Xeik smiled at Simone. She was trying her hardest, and it showed.

“I wish there was a way to reassure you, Simone, but there isn't’. Lewis may have his frustrations at the past coming back, but he hasn’t hesitated once to go after you. Every time he’s jumped to action…tearing the world apart to find you. But it’s not just your past. Lewis’ past came back to bite him as well…you’re not alone, Simone. The two of you have a lot of history, and more history to make down the road. It won’t ever be easy, but I don’t see Lewis ever giving up.”

Xeik flickered for a moment, and sighed. “Well…I expect you have a lot to talk about with Lewis. I promise you, Simone…this will all work out for the best…” His visage vanished, and was replaced with Lewis.

As the assassin was much more skilled than Xeik in the resonance, he looked at Simone curiously. “We’re deep in here…and…why am I in the shed?” He only had questions for Simone and what Xeik had been doing. “Care to explain?” He didn’t seem mad, just…very confused.

Simone got close to Lewis and kissed him. “Because Xeik decided to see just how far the rabbit hole went to my soul. He had no idea what he would find… He went farther than you’ve ever dream to.”

She looked at the other two of her. “He found these two and was confused about them… We have a lot to talk about. I’m taking a bath… Want to come to me?”

“Gladly, give me a moment to get there,” Lewis said to her.

She waited in the tub and made room for him. She snuggled up to him and kissed his neck. “I want… To tell you everything. Are you ready for that? It doesn’t have to be all at once… You can stop me when you’ve heard too much. We can pick it up another day. It’s a lot… Also, Xeik thinks it would be best if I combined with the other Simones… but I didn’t know how you would feel about losing them.”

Once Simone was ready to start talking, Lewis moved to the opposite side of the bath, so he could look at Simone and give her his full attention. Whatever she had to say, it was important, and he wanted to make sure she was being heard. He had waited a long time for her to finally open up about it all. He would wait until the end to give his own opinions…if she wanted them.

She started with the imprisonment, the time when she was tortured and raped on a regular basis. That was, perhaps, the hardest thing to start with, and at once Lewis clenched his fist. It was hard to hear…not because he thought of Simone less, but more because he had no way to erase that past of hers. But, he stayed quiet, and let her know that he was paying attention.

Simone was strong at the start, but as she started to tell it, her voice wavered. At one point, her voice cracked, and she had to stop. Tears started to stream down her face, and she had to take a moment before she continued. At this, Lewis did move closer, and took her hand, encouraging her to continue. She smiled at that.

The resonance was all over the place. Simone was a mix of pain, sorrow, and the tiniest bit of relief that Lewis was still there. From Lewis was concern, hatred, and helplessness that he couldn’t help her…but underneath it all, supporting it, was love. Not once did Simone feel that Lewis wanted her to stop, or to leave. Not once did she feel his love for her waver. If anything, it grew stronger.

Finally, though, she finished the period of her imprisonment.

“I want to keep going,” she said after a moment of silence. “But…the children…”

Lewis nodded. “We can continue later,” he said. “But…Simone..thank you.” He leaned over and kissed her. She could tell that he wanted to smile at her, but the gravity of what she had told him was weighing on him. “I knew it was bad…but I never knew it was this bad. I…don’t have the words to make it go away. There’s nothing I can do to make it disappear…but I’m here for you. I always will be…”

He smiled. “And…I’ve thought about it. Simone…the Guide and the younger Simone are both you. Even if they…became one with you, or whatever it is…they would still be there. In here…” He poked at her chest. “Even now…there are pieces of them that come out in the way you smile…but I’m sure that if they were all there, you’d feel more at ease…”

Simone felt so much better talking about it and feeling his love for her grow. She gripped his hand and she kept going for as long as she could. There was a nod from her as he said they could continue later. She kissed him back and snuggled close to him for a moment.

“I think… that would be a good idea. I like that idea.” She smiled as she ran the thoughts across her head. “I’ll go over it with Xeik so we can make sure it happens seamlessly.” They got out of the bath and she changed into her nightgown early and put on her robe. They joined the kids.

“Mama you’ve been crying,” Alshaya spoke up and all the kids noticed. Before long they were all hugging her and even the twins were grunting to be brought to her.

“Oh all of my loves,” She hugged them all and kissed each of them. “Daddy and I were just talking about stuff that we’ve needed to for a while.”

“Are you going to split up and get a divorce? Pearl Peterson says her mom and friends say that you guys don’t like each other cause you don’t talk to each other.” Shaya got scared.

“Pearl Peterson’s mother can shut the fuck up,” Simone spoke before she could censor herself. She blushed a bit and laughed. “Daddy and I would never split up or divorce. People just don’t see us like how you all see us.”

As all of the children gathered around Simone, Lewis took a step back, almost wishing he could save this moment in a painting. He wondered what it would cost to have a portrait of this made, and saved the idea in the back of his mind for later. As Alshaya spoke of what Pearl had said, though, he about said something, but Simone beat him out.

“She’s not wrong,” Lewis said with a half smile. “Your mother and I talk all the time. We just don’t like letting people know.” He tapped his head. “It’s all in here…all about how much we love each other. And how much we love you little deviants,” he said as he scooped Alshaya and Everett into his arms. “Besides…I’m pretty sure Pearl has little room to talk. Her parents are together for show only…the father uses heavy cologne to mask the smell of another…” He paused, realizing the kids probably didn’t need to hear all of the details.

