Chapter Four
Fear of failure
Shrek was tossing and turning as he slept. He wanted to be there for Fiona but something else was bugging him. It was the fact that he and Fiona were the new rulers of Far, Far Away that was freaking him out. He envied Fiona for the way she could sleep so easily at times like this and he couldn't. He wondered what life what be like in the future but that only made him worry more.
Their babies had become hyper active, hungry and moody toddlers. These facts filled him with dread. At least Puss and the others could help him with that problem. But soon in a few days they would be starting school and it was a mixed school and not one for their kind. He had thought about home school but Fiona was against the idea. "How're they supposed to make friends and be like normal kids if they can't go to school! I know they're like us but they'll find friends and things will be fine." She said to him. He saw the anger in her eyes and was worried. Whenever she was like this, the only way to calm her down was… agreeing with her. He was dreading this already. Puss could see the anxiousness in his eyes and wondered what was wrong. "It's the kids." He said to him. "What about them? Are they in trouble? Do they need help?" he asked frantically. Shrek rolled his eyes at this. "No it's not that. It's just that they're starting school in two days time and I'm just worried for them. Fiona thinks they're going to fit in as soon as they get there but she doesn't know anything about a mixed school. It just increases their sadness and pain and it'll make them ashamed to be what they are." He said wearily. He understood. "I see senor but don't worry yourself. Some of Donkey's little mutants are going to the same place as them so the friendship thing's taken care of, right?" he told him reassuringly. "Wrong! There's also going to be humans there too and it takes an idiot like one of them to hurt Ambris and Marrina or make them feel like freaks when they're not." He told him. Fiona was overhearing this. She saw why he was worried about this but maybe she could calm him down later. The kids were playing outside with a ball but as she began to enter the room, a window smashed outside. "What was that?" she asked angrily as she ran out to see what was going on. Ambris had accidentally kicked the ball a little too hard and it had gone through the window. Lillian was a little worried but Donkey was freaking out. Fiona was steamed. "Donkey weren't you supposed to be watching them? I leave you alone with them and this happens." She said angrily. Puss smirked at this. "This is good. The burro's in trouble and I'm not getting blamed for it!" he cackled. "What do you mean?" Shrek asked him. "Donkey and I were watching them but you seemed a little stressed so I wanted to see if you were okay. I gave them the ball to play with. Donkey wouldn't let them play anything wild or adventurous." He explained to him.
Ambris and Marrina watched as Puss jumped off and landed on the ground beside them. They laughed at this. "Fiona don't be so angry with them. They were just playing, that's all. They didn't mean to break the window. This is what happens when you leave them with a burro." He told her gently in his accent. "Yeah Mommy it was an accident. Besides Uncle Donkey wouldn't let us play anything fun. We won't do it again." Ambris said to her. She smiled at this. "I know honey but the window has to be fixed and Daddy's unhappy." Fiona said to them. "Why is he unhappy? Was it because Ambris and I broke the window?" Marrina asked her worriedly. "No, not about that but about you guys and school. He was talking to Uncle Puss about it. You see some kids in your class mightn't understand the fact that your brother and you are ogres. Their parents aren't very nice and tell them to be mean to kids like you." She explained as best as she could so that they'd understand. "Oh I see but Mom, Ambris isn't an ogre. He looks normal like a human kid." She told her. Fiona let out a giggle at this. "Honey he is but only at night. Whenever the sun rises, he looks the way he does now. It's hard to explain at the moment." She said to her. Puss then saw her join Shrek. He still seemed worried about something. "I can't believe you told Ambris about the thing that affects him at night. I thought we were going to tell him that when he was older!" he said to her. "Your daughter was being curious about it so I had to explain." She told him as she went inside. The door slammed shut. Puss then saw sadness in Ambris's eyes. "Is she mad at us? We said we were sorry." He said in a tiny voice. He sighed before opening his mouth. "No she's not mad at you. She's just worried, that's all. Your parents care for you and your sister a lot and don't want anything to happen to you that would hurt them. Your sister's question just frightened your father, that's all. Let's go play!" he said smiling. Ambris then ran after him and Marrina.
Fiona was watching this from inside and was laughing. She was thinking about them going to school the next day. Nerves then overtook her for the first time her life. "I hope they do okay. I would hate to see them upset and I would do anything for them as well as their father." She thought as Lillian joined her. She seemed okay for someone whose husband had just passed away. "What's wrong? You seem worried about something. Is it to do with my grand children?" she said to her. "Yeah it is. They're starting school tomorrow and I'm worried for them. Their father is more worried than me. We want to help them learn about others even if they're jerks or mean to them because they're…" she told her. "Because they're not like other children. I know you're worried. Your father and I were like this when we were considering sending you away. But they're tough like their father and sweet like you and you've also been teaching them self defence moves so there should be nothing to worry about." She told her calmly. Fiona watched as her mother left. She hoped she was right.
It was midnight and Fiona was up with worry. Shrek was asleep. He'd calmed down after putting the kids to bed. For some reason their excitement had made him happy. He hoped that nobody would try to hurt or pick on his kids or he'd kick their butts. Fiona saw a slight smirk on his face as he slept and wondered what was making him happy. She checked the clock on the bedside table. It was 5 AM in the morning. "Great! In three more hours the kids are going to be up and excited. I'd better get some sleep." She thought to herself. She then cuddled beside the one she loved most in the world. Suddenly her eyes closed and sweet, blissful sleep overtook her. It was 8 AM and Fiona was still asleep. But then many sounds coming from in the dining room woke her up. She then got up. Ambris and Marrina were dressed and playing at the table while waiting for breakfast. Puss then saw Donkey arrive with some of his kids. "Oh great, they showed up! Now breakfast is going to be ruined!" he said angrily. Fiona then watched as the Dronkeys started causing chaos along with her children. "Guys can't you do anything for five minutes without messing up the castle!" she said to them angrily. Puss was a little freaked. "What's up with her?" he asked Shrek. "She's just a little cranky. She'll probably have a nap when the kids are at school." He said calmly to her.
Fiona then got dressed. She hadn't meant to be cranky. She'd been up all night with worry because of this. Maybe later she'd go and apologise to the guys. She then saw somebody enter the room…
