A/N: I needed to vent. This is fluffy and full of angst all at once. Hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own DN, its characters or The Lion King.
Lily Keehl opened several letters and began reading them, sorting through the business letters and the trash. The signature shrilling of the phone broke her from the trance, making her look up. A flash of blonde ran by the doorway, grabbing the phone.
"I'll get it!" the seven year old boy said to his mom. She shrugged and sat back down, running a hand through her hair while a conversation in the other room started.
"Hello? Oh, hi... Are you crying...? Okay... Do you need to come over? You need to stay the night? Let me ask my mom."
As the boy ran into the room, Lily looked up. "Yes, Mail can stay the night. How many nights does he want to stay and does he need a ride?" The little blonde boy beamed at his mother before running to grab the phone.
"Mail, do you need a ride? ...Okay. How many nights do you want to stay? ... Is that okay with your parents? Okay. We'll be there soon."
Mihael ran into the kitchen and clambered up in the chair next to his mom. He stood in an attempt to be taller than her because daddy was taller than mommy. She laughed and scooped him up while she stood, swinging him down to the floor.
"Go put on some shoes. How many nights did he say?"
Her son ran off to find his shoes. "He said he wanted to stay for two or three." Lily nodded in response and slipped her own sandals on, grabbing her keys. As she went to get the car, she pulled out her cell phone and called her husband.
"Honey? Yeah, Mail is going to stay with us for a few days."
"Are his parents fighting again?" Lily made a sound of affirmation. Her husband on the other end sighed. "Alright, I should be home in an hour or so. Love you."
"I love you too," Lily said, cranking the family sedan and waiting while Mihael ran across the yard in mismatching shoes. He clambered into the front passenger seat, earning an arched eyebrow from his mother. He blushed and climbed into the backseat, buckling up and bouncing in his seat while his mother began the drive to the Jeevas house.
Thirty minutes later, Lily stopped the car and put it in park. "Stay here," she commanded her son, who slumped down and crossed his arms. The woman stepped out of the car and began walking up the sidewalk. It wasn't a bad neighborhood, really, but when Mail's parents fought, Lily didn't want her son exposed to it. She rang the doorbell and the door was automatically flung open to admit a redheaded boy with tear tracks on his slightly freckled cheeks. A pair of orange goggles rested in the auburn mess of hair.
"Mail?" a weak voice from within croaked. A woman with the same striking hair knelt beside her son and pulled him into a hug, crying silently. "I'm sorry," she choked.
"It's okay momma," the boy whispered. "I love you."
"I love you too," the redheaded woman whispered hoarsely. "Now, Mihael is waiting in the car. Go and have fun." The little boy nodded and ran to the sedan, crawling in beside Mihael and starting an animated conversation. His mother looked up and stood shakily, wiping tears away from her face. "Thank you Lily. I wish this were under better circumstances. He uh, he has his backpack and his school things with him. Ya know, if he doesn't want to come home by Monday." Lily nodded.
"I don't know what's going on here, but... Mail is welcome anytime. I hope everything works out." Mrs. Jeevas nodded.
"He might be over there a lot then. I'm probably going to file for divorce." Lily threw her hand over her lips, and then placed it on Mrs. Jeevas' shoulder.
"We'll meet at that coffee shop tomorrow, say ten? We can discuss it there." Mrs. Jeevas nodded and went back into the house, closing the door. Lily wandered back to the car, where the two children were chattering about their plans for the next few days.
"Alright boys, how does lasagna sound for tonight?" Both boys squealed in excitement, causing the woman to laugh lightly and begin the drive home.
...
"Boys!" Lily called up the stairs. Mihael and Mail were actively engaged in a game of Mario Kart, and in a desperate attempt to win, Mihael was shoving Matt's hands away from his controller and trying to obscure his vision. Mihael paused the game and ran to his door. "Dinner's ready!"
The two bolted downstairs, game forgotten. Mihael and Mail scrabbled up into their chairs, sitting up straight while Christopher came downstairs, still dressed in slacks and a button up shirt. He ruffled the hair of both boys on his way by, kissing his wife while she set the table. Matt stared on in awe. It looked like something out of the movies momma watched.
Lily put dinner on the table and poured drinks; daiquiris for her and Christopher and sodas for the boys. All hands joined and a simple prayer was said, followed by 'Amen's. Chatter was idly thrown about and when they were finished, Mail and Mihael placed their plates in the sink before running to the living room. The bed was pulled out of the couch, pillows haphazardly tossed on it. The boys ran upstairs and changed into their pajamas, turning off the game (after saving, naturally) and diving onto their makeshift bed.
"Mihael, I wanna watch a movie!" Mail shot off the bed, running to the entertainment center and going through the selection of movies. Mihael ran after him and stopped, looking at the movie Mail was proudly displaying.
"Boys, what are you going to do?" Christopher asked as he came into the room. Mail turned and held up the movie, knowing that he wasn't tall enough to reach the DVD player. Christopher laughed.
"The Lion King, eh?" he asked, placing the disk in. "Well, you two need to go to sleep. So don't be up and dancing, got it?" Both nodded eagerly and climbed under the covers, giggling when Chris sat beside them and tucked the covers around their shoulders. He leaned down and kissed both their foreheads, wishing them a good night.
...
A redheaded child stumbled into the kitchen around one, tiredly rubbing his eyes. Lily looked up in surprise from her computer.
"Mail?" she asked in surprise. The boy looked up and her and climbed into his place designated at the table. "Why aren't you asleep?"
"I had a dream about my parents fighting again." Lily bit her lip, sighing and moving to his side.
"What happens when they fight?" she asked quietly. The redhead sighed.
"They throw things and say one is doing something called 'cheating' and the other says they aren't and they call each other words that I'm not allowed to say." Lily took a deep breath upon hearing the child's explanation, then moved and knelt down in front of him, pulling him to stand.
"Mail, dearest, you know you can come over here as much as you want and stay as long as you want. We're always happy to have you. Now, I'm going to make you some chocolate milk. How does that sound?" Mail smiled just slightly.
"It sounds really good. Thank you."
Lily stood and made a small glass of chocolate milk for the child, mulling over what he'd said. She hoped the fighting would end soon, that little Mail wouldn't be exposed to this life much longer. When she handed the glass to the boy, he stirred the liquid and gulping it down greedily. When he was done he wiped his mouth on his sleeve and smiled up at the woman.
"Good boy. Now go to bed." Mail nodded and handed the glass to the blonde woman and jumped out of his chair. He flung his arms around the woman's middle and buried his face in her stomach.
"Thank you. I love you momma," he whispered against her shirt before scampering off to the living room. Lily watched with teary eyes as her heart broke into pieces.