“The point is…I’m sure that Pearl is acting out because she’s quite jealous of you all…”

Simone smirked a bit and scooped Llynette into her arms. “You all have each other too. Who else does Pearl have? No one. So she takes it out on your guys. I have an idea though. I think it would be fun but you all have to be very, very quiet.” She kissed the top of Llynette’s head. “When I got mad at the stable boy for picking on me when I was a child… Your uncle Llywellyn showed me how to do something quite nasty. We took cakes of soap and we soaped his windows. It took days for them to get it off. It was the perfect revenge.”

Shaya’s eyes got huge. “Can we Daddy?” She got all excited.

“That means Shaya. You can’t tell anyone but Uncle Llywellyn or Uncle Xeik that we did it. Okay?”

Shaya looked a bit sheepish, “CAN WE DADDY?!”

Lewis looked at Simone, and then to Alshaya. "Not a word. You promise? This isn't like Rex. This could get you in a LOT of trouble…"

“NOT A WORD DADDY I PROMISE ON MY… MOTHER’S… No…”

“It’s okay Shaya we get it,” Simone laughed. “Okay let’s go. I can fly you up to the second story. It’s going to be a late-night kids… Hey, Walter can you get all the soap cakes in the house we’re not using… We need them for a… Porject… But it’s a secret project.”

“Madam your secret is safe with me.”

“Good…”

It was late in the night when Simone, Lewis, and all the kids but the youngest three went out. Corrine and Jules were busy soaping up one-half of the windows. The older kids were helping the other younger ones.

Simone and Lewis helped Alshaya and Everett get Pearl’s bedroom window. It took them a good hour to get all the windows on the large house. But by the time they all got back to the house they were laughing and laying on the floor together. “That was fun!” Alshaya yelled. “Can we go soap Uncle Rhenakos’s house too?!”

In a way, it was childish to do such a thing to someone’s house. If Lewis had been like his young self, he would have scoffed at the idea, and had recommended a dagger in the back as a solution. But this was not the old Lewis. This was the one that Simone had helped along and changed into a better man, and this Lewis was all for the childish prank.

Lewis helped the other children with the lower set of windows, and once the deed was done, they escaped back to the castle, all of them laughing at the act of rebellion they had committed. Lewis was smiling, laying next to Simone as the children rested on each of them.

“No Alshaya,” Lewis said, laughing. “We only do that to bad people. Rhenakos…he’s a good man, despite it all…” He ruffled Alshaya’s hair. She was growing up so quickly. “All right, it’s time for bed you all.” That got a collective groan from the kids. “You all got a special treat tonight, but it’s bedddtiimmmeeee!” He started to tickle Alshaya, who shrieked and tried to escape, her laughter filling the air.

Simone held Everett and Llynette in her arms as they watched Alshaya fight for what could have been her life with the way she was laughing. “Alright, you heard your daddy. Off to bed.” She kissed both of their heads. They groaned at her and she hugged them tightly. “Bed or the tickle monster is going to get you next.”

Lewis let Shaya go as Simone threw Everett to him. Everett’s laughter filled the air as he got his turn with the tickle monster. Llynette was giggling and she waited for her turn before they took the kids up to tuck them in.

Simone opened the room to the youngest three’s room and put her hand on her hip. “What do you think you are doing.”

“Playing…” Lila looked up and smiled at them. She was on the floor with some toys.

“You and your escaping.” She picked Lila up and kissed the top of her head. “Daddy… Do you want to read to Lila? Maybe it will tucker her out.” Lila yawned a bit and she looked like she was on the cusp of sleep.

“No… play…” She whined a bit with tears in the corner of her eyes.

“No… You are definitely tired sweetie. You need sleep. Let Daddy read to you then we can play in the morning.”

As each of the children met their fate with the tickle monster, Simone took them upstairs and tucked them in to sleep. Of course, Lila was fighting her hardest against it, coming back downstairs by portal in order to play. It was adorable the way she tried to fight against the sleep that she was destined for. Lewis took a hold of her, cradling and rocking her as he started up the stairs.

“Once upon a time…”

Lila frumped, but within moments of hearing the story, her tired eyes closed, and she drifted off to sleep. After tucking her in, Lewis came back downstairs, stoking the flames of the fireplace. He motioned for Simone to sit next to him on the couch.

“We don’t have to talk anymore tonight, Simone…” Lewis said. “But..I want you to know that you are my everything. I’m sure the kids are pretty close to feeling that as well…”

Simone didn’t fight like their daughter did and she found herself snuggled into Lewis. “You are my everything to… Even if sometimes I don’t act like it. I’m sorry that it took so long for me to talk to you. I’m still defending myself and I shouldn’t be with you… Though I am glad that you know my boundaries, unlike Xeik… Though without him crossing that line I don’t know how long these conversations would take.”

She put her hand in his. “You know it wasn’t all bad… At the end of the imprisonment… Edwin killed the people who tortured me. Come to find out it was a small-time dungeon the Fey Lord had. Edwin was one of the guards but he never came into my cell but once when he was curious what he was guarding. Now that I think about it… He probably knew who I was from Llywellyn throwing his massive bitch fit trying to find me.”

She gave a smile, “He stayed with me for a long time until he died. We were always on the move. We did odd jobs. From working at traveling fairs to… just the weirdest shit. I think at one point I was waitressing for a tavern.” Simone laughed a bit. “He never let me forget who I was. He kept a journal that he would let me read. Sometimes I didn’t make it through reading it. He wasn’t a very smart man. Anyways, we had a few children. Amelia you would have loved. Gods she was spunky like Lila. Constantly climbing and getting in trouble. Beginning to think Lila got it from me,” she said it as a joke. “Children were hard though so there was only one or two… I can’t remember. Because we were always on the run. Alvaro found me the day he died. I just thought… a good happy tale would be good to hear in the mix of it all.”