[MillietheWarrior]

Vidown strode down the street with his newest experimental hair color shining in the sun. He’d gone with a deep, dark purple, so dark, it almost seemed black. His eyes were back to their natural white color, but his skin had tanned a few shades darker than usual. In one hand, he carried what looked like an ordinary gym bag. In the other hand, he went over credit denominations on a small, handheld electronic device. With his last bounty, he’d picked up more credits than he knew what to do with. Those would definitely come in handy when it came to buying a bigger house for his expanding family. It still felt funny to use the word ‘family.’ Vidown could honestly say that five months ago, he’d never imagined anything like this would happen to him. Yet here he was; happy, upbeat, and content with life.

Of course, his mood today was dampened slightly by the ugly black eye he was developing and the multitude of bruises along his arms and neck. The last bounty hadn’t exactly been friendly, of course, and it’d shown just how ‘unfriendly’ it could be when he’d finally cornered it. Vidown was just lucky he’d acquired some top-grade beskgar armor from a Mandalorian contact of his. Vidown had never been fond of Mandalorians, and vice versa, but he’d made a few friends in his lifetime, and a least one was willing to help him out; family was as important to Mandalorians as it was to Vidown himself, and when he’d pleaded his case, his friend had been all but too happy to hand over a quality set of armor, some new blasters, and a list of bounties that would bring in the biggest chunk of money. Vidown definitely owed him for that.

Of course, keeping his newest occupation a secret from Vega was proving to be harder than he had anticipated; every night before he came home, he’d change into a business suit, or regular street clothes, and stuff his armor and weapons into his gym bag. Vega never expressed much interest in the bag, but Vidown made sure to keep it well hidden. He didn’t want her to ask any awkward questions. Vidown reached up to straighten the dark leather jacket he wore, placing his data pad in his pocket with the credit denominations flashing a bright red on the screen. He whistled to himself as he ascended the stairs to the small flat they’d rented, and pulled his keys from his pocket. For someone who had spent their entire life alone, it was very odd to be coming home to a house that was, in the Force, full of his family.

He could sense the growing life in Vega more and more everyday, and he had already distinguished genders. They even seemed to have their own little quirks. Vidown smiled to himself as he turned the key in the lock and the door popped open; he stepped inside, completely forgetting his disheveled and beat up appearance. He hadn’t even seemed to realize what he looked like, and it was bound to cause more than a few awkward questions with Vega. He was too happy to be home to bother glancing at the mirror. The living room and kitchen were empty, and Vidown glanced around as he reached out with the Force to figure out where Vega had gone. He was always so worried about her being alone at home. Once she got closer to her due date, he’d forsake his job for a while to stay home with her. Maybe then she wouldn’t be so bored and he could keep a better eye on her.

He set his bag down on the couch, wincing slightly at the clank of armor inside, and stepped through the hall to the designated nursery room. Vidown was rather surprised to see that she’d moved the furniture into the room and was currently surveying her handiwork. Vidown smiled as he stepped up beside her, looking over the crib and the other furnishings that now occupied the room. “I think it looks good,” he said reassuringly, sensing her vexation with the layout and annoyance that it wasn't perfect. “By the way…Sorry I’m home late. Long day,” he said carefully, his smile never fading.

[8/21]

[Flame]

Vega huffed as she surveyed the room, deliberating upon whether or not she really wanted to completely rearrange the whole setup again. Lost in her musings, she almost missed the sound of the key turning in the lock a room away. She felt a small wave of relief though, when she recognized the familiar rhythm of Vidown’s footsteps as he made his way through the apartment, happy that she didn’t have the whole empty flat, as small as it was, alone to herself any more. Every day when he came home, she still felt the thrill of knowing she had a family of her own anew, half expecting the events of the past few months to all have been an impossible dream. Things like this simply didn’t happen to people like her, but judging by the very real ache in her back that she was beginning to develop due to the weight of the three growing babies, they did.

