BRINGING HOME A STRAY DOG WASN'T ESZTER'S INTENTION. In fact, the teenager made it clear to the twins that their parents wouldn't be too keen on the idea of having a dog, especially while they're so young. Eszter knew Wanda wouldn't be happy once she found out she allowed the boys to bring home a random dog, but Eszter was smitten by the fur baby. The witch cooed at the puppy eyes and the adorable wagging of its tail; Eszter could tell it was obedient.
As a result of the adorable dog, Eszter couldn't deny her nephews the dog and helped them walk the dog home; the witch took the dog from her nephew's arms and carried her home, noting how dirty his fur was. All but one was hesitant.
"You sure you wanna bring some random dog to your sister's house?" wondered Wesley, glancing at the dirty dog with a mild dislike.
Wesley wasn't worried about what Wanda would think about them bringing home a random dog, but the boy wasn't a fan of dogs; maybe Wesley was afraid of it, or he genuinely didn't like dogs. Eszter couldn't tell the difference. He kept side-eyeing the dog with a form of discomfort flashing across his eyes, grimacing to himself as he held a reasonable distance between him and the dog in Eszter's arms.
Eszter makes a face. "Sure, why not?" retorted the witch, laughing heavily. "I mean, maybe we won't actually keep him, but just bathe him and feed him. We'll look for his owner, but he might not have one from the looks of it." Eszter moved her head sideways to look down at the down, barely missing his rogue tongue that was mere inches from her nose. "Who can say no to that face?"
"I don't think Wanda would be too happy," argued Wesley. Eszter looked at him weirdly. "I mean, he's a stray; he could be carrying something, and you wouldn't even know."
The girl rolls her eyes. "Don't be so dramatic," Eszter shifted the dog in her arms, helping it get more comfortable. "Wanda might not even be home, so we'll have time to give him a bath, at least."
All four snuck in through the kitchen door to not alert Wanda of their arrival. Eszter had sent Billy in first to make sure the coast was clear, so the little boy in red rushed inside and inspected the kitchen, then made his way to the door to the living room. Billy peeped outside the kitchen and checked the living room, finding it empty. He turned around and took a couple of steps into the kitchen, grinning toothily and throwing a thumbs up.
"Mommy's not here," informed Billy.
"Great, let's be quick before she shows up," said Eszter, trotting into the kitchen and carrying the dog toward the kitchen sink. She glanced over her shoulder, looking at the twins with urgency. "Remember, I didn't give you two permission to bring him home. If she asks, you two snuck him home without me knowing, got it?"
Billy and Tommy beamed. "Got it!" they exclaimed in unison.
"Okay, now go get a towel and soap," instructed Eszter.
"Okay!" the twins exclaim, rushing out of the kitchen.
Once the two were alone with the dog, Wesley scoffed to himself, earning a look from Eszter; the witch doesn't say anything as she hauls the dog to the sink, setting him inside the small tub. The stray dog wagged his tail excitedly as he stepped up closer to Eszter, wanting to give the teenager kisses, but the girl refused. Eszter backed away from the dog, scrunching her nose.
"No kisses, please," cooed Eszter, making faces at the dog. After a moment of not hearing from Wesley, Eszter straightened upward and sighed, resting a hand on her hip and glancing at Wesley. "You've clearly got something to say; might as well spill it out."
"Nothing, nothing. It's just funny that you're throwing your nephews under the bus."
Eszter shrugs. "Wanda can't say no to them," assured the witch, grinning lopsidedly. "What do you think? He's cute, huh?"
Wesley approached Eszter's side and eyed the dog while keeping his hands to himself. "I'm not really a dog kind of guy," said the boy, grimacing at the dirty dog. "It's gross."
Eszter gaped. "Don't say that," exclaimed the witch, cupping the dog's ears as if he could understand Wesley. "You'll hurt his feelings."
