Crossfire RP

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Dear Serena and Vincent,

I hope you guys are able to come to the party. Little Ava is growing so quickly. I cannot believe she is going to be a year old. It will be nice to see the boys again. They must be at least five now. Ava took her first steps for Mom the other day. She was tickled pink except for the fact it took place at the park. Of course the people ate it up. Mom still does not like the limelight at all. Sakura treats her like a little sister.

We just got back from Ells for a treaty negotiation. Lawrence was only there for support. I handled the whole thing. They are still upset about Nathaniel and Levi, but I was not rude to them. Speaking of they are in the process of adopting a little boy. Little Gwen is so adorable. She has brown hair and the greenest eyes. She is really outgoing and Nathaniel has to keep an eye on her sometimes.

Oh and congratulations! I cannot wait to give you more belly rubs. I hope for your sake your little one is a girl. How does it feel to be the only girl?

My the Goddess keep you safe until you come here, and I hope to see you soon.

Jasmine

Serena chuckles as they head off towards the offices upstairs. “I swear one day someone is going to get hurt.” She said as she shook her head. “I will see you at lunch Vincent.” She said. She gave him a kiss and headed off upstairs towards the offices to find her parents.

She sees Reginald hiding around a corner. He is only a year older then the twins. He is also their uncle. He looks up and sees Serena. “Serena, you’re here!” He said. He runs and jumps up on her as she coughs. He had knocked the breath out of her.

“Reginald, remember what mother and father said. You can’t be rough with be right now. Remember, I am pregnant.” Serena said. She hugged him however and sat him down. She couldn’t stay mad at her brother for long.

“I’m sorry.” Reginald said looking down.

“Jonathon and Samuel are around here if you want to find them and go play.” Serena said.

“Thanks!” He said. He then runs off to find the twins.

Iverson sticks his head out of his office and chuckles. “Did you bring the boys today?” He asked.

“Yes, Reginald just went to find them. I wanted to talk to you and mom about something.” Serena said.

Iverson opened his door to Serena and finds that her mother is already there. “Oh you are already here. Great; I received a letter from Jasmine the other day…”

“And you want to go to Ava’s party?” Iverson asked. “We were just talking about that.” He said.

~~

Brandon and Jasmine take turns getting ready as they watch Ava. They then get a diaper bag together and head down the stairs. “Should we eat breakfast here or catch it at your parent’s?” He asked.

They decided to eat breakfast with Lawrence and Junaluska. They meet them downstairs at the dining room. “Good morning.” Junaluska said. She kissed little Ava and smiled. “She is such a cutie.”

“We hate to eat and run but we have to get some things done today for the part next week.” Brandon said.

Kalista laughs. "So what did your envelope look like? Ours had a horse theme. Reginald loved it. I think we can swing all of us going. We will need two carriages of course. I know that Xavier will love to see the boys."

~~~~~~~~

Vincent love working with the recruits. He has them line up in teams and watches as they shoot the arrows. He makes the adjustments for them. He will do more in the one-on-one time.

~~~~~~~

Lawrence laughs. "Go right ahead, you did such a great job in Ells and deserve a break."

Jasmine gets the carriage ready for Ava and they walk to her parent's house. They are greeted by Daniel. "Mom, Dad, Jassy and Brandon are here with Ava. She is so adorable." He has grown up to be a good respectable 14 year old. He still has a lot of energy, but it is geared toward sports and athletics.

"Oh let me see my little granddaughter." Madeline calls from the kitchen. She appears next. Her red hair is mixed with more gray hair. Sakura is in her arms.

"Jassy!!" Sakura cheers. "I wanna play with Ava!!"

Serena smiled at her mother as she took a seat. “It was also a horse theme. The boys loved the picture on it and asked me to put it on their wall for them. I figured I would put it in a frame and put it up in the hall way for them.” She said. “It will be good to go see them. I know the two of you will be excited to see your grandchild.”

“We have so many, but she is so gorgeous with those little grey eyes of hers. I cannot wait till Brandon gets to that point in his life where he acted like Berenson did.” Iverson said chuckling. “Though I hope Audra brings Annaleigh. She is growing up to be so beautiful as well.”

“I’m sure they will father. It will be good to be in Moldova. I think it will be great. So can we put the kids in one carriage and us in another?” Serena asked playfully. She was almost half serious.

