~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Beka?" Cassie asked as she crawled onto her lap later that evening.
"Yes?" she asked as she smiled at Cass trying to get comfortable withthis new lump disturbing her normal resting spot.
"What's a mom?" she asked as she finally settled.
"What?" Beka asked as she tilted Cass' chin up to look at her.
"What's a mom?" she asked again.
"Ah, well," Beka said as she thought about it. 'Mom' wasn't one of those words you normally had to define. "Well, a mom is some one, a woman, who well." she paused and thought about it for a moment. "Well me, I guess." she said.
"But you're Beka." Cass replied.
"I'm both."
"But what is a mom? What does she do?"
"Well, what do I do for you?" Beka asked as she looked down at her.
"You play with me, an' keep me safe, an' make me feel better when I'm sad." she said. Beka smiled.
"Keep going." she said.
"You love me right?" Beka nodded. "An' you're just . . . . Beka." she finished.
"Well, that's a mom. And a dad is kinda the same thing, but only he's a guy." She watched as Cassie thought about this.
"Is Dylan like a dad?" she asked.
"Yup. " Cassie thought about this for a few minutes.
"Do I haveta call you mom and dad?"
"Not if you don't want to. We can still be Beka and Dylan."
"But don'tcha haveta be called mom and dad to be a mom and dad?" sheasked as she turn around so she could look at Beka.
"No. It's kind of like a nick name, like Cassie or Beka."
"But Beka's your name."
"My real name is Rebeka," she said. Cassie's eye brows shot up.
"Really?"
"Yahun. Every body calls me Beka though. It's the same as you, your name is Cassidie, but we all call you Cassie or Cass."
"Tyr calls me Little One, so does Dylan some times. And Harper calls me Squirt and you call me Kiddo."
"And you answer to all of them. Dylan and me will always answer you. It doesn't matter if you call us mom and dad or Beka and Dylan," she said patiently.
"Oh good!" she said with a smile as she wrapped her arms around Beka's neck. "Is there really a baby in there?" she asked as she pulled back.
"Yes." Beka said.
"It's not very big is it?"
"No. But it'll get bigger."
"How big?"
"Well, if you think trying to get comfortable is hard now, it's only gonna get harder." Cass frowned at this.
"You mean we can't cuddle any more?"
"Well, we can, we just have to change it a little." Beka stroked back some of Cassie's hair. No matter what she did with it, she couldn't get it to stay back all day.
"Oh good. But I can always use Dylan too right?"
"Of course silly!" she said as she started tickling Cassidie. Her laughter filled the air and Beka eventually stopped and let her catch her breath. "You know, I think I'm gonna like having two of you around."
"Two of me?" she asked.
"No, two kids."
"Where there two of you?" Cassie asked. Beka laughed.
"Well, there was only one me, but I have a brother."
"A brother? Nora had a brother," she said, proud of herself that she knew what a brother was.
"Yeah, his name is Rafael, but we call him Rafe." she said wtih a sigh. This Nora person Cass would talk about was a mystery. All she ever said about her was that Nora had lost her, used to take care of her and now that she had a brother. "Who's Nora?" Beka asked again.
"She was the one that lost me."
"But who was she? Was she a cousin? Aunt? Sister? Mom? Gramma? What?" Cassie thought about it for a moment.
"I don't know," she said quietly. "Some times she was nice and other times she wasn't and sometimes she was kinda like a mom and some times she wasn't. She was just Nora." she answered. "Can we talk about something else now?" Beka knew it was time to leave this alone for a while.
"Sure. What do you want to do?" she asked Cassie as she put on a smile and went along with anything the little girl suggested.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Beka! BEKA!" Dylan jumped awake and sprinted into Cassie's room.
"It's okay, you're okay." he said as he gathered her in his arms.
"I want Beka!" she said as the tears began to flow.
"She's on the bridge," he said as he looked at the chronometre kept on the wall. "She'll be back soon," he said as he rocked her. He knew that it was a nightmare and what it had been about.
"I don't care! I want Beka!" she wailled.
"Come back to bed with me and we'll wait for her to come home." he said as he picked her up. "You don't have to sleep. Do you want a book or something?" He held her closer as he felt the sobs that were wracking her little body. "How about I just pick out a good one?" Dylan said as he walked over to the shelves and picked out a couple.
"Why weren't you there to get me?" she asked.
"What?" Dylan asked quietly.
"When Odan got me. Only Beka and Trance and Harper and Rev were there. Why not you too?" she asked as she looked up at him. Dylan sighed.
"Well, Beka and me had had a fight and we weren't really talking to each other and it just kind of happened. I was there when you woke up though."
"What did you fight about?"
"You. The Maru, the Commonwealth, some other stuff."
"Why me?"
"Because I made a dumb choice and things just got messy." he finished simply.
"Oh." she said as she snuggled in good and close to him, to help chase away the bad dreams. "Is it all fixed now?"
"I'm pretty sure it is." he said as he let his hand start rubbing her back. The two sat in silence until the gentle rubbing finally lulled her back to sleep. He laid her beside him and soon joined her.