"He's a dog, Eszter," scoffed Wesley, slightly amused. He's never seen someone talk about a dog the way she does. "He doesn't even know what I'm saying."
She rolls her eyes. "You don't know that."
Wesley perked a brow. "Don't I?" He leaned toward the dog. "Do you understand what I'm saying? Can you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth, or are you just dumb?" the dog tilted his head with a questionable look, but happy. "You're pretty ugly, huh?"
Eszter gasped, amused. "Wesley, shut up!"
"Auntie E, we got it," called Tommy, running through the door before Billy, a towel in his hand.
Eszter beams. "Good job, Tomster," she takes the towel and sets it on the counter next to the sink. When she turned back to Tommy, she raised her brows. "Where's the soap?"
Tommy closed his hands in front of him, swaying his small body. "Billy wanted to bring it," he glanced over toward the door, and right on cue, it swung open. "See."
"Wow, thank you so much," cooed Eszter, accepting the soap and setting it beside the towel. "Okay, boys, let's get to cleaning. Wanna help?"
"Yes, yes!"
Wesley moved away from the sink to give the space up to the three family members. Eszter made room for Tommy to drag a step stool for him and his brother, propping them higher; the witch reached over and turned on the water.
"Who wants to add the soap?"
"Me!" shouted Tommy.
"No, me!" said Billy.
"Let's let Billy add the soap, and Tommy, you can clean the dog," instructed Eszter, adding the plug into the sink so it wouldn't continue to drain. "Okay, Billy, go ahead." Eszter watches as Billy tips the bottle upside down, squeezing the bottle; after a few seconds, the teenager chuckles. "Okay, okay. I think that's enough soap. Don't need to flood the house with bubbles."
"Oh, can we do that, Auntie E?" asked Tommy with a mischievous grin.
"No, we can't," Eszter gave Tommy a firm look, not liking how devilish his smile looks. "Okay, now just scrub his body--not too rough, Tommy." Eszter corrects, making sure the older twin was gentle with the dog.
Billy reached in and helped Tommy, both cleaning the dog together. The dog shook his body, spraying the trio with soapy water, earning shrieks from the three of them; from behind, Wesley was snickering to himself, clearly amused. Eszter glared at Wesley before turning back to the dog, trying to stop him from getting the kitchen dirty. Tommy and Billy seemed to think it was just as funny as Wesley had, giggling among themselves.
Bathing the dog took a lot longer than Eszter had anticipated, considering it didn't seem like the stray dog particularly enjoyed bath time. Not only that but Billy and Tommy were too busy playing with the dog rather than bathing him.
"I don't think he likes the water," commented Billy.
"But we have to get him clean, so Mommy will let us keep him," Tommy looks at Eszter. "Right, Auntie E?"
Eszter shrugs. "Honestly, I don't know what your parents are gonna think when they find a random dog in their sink," admitted Eszter, scratching a spot behind her neck.
The girl didn't want to say out loud that there was a chance that Wanda and Vision wouldn't allow the twins to keep the dog that they found in the park; never mind the fact that Eszter had allowed them to bring it home, and let them put him in the sink--that's technically on Eszter, but oh well. The worst thing that could happen is Wanda lecturing Eszter that she shouldn't be letting the boys bring home stray animals because they have no owners and that they're adorable.
"Maybe you guys should just take him to the pound so his owner can find him," interjected Wesley.
Eszter merely rolled her eyes, annoyed by the older boy's lack of enthusiasm; Wesley was making it clear that he wasn't keen on the idea, even though it had nothing to do with him in the first place. Still, Wesley kept inserting himself into the conversation even though Eszter knew he might be right, but she wasn't going to let him know that; that would just inflate Wesley's head bigger than it already was.
"Maybe you should stop talking already," Eszter mocked.
"Yeah," copied Tommy, a sassy hand on his hip as he gave Wesley a look that resembled Eszter's.
