm of his chair, while Klaus, in between bites, would continue rolling his joint under the table.

Ben had a book in front of his face as he ate, and while watching their father carefully, Jade was slowly transferring all the carrots from her plate onto Five's.

Five sat, not touching his food. Instead, he observed all his siblings. He was growing restless by the second.

Vanya seemed to be the only one who was eating without trouble.

All of a sudden, the clatter of a knife being slammed into the table caused Jade to flinch, and all eyes were on Five.

"Number Five." Reginald warned, but the boy was past caring.

"I have a question." He smiled sweetly, but it was easy for Jade to tell that he was on edge.

"Knowledge is an admirable goal, but you know the rules." Their father didn't even look at him as he cut into the roast on his plate. "No talking during mealtimes. You are interrupting Herr Carlson."

Five looked down for only a moment, before shoving his plate away from him.

Jade's eyes shifted to him, then back to her plate. She felt herself growing uneasy.

"I want to time travel."

"No."

"But I'm ready. I've been practicing my spatial jumps, just like you said." Five stood from his chair, disappearing and reappearing right next to his father. "See?"

"A spatial jump is trivial when compared with the unknowns of time travel."  The rest of the children began focussing on their meals, not wanting to get caught when Reginald was already becoming irritated with Five. "One is like sliding along the ice, the other is akin to descending blindly into the depth of the freezing water and reappearing as an acorn."

"Well, I don't get it."

"Hence the reason you're not ready."  Reginald set his glass down, still not sparing a glance at Five. The boy was growing more and more agitated. He caught Jade's eye, and when she shook her head at him, he only looked away.

"I'm not afraid," He started again, ready to argue his way into getting what he wanted, but his father wasn't having it.

"Fear isn't the issue. The effects it might have on your body, even on your mind, are far too unpredictable." Reginald finally turned to look at the boy for the first time this whole conversation, and it sparked something in him. "Now, I forbid you to talk about this anymore."