Chapter 94: Gravestone

Shortly later, everyone else finally arrived at the place, with, surprisingly, the Parkers being first; I suppose old school won this round. Exiting the house, I waited on the porch for them as I watched them drive down the dirt path before parking right next to our car, followed by the Greys and Stacys parking behind the parkers and Mom's car.

"First time I've ever been to a farm." Said Peter lightly as he approached Pharaoh while looking at the farmhouse.

"Well, our farm looks pretty bad, so don't expect much. You won't even find crops here; the only animals you'll see will be snakes, raccoons, and mice hiding in the house." Remarked Pharaoh with a slight smirk as he looked at Peter before glancing at Gwen, Jean, and Sara, who all froze at his words.

"Snakes, mice, and raccoons? Y-You're just joking, right?" Questioned Gwen in slight fear as she looked at Tut, hoping he was pranking them like always, though when she saw his grin widen, she knew he wasn't lying.

"Oh, no, I'm telling the truth; last time I was here, I actually played with a snake; he was pretty chill after I did some of those Indian snake dances." Replied Tut with a grin while glancing between the three, who all took a step back immediately.

"Eh, I-I don't really feel comfortable entering a house where a snake could jump at me from any angle and bite me." Said Jean fearfully as she hid behind Sara, using her older sister as protection.

"Don't hide behind me, Jean! I'm also scared!" Yelled Sara with a scowl as she moved out of the way before quickly hiding behind Jean.

While those three refused to enter, none of their parents seemed to care and promptly entered the house, causing me to smirk as I glanced at Peter.

"My bad, Pete; we also have some chickens here, not many, so be careful with them." Remarked Tut with a grin as he nudged Peter and gestured to the frightened girls, causing him to nod in understanding.

"Where? Oh, I see them now; they're quite fluffy and beautiful; you must be feeding them well." Said Peter while looking at Sara, Jean, and Gwen while nodding with a smirk.

"Hmm, what are you two talking about?" Asked Gwen as she eyed Tut and Peter with furrowed brows while ignoring the little fight Jean and Sara were engaged in.

"Oh, nothing; I was just showing Pete three chickens." Replied Tut lightly with an amused smile while dismissively waving his hand.

"Yeah, it was nothing special, Gwen, though two of the chickens are fighting each other." Added Pete with a smirk as he leaned against a pillar while Gwen frowned and looked around, only to look at Sara and Jean.

"Ha ha, very funny, guys." Said Gwen with a slight frown and a fake laugh as she eyed Peter and Tut while the two sisters were utterly oblivious to what was happening.

"Hmm, what's funny, Gwen? Are you finding this funny, Pete?" Questioned Tut with a raised eyebrow as he glanced at Peter, who played along and shook his head.

"Yeah, Pete and I aren't finding this funny; I don't know what's funny about watching three chickens. Though if you're enjoying yourself, Gwen, I'm all for it. I don't want to ruin a friend's joy." Stated Tut with a large grin while looking at Gwen, who clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"Tsk, fine, since you two wish to act like that, I'll enter the stupid house. Will that stop the two of you from calling me a chicken?" Asked Gwen with a frown as she approached the two, walking up the porch and standing beside the entrance to the house.

"Eh, I'll call you whatever I want, but go ahead; I'm interested in seeing a chicken enter a human house for the first time." Replied Tut lightly as he and Peter ignored the two sisters and gazed at Gwen, who huffed in annoyance and entered the house.

"Happy now?" Remarked Gwen as she folded her arms and glared at the two, who entered behind her.

"Hehe, was that so hard-Ahh, snake!" Said Peter with a slight chuckle as he stood beside Gwen before suddenly yelling and pointing at the wall.

"AHHHHHH!! SNAKE!!" Yelled Gwen loudly in a terrified voice, running out of the house as fast as possible.

Watching Gwen fearfully run away, Pete and I couldn't contain ourselves and started laughing, and it only got funnier when Mr. Stacy came charging down the stairs in worry.

"Where the snake at!?" Exclaimed George while holding a random object in hand as he eyed Peter and Tut, who were busy laughing.

