Crossfire RP

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 finished reading her letter from Jasmine. They were able to see each other a few times a year, but they stayed so busy now. It was wonderful to hear from her. She hears a crash from the hallway and sighs as she stands up from her desk.

“Jonathan, Samuel, what have I told you about being careful while playing” Serena said as she opened the door. Her eyes widened as she sees her dad in the hallway in the floor. “Oh goddess, I am sorry father, what did the boys do this time?” She said.

Iverson chuckled as he dusted off his pants. “Surprisingly it wasn’t them this time. The boys are actually downstairs in the kitchen with Samantha doing some baking.” He explained. “I was reading a telegram from Lawrence and wasn’t watching where I was going and walked into the ball in the floor. I fell and landed against this statue.” He said.

Serena chuckled. “Well I am about to grab the boys and meet Vincent. We are going to head home and talk.” She then tells her father about the party for Ava. They talk for a little while longer and then she heads down stairs to the kitchen.

She walks in and flower is everywhere. She coughs as she walks over. “What in the world?” She said. She sees Vincent and she chuckles. “I think all of you are having too much fun.”

“Mommy look, we awe making apple pies.” Jonathon said as he tried to pick up the tray.

~~

Brandon was holding his little girl in his arms. Both he and Jasmine had taken the day off from work to spend it with Ava. He was in love with his daughter just as much as he was in love with his wife. He took Jasmine’s hand as they walked. “Do you think they will come next week? It’s been a few months sense we have we have seen them. I do miss them. They haven’t seen Ava but twice sense she was born. They will hardly know what she looks like.” He said.

They had stopped at one of the stalls in the market place. He was looking at some of the toys when Ava began reaching for a plush horse toy. “Do you like this one?” He asked. Brandon looked at Jasmine. “I think she loves horses. She always reaches for them when we are out.” He said.

Brandon had finished his military training last spring but continued to work closely with the military. He disliked the thought of killing but healing was more of his thing. He did study to keep up with his healing so that if it was needed on the field he could lend a helping hand. While he had been out on one of the trips to collect wild horses, he had caught one that had become his. He had thought about giving it to Ava for her birthday. She was a beautiful mare with black and white paint markings. He knew she wouldn’t understand now, but in a few years she would.

"Mom is making some pies and the boys were helping." Vincent goes over and kisses Serena.

Samuel is licking the bowl. "Dis is yummy, Mommy."

"Oh hello Serena, I hope you had a wonderful day. I love spending time with the boys. They are so much fun. Now be careful Jonathan. I will send a pie home with you guys." Samantha puts one of the pies in the oven. "There now Karl can take care of the rest."

"Thanks Mom, boys want to go home?" Vincent asks.

The boys cheer and get up from their chairs. "Thank you gwandma, we had fun." The boys say in unison.

Vincent lifts both boys up and carries them out of the room.

~~~~~~~

"If I know Kalista, nothing will stop her and Iverson. She loves all her grandchildren. I wrote a letter to Serena and Vincent about a week ago. She should be receiving it any time." Jasmine tickles Ava.

Jasmine picks up the horse plush. "I want to get this for her." Ava giggles as she takes the plush. "I cannot wait for her birthday, you don't think we are spoiling her do you?" She looks down at her daughter. She is truly a blessing. She was worried that she would never have children, but now she is here with Brandon and Ava.

Serena smiles as Vincent picks the boys up. He was such a wonderful father to them. “I’m sure that pie will go wonderful with dinner tonight.” She said as she takes the pie. “Thank you for the pie Samantha.” She said.

Vincent carries the boy’s out of the kitchen. They head outside of the castle and Serena smiles as she stretches some. “Why don’t we walk home tonight? It is a pleasant evening for a spring night.” She said as they begin to walk out into the gardens. She looked up at Vincent. “I just got a letter from Jasmine today. I think we should go for Ava’s birthday. She will be a year old. We can take the boys with us and go as family.”

~~

“That is great news. I would love to see all of them.” Brandon said as Ava squealed with delight. “I hate to think we are spoiling her, but she is such a blessing for us.” He had thought for at least a year that they would never have a child. He wondered if he had been sterile at one point and was about to have himself tested when Jasmine became pregnant. He could not love her any more than he did.

“I can’t believe she will be a year old next week. I love you both so much.”

"We will have to talk to your parents first, but I don't see why not. Jasmine or Brandon may have sent them a separate letter." Vincent walks with the boys. "I know they travel really well too. They really enjoyed seeing Annaleigh."

They arrive at the house and Leigh Ann is setting the table. "Good evening guys. How were the boys?"

"Lee, Lee, we made a pie." Jonathan excitedly points at Serena.

Leigh Ann takes the pie from Serena.. "Wow this looks like a good pie. Should I bake it for dessert?"

"Ohhh yummy. Pie...Pie...Pie." Samuel chants and stomps around.

"Not until after your dinner. They had Mom's help with the pie, so it should be good." Vincent chuckles.

