After being foiled by those belligerent kids next dorks for...more times than they'd care to remember, the Delightful Children defeatedly made their way offstage; before more damage could be done to the very expensive leather jacket Father had commissioned just for this play. Tch. It wasn't like they were going to wear it ever again. But if Father saw so much as a speck of dust on the lavish article of clothing he would...surely not take kindly to it. And they knew more than anyone, to avoid getting on Father's bad side.

Once that hokey play put on by incompetent ne'er-do-wells, was finally over, the children made a hasty retreat. They planned on getting back to the mansion without being seen by anyone. They'd been humiliated enough when those stupid kids next door ruined their performance. "Where do you think you're going?" a familiar voice shouted at them. The Children started trembling instinctively at the sound of Father's booming voice.

"...without your dear Father?"

The Children should have been glad that Father showed up at all. But for some reason they just felt even more tired.

It wouldn't kill him to show up for their actual performance...But alas it was probably better that he hadn't seen how terribly they had flopped...

Several parents, and kids from the school newspaper, crowded around the limo, with cameras and microphones. Some of them wanted interviews with the new stars of Gallagher Elementary, some wanted autographs, and others just wanted extremely private personal info that the Children weren't sure they were comfortable giving out.

They didn't understand. They were supposed to be soaking up the fame and attention. They were supposed to be basking in the glory bestowed upon them by adulthood. They were loved. They were wanted. Right? Isn't this what they'd been aiming for all along? But all they felt was discomfort, a bit violated. They were exhausted and just wanted to go home.

"All right, out of the way, people. My little stars are going out for ice cream!"

Father spending time with them and rewarding them for their efforts was a nice thought...but did he really have to announce what they were doing in front of the whole crowd? Now those pesky camerapeople were going to crowd around every ice cream shop in town until they found them...and then bother them some more.

When they arrived at the ice cream parlor, the Delightfuls couldn't even enjoy their ice cream. For they had run out of jimmies and forgotten to stock back up on them. How could they eat ice cream without jimmies? It was simply unheard of!

When they finally arrived back at the mansion, all they wanted to do was crash. But Father couldn't even let them have that. "Don't forget to do your chores!" he hollered as he made his way to his bedchamber.

Chores? Chores? It was 8pm and he was thinking about chores? On a week night they'd already be in bed by now! But they knew that if they disobeyed, they'd get yelled at in the morning, so they sulkily changed out of their costume and prepared to clean the house.

The Children had trouble getting to sleep that night. They had trouble getting to sleep every night though. Their bodies were practically physically inseparable. So no matter what positions they slept in, there was bound to be some discomfort. Eventually they'd drift off to sleep though, only to be awakened by Father at the crack of dawn.

"Up, up, up! Everyone up! We have important business to take care of today!"

"...yes, Father..." the Children resounded unanimously.

First they were to brush their teeth, although they'd just be getting them dirty again anyway...Then they were to take their shower. After that they were to report to the kitchen for breakfast...and then it was back up to the bedchamber...to brush their teeth...again.

After taking care of their dental hygiene for the umpteenth time, they were to complete their chores. And after their chores were finished they were to take their mandatory piano lessons. This was their life. While other kids were outside playing and having fun, they were inside, doing as the adults ordered them. But they did not mind. After all, they had no clue what they were missing.

A/N: The title says "Epilogue" but it's more of a chapter fic sequel/prequel/continuation (yes, all three) of events that happen before and after the episode. Also Children or Delightful or whatever, will be capitalized when talking about the Delightful Children as a collective entity and their names will be used when talking about one specific child so as not to cause confusion when talking about other (non-delightful) children. Also in some of my stories the DCFDTL are kidnapped Sector Z operatives and in some they were born delightful. Even though this fic is based off of a canon episode, this story will be taking place in the "born delightful au" to make the events of later chapters more plausible.