Fight for them.

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴇɪɢʜᴛ

The living room was a cozy mess of kids and blankets. Ratatouille played on the TV, though the older boys barely paid attention, too absorbed in their Switch game. Elara, stretched out on the couch, was only half-watching the movie herself when Tyson's voice broke through.

"But how?" he whined, fidgeting with his glasses. His wide eyes, still glued to the screen, were full of confusion. "It's not possible. How are the rats talking?" He was genuinely upset by this like the laws of nature had personally betrayed him.

Elara rolled her eyes, not even looking away from the TV. "Tyson, just watch the movie."

"But it's not possible," he insisted, muttering like he was solving a great mystery. "Rats can't talk."

She sighed deeply, knowing where this was headed. If she tried to explain, he'd hit her with a relentless barrage of "whys" until one of them gave up. And it wasn't going to be him. "Just watch the movie, Ty," she said in a tired voice.

Tyson huffed, clearly unsatisfied with that answer, "Well I'm right Rats don't talk Ella." Elara didn't push further. Instead, the sound of her phone ringing snapped both of their attention back to reality. Olivia, who had somehow commandeered the phone, tried answering it like a pro. Instantly she started squealing and babbling.

Elara got up going forward, grabbing it from her tiny hands before chaos could ensue. "Olivia" she chided lightly, glancing at the screen. "Hello?"

Adria's excited voice spilled out from the speaker. "What are you doing?"

Elara sank back into the couch, surveying the scene in front of her. Wesley was still completely absorbed in the movie, eyes glued to the screen like it was some high-stakes drama. Tyson, now thoroughly done with the rats, had grabbed her old iPad and was scrolling aimlessly. Hunter and Carson, sprawled on the floor, were locked in an intense round of their game. Olivia, as usual, was hovering by Elara's side.

"Laying?"

"Never expected that," Adria's voice came back, bright and full of sarcasm, "we're going school shopping. You're coming."

Elara hesitated, eyes flicking over to the boys again. Shopping sounded... overwhelming. She'd only physically gone with all of them a few times but most of the time she did pick up orders or just went after work.. But with Adria, it might not be so bad. A little help would go a long way. "Yeah, okay. When?"

"Leave at 10:40, hit the mall, grab some lunch, then shop more?"

Before she could answer, Hunter, ever the drama king, groaned loudly from across the room. "Absolutely not!"

Elara laughed softly, shaking her head. "Absolutely yes. We're going." She spoke with a finality that meant no further arguments would be entertained. Turning back to her phone, she added, "We'll be there, Adria."

Hunter and Carson exchanged a knowing look, clearly less enthusiastic, but neither complained. This would be their first time actually going to school outside of Lila's "homeschooling", or whatever you would call Lila's doings.

"When are we leaving?"

"10:40," Elara replied, ushering the younger ones upstairs to help them get dressed. Olivia clung to her leg as always, her tiny hands reaching up for attention. Elara rifled through drawers, tossing clothes over her shoulder. "These good?" she asked, distracted, as she handed the boys their outfits.

Finishing getting the boys ready, Elara loaded them up into the car. Olivia had become more verbal lately, even though it was still mostly baby talk, but they were starting to decipher little words.

"Dink?" Elara glanced at the little girl, who looked back at her with wide eyes, making a grabby hand. Elara handed her the Stanley cup, letting her take a sip before taking it back.