She heard Vidown come to a stop beside her, and at his comment regarding her handiwork, she smiled lightly. He always knew what was going through her mind and exactly what she needed to hear, one of the attributes which made him so endearing in his own way. ”You’re just saying that to get me to stop agonizing over it,” she accused, although the smile in her voice was evident. Scooting over, she nestled her back against him, her head resting in the crook of his neck as she gave the nursery one last reproachful look, then gave it up for a lost case. She’d tackle it again tomorrow, hopefully with more satisfactory results. Right now, she was just content to have Vidown’s company after spending a whole quiet day alone in the flat without so much as a whisper of another soul. She was surprised to find how quickly she had adapted to having him around: after years of comfortable (or so she told herself), self-elected solitude, she would have expected that having a day completely to herself would have been a relief. Well, contrary to belief, she wasn’t immune to loneliness, despite what she thought. In the time that she’d spent with Vidown (and the unborn children), she’d changed drastically in comparison to who she had been upon their first meeting. With plenty of gentle coaxing on his part, he’d managed to blunt the edge on her previously negative outlook on the world in general: after all, it was inevitable that some of his boundless optimism would eventually rub off on her. She was just surprised that none of her pessimism had managed to embitter him at all. Obviously, he’d also managed to breach the touch-barrier which Vega seemed to wear like an impenetrable armor. True, she was still rather wary of anyone and everyone outside of her immediate family, but undoing what was hardwired into her system would take time. Baby steps.

”So, busy day at work today?” She glanced up at him, curious as to what had kept him so long. As she did, a small, concerned frown furrowed her brow as her gaze lit on his rather disheveled appearance and the dark mark which was forming around one of his eyes. She was alarmed at how roughed-up he looked, and immediately, a multitude of conjured scenarios rushed through her head as she twisted to get a better look. ”What happened to you?” The agitation at his battered appearance was evident in her voice, but there was an undercurrent of anger in her tone, especially at the thought of the possible aggressor who’d caused it. ”Please tell me you didn’t go do anything stupid.” She shot him a warning look, gold eyes boring into his, as if knowing that he might try to cover up what had really happened. ”And don’t you give me any nonsense about ‘falling down the stairs’, or anything of the sort either…Last time I checked, stairs couldn’t punch people in the face, and trust me, I know what getting punched in the face looks like.”

[MillietheWarrior]

Vidown chuckled softly, delicately wrapping his arms around Vega as she leaned back against him. It still felt so weird to him, this whole ‘couple’ thing. But he was quite happy to get used to it. And he couldn’t have picked anyone better than Vega. It seemed she’d gotten over her dislike of being close to anyone, and Vidown was quite pleased with the progress she’d made; granted, she still didn’t openly hug strangers on the street (And he hoped she never did) but she no longer flinched when someone brushed her hand or bumped into her. His hands rested on the swell of her stomach where three anxious lives waited to be born.

He closed his eyes briefly, resting his chin on Vega’s shoulders as he reached out to each of them, feeling their consciousnesses touch his in the Force. He stood there for a moment, content to bask in the warmth that was his family, before Vega twisted in his arms. Vidown opened his eyes with a smile, but his smile soon faded when he saw the dark look forming on her face. “Ah…” he had to think fast. He couldn’t use the ‘Sorry, honey, I fell down some stairs’ excuse this time; she was a very good guesser.

“Yes, you could say it was busy,” he said, closing his eyes and hiding his face behind her hair and against her neck.  Maybe she’d forget he was there if he hid long enough. He mentally snorted; yeah right. “I, uh…I ran into a very nasty wall. It was particularly violent, I must say. Gave me a good beating.” He smiled slightly, still keeping his face hidden. “Don’t worry, it’s nothing you need to concern yourself with. Just a bit of bad business, that’s all. Er…what are we having for dinner?” Change the subject. Good strategy. Vidown mentally patted himself on the back.

