Just stepping out from the woodlands, the three of them were carrying a full-sized deer as they made their way in the direction of the farmhouse.

Wasting no more time, Forest peeled his eyes from the window and hurried down the ladder. "Autumn and Winter, they're here!" Earning their attention at once, he went to the door, smiling.

"Y-you saw them?" Winter asked, reluctant.

"Yes!" The boy nearly opened the door when he turned to his sisters. "Autumn, I know you said that you'd tell them everything right away, but I think we should wait a few hours. They just got back."

After a brief moment, she gave a firm nod. "Just a few hours."

His smile returned. "Thanks." Upon opening the door, he was greeted with the sight of his friends on the porch. When they jumped and almost dropped the creature, the boy chuckled. "Long time, no see."

"Yeah, we took longer than normal," Jett said, tilted his head. "You seem happy. What's going on?"

"You knew we'd be back, right?" Skylar asked with a frown.

Forest moved aside, gesturing for them to come in. "No, I knew, don't worry."

They struggled through the front door and made it no further. Their eyes were glued to the two people standing just before them: Autumn and Winter. Not even when they actually dropped the deer did either of them make a movement.

"It's them! My sisters finally came home," the boy exclaimed. He looked at the twins, satisfied, when his eyes flickered onto the puppies. I guess we have some more explaining to do.

Rushing forward, clearly more than happy, the dogs stopped at their feet and licked them.

"Are those your sisters?" Jade asked, puzzled. "And are these... dogs?"

Smiling brightly, Forest nodded as he studied the people at the door. "Well, come inside! I'm sure you have a few questions."

Jett gave a hesitant laugh before a smile spread across his face. "More than a few." Slowly, he stepped forward and hugged the girls. And it was immediately returned.

"Boy, you have some explaining to do," Skylar mumbled, sharing a look with Jade.

One by one, the three took a seat, as requested by the twins, and soon their eyes were on the kids.

"Alright, ask us some questions," Winter said, but then she let out a gasp and looked at her brother. "D-did you tell them about my arm?" Her words were full of dread.

"Oh, yes, I did. Don't worry. I told them weeks ago," Forest answered, offering her a gentle nod. When she sighed with relief, the boy looked at the others and noticed them all to be uneasy. And that was when he felt guilty. This was the first time they had really seen just how bad it was.

"Well," Jade began, interrupting the uncomfortable pause, "when did you get back?"

"And where's Holly?" Skylar added, concerned.

Forest shifted on his feet. "They got back a couple of hours ago and Holly is missing. For all we know, she could back at any time."

"But let's not count on it," Winter said, her eyes averted.

After a long and fragile pause, Jade looked down at the dogs and halfheartedly chuckled. They were playfully fighting next to the couch, tails wagging. "And what about them? They weren't here this morning either."

"The dogs came here like... ten minutes before my sisters did. It's weird, I know, but it's also true." Forest met her uncertain gaze with knowing eyes. "You don't believe me, do you?"

The woman shook her head after a moment. "I'm just surprised is all."

"Yeah."

"Do they have a name yet?"

The boy blinked at her. "Uh, no, not yet." He flickered a look at Jett and Skylar. "I wasn't sure that we could keep them. C-can we?"

"We'd have to spare a lot of food for them. Sure, they're small now, but just think about when they get older," Skylar said, and sighed heavily. "But, despite this, I wouldn't mind having some dogs to keep us company."

Forest pressed a hand over his heart and looked up. "Oh, thank you! We can keep them, right Jett?" However, when the boy saw the man, his smile instantly dropped. "You're going to say no, aren't you?"

"I'm sorry, Forest."

"Are you allergic to them?"

The man held up a hand and shook his head. "No, that's not it. I just... have bad experiences with dogs. They may look friendly, yeah, but the moment you are vulnerable they will strike!"

"It sounds like you're describing a cat," Skylar said, frowning. She hopped off the stool and bent down before the puppies. "They are totally not dangerous! Do you not see them?"

"Wait until it's night. That's when you'll see, Sky. You'll take back what you just said." Jett's words were heavy.

Before he could continue, however, they each jumped onto her lap and licked her face. She laughed. "See? Not dangerous."

Jett gave her a dismissive wave. "They bark, you know. Dogs bark!"

"You've lost this one, Fox. We're keeping them."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

After a silent battle, the man stood to his feet and stepped over to the twins. "Thank Winter and Autumn. If they weren't here, those things would be out the door. They are lucky I'm in such a good mood."

Autumn erupted into laughter, no longer able to hold it in, and her sister soon lost as well. Before long, everyone was doing likewise and this went on for several minutes.

"Guys," Autumn said, struggling for air, "we need to give them a name."

"Hmm." Skylar carefully lifted each puppy and stood up, smiling. "This chocolate-colored one is a female and the cream-colored one is a male."

"I know, what about Humphrey for the boy?" Jade asked, stepping beside Jett and Skylar. "I've always loved that name."

"I don't know," Jett said, "that just doesn't click for me. What about Cleo for the girl?"

"No" -Forest shook his head- "she doesn't look like a Cleo."

"Dallas?" he tried again.

"No."

"Foster?"

"Stop throwing random names, Jett! Let somebody else have a turn," Skylar replied, slightly irritated.

He opened his mouth another time, but when he saw her critical eyes on him, the man only gave a defeated sigh.

"Good, anybody else?"

