AN: thanks again for the kind words! i have been working so i haven't been able to keep up with replies but honestly i love each and every one of you who has offered feedback on my work and not to be dramatic but i would lay my life down for you all


James, age 17

"Daddy!"

Roy sighed quietly to himself, closing his eyes briefly as the sound of his daughter's shrill cry pierced his ears in the car. Steeling himself, Roy backed out of car to move to the backseat.

They were prepping for their annual trip up to the lodge for James' birthday. He was going to be seventeen and Roy had just finished packing his presents in the car. Before Mia called for his attention he had been hiding his cards in the glove compartment of the car.

He loved that girl to bits, but oh my god. She was a terror.

But in the best way, he supposed.

At three years old she was eager to go anywhere and everywhere, regardless of whether Roy, Riza, or James were looking out of her. If Mia wanted to go somewhere then she was going, there was no stopping her. It caused for a lot worry and stress on Roy's part, but he couldn't deny how proud he was of her inquisitive streak. She was always eager to learn. Her questioning was constant. Mia always wanted to know what was going on in the world around her. Bright, interested eyes looked around in wonder every time they went somewhere new.

Not to sound like he was bragging too much, but she was a very smart kid. She had picked up walking and talking a lot sooner than Andrew – Catalina and Havoc's son. He knew he shouldn't pit the two kids against each other but he was still very proud of that fact.

"Kids learn things at different ages," Riza reminded him, trying to keep the peace between Catalina and himself.

"Yeah, but Mia did it first," he had whispered back with a grin when Catalina wasn't paying attention. Riza just rolled her eyes.

What? He was proud of his kid? Was that such a crime?

"Yes, sweetie?"

"I am hungry."

"I know bear, but we're almost ready. I need you to be a big brave girl and wait just ten more minutes, okay? Do you think you could try that?"

Big dark eyes blinked back at him. His eyes. He grinned before she even answered.

"I'll try."

"Thank you, bear." He kissed to top of her head before beginning to rearrange the car once more.

His pet name for his daughter began shortly after she was born. They had bought a blanket for her with a small brown bear in one corner and it instantly became her favourite. Whenever she had been covered in that blanket she would fall asleep no problem. With any other one she just continued to cry. It had been a nightmare when they had visited Christmas' one weekend to stay and forgotten it. At three o'clock on Saturday morning Roy tiredly drove to their house to collect it. He was done trying to fight the kid to get her to sleep.

Roy wasn't sure if it was the material of it that made it so appealing. It was slightly heavier than her other blankets, so it may have something to do with that. Whatever it was, it was a godsend.

As she grew up apparently the bear theme had stuck with her and it was now her favourite animal. She took great pride in running around the house, screaming at the top of her lungs imitating said animal.

Poor James had been trying to study for a test when he finally snapped. He had never seen the kid that irritated before. Granted, it was well justified. Riza had tried to calm Mia down but she was having none of it, so the screeching continued. Roy had tried, nothing. But when Big Brother James entered the room with a very strained look on his face, eyes zeroing in on his little sister, Mia froze in her tracks. Eyes wide with fear, she looked up at her brother. Roy tried not to laugh at the way James' eye twitched in irritation. Roy had taken to laughing (slightly hysterically) at everything his daughter did because if he didn't he would probably cry. The dark circles under his eyes confirmed that theory.

"Mia?" James asked through gritted teeth. "Could you please stop playing at being a bear? I am trying to study for a test that I have tomorrow."

Mia nodded vigorously, eyes wide with fear. Her bear blanket rose to her face as she hugged it tightly to her. Again, trying to stop her from becoming too attached to it failed spectacularly. Both he and Riza had given up by this point.

She looked like she was about to cry and James tried his best to walk back up the stairs to his room calmly. Roy and Riza shared a relieved look.

Mia idolised her big brother. To be perfectly honest, he was the only one she listened to one hundred per cent of the time. She was a good kid and well behaved, but when she got over excited in a case like that one it was always James who would calm her right down with just a look.