Wesley raised his brows. "Wow, is Eszter being a bad influence on her nephews? How would Wanda feel about that?" Suddenly, Wesley was grinning madly. "You're totally living up to the Dark--"
"Wesley," Eszter sneered, glaring at her friend annoyingly as if she was silently telling him to shut up before she did it for him.
His hands shoot up in the air defensively. "Sorry, my bad," Wesley leaned against the table, resting his chin on his fist.
"Tommy, Billy, Eszter!" Wanda's voice called from the other room.
Eszter's eyes widened momentarily as she looked at the dog, wondering what she was going to say to Wanda once she saw the dog. For a moment, she was going to blame the boys, knowing they wouldn't get in trouble, but then Wesley would easily throw her under the bus just as she did. It wasn't like Eszter wanted to blame the twins, but they're more like trouble-makers than one would realize.
Tommy gasped, looking at Eszter worriedly. "Oh, no, Mommy's coming! What do we do?"
"I've got an idea," Eszter pushed Billy and Tommy shoulder to shoulder, blocking the stray dog in his bubble bath. "Wesley, quick."
Unfortunately, Wesley had to oblige Eszter's request and stood beside her, forcefully, might he add; then Eszter stood next to him, shoulders brushing as they imitated a taller wall than the twins. Acting as casual as two bad actors, Wesley and Eszter didn't manage the task because as soon as Wanda entered the kitchen, suspicion was written on her face immediately.
"You know, I don't miss the crying, but jeez Louise, did you have to learn to walk?" joked Wanda, fists resting on her hips. "You two never stay put. You boys probably got Auntie E running around all day."
Eszter chuckles anxiously. "Yeah," she bumped Wesley's side with her elbow. "They've got a lot of energy now, huh?"
Laughing equally as awkward, Wesley looked tense. "Yeah," he responded almost flatly.
The teenager could roll her eyes right now at Wesley's failed attempt to make it not obvious, but the boy could care less; either that or Wesley was actually scared of Wanda's reaction. Honestly, Eszter was because Angry Wanda is not someone she wants to revisit.
But then Wanda reeled her chin toward her chest, frowning as she inspected the four standing strangely in front of the sink. "Unless you're innocently forming a human wall in front of the kitchen sink," said Wanda, nearing the four with a speculating frown.
Eszter makes a noise of disbelief. "'A human wall'? Wands, we're just washing up from the park," laughed the witch. "I think the boys were playing in the dirt, so I'm making them clean up. Isn't that right, boys?"
Tommy took a second to think about the answer, making Eszter groan through her teeth. She leaned forward and whispered in his ears--"nod"--she said, which Tommy did. Billy merely stood frozen and didn't respond, not knowing if he should lie to Wanda or not; he knew the plan and was ready to follow through, but Billy isn't the type to do that. Maybe that's why Eszter and Tommy were so easy at lying because they carried similar traits.
But to ruin their horrible plan, a soft sneeze came from behind the four.
Wanda looked at Eszter with a knowing look; the young witch grimaced once she knew she was caught, and there was no way she'd be able to cover up the sneeze that came from behind them. Wanda already knew neither of them sneezed, and Eszter wasn't going to be able to twist the lies anymore.
"Bless you."
"Thank you."
Then, the dog barked.
"Now tell me which one of you barked?" Wanda waves her fingers apart. "Scoot."
Everyone obeyed as if Wanda was all of their mothers; the four split into twos, going to the side as they allowed Wanda through. There was no hope in hiding the dog as long as Eszter had thought, but she knew it wouldn't be easy to hide a dog.
Wesley was making a face--eyes wide like a deer in light, scratching the back of his head and slowly stepping away from Eszter as if he was making it known he wasn't part of the plan. Wesley kept his distance from the evidence. Eszter didn't notice as she was awaiting Wanda's scolding like a child, somehow used to it when she was a kid; as her brother's sister, Eszter was just as bad as he was. They were always keeping Wanda on her toes.
