SIMON
"Daddy, have you seen my sock?" Natasha asks.
"Wasn't it on your foot?" I reply. Natasha sighs, puts her hands on her hips and shakes her mop of unruly brown curls. Already a drama queen at five years old (I really don't know where she gets that from). And also a beauty (I guess I know where she gets that from, but she looks less and less like Agatha the older she gets).
"It was," she says, "but I had to take it off because I didn't have a bag to hold my marbles, and now I can't find it." I laugh. I can't help it. Natasha makes me ridiculously happy on a daily basis. Baz comes in and adds a heavy box to the growing pile in the middle of the room.
"Have you tried Finders keepers?" he asks. Natasha started using magic recently. Baz has been coaching her. (Agatha sent us her wand so that Natasha has a magickal instrument that's tied to her bloodline.) I frankly find it terrifying, but Baz assures me that it's perfectly normal for magickal training to begin so young, and that he's only teaching her spells she can handle. But I'm not so sure Finders keepers is a good beginner's spell. I feel like it will just cause problems.
"No not yet!" Natasha exclaims. "Thanks father, I'll try that!" She scampers off to her room to find her wand and her sock. Baz chuckles.
"She's a powerful little mage that one," he says. "Just like her namesakes." I nod.
"That she is. But I wish you would teach her more age appropriate spells. One's that won't have her spelling away the neighbor's dog." Baz laughs.
"She'll be fine. She can't be the only kid at Watford who doesn't know Finders keepers."
"She's not going to Watford yet. She's five."
"Technically, we're all going to Watford. Hand me that marker." I do and Baz labels the box.
We're moving. To Watford. Baz was recently offered the position of Linguistics Professor (Penny's mum is finally bringing the program back), and I wouldn't let him turn it down.
Baz stands up straight and sighs.
"Simon, I'm going to ask you one last time. Are you sure you're ok with this?" Baz is worried about moving me to Watford, and I don't blame him. The last time I was there I kept glancing around like a nervous, twitchy mouse and tried to break up with him. I haven't been back to Watford since Baz's Leavers Ball. For a while, when I thought of Watford, all I could remember was Ebb bleeding all over the floor and the Mage dying in Baz's arms. But years have passed since then, and I've made peace with the Mage's death.
I take both of Baz's hands.
"Baz, there is no way in hell I'm keeping you from your dream job. You've wanted to be a professor at Watford for as long as I've known you. You want to be headmaster one day." Baz looks down at our hands.
"You're not wrong," he says. "But I'm worried about you. Are you going to be ok, living at Watford with no magic and with…well…memories."
"What memories?" I ask, even though I know he's referring to the Mage's death. "Meeting you? Or Penny? Or Agatha? Eating scones in the dining hall? Studying under the yew trees? Playing football on the pitch?" I squeeze Baz's hands.
"A lot of terrible things happened at Watford," I continue. "Things I'd rather forget. But a lot of wonderful things happened there too. I love Watford, I always have. And I can't wait to go back." I give him an enormous grin. Baz returns it.
"You're amazing, you know that?" he says. I lean in and kiss him.
"Also, Penny's teaching Magickal History there now, so that's really my motivation." Baz laughs and shakes his head.
"Of course it is Snow. What was I thinking?" I grin and kiss him again.
"Daddy, father, look what I found!" Natasha says, racing back into the room. I let go of Baz.
"Your sock?" I say. Natasha shakes her curls.
"No! Well, yes, but I also found this!" She holds up a book. It's one of mine. (I'm still writing them. Thankfully I work from home, so the move to Watford shouldn't affect my career too much. I actually think it'll be a great place for coming up with story ideas.)
"It was between the wall and my bed," she says. "I thought I lost it. I'm so glad." She hugs it to her chest. "It's my favorite." She holds it out to me. "Will you read it?" I grin.
"Sure, why not." Baz and I sit on the couch, and Natasha crawls up into Baz's lap even though I'm the one reading the story. Baz and I used to fight more about who was monopolizing Natasha time, but as she got older we just let her decide. She'd rather sit in Baz's lap, but she'll reach for my hand first when crossing the street. She always asks me to read to her, but she asks Baz to help her make her bed or pick out her clothes. She's irresistible.
