Hey, me again! "Back so soon?" you ask. Yes! "Has it been a year already since the last post?" you ask. No!

Fun fact: I name my files by number once I start writing them and figure out a title later. This is 86. The new year fic I posted earlier (One Future) was 88. Clearly, I don't have 88 fits posted, so that gives you an idea of how many I've got started and then stall out on (or stop working on when another idea strikes and then don't go back to them because I'm easily distracted and for the last 10 years, work doesn't exactly leave me feeling like wanting to spend MORE time in front of a computer. My first fic was started in November 2007, so I'm going on 15 years of this little hobby.

Speaking of my first fic, this is a continuation of the series. This one can probably be read without reading those, but if you do, please excuse all my typos and errors! I re-read it recently and cringed a few times.

1. Finding the Way Home

2. Here and Now

3. To Have and To Hold

4. Beginnings and Endings

I thought I was done with this storyline after B&E, but an idea popped into my head and this one came along pretty easily. Not as long as the others, just a quick little glimpse of what life is like 8 years after B&E.

Disclaimer: Not mine. Not profiting.

Summary: Wheeler and Linka weren't sure they'd ever get here, but they're glad they did.

Perfect

"Mamma?"

Linka opens her eyes and blinks as they adjust to the darkness.

"Nicolai? What is wrong, Baby?" She asks in Russian.

"I had a nightmare," the little boy replies in his mother's native tongue.

"Come up here," she says, pulling the covers aside.

"Pappa will not be mad?"

"Why would he be?"

"I should be brave. Like him."

"It is true…your Pappa is very brave. He has been for as long as I have known him, but he has nightmares too sometimes. Not as often as he used to…he says knowing I am next to him helps, so he would not be mad about you coming in here to tell me, and he would definitely understand."

"Ok," he says happily as he climbs into the bed.

She wraps her arm around him and turns her head to rest on Wheeler's shoulder and thinks about how this is the best feeling; the love of her life on one side and their son cradled against her.

"Do you want to tell me about your nightmare?"

"It was about the baby."

"Your new brother or sister?" She asks, rubbing her hand over her growing swell.

"Yes."

"Did something happen to the baby?"

"No…Kat and me."

"What happened to you and Katerina?"

"We had to move out. You and Pappa said there was no room for us anymore."

She hugs him to her and kisses the top of his strawberry blonde head.

"That would never happen. When another comes along to fill a space in your heart, it does not make the parts of your heart that are already full get smaller, it is a new space. An equal space. Your father and I were worried about the same thing when we had you and your sister. We had just gotten together after years of being apart. We got married and had you soon after. We were worried that we had not had enough time together. But I soon learned that every time I felt you and your sister move inside me, my love for you both grew, as did my love for your father. And when you were born, I discovered that I did not know what love was until the moment when I held you and your sister, and I saw the way that your father looked at us. And it will be like that again. Except now you and Kat will be holding your new sibling and your father and I will be so filled with even more love for all of our children."

"So you did not decide to have another baby because you were tired of me and Kat?"

"Absolutely not. This was not planned. It was just meant to be. You were meant to be a big brother."

"But I am already a big brother."

"By five minutes…it is not quite the same. You will get to teach this one the things that you know. Help them learn new things. Support them when they are struggling. Just as your Uncle Mishka did for me. Big brothers are very special. Now try to get some sleep so we do not wake Pappa."

But he was already awake. He had been listening to his wife and son. He loves that his kids are fluent in two languages at only eight years old. He loves that they speak to Linka in Russian when they are alone with her. It gives her and their children a connection to her home and their heritage. He learned the language with them so that when the family visited with their Russian relatives, they wouldn't have to feel like they needed to always speak English to accommodate him. He's not quite as fluent as the twins and definitely not as good at Russian as Linka is at English, but he was able to understand that Nicolai had a bad dream and was worried about the new baby getting more attention. Hearing Linka recount their concerns about being parents brought it all back. Having two babies at once, unplanned, and with no experience being a father, was much scarier and intimidating than the unexpected baby. Just one?! That'll be easy compared to twins!

