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"Maggie Bea Odair, let go of your brother's hair!" Anxol said strictly. "Now."
"Ooh, you're in trouble now, Magbee." I piped.
Anxol ignored me.
"You do not cut your brother's hair, do you understand? Especially not with the kitchen knives!" Anxol chastised the little girl.
"Say sorry to your brother, Maggie. You wouldn't want him cutting your hair, now would you?" I push Maggie lightly. "Now go apologize."
Anxol sets down Uriah, who she had been holding in her arms. He was eight years old, looking more and more like me with every day. Soon, Anxol wouldn't be able to hold him anymore, with the rate he was growing.
Uriah looked at his little sister, his eyes faintly pink-tinged.
"I'm sorry, Urie. I promise I won't cut your hair again." Maggie apologized. "Do you forgive me?"
Uriah sighs, but eventually gives in to Maggie's large grey eyes. We all did.
"Alright. I forgive you." He runs his hand through his already tousled bronze hair. "This time."
"Yay!" Maggie shrieks. "Will you play Mermaids with me again? That was so much fun!"
"Bea..." Uriah said helplessly, turning to Anxol for help. "Mom?"
Anxol senses Uriah's plight and sighs, but turns to Maggie with a smile on her face.
"How about this, Magsie? You and I can play Mermaid tomorrow morning next to the cove. How does that sound?" Anxol crouches down and faces her daughter, who looks back at her, like a miniature version of herself. "I'll let you do my hair."
"Ooh! Yay! Can we put in shells and seaweed again?" Maggie enthuses, eyes bright. "Pretty please?"
"Yes to shells. No to seaweed." Anxol grins, picking up Maggie. "And that's that."
"Aww..." She frowns for a split second, but not before her sunny smile blooms on her face again.
"What about you, Sharkfin? What do you want to do tomorrow while mommy and Bubbles plays Mermaid?" I ruffle Uriah's hair. "I figure you don't fancy playing Merman, now do you?"
Uriah scrunches up his nose and shakes his head.
"Can we sailing? Or maybe diving off the cliff again! That was fun!" He hops up onto my back and clings onto me. "Pretty please?"
"I don't fall to your charm, Sharkfin. I'm afraid you don't have eyes like Magbee." I carry him to the dinner table, where Anxol and Maggie were setting up the table.
"But I have eyes like yours, and it works on the girls all the same." Uriah jumps off my back and onto his regular seat. "And it works for you, too. With mommy and with everyone else."
"Hush, Uriah, and eat your vegetables." Anxol says, but she smiles, eyes flickering to me with amusement.
The dinner table is silent as we eat, the only sound coming from the clattering of forks and the ocean behind us.
Anxol and I catch each other's eyes, and we hold the gaze, almost as if there was a thread connecting us. Anxol gives me a small smile, and I return with a half-grin.
I am aware of our children staring at us, but I don't break our connection.
Maggie sighs. "I hope one day someone will stare at me the way daddy stares at mommy."
Anxol and I finally break our trance, staring at Maggie, who was innocently playing with her rice.
"One day, Maggie." Anxol laughs. "One day, you'll find someone."
"And Uriah, too!" I grin, ruffling Uriah's head of shiny bronze hair.
"Yuck." Uriah sticks out his tongue, and we all laugh.
.
Anxol's POV
A few days later, we get an invitation from Donnie, along with a very happy letter.
A wedding invitation.
I had known about her engagement with Sander, but getting the invitation still brought a happy smile on my face. Donnie's letter requested help with a few things, along with many questions about the preparations.
"What's that?" Uriah peers over my shoulder, as I read Donnie's letter. Finnick peers over my other shoulder, Maggie on his shoulder, reading as well.
"A letter from Auntie Donnie." I smile to them. "We've got a wedding to attend in four month's time."
"Will Uncle Haymitch be there?" Uriah asks. "And Uncle Peeta and Aunt Katniss and Uncle Gale?"
"Of course they'll be there." Finnick answers, setting Maggie onto the spot on the couch next to me.
"How about Auntie Jo? Ooh - will President Paylor be there, too?" Maggie asks enthusiastically. "The President!"
"Yes, they'll all be there." I laugh. "A big wedding with all of your favourite aunties and uncles."
Uriah and Maggie both shriek, jumping around with happiness. They loved meeting their aunts and uncles, who are always more than willing to play with them.
Over the noise, Finnick shouts, "Alright, kids! Settle down! It's time for bed!"
"Aww! A few more minutes, please?" The both of them plead simultaneously, both doing their best puppy-dog eyes.
I turn to Finnick, the charm clearly influencing me.
"We have to be strong." Finnick breathes dramatically. "They can't get everything they want and become the old Capitol kids."
I grin and walk over to Maggie, picking her up and throwing her over my shoulder.
"Daddy's right, you two. Wouldn't want that happening, now!"
Finnick picks up Uriah in the same manner, and the two of us march to their bedrooms, tucking them in and saying good-night, switching places once we were done with the first child.
Within minutes, both children were sound asleep, snoring in their beds. Finnick and I share a devious glance, grinning with each other.
"Mission accomplished." I giggled softly. "Another day tackled."
"And now, time for you to go to bed, Angelfish."
Finnick scoops me up in his arms, just like he did in District 13 when I told him I wasn't a damsel in distress.
"But I'm not tired." I pouted, giving him my own puppy dog eyes.
"Well then, we'll find something else to do, am I right?" He winks at me, and I laugh.
"You are too much, Finnick Odair."
"Or maybe I'm just enough for you." He dips me, right in the middle of the hall, and gives me a kiss.
"All of that and more."
He laughs and carries me to our bedroom, the smiles never leaving our lips.
Thanks for reading!
Is it just me, or is there just so much fluff in this sub-story? It's crazy!
Too much fluff? Not enough? Just right? Let me know! I don't bite, I swear (:
Anyways, just a short chapter (sorry) giving a bit of insight to the Odair household. And yes, there will be a lot of time-skipping from now on, just because even though I'd love to write chapters and chapters of every single year, I'd rather not make your eyes bleed and my fingers fall off. So I guess it's a win-win by using the lovely time-skip method. Just letting you guys know now!
Any questions? Comments? Suggestions? Feedback? Feel free to leave it as a review!
Next chapter up tomorrow!