~~

Berenson comes around the corner after Sakura. He sighs thankfully. He has aged a little and gained some weight. Not only that, but his hair is now completely grey. Thankfully his body did not pain him with any aches and pains and he had slowed down very little. He walks over to Jasmine and kisses her forehead. “It is good to see you both this morning. Oh look at Sakura, she is so beautiful.” He said.

Brandon put his arm around Jasmine as he looked over at Daniel. He had grown into such a wonderful kid and he was thankful that he no longer wanted piggy back rides. “It is good to see all of you this morning. We have some final adjustments to make for Ava’s birthday party next week and thought we would stop by.”

Kalista smirks. "We can always do girls in one carriage and boys in the other one."

Iverson laughs. "I don't think that would work. Now maybe if one of the twins was a girl."

"You guys are welcome to spend the night. That way we can leave early. I know the trip to the Goddess Temple will be fun." Kalista says.

"We are going to the Goddess Temple YAY!!" Jonathon cheers.

"I don't like it. They got mad at me last time." Samuel pouts.

~~~~~~~~

"Excellent, actually we are expecting Nathaniel, Levi, and Gwyn in a little bit. He wants to let us have a taste test." Madeline picks up Ava. "She is going to be a heartbreaker. Just like her mommy, aren't you little sweetie."

Jasmine blushes. "I was not a heartbreaker, I was the ice queen remember. Did you guys need any help with the decorations?"

"No they are being sent up to the castle now." A male voice is heard.

Jasmine looks up and sees Thomas. She goes and hugs him. "When did you get in? I thought you couldn't come?"

"And miss my niece's first birthday? I wouldn't miss it for the world." Thomas returns the hug. "Now let me see that little girl."

“That’s because you broke a vase that I told you to be careful around.” Serena said pointing to Samuel. “If you are good they won’t be mad at you.”

“Yes melm.” Samuel said.

“We will start packing sense it will take a day to get that done. When will we leave?” Serena asked.

“The day after tomorrow, why don’t you take tomorrow off so you can make sure you get everything packed?” Iverson said.

“Sounds great, I will let Vincent know when we eat. We may head home and begin to pack today then.” Serena said.

“How long will it take us to get there?” Jonathon said.

“All day.” Serena said. “And you have to be a good boy, or daddy will tie you up.” She said with a smile.

“Really?” The boys said in unison.

~~

“Well I’m glad I broke your ice heart. If I hadn’t we wouldn’t be planning this little doll’s birthday.” Brandon said with a smile.

“Thomas got in yesterday. We decided to make it a surprise for you sense it was a last minute decision.” Berenson said as he walked over to Madeline. She handed Ava to Thomas and he put his arm around her. He still loved her like the day he met her.

“Is there anything we can help with? Or did all of you do it for us?” Brandon asked.

Levi came in carrying two big bags and Gwyn held the door open for Nathaniel. “Thank you Gwyn.” He said. “You are such a great little girl and so thoughtful.” He said. He looked up at Brandon and smiled as Nathaniel made it in behind him. “We have done most of it together so I think all that is left is for us to try the food out and then prepare the meal. Then you will need to walk though and make sure everything is perfect for your little girl.”

“Uncle Thomas!” Gwyn said. She ran over and hugged him and then hugged Sakura. “Hi Sakura, wanna go play?”

“Sure! When we get done, we can come back and play with Ava!” Sakura said as they ran off upstairs.

"You are always welcome to spend tomorrow night up here then. My days are all off, I thought we were leaving tomorrow. It will be nice to see Junaluska and Dad again." Kalista tells them. "Well I have a couple of things to do before we leave."

Samantha comes in all frazzled. "Someone better head out to the guards. The boys are trying to have a wrestling contest with them. I thought I was done with all of this when Lucas grew out of the phase."

~~~

Jasmine goes over and takes some of the bags from Nathaniel. "It is so nice to have the family together. I also invited Audra. I know she is going to have her hands full with Annaleigh and William."

"I cannot believe she has two kids already. Serena's pregnant again too. Our family keeps on growing." Madeline squeezes Berenson's hand.

Nathaniel looks over at Levi a little nervously. "How would you like one more?"

"Oh the adoption went through! I am so happy. Does Gwyn know?" Jasmine hugs Nathaniel. "So am I getting a niece or nephew?"

