Papillons

Chapter 1

The Arellanos rushed to pack their belongings up. They would be moving tomorrow, which left almost no time to pack up. They were such a "last-minute" type of family.
"Why did you just now decide to tell us about moving, exactly?" Mrs. Arellano asked, irritated. Mr. Arellano gave her no response, continuing to pack.
     "You didn't count to ten, you cheater!" Quince (the newest addition to the family–adopted, to be exact) jumped out of his hiding spot, play-fighting his new sister.
"Did too!" Cedar giggled and play-fought with him. They moved backwards while they fighting and bumped into their mother, books and CDs falling off the top of the box.
"Careful!" She looked back at them, a stern look on her face. The kids' smiles drained a small bit. Mr. Arellano glanced at his wife and kids, noticing the tension.
"Quince, Cedar, how about you two go to Xavier's house while we finish packing?" Their dad winked at them and smiled brightly. Cedar and Quince stopped for a moment, and then slowly turned their heads towards each other. The two children let out a few small squeals and then nodded their heads at their dad.
"Don't stay too long. Come back in three hours, alright?" Mrs. Arellano shouted to her kids from the kitchen. She was cleaning the sink and the countertops, tidying everything up quickly. Her words weren't very focused.
"Will do!" Quince and Cedar slipped their shoes on and flew out the door. Cedar quickly shut the door behind them, knowing that they would have gotten in trouble for not closing the door completely when they would leave.