A guest asked me how Liv and Fitz let when they were five, if Eli and Big Gerry were childhood friends. I touched on it briefly in chapter 9. The Pope's lived in DC as they built and established the DC branch of their law office. They were there for six years, during which time Liv was born. They moved back to California, just before the kids began school. I haven't really written much family into it, but Big Gerry and Eli would have seen each other for work for sure. The kids being so young, wouldn't have factored into that. Hope this helps.

"Fitz! Did you find it yet?"

"No!"

The last of the boxes had been removed off of the truck and into the new home. Although Liv wasn't happy they had to practically yell to find anyone in the home, she was absolutely in love with it. They decided to forego the unpacking, just until they found the present Aunt Mable and Aunt Marjory left for them. The only thing they had done since their arrival was unpack their bedding and toiletries, and placed them where they belonged. Liv and Fitz were searching the downstairs, while Karen and Jerry were searching upstairs for their next clue.

They figured the miniature scavenger hunt would be the perfect way to familiarize themselves with the home. It seems that their aunts felt the same way, as there was an envelope with detailed instructions leading them to each new set of clues.

After following the first five notes, which gave them tours of the gym, pool area, kitchen, dining room, and living room, they were now stumped as to what the next clue meant.

Black within

White without

Four points

Round about

Liv kept repeating the riddle over and over in her head to no avail. Getting severely frustrated, Liv decided it was time to stop thinking and begin dinner. Fitz suggested they order pizza seeing as how they had so much to do, but Liv wanted to have a home cooked meal as their first meal as a family in their new home. She also couldn't wait to break in the oven which claimed to boil water in as little as 90 seconds. She would definitely be using her stop watch to verify this claim.

Liv entered the kitchen and pulled out the ingredients to make stuffed chicken breasts. She split the chicken breast in half, and added a slice of provolone cheese to each one. Since the children weren't fans of asparagus, Liv opted to substitute the vegetable with spinach. She set the oven, and threw a pot of water on the stove, but decided to wait until later to turn it on. Once she finished preparing the chicken, she placed it into the oven, and set the timer. Once the chicken was set, she began preparing the ingredients for the cannolis they would have for dessert. Seeing as they were finally out of the way, Liv poured herself a glass of wine, and leaned back against the counter.

Sensing it was getting chilly in the house, Liv yelled for Jerry to grab some wood to stack in the fireplace. She listened for what sounded like a wild pack of elephants racing down the stairs, and knew Karen was helping him complete the task. Liv would never understand how two small children running down the stairs could make so much noise, but it has quickly become a sound she found comfort in. At least as long as she didn't hear a thud and a scream immediately after.

"Mooooom! Daaaaaad!" Karen yelled at the top of her lungs, causing Liv and Fitz to come running, both afraid one of the kids had gotten hurt. When they reached the family room, they found both Karen and Jerry jumping up and down, squealing. Liv let out the breath she had been holding, as she noticed Karen had an envelope in her hands.

"Black within, White without, Four points, Round about... THE FIREPLACE! The soot makes it black, the outside is white marble, it has four corners, and it's sort of rounded in the front! I FOUND THE NEXT CLUE!" Karen yelled proudly as she ran to Liv and shoved the envelope into her hands.

"Good job Kare!" Liv said before walking over to Fitz so they could open it together.

Liv flipped the envelope over and broke the seal. She pulled out a folded piece of paper and smiled. When Liv opened the paper, a key fell out. Somewhat puzzled she decided to read the note aloud.

Congratulations, this is your final clue.

Through time things will change, in more ways than you know.

The sounds you will hear will bring joy as you grow.

We hope you enjoy and put it to great use.

Love,

Aunts Mable and Marjory

Liv looked up at Fitz wondering what the clue could possibly mean. She smiled as she realized he was just as confused as she was. They repeated the riddle over and over again, trying to figure out the meaning. This was the last clue, and for two Harvard graduates, shouldn't be so hard to decipher.

"OH MY GOODNESS!"

"MOM! DAD! WE FOUND IT! YOU HAVE GOT TO SEE THIS!"

Apparently while Liv and Fitz were sitting and pondering the meaning of the clues, Karen and Jerry had taken off through the house, looking for any locked items or doors that could be opened with the key. Hearing the kids yell coming from upstairs, Liv and Fitz raced ip the steps, both taking two at a time. They found Karen and Jerry standing frozen in the hallway in front of an open door. The two of them raced to the children's sides, and froze when they looked inside.