"Gwyn does know, she practically picked him out. His name is Sawyer Gavin and he is 2 months old. He has red hair and green eyes and the adoption will be final next week." Levi adds.

Thomas claps his back. "Good for you guys. Oh and I just started to see someone new too. Her name is Carrie, it is nothing serious yet. She is actually from Delton, but she comes down all the time."

“Why don’t we leave tomorrow then? That would be better.” Iverson said. He looks up as Samantha comes running in. “This is killing me…I never understood what you and Justin complained about or even Berenson and Madeline for that matter. Now I’m just like oh dear goddess, not again.” He said as he rushed out of the office.

Serena sighed and looked up at Samantha. “Please tell me that the boy’s haven’t hurt anyone.” She said looking a little pale as everyone rushes out of the room to get the boys. “I vote we leave tomorrow too so that we can get the guards a break from the boys.”

~~

Berenson looked up at Nathaniel. It had been hard for him to accept Gwyn at first but after seeing her for the first time, she had stolen his heart. He walks over and hugs Nathaniel. “It sounds like I will be getting a male form of your mother. Better watch out, they can get mean sometimes.” He said winking at Nathaniel.

Brandon chuckled and looked at Thomas. “Sounds like the whole family is getting larger.” He said. He smiled as he looked at Ava in Thomas’s arms. He loved his daughter and if she was the only child they had, he would be happy. If they had more he would also be happy. He would take his blessings and thank the goddess for them. “So how is it doing a long distance relationship?”

“Believe me; if it’s anything like Nathaniel’s relationship with me at first, it is hard.” Levi said.

They get outside and the guards are laughing. Vincent is on his stomach with all three boys crawling all over them. They are full of dirt stains. He looks up at Serena. "I rescued the guards, but now I need help." He has a big grin on his face though. "Iverson, you should use them as training tools for the guards."

~~~~~~~~~~

Everyone starts to help out with the food under Nathaniel guidance. They are having a Moldovon pig. Which means it will have to cook underground. The Lanes have the perfect place in their backyard for it.

Thomas takes Ava and enlists the girls to help him make some decorations. Sakura is already showing some talents towards sewing. Gwyn loves to help.

Jasmine looks over at Brandon. He has really come a long way from being the shy timid boy with no family. He is like one of the guys. The people love him as well. Some of the older ones ask him for his healing advice. She knows he loves it when they do.

Serena does a loud dramatic sigh. “What am I going to do with three boys? Mom, I hope this little one is a girl. I don’t know if I can handle being the only lady in the house.” She said with a smile. She looks over at the boys. “Boy’s, I think you have done enough damage today. Besides we need to go home and pack for Moldova sense we are leaving tomorrow.” She said with a big grin.

The boys start yelling and making war noises. “I didn’t say to make war! This is peace time boys and we are going to have a peaceful trip or I will make you ride on the top of the carriage.”

“Promise?” Iverson asked with a smile. He winked as he walked over and picked Reginald up off of Vincent. “Now, I want you boys to know that if you are bad at all during this trip that you will be grounded. This is Ava’s first birthday and we want to have a good time…not a wrestle with the guards to see who’s stronger event…understand?” He asked.

He sat Reginald down and all three boys stood up and stood in a row. “Yes sir.” They said in unison. He looks at the twins and then looks at Serena and Vincent. “I swear if Samuel didn’t have that scar on his face I wouldn’t be able to tell which one was which.”

~~

Brandon helps the guys set up for the Moldovan pig. He is enjoying himself as they work together. He looks up at Jasmine as they finish setting up and walks over to her. “A penny for your thoughts?” He asked as he put his arm around her.

Levi covers up the pig with loam so that it will cook as needed. He walks over to Nathaniel and smiles. “I think that is on and will be done in time for Ava’s birthday. Most of everything else is ready or will be ready by then.” He said going over a check list.

Berenson yawned and looked over at Madeline. “It will be good to have the whole family together again. I hope everyone can make it.” He turns around as Gwyn brings a piece of paper over to him.

“Grandpa, a guard bought this to the house and said to give it to one of the adults here.” She said. “What’s it say?”

Berenson reads it over and smiles. “The Watson’s and Sentali’s will be here and so will the Trommell’s for Ava’s party.” He said with a smile.

Vincent is a little slow getting up. He loves playing with the boys, but sometimes they can be rough. His back has healed up nicely. It is still prone to aching sometimes. "Scars are just physical badges of life. However boys, you will have to be good not only because there will be girls, but Daniel can beat all your butts. He will too if you hurt his sister or nieces."

"We will be good, but papa, I wanna sit with the driver. I think that will be fun." Jonathan says.

"No I wanna!!! I am older, so I should do it first." Samuel adds.

Kalista rolls her eyes at Iverson. He just had to bring that up. She looks over at Serena. "I am going to let you handle it, but I don't think the driver will be able to handle them both together."

"In order for anyone to ride with the driver, you will have to be really good until tomorrow. Then we will ask the driver as well. Now we need to go home, get cleaned up, and pack. We are spending the night at the castle." Vincent barks at the boys.