He makes a mental note to let the twins know that adding another baby to the family does not take away from how important they are to him. Obviously, it's bothering Nicolai, so it is probably something on Katerina's mind too. He'll take them out for ice cream tomorrow. It's something that the three of them can do for a few years before the newest edition is able to join them. Happy with his idea, and content in knowing that Linka has succeeded in chasing away their son's fears, he rolls onto his side and puts his arm over three of his four loves and kisses Linka's shoulder.

"I love you," he whispers.

"You are awake? I am sorry if we woke you."

"Don't be," he says, kissing her cheek. "You ok, little man?"

"Yeah. I was just checking on Mamma to see if you needed any help keeping her safe."

"Ah. That's nice of you. Thanks for looking out. I think I'll be able to sleep better knowing you're here too. You should get some sleep too." Wheeler settles in against Linka's side and the three of them are able to fall back to sleep.

"Pappa?"

Wheeler feels a tap on his shoulder.

"Pappa…"

"Hmm?" He rolls over towards the voice of his daughter. "What's up, Princess?"

"I woke up and had a strange feeling. I went to Nic's room to see if he felt it too, but he was not there."

"He's in here. On the other side of your Ma."

"Oh. So everyone is here except me."

"You're here now. He had a bad dream. Maybe that's why you had a strange feeling?"

"Yeah."

"Wanna join the slumber party?" He asks, reaching out to lift her onto the bed and settling her in between him and Linka. "Are you worried about the baby too?"

"I'm not scared."

"I didn't say 'scared,' I said 'worried.' I know Nic is feeling a little concerned that the new baby will take attention away from you two…and it's probably gonna seem that way because babies require a lot more attention. They can't do anything for themselves that big kids like you and Nic can do. They need so much attention, your Ma and I could really use help from you and your brother. Think you'll be able to do that for us?"

"Will we get paid?"

Wheeler chuckles. She sounds exactly like him…and now he's about to sound like a Planeteer.

"Sometimes payment isn't always in the form of money. The reward we get for doing a good thing is the lesson that comes along with it. Being helpful is the right thing to do. The payment is the gratitude you get in return and the nice feeling you get from knowing you are contributing to something."

"So that's a no?"

He laughs and reaches over to tickle her.

"Yeah, that's a big fat no, ya stinker!"

She starts to squirm and he stops, worried that they'll wake Linka and Nicolai.

"Ok, ok…time to settle down and go back to sleep."

After a few minutes of silence, Katerina softly asks,

"If the baby is a girl, what will you call her?"

"Don't know. We haven't really discussed names yet."

"No, I mean like how you call me 'Princess' and 'Sweetheart.' You can't call her those names."

Wheeler chuckles but doesn't want to minimize his daughter's concerns.

"You get that jealous trait from your mother!"

Linka, who has been awake and listening for some time, turns her head and scowls at him.

"What do you think I should call the baby if it's a girl?"

"Hmm…Pumpkin."

"That's a good one. I think we should agree that it's ok to call her 'Princess' too though."

"Why?" Kat asks indignantly.

"Well, if Mom is the Queen and I'm the King, all of our daughters would be Princesses. It's just how things work."

"But the oldest Princess is the most important one…she's the one that will be the Queen someday."

Wheeler laughs.

"You got me there…so, you ok with me having two princesses as long as I only have one 'Sweetheart' and one 'Pumpkin?'"

"I thought I was your Princess?" Linka pouts.

"Didn't you hear me? You've been upgraded to 'Queen', Babe."

"You're Queen AND King, Mamma. Everyone knows."

"Hey!" Wheeler protests while Linka snickers. "You're right though. Mom is the Queen, King, Emperor, Empress, Supreme Leader of the World…"

"Universe," Linka corrects.

"Bossiest Boss of all."

Kat giggles from her spot between her parents when she looks up and sees the glare her mother gives her father and the guilty smile he returns.

"Just wait until you do not have Katerina to hide behind. I will get you."

"She rules with an iron fist," he whispers.

"Only with you, because she has to," Kat whispers back.

"Ha!" Linka says triumphantly.

"Didn't I tell you it was time to go back to sleep? Traitor."

"She is smart. She knows which leader to side with!" Linka says with a wink to her daughter and a snarky smile directed at her husband. "Now, everyone go to sleep…that is an order!"

"See…bossy," Wheeler mumbles.

They close their eyes and get settled in for sleep, thankful for these family moments…and for a bed big enough to accommodate them all!

To Be Continued...