"Do you think it might be possible for you to get your children to keep their butts and feet off of my head?" Ava asked from beneath the blankets and pillows. It was Saturday morning so not only were the Spence and Ally covering as much space as their small bodies allowed but Stino was crowding Ava out as well. The bed was an eighty four by seventy two inches California king and she could barely hold on to three of those as her children slowly but surely moved her towards the floor. "Or should I just give up and put my pillow on the floor?"
"Um sorry baby but I think Thomas might get a little pissed about you invading his space" Ashlee laughed. No matter how often the two woke up in the middle of the night to remove an unwanted child each morning they were guaranteed to have one squatter on board. Stino and Cat rarely wandered into their room and both had been sleeping through the night almost at day one. Only special occasions and illness got those two from their warm beds. Three year old Spence was still sneaking into his parents bed every other night but generally he would only venture out of his room after the sun started peeking into the sky. However Ally spent more time in their bed than she ever did in her crib. The girl hadn't even made a butt impression on her mattress. A few months after joining her new family Ally watched as her older brother Spence climbed in and out of her crib for fun and soon she'd gotten the mechanics down and was escaping the box almost as soon as she was placed into it for the night. She still spent the early morning aggravating her big sister but that was only after she'd spent the night keeping her mommy and mama wake. Ashlee conceded defeat at keeping her bedroom a child free zone but drew the line at dog breath and hairs. Ava laughed that Thomas deserved to sleep with them because he was the only minor in the house that could be counted on to obey the parents regularly. "Don't forget that Natalia is taking Stino shopping after breakfast for a new suit and mom and Olivia are taking the twins to the park. I should be home by four to help you with the baby" Ashlee whispered uncovering her wife's head as she leaned down to kiss each member of her family. As she was moving out of the room Ava reached out and pulled her down to the bed. "You needed something?"
"How is it fair that I get stuck with ghost rider and you get to hangout at Company?" Ava had given all the children special nicknames that her wife had to grudgingly admit fit their personalities more than she would have liked. Augustino Spencer Wolf Peralta was quietly called the pope not only because his abuela had a fit each time she heard it but more importantly because they didn't want to give her any more ideas where that was concerned. Ava, Olivia, and Doris were convinced that Natalia was trying her best to make the boy the first Puerto Rican American leader of the Holy Church. He was the only child in the entire extended family that was waiting each Sunday to accompany Natalia to mass. Their first official Sunday in their new home Stino had asked his parents about his confirmation. Surprised Ashlee and Ava hadn't taken their son's request seriously until Stino explained in detail his reasons for wanting the ceremony but they had finally consented based on Natalia's recommendations. Stino was enrolled in a confirmation class and Natalia accompanied him each Sunday until the big day. Neither of his parents had ever been previously involved in any type of religion but trusted Natalia to protect and guide their son through the dogma of the religion towards its spirit.
Jeffery Spencer Wolf Peralta, AKA the natural, lived a charmed life. Every mother that saw him fell instantly in love with the boy and every father secretly wished he was his own. Without even trying the boy walked onto any field and was in immediate force to be reckoned with. His athletic abilities were a total surprise for everyone because neither Ava nor Ashlee were known for their grace at that age. It wasn't just his physical talents but he was the best at everything he did and it was completely effortless. Ava and Ashlee were finally able to get the children involved in sports simply because now they had the time to devote to practices and games and from the first moments that Spence was on the field kicking around the soccer ball it was clear that he was made for the game. He had the coordination and speed and in a short time would have the techniques. He played with the three and four year olds but coaches from the up to two ages up kept coming around watching his fluid footwork with the ball. After only the first game he had his own fan section filled not only of his yelling parents, screaming grandmothers, crazy siblings, and insane aunts but there were also more than a few fathers trying to pick up Ava and Ashlee's brains for tips. Spence was so good that Ava and Ashlee decided to take Stino off the soccer team and let him try football just so he wouldn't be compared to his younger brother. He was a decent with practice but he would never be as good as his brother. Ashlee had a feeling that his sea green eyes, Spencer smile, and athletic prowess were going to cause both her and a lot of the women of Springfield a lot of heart ache and she wasn't looking forward to it one bit.