[9/22]

[Flame]

If anything, it was the fact that Vidown was dancing around the question that worried her the most: it was a certain sign that something was definitely up, and she wasn’t about to just let it go. ”Vidown, I’m being serious.” She cupped her hands on either side of his face so that he faced her, her gaze searching as she met his eyes. ”You, of all people, should know that anything that concerns you concerns me, especially with the kids.” The piercing look which she gave him was just short of a glare as she tried to squeeze some answers out of him. Come to think of it, she knew very little about what manner of work Vidown had vested himself in: all she knew was that it was some sort of office job, which wasn’t all that uncommon here in this area. But then, what white-collar worker came home looking as if he had suffered the bad end of scuffle?

”I might not be able to use any of those Jedi mind-tricks of yours, but I’m sure as heck going to get some answers.” Her voice was a growl, but it wasn’t anger, but worry that fueled her. She couldn’t bear to just sit back when someone that she cared about was getting hurt, and she certainly wasn’t going to let history repeat itself, if she had any say in the matter. ”I know that things can get ugly in the business world, but I’m pretty sure that this crosses the border between ‘ugly’ and ‘illegal’. So,” she said after a pause, letting the weight of her words sink in, ”are you going to tell me what, or rather ‘who’, happened?” She completely ignored his last question, refusing to be off-tracked. ”Either that, or am I going to have to find out the hard way?”

[MillietheWarrior]

Vidown finally gave in to the temptation and frowned for once, instead of his usual, upbeat smile. Hardly anything ever dampened his mood, so for his smile to fade that quickly was definitely not a good sign. He gently placed his hands on hers where they rested on his cheek, and wrapped his fingers around her hands, pulling them from his face and clasping them in front of him. “I know, sweetheart, I know,” he said, trying to soothe the worry he could feel rolling off of her in waves. He imagined if he was in her position, he’d feel exactly the same way. Not knowing what was going on, or what had happened to someone you cared about was agonizing. It was very difficult to skirt around Vega’s questions when she was growling in his face; he had a feeling he wasn’t going to sidetrack her as easily as he hoped, and he wasn’t about to try and influence her mind in a different direction.

“You have no idea,” he said with a chuckle when she commented on how ‘ugly’ the business world could get. That was an understatement in his line of work. “Uh…It was nothing. Just some guy who I got into a…dispute with. He felt he was right, and I said he was wrong and then…I ended up with a fist in my face. But don’t worry; he looks much worse than I do.” Okay, so it was partly true; he had been in a dispute with someone and he was punched in the face. Maybe Vega wouldn’t mind that he skimped on the details. “Now…What’s for dinner?” As if on cue, his stomach rumbled, and he chuckled lightly. Maybe she’d forget all about this and they’d be able to settle down to another normal dinner.

[Flame]

Despite the fact that her expression softened a little at his reassurance, the look which lingered in her gaze was penetrating, as if she could will the answer out of Vidown, even while lacking his skills of ‘persuasion’. By the vagueness of his description, she knew for certain that there was a whole other story that he was keeping from her. He wasn’t flat-out lying, she trusted that he wouldn’t openly lie to her, but he wasn’t telling the whole truth either. ”You know I only ask because I worry about you,” she said resignedly. She hated the feeling of being completely helpless to everything going on around her, which was one of the factors which had fueled her to tackled the nursery in the first place. She had to feel like she was at least accomplishing something, instead of standing back and just having everything happen to her. The same case applied here in that there was nothing she could do to protect her own family, a notion which both frustrated and scared her. ”What would I do if, god forbid, something were to happen to you? What about the kids?”

It seemed that Vidown had his mind set on changing the subject. Well, either that or he was just really hungry after his ‘long day’ at work. Vega sighed softly, finally relenting, but only as far as dinner was concerned. Pulling away, she turned to walk out of the room towards the kitchen, still holding one of Vidown’s hands as she towed him along behind her. ”Lasagna,” she said as she made her way towards the oven, releasing his hand as she slipped on the pair of mitts hanging nearby. The pan was still in the oven where it had been keeping after she’d finished baking it. Pulling it out, she set the steaming container on the table, then set about grabbing plates and utensils. ”Well,” she said as she removed two dishes from the stack in the cupboard, ”if nothing else, could you at least tell me who this guy is?” Not that she was asking because she wanted to give the man a piece of her mind as well. Of course not.

