I had to admit that my little antics kept my husbands in a good mood. I constantly came up with tasks for Damon, specifically to keep him from bothering me. Meanwhile, Numbers Two, Four, Five, and Eight had a betting pool going on my next move. They studied my manipulations, learning how I operated, so if I tried to manipulate them similarly, they'd know how to counter it.
For Mariella, I'd given her a good target: Adam. Since Adam had known me from the start and also had a traumatic past, there was plenty for Mariella to discuss with him. This kept Mariella busy and allowed her to get to know Adam better.
One of my favorite things to do with Damon was to have him cook. I'd prepare chopped meats or come up with new recipes for him. I also used this opportunity to expose the girls' less-than-stellar eating habits; they were still focused on carbs, snacks, and not so much meat.
Since no one had specifically researched which meats were best, I gave Damon my original findings from about a century ago, when the link between my rage and certain amino acids was first discovered. This gave him something to study as well for Numbers Two and Four. As my girls and toddlers also possessed the rage gene, they shared the same correlation. I wondered if diet could be a solution to managing their temper.
I was simply a good wife, keeping my overbearing husband happy and busy so he wouldn't bother me too much, and avoiding any late-night encounters with him. I had enjoyed a few passionate nights with Wulfe, Charles, and Lepard, which left me spent, satisfied, bruised, and fulfilled. While Damon focused on the medical aspects and feedings, I was good at what I did.
On this first of September, an autumnal chill was in the air, and it was my turn to spend time with the toddlers. Deciding to explore the forest, I planned to see if we could find any nice mushrooms or berries, which would be beneficial for the children and others, though not for me. I also considered checking for prey, as my keen sense of smell would be an asset, and with our exclusive hunting rights, who knew what I might end up doing.
"Okay, let me help you," I murmured to Darien as I assisted him with his rain gear. "Lift your leg, good boy. See, this slips under here, keeping it nice and secure, so you don't get wet." I tucked his pant legs securely under his boots, ensuring they wouldn't ride up.
The girls had their medical day, so I would be taking the five toddlers out alone. Managing them wasn't overwhelming; in fact, I cherished these moments, just us, with no one else around. I had also discovered something that kept Wulfe quite busy: several female Salvatores.
This meant my girls were witches, though they rarely used their magic. Wulfe described their magic as unique, infused with my powers, rage, and alpha capabilities. Consequently, Wulfe and the Salvatores provided lessons, as did Mariella, who focused on teaching them to make potions and harness their magic and rage within them. The girls were less than impressed, but it was a mandatory part of their upbringing with no alternative.
This arrangement left me free to spend time with my own children. Despite what Damon might think or say, I considered them mine because they were. After bundling all five toddlers in water-resistant clothing, rubber boots, and gloves, it was time to head out. I wore my own sturdy leather boots and carried a basket, just in case I found mushrooms, berries, or anything else of interest.
The children were eager to explore, as they rarely ventured into the forest, usually taking walks on the road or visiting parks. Now, however, we were headed into our forest, which stretched out behind the house. The trek would be a long one, hopefully tiring the children out enough that they wouldn't be too restless once we arrived.
As we were leaving, the children ran ahead, giggling and chattering. I followed behind, contemplating ideas for creating some beautifully stacked cakes, and this time, I was determined to decorate them. Wulfe might be around and perhaps eager to join in, but I had also recently refreshed my knowledge of decorating techniques online, gathering fresh inspiration.
I had also just located my cake decorating kits, stored away with my belongings from various hamster storage. Since the magic house had flooded all its available boxes, these older ones had been brought out as well. Thus, I had the necessary tools, along with my old recipe books for innovative buttercream variations and decorations, a skill honed during my time with master cake makers at several PR gigs in bakeries.
As it was quite a distance, I surely hoped the kids had burned most of their excess energy as we finally saw the forest looming ahead of us.
Upon reaching the edge of the forest, I addressed the children: "Okay, listen up. Now we walk nicely and calmly, no running. Just walk, and Mommy will show you neat things around here. Maybe we might even find something to pick."