The room had been decorated with a Noah's ark theme. On one wall there was the arc, with two of every animal perched on a mountain. There were birds in the sky, and a rainbow splayed over the ark. There was a sleigh crib made of the most beautiful oak, as well as a matching dresser, changing table, book shelf filled with children's books, and storage chest. In one corner of the floor there was a group of stuffed animals.

"Fitz..."

"Yes Livvie?"

"Through time things will change, in more ways than you know. The sounds you will hear will bring joy as you grow. Babies... Children... A family... They gave us a nursery!"

"They gave us a nursery..."

Liv slowly entered the room and walked over to the closet, while Fitz walked over to the dresser. Liv turned on the light to the closet and gasped. There were two cases of diapers in every size imaginable along with shelves full of baby soaps, shampoos, lotions, and powders, all in various fragrances. With as much stuff the closet contained, one would think Liv was already pregnant.

Fitz opened the drawers to the dresser and one by one noticed they each had something in them. The first drawer had two bibs, one white that said "I'm the love of my mommy's life", and one yellow that said "I'm the love of my daddy's life", along with yellow and white socks. There were matching onsies in the second drawer, and yellow and white sleepers in the third.

As they finished taking in the room, they met in the center of the floor, neither knowing what to say. The room wasn't decorated the last time they came out, there was only a note saying the surprise would be there when they moved in. Neither had any clue when this had taken place.

Liv looked at Fitz, and didn't know if she wanted to smile or cry. They knew children could be a possibility, especially the way they went at it. But they had never spoken in depth about it before. Of course Liv wanted to have Fitz's children, but she was unsure of his thoughts as he already had Karen and Jerry. Sensing Fitz was waiting for her reaction, she said the only thing that came to mind.

"Wow."

"Wow." Fitz repeated as he tried to hold in his smile. He had never thought about having more children. He wasn't against it, but having Karen and Jerry already, Fitz had the mindset where if it happened great, if not, that was ok too. He didn't want to pressure Liv into something she may not want. Standing in this nursery, Fitz couldn't help but to picture Liv swollen with their child. He knew Liv wasn't sure of how he felt, so he decided to forces reaction out of her.

"So, how quickly can we begin trying?" Fitz asked as his lip curved into the most panty dropping grin.

Liv looked around and noticed Karen and Jerry had gone back to doing whatever it was they were doing. She stepped into Fitz's arms, and placed a quick peck on his lips. "How about we save the baby making until our honeymoon. Until then, I have no problems with practicing."

"Sounds like a plan."

Fitz pressed his lips against Liv's, but just before he could deepen the kiss, they heard Karen yelling the oven timer was going off. They sighed and pressed their foreheads together for a minute, before joining the kids downstairs for dinner. They would call their aunts later, and thank them for their "gift" which was more of a blatant demand, but a beautiful gift nonetheless.

Two months had passed since they had moved into their home and discovered their "gift", and Liv and Fitz both been busier than ever.

Liv had been working non-stop of the merging of the OPA and Pope and Grant firms, and things were finally beginning to settle down on her end. When she returned to Washington in January, Liv opted to just change the name of the firms to Olivia Pope-Grant & Associates. When people heard of the merge between the OPA, and DC office, they came flocking in even higher numbers than either business had seen before.

Fitz could say that he missed Liv, and he did. But with Mio Dolce Olivia set to open it's second building in California later in the month, Fitz had more than his fair share of work to keep him occupied. It seemed when they did have a free moment, they were consulting with their mothers on wedding plans.

During one of their weekly chats with their parents and aunts, Aunt Mable let the bet their parents had made on the proposal slip. They knew their families both wanted to pay for the wedding, and when Liv realized that she said yes in literally the last possible second for that to happen, she was happy their parents all got their way.

Today found Liv and Fitz both returning home at the same time, which in the past few months was a rare occurrence for them. They weren't used to life being a haze of coming home to find the other and the children asleep. The stolen moments of quickies in the shower, wasn't new, but it wasn't something they were used to relying on just to have some level of intimacy between them.

They arrived home simultaneously, and parked their cars in the garage. They were both excited to see the other, but sad, that each individual plan of surprising the other had been thwarted. The sadness was fleeting as Fitz ran around his car to help Liv out of hers, pinning her to the door in the process. "Hi" was all either had time to say before their lips hungrily devoured the other's.

The two stayed pressed against the car, lips locked until their lungs alerted them oxygen was in fact a vital part of survival.