[MillietheWarrior]

Vidown mentally cheered himself; at least he was distracting her from the issue at hand a little bit. If he could just take her mind fully off of it…Vidown didn’t need Vega to worry about him; he was perfectly capable of taking care of himself, and he didn’t want her to sit at home and stress over where he was or what he was doing. That wouldn’t be good for the babies, and certainly not for her health. “Don’t worry,” he soothed gently, allowing her to lead him from the nursery. “Nothing’s going to happen to me. I promise.” Well, he was fairly certain nothing was going to happen to him. He was pretty good at determining bad situations and getting out of them; it was what had kept him alive this long.

And he was certainly glad he’d stayed alive; he couldn’t imaging living without Vega now. How had he gone day to day before he’d met her? He decided that his life was very boring and empty. He followed her into the kitchen and proceeded to grab two cups form one of the cupboards, before pulling open the conservator and peering into it. Well, their choice was milk, orange juice, or tea. “What would you like?” he asked, eyeing the orange juice skeptically; how long had that thing been in there? It had to have been way past it’s expiration date. He glanced over his shoulder as he pulled the jug of juice out to sniff curiously at it’s contents. His ivory eyes settled on Vega, and he smiled lightly.

“Don’t worry about it; he’s been taken care of. He won’t be punching anyone else anytime soon, I promise you that.” He paused, holding the jug aloft, and blinked at Vega, as if just remembering. Though much of the time, Vidown could seem ancient and wise beyond his years, there were times when he almost seemed child-like, jumping from topic to topic and randomly laughing at things he’d found funny earlier that day or the day before. It seemed like this was one of those ‘off-topic’ times. “Hey…How would you feel about marrying me?”

[11/24]

[Flame]

”I’m going to hold you to that promise, you know,” Vega said, glancing over at Vidown with a small grin. If one thing was true, it was that she could never stay angry or disgruntled for long around him: without even trying, he had the ability to somehow wash her pessimism away, no matter how frustrated she might be. ”If you don’t keep it, I will personally see to it that you don’t get any dessert.” She laughed lightly, giving in to his attempts to cheer her up: there was no point in belaboring the topic. That wasn’t to say that she was simply admitting defeat though…far from it. One way or another, she was definitely going to get some answers whether he liked it or not. Now, it was just a matter of biding her time and waiting for the right moment.

Vega glanced up from her task of ladling peas out of a pot at Vidown’s question. ”I think I’ll go with the safe bet and vote milk,” she said, patting her bulging belly gently for emphasis. ”Plus, I think that juice has been in there a little too long,” she added, noting his somewhat suspicious expression as he scrutinized the container. Out of her arsenal of kitchen utensils, she selected a spatula and began to divide the pan of lasagna into more manageable pieces.

Vega almost dropped what she was holding at the last, very unexpected question. For once, maybe with the exception of when she’d be notified of her pregnancy, she was caught completely off guard, and she blinked blankly for a moment, still waiting for her brain to catch up with her ears. Of all the possibilities in the world, she would never have expected to be questioned on the topic of marriage, and particularly not on her own marriage. It was all she could do to keep from openly gaping at Vidown as the wave of surprise came and went, leaving her feeling both stunned and strangely giddy at the same time. There was a moment’s pause as the information registered in her mind, then, she slowly turned to face Vidown, an impish grin lighting up her features. Oh, she knew very well what her answer would be, and had no inhibitions about it, but she wasn’t planning on letting him get away with it that easily. ”I’ll tell you if you tell me what happened at work today. In detail.” Her tone was coquettish and a playful spark of mischief twinkled in her eyes. If Vidown wanted an answer, he was going to have to work for it.

