Next Generation

Chapter Two

Tianna knew she was sulking and that it was completely unbefitting of a princess but she couldn't find it in herself to care.

A soft knock on her bedroom door echoed in the silence before Jaik's head popped inside just enough to see Tianna spread across her bed, staring vacantly up at the ceiling. He would've assumed she'd fallen asleep with her eyes open if it wasn't for the fact that all the plants in her room were changing from their normal green to all different shades of blue and back again.

Pushing the door open further, Jaik dared to venture into the room and take a seat on the bed by Tianna's extended left wing. The movement pulled Tianna from her trance-like state.

"You know," Jaik stated, smiling down at his daughter, "this isn't even as bad as you're making it out to seem."

Her response was to huff an overly dramatic sigh and roll over onto her stomach.

"We're only going to be gone for a few weeks at most, and Aunt Hannah and Aunt Josephine will be back from their holiday next weekend so you won't be completely alone."

"It's still more alone than I should be." Tianna grumbled into her mattress, forcing all the plants in her room to go suddenly from aqua to black to match her mood.

If anyone had ever needed proof that Tianna was truly Jaik's daughter, all they had to do was put her in a room with plants while she was feeling particularly moody and watch as instead of glowing to show her emotions, she changed all the colours of the plants to.

"Do you have to go too? Can't just one of you go and the other stay here?" One of her blue eyes was open and staring up at him expectantly.

"Not this time sweetheart." Jaik smiled sadly when Tianna reburied her face into the comforter. "Under normal circumstances you'd be able to come along with us but I'm not going to put you in that situation." Not so long as he had a say in it at least. On this subject, Sam could go be damned for all Jaik cared. He was absolutely not going to let his eldest and only daughter travel to a waring country just to learn the politics of it. They were perfectly capable of teaching her such things here in the safety of their home.

Tianna let out a steady string of muffled curse words forever thankful that her father wouldn't be able to make out most of them or else she might end up grounded from the moment there was someone home to enforce it.

"Did you want to go stay with Nana and Poppa?" Jaik ran a hand up between her wings, scratching at the top point of where the wing joined her back. He was rewarded with the sight of all the plants turning back to their natural colours. "I'm sure Rose won't mind sharing her bedroom."

Tianna sighed again, reluctantly pushing herself up into a sitting position - she wouldn't admit it but rubbing her back like that always calmed her down from even the worst moods.

"No. No, I can stay here." She fiddled with the hem of her shirt before her blue eyes locked onto Jaik's. "You're going to miss my fourteenth birthday."

If it wasn't for the fact that Jaik was looking her directly in the eye, he might've missed the hurt behind her nonchalance.

Jaik was acutely aware that he would be missing her birthday, he'd argued with Sam until he was glowing red about staying home for Tianna.

Ultimately, the state of a country was deemed more important than the fourteenth birthday of the royal heir to New South Wales Mera Territory.

"All of you are." She sniffed quietly.

Her eyes averted, focusing on the potted amaryllis that Sammy and John had helped her plant the week before.

Jaik pulled her into a hug, glowing a bright blue.

Since becoming king with Sam, he'd rarely found a moment when one of them couldn't think of something to say in a situation or find a way to handle a problem.

When dealing with Tianna, neither of them could really understand where the best angle to come from was.

"I'm sure you'll think of some way for us to make it up to you."

While he and Sam were in New Zealand sorting out the mess between the tribal leaders, all their children would be spending some quality time with their mothers.

All of them but one.

He'd tried getting in contact with Lyra about watching Tianna and celebrating her birthday with her but the second he'd even mentioned Tianna's name, Lyra had shut down and refused to speak until the subject was changed.

It almost made him want to hit some sense into her. Almost.

"If I bring you back a pretty dress from New Zealand, can I be forgiven?"

"Two. And only if they're really pretty." Tianna smiled into his shirt.

Easing out of the hug, she found herself feeling a lot better than she had been when Delilah had excitedly run through the house this morning, shouting about how they were all going to live with their mums for a few weeks.

"And I want a new plant for my room, I still don't have any Dionaea muscipula."

"Can't you just call them Venus flytraps like everyone else?" Jaik laughed, ruffling her hair.

She shook her head in a negative which only caused him to laugh more.

"Okay so a Venus flytrap and two dresses." She smiled up at him and he was glad for his decision to risk coming into her room.

~

"Sam! We're going to be late." Jaik's voice had this strange ability to be heard throughout the entire house no matter where he was - maybe constantly yelling at six kids does that to one's voice.

Sam rolled his eyes which earned him a giggle from Tianna.

"Never tell your Dad I just rolled my eyes at him." He warned jokingly and she nodded conspiratorially. "Okay, while we are gone if anything happens-"

"Go speak to Alexander and he will send a message to you and you will be able to get back within the day. I know the drill. Believe it or not, I'm actually fourteen in two weeks, not four."

Some days Sam really hated how much time Tianna spent around Alin's family, and he absolutely would never tell Jaik that he was secretly glad that Alin and his family were away in America until after they got back from New Zealand.

"I'm pretty sure if you don't leave soon, Dad is going to come and physically drag you out the front door."

"I'd like to see him try." Sam laughed. He gave Tianna a quick kiss on top of her head to which she poked her tongue out at him.

"Love you Dada." She called out after him.

Even after Jill, Jason and Delilah, there was a certain pride in the fact that Tianna, John and Samson all called him 'Dada'.

It was especially amazing when Tianna would say it, after years of her refusing to call him anything other than 'Sam'...

Just as he was about to close the front door behind him, a whirl of dark ginger hair and pink scales appeared, holding the door open just enough for Tianna to look between her dads.

"And I swear if you forget to get me at least one dress I will personally overthrow you, take the throne as Queen and have you beheaded." Sam stared steadily into her blue eyes, feeling the truth to her words more than he liked. "Have fun, bye!"

As quickly as she had appeared, she was gone again with a quick smile.

"Have I ever told you that your daughter is terrifying?"

Jaik nearly doubled over laughing.