~~~~~~

"I was just thinking about how well you have adapted to everything. You are no longer the timid young man I met." Jasmine rests her head on his shoulder. "Well Lawrence and Junaluska will be happy, the castle will be full." Jasmine says after Berenson reads the note. "You guys may have to house some of the guests too."

"Well we have Nathaniel's room and the guest room downstairs as well. I know they will have plenty of room in the castle." Madeline assures them.

"Is anyone hungry for some lunch?" Nathaniel announces from the kitchen. It is set up family style on the long table. Sakura and Gwynn run to the bathroom followed by Ava.

"She is walking so good. I can't believe how big she has gotten. So Brandon, have you learned any archery yet? She is going to be a heartbreaker." Thomas winks.

Mallory laughs as she walks from the bathroom. "From the herd of girls I am assuming lunch is ready. The decorations are so pretty, I love the fact they are handmade."

Jacobi enters with Daniel. He is still dressed in his gi. He has a black belt now and helps out with the classes. "Wow it is a full house. Nat, the food smells so good. Jassy it is so nice to see you. I am going to get changed and I will be right back."

“Your father is right, if none of you are good than there will be no sitting on the top.” Iverson said.

The twins stand side by side and salute to their father and grandfather. “Yes sir!” They said.

Serena sighed and rolled her eyes as she looked at her mother. “I almost want to make dad ride with all three of the boys and put the three of us in a carriage together to keep our sanity going.” She said. “Alright boys, if you are not good tonight then I will let Daniel whoop you when we get to Moldova.” She said.

“Yes melm.” The boys said in unison. “Come on Samuel, lets race to see who will get to sit on the top first!” Jonathon said.

Serena looked at Vincent and walked over to him. She helped him to dust off a little and smiled. “It looks like you will need to clean up before we leave tonight. On the note of the boys racing, lets walk home and ride back tonight in the carriage.” She said.

~~

Brandon smiles as he rubs Jasmine’s back. “It’s been a long five years, but I have learned so much. I don’t think I could have done it without you.” He said kissing her forehead.

There was a chorus of ewws as both Sakura and Gwynn make it out of the bathroom. He chuckled as Thomas, Nathaniel and Levi joined in. “For a family full of guys, you sure do have the girls gaining on you.” Brandon said as he stuck his tongue out at the guys. He looked around for Ava. “Where did Ava go?”

Ava had walked up the stairs after seeing Daniel come in. She runs into his room as he takes off his pants. She squeals and runs over to him. “Sewpent! Sewpent! Danny!” She said as she started to hit Daniel between the legs.

"Sounds good to me. I love having boys, but sometimes it is exhausting. Now I feel sorry for my mom." Vincent kisses Serena forehead as they walk home.

