Sweets and Treats (OPEN)

[Gladys Knight]

Gladys was in her element surrounded by piles of baked goods she’d spent all week putting together. She had just gotten the last load (a plate of banana bread and a plate of cake pops decorated to look like colorful cartoon monsters) out of her car. Spreading them out, she sat down, thankful for the moment to relax her feet for a minute.

She kept an eye out for her family as well as the Bishop clan. It was a tradition that at some point at tug of war area there would be a show down between the two huge families. Of course some of the siblings also completed in the other events and games at the fair. But since tug of war was something that everyone could easily participate in, it was seen as the ultimate test.

She smiled at the townsfolk she knew and called over the students from Hammel she knew by name so she could fill them up on her sweet.

“You lookin for something to snack on honey?” she said as someone slowed down to ear up the table of treats. “We’ve got plenty to chose from,” she added, giving them a warm smiled.

[Deleted]

Should he? Or should he not? Zach sort of eyed the table where Gladys Knight was displaying her piles of treats she no doubt spent all week on. And they looked quite delicious to him. And unlike some of his siblings, Zach held little to no competitive hostility towards the Knight clan.

“You’re fraternizing with the enemy!” he could hear Gordon say. Yeah, he was wandering around here somewhere too. As were the rest of his siblings along with his parents. They’d all meet up later, for the big tug-of-war event, probably, so he wasn’t worried about keeping track of them. Not like Devlin, who was probably making them all check in every fifteen minutes.

Zach shook his head and sighed. This was ridiculous. He came out from behind one of the other booths and strolled up to the table. Zach offered the old woman one of his usual warm, thought awkward, smiles. “Hi, uh…Gladys,” he greeted her. Zach looked down at the lot she had splayed out on the table. “Uh, yeah, actually. I was thinking I could go for one of your cookies right about now.” He chuckled nervously despite there being no reason to be nervous. He knew Gladys well enough.

[Gladys Knight]

Gladys enjoyed the competition between her family and the Bishop. But only as long as it didn't get out of hand. Some of her grandkids really got into it. And she had a feeling her son cared more about keeping score than he liked to let on. As for Gladys though, she thought it was entertaining and way for the two huge families to share something together. At the same time, she didn't consider talking to any of the Bishop family as 'fraternizing with the enemy'.

"Zachary Bishop," she said, saying his name slowly and full of warmth. "Enjoying the fair. You here with your family?" She looked over the boy's shoulder to see if any of this sibling were tailing along behind him. But it seemed that at least for the moment he was on his own.

"How's your folks doing?" she continued. "And help yourself to as many cookies as you'd like honey. I got cupcakes and breads too if you'd like." She smiled holding her hands out above all of the treats.

[Deleted]

Zach supposed the rivalry was fun. Sometimes he’d get into it, but it was mostly at the urgings of some of his more competitive siblings that he tried as much as his couch-potato muscles would let him. Zach had no stamina, so he didn’t really try all that hard in the tug-of-war event. If there was ever a writing competition or a random fact competition, or maybe even one about indie music, then Zach would be the one to enter on behalf of his family.

But no matter how heated things got in those events, Zach saw no reason why they couldn’t be friendly under normal circumstances. “Uh..I am…sort of.” He shrugged and rubbed his nose. “I think I might be getting sunburned…” Zach, being the computer hermit he usually was, typically burned well under the heat of the sun, even with sunscreen. “Yeah! They’re around here…somewhere…” Zach looked around behind him, hoping to maybe catch a glimpse of one of his siblings in the crowd of hundreds of locals. He slowly turned back with a flat smile when he spotted noone.

“They’re alright. Working a lot.” As usual. The the lot of kids were mostly adult now, so it wasn’t too much of a problem anymore. “Mom’s been spending a lot of time in her office lately,” he said softly as he scanned over the treats. Zachary plucked up one of the cookies and took a quick bite. “Mmm…they’re good.” Gladys usually made really good cookies though, so it was no surprise. “Are these all just…you know, complimentary?” He didn’t know if he was supposed to be paying for what he ‘helped himself’ to.

[Gladys Knight]

Gladys was glad that at least some of the Bishop klan and her own grandkids enjoyed their rivalry. At the same time she was also glad that some of them could let it drop long enough to actually be friends. After all, the two families did have a lot in common. And Gladys figured they could learn from each other.