[MillietheWarrior]

Vidown’s eyes crinkled with his smile as he set the juice on the counter, still eyeing it suspiciously, and pulled the milk from the conservator. He poured two glasses, and walked them back to the table, setting them at opposite ends. He stepped back over to Vega and reached around her for the plates, brining them to the table as well and setting them beside each glass. “Ah, man. If I don’t get dessert, then I’m definitely going to have to keep that promise,” he said with a cheeky grin, tilting his head to the side lightly. He pulled out Vega’s chair for her and motioned for her to sit down.

“Your going to really play that game?” he asked with a good-natured smile. “Vega, I don’t think you’ll like the answer. Best leave it where it belongs; in the dark.” He frowned at her, his ivory eyes watching every movement. He’d sensed her absolute shock at his question, and he could only assume that was a good thing, although he hoped that level of surprise hadn’t done anything bad to the babies. He turned and strode out of the kitchen, shrugging off his jacket and hanging it on the hook by the door, before he pulled off his boots.

He returned, looking much more comfortable in his dark pants and maroon shirt. He knew he wasn’t going to be able to get out of this line of questioning; it was fun for Vega, and while he didn’t want to begrudge her a bit of fun, he also didn’t need to worry her with his more dangerous dealings. As he stepped back into the kitchen, he gently wound a finger through one of her dark locks, standing beside her with a frown. “If you really want to know…I can tell you. But you won’t like it.”

[12/25]

[Flame]

”You should know me well enough by now to realize that, yes, I am ‘going to really play that game’.” She shot Vidown a teasing glance as she laughed. Plus, she added, putting on a mock expression of hurt indignation, ”Don’t you want to know my answer to your proposition?” As he left to shed his jacket and boots, she finished setting up the table, then waited for him to come back. As he walked in, she could tell that he was somewhat uncomfortable with the fact that she’d once again broached the topic of his work. The fact that he seemed so worried about her knowing exactly what manner of work he did was a little perplexing: after all, what was there really to hide about an office job? Outside of maybe personal problems with another co-worker, or perhaps an attractive secretary (she trusted him and his judgment enough not to even bother with giving it any serious thought), she couldn’t see why he was so reluctant to talk about it.

She turned to face him, her teasing mood gone, replaced by one of inquisitive concern although her expression was mild, open. Encircling her arms around his waist, she looked up at him, head tilted slightly to the side as she considered his words. ”Try me,” she replied simply, prepared to reassure him that whatever it was, he was simply blowing it out of proportion, and that it wasn’t that big of a deal. Then again, he had just asked her what her opinion was on marriage. If that wasn’t a surprise, she wasn’t sure what was: he’d have to try pretty hard if whatever he was bracing himself to tell her was going to be more shocking than that had been. ”After all, it’s better out in the open than bottled up inside,” she added with a small, encouraging smile. Whatever it was, she might not like it, but in the end, she'd learn to accept it.

[MillietheWarrior]

Yes, Vidown should have, he realized. He knew Vega wouldn’t have let it go that easily, no matter how long he danced around the issue. And it was an issue; Vidown felt confident labeling it as such. It wasn’t just something you blurted out. ‘Hey honey, I’m a bounty hunter and I hunt dangerous criminals for a living. Oh, by the way, they usually try to kill me and nearly succeed, but don’t you worry.’ That might not go over so well, now that he thought about it. Vidown flinched when she wrapped her arms around him; it wasn’t because he disliked it, but because he was surprised he hadn’t even sensed her moving towards him. Usually he could tell when Vega was close, or wanted to hug him or sit beside him. But in that moment, he’d been far too preoccupied to even notice. It disturbed him slightly because it had never happened to him before.

He managed to pull himself out of his thoughts and wrapped his arms around her, smiling down into her now quite serious face. “Of course I want to know…I’m just afraid of your reaction to my own answer…” He sighed. “You aren’t going to like this…” Vidown felt like this was the deep breath before the plunge; like he was stepping over a line he couldn’t uncross. He closed his eyes briefly, reaching out for the life residing within Vega, and then smiled, his eyes resting on Vega’s own gold ones. “Well…My office job technically doesn’t involve an office…or a boss…or co-workers, for that matter. Actually, my office job doesn’t exist. I’ve taken up bounty hunting…and it’s a rather risky business.”

