Cassandra awoke to the sounds of a hectic morning: crashes in the kitchen, gasps, squeals, angry raccoon chitters, and loud, piercing wails from the twins. She began to sit up, preparing herself to get up and help out.
"Stay where you are, Cassie!" Varian called out frantically, almost as if he could sense what she was planning on doing, " everything's perfectly fine out here! "
"Yeah, Mommy!" Trystan added, "stay where you are!"
Cass sighed deeply, leaning back into the pillows. "Fine. But if I find out you put any of them, even on accident..."
"I know, I know. But don't you worry, Cassie. Trystan, Jax, and Journey are perfectly fine."
"They better be," she muttered to herself.
There was a little bit of quiet, like the calm before a storm. Cass hoped that the "storm" wasn't too much for her or Varian to handle. Finally, there was noise: two sets of feet making their way down the hall towards the master bedroom.
Trystan entered the room first, holding a tray full of fruits, muffins, and some butter with both her hands. Varian followed close behind, a twin in each arm. Trystan looked up at her father, who smiled and nodded.
"For you," the young girl said, handing the tray to her mother, "happy Mother's Day, Mommy."
Cassandra grinned, taking the tray from her and patting the open spot beside her. Trystan climbed up next to her, snuggling into her side. Varian pulled up a chair next to the bed and settled the twins onto his lap.
"Happy Mother's Day, milady," he said softly, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.
"Thank you," she said, " all of you. Now, Trystan, what do we have here?"
Trystan beamed with pride, even going as far as to puff out her chest a little. Cass stifled a laugh- her daughter definitely got that move and her attitude from Varian- as she watched her daughter prepare to go all 'cooking class' on her.
"B- b'nanas, apples," she began, pointing at each as she said its name, "grapes and... And..."
The two-year-old girl looked at her father as she trailed off, hoping he could offer her some guidance.
"And strawberries," he supplied, snatching one from the tray.
"Yeah, those. And that was for Mommy!"
Cass grinned. "Yeah, Varian, that was my strawberry!"
He smirked and shook his head, popping it into his mouth. Cass bit back another laugh as Trystan let out an overexaggerated sigh over her father's antics.
"And muffins with butter... Daddy says that's your favorite."
Cass smiled, pulling her daughter in for a big side hug. "They are my favorite! Thank you... All of you."
"What, even these two?!" Varian asked, bombarding the twins with tickles, "all they did was sit around making noise and blowing bubbles!"
"Especially those two," she decided with a smirk, "they're valuable assets to the team, Varian."
"I suppose so," he complied, grinning down at the two youngsters.
Cass spread some butter on a muffin and handed it to Trystan. She buttered up another one and looked at Varian, who just shook his head. She shrugged and took her first bite.
Looking at everyone- her beloved husband, her eldest daughter, and t little twins- Cassandra smiled. This was her family. These were the people she loved.
in that moment, she felt complete.