While in thought, Forest's eyes drifted onto the creature that lay at the front door, neglected. "Let's decide later. Remember the deer?" His tone was more than unsettled. "You three dropped it."

There was an uneasy pause.

"That's... right," Jade said, sneaking a glance at everyone around the room. "Skylar and Jett, let's go."

The sight of the deer being carried and set onto the table was something the boy had grown numb to over the weeks. At first, he would have to leave, whether it be to the attic or outside, because he wasn't used to the reality of hunting when he lived in the bunker. But not anymore. His sisters, on the other hand, had their backs turned to the scene.

On gentle feet, Forest stepped over to his siblings and nodded at the ladder. "Want to go upstairs? I imagine neither of you want to go outside. You've been out there for quite some time, so..."

"Sure," Winter said. She was already walking over to the ladder, her twin following close behind.

After a quick look at the creature, Forest did likewise. And that was when a chill ran down his spine. What if they see the knife?

Before he could hide it, however, the object had already been seen.

"What's this?" Winter asked, pointing to the blade in the corner of the room. "It's all bloody."

"Oh, it's nothing. Just... didn't clean it yet."

"Okay."

The boy gave his sister a double-take, only to find that she had accepted the answer and was gazing outside. That was easy.

"Forest, do you like the name River? Or Robin?" Autumn asked suddenly, her back turned to him. She was also looking out the window.

After some thought, he smiled lightly. "Actually, I really like Robin." His voice was soft. "But I also like Lucky. What do you guys think? They are lucky, after all."

"I kinda like it too, but we should think about it some more," Winter said, stepping next to her sister. "It's been a long time since we were last here. Before vs now - they feel like two different lives."

"Couldn't agree more," Autumn mumbled, placing a hand over her twin's shoulder. "Couldn't agree more."

"Guys," the boy began, his voice low, "when will we tell them about the visions and Holly?"

"Soon enough," Autumn said, when she grew quiet. Slowly, the girl faced her brother. "Where's Jake? He isn't here." Her worry was more than obvious.

Forest froze, the question catching him off-guard. "You're not going to like what I'm about to tell you, Bambi, but here it is: the man's dead."

Shaken up, Autumn withdrew her hand from her sister's shoulder. "You knew, didn't you?" Her stare was cold.

"I'm sorry," came Winter's delayed response.

"You're sorry?" she barked, and looked back at her brother. "What happened?"

"Jett, Skylar, and I found him in the woods when we came across a trail of red. It was blood. At the time, we were looking for Ryan, Kimberly, and Lane," Forest said, struggling to composure himself. "I ran ahead of the others and saw Holly's cross. You had been there, Bambi" - he looked at her sadly- "and I didn't see where the blood lead because I had another seizure."

"Jett later told us that it was Jake. He had been attacked by cougars." Winter shifted on her feet. "He died where you and Holly were taken."

Autumn held her face in her hands as she let out a long breath. "I can't believe this. I was with you for weeks, Winter, and you never told me."

"I told you, I'm sorry."

The boy studied Autumn. "I wish you didn't have to find out this way."

"I just wish we would stop losing people. I know the times in the near future will be hard, so the more of us, the better," she said solemnly. "And he didn't deserve that. I was with him only a short time, that's true, but he was a great person. Maybe even a good one. Jake just didn't deserve to go out like that."

"I believe you. I know it's hard. You will have a hard time accepting his death and I'll have a hard time accepting Holly's disappearance," Forest said, and paused. "Although, I suppose it's different. She may come back. And J-Jake won't."

"Yeah."

"I wish I got to know him. What was he like?"

"He was a man with many scars, yet he never lost his humor. He never lost that," Autumn answered, shaking her head. "He told me how he had four children and had lost them all. Two died, and the others two just went missing one day. They looked everywhere. In the end, Jake was a damaged soul that hid his pain behind a smile."

"He sounds like a great person. I'm really sorry things went the way they did."

"Yeah, I am too," Winter added, straightening up. "We can't change how things are. We have the people we have. And we just happen to be one of them, so can we talk about something else?"

"That's easy for you to say because you never saw him once, but I agree. Let's talk about something else," Autumn said, releasing a sigh.

"Like what?" Forest asked, hesitant.

As if on cue, a sudden voice came from downstairs and they recognized it as their uncle.

"No," Skylar said, frustrated, "Robbie is a silly name. And you're talking out of turn."

Forest couldn't help it and smirked. "We'll talk about it later!"

"Why does he keep giving suggestions?" Winter was grinning too. "He doesn't even like dogs."

Forest shrugged.

"Kids?"

The boy jumped, as did the twins, when Jade's soft voice was heard.

Peeking at them from the ladder, the woman offered a kind smile. "I hope you three like deer meat. Well, I know your brother here does, so I'm talking more to you two." She was looking at the twins. "Any objections?"

They each shook their head, still a little tense.

"Good. We'll let you know when food's ready." Jade was about to leave when she instead rubbed her chin. "What about Brook?"

"Yeah, that's a good one," Autumn said, giggling.

"We'll talk about it over dinner, okay?" Forest asked.

After a moment, she nodded, still smiling. "See you soon. Oh, and Winter and Autumn? I'm glad you found your way back." Without another word, she disappeared from sight.

Forest stepped over to a bed, sat down, and rubbed his hands together. "Are you excited for dinner also? The tenderloin is the best part." Looking at his sisters, he frowned when he saw Winter. "What's wrong?"

"Guys?" Winter's tone was more than uneasy. "There's someone outside."