"Oh honey," Gladys said, concerned for Zachary's skin. "Maybe you're mom has some sunscreen with her for the little ones?" She hoped so. The young man did look pretty pale. Gladys wondered if maybe he needed to get out in the sun more.

Gladys had to laugh at Zachary's face after he peeked over his shoulder. Clearly he was glad to have a little alone time. Gladys couldn't recall exactly where he fell in the lineup, but she was sure that he'd had his fair share of younger siblings tagging along behind him.

"Well I'm glad she's keeping busy. You be sure and tell her I said hello," Gladys said. Her own son had a bit longer before he could start thinking about having all of the kids out of the house since the Knights were a bit more spread out.

"Oh, thank you honey," Gladys said, smiling at the compliment. "And of course they are. You help yourself to as many as you'd like. All free." She waved a hand over the whole table. Really Gladys would have had a hard time accepting payment for her baked goods. She was way too used to just handing them out for free.

"Are you still in school, Zachary?" she asked, meaning college.

[Deleted]

Zach shrugged. “I’ll be fine. Probably.” He smiled. “Thanks.” Gladys really was a kind old woman. It was almost like she was grandmother to him and his siblings as well, she was so warm and…grandmotherly. Actually, it seemed like she was just that way to pretty much everyone she met. The Bishop grandparents were…well, they didn’t actually get to see each other that often. So it was nice to have someone fill that role for himself and his siblings, if only a little.

“I’ll do that,” he said with a nod and a small laugh. “I’m sure she’d appreciate you stopping by, if you ever get a chance. Mom’s kind of like me…we both sort of forget that…well, that there’s other people…and they exist…outside of our…our rooms.” Or something. “It’s mostly when she’s involved in a..in a special project…or something.” And with Zach, he pretty much had to be dragged out of his bedroom, away from his computer, just to give him some social interaction. Kailin had been helping with that a little. So had Kai…a little…and that situation was just…weird lately.

“All free. Guess…I’ll just help myself then,” he said, dipping his head with a smile. “They might be gone by, uh..by the time I leave.” Zach had an appetite for junk food and this was no secret from anyone.

Zach blinked up at her question, a cookie half crumbled in his mouth. “Mmm? Mmhmm,” he hummed. Zach took another moment to swallow before continuing. “Yeah, I’m in grad school now. It’s…it’s tough.” A lot of work, but less time in actual classes. He was enjoying it though.

[Gladys Knight]

Gladys was always happy to fill the role of grandmother for anyone and everyone. In her younger days she had even assumed the role of mother now and then for a few students at Hammel. But she was beyond that age for most everyone now. Unlike the Bishop's grandparents, Gladys had never been confused as to why her son and daughter-in-law would want so many children. She was happy to have them all and had made just as much of a fuss over the first one's birth as the last.

"Well then," Gladys said. "I guess Zeke and I will have to pay your folks a visit." She figured her husband and Mr. Bishop would enjoy a chance to catch up as well. "You still living at home?" Her voice held no judgement with the question. She was just curious if she'd be seeing him there as well.

Gladys laughed. "I don't think you could fit that many in you. Not that it hurt you any." She smiled. As long as at least one person got to enjoy her treats, she'd be happy.

"I'm sure you're doing great there, honey. What are you studying these days?" she asked, meaning his major.

[Deleted]

Zach smiled. “I’m sure mom and dad and everyone else would love to see you.” Everyone seemed so busy lately, it was nice to just spend the day visiting with family and friends sometimes. Mom and dad were both working. Devlin and Gordon were working. Aura was helping mom so much. Claudia, like himself, was caught up in school and a flurry of personal drama. Gaige was working on his music, while Katy was trying to get over another hump. Lany had had to stay behind at Hammel an extra year for powers training and when she wasn’t at school, she was at the stables. And then Kailin, Savvy, and JJ were all just trying to get through their first years of high school. It was a wonder anyone had time for anything else.

Zach nodded. “I wasn’t for a while, but I am now, again.” He grabbed another cookie and started nibbling on it. His other hand went into his pocket. “It’s just…a lot easier to be at home these days.” He didn’t need to be at the school every day and it was just eating up money, paying for rent of a place that he was slowly starting to move away from anyway. The other half was that after all the chaos that had gone on between himself and Kai, he just needed to be with family for a while.