~~~~~~~

They continue to walk along the marketplace. "I have an idea, why don't we have a picnic dinner at the park? Does Ava want to go to park?" Ava is too entranced with the stuffed horse to answer.

"Oh there is the precious Princess." Ms. Mitchell bellows. "Come over here so I can see that cutie pie." Jasmine smiles and pulls Brandon over. He never totally got over his discomfort of her. "She is so beautiful. The perfect mixture of the two of you. With her blonde hair and grey eyes. Oh it is getting close to dinner time. I have some meatball subs ready and some lovely sauce for little Ava."

"That would be lovely Ms. Mitchell. However I insist on paying this time." Jasmine tells her.

Ms. Mitchell rolls her eyes. "Fine give me the money first and I will get your basket ready."

“Thanks for putting the pie in the oven. That will be good for later.” Serena said. She looks over at Vincent as Leigh Ann has the boys set the table. “They are so well mannered, but at the same time chaotic. I wonder if this is what it was like in your house as a child, for that matter the Lanes.” She said chuckling. “I can talk with them tomorrow and see what they say. I know dad had just received a telegram from grandfather when I was leaving my office.” She said.

Jonathon looks at Samuel and smiles. He walks over and whispers in his ear and they begin to giggle. Serena arches her eyebrow as she looks at the boys. “I wonder what they are up too.” She said.

~~

Brandon shakes his head as Ms. Mitchell gave them the basket of food. Jasmine had paid for it and they left. “I don’t know what it is about that woman, but I just can’t bring myself to love her as much as you do.” He said chuckling.

They headed to the park and Brandon puts Ava down so that she can walk. “She is doing so great at walking. She can go too.” He said with a chuckle. He takes Jasmine’s hand as they walk, following behind Ava. When she plops down under a tree, Brandon laughed. “I think this is a perfect place for a picnic too Ava. What do you think Jasmine?” He asked.

"They are doing that freaky twin thing that Jasmine and Nathaniel used to." Vincent tells Serena. "It is a good thing our cousins were twins, or we would never understand it." He smiles at the boys. "Do you guys want to go to Moldova?"

"Is dat where it is warm all da time?" Jonathon asks.

"Yes it is, you can see your cousins and see great grandma and grandpa." Vincent answers.

"We can play in the sand." Samuel cheers.