"Hahaha, I-it was a, hahaha, prank, Mr. Stacy." Said Peter while leaning against Tut as the two were reduced to a launching mess.

"Oh, okay; false alarm." Remarked Georg with a nod as he calmed down and placed whatever he held down before turning around and speaking to everyone else.

After our little prank on Gwen, which I wish I were recording, she was furious with both of us; she even tried fighting us at one point, though I was lucky enough to escape when Uncle Darnel handed me a shovel, while Peter just ran away. Currently, Uncle Darnel and I were walking down a small dirt path between two large farm plots as we headed toward Kent's burial site, the place where every Kent has been buried; at least, that's what Uncle Darnel said.

"So, is Dad on the way, Uncle?" Asked Pharaoh calmly as he rested the shovel on his shoulder and walked beside Darnel.

"Yeah, Hana said the hearse should be here in about an hour, and while we're digging, she's setting up the tables and other stuff." Replied Darnel with a nod while smoking a cigarette, blowing a puff of smoke.

We finally arrived at the Kent family burial site a few more minutes later. It was my first time here, and I'll say it was much bigger than I had anticipated; I saw a gravestone that dated all the way back to the early nineteenth century.

"I never realized the Kent lineage went so far back." Muttered Pharaoh with a raised eyebrow as he eyed the several gravestones, going from oldest to newest.

"Yeap, we Kent's have been alive for some time." Replied Darnel with a nod as he looked at the two newest gravestones, his eyes softening considerably before he sighed to himself.

"So, how were my Grandparents, Uncle? Dad doesn't really talk about them, so I don't know much about them." Asked Tut curiously as he looked at the two gravestones before glancing at Darnel.

"Your grandparents? If you're worried about them being racists, you can throw your worries out the window; one of my Dad's best friends was a Brazilian man." Stated Darnel lightly with a slight smirk as he stabbed his shovel into the dirt beside the newest gravestone.

"Your grandmother would've been like any other grandmother, sweet and loving, though your grandfather, while he was a kind man, would've been quite harsh on you. This is all my assumption on how they raised James and I." Added Darnel as he grabbed the shovel and started digging, prompting Tut to help.

"Welp, I suppose now I know why Dad is so nice and kind." Muttered Pharaoh with a nod as he and Darnel dug in a rectangle large enough to fit a coffin.

"Yeah, though Dad's kindness rubbed off on James more than it did me." Said Darnel with a nod as he glanced at the second newest gravestone before shaking his head.

'This is going to take a while.' Mused Pharaoh as he realized how slow he and Darnel were moving.

Just like I anticipated, it took us quite some time to dig out a big and deep enough hole; it also didn't help that the sun was present overhead; well, it helped me, just not Uncle Darnel. By the time we finally finished the hole, roughly ninety minutes had passed, and Uncle Darnel was a sweaty, dirty mess, while I looked the exact same as before.

"You should've changed your clothes before doing this." Remarked Pharaoh with a raised eyebrow as he glanced at Darnel, who shook his head.

"It doesn't matter; the Kent are farmers; being a little dirty for a funeral is fine." Said Darnel while breathing heavily as he threw his shovel out of the six-foot deep hole and climbed out.

"Here, grab my hand; can't have you ruining that suit." Added Darnel as he kneeled down and outstretched his hand, which Pharaoh grabbed.

"Thanks." Said Pharaoh as Darnel pulled him out of the hole.

Dusting off some of the dirt, I stabbed the shovel into the ground beside the hole and started heading back down the path, only to turn around when I noticed Uncle wasn't following.

"You not coming, Uncle?" Asked Pharaoh with a raised eyebrow as he watched Darnel enter a small shed while carrying a gravestone before leaving.

"I'll be there; I just got to finish the date on James' gravestone." Replied Darnel as he sat on the ground and pulled a chisel and a hammer out of his overalls.

Looking at the gravestone, I noticed, besides the date of Dad's death, everything was already there, which made me a little curious, but I didn't feel like questioning it, at least not right now; so with a nod, I turned back around and headed home.

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Now we know where Peter's funny side comes from; it was because of Pharaoh all along.