There's a legend, children would tell, about the Derry sewers. Sometimes it's about a child eating creature, another alligators somehow surviving in its weathers, sometimes its children, weeping and sad because their lives were cut too soon.

It suited Penny to let those stories grow. Some brave fools would try to enter its vast caverns, twisted into mazes that defy physics. His powers, though still dim, could still touch the tendrils he once wove in these lands.

As he watched Bob – the other, former mate and intruder – float helplessly, he was glad no one had yet to stumble upon this lair. Eggy was there, her child form melted away to her true visage, multi-limbed and eyeless and beside her…

Quinn was still wrapped upon in his bundle, his blank face cocked to one side in curiosity. You weren't there of course, still at home, resting as your mother fussed.

He nearly lost you.

He remembered how your eyes shuttered and the machine would not stop beeping even as the doctor and nurses rushed; their hands and needles dancing on your weakened flesh. How he could feel life fading and the fear.

Eggy trying to grasp your link between her and your body, your son still so new and so weak, reaching out to your soul. How you were tired and all the stress of the months came crashing down.

Penny waved his hand and Bob's body pulled down, his eyes white and blank as the former wrapped his long fingers on the clown's foot.

"I supposed you expect me to thank you, you old fart." He said as he tugged the clown until his feet barely skimmed the floor. Penny could feel the deadlights frantically fighting to reach its old master but he was younger and despite what Bob had crowed he was stronger now.

Eggy circled around the other clown, her hair flaring around her body with unfelt wind. Quinn had been laid on an old baby chair, eyeless and yet watching.

Their father hated to admit it but if Bob hadn't appeared and tried what he had tried, you would have been lost to them. The eking energy he nursed from devouring the other had been barely enough to erase memories and save you.

Penny could also feel the last bits of embers still clinging to Bob the only thing that allowed him to float still. The younger one sees Bob's eyes flutter and with a wave he binds the other again. The last thing he needed was for his former mate to be awake and wreak havoc again. It was good of him to check on Bob once in a while – though mostly devoured, Penny left small bits of him still.

Strong as Penny was now, he was going to need Bob eventually, after all the former clown's powers were still borrowed. Until then, he would leave his former mate alive, just so until the time is right.

Tapping his chin, Penny turned to his offspring.

"What do you think?"

Rasped tongues spoke, "Want to feast on him, finish the last of his lights." Eggy bared her many teeth, her fingers clenched with anticipation. Penny sighed, tilting his head as Bob's face.

"You know we can't, Eggy."

Another, thin, high pitched with echoes responded, "Need him. Change come soon." The youngest turned his face towards his sibling.

Eggy scowled, "I can still hold it off."

"Mama nearly died and Papa still not strong enough." Quinn noted. "We can wake him only for a while the make him sleep again."

A hiss, "And what if he does not?"

"You'd be strong then. When you calm the change, then we devour him."

Eggy whined, "But…"

Penny patted his daughter's head, smiling softly, "Come now my many limbed one, it's merely a few years more. He will be truly delicious then. Remember how tasty he was when he was only just afraid."

His daughter licked her lips, drool dripped from its corners, "It was very nice Papa."

"Now imagine him after a few years, marinated in that fear. He would be very, very delicious."

Eggy gave it a bit of a thought, to her the morsel Dada had allowed her to eat had been so, very, delicious. But she also knew at the time she couldn't have more, not until she changed or else it would drive her madness. And apparently madness is a very clingy creature, according to Dada; he made the mistake of making eye contact once and he spent two eternities trying to pry them off.

She lets out a pouty sigh, "Okay, I'll wait. But I still want the cake."

Penny sighed and rolled his eyes, "Young one."

"NO. I want it, with the white frosting and the topper dolls."

"The dolls aren't even edible! And they are expensive why are do you even want those?"

"But they look so nice!"

Quinn realizing they were fighting about the cake again unbundled himself and started picking an old train toy. He had brought back an old teddy once but his Mama and Nana took one look at the smelly, rotting thing and pretended it got lost in the woods. He was upset but apparently that thing has bacteria and those are bad.

And he was not looking forward to the bath later. His Papa and even Eggy always insisted they wash because – 'You have to be clean around the humans or they get super sick and that means baths,'

And by the King, he hated baths. Eggy said it's fun to pretend they were at sea as pirates but Mama got super upset when they conjured up those octopi – which then escaped and died on their neighbour's lawn.

So they had to stick to rubber duckies or small toy boats.

Keyword being: toys. The ones that can fit their bath tub or no bigger than their palm; especially the last bit.

It took Papa days to track down and erase the memories of all the poor souls who swore on their parents' life that a huge ship simply dropped out of the sky and onto their driveway before it scuttled on its wheels towards the nearby lake.

Papa had to teach them about 'responsibilities' because Mama's heart went 'hurk' when she saw a large ship passing outside her bedroom window. Nana's mind had been erased so many times that she sometimes forget that she had to leave for her flight a few times now.

Not that Quinn minded; he was fond of his Nana, though she only saw the creature as a small, helpless human baby. Nana always can be manipulated to sneak all the sweets.

Eventually, Papa won the cake battle and scooped them both up. Once they reached the outside, his Papa was back to being Penny, Eggy into Agnes while Quinn was simply the cutest child ever wrapped in orange cloth.

On the way, Eggy caught a few cats and a random raccoon which Papa grumbled as they wrestled the creatures into their car.

The drive was uneventful as Derry passed by, outwardly same but inwardly less fearful. But the three knew eventually that would change too.

However, as they drove up to their home, as you greet them on the porch, smiling, Derry will have that peace.

For now.

Author's Note: And that's done. I'm sorry this has taken a very long time to finish. I actually wanted this to end with a wedding but I couldn't find a way to make it work and be funny. So I'm changing the title of this fic. I know this ending is a bit abrupt but I feel like I can't tell much more. Maybe someday I will come back with a proper one shot on these four.

In the mean time I want to thank all those who reviewed my fic. You all make my day.