I lean against Baz so that Natasha can see the pictures more clearly (and also so that I can lean against Baz). I clear my throat.
"Once upon a time, there lived a vampire. But this wasn't just any vampire. This was the king of the vampires. The bravest, strongest, and handsomest vampire in the whole kingdom. Everyone looked up to him and respected him. But this vampire had a secret. One that he wasn't willing to share with anyone. He was lonely.
"In the neighboring kingdom, there lived a knight. But this wasn't just any knight. This was most powerful knight who had ever lived. Everyone in the kingdom expected great things from him, and he roamed the land, fighting monsters and protecting the people. But this knight had a secret. One that he wasn't willing to share with anyone. He was lonely.
"One day, when the knight was out wandering the woods, he came across the vampire king, hidden in a grove. The king had snuck out of his castle so that no one could see him cry, for he was so lonely that he couldn't help himself. Now, normally the knight hated vampires. His kingdom and the vampire kingdom were not on good terms. But the knight felt bad for the poor, crying vampire, and he took pity on him.
"'My dear man,' the knight said. 'What has made you cry so?' The vampire was startled to see the knight, and embarrassed that the knight had seen him crying.
"'That is none of your concern, lowly human,' the vampire said. 'Be gone or I will suck you dry.' But the knight was not afraid.
"'It seems to me,' the knight said, 'that you are crying alone in the woods because you have no one to lean on when you are in pain.' The vampire stared at the knight, because the knight was exactly right.
"'How did you know?' the vampire asked. 'How did you, a simple human, know in an instant what is buried in my heart?'
"'Because,' the knight replied, 'I cry alone too.' The two shared a moment of deep understanding.
"'I have a suggestion,' the knight said. 'When you wish to cry, you should come to me. And when I wish to cry, I will come to you. And in that way, maybe we will cry less and laugh more.' The vampire thought about that. He wasn't sure he could trust the knight, but the knight had understood him better than anyone he knew, and he thought, maybe, that the knight may provide a path out of his lonely life.
"'This offer pleases me, sir knight,' the vampire said. And they shook hands on their agreement.
"The two became fast friends. At first, they sought each other out when they needed to cry, but, just as the knight had predicted, soon they came together so that they could laugh. They became as close as two people could be, and they helped mend the rift between their kingdoms.
"And they lived happily ever after. The end."
Natasha is grinning like crazy when I finish.
"I love that story!" she says. "It's so pretty. Thanks daddy!" She kisses both me and Baz on the cheek, then hops off Baz's lap.
"I'm going to find more things that are lost in my room!" she declares, then disappears, wand in hand. I shake my head. Baz really shouldn't have taught her that spell.
"I hate that book," Baz says. I'm still resting against him, but I turn to face him.
"Why?" I ask.
"Because you summed up our entire relationship in under 500 words and turned one of the most intensely emotional moments of my life into a simple crying bout. That's not exactly how I want to remember our first kiss. And why do I come off looking so pathetic?"
"There wasn't a better way to write it!" I say. "I tried and tried and tried. You know I did. You read all my drafts." Baz puts his arm around me and pulls me close.
"I know you did. And I was pathetic that night, so you did actually get everything right."
"No you weren't," I say. "You weren't pathetic. Then or ever. You're the most incredible person I know."
"That's my line." I smile and lean my head against his, enjoying the cool feeling of his skin and the comfort of his presence.
"We've come so far from that day," I say.
"And yet, we're moving back to Watford, where it all began. Life has a bizarre sense of humor sometimes, don't you think?" I laugh.
"Yeah, but I'm ok with it. We're living happily ever after, so I can't complain."
"Uck, Snow, don't get cheesy on me now. Save it for your books." I laugh again and give Baz a kiss.
Natasha comes back into the room with another found treasure (a dead spider) and Baz and I burst out laughing.
This is perfect. This is the way life should be. I couldn't be happier.
But I'll damn well try.
The End
Thank you all for reading! I had a ton of fun writing this fic. I just love these characters! Please let me know what you think of this story so I know if it's worth writing another one :)