"You're home early." They blurted out at the same time, quickly followed by "I wanted to surprise you", spoken in unison as well. They laughed at how in sync they were, even when work has kept them apart so much in the recent months. With their hands intertwined, they walked into the house to surprise the kids.

When they walked through the door, they were happy to see Marta was just calling the kids for dinner. Surprised to see both parents home early, Karen and Jerry rushed Liv and Fitz, effectively knocking them both to the floor.

After all of their greetings were out of the way, Marta alerted them that she had prepared plates for them as well. The family would be sitting down together for dinner for the first time in over a month.

They all sat around the table and held hands as Liv blessed the food. No sooner than she got the "en" from Amen out of her mouth, did Fitz and the children have the first forkful of Marta's homemade ravioli down their throats. All Liv could do was sit back and laugh at the site before her.

The family sat around the table, talking about their day, while they ate the incredible meal before them. As they were almost finished, Jerry looked at Karen, then to Liv, before turning to Fitz. Karen looked to Jerry, then Fitz, before turning to Liv at the same time. Liv could tell they were nervous, but as she hadn't gotten any calls from school, she didn't think they were in any trouble.

"Dad, can I ask you a favor?" Jerry asked, his voice trembling.

"Mom, can I ask you a favor?" Karen asked, her voice trembling as well.

Liv looked to Fitz, who was wearing the same concerned look on his face as she was on hers. "Sure." They said together, both extremely interested in what the children were up to.

Both kids took a deep breath before blurting out. "Can I borrow $5,000?"

Liv choked on her wine as she heard the words leave their mouths. What the hell could the kids need that would require $5,000 each? Fitz looked at Liv, his face saying to let him handle both children. He wiped his mouth, and turned to the children while he decided his course of action. Honestly Fitz was a little embarrassed and somewhat pissed that Karen would have the gall to ask Liv for such a high sum of money. The quieter he remained, the angrier he got.

"Do we not give the two of you an allowance every week? There isn't a single electronic the two of you do not have. You go out with friends, and take wonderful vacations. You are given everything in life and you want us to just GIVE you $5,000!?"

"But daaad!" Karen yelled, wanting to state her case.

"No! We have told you before that t there is something you want, you need to earn the money for it. Yes we are ok financially, but that is still a lot of money for ten year old and an eight year old to ask for!"

"Daaad!"

"Go to your rooms and think of ways you cam earn $5,000. Then we'll talk." Fitz boomed as he pushed back from the table and began collecting the dishes.

Liv watched heartbroken as Karen and Jerry made their way upstairs with their heads hung low. She wanted to help the children, but just dishing out $10,000 between two children was definitely not going to happen. She also knew not to step in when Fitz was disciplining the children. With a sigh, Liv finished collecting the dishes, and joined Fitz in the kitchen.

She entered the room slowly, and noticed him hunched over the sink as he rinsed the dishes off, preparing them for the dishwasher. Wanting to calm him down, Liv set her stack of dishes aside, and walked up behind Fitz, placing her arms around his waist. She smiled as she felt him relax instantly. Liv slowly turned Fitz around, and cupped his cheek in her palm. This seemed to calm him down even more.

"Can you believe them? What would they need $5,000 each for? They are children?" Fitz asked, his disapproval showing as he shook his head. Liv sat quietly for a moment and pondered what the children could want. Then it hit her.

"Fitz, I understand where you're coming from, I do-"

"But?" Fitz asked, clearly getting annoyed again.

Liv ignored his mood changed and continued speaking. "What if it isn't something they want? What if it's something they need?"

Fitz's face relaxed again as he truly felt like an ass. What if the kids needed something and were too afraid to tell him? He couldn't deny his children anything they needed in life. He sighed and kissed Liv's forehead.

"You're right. Always the voice of reason. Come on, lets to see what they need the money for, then we'll decide." Liv nodded and grabbed Fitz's hand, the two of them making their way upstairs.

They entered Karen's room first, and Fitz felt his anger rising as he saw Karen and Jerry sitting on her bed with what appeared to be thousands of dollars. Liv walked in just behind him and froze.

"Where did all of this money come from!?" Fitz boomed as he couldn't believe his children would try to trick them out of money when they clearly had so much of their own. Sensing Fitz was losing it, Liv decided to step in.

"How much money is that!?" Liv asked, her own temper beginning to rise.

Jerry looked at Karen before responding. "$14,000" he answered honestly.

