"Brother!"

"The monster is back," Dan said, trying to be sarcastic and failing. The threat had left a visible effect on him – his moments of inhalation and exhalation were sparse, he did not speak much, and for the first time, he hadn't been trying to annoy Amy. In fact, he was trying to ignore his sister, Natalie and Ian. He could still feel the camera trained on his every move, and he could still hear the voice saying, "Electric chair?" over and over again. As much as Dan loved adventure, he was not quite ready for some of its consequences. Electric chair sounded cool – until you were sitting on it.

"Shush," Amy said. She was just as aware of the hidden surveillance systems, and the threat hadn't dissipated from the air yet. For the first few minutes of silence on Dan's end, she had become worried. But then she had realized what caused it, and now she was on her guard. She wanted to take off the blindfolds – it was an easy enough task, considering that she and Dan weren't tied down – but it would aggravate the Lucians, and they would send a team of agents to wipe out any evidence of her and her brother's existence on Earth. She knew that and so, like Dan, she'd kept her mouth shut for close to an hour.

"Brother!" Natalie screamed again, somehow managing to wiggle out of Ian's grasp. She toddled over to where Dan sat. He seemed unresponsive, quiet so far save the four words he'd uttered when the sound of Natalie's arrival reached his ears. Natalie tugged at the rolled-up cuffs of his cargo pants, then at his hands, then at the hem of his shirt. There was no reaction. She tilted her head to the side, waiting for a single word. There was none. She took a deep breath.

Natalie wailed. It was a full-on temper tantrum, complete with kicking and punching. Dan was subjected to her flailing arms and cruel feet, and the wail continued to stream out of her mouth. She moved on to the breakable objects scattered all around the room: vases, a glass bowl, ceramic fixtures, porcelain ornaments. Ian stepped out of the way, choosing to let his sister rampage and destroy the room. The tantrum would soon wear off, and besides, he'd been looking for an excuse to redecorate the room anyway. The Budget Committee had been unreasonable during the last conference, insisting that the Surveillance Room was fine the way it is, though Ian did not quite agree. The last time anything about had changed was in the 1950s. He decided not to scold Natalie, going over to Amy and untying the blindfold that covered her eyes.

"Ian, she's –"

"Let her," Ian said, cutting her off. "It will wear off soon. I'm too tired to deal with her right now." Amy frowned, and he was reminded of her annoyance with him. She was still mad at him for that comment he'd carelessly thrown her way. He sighed.

"Well, I'm not." Amy marched over to Natalie and picked up the broken pieces cluttering the floor. Natalie paid her no attention, still wailing. Ian shook his head at the sight that the two girls created, and untied Dan's blindfold.

The next thing he knew, Ian had been pushed to the side. He fell, landing on his backside, and sat with some discomfort on ceramic shards. Natalie was slapping Dan, and the victim was wincing but let himself be slapped. Amy looked up at the absence of the anticipated wail and saw her 'daughter' abusing her brother. She dropped the pieces she'd gathered back on the floor and ran to her brother's aid.

"Natalie! Dan!" she exclaimed. She saw Ian, sitting on the floor. "Get your lazy butt up and control your sister!" Ian was too shocked at her outburst to respond.

Thwap!

The last slap left a singing red mark on Dan's cheek. His head had twisted to the right, arms half-raised and crossed in a halfhearted attempt to protect himself. Amy froze in the act of dragging Ian up from the floor. Ian's eyes darkened. Natalie stood there, perhaps surprised by her own act.

Dan turned his head to face her. "That hurt," he said. Then he stood. "Where's the restroom? I need to pee."

Ian got up, too. Amy still had a hand on his arm, and he stared at it long enough for her to get the hint. She released his arm and gathered Natalie in a motherly embrace. The little girl's gaze was on Dan. "Bwathaa," she lisped. "Bwathaa!"

"Put some ice on your cheek, Dan," Amy said. She rocked Natalie, singing a soft lullaby this time, one that Ian could not criticize this time because he could hardly hear it. Ian could, to be honest, hear it, but he did not offer any derogatory remark. Instead, he opened the door leading to the hallway. Dan followed.

Amy glanced down at Natalie. The little girl was now sucking on her thumb.

"Bad girl," she said, then quickly shot a nervous look all around her.

Footsteps. They echoed throughout the hallway, uninterrupted by any other sound except for the closing and opening of doors, and the brief snatches of chatter. Once or twice, Lucian employees greeted Ian, and glared at Dan. Dan pretended to not notice them, focusing on the plush red carpet beneath his feet, and the image of Ian's shiny black shoes in his peripheral vision. The shoes glinted in every light that hit it. They turned this way and that, and Dan's badly-scuffed sneakers stalked the black shoes.

"Here you go." The shoes stopped moving, and so did Dan's. He raised his head. Ian was gesturing to yet another set of doors, with a sign hanging above their heads.

"I'll wait for you here."

Dan made no comment. He went in. He went in, and then leaned on the door as he stared up at the ceiling.

It was only a threat. Only a threat, he reminded himself. But threats were still dangerous, and threats could still hurt him and Amy. He remembered guns pointed at him. He remembered snakes thrown down on them. He closed his eyes and found himself in an airplane taxiing down the runway, a car barreling towards them with no regard for anyone's safety. Explosions tearing down buildings and caves and burying them in rubble. Fire, bright and hot, consuming everything that was important to them. He opened his eyes.

Only a threat, only a threat, he repeated in his mind. He walked to the sink and splashed cold water on his face. He met gazes with his dripping reflection on the mirrors.

"They weren't serious," he said out loud.

There was a knock on the door. "Is everything all right inside there, Daniel?"

Ian. "No, everything's fine," he called out. He turned off the faucet, and used a face towel to wipe off the remaining drops of water on his face.

Then he went out.

Natalie was asleep. Amy put her down on a relatively undamaged sofa. Then she was on all fours, crawling back and forth as she cleaned the place. Soon the trash was swept off to a corner, the toppled furniture were arranged, and most of the room seemed to be in order.

Ian and Dan arrived.

"We have something to discuss," Ian announced. He stopped. His eyes took in the room, which had been a mess when they'd left; now it was miraculously spic and span, and the miracle was sitting on the sofa, cradling Natalie. Her green eyes flashed with something akin to an unspoken challenge. But he must be hallucinating, because when he blinked, those eyes were curious.

"What is it?" Amy asked. She shifted Natalie so that the child was better positioned on her lap.

Ian sat down. Dan decided to stay standing.

"Our parents have scheduled a visit to the Swiss Alps a week ago," he said.

"And so?" Dan's spirit was returning, and he was as obnoxious as ever. Amy didn't know whether or not she should feel relieved.

"And so we will be the ones to monitor the antidote's progress, take care of Natalie, things like that. In lieu of this development, I shall be asking you to stay at our house for three days, which is the shortest waiting time for a decent antidote to be formulated. I can send for clothes, and other necessities, if you so wish."

"Can you send for an Xbox?" Dan asked, clearly more interested in his video games. But then, what was so interesting about chemicals? Amy, however, was excited.

"May we watch the process?" she asked. She wanted to be part of it, wanted to see how it was done. And perhaps, she and Dan might just be able to get –

"No. It is restricted to Lucian access only. Top-ranking Lucians, to be exact."

Amy's mood was considerably dampened. Before she could reply, a growl pierced the air. It came from Dan, who was not in the least bit embarrassed.

"I'm hungry," he said, shrugging.

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