Title: sweetie
Word Count: 1248
Rating: G
Pairings: Mentioned Ricken/Maygen and Lon'qu/Cordelia, hinted Gaius/Sumia
Summary: It's going to take a while, but she's working hard on being a good mother. And she's not the only one.

[Set between chapters three and four.]

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Maygen paused on her way to the armory, a smile creeping onto her face. There he is!

Bright and cheerful, she strolled over to a wagon near the edge of camp. Cordelia and Lon'qu sparred nearby, so it was the perfect place for someone to watch and learn from their movements. It was no surprise, then, that Cydus had found a seat there, legs dangling despite his height.

"Hey, there," she said, hopping up with a grunt to join him. Good thing I had a stepstool of sorts, or THAT would've been embarrassing. "Enjoying the show?"

She watched his face, but his gaze was focused intently on the fighters. He did acknowledge her, however, with a faint smile, so she joined him in observing the dueling couple. They moved in tandem, but as opposition, creating an elegant dance of steel and boots.

The brunette was a tad jealous. They were deadly elegance. She had no real talent with wielding their sort of weapons, unless dropping them counted. In an extreme emergency situation perhaps adrenaline would be enough to do some damage, but in general she just stunk. Magic was her strength - her only strength, as far as she was concerned. If she was deprived of that, she was just a puny meat shield.

Yet she glanced to her side and caught sight of the sword across her son's lap, and she wondered where he had gotten his training. Perhaps he hadn't; the dark future Lucina spoke of didn't sound conducive to a real apprenticeship. Regardless, he sliced and skewered his foes, and she'd even seen him pull out a tome in combat when given the opportunity. He was well-rounded, unlike her.

Spurred on by these thoughts, Maygen piped up during a lull in the others' sparring. "So, Cydus, you're pretty awesome, aren't you? Fighting Risen off with both swords and magic..." She gave him a wide smile. "Heh, keep it up and you'll make all of us look bad."

Eyebrows furrowed, and he turned to give her a confused frown. "...awesome?"

"Yep!" She began kicking her feet, turning her gaze back to their entertainment for the afternoon. Lon'qu and Cordelia were circling each other again. "You know how to use magic, wield swords, ride horses... You know how to do more than me!"

Cordelia lunged. Her husband sidestepped.

"...I do?"

"Kiddo, you pretty much blow your mother out of the water."

He shifted beside her, then stilled as the clang of steel rang out like assaulted wind chimes.

"...no."

Aw. She smiled. That had almost sounded like the indignation of hero worship. I think I'm blushing! It was difficult not to squirm as she forced the glee down.

"And you're taller than me, too." She gave a dramatic sigh. "I guess I should be happy you didn't inherit my awful height..." Or your father's, she added, although she had a feeling that was a temporary issue. "It's just weird, being a parent to a kid I have to look up at."

"...sorry."

Her head jerked to the side, surprised by his low tone. "Wait, what are you sorry for? You can't control your height. I mean, your father and I are kind of proof of that."

Scrutinizing his expression, she wracked her brain for a way to cheer him up. A cloak whipping around a corner provided the perfect solution.

"Aha! Stay right there, Cydus!"

She leapt from the wagon and raced off after Gaius, nearly stumbling into him when he stopped at the call of his name. "Well, aren't you energetic," he teased, twirling a copper hoop around his finger. He'd likely fashioned it out of boredom, and she wondered if he had been on his way to show it to his daughter. Despite the tough guy act, he really loves that little aspiring hero.

"Gaius! Can I have some candy, pretty please?"

One eyebrow arched. "That's a pretty big favor to ask of a sweet tooth, Kitten."

Internally grumbling about his obsession with giving everyone nicknames, she blurted, "I know a hex that can help keep stuff cool, so your candy won't melt!"

The twirling stopped. He perked up noticeably.

"...I'm listening."

In exchange for hexing his candy later that evening - a strange sentence to say aloud, for sure - she was given a handful of sweets to have her son try. I may not know all that much about him, she thought with a grin as she hurried back, but I highly doubt he can turn down some of Gaius' best treats!

She found him still in the same position as before, albeit polishing armor. The duelists had ceased their fight and were now conversing with their daughter, although by the sounds of it they weren't exactly all chummy yet.

"But Mother, I don't want to sharpen swords - I want to spar with Daddy!"

"Now, Severa - "

She could relate, although she doubted it would ever reach their volume. I'm still working to understand my children, too.

"Ugh, gawds! Fine! My own parents ignore me to oggle each other!"

Maygen ran up to the wagon, present hidden behind her back. "Cydus! Good, you stayed." He glanced up with an almost offended expression, although it quickly dissipated. Smiling in apology, she thrust her hands out to him, commanding him, "Pick your favorite!"

He blinked, leaning backwards slightly from the offered treats. "Pick?" Eyes finally focusing on the colorful wrappers, he deliberated for a while. She finally released a breath when he pointed and asked, "Dark chocolate?"

"Yes!" She quickly handed it over, grinning when he unwrapped the sweet to pop it into his mouth. Holding her breath again, she waited until he had swallowed to whisper, "Is it good?"

He eyed her hopeful expression, which she quickly tried to school into one of nonchalant curiosity. The corners of his mouth twitched, and he answered shortly, "Yes."

"Great!" She cleared her throat. "Uh, I mean, that's good." Crawling back into the wagon, she began cheerfully, "Do you want to try - "

"Mother! Gawds, you're so embarrassing!"

They both winced, watching Severa stomp away from her parents. The pegasus knight and myrmidon examined each other before the former ran after their daughter, leaving Lon'qu to sigh and sheath his weapon.

"...Ahem." Maygen tried again. "Do you want to try any of the others? Gaius makes the best candy around here - actually, he's just really good at baking, period."

"...okay."

A few minutes passed with quiet conversation, until Valri found the two of them with sticky fingers and a smudge on her brother's cheek. Eyes sparkling, she leapt up with his assistance, taking the free spot beside him. "Ooh, did you save any for me?"

"Actually, I have a lollipop with your name on it," her mother giggled, passing over a heart-shaped one that was snatched away faster than the eye could see. "You're welcome."

"U-uh, thank you," came the troubadour's garbled manners around the treat.

It earned her mother's laughter and her brother's huff. Smiling cutely, Valri pulled out the lollipop to launch into a story of the first time she'd had candy, and Maygen decided that she was looking forward to getting to know her children.

"And Cydus totally stole it when I wasn't looking!"

"What? Cydus? No way!"

"She... could have choked."

"It was still my candy. Admit it, you just wanted to taste it and didn't feel like getting your own!"

"No, it's not - "

This might take a while, she mused with a sheepish grin. A LONG while.

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Written because I love these kiddos too much. c':

Prompts: Wind Chimes, Copper

-Dragon