Author: Vajra, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 4:51 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

"Thanks Dala! It'd be nice if you could stay though. I'll get you something when you stop by again!" The family was growing bigger with each new baby or child that mama and papa brought back. It wasn't strange to her that all of her siblings weren't related, after all they were happy together. Mama and papa were busy lately, but she didn't get the details on why. When she learned they had a grandpa, it wasn't too big of a surprise since they had new additions to their family joining by the day. "How many girlfriends is it now?" She asked, giving her older brother Rex a look. By now she was picking up on things that people said when they were implying something else. When she was younger she often dragged him into the fights she got with a group of local hooligans who tried to take her money. Eventually they gave up and 'retired' from trying to rob her, but they still hung around the city so she'd see them when she went to buy pastries for Fiori. They weren't bad people in the end, just misguided maybe. 

"Papa–next time you go fishing can I come too? We can see what we catch! I heard there's a lot of precious stuff that fell off ships from long time ago in the sea." Fishing for treasure was more fun than normal fishing. She knew she probably couldn't bring back another friend with her room getting full, but it was a good chance to find something that Dala might really like. Maybe if they were lucky they might find a crown or something really fancy from the bottom of the sea. She had a mischievous gleam in her eye as she winked to Dala.

The sea was her first home, but it didn't have all of her family. And now papa had more time to spend with everybody too. Being a big sister was tough, since when fights started she had to make sure she didn't jump in. Mira had learned to hold her temper since she couldn't convince Shaya and Everett from not swinging at each other otherwise. Still, there were times when she got mad–like when she heard a kid say something mean about their family. The classroom was a mess and she had been given a stern talking to after, but the boy stayed quiet and didn't say those things ever again. "Karith's that place with the floating city, isn't it? Maybe I swam in the sea close by there once, I don't remember." You could see it when you stood on the highest point in the Hanging Gardens on a good day. From her memories before she was adopted by Simone and Lewis she had never set foot in the place.

Author: Dala, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 2:37 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

Dala was glad to hear that Lewis was able to help Simone out. As mighty as Simone was, even she would have trouble with nine children all on her own. But the teenager was surprised to hear about Lewis' father. She had assumed that if Lewis was to ever meet his father, it wouldn't go well since these things often didn't turn out well for the family. If Roma was nice, then it meant the kids would have a grandfather and there was an extra pair of hands to help out. Lewis entered the room and gave her a quick greeting before going to Simone's side. Watching him with the kids was like watching a part of him that was hidden away to the rest of the world. He was like any other father and doted upon his children.

"The trip was great! I got to see a lot and most importantly, meet a lot of people." Dala explained, "I discovered that there's a lot of farmers in Karith who really don't like where they are at. It's very expensive to live there and the environment isn't the greatest. These farmers have a lot of talent and experience, it would be a waste to let them just stay there. I'm thinking of offering farms to them once I've got the village built." 

One by one all the children came in, including Rex who was complaining about treasure. Knowing him, it was probably about the girls he was missing out on. Simone told her everything about what trouble he'd been causing. 

"Aren't you like twelve?" She said, swiftly moving out of his reach, "Look… kid. You're Simone's child so I'll give you one warning. Touch me and you'll get a beating. Got it?"

Dala moved over to the other kids and gave them all a hug or a pat on the head. She smiled as she was greeted by so many, and felt a warmth in her heart. Ezili was as excited as ever, Lucas was still heads over heals for Ezili, Fiori was being her sassy self, and Mira was as sweet as pie. Once everybody had settled down, Dala walked over to the pile of presents and lifted the blanket, revealing it to everybody. Dala picked up each present and handed it to each child. 

"These are little souvenirs I got for you guys." She said, "And I even managed to get something for you two. And next time I'll bring something for Roma and the twins, but it'll probably be a while before I start traveling again." 

Author: Simone, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 2:17 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

“Trust me, Lewis semi-retiring was the best thing that we ever did. Now that he is fully retired he handles them all like a champion. We also have someone new living here. Lewis’s father Roma. He’s the entire reason the bounty was put on Lewis but he is a good man and the children love him. You also missed Alshaya decking Everett in the nose so good blood went everywhere. He said her feet stink,” Simone chuckled a bit. “Wild kids.”

“YEAH! We can get Rex too he was planning on leaving to see AALLIIICCEEEEEE,” they started to run for the door. “REX AND ALICE SITTING IN A TREE K-I-S-” Their voices faded as they stormed up the stairs to get all of their siblings.

“Your secret is safe with me and Lewis,” Simone chuckled towards Dala. "You are always loved and missed here."

Lewis came in and greeted Dala before kissing Simone. “Welcome home love,” Simone nuzzled his face before he took Lila and nuzzled her. “How was fishing?”

“Fishing was… exciting. I’m taking Janus next time. He would like it.” Janus made a noise. “Yeah, I know right?” Lewis bent down and nuzzled Janus next who was pleased by this development. “Did you be good for Mama?” Lila squealed and kissed his face. “You are such a good girl for that!”

“How was your trip?” Lewis asked Dala before plopping on a couch with Lila. Slowly one by one all of the kids filed in. Rex was complaining about how much treasure he was missing and Simone knew he meant booty which got her to roll her eyes.

