Because my princess pug is ill. I'm not sure about the ending, but I couldn't think of a better way to finish it, so. BUT OH WELL.

Disclaimer: ENGLAND IS FUDGING COLD RIGHT NOW

The sound of the crashing waves are a distant roar in her ears, lying there on the sand, eyes closed, drifting in and out of consciousness as the heat and pure laziness of their holiday pulls her into sleep. She can hear the shrieks of Benjamin as Castle lifts him up and then dunks him in the advancing waves. The two year old isn't exactly the most confident of people when it comes to the water, not like his brother who would run through the water unaided when he was the same age. But Benjamin shrieks and lunges for the nearest arm or leg whenever he's on his own. Frappuccino is happily making his own splashes, running through the small waves, turning around in circles and running back when Benjamin calls for him.

Latte is asleep in the shade of a rock, has seen enough of this beach in her life time for her to want to do anything else. Mary is lying next to Kate, head buried deep in a book, and James, plus Mocha and Macchiato are digging a hole. To China, or Australia, or … somewhere. Chances are they'll do a metre and collapse in the sane exhausted, demanding food and drink and can you carry me back to the house?

"Mom?"

"Yeah, sweetheart?"

"You and Daddy… you love each other, right?"

Kate rolls over on her side to face her daughter, pulls the sunglasses from her nose. "Course we do. Why?"

Mary chews on her lower lip, so similar to her mother, contemplating her next words. "Keira and Leon's parents. What's going to happen to them?"

"To Keira and Leon? They'll stay with their mother, and then they'll go and stay with their father. Take turns. But, Mary, just because they're getting divorced doesn't mean that me and your father are too."

"But – last night, you and Daddy were arguing. When you were making dinner, and Keira said that her parents always argued, and-"

"Mary, everybody argues. But it doesn't mean we don't love each other. You argue with your brothers, right?"

"Yeah…"

"But you love them?"

"Yes, but-"

"Me and your father, we don't argue about the important things. We argue about stupid, silly stuff that doesn't matter. But me and your father, we love each other. Have done for nearly fourteen years. And why would we stop now?"

"You're not going to divorce?"

"We don't plan on it, Mary. Not at all."

"But you can't promise?"

"Nobody can make that kind of promise. And I'm not going to promise that everything's going to be happy in the future, but for now, we're happy. We're so happy, with you, and James and Benjamin, and Latte and Mocha and Macchiato and Frappuccino, and why would we want to give that up?"

Mary smiles, reaches for her sunglasses, and is back within the pages of her book within five seconds.

It's Castle and Benjamin who return to their spot first, James and the other two dogs still happily digging their way deeper and deeper. Ben lands in her lap, happy and giddy and laughing and somehow soaking wet. Kate wraps a towel around him, tugs him closer as Castle flops down next to her, lying back with an arm over his eyes. Kate laughs, nudges Frappuccino away from him and towards the other dogs. Ben collapses against her, weary and tired, his head heavy against her chest. Kate reaches for his t-shirt and pulls it on over his head.

"You have fun, Benny?"

He nods eagerly, reaches for his bottle of juice. "Wet, so wet!"

"You got wet all over, Ben." Castle mumbles. "Got me wet too."

"Daddy wet!" Ben laughs. Kicking his legs against Castle's thigh. "Wet, wet, wet. Bendog wet!"

"Hey, hey, Ben. No kicking, remember? It hurts." Kate pulls on his ear slightly, directing his attention away from his father. "Castle, you want something to eat?"

"Any of that cake left?"

"Ben's got his slice, but it's a bit big. You could probably share it." She leant past Ben for the tuppaware box, hands it to Castle. "You gonna have some cake with Daddy, Ben?"

"Cake here." He mumbles.

Castle's already breaking the slice of chocolate cake in two, uses the lid to break one piece into several, making them more manageable for Ben. He hands it to Kate who balances it on her knee, let's Ben take whichever pieces he fancies. "Mary!"

Mary looks up from her book, smiles at her brother. "Yeah, Ben?"

"Cake!"

"You got cake! I ate mine already."

Ben holds out a hand full of slightly squished cake towards her. "You cake! Mary cake!"

"For me?" Ben nods eagerly, waving his fist around. "Thank you, Ben."

James has somehow managed to recruit Mary and Ben into digging his hole, and Kate is surprised at just how determined the eight year old is. He's planned it out well, too. Nearly a metre down, and he's even had the foresight to add in an emergency exit. Ben's adding more sand into the hole than he is taking out, but James doesn't seem to mind. And as long as their having fun and not arguing, then that's fine by her. Latte has moved back into the warmth, spread out along Castle's bare leg, her head pillowed on his foot. Castle already took the opportunity to pull Kate down so she can lie next to him.

"Mary thinks we're going to get divorced." He mumbles.

"Yeah, she asked what was going to happen with Keira and Leon." Kate replies, propping her head up on his chest. "She's ten years old, she shouldn't be worrying about things like this."

"She shouldn't have to be worrying about a lot of things." He sighed. "Neither of them should."

"What else are they worrying about?"

"Well, Ben's too young to know what worrying is right now, but James asks a lot of questions about Gram. Will she get better, when can we go and see her, will she come back… how do you explain that to an eight year old? I'm supposed to be good with words, but I can't quite find the one's to tell him that Gram will probably never come out of hospital."

"You'll find them eventually. You always do."

"Sometimes, sometimes I worry that they're not happy. They're too busy worrying about all this that's going on around them, and then they don't get to be happy. Like, really enjoy being kids. I don't want them to grow up too fast."

"Castle, look at our kids."

Castle shifts his head to what he's called the giant pit of broken legs, watches his three kids carefully. "Yeah, I'm watching."

"And what do you see?"

"Three kids, three dogs. Digging a hole."

"Describe it to me."

He huffs, turns his head back towards them. "Kate-"

"They're happy, Castle. They're laughing, and they're having fun, and you and Ben… kids worry, Castle. It's a fact of life. And maybe now there's more in the world for them to worry about, and maybe it affects them differently, but Castle, the children – our children – they're happy. They've got their dogs, and an amazing life, and a big kid as a father who would spoil them rotten if I'd let him. Mary will stop worrying about divorce, and you'll find a way to stop James worrying about Gram. We both will. And they'll grow up, happy, and loved. And at this age, a hug makes everything better. A cuddle on the sofa, or maybe a night spent in our bed, and they'll be okay again in the morning. Trust me."