Sadie immediately approached me, asking, "Bunnies? Wanna bunnies?"
This was her latest obsession; she wanted everything with bunnies – toys, stickers, you name it. Damon, her dad, had been quite creative, shaping food into bunny-themed meals, which encouraged Sadie to eat properly. I wasn't sure if others experienced such intense fixations, but it made me wonder if Sadie's mind was more like mine, hyperfocused, unlike Damon's, whose attention span could sometimes be fleeting.
The forest was damp, carrying the scent of autumn, and a bit of a chilly wind blew. It had been raining recently, and the clouds overhead suggested more rain was on its way.
However, we weren't made of sugar, and it was good for us and the kids to experience different weather. Not that I had asked about Salvatores that much, because I was a mother, and I was teaching my children about nature.
"See here," I said, picking up a bright red maple leaf that the children were marveling at, "how this leaf is green, but this one is red. There's a reason for this."
Continuing my lesson, I explained, "Trees love green; green is important. But trees are actually very good at using other colors as well, like red, yellow, and orange. However, you see, trees don't like them as much as they love green, so they draw the green into themselves, out of the leaves, and let the reds and yellows fall. This allows the earth and all living things in the soil to use those reds and oranges because they love them, while trees don't so much. You see, when spring comes again, trees can reclaim the reds and yellows from the soil. But green is so popular that if a tree were to let it fall, others would use it, and the trees would get none. And it is important to trees."
My five children listened intently, their faces lighting up as I tried to transform my biology lesson into a story.
We continued our walk, and I pointed out this and that to the kids, trying to be innovative with my explanations but not too complex.
The forest was alive with kids giggling and chattering, and about 45 minutes later, Dash said to me, "Mommy, what stinks? It smells bad."
I sniffed the air. Oh, there must be a swamp or something nearby, as the whiff was quite strong. It wasn't an earthy smell as one might expect, but almost like rotten vegetative matter in water. I reached for the source of the smell, and it was a large area filled with murky water and plant matter, and it reeked.
It wasn't a normal swamp; it was as if a part of the forest floor had flooded and the water hadn't seeped down.
I told the kids, "Let's not go there. Come on, let's go this way. There's no need for us to stink like that bog."
We were walking along the edge of the bog when a hill appeared ahead. A small, traveled trail led up it, and I wanted to see what was on the other side. So, I led my kids up the trail. As we ascended, we encountered tall coniferous trees, but the earth seemed a bit dry. Well, all the water had run down and created that bog, so the trees appeared almost anemic. As we reached the crest of the hill, it was like stepping into another world.
The hill sloped downwards quite steeply, but thankfully, there was no bog on this side. The hill was also long, extending sideways for a considerable distance. As we stood at its crest, gazing down at the now very dry part of the forest, we observed that the trees were rather small and yellowish, even the coniferous ones.
A thick layer of leaf litter covered the forest floor. Though the trees weren't so dense as to completely block the rain, this particular section of the forest seemed to slope downwards ever so slightly. In one area, there was even an almost channel-like formation.
"Hmm," I said to the children, "come on, let's go down and see what it's like. It's dry, but maybe there are mushrooms or something here."
As we slowly and safely descended, I took extra care to ensure the children didn't stumble or fall. This was proving to be quite enjoyable for them. I had a vague idea of what I might find, but if my hunch was correct, I would have a rather exciting project ahead of me in the coming days, one that no one else would interfere with.
I could also utilize some of the gadgets Magnum had left for me to test. Among them was a new type of drone, capable of splitting into fifty smaller units that could fly independently and perform various landscape mapping tasks.
There were other features as well; it was one of our newest creations, and since it was Magnum's design, he was eager for my feedback on its functionality and areas for improvement.
Upon reaching the forest floor, we began to walk, and I soon spotted several promising things. First, there were abundant wild blueberries, full of plump berries that would be perfect. I showed them to the children, letting them taste the fruit straight from the source.
Then, I discovered at least five different types of excellent mushrooms, including woolly milkcaps and a few other varieties. There were also several kinds of boletes, such as the pine bolete, all in clean condition. I also found a rather nice haul of funnel chanterelles and a few types of brittlegills.
