Reassurance

Date/Timing: 11 August 2013; shortly after "News"
Setting: Rianne & Val's back yard; Koffiefontein, FS, South Africa
.
Pietr huddles around coffee number four, leaning against the courtyard wall, soaking in weak winter morning sun.
Motion.
Glances to the gate.
Griet waves.
Smiles, pats the ground next to him.
She creeps over, folds down, tucks her feet close. ::You saw?::
Nods, coffee down. ::Awful.:: Swallows. ::All those people ....::
Griet bows her head, tightens a loose violet ribbon.
Pietr reclaims his mug, sips.
::Do you think there are more of them out there?:: she asks.
Shrugs.
::The ocean's huge. There's plenty of places to hide.::
Agrees, sips some more.
She takes a deep breath. ::I'm glad we're far away.::
Sets aside his empty cup. ::Drought's never looked better.:: Smiles weakly.
Griet scoots closer, nestles against his side.
He rests his head on hers, closes his eyes.
A tap on his arm.
He straightens, blinks in the sun.
Griet tilts her head.
Takala and Bram, shifty-eyed, peep over the gate.
Pietr smiles brightly, waves them in.
They creep over, plop down.
Takala, head bowed, mumbles.
Pietr taps under her chin.
She looks up, lip trembling.
Bram clutches her arm.
::What's wrong?:: Pietr asks, Griet translating.
“The monster.”
::It's really scary, yea?::
The little ones nod.
Takala plays with her braids. 
Bram glances about nervously. A deep breath and he says, “What if there's another one in the dam and it comes here and tries to eat us?”
Griet pats his arm. “The ocean's salt water and the dam's fresh water. Salt water creatures can't live in fresh water.”
::The dam's too small to hide something like that, too,:: adds Pietr.
“But what's to stop that one from coming /here?”
“Sweetheart, it's /thousands of kilometers away across an /ocean. It'll never get here.”
“But what if there're more of them in the ocean?”
“We're /hours from the ocean so we'll be safe.” Griet smiles reassuringly. “Even if there are more—and there probably aren't—we'll never see one up close.”
Bram looks to Pietr.
He puts as much warmth and confidence in his smile as he can, nods earnestly. ::The only monsters we'll see are Pokémon.::
Bram smiles shakily.
::Does that make you feel any better, Takala?::
“A little.” She flicks her braids, beads bouncing. “But ... can we stay here with you today?”
::Do your mamma and pappa know where you are?::
Takala nods.
::Then, of course you can!::
Bram and Talaka relax.
::How about a game of Po—football?::
The kids light up, scramble to their feet, dart—
“The ball's in the carport closet,” Griet calls after them.
—change direction, vanish through the gate.
Griet bumps Pietr's shoulder, says, ::Good job calming them down.::
He shrugs. ::You did most of the talking.::
::I /always do /all the talking,:: she snickers.
Pietr rolls his eyes.
Category:Ficlet
Category:Forging of a Skeleton Key storyline
Category:Koffiefontein (setting)
Category:Pokemon (reference)
Category:Trespasser (mention)
Category:Pietr
Category:Pietr's POV
Category:Pietr (ficlet)
Category:Griet
Category:Griet's ribbons
Category:Griet (ficlet)
Category:Takala
Category:Takala (ficlet)
Category:Bram
Category:Bram (ficlet)
Category:Ficlets with images