It was a stormy Sunday afternoon when all the lights were on because the sun was barely visible outside, covered by heavy clouds.
Inside was warm and most of the occupants were feeling sleepy after a big lunch.
Lawrence was playing a game on his Xbox, thankfully with headphones in.
William and Kate were playing a quiet game of scrabble that neither of them were doing well in if the sighs were anything to go by.
Caroline was laying on the couch with her eyes half closed, having given up on trying to read her book because her eyelids were feeling too heavy to remain completely open.
Flora was also half asleep on Caroline's middle, one hand twirling it's fingers in her mothers hair, the other holding close her teddy. In her mouth was the dummy they had been trying to wean her off, which had been given back a couple of nights before when she had woken them in the night with a sudden, raging chest infection and still enough energy to cry for hours on end.
"Cup of tea, mum?" William asked, having silently admitted defeat to Kate when she'd triumphantly managed 200 points in a single word.
"Mm?" Caroline roused herself enough to look sleepily at her eldest. "Oh. yes, please."
As William walked away, Kate took a subtle picture of the board and then shuffled on her knees to the couch to show Caroline with a barely disguised grin.
"I knew I did the right thing making you head of languages."
"You had no say in making me head of languages." Kate reminded her wife, before leaning forward to kiss her gently.
"Mm. Well. Everyone knew I'd make their life hell if they didn't." Caroline pointed out, eyes beginning to close again as Kate checked Flora's forehead for a temperature.
Caroline blinked herself awake, wondering what had woken her.
Still dark outside, though a glance at the clock told her it was only 3pm.
William was asleep on the floor, Lawrence in front of the TV, and Kate curled up on the other end of the couch with a book held precariously in her hand, eyes shut.
Flora was still asleep too, so she hadn't been the one to wake her.
Caroline's eyes were shutting again when another knock sounded. Grumbling softly to herself, Caroline stood slowly and considered putting Flora back down on the couch, but knowing she would wake as soon as Caroline's touch was gone, instead she shifted her to hold more comfortably and walked to the front door.
"Alan! What are you doing out on a day like today?"
"Is your mum here?"
"No. Come inside." Caroline stepped to the side then glanced out at the weather. With Alan's eyes, he shouldn't be driving during a storm.
"I should keep looking."
"Looking? Why do you need to look for her? Why did you think she's here?"
"We've had an argument." Alan said miserably.
"…come inside and have a cup of tea. You can tell me where you've looked and we will see where else we can think of." Without waiting for a reply, Caroline pulled him inside and shut the door. Flora gave a tired cry when the cold wind whipped at her briefly, and Caroline shushed her, rubbing her back.
"I shouldn't have come. You've got your hands full. I'll-"
"It's fine, Alan. Come and have a cup of tea." Kate offered, rubbing her eyes sleepily. She had no idea what was happening, but she knew Alan wouldn't show up alone in this weather without good reason.
Caroline gave Kate an appreciative smile as she led him into the kitchen.
"Celia and I had an argument, and she left the farm. In this weather, I'm worried about her."
"Of course you are." Kate rubbed his shoulder and then walked across the kitchen to make him some tea.
"What did you argue about?" Caroline asked as she sat down.
"An old friend contacted me. On Facebook. Celia and her didn't get on, and your mum was…"
"I can imagine." Caroline reached out as he trailed off to squeeze his hand. "She'll probably have holed herself up in some warm hotel somewhere that she thinks you'll remember because she mentioned it once." Caroline reached for her phone and dialed her mothers number. When it went straight to voicemail, she sighed. "Mum. Give me a ring when you can."
"It went straight to voicemail when I called her too, and Gillian." Alan offered miserably.
Flora began whimpering again, but gave a small smile when she saw who was now in the house. "Grampy."
For a moment Alan's troubles were forgotten as he reached out and brought the little girl into his arms to cuddle her. "She still sounds very chesty."
"We've got the doctors again tomorrow, but she's definitely feeling a little better to willingly leave Caroline's arms, I'd say." Kate smiled.
"Mum had to go for a wee earlier with the little koala attached." Lawrence sniggered as he opened the fridge looking for a snack. "Do you want me to try granny?"
At his mothers nod, Lawrence dialed and listened. "Voicemail."