Zach still didn’t know where they were at with their relationship.

“You…you underestimate my stomach,” Zach said with a smile. It was true, though. Zach was kind of a pig and ate junk food every chance he got. It was a wonder he hadn’t gained a pot-belly gut already. And he wondered if Kai would still want him if he did…?

“Um….English…pretty much.” Zach shrugged a shoulder. “One class is really dumb, mostly just yelling and criticizing things, the other is a seminar called, uh….” He hesitated. “Um…Queer Temporality and Literature….it’s actually really interesting,” he said, lowering his head into another bite of cookie.

[Gladys Knight]

Gladys smiled, glad to hear the Bishops would enjoy a visit from her. She'd have to bake up something special to share with all the little mouths running around there. She knew from personal experience how hectic life in a big family house could get, so while she didn't expected to see everyone in one short visit, she still wanted to leave something for those she missed to enjoy.

Which reminded her. "How is Lany? I know she was a little upset about how her training was going, poor dear. You tell her I said hey."

"Times are tough," she agreed. "I'm sure your ma is glad to have you around for now." It made her a bit nostalgic to think that one day way too soon all of the Bishops and all of the Knights would be grown and living their own separate lives.

She laughed heartily at his comment. "Well you have as much as your stomach wants, honey. It does this old lady good to see someone with a healthy appetite enjoying her goods."

"Good....good," she said, nodding along as he listed off his classes. "I'm sure you're working hard, even in the dumb one. And I hope you know how proud I am to know a young man whose such a good role model for his younger siblings." Not to mention her own grandchildren, since the younger Knights looked up to the older Bishops as much as their own siblings sometimes.

[Deleted]

“Lany? She’s…she’s doing okay, I think.” Zach knew that she’d had to stay behind in school for more training, which was a bit of a disappointment for someone who did so well academically. “She’s been working a lot…down a the stables.” He chuckled. “Honestly, I think she’d be perfectly happy just doing that for the rest of her life.” The girl really loved her horses. But Zach still hoped that she would stick it out for a few years of college, as a backup plan.

Zach nodded. “Yeah, I think so too.” He’d been helping around the house a lot more these days. He was glad that school wasn’t as demanding as it used to be these days, which was what allowed him to be home in the first place.

Her joyful laugh easily brought a broad smile to his face. Gladys was always such a cheerful woman. Just being around her had some sort of healing effect, it seemed. “I’ll…well, I’ll do that then. Glad to, uh, be of service.” Zach enjoyed another cookie. “You know what else you need?” he started with a slight muffle in his words, compliments of the cookie in his cheeks. “Milk. Because cookies without milk is just…” Not right.

Zach laughed again. Hearing a word like “dumb” coming from her mouth was entertaining, even though he knew it shouldn’t be. “Yeah? Well…I wasn’t always, you know…” Zach had been such a grumpy gloomy teenager, it’s a wonder that the him of then and the him of today were the same person sometimes. “How…how are the kids?” That is, the numerous grandchildren Gladys had.

[Gladys Knight]

"Well I'm glad to hear she has something she loves," Gladys said. She was a little more lax on the idea of the need for a college education the most people. Though she valued all education and felt that everyone should work hard in high school and get that diploma, college was different. Gladys didn't believe that it was for everyone. Though she would, of course, encourage anyone who made that step, she didn't look down on anyone who didn't. Everyone was different.

Instead Gladys believed that everyone should have a passion that they could peruse in life, whether or not that required a college education depended on the person.

"Sorry, hun. I actually though about bringing some," she continued. "But I worried about the heat gettin' to it." She shrugged and laughed. Maybe she could figure that out for next year. It would be nice to offer some ice cold milk to wash down her treats. Maybe she could meet up with someone with cryokinesis next time.

Gladys nodded along. "Well you sure tuned out alright honey," she said. She certainly remembered Zachary's teenage years back when she hardly ever saw him smile or saw his eyes behind the curtain of his hair. It was nice to see him smile these days. And to be out interacting with the world. Even though judging from his complexion he could stand to do it a little more often.