"Is James mad at me?" she asked quietly. It was slightly muffled by the blanket in front of her mouth.

Riza gently prised it away. "He's not mad but he's trying to work very hard. When you were being too loud like that it made things very hard for him."

"I didn't want to make things hard," she replied earnestly, tears welling in her eyes.

"Well then, you should have listened to us in the first place," Riza replied sternly. She looked as stressed out as Roy when Mia first started to "be a bear". She wasn't used to this. Apparently James was a really quiet kid, and Roy could believe that. Mia was the complete opposite.

While James had been a hurricane of energy, Mia was a tornado of noise and excitement. It wasn't a bad thing, far from it. She kept her parents on their toes and provided endless entertainment. It was just when it was almost nine o'clock at night and she still was nowhere near ready or calm enough for bed that it hit the hardest.

After that first bear incident things got a little better.

No matter how irritating a toddler could be, apart from that one incident, James always kept his cool and was incredibly patient with Mia. He had definitely kept his promise of being "the best big brother" to her. Both he and Riza were extremely proud of him.

"Ready to go?" Riza asked from outside the car. She had finished filling the car and looked like a vision with her cheeks flushed, scarf hung loose around her neck, and beanie low on her head. Golden hair fell down her torso, shifting slightly in the breeze.

Even to this day Riza took his breath away.

"Ready," he smiled. Riza gave him an odd look, no doubt noticing the look on his face but she turned away and headed to the driver's seat. She probably couldn't be bothered trying to decipher it after their rushed morning and Roy didn't blame her. Besides, he looked at her like she was the most beautiful and precious thing in the world almost every day. She was used to it by now.


Mia looked around the lodge in wonder as she entered. She wouldn't have remembered much from last year, she had only been two. Besides, now that she could run fairly confidently without falling over there was so many more opportunities for her to wreak havoc in this big house than there was at home.

She twisted in Riza's arms to try and look up at the balcony. Last year she had gotten too curious and almost stuck her head through the bars. James had to yank her backwards in a panic and up into the air to stop her. She had just squealed and reached for the wooden posts again, thinking it was a game.

They decided as a team they would keep Mia downstairs to play after that.

"Wow!" she whispered.

"I know. There's lots of room, isn't there? A lot more room than at home."

"Lots of room!" she echoed, clapping her hands.

She was beginning to take after her father more and more every day. She had his almond eyes. They were dark like his and her grandmother's too. The trait obviously ran in the family. Roy had never really mentioned grandparents, but Riza wondered if they shared the same eyes too. Her dark hair sat just above her shoulders, the way she liked it. Oh, she made Riza well aware of how much she didn't like long hair. It was straight and spiky, constantly looking dishevelled. Although with the amount of running riot she did, it was no wonder it looked like that. Another trait she took after her father.

Riza saw herself in Mia too. They shared the same face shape and whenever Mia smiled Roy was sure he saw Riza in her. She couldn't see it herself, but maybe she had been looking too hard. When she wasn't paying attention, there would be a brief flash of similarities, and it hit her like a jolt of electricity.

At first she had felt slightly disheartened by the lack of similarity between mother and daughter. It was a silly thing to get down about, but she did. James was pretty much a carbon copy of her look wise, save from the freckles that blossomed over his skin in the summer. She had gotten so used to her child looking like her that is was a shock to the system to have Mia not.

However, the fact that she took after Roy so much made her equally as happy. He loved it. That much was clear as day to see on his face. The girl was his pride and joy, no doubt about it.

And James. The boy had been so helpful and understanding these last three years. He had just turned seventeen so Riza expected him to want to go out with his friends all the time after school. However he surprised them both by returning home after school, doing his homework, then playing with Mia until it was her bed time. She supposed that routine she had set him into when he was younger stuck. And he did go out with his friends, but Mia always took top priority.

Riza was so proud to have such a caring son.

Mia was out like a light after only an hour in the car. The first hour there had been a pretty intense game of "eye spy" going on between them all. It ended up being boys versus girls. The girls won, much to the boy's dismay.