“Well… Well… Well… I see someone couldn’t resist my charm,” Rex slid over to Dala and tried to put his arm around her.

“She is going to kill you,” Lucas sighed lightly as Ezili and he walked in holding hands. “Your funeral though.”

"Welcome home Dala!" Ezili squealed.

“Can I have your stuff if you die?” Fiori piped up to Rex. "Hi Dala!"

“No Fiori,” Simone sighed lightly and laughed as Everett and Alshaya came in and piled on Lewis.

“DALA!” Mira came in and hugged her before sitting on another couch in the room. Once all the kids were in Shaya and Everett spoke up.

“WE READY NOW! WE READY NOW!”

Author: Dala, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 1:44 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

"Oh I remember! She wouldn't stop talking about it after she got it." Dala said, "I'm not surprised that's how she reacted. She's always been a daddy's girl. Its a miracle you're able to handle them. I can barely babysit them on a good day. Make sure you're taking care of yourself. I know you love the kids but you can't forget to take some time off for yourself." 

The sounds of little feet hitting the floor made Dala aware that some kids were going to come in. All of the sudden, Alshaya and Everett rushed in and tackled her with a hug. They were screaming Auntie Dala and the teenager's eyes lit up with joy. She always liked it when they called her Auntie, though she would never admit it out loud. She embraced the kids and cuddled them before they got up and dragged her over to the archway of the room. They demonstrated their height which was considerably taller than the last time Dala had seen them. Shaya had bouncing brown curls while everett's hair was as white as a cloud. She gave them both a pat on the head then kneeled down to get to their height. 

"Yeah almost as tall as him." She said with a smirk, "At this rate you two will get taller than him in no time! Now I need you both to do me a HUGE favor. Can you go get the rest of your siblings and gather them in this room? If you get this done in two minutes or less, I might even reward you." 

Dala knew little about parenting but she did know that bribery worked on almost every age. The truth was that everybody was going to get a gift, so technically they would be getting that reward no matter what they did. After talking to Alshaya and Everett, she stood up and walked back over to the presents and covered it with a blanket from her bag, to at least create a bit more of a surprise for the kids who hadn't seen all the gifts yet. Then she plopped down on one of the chairs. 

"Alshaya and Everett are as lively as ever!" She said, "I'm really glad to see you all again. Travel's nice but there's a sort of loneliness to it. But don't tell the others I said that! Don't want them to get any ideas." 

Author: Simone, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 1:19 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

Simone chuckled a bit as Dala had the perfect response to meeting their precious bundles. The twins were enthralled with her the moment they met her. “Angela can’t figure out how we did it. Everett was kidnapped by fey and when we went to get him… Our resonance created so much mana it created these two but…” She frowned a bit. “Xeik had to make it so we couldn’t make any more children that way or we would die. It’s taken… quite a lot to deal with having to lose that chance for a second time but…” She smiled at the twins. “They were worth all the pain we had to deal with. They were eating up so much of our magic that they almost killed us.”

There was another laugh though as she saw all the presents. “Trust me. You giving them attention might be all they need. Shaya is spoiled and acts like it. She threw herself on the ground screaming kill me now when Rex accidentally broke one of the plates to the tea set Lewis got her. You remember the one that I was worried was too big for her?” It was a special tea set that Lewis had picked up from Adeluna after a job. No other little girl had an authentic tea set like she did and Shaya had been proud of it. “She screamed bloody murder.”

There was a roll of her eyes and chuckled, “She is definitely Lewis’s spoiled princess.” There was a stampede of feet as Alshaya and Everett came running in and almost tackled Dala down.

“AUNTIE DALA,” they both screamed up at her. Shaya’s pink and purple eyes were filled with happiness as well as Everett’s gray eyes. “YOU ARE HOME! WE MISSED YOU!” They got up and dragged her over to the archway of the room. “LOOK HOW TALL WE GOT COMPARED TO LAST TIME YOU WERE HOME,” they yelled as they pointed at the inch or two they had gained.

"Be gentle you two," Simone chuckled a bit. The archway had marks with dates and names for all the children even Lucas.

"We're almost as tall as Lucas," they stated proudly even though Lucas was more like a tree every day and they weren't anywhere near it.

Author: Dala, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 1:09 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

"Thank you Gerald!" She said as she rushed over to the family room. 

Dala opened the door to see Simone with two babies she'd never seen before. Her jaw dropped when she saw the kids, surprised that they had more children. Both kids were beautiful and looked remarkably similar to Simone and Lewis. The girl baby had beautiful white hair with a bright red bow in her hair along with a white and red dress. Meanwhile the boy had messy jet-black hair and wore a red shirt with overalls. Simone had a look of surprise but quickly got up to greet her. Dala gave her best friend a hug and looked to her with a smile. 

"Travel was fine. The boat didn't crash so I consider it a success." She said before looking to where the twins were whining, "New babies! Introduce me to them already!"