"All you have to do is tell grandpa Iverson how much you want to go." Vincent winks. "There we can almost pack our bags." He whispers in Serena's ear.

~~~~

"This is a perfect spot. She is getting so strong. We will really have to watch her now." Jasmine crawls after Ava. "I am going to get you."

Ava squeals and goes to Jasmine. She still has to be careful with her shoulder, but has come a long way from before. She cannot shoot her bow, and is limited with her playtime with Ava. She loves what she can do.

She grabs Ava with her good arm and places her on her hip. "Let's get some food." She brings Ava to the basket and opens it. On the top is an envelope with the money in it. "Ms. Mitchell is crazy you know that."

Serena crossed her arms and chuckled. "I can't wait to go either. I want to get all of my traveling done now before I get to far into this pregnancy. I hated traveling there towards the end." She said scrunching her nose.

"Dinner is done." Leigh Anne called from the kitchen. The boys ran to the bathroom to wash their hands and faces. Serena walked over and took her seat as Leigh Anne took the pie out of the oven.

"Oh wow, that smells really great." Serena said.

"Mommy, can I have ice cweam with my pie?" Jonathan asked.

"Oh me too, me too!" Samuel said.

~~

Brandon nodded his head in a dramatic fashion. "Oh yes, I know. She always was and always will be." He said chuckling. He sat down and helped Jasmine pull the food out. "The one good thing I can say is that she does make great food." Brandon said with a smile.

"You have to eat dinner first, then you can have a little bit of ice cream with your pie." Vincent get them seated. The boys dig in and begin to eat. Vincent pulls out the chair for Serena. "Thank you Leigh Ann. We are going to Moldova to celebrate Ava's birthday."

~~~~

Ava is sitting in between Jasmine and Brandon. Jasmine feeds her the tomato sauce that Ms. Mitchell provided. "She is going to be food spoiled. Between the cooks at the castle, Nathaniel, and Ms. Mitchell. I cannot wait until she sees her birthday present. I think she may be a little young to appreciate it fully. However it will show her how to appreciate animals. I still cannot believe that you were able to tame the horse. I am so proud of you."

The boys squealed with delight as they listened to their father. "You have to finish everything on your plate though." Serena said.

"Yes melm." The boys said in unison.

Leigh Anne chuckled. "The boys will enjoy that, and so will I. I need a mini vacation every now and again." She said with a smile. "I love them to death, but they are a handful sometimes."

~~

Brandon swallowed his bite. "I didn't think I was ever going to get her broke in. The guys kept cheering me on though and I finally did it. It makes me feel good to know you are proud of me." He said.

"I think she will grow up to love the horse. I never did give her a name. What do you think we should call her?"

"You can be honest. They are a handful all the time. And now that Serena is pregnant again, we are going to need even more help." Vincent rubs Serena's back. "I hope this one goes better than the last one."

~~~~~

"Ohh you are going to let me name her? Hmmm, no flower names. How about Auburn Sunset?" Jasmine feeds Ava another bite. "She loves eating fresh vegetables. I hope to hear from the others soon. You are going to have a big party!"

“This pregnancy is already easier than the last one; the morning sickness is nowhere near where it was.” Serena said with a smile. She takes a sip of juice at the table and takes a deep breath. “As long as the boy’s do their best to help mommy than everything will be just fine.” She said. “It will be good to see Jasmine and Brandon. I can’t wait to see little Ava.”

Leigh Anne smiled. “I hope you have a little girl, she would be so cute.” She said as she begins to get her things together. “I will see you tomorrow, you boys be good now.” She said.

“Night Lee Lee!” the boys said.

~~

“I’m certain everyone will be here. I love that name for the mare. She is so beautiful, just like Ava.” Brandon said with a smile. He kissed Jasmine gently and Ava reached up at them with her hands. “Oh, I love you too, Ava.” Brandon said with a chuckle.

Vincent gets up and serves small pieces of the pie to the boys with some ice cream. He get bigger pieces for Serena and himself. "Boys this pie is so good. I think we need to hide them from Nathaniel."

~~~~~~~

Jasmine hand Ava to Brandon and begins to eat herself. "I think everyone is going to party with us when Ava turns one. You are doing a great job handling the people as well. I know they want to know everything about her."

Serena accepts the pie but turns down the ice cream. She takes a bite and her eyes roll back. “This is so good. You boys are such great pie makers. I think they are better than Nathaniel’s.” She said.

