A/N: Once again, thanks to those who "favourite" and "follow". Special thanks to everyone taking the time to review the previous chapter:
Trish1573: LOL. I came after Serena? *squeal* You're so sweet! ;) escape-reader.13: Oh I'm so glad! It's so nice that you thought so! Thank you! :) kbtjmandy: Aww, thank you! I love writing the family moments and reviews like yours made it all the sweeter! Thanks! :) Princess Moonie of the moon: LOL. I knew that! ;) I'm such a huge fan of Mulan myself. So, I do know that she's not a princess and ended up with Li Shang. But she does feature in Disney's series of Princesses stories which implies that Disney do acknowledge her as one of their princess. ;) Also, I know that you're a TOBITF reader, *big thank you hug!* and as demonstrated in Chapter 14: Little Princesses, this family defines all girls as princesses! ;) JenA: Thank you! I'm really, really glad that you love them and reading about them. It's so thoughtful of you to let me know. It made me smile a mile wide! Thanks! LOL. I think Ariel is fun and she's definitely a princess! ;) LoveInTheBattleField: Coming your way! Rose: Yeay! Yes you did! Thanks for the inspiration, the support and the encouragement. ;) Oh I love the songs in Pocahontas! ;) My favourite princesses are Danielle de Barbarac in Andrew Tenant's 'Ever After' and Sara Crewe from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 'A Little Princess'. I can't really choose a favourite Disney princess. ;) Moonprincess998: Thank you! Like you and Suri, I used to love Aurora's adventure too. ;) CherrySerenity-sama: Hmm...I'm having some problem with ff as well where words go missing when I PM or reviewed and also in the PM and review notification I received. Anyway, I'm glad you liked both chapters. Cinderella's my favourite too, though I prefer Andrew Tenant's adaptation. ;) bunny88rosemagic: Oh thank you! I love writing D/S interactions with the children and I'm really glad you liked them! ;) PrincessAnastacia: I love Belle! We have that love for books in common... ;) Trish1573, JenA, Moonprincess998 & CherrySerenity-sama: LOL. Considering that this is an SM fiction, I really shouldn't be surprised that Serenity is a big favourite amongst many of my readers! ;)
TOBITF ALERT: You'll find that Serena's uncharacteristic study habits comes from the fact that Chapter 20 will take up from her last day of final exam/high school. Hence, all the exam preparations in the two weeks gap between Chapter 19 and 20. I have my own exams around the corner so no idea when I'll be able to update TOBITF but I'll definitely try as soon as I can! ;)
Thoughts are in Italics.
(Standard disclaimer: I do not own any of the Sailor Moon characters. All characters belong to Naoko Takeuchi.)
S plus D equals little s squared plus little d squared (S + D = ss + dd)
3. Nerd Alert! (Otherwise known to Raye as TOBITF!)
Timeline: takes place in between Chapters 19 & 20 of TOBITF
Rating: K+
No. Of words: 1312 words
"It's two moles of sodium reacting with two moles of water to produce two moles of sodium hydroxide and one mole of hydrogen. The equation has to be balanced on both sides," Darien patiently explained.
"I know, I know. Your favourite quote, something or other cannot be created or destroyed. They can only be changed. Your sons told me," Serena grumbled, frustrated.
Darien chuckled, his hands slowly massaged the stiff back of her neck, "It's 'neither matter nor energy can be created or destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another' and it's not a quote, it's the law of conservation of energy."
"Well, you must've quoted it often enough in the future for your sons to be able to recite it word for word the way they do," Serena replied, instinctively leaning into his touch.
"I must have," Darien replied, unperturbed and still smiling.
Shifting to face him Serena was torn between incredulity and amusement. "The boys are eight years old Darien!" she softly chided.
"It's a simple concept Serena!" he replied, mimicking her tone of voice.
"No, it's not!"
"Yes, it is."
"No, it's not!"
"Some of us are trying to study here, Meatball Brain." Raye cut in.
She and Amy were huddled together on the floor at the other side of the table while Kevin was attempting to tutor Mina on the nearby sofa. Jason and Zachary were in quiet conversation nearby while Nathan, Lita, Andrew and the children were in the kitchen, gathering more snacks for the girls' studying session.
Serena huffed indignantly. "We're studying too!"
Ignoring Raye, Darien calmly addressed his Meatball Head. "Every other law, theories, chemical and mathematical equations out there is basically saying the same thing, just in different ways. The law is applicable in everything. Newton's law of physics, chemistry law of thermodynamics, even everyday life...all are examples of this law, differently expressed."
Looking at his earnest expression, Serena rolled her eyes and turned back to her book. She bumped his shoulder with hers. "You're such a nerd," she said, not without affection.
Chuckling, he kissed the top of her head, "I'm willing to bet all our children would be able to give an example of how the law applies," he said, stressing on 'our' in response to her previous mention of 'his' sons.