James had followed shortly afterwards and fell asleep. However, his hand had reached across to Mia's car seat and he gripped her hand tightly while he slept.

"Hey," Roy attracted her attention softly so he didn't wake the kids. "Check them out in the back."

Glancing into the rear view mirror her heart melted.

"Oh my goodness."

"Cute, right?" he grinned.

"They are so damn cute. What did we do to deserve such perfect kids?" Roy chuckled.

"I don't know." A hand reached over and squeezed her knee. "But I can't imagine my life without them."

"When can we go and play in the snow Mummy?" Mia asked excitedly. The front door was closed now with all their bags piled in front of it. As per tradition she and James would go skiing tomorrow. Roy had never found the knack for it, but did enjoy his time snowboarding a couple of years ago. He was more than happy to occupy his time playing with Mia instead though.

"Tomorrow, sweetie," Riza reassured her. She placed Mia on the floor of the living room. The girl clutched her blanket tightly to her chest, hoisting it up so she wouldn't trip as she ran as fast as her little legs would carry her over to the front window. The soft glow from the room tried to light up the forest beyond the house, but it did little to permeate the gloom between the trees. However, Mia wasn't interested in that. The moon was full and high enough that it offered some light so she could watch the snow falling.

Hands pressed against the glass, blanket forgotten on the floor, and her nose almost touching the window, she stood enthralled.

"That should keep her quiet for a while," Riza sighed in relief.

"I think it will. We better get unpacked before she runs off somewhere else. James?" He looked up from reaching to collect his bag. "Could you keep an eye on Mia while we get organised?"

His eyes lit up and he didn't need to be asked twice. He jogged over and grabbed a cushion from the couch. He plonked down to his sister and the pair watched the snow. Either he was excited to spend time with his sister or he was just happy to be able to miss out on the boring part of unpacking. Riza guessed it was a combination of the two.

Also, as per tradition, Riza left to collect Cretan takeout for dinner. By this point she knew everyone's order off by heart so there was no need to ask. Even Mia had taken a liking to the clam chowder so she got her own little dish with a side of chips.

They walked to the resort the next morning, continuing the routine James and Riza had set all those years ago. James had started off by helping Mia walk through the snow – her legs were too short to walk properly and she sunk. She James had grasped her under the arms and helped her hop through.

"Like a bunny!" James told her.

"A bunny! Yay!"

That game got boring and tiring pretty quickly so Roy scooped her up to place Mia on his shoulders. The world from that height appeared to be even more thrilling because she refused to come down from her Daddy's shoulders. She gripped his hair tightly as she twisted around to look into the trees and at the snow. With every pull he grimaced in pain. Of course, she was very enthusiastic so Roy's hands had lifted and held her legs, anchoring her against him.

When he tried to lift her off she shrieked and pulled his hair tighter. Riza scolded Mia, but she couldn't help but grin at Roy's dismayed expression. It wasn't until she saw the skiers and large snow drift at the resort that she wanted down.

Now that Mia was old enough their ski trip was a different affair all together. Apparently children could begin to learn to ski at the age of three so Riza signed her up to a lesson with an instructor. She would not stop talking to him about everything. The poor guy was trying to teach her the basics but Mia was more interested in what the sticks on her feet were made of so she could go and look for the same kind of sticks in the forest when she was finished.

After the second helpless look from the instructor, James stepped in.

"Mia, if you want to learn you need to concentrate, okay?"

"Conce –" She cut herself off, not understanding the big word her brother had used.

"You need to listen to Stewart." He was the instructor. "He's telling you what to do but you aren't paying attention."

"I am!" she cried defiantly. Riza held back her chuckle at how her foot tried to stamp, but it couldn't lift up from the weight of the ski. Roy couldn't supress it and she elbowed him lightly.

"Don't encourage her," she whispered.

He pursed his lips but amusement was clear in her eyes.

"Look, like this." James set himself up correctly and showed Mia how to stand. She copied him without question while Stewart both encouraged and praised her.