Catherine Spencer Wolf Peralta was otherwise known as El Jefe because although she was not the biggest nor the oldest sibling she was without a doubt the ruler of the house. Her temper was usually kept in check especially since the arrival of her baby sister but there were still times that the tiger came out and kicked ass. Most of those ass kickings were reserved for her twin brother but she didn't mind sharing the wealth with the eldest Wolf Peralta or a few knuckle heads on the playground. Spence and Stino had gotten overconfident when they learned that Ally had gotten away with interrupting Cat's sleep and one day had jumped on Cat's bed in surprise. The joke was on them because Cat immediately slapped one and then kicked the other without even opening her eyes. That was the last time either one even approached her door until the girl was fully dressed and fed. There was a cheerleading squad for little girls at the park but even at three it was easy to tell that she wasn't the pep rally type. She did an hour of soccer with her brothers but had to be taken off the field when she kept aiming her kicks for the other children instead of the ball. Flag football, basketball, t ball and even lacrosse were tried before it was clear that the girl like her grandmothers before her was not exactly a team player. Karate was available but no one thought it prudent to encourage the girl to get better at kicking or punching. Her mommy and mama wanted all their children including Spence to reach adulthood with as little injuries as possible. On their way home from practice Natalia saw a flyer for gymnastics and the girl immediately loved it.
The youngest and newest member of the family had turned one less than a month ago and neither her mommy nor her various grandmothers were ready to see the girl bruised and scraped up just yet. Although Ava was the one who first thought up the creative monikers for her children the other grandmothers quickly began using them as well, except for the pope, Natalia was still a bit touchy about that one. But Alicia Karan Wolf Peralta's name from her mama of ghost rider was Ava's alone. From the moment that Ava left work to finish her degree and began watching the twins and Ally during the day the older woman could tell something was up. When the other children were around everything was perfectly fine but when she was alone with Ally there was trouble. Ally was so light on her feet that she would be out of the room and exploring halfway down the hall before Ava noticed. When she was with the other children it was no problem because they made enough noise to alert them of their general location and activity but when ever the girl was alone Ava felt like any moment she was going to catch the girl hanging off the ceiling. Turning away for less than two minutes to answer her cellphone in the kitchen Ava lost the girl and it took almost another five before she found on the other side of the house in the guest bathroom. She didn't destroy things but Ava was sure that the girl was purposely screwing with her. No one else complained of the habit and had even jokingly asked if Ava had been prescribed a bit of medicinal Mary Jane by her therapist. When Ava would finally track the girl down Ally would look up with her big brown eyes and smile as if to say "gottch again." She had bought Thomas in hopes of getting a better locating tool but the girl had subverted the lab. Wherever she found the one year old he wasn't too far behind asleep. "You know she's just waiting for everyone to leave so she can sneak away from me again. If you see a news report about a wandering one year old and a chocolate lab don't say that I didn't warn you" Ava groused not bothering to look up as her wife's eyes rolled.
"If you would rather listen to ten preteens obsessing about Twilight and Justin Beiber and in the middle of all that try and put together a year book then you can take my place and I'll get back in bed and go to sleep." Looking down she knew there would be a pitiful pout.
"Fine but you owe me big for this one" Ava whined as she pulled her wife down for a final kiss and waved as Ashlee walked away. For the past four months Ava had been not only a fulltime stay at home mother but also a part time graduate student and a quarter time assistant to her mother at the Beacon. Of everything Ava was surprised that school was by far the easiest of her obligations. Although she knew she wasn't any of the children's first choice when they were ill and in need of comforting she was still very involved in their care and thought spending the daytime alone with them was going to be no problem at all. Boy was she wrong. Ashlee's first day at work the kids kept peeking around the corners and running into rooms in search of her. Ally spent most of the day sitting in the doorway waiting for her mommy to return. "Hey it's not the first time you all have spent the day with me what the heck guys?" It took almost a week before the children stopped hanging onto Ashlee's legs wailing as she pried their clenched tiny fingers off of her legs and arms. "I know that I am not that bad" Ava sighed at her grinning wife who had to coo promises of return "Don't worry they might be on the corner waiting for you when you get back since they hate being home with me so much"
"That's fine just as long you understand that you better not be in the house without them when I do get back" And such had been Ava's lot. She took care of Ally and the twins while Stino and Ashlee were at school during the day. When three thirty rolled around she and the kids walked to get their brother and they did homework and played as they waited for another hour to pass before Ashlee came through the door and sat down at the table and the whole day started all over again. Ava still couldn't cook and she was still definitely not allowed anywhere near any meat intended for the children but she had learned how to reheat very well. Every night Ava and Stino were apprentice chefs for Ashlee and prepped her meats and vegetables for the next day's meal as the twins, Ally and Thomas played beneath them.