He unwrapped one arm to reach up and point at his eye. “One of my bounties got a little too vigorous and was determined not to be caught…” He rolled up his long sleeve, and frowned at the multitude of bruises along his arms; armor only protected you from so much. “The rest of me isn’t faring any better, I’m afraid,” he said with a small, nervous smile. “But don’t worry.” There he went again, telling her not to worry; it was a pathetic assurance. “I can take care of myself well enough. You’ve seen how well I can look after myself.” He placed his hand on the small swell of her stomach that kept him from pulling her too close. “Can I hear your answer now? Or do I have a beat down coming?” he asked, a teasing smile on his face. “I’d prefer an answer…”

[13/26]

[Flame]

By this point, Vega could tell that whatever it was that was on Vidown’s mind was definitely causing him a good amount of discomfort and unease, especially when he started at her touch. Her only hope was that he would indeed tell her what it was that he was hiding instead of continuing to conceal it: things could only go downhill from there if they were keeping things from each other, a thought which scared her. Finally though, Vidown caved under her persistence, and the whole truth came spilling out. Vega remained silent as he spoke, her expression unreadable as the revelation sank in. Of all things, a bounty hunter? The fact that his profession of choice was much more dangerous than that of a typical office job did worry her, but at the same time, she felt almost as if she should have expected something like this to happen. After all, Vidown didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would be content with sitting behind a desk for hours at a time. She did wish that he’d chosen something a little less…well, hazardous. Of course, she would worry about his safety, now that she knew exactly what manner of work he did, but then again, she wasn’t going to argue with him on the matter, simply because she knew what it was like to be restrained, and the fact that she knew he could take care of himself. Most of the time.

Vega sighed softly after a beat of two of silence. ”Oh, Vidown. As much as I’d like to give you a beat-down, I think that you’ve already managed that one pretty well on your own.” Reaching over, she took his arm, delicately running a finger over the mottled patchwork of purple marks, gentle enough not to cause further discomfort. ”You’re never happy unless you’re off pulling some sort of stunt or another, are you?” She looked back up at him again, sounding resigned, but under her voice, there was a current of amusement as she fixed her gaze on his. ”Then again, I did meet you during a bar brawl, after all…I suppose I shouldn’t be one to complain.” Vega cracked a small grin, breaking the tension that she was sure Vidown was under right now. For all he knew, she could have exploded in his face, a notion that had briefly crossed her mind, but been dismissed. Now though, it was her turn to give him an answer to his question – after all, she had to keep her end of the deal. ”If you asked, I’d marry you in a heartbeat,” she stated simply, the warm sincerity evident in her gold eyes as she smiled up at the man she’d come to love. ”All the ladies with office-boys would be so jealous,” she added with a laugh as she wrapped her arms around him again, her playful mood back once again.

[MillietheWarrior]

((Time jump, yayz! xD))

Of all the things to do on a Saturday, Vidown honestly didn’t think balancing his bank statements would be it. He was pouring over the documents, going over balances and withdrawals and deposits. He currently had five different bank accounts on five different systems, all under different names. When one was still wanted my multiple organizations for crimes he honestly didn’t remember committing, one had to be extremely careful where and when they invested their assets. So far, he’d found that he’d amassed a small fortune altogether. Mikhail Wylston, his account name on Dorumma, had nearly 1 million credits to his name. He’d need to keep an eye on that one. The other accounts each had hundreds of thousands of credits, and their total combined to form a hefty amount. Vidown wasn’t sure what he’d do with all that money, but he knew who he’d spend it on.

Vidown was yanked out of his thoughts by the feel of someone running smack into his leg. His chair wobbled slightly, and he grabbed the edge of the table to keep from falling over, his quick reflexes and strong grip the only thing that stood between him and the floor. Then something shot under his feet and beneath the chair, and there was a rather loud bump as something collided with the bottom of his seat. Vidown blinked, before the tell-tale sniffling of his daughter alerted him to exactly what had just happened. Vidown leaned to the side to glance under his chair, and lo-and-behold, there sat Banji, her little hands holding her head. She was curled into a ball, and Vidown gently reached under his chair and scooted her across the floor so he could pick her up. Banji sniffled again as he lifted her onto his lap, and he smiled down at her, pressing his forehead to hers.