"Oh, boy," Wanda gasped, turning around to her sons and sister. "Waiter, what's this canine doing in my kitchen sink?"
Awkwardly, Eszter was chuckling like it was a joke. "Well, you see," she started.
Wanting to clarify the situation, Wesley held his arms up in defeat, stepping back and away from Eszter. "I'd like to make it clear that I was, in fact, not part of this operation," he emphasized, pointing around the scene.
Eszter rolled her eyes, glaring at Welsey with betrayal. "Some friend you are."
Wanda looked at Eszter expectantly, clearly upset. "Eszter, I let you take the twins to the park," the tone of her voice had Eszter wincing. "Not let them bring home a stray animal."
"Let's be honest, Wands, we both knew this would happen," Eszter tried to joke, but she slowly realized that Wanda wasn't laughing with her. The teenager looked awkward and didn't know what to say. "I couldn't say no to them, sorry. I've got a reputation to be the best aunt."
"'Reputation'? Eszter, you're their only aunt," retorted Wanda.
Billy gave Wanda his infamous puppy eyes. "Can we keep him, Mommy?"
The abandoned dog whined from inside the soapy bath, wanting to leave the wet sink and roam freely. Wanda turned around and grabbed the towel meant for the dog.
"Well, I'm sure his owners miss him very much," Wanda said, giving Eszter a knowing look over her shoulder. She turned back to the dog, motioning for him to hop out. "Come on."
The dog obeyed.
"He doesn't have a collar," said Eszter, noticing her sister inspecting for a collar. "We already checked."
Wanda searched anyway, and Eszter was correct; there was no collar to insist there was an owner; she didn't want her sister to be right because then that means Wanda would need to have a talk with her sons about what it means to have a dog. A little annoyed that her sister would do this without talking to her about it first, there was nothing Wanda could do about it now. It already happened, and the dog is in her arms.
As sweet and adorable as the dog was, Wanda knew there were a lot of responsibilities when it came to owning a dog, and neither of them had experience owning a dog. Not that she and Eszter could own a dog throughout their childhood.
"Huh," Wanda frowned. "There really is no collar."
"Can we keep him?" Tommy asked hopefully.
"He was outside," said Billy, voice soft and innocent. "Crying, alone."
Wanda petted the dog. "Now, boys, taking care of a living thing is a big responsibility," informed the mother. Her scolding eyes briefly met Eszter's, who was looking sheepish. "Auntie E should've known this before bringing him home with you guys."
Eszter opened her mouth for an argument, but she realized Wanda was right--she wasn't thinking about the responsibilities. "You got me there," she breathed.
Even with her slight frustration, Wanda couldn't help but grin with a small shake of her head. She turns back to her sons, more firm and assertive. Wanda had to build a foundation of the responsibilities it takes for a dog, and she had to make it clear that the boys weren't anywhere ready to own a dog.
"Dogs need food, exercise, training, belly rubs, and cuddles," suddenly, Wanda's voice started getting higher, and she was making baby noises, scrunching her nose. "And kisses between his little ears."
Eszter clapped her hands. "Aha! I knew you'd love the idea."
Suddenly, the kitchen door swung open with a human version of Vision. It was so unlike Vision to be in his human form at home, but Eszter was glad since Wesley was already over; that would be difficult for Eszter to explain to her friend as to why Vision is a humanoid being. Or maybe it wouldn't, but it's for the sake of the story. Vision would probably go bonkers if their identity shone into light, especially after Wanda made it clear that she wanted to be a picture-perfect-family.
"Morning, wife," announced Vision. "Morning, boys. Morning, sister-in-law." Vision paused once he saw Wesley, who waved sheepishly in the side of the kitchen. The humanoid nearly grimaced at the idea of their neighbor over, never seeming to have a break from Agnes and her family. "Morning, neighbor, who's always here."
"I'm not--?"
Eszter shushes Wesley, patting a hand on his chest.
