"Are we there yet?"
"No, not yet."
Silence fell upon the carriage, making the clunks and clanks of rocks hitting the bottom seem deafening.
The small voice piped up again. "What about now?"
A deep sigh sounded from the seat across from me. "No."
Silence.
"Yet?"
I rolled my eyes and turned away from the window. "No!"
And, at the same time I spoke, the man across from me groaned, "Argh!"
I glared at Brennen, who shrugged sheepishly. His hair was pulled back into a low hanging ponytail, neatly keeping it from his face.
A tiny sniffle drew my attention away from Brennen and to the child next to me. I bit my lip and gathered the boy into my arms. His curly blonde hair tickled my nose once I sat him in my lap.
"It's okay, Raul, Daddy's just being a pain."
"Like father like son," Brennen mumbled.
I shot a kick out in his direction, nailing him in the shin.
Raul's sister, a girl no older than two and a half, stretched out over the seat across from me.
"Why's it take sooooooooo--"
I stared at Brennen, still amazed at the child's capacity for such long holds of breath. He smirked and nudged the light-haired girl.
"--long to get to the castle?" she finished.
This time, Brennen was the one to smooth her straight hair. "Now, Lily, your Mother's just going to say that it's because I was stubborn and didn't want to live in a city or castle."
I opened my mouth to reply, but before I could, Brennen spoke for me. "It's completely true."
I smiled. "He's right."
"Why are we going there, again?" Raul questioned. The four-year-old climbed out of my lap and twisted to sit down across from me.
"We're going to go see your Uncle Joshua, Aunt Carol, and baby Era; Grandpa, and Uncle Camden." I propped my head up with my fist. "Uncle Camden hasn't seen you two since you were-- what?"
"Since Raul was two?" Brennen finished for me.
I tapped Lily's nose "He hasn't seen you at all! He's been busy ruling over Arium."
Arium was the name of the old Upper and Lower kingdoms combined. After Vadik's death over ten years before, Brennen became king for a short time--basically because he had the highest standing in society. It was more of a bed-rest ruling though because as soon as he was well enough to physically rule, he darted out.
His reasons were more than understandable. For over two-hundred years of his life, he was trapped behind the stone walls of a building, incapable of escaping.
He finally had freedom.
However, before he could leave, he had to appoint a new ruler. After hearing some of my suggestions, (my only suggestion) the person he chose was Camden.
Joshua didn't want the responsibility. I didn't. Brennen certainly didn't.
Although he was reluctant at first, Camden proved himself to be a strong leader. He was also an excellent negotiator.
"We've only been riding for a few minutes," I mumbled. No one heard me. The ride from our country home to the castle wasn't incredibly long, but for a two-year old and four-year old, it took forever.
I glanced at Brennen, who tickled Lily and Raul so much that they started squealing.
A smile formed on my face. Three years after we married--when he first found out that we were going to have a child--he panicked. Memories of his first marriage and how it ended surfaced to his mind every night, waking him up with screams in his throat. Always reluctant to let emotion roam free because of his time with Beast, he kept his concerns bottled up inside until one day, he broke and let it all go.
The day when he held his son in his arms.
I smirked and barely shook my head. For a kid named after one of the best men we'd known, he had a lot to live up to.
He took after his father. Same golden hair, same large eyes. Everything was the same, except for where Brennen's eyes were deep brown, Rail's were sparkling green.
Lily was next. She lived my to the innocent sound in her name, until she wanted something. Then she'd become an unstoppable mischievous machine. Her hair was my color--dark brown, her small eyes were the same color as her father's.
Someone slid next to me.
"Daddy!" Lily shrieked. "You're supposed to stay over here!"
Brennen widened his eyes in false surprise. "Really? I thought you and Raul were happy of there together. These seats are made to sit two" he pointed to the two children, the twisted his finger around to us. "And two. Not three and one."
I sat up. "Why don't you two tell stories?"
Raul bounded up to stand on the seat like he was declaring land captured. "Oh, oh! Tell us the never ending story!"
I squeezed Brennen's hand, giving him the go-ahead. A small grin formed on his face. "Once upon a time..."
I sat straight up and yelled along with the kids, "No!"
Peals of laughed twinkled from the opposite seat.
"Oh, so you don't want the one about the girl with the shoe," Brennen teased.
"No!"
"What about the one with the boy who found a way to the sky?"
"No!"
He bit back a chuckle and placed his hands over his face. "What about the man who sings and wears a mask?"
I answered for the kids that time. "Haha, no."
"The one about the girl who goes to a strange castle, Daddy."
Brennen met my eyes and grinned. "You know, you two heard that last night."
"So?"
I laid my head on my husband's shoulder and closed my eyes.
"Lily, you start it," Brennen said.
Lily's eyes sparkled. She opened her mouth and started spurting out the words to the story.
"A long time ago..."
I turned my daughter out and squeezed Brennen's hand.
"Didn't sleep well?" he whispered.
"Not at all," I replied. "Bad dreams."
He kissed to top of my head. "Dreams are just that--dreams."
"And nightmares are just our fears we need to face."
Brennen rubbed my arms, giving me unnecessary warmth. He leaned back, drawing most of his attention to the kids.
There are still nights where one of us wakes up in terror. Whether it be me with my dreams of fire, or Brennen with his dreams of blood, one of us needs the other.
But having someone to turn to in those times is comforting. Having the love of another is what we need.
Nightmares are nightmares. Daydreams are daydreams. They end, and life begins. Everyday.
I snuggled to Brennen more. "Are we there yet?" I whispered.
He laughed lightly. "We're only just beginning."
The kids fell silent; they probably fell asleep in the middle of my story. The only sound was the rocks hitting the bottom of the carriage.
It was nice--the silence. Very rare in my life.
A high voice piped up. "I gotta go to the bathroom."
"Me too."
So much for silence.
_______________________________________