"You know what? I've got an idea. Stay here hugging mommy. Be right back" he kissed the top of his wife's head and walked out of the room. Sam sat on the floor squeezing her babies, who instead of complaining kept trying to hug every bit of mommy their little arms could reach.
A good twenty minutes after, which seemed like an instant being embraced by her children, Wyatt came back into the room.
"Come on" He offered his hand to Sam. "Bring your blankies" he instructed his children. Sam kept Kai on her shoulder, while holding Meghan's hand. Wyatt carried both Angie and Julian down the stairs.
Sam smiled as soon as she got a glimpse of what he had set up for them. There was a family size mattress inflated in the living room by the couch, all covered with pillows and blankets. The children ran towards the mattress to pick a spot, smiling happily. Julian lied down, quickly getting back to sucking his thumb; Meghan ran to get the remote to turn on the TV; Angie hid under the covers, then uncovered her face to peek at her siblings, then went back under the covers in a never ending personal amusement. Sam sighed, holding Kai to her shoulder, her hand rubbing his back, as Wyatt wrapped his arm around her.
"Thank you" she whispered, kissing his shoulder, looking up in search of his lips.
"Thought this would be the best way to start the day… in about 5 to 6 hours though, cause it's like three am" he laughed.
"Sorry"
"Don't be. This is perfect" he kissed her again, his hand caressing her cheek.
"God, I love you" she said closing her eyes, sinking her forehead on his shoulder.
"I'll get some warm milk for the kids or we know at least Kai won't be able to go back to sleep" he smiled. "Why don't you cuddle up with them? I'll be right there" he kissed her forehead, before she joined her children.
As soon as she lied down, the kids cuddled around her. Julian to her left, holding her leg with one lazy little hand; Meghan to her right, her tiny head on her lap, pointing at the TV; Angie, jealous, climbed on top of her and hugged her neck best she could; Kai felt annoyed of having his sister's arm in his face and started fuzzing, but Sam pulled her baby girl a little to the left to her free shoulder. Kai however wasn't having it. He had monopolized mommy's shoulder and wanted her off of her, so he kept fuzzing.
"Coming little man" said Wyatt, quickly walking over with a bottle for him. He took Kai from his mother and flat out started crying till he had the bottle to his lips. Both his parents smiled. Angie climbed off mommy to cuddle next to daddy, forming a weird pattern of parents and children.
Sam stared at her husband as he fed their baby boy. She contemplated him, reaching him with the tips of her fingers, caressing the side of his face. Wyatt turned and smiled at her, kissing her hand.
"I…" she gulped.
"Don't. You don't have to explain if you're not ready"
"It's okay" she started welling up. "I need to" Wyatt nodded. She took a deep breath and a big gulp before going on. "I guess I must have been sleeping… but… it didn't feel like a dream" she gulped hard again. "It was more like… somebody had taken me out of this world, like I wasn't here at all. Like I had never existed here and…" she was chocking on her own words. "You didn't exist… nor them" she took one painful look at her children, caressing Julian's hair gently to avoid startling him. A tear finally made its way down her cheek.
"It's okay. We're here" he reassured her, as more tears made their way down her face. Wyatt placed Kai in his carrier and held the bottle with his right hand, using his left to hold his wife awkwardly trying not to move too much, to avoid disturbing the kids who were slowly and peacefully going back to sleep.
"I felt like I was taken away from you in a weird… absolute way. Like… there was no way to get to you because you didn't exist where I was. I can't even…" she pressed her head against his shoulder.
"Shhh, it's OK. You're safe and we're right here with you" Wyatt said still visibly concerned. Nothing, but the blood spell, had been able to reach them in any way since they took both the Nexus and the Source. Who or what had been able to get through and torment her so?
The hours went by as one by one sleep conquered them all, a faint murmur from the TV being the sole sound invading their otherwise completely peaceful sleep. At least for the children, because both parents kept waking up to check on their wee ones, her afraid they might not be by her side anymore, him afraid whatever was scaring her had had another go at it.
Next morning, Wyatt got up early to get to BB. It was the first of the month and they needed to do the inventory and invoice check from the previous month. Sam stayed behind wide awake in spite of Wyatt's pleas for her to remain asleep with the children. She got started on breakfast very slowly so, her energy seemed to have gone elsewhere, but she tried to keep grounded in this world with all her might. The world where her children existed, where her beloved was. She made fruit starts lazily as her eyes wandered off to her sleeping babies. She couldn't bear to be away from them, if they didn't exist, if Wyatt didn't exist what was the point of being alive? A lifetime of loneliness certainly didn't seem too inviting. She had been there and she never wanted to go back. Not after finding Wyatt, not after feeling so deeply loved.
She filled the second bowl of fruit in her lazy rhythm when Chris orbed in by the kitchen counter like once upon a time when things were all right between them all.
"Not really in the mood to pick a fight, Chris" she told him just as lazily without looking up.
"Don't worry. I come in peace" said Chris trying to be funny. Sam looked up at him with an incredulous look on his face. "I might have a question though"
"Shoot"
"Are you guys really going thru the coronation?"
"How do you know about that in the first place?" she shot back.
"I've been hanging in the underworld lately and…"
"Interesting choice for a promenade" Her sarcasm shut him down. "Listen, we're doing all right and so are you. I really don't see the problem; besides you guys dead set on creating one"
"You know what you're doing is wrong"
"Not this again, Chris. Please" she threw the fruit in a small bowl, giving up any chance of finishing what she was doing. She crossed her arms and rested her head on the counter.