"Good morning, unfamiliar wet animal," Vision frowned at the dog in Wanda's arms. He reached down for the newspaper. "Who's this?"
"We're not quite sure, actually," answered Wanda. She sets him down, letting him roam free. "Eszter let the boys bring home a dog they found in the park."
Sensing Vision's gaze shift to her, Eszter opened her mouth defensively, ready to justify her actions. They were reasonable, right?
"Uh, to be fair, I told them you probably wouldn't want it, but they gave me the puppy dog eyes," explained Eszter, clearly troubled. "But he's so cute."
"Right," said Vision.
Wanda frowned at Vision's attire. "Why so formal, honey?"
"Oh, it's just a precaution, really," answered Vision. "I had a hunch someone might pop over." He pointed at Wesley, clearly right. "Guess my hunch was correct."
Suddenly, to Vision's bemusement, he witnessed Eszter using her powers to dry the stray dog magically, and to his dismay, she did it in front of Wesley. If anyone had been looking at Vision, they would've noticed the way Vision looked taken aback; astounded that Eszter would blatantly use her powers in front of their neighbor baffled the humanoid. After Wanda was committed to appearing like a picture-perfect family, Vision didn't know how to react to the minor slip-up.
When Vision glanced at his wife, Wanda didn't seem to notice the fact that Eszter had used her powers so carelessly.
But then, the back door opened, and Agnes was popping inside with a large dog house. Everyone turned toward the door once they heard it open, finding the smiling woman entering the house unannounced.
"Hi, kiddos," greeted Agnes, beaming widely.
Eszter smiled welcomely at the woman. She was unaware of Vision's attitude changing, the way he looked at her with a look of disbelief and maybe a bit of scolding. He figured perhaps no one had noticed because she did use her powers behind Wesley's back, and Vision didn't want to make a scene.
"Agnes," greeted Eszter.
"My kitchen window told me someone got a new pooch," Agnes was greeted by hugs from the twins, to which she accepted with open arms. "Did you name him yet?"
"How about Sniffy?" suggested Billy after noticing the dog was sniffing around their kitchen, being nosy.
The dog was sniffing the outlet when it sparked with electricity, alerting the household.
Wesley snorted. "How about Sparky?" he joked.
Wanda laughed. "Well, should we make it official?"
She held her hand up and wiggled her other, blinking a collar out of nowhere; Agnes and Wesley were too busy playing with Sparky when it happened, and the boys nor Eszter reacted to the powers. Eszter merely took the collar as Wanda handed it to her. She beamed at the boys and kneeled down to his level.
"Tommy, wanna put it on Sparky?" asked Eszter, handing the collar to her nephew.
Giddy with excitement, Tommy reached for the collar and walked beside Agnes, who bent her knees for the boy to attach the collar. Eszter scooted closer and offered assistance, showing Tommy how to use the collar and wrap it around Sparky's neck; clicking the collar on, Eszter cheered, clapping her hands as she beamed at her nephews. They were so excited.
However, no one seemed to notice the tension brewing between Wanda and Vision, no one but Eszter; the witch can sense it even through the adoration and excitement, feeling the strain between the couple behind her. Discreetly, Eszter would peek over her shoulder and spare small glances at her sister and brother-in-law, wondering what was wrong.
"Wanda," Vision softly muttered, furrowing his brows in confusion; he couldn't believe the way the sisters were acting. Wanda hums. "Agnes and Wesley are right there."
"Well, she didn't notice," dismissed Wanda with an amused grin. "She didn't even notice when the boys went from babies to five-year-olds."
But Vision wasn't done. "That's not what we agreed upon," frowned the humanoid, clearly upset. "You made no effort to conceal your abilities, and now, Eszter is using her powers, too."
"Well, I'm tired of hiding, Vis," answered Wanda. Her eyes soaked in Vision's appearance with a longing look hidden behind her eyes; the woman raised her hand to her husband's face, touching his cheek. "And maybe you don't have to either."
