Downstairs, the rest of the Chapman family nervously went about getting food, which was their original mission when they left the bedroom. However, there were some results that still raised some level of worry, and through their connection to each other as a result of them already being Slug Women, made things worse. They'd had to leave Jeff alone in the master bedroom, for fear that if he came with them, Megan and Jenny would somehow find a way to jump him or get to him. Thus he would be safer behind a locked door and windows that seemed to be sealed shut. If Megan and Jenny did somehow manage to try and get in from the outside, they'd figured that Jeff would be able to make it out of the bedroom and then downstairs to them and they'd move as a family to a new safe place.
They hadn't expected finding the first floor of the Chapman home empty of the two Slug Women that had started things, nor did they expect to come across their master, a warlock named Edward Cupple. For Whitney it was a revelation that might at least partially explain the interest in the Chapmans, given her husband had had a run in with Cupple before, but it still only added to her own worries for her son, now that she was free of the lust filled mind control that Megan and Jenny had her under. Cupple may not have been able to enslave them, thanks to the hive mind linking them, but he might manage to do it with Jeff who hadn't transformed yet, and that would complicate nearly everything.
"We'd best get breakfast and hurry back," Lucy said to her mother placing one hand on Whitney's shoulder, "it is what we came to do... and there isn't anything we can do for Jeff until we get back to him."
"I know... I..." Whitney managed slowly, still feeling the effect of the lightning attack that Cupple had used. It wasn't enough to cause serious injury, but it did stun her in a way that she couldn't overpower.
"We're all worried about that too," Lucy assured her, "not to mention that we haven't run into Megan or Jenny."
"And if they've gone out and around to get at Jeff..." Zoe picked up, "he would have been coming down the stairs by now... IF he was able to get out in time."
"We just have to hope that they haven't tried that or at least that they haven't gotten to Jeff," Lucy said as firmly as she could manage, "for now, let's focus on food."
There was some nods as the four began setting out through the kitchen. There were some slime trails that Megan and Jenny had left, which was to be expected and that gave an indication that the two of them had raided the fridge earlier in the morning, but the fridge also became something that four of them knew they couldn't use. It was big enough and heavy enough that they wouldn't be able to move it up and into the master bedroom. This would mean a lot of things like fruits, eggs, meats, and other things that needed cooler temperatures would go bad if not in something like the refrigerator. Only Grace opened the door and found that there were a few bottles of water that were in there, and she collected them. Zoe went to a set of drawers and cabinets where they kept dishes and utensils while Whitney lowered herself down to get some boxes of cereal from underneath it.
"It's a shame that all we'll be living for right now is cereal," Zoe grumbled.
"It'll do for breakfast," Whitney managed, turning one eye stalk to look around the kitchen and the areas that lead to it, "but we can also get some of the snacks and candy... oatmeal bars and things like that. They'll preserve to. It'll be something to stock up on while trying to figure out what else to do."
"I'm ahead of you on that," Lucy managed as the crackling sounds of plastic bags being picked up could be heard in the room, "it'd be at least something to snack on while figuring out how to deal with that warlock realtor and finding a way to get help."
"That's where I'm worried we won't have an answer," Grace said nervously as she bottles down on the dinner table that made up a big part of the kitchen/dinning area and began looking for a plastic bag they could use to carry some of the things in, "I mean... we can't deny magic exists now, but ours... as Slug People... is rather limited. We're not going to overpower a warlock with it."
"We'll probably have to find help for that," Zoe managed, "and that should be the goal."
"But for now... lets get things gathered and then get back to Jeff," Lucy commented as Grace found some old plastic grocery bags in a cabinet under the kitchen sink, "He's probably hungry and there is a lot of things to work over."
There were a few nods as they began arranging things in the grocery bags that Grace retrieved. It made for easier carrying and let them prepare for making their way out and up again. Some nervous worry still sat through all of their minds, particularly while worrying over Megan and Jenny's possible whereabouts and the interaction with Edward Cupple, but they did their best to hold it together, even as they made their way out of the kitchen/dinning room and into the living room. These worries grew even bigger when they found that Megan and Jenny hadn't come back into the living room, but there was sense of lust, frustration, even hope echoing through the hive mind. That sort of unease only got bigger as they began to slide up the stairs.
It became even more pronounced when they reached the door to master bedroom, and that was soon enough for them to get the sense that Megan and Jenny had gotten in. Scents of arousal drifted through the doorway and this gave an indication that Megan and Jenny were in the room and were likely masturbating as Jeff's scent was not mixed with it. It gave them some hope that Jeff had avoided capture, but it only raised their worry over whether or not Jeff was still trying to get away or was trapped somewhere else. For much of their catch breakfast plan had included Jeff leaving the room if Megan and Jenny came in through the windows.
"They're in there!" Grace gasped, her body shaking and the plastic bag rattling with the dishes and water bottles rattling inside the bag as well.
"Jeff was supposed to come out if they came in through the windows!" Zoe said with a bit more surprise.
"They must have found a way to get in quickly and Jeff couldn't have gotten to the main door," Lucy commented as she overheard a voice call in from inside the room but was aimed at someone else, ""We'll see, and now you can't escape and your family can't get in to help you. So... we'll just get you horney and then you'll join us and the hive will grow from there." Lucy was privately enraged at this action, but couldn't do or say much at the moment as she could feel the worry coming off the others, "all we can do now is rescue Jeff."
"How, the bedroom door is locked," Grace pointed out, "we can only get in if Jeff unlocks the door, and if he's running from them... under mom's bed... or in the bathroom or closet, he can't open the door for us."
"Maybe we go out and around, like they did," Whitney offered weakly.
"But the windows were sealed to us," Lucy turned back to her mother, "we couldn't get your windows open last night to flee then..."
"You also weren't Slug Women then," Whitney managed, "maybe now... whatever that spell that Cupple cast won't affect us as we are Slug Women."
Lucy blinked but then nodded as that was about their only conclusion. That might work, and for the moment, they didn't have many other options. They then made their way into what was normally Jeff's room, and despite all the male scent that Lucy picked up as they approached where the window was with Grace and Zoe setting the plastic bags down on the bed. The passageway to the window was open and Lucy approached with some degree of nervousness as this would either provide for a desperate effort to chase Megan and Jenny out or would leave Jeff at Megan and Jenny's mercy... or at least isolated from his family. She carefully reached for the window frame and noted that the locking latch wasn't engaged and began to ever so carefully attempt to lift it. Lucy clinched her eyes shut and expected it to be tough to lift. To her surprise, it opened like there was nothing wrong and there were gasps from the others.
"It works! You opened it!" Grace exclaimed.
This got Lucy to open her eyes and noted the window was now open, and wide enough that they could squeeze through the open space. It revived some sense of hope that they might be able to get to Jeff in time and prevent Megan and Jenny from taking advantage of him.
"So, what's the plan?" Zoe asked.
"I'd think it best that you and Lucy go ahead and come in through the north window to my bedroom," Whitney spoke, "Megan and Jenny are too distracted at the moment to fully realize we're here and thus you should have the element of surprise. Push them toward the south window. Grace and I will follow along behind with the food. We can then set things down and help push them out the south window if it comes to it. That will then hopefully alert Jeff that we have returned and he can come out."