"Your kid is a natural," the sandy haired instructor told them, moving to stand next to the children's parents.

"Which one?" Riza asked jokingly.

"Both to be perfectly honest. He has a great knack for teaching. And she has picked up the correct stance immediately. Although I think that has more to do with the teacher," he chuckled.

"Honestly, she can be such a nightmare when she is somewhere new for the first time," Riza explained apologetically. "Once she comes often enough she will begin to pay attention. Don't take it personally."

He laughed. "I won't, don't worry. She's just curious. There's nothing wrong with that." James looked up at the instructor expectantly, ready to move onto the next lesson. Before long Mia was moving by herself down the gradual slope. Her eyes were wide with wonder and excitement.

However, it was short lived when she wobbled and fell backwards. She sat there in the snow and it looked like she was deciding on whether to cry or not. Both parents held their breath, silently begging her to choose not to. However, they weren't that lucky. She began to wail.

"Come here, bear." Roy lifted her into his arms once Stewart let her feet loose. "You're fine."

"It hurt!" she cried. Roy hugged her to his chest, placing a hand on the back of her head to anchor it in place while he bounced her gently. He looked heavenward and smirked at Riza.

"You just got a fright, that's all."

"Yeah! But it hurt!"

"Why don't you give it another go?"

"No!"

Riza smirked as he winced at the volume of her cry. She had lifted her head as she shouted. It just so happened she was directly in line with his ear.

"You need to give it another try," Riza tried.

"No!"

"Hey," Roy scolded lightly. "That's enough shouting. You'll be okay. Snow is soft. It was just a little bump."

"I don't want to try again." She rubbed her eyes, wiping the tears all over her face.

"You'll be fine. Come on, James will go beside you and catch you if you fall." Her eyes found her brother. She looked slightly doubtful. But Riza knew that look. She didn't want to but she knew her Dad wouldn't lie to her and James wouldn't let her fall if he was beside her. She trusted them completely.

"Okay," she replied quietly.

A triumphant look crossed Roy's face and Riza snickered to herself. Her daughter was stubborn but when faced with facts like that, she couldn't say no.

Sure enough, she went down the kiddie slope and was completely fine. James donned his skis and followed close by, ensuring she would be all right. When she hit the bottom of it Stewart held up his hand for her to high five. She returned it equally enthusiastically as the instructor.

"I did it!" she called to her parents, who had remained at the top. They waved down before beginning their own descent.

Roy sighed in relief. "I'm so glad she didn't fall."

"She would never have put on a pair of skis again."

"She is such a drama queen. Do you think James has been teaching her?"

A wry smile appeared on Riza's face. "No, that's all you honey."

He looked offended but she just laughed.

After the lesson was over Riza and James stayed with Mia for a while. She had taken great delight in standing on top of James' feet as he skied them both down one of the larger training slopes. She squealed happily the whole way.

"Would you like to try some of the harder slopes, James?"

He considered the request briefly, but shook his head. "I'm okay. I like helping Mia."

"Okay, if you're sure."

Mia squealed once more and she jumped right into a snow drift, sinking up to above her head. Riza felt a jolt go through her and immediately begun to move towards her daughter who had disappeared into the snow, but slowed once she caught Roy by her side. Riza had never seen him move so fast before. With that lunge he might have pulled a hamstring. The look on his face made her giggle then full on laugh a moment later. He was standing with such a deep frown on his face while his arms were outstretched, holding his daughter who, completely obliviously, giggled and reached down to swat the snow off her body playfully.

"Why don't you take her home?" Riza asked unable to hide her grin.

"I think that might be wise," Roy agreed sourly. "Otherwise we might lose her in the snow." Exactly at that moment Mia yawned. "Perfect timing."

So, while Riza and James headed further up the mountain she left Roy to take their daughter back to the lodge. She shook her head in amusement as he all but stomped off towards the car, Mia still giggling and thinking it was a game while she hung there under Roy's arm.

Yes, she was definitely a tornado. A tornado of love, happiness, excitement, and curiosity.