Looking up from shelling his peas at the table Stino asked "Mama can I have a sleep over like Steve" almost every pea that he freed from the its green confines went into the bowl in the middle of the table but Spence was able to wrestle a few away by constantly bumping his head on the bottom of the table. "STOP Spence. Spence is shaking the table mommy"
"Bud inside voice okay and I don't think now's the best time for a sleep over because mama has big tests coming up babe" Ashlee explained as she watched her little boy diligently mangling each tender pea.
Spence yelled as he ran round and round the table harassing his sisters and brother "Mama has testssss" "Mama has testsssss" MAMA HAS TESTSSSS" Okay there would be no more sugar, artificial colors or any type of stimulants for that kid for the next ten years Ava thought as she watched him first wiggling his fingers in his sisters faces just millimeters from their faces and instantly knew her son was going to get a five finger salute very very soon. He strayed just a hair too close to Cat and she pummeled him as expected and which caused him to accidentally bump Ally and he was promptly and thoroughly chin checked by the year old girl.
"If you all will excuse me mama needs an adult beverage" Ava announced. Hours later laying in their room praying that Ally would sleep at least a few hours in her own bed before invading theirs, Ava and Ashlee held each other tight. The children were finally asleep although it seemed like a battle to the death each night to see who would give in first the parents or the kids. While Ava loved spending her days with her children she couldn't deny that she greatly missed adult conversations and the feelings of accomplishment she got from long days at the office. It was harder than she had imagined giving it all up to chase children and spend all day watching cartoons. Each morning she watched Ashlee go out the door to work she realized again how wonderful her wife was and how much she'd sacrificed to protect and care for their family. Truthfully Ava didn't know if she could have made the same decision if she had been the one with the doctorate degree. Two years she chanted to herself over and over again when it got too stressful, just two years. "Two more weeks and Stino will be a few steps closer on his road towards the holy pontificate"
"You do realize that you're going to have to stop making comments like that when he does get confirmed"
"How is it possible that you're my DNA made a person that's as good as he is. I mean have you met my mother and father? Hello its like a miracle that the holy water didn't start to boil when he was baptized"
Laughing softly Ashlee tried her best not to acknowledge the truth of her wife's statement. "What can I say those Rivera genes are legendary. She did domesticate your mom. That has to count for something"
Feeling Ashlee start to drift Ava remembered something she'd meant to tell her earlier. "I almost forgot Nat said Rafe is coming into town for a few day" leaning over and not getting a response Ava assumed that the other woman had drifted off to sleep but was immediately corrected when Ashlee shot up and turned towards her with an intense stare.
"What the hell does he want?"
"Ash?"
"Don't Ash me. What the fuck is he trying to pull? If he thinks"
Taking her wife into her arms Ava tried her best to calm the situation. "Ash Nat just said that he had taken a few days of leave and wanted to see"
"See who? See our son so he can screw with his head"
"Ash Natalia"
"You know what I love Natalia as much as you do and I absolutely adore the relationship that she has with our children but Rafe is not and will never be Augustino's father and if he is coming here to" Ashlee stopped suddenly unable to finish as her throat tightened with tears. Burying her face in Ava's neck she held on tight and the pain and anger flooded her mind and her heart.
"Baby you know I would never do anything to jeopardize our family. Please trust me I won't allow anyone to hurt us not even Rafe"
"But, but" Ashlee blubbered overcome with grief and sadness. "What if he decided he wants to be his father now"
"But nothing. You have to trust me baby. I will protect us I swear" They spent the rest of the night holding each other tight not looking forward to the troubles that would come with the dawn.