“Now, what was that all about, little one?” he asked gently, ivory gaze watching hers intently. “B-Bizby runned away from me, and I was chasing him, and he runned under the chair, and…and…” She sniffled, her chin wobbling as her eyes watered dangerously. “Then I hitted my head.” As if on cue, the ‘chase-ee’ stuck his head around the corner of the room he’d run into after flying through the kitchen. The tiny Starry Larvie looked embarrassed, and padded back into the kitchen to sit woefully beside the chair, staring up at Vidown and Banji with a very sorry look on it’s face. Vidown resisted the urge to chuckle, and gently kissed the top of his daughter’s curly-haired head. “Well, little one, what did I tell you about running in the house?” Banji sniffled, looking up at her father with wide, doleful eyes. “To…to not to.”

Vidown chuckled this time, tilting his head. He still remembered the day his three children were born. To be honest, it had probably been one of the most nerve-wracking days of his life. He hadn’t even been able to stay in the room with Vega because he was sure he was going to pass out. Instead, he’d sat in the waiting room, eyes closed, heart beating erratically, as he reached out to Vega in the Force time after time to assure himself she was okay. Then he’d felt the three new lives that had come into the world, and he’d just about sagged with relief in his seat. He remembered hot tiny and fragile and vulnerable they looked. Vega was exhausted, but that was to be expected. Vidown had made sure she got some rest while he managed to look after the children for a few hours.

The next three years had been a blur of happiness for him. He still worked the same job, despite the fact that it brought a lot of unwanted injuries and discomfort on his part. But he made good money, and he was able to pay for just about anything the small family needed. They were even looking into buying a bigger house, which was quickly becoming a necessity with the kids getting older. Vidown bounced his knee slightly, and smiled at his daughter. “No more running, all right?” he said gently, and Banji nodded, trying not to cry again. Bizby slowly climbed up onto Vidown’s lap as well, settling itself close to the sniffling girl. Vidown patted the Larvie, amused by the small creature, and then settled in to continue pouring over the bank account statements as his daughter cooed and fussed over her pet on his lap. Now that he had enough money, maybe today was the day he and Vega needed to finally settle down for good.

[14/27]

[Flame]

It was amazing, just how much laundry a small (if you could call having three kids ‘small’) family could procure in under a week. Vega plucked another small, toddler-sized shirt out of the pile of still-warm clothing, having just pulled the batch out of the dryer. In the past three years, she’d learned how to multitask with incredible proficiency – a skill which seemed to be necessary, especially for a mother with a family of five to care for. She was currently sitting cross-legged on the floor, the large basket of unfolded clothing just waiting to be tended to. Small hands tugged on her dark hair, which was swept back into a long, practical ponytail so that she could work unimpeded by stray locks that might hinder her. It made a very obvious and very easy target for a three-year-old toddler who had obviously grown bored with his toys, and was seeking a more amusing and interactive plaything. Vega was secretly glad that she hadn’t taught the young Astarael to tie knots yet, otherwise, she’d be in considerably more trouble right now. Currently seated in her lap was her other son, Griffin, who was more than content to placidly cuddle against his mother’s shoulder, little arms wrapped around her neck as he watched her work. Of the two brothers, he was certainly the smaller, but at times, he could be more of a handful than he appeared. Astarael, on the other hand, was hardly more sedate, but he at least seemed to have a more developed sense of self-preservation than his younger sibling, although it was not uncommon for him to be just as rascally as Griff.