My collection was impressive. I had also brought small containers for the children, so they could pick some blueberries, eat most of them, and feel a sense of pride in their gathered haul.
I was feeling quite smug, so much so that it was Mariella who contacted me via our hive-mind, in our special section for mothers.
"Mimi," she inquired, "what on earth are you doing? Your smugness is palpable in our shared space. Are you still out with the children? I suggest you head back in, as you've been gone for hours, and it's starting to rain."
"Oh, time flies when you're having fun," I replied, glancing at my phone. "It seems we've truly spent some time here. Don't worry, we found quite a haul from the forest, so I'll teleport us closer."
I then turned to the kids. "Okay, time to head home. Who's hungry? I bet Daddy has a meal waiting for us. Come on, Mommy will teleport us a bit closer so there's no need to walk too far."
Seeing that the children were a bit tired, I noted how nicely they had picked blueberries, their mouths stained blue from eating them. My own basket was full of mushrooms, and I eagerly anticipated my husbands' expressions when I presented my haul.
Since I had much to do tomorrow, they didn't need to come yet, but perhaps this would inspire them to cook more. There were quite a lot of mushrooms, good for Charles and even for lepard and demon; I wasn't sure about the girls or the kids, but for taste, certainly.
I teleported us a little closer to the house. As we walked towards the door, I saw Damon and Wulfe emerging. They didn't look too impressed to see the wet, dirty, but tired children, carrying their berries and my basket full of mushrooms.
Damon telepathically said to me, in a strict tone, "You know, baby, if you had told me about this little trip, I would have surely gone with you. It might not be safe for you to pick everything from around here with your sensitivities. Besides, we are family. Well, next time I'll be aware of your little plans, Missy." His expression was tight.
The kids, meanwhile, gleefully ran to Wulfe, showing him their berries. Wulfe praised them, tasted a few, and then teleported them into the kitchen to prevent them from eating all of them at once.
Once inside, the other Salvatores were ready to help the kids out of their dirty clothes, get them dry, and then have a meal. Perhaps a nap or an early bedtime was in order, as we had been in the forest for over four hours and walked quite a distance. My protective husbands, who were also daddies to the kids, were not too impressed.
However, when I showed them my mushrooms, their expressions became even more thunderous. I felt pretty damn smug, knowing they couldn't explode at me in front of the children.
Damon, number four, who had also been coming down to see us, said, "You know, baby, picking those mushrooms isn't the healthiest thing for you. It seems you're due for a medical check-up any day now, and we'll then see if you've picked up something nasty, like fox pee or similar. You just plucked those mushrooms, and you should also inform the rest of the pack if you're planning to take the kids out longer. No one has checked out the forest, so it would have been good to check beforehand, just to be sure."
I rolled my eyes and replied, "Oh, you're just jealous, aren't you? I got to pick those mushies and not you. Too bad, Damon. I was wearing gloves, so I'm not that stupid, not yet anyway. And yes, the forest is big. Our lake is on the other side, and we haven't gotten there yet. I was just thinking it might have been nice in winter for the kids to skate there, but it's a long way, and then we'd have to find transportation. Right now, though, I'm actually hungry, and the kids are tired, so they might go to bed early or take a nap, whatever works for them. I was trying to teach them a bit of biology, too."
"But as you know," I continued, "Sadie just wanted bunnies, Darien wanted to climb every damn stump and jump down, Dash was trying to run as much as possible, and the twins, well, my little ladies didn't appreciate the weather too much, not until they tasted those berries."
He grunted and led me into the kitchen. First, however, I went to change into more comfortable clothes, then to see what the rest of the day would be like. My mind was already busy planning tomorrow, as my project would be pretty perfect.
I was surely not going to say a word to my husbands, knowing their pedantic minds, their protective streak, and their old-fashioned ideas about men's work. Even Charles might see my project as unfit for me, but that wouldn't stop me. Something in me, once again, flared up properly, making me quite arrogant, brash, and secretive.