"Oh they're all doing great, just great. Little MoJo's at Hammel now." Though she sometimes worried about MoJo, the girl was doing just fine adjusting to her new life. And it was obvious she loved her grandkids. She seemed to glow with pride and joy whenever she spoke any of them.

[Deleted]

“Yeah. I think that’s…a continuing trend in our family, actually,” Zach observed with a chuckle. To his knowledge, most if not all of his siblings were on the track to doing what they absolutely wanted most in one form or another. Devlin and Gordon with their public service jobs of policeman and fireman. Aura was such a homemaker and it suited her. Katy and Gaige with their music….just some examples. Zach’s passion had been to go to college and push through his academics and pursue being a novelist, which he couldn’t say was going quickly, but was still moving along.

It was probably just him projecting his own interests onto his siblings, but he hoped that a number of them at least went to community college.

Zach broke into a smile, the taste of chocolate rolling over his tongue. “It’s okay,” he assured her after swallowing. “I guess…well, we can lend you Gaige next time.” Though the cryo probably wouldn’t like being bothered for such a task.

Her next comment actually brought a prickling flush over his pale white skin. “Y-you think so?” Zach lowered his head, self conscious. “I don’t know about that,” he said, scratching the back of his head. “I’m…I’m just a…” A writer. An unhealthy one. With somehow more drama in his real life than in the stories he wrote.

“She is!?” Zach sounded surprised. “Wow, um…wasn’t…isn’t she still a little young?” Not that he kept track, it was just it seemed like she was a little girl only a short while ago. Where did the time go?

[Gladys Knight]

"And such a wonderful trend," Gladys added. Though most of her grandchildren were also following their dreams, some of them were a bit too young to have really settled on something that they wanted to pursue. The twins in particular seemed to have a new fascination every day. But they were six years old so Gladys wasn't exactly worried. In fact she would have been more worried if they had already planned out their future.

"That would be lovely," Gladys said, smiling. She had forgotten until now about the young boy's ability. Though she could keep the Bishops' names and general ages straight, remembering birthdays and abilities was a bit much. "Even if he just stopped by in the morning to get me started, I could take over from there." Cryonesis shouldn't be too hard on her physically to borrow for a day. And having ice cold milk would be worth any minor discomfort she would have to deal with.

"Of course honey," Gladys said, laughing a bit as Zach's color changed. She wasn't laughing at him, just so surprised that he couldn't see how well he was doing. It seemed some of his child insecurities were still there. "A young man in college who still finds time to help out at home, and chat up with an old woman. Sounds like you're turned out alright to me. You've got your head screwed on straight."

Gladys continued to beam about her granddaughter. "She's thirteen. And you should see how fast she signs these days." Gladys chuckled. She had just started to get a good handle on sign language, but now that he young girl had manifested Gladys could barely keep up with her speed. She was constantly asking the girl to slow down, even though it made her happy to see MoJo so excited.

[Deleted]

“Yeah…I guess you’re right,” he agreed softly. It was better that they did something they enjoyed, after all, rather than force themselves into something they hated just for the sake of…though, having a secure future was also important, so it’d really be best if they could find some middle ground between the two. He’d hate for Gaige to end up a penniless singer who had to mooch off his more-than-willing-to-provide family because he couldn’t get the break he needed to make it.

Zach nodded. “I can tell him, if you want. Just…call anytime, I’m sure he’d be happy to help.” Zach didn’t blame her for not keeping track of all the Bishop family powers. He had a hard enough time keeping track of the Knight’s as well. And for the normal person, it was tough just to keep track of names and ages among them. So Zach didn’t take any offense to her lapse.

Gladys’ praises only served to redden Zach’s face more. “That’s…thanks…that’s nice to hear. I’m just…doing what anyone would, really…” It just made sense to do what you could for family, right? Even if he did find them irritating and always getting in the way of his studies.

Thirteen? “It seems like…she was a lot younger just a little while ago.” But then, Zach had been preoccupied with school for the past few years. Time flies when you have none of it, it seemed. Zach chuckled. “I don’t think I could keep up with her either.” Zach only knew a few basic signs, like “hello” and “thank you”. Actually, that might’ve been his entire vocabulary. “Is she here today?” he asked, glancing around the area to maybe spy a glimpse of her somewhere.