Once they get there, he gets a bath started for the boys. "After they get cleaned up, it will be my turn. If you want to start packing, I will join you after I am done. Knowing the boys, I may get cleaned up while helping them."

~~~~~~~~~

Daniel's yells can be heard downstairs. "Brandon, you may want to handle this one." Jasmine turns to him. He disappears upstairs. She looks at the others. "Why do I have the feeling that I don't want to know what is going on?"

"Come on, it will be funny to tell her when she is older." Madeline smirks.

"You mistaken funny with embarrassing." Jasmine replies.

They get everyone situated at the table and wait for Brandon to come back.

Serena chuckled and nodded her head. “Sounds like a great idea. I may take a hot bath tonight at the castle. I’m sure the boys will stay with Reginald tonight like they do when they stay the night.” She said. She gives Vincent a kiss and then pulls out a suitcase for the boys.

She gets out their shorts and shirts and one nice outfit each for the birthday party. She then makes sure to pack a jacket for their return home just in case the boys need it. She then packs a few extra outfits and extra underclothes. Not only that, but their swimming trunks. She smiles and puts the suitcase by the door. She then passes the bathroom and cringes at the amount of water in the floor. Just one night she would like to see the boys take a bath and not have that much water in the floor.

She walks into her and Vincent’s bedroom and pulls out two suitcases, one for her and one for Vincent. She begins to pull out Vincent’s clothes for him and packs them. She then begins to pack her own. She finishes up and then sits down on the bed. She didn’t realize how tired she was. She lies back on the bed and closes her eyes.

~~

Brandon rushed up the stairs to see Daniel yelling in pain. His face flushes and he rushes over as Ava was about to hit Daniel again. “I think you have helped Daniel enough with his ‘serpent’ problem.” He said. “Daniel I am so sorry!” He said.

Daniel had tears coming out of his eyes. “Just…Just take….her…and go….” He said between gasps of air. He was in a ton of pain.

Brandon looked at Ava, you can’t just walk into someone’s bedroom baby, that’s a no no.”

Ava started crying as Brandon carried her down the stairs. “I save him fwom sewpent.” She said through her tears.

“And you did a wonderful job of that sweetie.” Brandon said as they made it to the dining room. “Now, let’s eat and Daniel will be with us in a while.” Brandon then told everyone about the ‘serpent’ incident upstairs before Daniel came down to join them.

Vincent sighs and sends the boy to their rooms to get dressed. He cleans up the bathroom and checks on Serena. He sees that she is asleep. He kisses her forehead and goes back to the boys. "I need you guys to play quietly for a little while. While mom is sleeping."

Jonathan salutes. "OK Daddy, I bet I can be quieter than you."

"Nuh uh." Samuel answers. He covers his mouth.

Vincent shakes his head and hopes it lasts long enough for him to take a shower.

~~~~~~~~~

Jasmine covers her mouth when Brandon explains what happened. "I guess what goes around comes around, but poor guy. He is going to be so embarrassed." Jasmine takes a sniffling Ava. "Everything is alright, but you have to respect people's rooms."

Madeline and Mallory walk from the room. Laughter is heard drifting in. Jacobi looks over at Berenson. "You may have to talk to him. Tell him that Ava didn't know what she was doing."

"It is like when he walked in on Levi and I the first time." Nathaniel has a smirk on his face.

The boys stay quiet for a while until their quiet game turns into an all-out brawl. “Dang it Jonathan, you pushed me and made me loose. You cheater!” Samuel said pushing Jonathan down.

“Hey, that hurt!” Jonathan yelped. He hits his brother and in just a few minutes they are both going at it, kicking and hitting each other while yelling.

Serena hears the fight and it takes her a moment to wake up. She sighs and sits up. She then slowly walks out of the bedroom and into the bedroom the boys are playing in. She walks over and tears them apart from one another. They both look up at her ashamed. “Sorry mommy.” They said in unison.

“Sorry isn’t good enough this time.” Serena said. “I want each of you to stand in the corner for five minutes. When I tell you that time is up, you will both clean up this room and the room next door. Understand?” She asked. “This also means that neither of you get to ride on top of the carriage on the way to Moldova.”

“Aww man.” The boys said.

~~

Berenson chuckled. “I will go check on him and make sure he is alright. His pride is probably hurt more than the wound.” He said.

Berenson headed upstairs and Brandon looked at Nathaniel. “Poor guy didn’t understand at all. I didn’t think he would ever get that image out of his mind.” He said with a chuckle.

Berenson knocked on Daniel’s door. “Who is it?” He asked.

“It’s your father.” Berenson said. Daniel opened the door and looked at Berenson. He looked like he hurt and a little swollen between the legs.

“Did little Ava do any damage?” Berenson asked. “You know she didn’t mean any harm, you understand that right?”

“I know she didn’t, she’s so little I’m sure she doesn’t understand anything of what she saw. I just didn’t think she would run in here like that. Even Sakura doesn’t run into the bedroom like that and she never really did.” Daniel said.