Jonathon gasped as he looked at Samuel. “You heaw that Samuel? We are bettew pie makews then Uncle Nate!”

“I can’t wait to tell him we is bettew then him.” Samuel said.

“We are better, not we is better.” Serena said with a sigh. She was glad they would be starting classes soon. Teaching was hard work. “When we get back from Moldova they should be ready to start classes, at least the basic ones. Are you boys ready for bed?”

~~

Brandon tickles Ava’s chin. She giggles at him and he kissed her cheek. “It took a while to learn how to deal with them, but I think the military training actually helped. Not only that but having to do public speaking has made it easy to handle then as well. It helps that you are here with me as well.” He said winking at Jasmine. “I had a hard time with Ava in the public eye at first, but now I know it is the difference of having her understand the people as well as you do or being as behind as I am.”

"Go upstairs, wash your hands and brush your teeth. Then get into your pajamas, we will read you a story after that." Vincent tells the boys. They run upstairs to get ready. "I will wash the dishes, you can make sure they get ready. I want to read their story tonight."

~~~~~~~~

"Having my family helps too. Everyone loves Sakura and Gwyn. Oh I think I saw Daniel talking with a young lady." Jasmine winks at Brandon. "I am not sure if she is going to be a girl friend or a girlfriend."

Serena gives Vincent a kiss and smiles. “Sounds good, I will see you upstairs when you get done.” She said.

She heads upstairs and hears giggling coming from the bathroom. Serena cracks the door and smiles as she watches the boys. She could only shake her head and sigh however as she looked down at the floor. They had been brushing their teeth and trying to figure out who was doing it better, but they had been playing with the water and made a mess when they washed their hands.

“Alright boys, time to finish brushing your teeth. Then I want you to clean up the mess you made in the floor.” Serena said. There was a chorus of uhhh coming from the boys but they did as they were told. “Good job¸ I am proud of you.” She said.

They head into Jonathon’s room where most nights the boys fell asleep together. They had two different rooms but they preferred to always be together. Serena had always wondered if Jasmine and Nathaniel had done the same when they were younger. “Get your night clothes and change. Your father will be up soon to tuck you into bed.” She said.

The boys changed into a set of matching pajamas and then ran over to Serena. She was sitting in the rocking chair that was in the room and smiled as they looked up at her. “Mommy, can I sit in your lap?” Samuel said.

“Me too?” Jonathon asked.

Serena chuckled. What would it hurt to have them both on her lap? All three of her children right there with her. “Yes you can, just remember that sense mommy is going to have another baby that I won’t be able to do this much longer. Also you can’t wiggle around too much or be rough.” She said. The boys climbed on her lap and she smiled as they laid their heads on her chest. She kissed both of them on the top of their heads as they did as asked.

~~

Brandon chuckled. “He is getting older. I didn’t think he would ever come out of that ‘girls have cooties’ stage.” He said chuckling. “I wonder what her name is. Gwyn is turning into a beautiful little girl. She is so happy, and is so smart too. Oh remind me, the first time I see Daniel kissing a girl I have to go Ewwww.”

Vincent finishes up with the dishes and goes upstairs. He opens the door to see the best picture of his family. "Come on boys time for bed." He goes to a bookshelf and picks out a book.

The boys scramble off of Serena and over to Vincent sitting on the bed. "Daddy you tell the best stories." They crawl under the blankets and wait for him to tell the story.

He tells them the story and then puts him to bed. He joins Serena in their room. She is sitting up in bed. He goes over and rubs her stomach. "We are crazy for doing this again. Are you ready for diapers and midnight feedings again?"

~~~~~~~~

"No, you have it wrong it is a gagging noise. Like this..." Jasmine makes a gagging noise. Ava looks up at her curiously. She gets a sad look on her face. "Oh don't worry Ava, mommy is just fine." She gives Ava a hug. "We should head back to the castle. It is almost bed time for a little girl."

