( This be AU lol )
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It was perfect laundry weather. The sun shone brightly from a clear blue sky, and a gentle breeze blew through the trees, making the myriad brightly coloured items of clothing on the line dance. A young woman watched the laundry with a small smile, humming softly as she adjusted the pegs anchoring the items to the line. Today was a day off, a day she had taken off to look after her two toddler children while her husband was at work. One of the children, a little boy with curly dark hair, sat underneath a tree with a set of blocks, spelling out words that only made sense to a three-and-a-half year old. The woman watched her son with a fond smile. After patient teaching, the little boy was able to spell words like 'mommy', 'daddy', 'cat' and 'dog', as well as his own name. His little sister's name was more difficult though...
Perhaps sensing his mother's gaze, the little boy looked up and smiled. Getting to his feet, he toddled over to her and held out his arms to be picked up. The woman obliged, lifting her son into her arms. "Whatcha doing, sweetie?" she asked gently, brushing a auburn curl from his face. Alex beamed, snuggling close. "Spelling!" Resting his head on her shoulder, he reached up to play with the ends of her hair. "What can we do now, Mommy?" Murrue smiled, carrying the little boy into the shade of the small white-painted house, sitting down on the doorstep. "Well, I don't know," she said. "What would you like to do?" She suppressed a giggle at the child's suddenly serious face, the expression identical to his father's when he was deep in thought. Finally, Alex brightened as a thought occurred to him. "We make cookies?"
Murrue smiled again, standing up to carry her son inside the house, and settled him on the kitchen table. "Okay then. You sit here while I go bring your sister inside." Alex nodded. "Lolly helping?"
The little boy was unable to pronounce his sister's name, his baby tongue only able to manage 'Lolly'. The nickname had stuck, even the parents sometimes using it. After affectionately ruffling her son's hair, Murrue walked back outside into the garden, kneeling down beside a tiny figure fast asleep on a blanket. This was her youngest child, the two-year-old Chloe. The little girl never stirred, not even when her mother lifted her up in her arms, and carried her inside to rest her on an armchair. After covering the child with the blanket, Murrue quietly opened cupboards to bring out a mixing bowl and ingredients. Turning to Alex, she smiled. "What kind shall we make?" This time, there was no hesitation.
"Chocolate!"
After the cookies were in the oven, Alex and Murrue sat at the table, sharing the remains of the sweet mixture. The little boy looked up at his mother. "We save some for Daddy?" The dark-haired woman thought for a moment, then grinned wickedly. "Nah. We'll just let him eat some of the cookies." Alex giggled, finishing the last of the mixture. "Poor Daddy.."
Murrue laughed herself, then turned round startled, as a tiny hand tugged at her skirt. "Huh?" Little Chloe stood there, blue eyes wide and serious. She regarded her mother for a moment, then climbed up onto her lap, reaching out without hesitation for the wooden spoon still coated with cookie dough.
"Where Daddy?" she asked softly, sticking the spoon in her mouth, and Murrue ruffled the little girl's ringleted hair. "He's at work.." Chloe pouted a bit, clearly unhappy that Daddy wasn't around, but the cookie dough was enough to sweeten her mood. After a little bit of thought, the toddler smiled. "Home soon."
When the cookies were done, the three each ate one of the warm treats, sitting outside on the grass in the shade. Murrue had fixed her children some juice, and was right now looking up into the sky, smiling a little.
"Mommy?" Alex had followed his mother's gaze, frowning in confusion. The sky was a perfect blue, not a cloud to be seen. The woman shook her head, lying back on the grass. "Mommy's just thinking, honey." Chloe laid back to peer at the sky too, resting her head on her mother's shoulder. "Pretty colour," she decided with a smile.
Murrue nodded. "Yes, it is. And past the sky are lots of stars. That's where I met Daddy. He still goes up in the sky sometimes, but I can't anymore.."
"Why?" asked Alex, noticing her saddened expression. His mother smiled. "Well, I have you two to look after, don't I?"
The little family laid there on the soft grass for a while, the young woman telling her children about what was beyond the sky. After hearing that their father could fly around in the sky, the toddlers both decided that they wanted to go there too when they grew up. Murrue smiled, listening to her son and daughter chatter excitedly about the future, and she allowed herself to imagine what things would be like then. Alex was growing up to be more like his father every day, his mannerisms and expressions sometimes indistinguishable from Mwu's, and Murrue was easily able to imagine her son as a pilot when he was old enough. Chloe would probably turn out the same way, the tiny girl being absolutely fearless. Mwu had grinned when she had brought that subject up, instead pointing out how similar their daughter was to her mother...
"She's every bit as stubborn as you, just as beautiful, and as brave. She'll be just like you when she grows up, I'm sure of it.." These thoughts swirled around in her mind, mixing with the sounds of the birds and the breeze in the trees, and the soft breathing of her now drowsy children. With a small smile to her lips, and her arms around Alex and Chloe, Murrue fell asleep.
How long she slept, she didn't know. But when she awoke, it was dark. She was still lying on the grass, but the children were nowhere to be seen, and her head was pillowed on something soft. Rubbing her eyes, she looked up, smiling again when she saw who was there. "Hi.." she murmured. "What time did you get home?"
Mwu chuckled, running a hand through her dark hair. "Couple of hours ago.." Leaning down, he kissed her gently. "The monsters are okay. I made them dinner and got them into bed a little while ago." Murrue sighed, shaking her head. "You should have woken me.."
"Why?" her husband asked cheerfully. "You looked so peaceful, and running around after those two little tearaways would tire anyone out.."
She laughed at that, snuggling back into his embrace. "It wasn't so tough.." Looking up again, she focused on the stars shining in the heavens, her amber eyes softening at the beauty.
Mwu noticed the wistful expression on his wife's face, and he smiled, reaching to softly caress her face. "You miss it, don't you?" Murrue blinked, as if waking from a dream. "Miss what?" she asked hazily, and he chuckled. "Being up there. Alex said something about it..that Mommy was sad 'cause she couldn't go up to the sky anymore." he said, following her gaze. She smiled. "That's okay. I have something more important here.."
"I know," Mwu replied. "We both do. But still, you do miss being up there, I can tell. I've seen you watching the stars, and I know I'd feel the same way." His fingers tangled in her hair again, his touch soothing. His scarred face wore a gentle smile, and Murrue couldn't help smiling back. "Okay, maybe I do miss it a little," she admitted. "But this is just the way things are. I have too much here..I can't just decide to go off adventuring..."
"Why not?" he asked. "I bet the kid and the princess won't mind taking care of the monsters for a week or two. We could go up there into space, just the two of us. You deserve a break, and I wouldn't mind one either. What do you say?"
Murrue smiled. "It sounds nice. We...could really do that?" She looked up to the stars again, reaching out as if to grasp them in her hands. Her husband nodded, lifting her up so she was cradled in his arms. "Maybe..we could revisit the place we first met? Since it's been rebuilt.."
She leaned back against him. "Heliopolis, huh? Sounds romantic..."
Mwu grinned, leaning down to kiss her cheek. "That's what I thought. We could take a little holiday there, to see whether it's the same as we remember. So, what do you think?"
In reply, she turned around in his arms, planting a loving kiss on his lips. "It sounds wonderful.."
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( This ended in a different place from where it started, ne? But I just wondered...would she miss being in space? I think I would..
Please read and review, and tell me if you'd like a sequel to this! )