Affected by her change of heart, Vision touched her hand, removing it and holding her in his own. "Wanda, we are usually so much of the same mind. But right now . . ." Vision studied his wife with an analyzing gaze, trying to figure out the missing pieces that he wasn't seeing.
Vision couldn't shake off the feeling that he was missing something like he knew there was something odd about Westview, and it had taken only until now for him to realize it. It was as if it was right in front of him, but Vision couldn't see what it was; Vision wanted to find out what Wanda wasn't telling him. Something was off about everything. Nothing felt picture-perfect like he had once initially thought.
Eszter knew something was unraveling between the couple on the other side of the kitchen, like yarn being tossed and the thread untangling from the perfect formed ball. Eszter was watching the beginning of the end right before her eyes.
"So, is Sparky our dog, Daddy?"
"What?" Vision was so lost in his speculations that he had forgotten about the dog. He sighed to himself before grunting, hands resting on his hips and looking more firm.
Wanda directed her attention to her boys. "Boys, your father and I don't think you're ready to properly care for an animal," her eyes subtly rushed to Eszter, who looked a little shamefaced, knowing she'd be blamed for the dog coming home. "Auntie E should've known this."
Awkwardly, Eszter laughed to her eyes, eyes widening briefly to herself, grimacing slightly. The witch shuffled closer to Wesley's side, discreetly hiding behind her friend as if to use him as a human shield to hide from Wanda's wrath.
"Not until you're at least . . ." Wanda leaned back for support from Vision, who coughed an answer behind his hand. "Ten years old."
But then, Wanda and Vision weren't expecting the way Billy had looked at Tommy with a mischievous grin, knowing exactly what they had to do. The more rule follower brother was the leader of the idea of aging up, wanting to own the dog so desperately. Tommy looked at his twin with an equally evil grin, liking the idea.
"Wait, now, hang on there a minute . . ."
"Wait, no, no, no," rushed Vision. "You young whippersnappers."
Eszter stood back in surprise, witnessing her 5-year-old nephews morphed into 10-year-old boys; her eyes shot up between the couple, practically wincing to herself, feeling like she was the one to be blamed. Eszter allowed the boys to bring home a stray dog, knowing Wanda wouldn't want an animal with the boys being so young; yet, Eszter didn't listen to her conscious and willingly brought the dog home. Afraid to meet her sister's gaze, the witch looked away and briefly at Agnes and Wesley, knowing they had witnessed their age-up.
"No, no, no!" Wanda gasped.
Amused, Agnes seemed unfazed. "Let's just hope this dog stays the same size," joked the woman, cuddling with Sparky. "Woof, woof!"
Feeling like it's her cue to leave, Eszter reached down and gripped Welsey's wrist and let out an uncomfortable laugh, wanting to run away from the blame; the witch knew her actions weren't right, but just like her younger self, Eszter wasn't going to face her discipline.
Eszter began dragging Wesley toward the back door. She offered the married couple a nervous grin, walking backward as her eyes occasionally shifted to the older twins; as strange as it was to see Billy and Tommy 5 years older, it wasn't unfamiliar. Still, Eszter wasn't going to be here to hear the scolding from either parent. She had already heard enough reprimands from Wanda throughout her childhood, and she knew not to mess with her sister.
"Okay, we're gonna leave now!" announced Eszter, barely meeting Vision's gaze. "Bye!"
And then Eszter and Welsey slammed the door behind them, leaving the mess behind them like she wasn't the cause of the situation.
☁︎isabel's thoughts☁︎
❝ I enjoyed writing this chapter very much. It was so much fun, and I think it'll get more exciting I hope! I'm already writing for episode 6, so it's strange that this book is slowly coming to an end.
tbh, I intended this to be about Eszter and Wanda, so I'll remember to add more moments between the family and the sisters. I ended up using this mostly for Eszter and her growth, which is why we don't see her with the family as much. I'll add little scenes here and there for y'all. ❞