Serena smiles as Vincent tucked the boys in. She walks to her and Vincent’s room and changes into a night gown. She sits up in bed and is writing when Vincent comes into the room. She puts her journal away and lays the pen down on the bedside table. She smiles and puts her hand on Vincent’s as he rubs her stomach.

“I don’t miss those nights with twins, and I admit that I do miss some days of sleeping in, but the boys are both worth it. I hope we have a little girl this time.” She said as Vincent gets ready for bed. He crawled into bed with her and she snuggled up to him as he continued to rub her stomach. “I forgot how much I missed this.” She said with a yawn.

~~

Brandon felt heartbroken as Ava made a sad face. “She looks so adorable.” He said as Ava began to yawn. He picks up their mess and puts it in the basket. They finish cleaning up and Brandon takes the basket. Jasmine wanted to carry Ava so he keeps an eye on her to make sure she is ok.

They make it back to the castle and they head up to the nursery. Jasmine had painted the room four different times before they settled on the current pony theme that was painted on Ava’s walls. She enjoyed it as well and Jasmine had done such a wonderful job with it. Jasmine takes Ava to her room and Brandon follow suit. He gets a onesie for her to sleep in and smiles. “She is so adorable.” He said as Jasmine began to get her ready for bed.

"Well I love doing it." Vincent winks. He begins to sing a lullaby to her and the new baby. "I love both of you so much." He watches Serena as her eyes close. He cannot wait to visit Moldova again. It will be nice to go swimming with the boys.

~~~~~~

Jasmine puts on the onesie and waits for Brandon to sit in the rocker. It is his turn to read a book to her. Jasmine instilled reading to her when she was an infant to help her calm down. She hopes that Ava will love reading as she gets older. She leans against the doorframe as she watches Brandon with Ava. She commits the image in front of her to memory knowing what her next painting will be.

Serena’s eyes closes her eyes as she listens to Vincent sing his lullaby to her. She had missed these nights with him and as she lied there falling asleep, she thinks about Vincent when he sung lullabies to the boys.

~~

Brandon had picked out a book and sat down in the rocker. He loved how both he and Jasmine took turns reading to Ava every night. He begins to read to Ava as she rubs her little eyes. He could tell she was tired as he continued to read the story to her. It isn’t long before she is asleep on his chest. He smiles as he quietly gets up and gently lays her down in the crib. He puts a light blanket on her and walks over to his and Jasmine’s bedroom.

“Ava is a sleep, we had such a wonderful day today. I am glad we could spend it together. I am glad her birthday is next week. I hope we hear from Serena and the others soon.” He said as he gets ready for bed.

Vincent wakes up the next morning to boys jumping on their bed. Serena was already up and in the bathroom. He catches them and flips them on the bed. He then tickles them. He is so thankful the injury does not bother him.

The boys are squealing and almost out of breath when Serena reenters the room. Vincent stops tickling them. "Now go get dressed, we will eat and head to the castle. I know Reginald would like to play with you."

The boys race out of the room. Vincent looks up at Serena. His hair is disheveled and so is the bed. "What? I had to teach the boys not to jump on the bed." He gets up and kisses her. "Now I have to get ready. I have a class to teach. Tell your parent about the party and that we want to go."

He gets some clothes out and goes to the bathroom. After getting ready he goes downstairs where Leigh Ann has breakfast on the table. The boys are sitting at the table and waiting for their food. "Good morning everyone, Leigh Ann, thank you for breakfast." He sits down and fills the boy's plates .

~~~~~

Jasmine looks over at her art supplies, but lays down with Brandon and goes to bed. She wakes up early in the morning and check on Ava. She is still sleeping. She goes back to the room and begins on the sketch from the night before.

Serena shakes her head and sighs. "Boys will be boys." She said as she gave Vincent a kiss.

She gets ready and heads down stairs. Her nose catches a whiff of something and she heads to the bathroom by the kitchen.

"Mommy, are you OK?" Samuel asked from outside the room.