“Remember, she is an only child. She’s not like you or the rest of your brothers or sisters. She doesn’t have to respect space at this time. Give her some time and she will understand. I know they both just talked to her about that so hopefully she won’t do it again.” Berenson. “Now, why don’t you get ready and come down to eat.”

“Yes sir.” Daniel said. He finishes getting ready, and both he and Berenson head down stairs to eat with the family. They walk over to the table and everyone hides their laughter for the time. Madeline had asked them all to be nice and to respect Daniel at the time.

They take their seats and dinner begins.

Vincent finishes his shower. He is expecting to see Serena in the room, but she is gone. He gets dressed and leaves the room. He hears her from the boys room and sighs. It was not even that long that he left them. "Your mother is right. After you are done cleaning we will head up to the castle."

He then kisses Serena. "Thank you for packing the bags. You did a good job. Too bad it is not during the solstice, or I would pack the outfit." He winks at her. "I don't want to hear any noise for 5 minutes or we will leave your with Grandma and Grandpa Watson."

~~~~~~~~~~

Ava looks at Daniel. "I sowwy." She gives him her puppy dog eyes.

Daniel melts and gives her a big hug. "It is alright, but no going into room that have the door closed."

Jasmine smiles at him. "We are already immune to the puppy dog eyes. Although it is easier for me than Brandon."

"It still works on Berenson. The color of the eyes do not matter." Madeline discloses. Sakura blinks her eyes at that time and smiles.

"We will bring everything up to the castle and get the outdoor plaza set up tomorrow. The others should be coming the next day, but not until later. Traveling with kids will slow them down a little." Mallory tells them. "Nathaniel, the food is great and will be better tomorrow."

Serena hears the boys go aww in unison as she walks out of their room. She walks downstairs and sits down in the rocking chair and looks up as Vincent walks down the stairs. “I don’t know how your mom did it. I love them, but they can be so frustrating sometimes.” She said with a sigh. She yawned and looked up at their baby pictures on the wall.

“I can’t wait to add our new addition to the wall.” She said.

~~

Berenson looked at Brandon. “I can’t help it…I have tried to become immune but I can’t. They are just too beautiful.” He said with a chuckle. He looks over at Nathaniel and nodded his head. “I agree with Mallory, this is so wonderful and I bet the rest of the family will enjoy it tomorrow, including that pig.” He said pointing towards the back yard.

Brandon took a sip of drink to wash the food down with. “I swear sometimes I think your cooking can’t get better and then I taste another dish.” He said with a smile. “I think this will be perfect for tomorrow.”

Levi looked up as he finished his plate. “I’m surprised I’m not fat. I mean look at what this man feeds me!” He said jokingly.

Berenson looked over at Mallory. “It will be good to see everyone. It’s been a long time sense we have all been together at one time like that. Usually we are all separated.”

Vincent sits down next to Serena. "In order to get a proper picture, we will have to go to Moldova with the family." He begins to rub Serena's back when there is a knock on the door. Vincent gets up and goes to the door. It is the carriage. The guards grab the bags to put them on the carriage. "Give us a few minutes, we have some boys in time out." The guards chuckle as they pack up the bags. Vincent sits back down and rubs Serena's shoulders again.

~~~~~~~~

"Well I bet little Gywn keeps you active. The new arrival will just add to that." Jasmine winks at Levi. "Besides you are eating good things.

"I cannot wait to see Kalista to trade stories. I have only seen William once as well." Madeline adds.

Ava takes a taste of something and her face scrunches. She looks around as if determining if she likes the new flavor. "Mmmm...yummy." She finally states.

Mallory laughs. "That reminds me of when she first tried lowanberries. There you go Nathaniel, you have Ava's seal of approval."

Serena sighs as Vincent rubs her back. “That feels so good.” She said as she closed her eyes. If time out is finished then we should get the boys and head up to the castle. I want to be able to get some good rest tonight before we leave tomorrow.” She said.

Vincent headed upstairs and checks on the boys. A few minutes later he comes back down with them and they begin to head out to the carriage. They are loaded up and begin to head for the castle.

“Did you boy’s learn anything today?” Serena asked.

“Not to beat each other up when we are playing a game.” Samuel said.

