Duplicitous | T.N.

LXIV • Gothic fears and families

It was by six am that the London sun began to rise, prying apart the greyed clouds and Auroras clenched eyelids. Disturbed from her deep slumber, she was greeted by her blissful moment. Quickly replaced was the tranquility of a lazy morning by the realisation of where she was.

The covers were quickly thrown off her shivery figure. Dressed in her pyjamas, the girl had no care in the world as she raced down the windy stairs of her eldest brothers rented home.

The gentle slaps of her bare feet followed her as she ran, and with a swing she flung around the railing and toward the kitchen. Her direction navigated through the tasty scent of pancakes.

She skipped through the doorway and into the small room, her brother facing away from her, pan held tightly in his grasp. "Mornin." She plucked an apple from the fruit bowl.

"Hmm." Sebastian grunted in acknowledgment, the particular morning air not working well with his hair or his attitude. He was fairly moody during the early mornings. Aurora had to obtain her laughter at the sight of his usually well kept sandy hair in the mornings.

He flipped the flat cake, a melodise sizzle sounding as he did so. She yawned loudly, her arms stretching outward. Taking a chomp of the apple she held, her chewing ceased to quieten. "Hey!" Her brother turned around. "What're you doing? I'm literally making breakfast." The movement of her jaw came to a slow as her mouth opened in realisation. "Ew." He turned his head around. "Don't let me see what you're eating."

The second brother walked in, a line of caramel chocolate between his teeth. "Huh?" Malachai spoke a string of brown seeping down his bottom lip.

"You're both disgusting." The eldest refused to look at them any longer, their nasty food habits apparently too disgusting to tolerate. "And stop earing, I'm making breakfast."

Lost amongst the honeymoon period of a newly reunited family, all remained blissfully happy. Eloped within their siblings presence, rivalry had been kept to a fair minimum, far too keen on spending time with one another.

Kai sat beside his sister, by the kitchen island. The counter a dark smooth surface where their elbows rested comfortably upon. Comfortable in their little suburban paradise, the house, quaint, and made of grey brick offered minimal natural lighting, Rory felt close to sleeping again as the sun was unable to reach her where she sat next to Malachi.

"Nuh uh." The dark haired brother pushed her side. She bolted upward, simply to catch herself from falling sideward off her chair. "Don't even think about going back to sleep." She ignored him, resting her head back down upon the table. He shoved her again.

"Knock it off." She whined; her head in her hands.

"Don't sleep." Sebastian flipped the final pancake, adding it to the pile next to him, noticeably out of his younger siblings grimy reach. "We have things to do."

The middle child pushed his sister again. She pushed him back just as hard. "Stop."

"Stop." Sebastian was hardly bothered to break up his siblings silly banter, hardly serious anyway. "Now eat." Came his morning drawl.

Rory remained still, awaiting either of her siblings to steal the first pancake. Everyone knew the first one was always the worst. Her brothers seemingly uninterested in snatching the first one, too did not bother to grab the pancake first. Aurora slid the one underneath it out and flopped it on her plate gleefully. "Cheat." She began smiling faintly as she heard the accusative murmur from whichever brother.

They ate to the sound of clattered cutlery and occasional comments, not much said as they divulged in their breakfast treat. Seb was an exceptional cook, her eyes found her other brothers menacingly, he was not so much of a kitchen worker. "Why can't you cook?"