"Maybe she's turned her phone off. She's-" Caroline began, but stopped when Kate turned her phone speaker on to the sound of ringing.
"Kate?" Celia's voice suddenly. "How's my little Flora?"
Alan reached for the phone, but Kate quickly drew it away and turned off speaker, knowing Celia would be quick to hang up if she heard anyone else. "She's not letting Caroline go, and they're both exhausted. I thought perhaps if you popped over she might come to you?"
"She does find me a comfort…" Celia said modestly. "I would, but with this weather…"
"Are you at the farm? I'll come and get you."
"No, I'm at a little tea house in skipton. Caroline will know the address. I'll see if I can get them to organise a little platter for our dinner. I could stay a couple of days, if you need?"
"That would be perfect, Celia. Thank you. I'll get the address from Caroline and I'll text you when I'm almost there."
"Okay, love."
Kate turned back to the others to see the surprise on all their faces. "…apparently Caroline used to get a lot of chest infections when she was little. Celia's been giving me ideas to help Flora."
"It's freezing!" Celia cried as she climbed into the car. "What did you have to do for Caroline to let you bring her jeep? Actually, don't answer that. I probably don't want to know."
"She's concerned about you. Alan's been over."
"Has he? Alan? In this weather?"
"…he's still there." Kate admitted.
"He's having an affair you know. Alan."
"The way he tells it, an old friend contacted him on Facebook and they've exchanged life updates, but that's it."
"It won't be. Not when Moira gets her claws into him."
"Not every woman who talks to him wants to get their claws into him, Celia."
"Who called me in tears a year ago because Caroline knew the name of the barista at a cafe you'd never been to together?"
"Point taken." Kate nodded.
"Caroline is a beautiful woman, though, so perhaps you'd better not have any of the cake I brought."
Kate opened her mouth to protest, but caught the twinkle in Celia's eye. "I think I preferred you when you hated me."
"I never hated you."
"You strongly disliked me."
"Not you. Just what you represented."
"Homosexuality?"
"Caroline doing PDAs."
"We never have. Well..except at your wedding. And at Gillian's. And at Christmas."
"See?"
"…we aren't here to talk about me and Caroline. It's about you and Alan. And he is in bits, Celia. He's really upset. he drove in this weather to come and find you."
"He didn't try very hard if he only came to yours."
"He's not having an affair. Surely you know that. He adores you."
Celia let out a sigh. "I know. I just… so many years with Kenneth…"
"I know." Kate squeezed Celia's leg.
Celia was welcomed by loud crying when she opened the front door. Caroline was pacing in the hallway looking more frazzled by the second. Even the boys had both gone out into the storm rather than stay in the house with all the noise.
"Oh, silly moo. Come to granny." Celia held her arms out to Flora, who was gratefully deposited into them by her mother. "What's the matter with you, then, hmm? Have you missed your granny?"
"I told her he's here." Kate said softly to Caroline as Flora began to quieten.
"I've put him in the front room. Should I-"
"I can hear you, you know. All this screaming is affecting your hearing." Celia muttered. "I'll have a cup of tea when you're ready." With that, she walked into the front room.
"Celia!" Alan jumped up when she walked in. "Celia, I haven't-"
"I know." She cut in. "I know. And I am sorry. I was being..silly. You know what I get like. You're a handsome man, Alan, and I know what that Moira was like."
"Well, not anymore, as it goes. She's just broken her hip."
"Oh she has, has she?" Celia tried to suppress her smile.
Alan smiled back at her anyway.
..
"Where are those girls with the tea?" Celia grumbled a few minutes later.
"I'll go and check on them." Alan offered, rushing out of the room. He returned barely a second later. "Celia. Come and look at this."
Frowning, she walked out, then a smile lit her face. "Get the phone, Alan. We need a photo of this."
Sitting on the stools next to the bench where the kettle was were two fast asleep women, one resting her head on the bench, the other resting her head against her wife.
"You've exhausted them, my little flora! Why don't you, me and Grampy go back into the front room and leave these two to nap, hey?"
"They're going to wake up sore. Especially Caroline with her neck like-"
Caroline. Mama! "Mama!" Flora began to wail again.
"Oops."