06-04-2019, 06:23 PM
The "one more day" became two. Seriously, they are great little guys. On the third day, Troy reminded Julie that he wanted to stay with them too, but he still had classes and they needed to give Helen time with them. Helen said she felt ready now.
You might have noticed that when we make decisions in this family, we tend to have more than one reason for them. The others get that, too. One of us still being here for her in case Helen wasn't quite as ready as she thought had been one we all understood was on my list.
The night after they left, I was walking back to our room when I noticed Helen's cigarette case sitting in the basket outside the Nursery. I stopped and peeked in.
Contessa Helena de San Finzione sat in a rocking chair next to the crib, holding Lord Vincenzo Ramon de San Finzione II and Lord Byroni Troilus de San Finzione in her arms.
"Once upon a time," she told them. "There was a boy and a girl whose love was so written in the stars that they were born a week apart, to families who were already friends and lived right next to each other. Around the same time, a second girl was born down the street from the two of them. She's who this story is really going to be about, but she doesn't show up for a little bit. These two will also be important to the story, and it's nicer to start things with them.
"The boy and girl got older and learned to crawl, walk, and speak together, like you two are going to do! They became best friends forever, also like you two are gonna be." Helen thought a second. "Except, well, different. The adults knew that there would one day be more to their feelings, but the boy and girl had practically been raised as brother and sister, and it would be many years before either of them got smart enough to realize 'you mean we're not and this would've been OK the whole time?' One of the adults, the boy's great-grandfather, was a great old wizard who knew that their destiny had always been written, though. The wizard's also going to be a really important part of this story."
I stepped in and closed the door quietly and let her continue. The twins burbled as she spoke, and Vincenzo made the cutest little yawn.
"Then the second girl, the one the story's really about, came into things. Her home was not a nice place, like where the boy and girl lived and where you two live. You'll have a lot of time to stare at each other's shirts to learn where that is. No, this girl had been born in a dragon's lair, to a mean, horrible dragon; feared by all the countryside. The dragon had taken a maiden years ago, and they had two daughters. The first flew far away from the lair, never to be seen again. But THIS girl, the dragon's SECOND daughter, was only half-dragon." She stopped the story and looked at them both and smiled. "Don't worry, your daddy's so NOT a dragon that Mommy knows any dragon blood you got from her is going to be voted down by his."
The burbling slowed as she rocked them. She acknowledged me and resumed.
"The Half-Dragon Girl looked human and could not fly or breathe fire, but everyone in the town still knew that she was the daughter of a dragon. They knew that living in that place, she would one day learn their ways and become a dragon herself. They didn't DO anything about it, they just talked about it. So, all of the other children's parents feared her, and they told their children not to play with the Half-Dragon Girl. Except, do you remember the boy and girl I was talking about earlier whose parents lived next to each other? Well, their parents were nice people and let the Half-Dragon Girl play with their children! She loved play time with them and she loved them, too. But it would always end. The dragon was really mean and hurt the maiden, who was now her mommy, all the time. She drank bad, dangerous potions that didn't make the hurt go away, but made her feel like they did. It wasn't the same thing. And when the Half-Dragon Girl would see her mommy come stumbling to bring her back to the lair, it always made her sad. Because she knew the dragon would punish her for any happiness she'd had while away from him." Helen looked down at the now-sleeping boys.
"And maybe she remembered years later how that always felt; because Mommy coming to get her meant that happiness and fun were over. And she was scared that she might make you feel that. But again, your daddy's no dragon; he likes fighting dragons. And yes, sometimes, that includes Mommy. Who doesn't drink those kinds of potions. So you should be ok there."
I stepped up and took Byroni, so she could get up with Vincenzo. We put them back in the crib and covered them up, then quietly made our way back out to the hall.
Once we were out, Helen grabbed her cigarettes out of the basket and pulled one out. She looked over at the alcove.
"We took the ash trays out of this one, Helen." I told her. "That was deliberate."
You might have noticed that when we make decisions in this family, we tend to have more than one reason for them. The others get that, too. One of us still being here for her in case Helen wasn't quite as ready as she thought had been one we all understood was on my list.
The night after they left, I was walking back to our room when I noticed Helen's cigarette case sitting in the basket outside the Nursery. I stopped and peeked in.
Contessa Helena de San Finzione sat in a rocking chair next to the crib, holding Lord Vincenzo Ramon de San Finzione II and Lord Byroni Troilus de San Finzione in her arms.
"Once upon a time," she told them. "There was a boy and a girl whose love was so written in the stars that they were born a week apart, to families who were already friends and lived right next to each other. Around the same time, a second girl was born down the street from the two of them. She's who this story is really going to be about, but she doesn't show up for a little bit. These two will also be important to the story, and it's nicer to start things with them.
"The boy and girl got older and learned to crawl, walk, and speak together, like you two are going to do! They became best friends forever, also like you two are gonna be." Helen thought a second. "Except, well, different. The adults knew that there would one day be more to their feelings, but the boy and girl had practically been raised as brother and sister, and it would be many years before either of them got smart enough to realize 'you mean we're not and this would've been OK the whole time?' One of the adults, the boy's great-grandfather, was a great old wizard who knew that their destiny had always been written, though. The wizard's also going to be a really important part of this story."
I stepped in and closed the door quietly and let her continue. The twins burbled as she spoke, and Vincenzo made the cutest little yawn.
"Then the second girl, the one the story's really about, came into things. Her home was not a nice place, like where the boy and girl lived and where you two live. You'll have a lot of time to stare at each other's shirts to learn where that is. No, this girl had been born in a dragon's lair, to a mean, horrible dragon; feared by all the countryside. The dragon had taken a maiden years ago, and they had two daughters. The first flew far away from the lair, never to be seen again. But THIS girl, the dragon's SECOND daughter, was only half-dragon." She stopped the story and looked at them both and smiled. "Don't worry, your daddy's so NOT a dragon that Mommy knows any dragon blood you got from her is going to be voted down by his."
The burbling slowed as she rocked them. She acknowledged me and resumed.
"The Half-Dragon Girl looked human and could not fly or breathe fire, but everyone in the town still knew that she was the daughter of a dragon. They knew that living in that place, she would one day learn their ways and become a dragon herself. They didn't DO anything about it, they just talked about it. So, all of the other children's parents feared her, and they told their children not to play with the Half-Dragon Girl. Except, do you remember the boy and girl I was talking about earlier whose parents lived next to each other? Well, their parents were nice people and let the Half-Dragon Girl play with their children! She loved play time with them and she loved them, too. But it would always end. The dragon was really mean and hurt the maiden, who was now her mommy, all the time. She drank bad, dangerous potions that didn't make the hurt go away, but made her feel like they did. It wasn't the same thing. And when the Half-Dragon Girl would see her mommy come stumbling to bring her back to the lair, it always made her sad. Because she knew the dragon would punish her for any happiness she'd had while away from him." Helen looked down at the now-sleeping boys.
"And maybe she remembered years later how that always felt; because Mommy coming to get her meant that happiness and fun were over. And she was scared that she might make you feel that. But again, your daddy's no dragon; he likes fighting dragons. And yes, sometimes, that includes Mommy. Who doesn't drink those kinds of potions. So you should be ok there."
I stepped up and took Byroni, so she could get up with Vincenzo. We put them back in the crib and covered them up, then quietly made our way back out to the hall.
Once we were out, Helen grabbed her cigarettes out of the basket and pulled one out. She looked over at the alcove.
"We took the ash trays out of this one, Helen." I told her. "That was deliberate."
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