Before she could respond, he called out to the children and the sound of clattering feet preceded two little girls running to join them. Darryl and Darren followed not far behind, their pace slower.
Calm and composed just like their father, the errant thought touched Serena's mind even as her heart fluttered at his reference to 'their' children.
Sara plopped herself down on Darien's lap while Suri dropped into Serena's. Their brothers sat themselves on the sofa facing their past parents and sisters expectantly.
"What's up, Dad?" Darryl asked.
Serena moved closer to Darien, her mouth near his ear. "Darien Shields, don't you dare embarrass me in front of our children!" she uttered under her breath.
Squeezing her arm comfortingly, he addressed their future children, "Mummy wants to see if you really understood what you were saying when you quoted the law of conservation of energy to her the other day," he said calmly, "So, I'll pick a disciple and one of you come up with an example you can think of and we'll show her, okay?"
Sara shifted in Darien's lap. "Daddy, what's a disciple?" she asked, her 'Serena eyes' wide with curiosity.
Darien smiled. His heart warmed. "It's a subject, darling," he answered and bent his head down slightly to kiss her temple.
Serena fully expected for him to choose a science subject and was taken off guard when he ended up saying "Art" instead.
Suri squirmed excitedly in Serena's lap, "The colour pink!" she exclaimed eagerly.
A pleased smile appeared on Darien's face. At the confused look on Serena's face, "Would you care to elaborate, princess?" he prodded the little girl gently.
"It comes from mixing red and white together. The red and white colours didn't disappear, they changed to pink instead!"
Darien laughed and clapped his hands, extremely proud of his future daughter.
"Exactly! Now, what about sports? Any examples, boys?" he asked his future sons.
"For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction," Darren answered almost immediately.
"A basketball player pushing his foot harder onto the ground allows him to jump up higher with the magnitude of force he applied to the ground," Darryl enthusiastically elaborated.
"Newton's third law of Physics," Darren and Darien exclaimed simultaneously, identical delighted expressions on their faces.
Turning to Serena with uncontained pride and a wide smile on his face, Darien asked, "Okay my dear, any request?"
Nonplussed yet amused, Serena played along, "What about music?"
"Oh I know! It's like that song Maria and Captain Von Trapp sang in the Sound of Music!" Sara exclaimed excitedly and joined her twin when Suri started singing the chorus to the song, "Nothing comes from nothing...Nothing ever could..."
And soon, they were joined by everyone in the room not long before Zachary announced to the children that he and Amy had something to show them, not so subtly inclining his head towards Serena, indicating it had to do with her surprise birthday present the children were working on with their help.
Excited, Sara and Suri scrambled off of Darien's and Serena's lap and followed their brothers, Amy and Zachary out of the room.
"What software did you used, Uncle Zach?"
"Is it a new program?" Darren and Darryl could be heard asking in hushed voices.
Exasperated and amused, Serena shuddered in mock horror as soon as the children were out of earshot, "I'm surrounded with nerds!"
Raye smirked, merriment clear in her eyes. "I think 'you're the only blonde in the family' would be a more accurate assessment of the situation, Meatball Head!" She couldn't resist poking fun at her friend.
"Hey!" Simultaneous indignant replies from Serena, Jason and Mina had Raye smothering her laughter.
"I resent that!" Mina huffed, folding her arms across her chest, "After all, both Hermione and Annabeth are blonde geniuses and I doubt either Harry or Percy would've survived without them!"
Raye rolled her eyes. "Shows what a blond you are. Hermione's a brunette."
"Well, Emma Watson is blond!" Mina retorted. Her jubilance was short lived though. At Raye's raised eyebrow, her shoulders slumped, "Well, she is...some of the time..." she finished lamely.
At Raye's triumphant laughter, Mina poked Kevin in the ribs. "Say something! You're a blond too you know!"
Kevin raised his eyebrow. "And I graduated from Harvard with double degrees in law and finance, Summa Cum Laude." He said it so stoically that it barely registered that he was complying with her request that it took Mina a moment to process it. She squealed with delight and gave him a huge hug in appreciation.
"And Zach's number one in his class ahead of Darien!" she added smugly, "The colour of one's hair does not represent one's intellect!" she said to Raye, hands on hips, satisfied.
"You know, the thing about genetics is that it could go either way. Children could take after either parent." Jason shared a look with Serena after making the seemingly irrelevant observation in Raye's direction.
Understanding, Serena picked up where her brother left off, "For all you know, you could be the only raven-haired in your little family!" she said with a grin, inclining her head from Raye to Jason and back to Raye.
"And chances are...you and Jason would have more children than Serena and Darien!" Mina added gleefully.
"Imagine... five little me running circles around you!" Jason finished with an evil grin on his face.
His words conjured up the images of her chasing five mischievously laughing little blond toddler boys around the house and Raye's eyes widened and her face went white.
Posted on fanfiction: 28 October 2013
A/N: LOL. That's definitely longer than 500 words! Can you tell that I'm a nerd too? ;)
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