"Beka?" Cassie asked as she crawled onto her lap later that evening.
"Yes?" she asked as she smiled at Cass trying to get comfortable withthis new lump disturbing her normal resting spot.
"What's a mom?" she asked as she finally settled.
"What?" Beka asked as she tilted Cass' chin up to look at her.
"What's a mom?" she asked again.
"Ah, well," Beka said as she thought about it. 'Mom' wasn't one of those words you normally had to define. "Well, a mom is some one, a woman, who well." she paused and thought about it for a moment. "Well me, I guess." she said.
"But you're Beka." Cass replied.
"I'm both."
"But what is a mom? What does she do?"
"Well, what do I do for you?" Beka asked as she looked down at her.
"You play with me, an' keep me safe, an' make me feel better when I'm sad." she said. Beka smiled.
"Keep going." she said.
"You love me right?" Beka nodded. "An' you're just . . . . Beka." she finished.
"Well, that's a mom. And a dad is kinda the same thing, but only he's a guy." She watched as Cassie thought about this.
"Is Dylan like a dad?" she asked.
"Yup. " Cassie thought about this for a few minutes.
"Do I haveta call you mom and dad?"
"Not if you don't want to. We can still be Beka and Dylan."
"But don'tcha haveta be called mom and dad to be a mom and dad?" sheasked as she turn around so she could look at Beka.
"No. It's kind of like a nick name, like Cassie or Beka."
"But Beka's your name."
"My real name is Rebeka," she said. Cassie's eye brows shot up.
"Really?"
"Yahun. Every body calls me Beka though. It's the same as you, your name is Cassidie, but we all call you Cassie or Cass."
"Tyr calls me Little One, so does Dylan some times. And Harper calls me Squirt and you call me Kiddo."
"And you answer to all of them. Dylan and me will always answer you. It doesn't matter if you call us mom and dad or Beka and Dylan," she said patiently.
"Oh good!" she said with a smile as she wrapped her arms around Beka's neck. "Is there really a baby in there?" she asked as she pulled back.
"Yes." Beka said.
"It's not very big is it?"
"No. But it'll get bigger."
"How big?"
"Well, if you think trying to get comfortable is hard now, it's only gonna get harder." Cass frowned at this.
"You mean we can't cuddle any more?"
"Well, we can, we just have to change it a little." Beka stroked back some of Cassie's hair. No matter what she did with it, she couldn't get it to stay back all day.
"Oh good. But I can always use Dylan too right?"
"Of course silly!" she said as she started tickling Cassidie. Her laughter filled the air and Beka eventually stopped and let her catch her breath. "You know, I think I'm gonna like having two of you around."
"Two of me?" she asked.
"No, two kids."
"Where there two of you?" Cassie asked. Beka laughed.
"Well, there was only one me, but I have a brother."
"A brother? Nora had a brother," she said, proud of herself that she knew what a brother was.
"Yeah, his name is Rafael, but we call him Rafe." she said wtih a sigh. This Nora person Cass would talk about was a mystery. All she ever said about her was that Nora had lost her, used to take care of her and now that she had a brother. "Who's Nora?" Beka asked again.
"She was the one that lost me."
"But who was she? Was she a cousin? Aunt? Sister? Mom? Gramma? What?" Cassie thought about it for a moment.
"I don't know," she said quietly. "Some times she was nice and other times she wasn't and sometimes she was kinda like a mom and some times she wasn't. She was just Nora." she answered. "Can we talk about something else now?" Beka knew it was time to leave this alone for a while.
"Sure. What do you want to do?" she asked Cassie as she put on a smile and went along with anything the little girl suggested.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Beka! BEKA!" Dylan jumped awake and sprinted into Cassie's room.
"It's okay, you're okay." he said as he gathered her in his arms.
"I want Beka!" she said as the tears began to flow.
"She's on the bridge," he said as he looked at the chronometre kept on the wall. "She'll be back soon," he said as he rocked her. He knew that it was a nightmare and what it had been about.
"I don't care! I want Beka!" she wailled.
"Come back to bed with me and we'll wait for her to come home." he said as he picked her up. "You don't have to sleep. Do you want a book or something?" He held her closer as he felt the sobs that were wracking her little body. "How about I just pick out a good one?" Dylan said as he walked over to the shelves and picked out a couple.
"Why weren't you there to get me?" she asked.
"What?" Dylan asked quietly.
"When Odan got me. Only Beka and Trance and Harper and Rev were there. Why not you too?" she asked as she looked up at him. Dylan sighed.
"Well, Beka and me had had a fight and we weren't really talking to each other and it just kind of happened. I was there when you woke up though."
"What did you fight about?"
"You. The Maru, the Commonwealth, some other stuff."
"Why me?"
"Because I made a dumb choice and things just got messy." he finished simply.
"Oh." she said as she snuggled in good and close to him, to help chase away the bad dreams. "Is it all fixed now?"
"I'm pretty sure it is." he said as he let his hand start rubbing her back. The two sat in silence until the gentle rubbing finally lulled her back to sleep. He laid her beside him and soon joined her.