There was a big smile on Dala's face as she looked at the two twins. They were practically mirrored images of Lewis and Simone, only mixing their features up a bit. Their names were Janus and Lila. Repeating the names in her head, she had a good look at the twins while Simone began explaining a bit more about them. Somehow Simone and Lewis made them, which caused a look of confusion on the teenager's face. Last time she heard, Simone was unable to have kids. Maybe they had done something magical to get these kids? Like a genie wish or something else? But when she looked at their eyes, she realized they were the same color of Lewis and Simone's magic. Dala didn't know a lot about magic so she just assumed that this was one of the many weird things that could magically happen. 

"They are adorable! I could just pinch their little cheeks…" She said then paused for a few seconds, "Wait…. I didn't get them anything!"

She rushed over to one of the empty chairs and pulled out the purple bag, fumbling through the many things she stored in there. Pulling out a variety of boxes all wrapped up in a variety of colored ribbons. There were nine presents in total, all a variety of different sizes and colors. But the teenager kept searching through her bag, trying to see if she had anything that would work for two baby twins. 

"Ugh! Next time I should just bring extra presents just in case." She sighed. 

Author: Simone, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 12:51 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

Gerald greeted Miss Dala and pointed in the direction of the family room, “The missus is with the children.”

Simone was in the family room with the twins. They were trying so hard these few days as they each grunted and rolled. They sat up and clapped up at Simone with wild giggles. “Troubles, the both of you.” She laughed softly and rubbed their bellies. Janus had the classic Lewis grin before he grunted at his sister and she let loose wild laughter finding him funny. “You act too much like us.” She had managed to even do a small ponytail on Lila’s white hair with a bow.

Once Dala came into the room Simone look pleasantly surprised, “DALA!” She got up the twins fussed at her as they held up their arms to her. “Hold on. I’m going to come right back,” she ran for Dala and hugged her. “You look so good! Tired but good! Was the travel hard?”

The twins immediately started to whine and cry and Simone got a look on her face. “Okay. Okay.” She picked them up and brought them over to Dala. “I have someone I want you both to meet. This is your auntie Dala.”

Dala would know just from looking at them. The resemblance to Lewis and Simone… It was too much. “Meet our little miracles… Janus and Lila,” Simone held them close for the time being as Janus held a very Lewis look. Lila hid her face in Simone before giggling at Dala. “We made them… No one can figure out how.” The twins were ten months old and they were getting bigger every day. Their azure eyes were looking Dala over. It was the color of Lewis and Simone's magic. A color of their unity.

Author: Dala, Posted: Tue Feb 9, 2021 12:41 PM, Post Subject: Trips and Twins [P]

A young blonde girl leaned on the rails of the ship as they glided across the brilliant blue ocean. She had been gone for a long while, completing small missions for pay and creating connections with architects, mages, merchants, and local farmers. The three major countries that she had visited were Iria, Karith, and Ataiyo. Iria had proven to be a fascinating place with its beautiful willows and everlasting knowledge. The floating city of Karith was renowned for its grand merchants and beautiful airships had also left her impressed. She knew she would never forget the honorable warriors she'd met while visiting the mysterious country of Ataiyo. But seeing the good in the countries wasn't her only goal. Dala had taken the time to look at the ugly sides too and each one of them had flaws that she would have to be careful of when she started her own village. 

Her gaze turned towards the ocean as the island began grow larger and larger as the ship sailed closer. A smile formed on her lips as she picked up her backpack. If it wasn't for her infinite purple bag, she would have had a lot more to carry. And luckily the little gifts she collected for Simone's many children were all able to fit in that purple bag. She had taken the time to collect little treasures and gifts that each one would like. For Lucas, she had multiple books from Iria that went over magic, magical creatures, and even a little bit of history. For Ezili, she had found a beautiful pair of blue dancing shoes from Karith that were built to last longer than most regular dancing shoes. For Mira, she had gotten her a small crystal fish tank. For Rex, she got him a birth control potion. Fiori would get a box of sewing supplies while Everett would get a little cookbook made for kids that was filled with recipes from Ataiyo. Alshaya would get several bags of seeds, each unique flowers and plants from all the countries she had visited. 

The two more expensive gifts were for Lewis and Simone. The gift for Simone was a beautiful peacock quill that would never run out of ink. It was designed to be comfortable for hours of writing. Meanwhile the gift she had gotten for Lewis was a pair of boots that would never squeak, make noise, leave footprints, and it repaired itself. Both were expensive items from an Iria merchant but she managed to get them for free by stealing them. A few more minutes passed until the ship was inches away from the docks. A smile formed on Dala's face as she raced over towards the docking station. The ship stopped sailing and properly docked but an impatient Dala hopped over the rail and landed on the wooden docks, too impatient to wait for the rest of the crew to put down the boarding plank.

She raced towards the castle, running as fast as she could. It had been so long and she missed seeing Simone and her family. It would also be nice to have a home-cooked meal and a good nights rest in a comfortable bed instead of those cheap inn beds with noisy drunkards. She finally reached the doors of the castle and opened them, wondering if anybody would be home. Regardless, she would be coming in. The servants already knew her face and was familiar with her, even waving hello and giving her some sort of greeting. She would catch up with them later, once she had seen the family and seen her best friend.