"So, you two have 14 grand just lying around, and you ask us for $10,000 more? Have you two seriously lost your minds?"

"No dad! We just still don't have enough!" Karen yelled back, suddenly regretting the move as she watched Fitz's face contort in rage. Liv placed her hand on Fitz's chest which seemed to keep him from strangling his own children in the moment.

"What, what do you two need $24,000 for?" Liv asked, unsure of whether she wanted to scream or laugh in this moment.

Karen looked to Jerry and back to their parents before explaining. "We need $24,000 so we can have you to ourselves for the day. Mom, we asked aunt Abby how much you make a day and she said she wasn't sure but it was probably like a $500 an hour. We asked uncle Cyrus how much daddy makes in a day and he wasn't sure either, but he said he did know that people paid $1,000 to rent a room at Little Italy for two hours. So we thought if we had $24,000, we could have you alone for a whole day and neither of you would have to work. We told grandpas about our plan before we knew the cost, and they sent us money to help with our goal. They said it was sweet. We didn't think you'd get mad at us."

Liv looked at Karen who was in tears after her confession and utterly felt like shit for assuming the kids were being selfish. Well, they were, but not in a bad way. Not knowing what to say, Liv looked over at Fitz who looked as if he had just been smacked with a dumb stick as his mouth was hanging wide open, his eyes almost bulging out of his head. Sensing he'd be that way for a while, Liv walked over to the kids and wrapped her arms around them.

"I'll tell you what. How about we take the money you two have, and place it into your savings accounts. Your father and I will clear our schedules for tomorrow and Sunday, and we'll spend the entire weekend doing anything you two want to do. All I want for payment is a hug and a kiss from both of you. How does that sound?"

The kids looked up to Fitz, still waiting for his reaction. "Dad?" Karen said, afraid they were still in trouble.

Fitz shook his head, effectively bringing him out of his trance. "Sure, we can do that. But you know all you two had to do was ask, right?"

"We know, but we know you are both so busy at work and grandpa said time is money so we figured if we had the money, we'd get your time." Jerry admitted

"Well, you two never have to pay for our time. Now get some rest because we have a big weekend." Liv said as she kissed both kids on the forehead before standing and holding out her hand for Fitz who had joined them on the bed at some point. The two of them left Karen's room, trying to wrap their heads around what had just taken place. Fitz was grateful Liv was there, as he knew he probably would've taken forever to find out the reason behind their request.

After both had cleared their weekend schedules, Liv and Fitz walked hand in hand to their bedroom, prepared to turn in for the evening. Fitz changed into his pajama pants, opting to forego the shirt, while Liv was in the bathroom performing her nightly routine. Fitz had almost fallen asleep when he heard the door click, signaling Liv was finished. He looked up and his mouth dropped at the site of the woman in front of him.

Liv had on a fitted white tank top, with a pair of white boy shorts. It wasn't the sexiest outfit to her, but to Fitz, he could already feel the stirring in his pants. Not able to speak, Fitz lifted her side of the blanket, and watched as she walked across the room and joined him in their bed.

Liv turned in Fitz's arms so they were facing each other. She placed her hand on his cheek and smiled. "You know, you have two wonderfully amazing children down the hall. You are an amazing father."

"Thank you, but correction. WE have two wonderfully amazing children down the hall."

Fitz pulled Liv flush against his body, and moaned as she rested her leg on his thigh. They kissed for what seemed like hours, both too exhausted to go any further. Even something as simple as laying in bed kissing one another lazily was something they would ever take for granted again. They talked and kissed and planned for their weekend until they both drifted off to sleep.

A/N: Hey everyone. I know nothing really happened in this chapter, but some of you have been asking to see Liv interacting with the kids. Although I touch on it here and there, I figured a family outing was in order where the kids would be the main focus. Also, someone sent me an email years ago about a boy asking his father for money so he could spend the day with him. Of course it was nowhere near as expensive, we are talking about OP and Fitz here. Neither make chump change. For some reason the story entered my mind as I was writing this chapter, and knew it would be a perfect way to set up their family outing.

What did you all think of the scavenger hunt and the gift from the aunts? Could they be any more obvious in the expectations? lol! What about the whole interaction with the kids? Next chapter will focus on all four of them, maybe even bringing in a few friends to join in the fun. I considered adding a little sexy time, but didn't want to drive you away with all of the smut. Leave me your thoughts and thank you so much for reading.