"You look exhausted by the way" Chris told her just noticing. "Maybe you guys aren't as great as you think"
"I just had a rough night" She tousled her hair in an effort to straighten up and look better than she felt. "Besides, it's normal considering… went thru the same thing with Meg and Jule"
"You're…?"
"Yes. Maybe. We're not sure"
"He got you pregnant now? Do you guys realize how risky that is? You have no idea what it is you're even conceiving!"
"None of it is your business. I shouldn't have told you in the first place" Sam said out loud more to herself than her brother.
"You're turning a bad situation into a worse one!"
"Stay out of it. I'm warning you!" she finally raised her voice as everything around her started vibrating and turning icy. She was hyperventilating badly and was holding on to the kitchen counter for support. Her little display of power was taking considerably more effort than it normally would have. She could feel her eyes watering and her arms hurt accordingly to her exhaustion.
"I see" Chris could see his fears had already come true. They were too far gone to turn back. "Sorry I bothered you" he orbed away. Sam dropped to the floor, her back against the counter, finally letting her tears get the best of her. One thing she could agree on it was all becoming too much.
Chris on the other hand, couldn't let go of his frustration so he orbed immediately down to the Underworld where he thought he might be able to appease his frustration by effectively blowing up some demons. Sure enough, there were a couple of demons close to him, more than willing to put that theory to the test. So much was going thru his head at the moment, that the demons were quite easy to dispose of, but while he took a moment to take in his momentary release of endorphins, an unexpected third party was about to sink his spikey tentacle thru his back.
Before it got the pleasure to take his victim out though, a flying dagger hit it square in the eye making him squirm away from its task. Chris turned at the squeals of pain, surprised it has gotten that close without him noticing. Before he could wonder about it, however, Bianca, his girlfriend (or at least in his mind she still very much was), walked over to him from a nearby cave.
"Lost count how many of those you owe me" She smiled going to finish the creature off. Chris gulped, unsure what to say. It had been a while since he had last talked to her.
"Thanks. I guess"
"You're welcome. I guess" After an eternity of uncomfortable silence, which might have been minutes, seconds, or years for all they cared, Bianca asked him. "What are you doing down here again? I thought I'd seen you roaming around earlier today"
"Did you? How are you so sure it was me?"
"Let's say this wasn't the first dagger I tossed your way today" she said wiping the blade clean on a rag.
"Is that so? What you're protecting me now?"
"I've never stopped, Chris. You just refuse to see it" There was sorrow in her voice. "Anyway, you should be careful around here at least for the next couple days"
"Why's that?"
"Because the coronation is in two days and every demon is on edge right now, pro or con"
"Will you be there? Serving them as usual?" Chris said hurtfully. Bianca swallowed her pain and answered just as coldly.
"Yeah, I guess. I will be protecting your family and our future whether you choose to see it that way or not" After a moment, she shimmered away.
"I guess we'll see each other then" Chris murmured to himself.
Meanwhile, Sam was finishing her crying moment, wiping her tears off her face trying to erase they were ever there to avoid alarming Wyatt or the kids, who seemed to know something was up and hadn't demanded to have breakfast, in spite, it was well past their time.
"I'm on it. I promise" Sam said lovingly as she heard a bang on the kitchen counter, one of her children had come looking for her no doubt. She stood up still wiping her face clean with her hands, only to find her Aunt Carol standing on the other side of the kitchen counter. "Julian, danger" was her first instinct.
"Relax. I mean you no harm… or them" said Carol keeping her hands on the counter, clearly as a sign of her not trying anything on her niece.
"I can't think of any other reason for you to be here"
"Well, I guess it was to be expected, based on our last… conversation"
"What do you want?" Sam wanted to get this sorted as soon as possible and get her out of her house. She couldn't help but see her as a powerful threat to her children.
"Right to the point"
"Is there any other way at this point?"
"I guess not" Carol cleared her throat. "I have a question for you"
"That seems to be going around today. Shoot"
"Would you be willing to leave them all behind" she gestured to her kids. "If your plan fails?"
"I won't be leaving them behind. I am building a better future for them, for everybody"
"I know you believe that, but taking everybody's free will cannot be described in any other way but as a dictatorship"
"We're simply keeping a balance. A better balance. Not a perfect one, but better"
"Dear girl, just the fact you believe yourself worthy of such a task makes you a tyrant"
"I'm sorry you see it that way"
"I can assure you, I'm not the only one. I'm merely the one telling it to your face"
"Funny how I have seen the future from more than one perspective and have never encountered you or any from my bloodline. Why do you think that is?" Sam asked menacingly. Carol let out a disappointed chuckle and sighed.
"Maybe because you're still failing to see the bigger picture. Your love for your children has blinded you"
"Stay away from them… and me. You had the opportunity to be someone in my brother's and my life and you chose not to be. Even when we needed you, so… that opportunity is well past. Leave and don't come back or besides from being an unpleasant encounter, it will be your last"
"So be it" said Carol, stepping back and aeroporting away.
"It's all right, Julian. It's ok" Sam said kneeling by their side. Julian got up to hug her, putting his shield down.
Wyatt was back after a couple of hours. He found Sam curled up among the children. She had given them all a dose of milk to keep them satisfied for the time being. She refused to stay away from them for more than a minute, even if it was only the length of a room.
