The Unexpected Journey Part Two

Chapter 10

From the mild, misty trip to Scotland in June, the Sussexes travels took them to lush lands of Nepal in July. This trip was scheduled to be a whirlwind, taking the young family across the countryside; from the city of Kathmandu to small rural villages. Their itineraries were rich with events for both the adults and the children. Neither Harry nor Andrew were disappointed in the images that came out of this particular leg of the Jubilee Celebrations.

It was warm and beautiful and fun and so incredibly touching. There were moments for just Maddie and Harry, moments for the children and moments meant for the entire Sussex Clan.

They were quite the scene, arriving at Tribhuvan Airport in Kathmandu. With Harry smiling wide and Maddie walking tall next to him, they looked young and refreshed and genuinely happy to be bringing their slew of children to this beautiful country. As onlookers waved and snapped photos, Lilli's professional side kicked in and, watching her father closely, she mimicked his actions. Bringing her palms together in front of her chest, she gave a warm smile and a soft nod of her head.

And just like that, Andrew had his first priceless snapshot of the trip.

As all of her younger brothers followed suit, copying their sister as best they could, he was handed his next.

Their first day was spent meeting and greeting and getting settled into the hotel suite where they would be stationed for the trip. Though Maddie and Harry would be trekking into a hamlet in the hills where they would spend a night with a family at a Gurkha homestay, the children would be staying behind with the nannies.

It was late when Maddie and Harry returned from their reception hosted by Foreign Minister Kamal Thapa but the children, recovering from the flight, from the jetlag, were still up, still riled and unable to settle. With a shared look of bemusement, they had a quick silent conversation between them and split up. Dismissing the nannies for the night, it was time to divide and conquer.

Harry, tugging off his tie and rolling up his sleeves, made way for the two older children, knowing Lilli would be easier, he mentally prepared himself for the convincing it was going to take to get Ollie to remove his magician's cape long enough for a bath. Maddie, slipping out of her heels and pulling up her hair, went for the younger two; Malcolm, usually the most unwilling in the group, was at least ready to play in the bathtub. And poor Oscar, suffering from a few stubborn teeth that chose now to try to break through his gums.

After dressing Malcolm for bed, Maddie crawled in next to him with Oscar in her arms. As the baby gnawed on the knuckle of her finger, apparently the only thing he thought would bring relief, she read a book to the boys while Malcolm proudly assisted in the turning of pages. Not too far away, Harry had managed to wrangle the other two. After promising Ollie he could put the cape back on when they visited the hospital (a visit for which he had prepared magic tricks), the young boy climbed into the bathtub after his sister and Harry went to put Lilli in bed.

"Come on darling," Harry sat down and the bed and drew back the blankets.

Crawling into her daddy's lap, Lilli let out a sigh and ran her hand absentmindedly up and down over her father's beard, a motion that comforted her and amused him. "Daddy..." Her voice was soft as she settled back against his chest.

"Yes Lilli-bean?" He smiled down at his daughter, who seemed lost in deep thought.

"Can I tell you a secret?" Her wide eyes looked up to him with such trust that it warmed his heart.

"Sure thing love. What's up?"

"I miss Buckie." It was so soft, nearly a whisper, but it was clear.

"Buckie Bishop?" Harry adjusted on the bed, his eyes widening just a bit. "Aw honey. You miss Buckie?"