Vega paused in her laundry-folding to watch her sons, marveling at how alike their parents they were. Griffin certainly had his mother’s dark hair and her rangier build, but he had inherited his striking ivory eyes from his father. Astarael had gotten the other half of the gene pool, with a much sturdier stature than his younger brother and dark red hair that mirrored his father’s…at least its natural color. His eyes were a dusky gold, a shade or two darker than his mothers’. Surprisingly, Vega had fallen into the role of motherhood fairly quickly, a fact that she most certainly hadn’t expected. It seemed to come naturally to her, and now, she couldn’t imagine life without Vidown and their three children. For her, it was a struggle not to be over-protective of Banji, Astarael, and Griffin, and she constantly had to remind herself to back off and not become the overbearing mother she knew that she would have hated, had she been in their position. But still, she was always alert for the slightest sign that something wasn’t quite right, just in case. After all, her whole life now revolved around the people that she loved, and god forbid that anything should happen to any of them.

She was just extricating Astarael’s fingers, which had somehow managed to get tangled in her long hair, when she heard a tell-tale thump, followed immediately by soft sniffling. In the blink of an eye, she was up and halfway to the room from which she’d pinpointed the origin of the sounds, Griffin still cuddled against her in one arm, giggling happily at the merry bouncing that he was getting, while Astarael toddled along behind them as fast as his little legs could carry him. Vega swept into the room, all senses on full-alert as she sought out Banji, the only child who hadn’t been in her line of view at the time. She huffed a small sigh of relief when she saw her daughter huddled in Vidown’s lap, looking no worse for the wear and with no injuries that couldn’t be fixed with a cuddle and a kiss. Griff had sobered pretty quickly at the sight of his sister on the verge of tears, blinking solemn ivory eyes at her in an almost reproving manner. ”Mommy ‘n daddy said ‘no running in the house’,” he said matter-of-factly to his older sister, clearly delighted with the chance to tell her off for once, instead of having it the other way around. He tried to imitate the scolding look his parents used on them when they got into trouble, and only half succeeded, resulting in fixing a rather comical expression on his baby-face. ”Aww, c’mere sweetheart,” Vega crooned sympathetically to Banji, flashing Vidown a teasing, but affectionate and amused smile as she held out her free hand to her daughter. ”You let her get away with running around indoors again?” she asked, raising an eyebrow in mock disapproval. Astarael, on the other hand, seemed completely unconcerned with the drama going on around him, and instead, chose to pounce on Vidown’s leg before scrambling up to vie with his older sister for ‘lap space’. Of the three children, he was the biggest, despite being the 'middle child', so he was careful not to jostle Banji too hard. After all, bodily pushing her off the chair would probably result in a timeout for him and more attention for her.

[MillietheWarrior]

Banji stuck her head around Vidown’s arm, sticking her tongue out at her brother. She was tempted to say ‘your not the boss of me!’ But he hadn’t actually tried to boss her around. So she settled for making a puffy-face at him, scrunching her nose up and baring her teeth. Her demeanor instantly changed when Vega reached out to her, and she instantly clung to her mother’s hand as she clamored up into the proffered arm, hugging Vega tightly around the neck and shooting scathing glances at her brother in her mother’s other arm. Vidown made a face remarkably similar to his daughters as he glanced at Vega, before he turned to wrap an arm around Astarael so he didn’t accidentally fall.

Bizby leapt down from Vidown’s lap as soon as Banji vacated it and stared plaintively up at the little girl form it’s spot at Vega’s feet, making small, discontent whining sounds. “I didn’t know she was running,” Vidown said with an amused smile, eyes crinkling slightly. He laid his forearm on the table around Astrael’s back so the child could lean against his arm and he could continue pouring over his documents. “But I made it all better,” he said, not looking up from where he was scribbling something on a piece of paper.

Banji wriggled in her mother’s arms, her incident with the chair seemingly all but forgotten in her mind. “Bizby wants to go outside and play,” she whispered conspiratorially; it was obvious it was she who wanted to go outside, but she felt that maybe if Bizby wanted to go to, there’d be a better chance of getting to go out and play. Vidown briefly glanced up, and flashed Vega a small smile, before he went back to his bank statements. Clearly that was a ‘this ones all yours’ look.

[15/28, 2, 2]