"I'm fine son, can you have Leigh Anne come to the door for me?" Serena asked.

She hears some foot steps run and a moment later hears Leigh Anne and one of the boys. "I boughted her back like you asked mommy."

"Thank you son, now go eat breakfast." She said.

"Are you alright princess?" Leigh Anne asked.

"I found the smell, the eggs this morning that you made, its nothing personal but my morning sickness says no thank you."


Leigh Anne smiled. "Don't worry princess, I will fix that after today. I'll make you a smoothie for this morning." She then goes to make Serena a smoothie.

~~

Brandon wakes up to an empty bed. He smiled as he sat up. Jasmine was getting good at beating him up at the earlier time. Sense Ava was usually up early, Jasmine usually was as well. He gets up and sees Jasmine at her art table. He walks over to see her sketching him holding Ava as he reads to her. He puts his hands on her shouldes a d kisses her neck softly.

"Good morning my princess, I see you are working on a new piece." He said.

He looked up at the walls of their room. It was a painting of their lives together sense they had met all the way to Ava's birth. He could not be any happier with Jasmine.

"Well we now know that she does not like eggs." Vincent looks up at Leigh Ann as she reappears. That is fine, we can have plenty for breakfast that does not have eggs."

"Why doesn't mommy like eggs." Samuel asks.

"It is not her but the baby inside of her that doesn't like it. You two didn't like bacon. Look at you now." Vincent tells them.

"If we have a little brother or sister, I will give up my room." Jonathon tells them before stuffing a bite into his mouth.

"Don't worry Jonathan, we have that other bedroom upstairs too." Vincent reminds him.

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

Jasmine jumps slightly when Brandon touches her. "You startled me. It was too pretty of a picture not to paint. I may give this to your parents. They don't have enough pictures of Ava and you." She kisses Brandon. "Ava was still sleeping, but you can check on her if you want."

Serena takes the smoothie from Leigh Anne and shakes her head. “Thank you for the smoothie. Well there goes eggs for the next nine eight months.” She said chuckling. She watches the boys eat as they bicker about where the baby will sleep.

“If it’s a boy it will sleep in my room.” Samuel said.

“No, my room!” Jonathon said. He tossed a piece of his biscuit at his brother.

“No throwing food now.” Serena said sternly.

“Yes melm.” The boys said in unison.

“When the baby is born, they will stay with mommy and daddy like you boys did until you were ready to sleep in your own rooms…room…which ever.” The last part she said under her breath. “Now if you are finished we should head to the castle, mommy has to talk with grandma and grandpa.”

~~

“I think they would love it. Just remember to include yourself as well. You know they love seeing family portraits of us.” Brandon said. He kissed the top of her head and then headed into Ava’s room. She was sitting there in her crib rubbing her eyes.

“Looks like someone just woke up.” He said.

“Da dy.” Ava said as she reached her little arms up for him. He picked her up and walked over to the changing table. He changes her and puts some fresh clothes on her and smiles. “There you go, clean and polished.” He said.

Ava giggled at him as he tickled her under the chin. He walked back into the bedroom and put Ava down. She started running towards Jasmine. “Ma ma!” She squeaked as she put her arms around Jasmine’s leg.

"Well we can get the boys ready and by that time the carriage will be here. Go get washed up boys." Vincent instructs. They run from the table to the bathroom. "Do not leave a mess in there."

After the boys get ready they get to the castle. "I will be at the training fields until lunch. Boys, be good for your grandparents."

~~~~~~~

Jasmine pick up Ava. "Pretty mommy." She said looking at the picture.

Jasmine snuggles Ava. "Thank you sweetie. How would like to visit Grandma and Grandpa today."

Ava thinks for a moment. "I like Sa."

Jasmine smiles. "Well after breakfast we can go visit. I have to confirm the catering order with Nathaniel too. We are going to party for your birthday." They already have presents coming in from other royalty. Jasmine and Brandon have them hidden in a study.