Lewis looked around the room. In a way, he wasn’t surprised. The bed seemed a bit gaugy at first, but he realized that it was something Simone would love. The more he thought about, the more it grew on him, and he took a mental note of the design. He wondered how well Kalina worked with wood.

He followed Simone to the balcony, and looked around. “I can see why the lock wasn’t high quality. They assumed no one could really get up here, but…” He sighed. “Llywellyn could do it, and a very young me could have done it as well. They probably should have fixed it…” He shrugged. “Must not have been a problem. Either that, or Llywellyn never let on how bad it was because he wanted easy access to your room.”

He glared over at the Elf King. “Try it now and you’ll find yourself missing a few fingers…”

Lila giggled, wandering about. “Daddy is serious. Momma’s butt is his, and his alone.”

Lewis sighed, “I don’t need you spreading that around….”

“But it’s true,” she responded with a grin. “You like Momma’s but THIISSS much.” He spread her arms out wide. “Actually…probably more…”

“It’s a beautiful room,” Lewis said, ignoring his daughter’s ranting about how much he liked Simone’s butt. “I wonder if we can recreate it on the island. Maybe add a new layer to the castle…”

“Ohh?” Simone smiled at Lewis as she put her arms around his waist. “Or we could do that project we’ve been talking about~” She pressed her lips to his cheek and smiled. “I also like your butt.”

“THIS MUCH!” Lila held out her arms again.

“Thank you Lila!” Simone chuckled a bit. She picked the kids up and put them in the bed. “Look how small you are in the bed. It was always so lonely for me when I was a kid but… It looks so much better with all of us here.”

She laid on the bed with the bed and they snuggled up at her. Looking up at Lewis she patted the bed.

“Well, we’re going to go find the study,” Llywellyn pulled Avery out to go find the secret passages. Simone kissed the tops of the children’s heads. “I have wanted to share this place with you both so much.” She looked down at the twins with wonder. “Now we can all experience it together… You can see your mother’s origins even if it is just a memory.”

The twins were smiling up at her and they gave her kisses as they snuggled close. “My father would come in when he had free time and he would lay here with me reading me books. All he had was these poetry books. They were my mother’s. It’s why I love poetry so much.”

It was surreal for Lewis to be laying in a bed that was, in essence, older than Angela. He could imagine them running through the halls of Auclair, laughing as they played about the rooms. He could see the maids and butlers chastising the kids, wondering if the Queen of Auclair, their mother, knew where they were…

All of these things that could have been, but never would be.

Lewis smiled and ruffled Janus’ hair. He was happy, though, with what they had. They had all come so far….

“How does it feel to be back?” he asked as he leaned into Simone. “I’m sorry that all of this…can’t be yours like it was meant to be. Koskaan seems to pale in comparison…”

Simone looked up at him as the kids looked between their mother and father. They would normally have read their feelings but since the cord was cut the kids had to be detectives. This was a serious conversation so the kids let their parents carefully navigate it. “It’s alright, unlike Auclair… Koskaan is truly ours. I would have loved to be here in Auclair with you but I’m not settling. I truly love Koskaan and while Auclair is a loss I would have it no other way. Besides our kids still getting yelled at by Silva~” She smirked a bit.

She leaned over and kissed Lewis tenderly. “We’ll be okay Dear. Home, after all, is wherever you and the kids are and I would have that no other way.” She snuggled close with all of them and the kids giggled.

“Mommy? Can we explore the castle?”

Simone looked down, “Is this your giving us room?”

The twins nodded.

“I suppose it can’t hurt but do not cause trouble… and if you get lost find a way to let us know.”

“We won’t use the secret passages…” The twins rolled their eyes before slipping out of bed to explore. They closed the door leaving their parents in the room.

“…Thank you for thinking of me.” She rolled over him and smiled at him from above him. “It’s super sexy.” She teased him lightly. “But all I need is you and our kids. Auclair isn’t needed. We could even be in a shack.”

“A shack is wholly unacceptable,” Lewis stated with a smirk. “Only the best. We’ll run our secret project AND an expansion on the castle. We need more space,” he stated firmly. “We can’t have more kids without more space.” He stared up at her for a moment longer, caressing her face with his hand. “Well…you never really got to break in this bed, right? We could…” He smirked again.

—-

Several hours later the two wandered into the halls, looking a whole lot messier than they originally started out. Waiting for them was Xeik with his arms crossed.

“Finished? Good. Cause I almost walked in on it.” He straightened himself out. “I’ve found several things that might be of interest. Jurian’s journals, among things.” He looked to Simone. “I won’t copy those down unless you want me to. Otherwise, they’re on his desk in the study. There were also several books on magicks…” The Divine Mender was salivating. “The arts that have been lost…you have NO idea how magically advanced Auclair was. On the surface it didn’t look like much, but there was SO much lost….”

“Did you know Auclair had a magic barrier?” Xeik stated. “No, of course you did. But did you know that it was trained in on a unique signature? It’s genetic. A magic that can detect and recognize genetics…that’s INSANE!”

“Are you…quite done?” Lewis asked.

“What do you mean ‘done.’ I’ve barely gotten started. This place has a unique magic that circulates air and water. There are magical formations that run on the inner linings of the wall and guide them. It’s absolutely-”

“Magical, yes, I get that,” the ex-assassin said with a sigh. “Simone can we just…go before he nerds out more?”