~~

“I’m certain that Kalista will be able to swap stories with you, though now she may understand what it is like to have a lot of boys at one time.” Berenson said chuckling. “Iverson always did say he never understood why the Watson’s and we were always disheveled.”

Brandon looked over at Ava and smiled. “She is always finding something new to taste on. She does seem to like more then she dislikes.” He said as he looked over at Jasmine. “She is going to sleep so well tonight I hope.” He said.

“She is going to need a nap before then. Good luck with that though, it looks like she wants to stay up and not go to bed.” Daniel said.

The guards meet them at the castle and helps with their bags. Vincent tells them what needs to be brought upstairs and what can go on the other carriage. "Maybe we should have all the boys together for a slumber party." He leans to Serena. "That way we are assured to get some sleep."

~~~~~~~

"It is fine, it just means she will sleep late tomorrow." Jasmine tells them. "I don't think she is going to fall asleep with everyone around."

"She takes after her mother I see." Madeline winks. "I hope she is a personable as her mom is too."

"Well she loves Ms. Mitchell if that says anything." Jasmine adds.

"That woman is still working. I don't think she will ever retire." Thomas shakes her head. "It was awful, we couldn't get away with anything without her knowing about it."

Serena nodded her head. "If we are lucky they will stay up all night a d sleep all day." She whispered as they watched the boys. "I don't know if I can handle them being confined like that. Remember the trip to Altier to see William when he was born? I wasn't even Pregnant then." She said chuckling.

~~

"She still gets me every time! I swear I will never understand that woman." Brandon said as they began to clean up the table. "I Think everything will be perfect for her birthday. I can't believe my little girl is a year old."

Berenson put his hand on his shoulder. "Now just remember, that's my granddaughter and I love her too. Do you understand how I feel now?"

Jasmine sighs. "Speaking of, I think we should get this little girl home. I want her to get some sleep. Tomorrow we are going to be even busier with the final set up. It is incredible all the gifts she is receiving."

Madeline gets a smirk on her face. "She can always spend the night here. That way you guys can get everything done. We can keep Gwyn too. It can be a girls night."

Jasmine looks over at Berenson. She has her perfected doe like eyes. "Daddy, that would be perfect. Brandon and I can have a mini date night as well."

~~~~~~~~~~~~

They get upstairs to the royal wing. The boys run ahead and pound on Reginald's door. "Daddy said we can sleep in your room tonight."

"I said we can ask grandma and grandpa if they would allow it." Vincent clarifies.

Kalista hears the pounding and opens the door. "If they were older, I would send them to the playroom. Yes they can sleep in the same room. If they make a mess the servants can clean it up."

Brandon looks at Ava and then at Jasmine. It's been a while sense they had a date night alone. At the same time he was more nervous about Ava being away from them.

Jasmine has those doe eyes and it breaks him down. "You know I can't say no to those eyes. I think we could use an evening to ourselves anyways."
He looked over at Madeline and Berenson.

"Don't even say it Brandon, take your wife and enjoy the evening. We are going to take great care of Ava." Berenson said.

~~

"Thank you so much mother. I cannot thank you enough for that." Serena said. The boys head I to Reginald's room and Serena walked into the room with Vincent. "Just you and me tonight. Do you think I could have some much needed cuddle time with you?" Serena asked as she gave her puppydog eyesto Vincent.

Jasmine jumps up. "Thank you so much guys. Brandon, don't worry you have more adults per kids here remember grandma and grandpa will be here as well as Thomas." She kisses Berenson and Madeline. "Thank you so much. Now let's go Brandon." She goes over to Ava. "You be good for grandma and we will see you tomorrow."

~~~~~~~~~~

Vincent smiles. "I think I can help you with some cuddle time. I would not argue if it goes a little farther as well." He opens the door for her and lets her enter first. He goes to the fireplace and starts the fire. "Why don't you get comfortable?"

Brandon walked over to Ava and kissed her cheek. "You be good and mommy and daddy will see you tomorrow." He said. He then walks with Jasmine to the door and they leave.

"She will be alright with your family, they know what they are doing." He said. He then leans over and kisses Had. "I can't remember the last time we were alone."

~~

Serena smiled at Vincent. She then goes to get ready for bed. She puts on a satin night gown and then walks into the bedroom from the bathroom. She sits down on the bed and looks over at Vincent. "I'm ready for my knight in shining armor." She said batting her eyes at him.