That same day Jane had taken the twins with her as she ran her evening errands, Jane had become somewhat of a local attraction do to her silver hair and gentle yet firm personality.
Exhausted from talking to every grandmother who was fascinated with her they finally made it back home.
Undoing the straps holding the twins. 'they've been fussy all day'.
She lays them in the crib, Cassia on the left, Anecus on the right. They immediately roll toward each other. Anecus buries his face in Cassia's shoulder.
Cassia, still half-asleep, pats his back. Tiny, rhythmic like she knows he needs it. They fall asleep together, breathing in sync.
Whispering as she lay on the couch next to them, "You'll fight each other. You'll fight the world. But you'll always have each other wont you."
Before they were prodigies. Before stars marked their paths. There were leaves and spoons, naps in shared silence. Two souls that came into the world together, destined for fire and sky. still reaching for each other before anything else.
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Red and Jane had integrated nicely into the Goldenfields marked by their official start of their very own orchard. To Jane's delight they had been somewhat lucky and were assigned a flower orchard.
All different kinds of flowers, some for the many floral businesses and some that were used for medicinal recipes, the Moondrop lily was a staple for them. Named for its behavior when moonlight shines on them.
they would glow a pure white and form a teardrop secretion down its stem. With the abundance they had, their backyard would glow faintly at night creating an ethereal atmosphere.
That evening before bed Cassia toddles barefoot across the wooden boards dragging a little stuffed wyvern behind her. Jane was washing some herbs while Red carved a new wooden toy at the table.
Anecus sits on the floor, frowning at the wooden block like it's the most complicated puzzle in existence.
Cassia waddles up to him and stops, looks at him and in a quiet, thoughtful voice, she says…"Nekus."
Jane froze, her hands still dripping with water, looking at Cassia with excitement. "What did you say, sweety?"
Cassia, not looking away from her brother. Finding him more interesting she drops her wyvern and kneels beside him. Saying again softly "Nekus."
Confused Anecus blinked twice, "Casssia." Both broke out into little giggles like it was a secret that was always there.
Red looked up from his carving "Did they…?"
Jane, easily moved by her children, brought a hand to her mouth. "They just said each other's names."
Cassia pats Anecus's head with clumsy affection and says "My brothder" Anecus just nodded and smiled in response.
Jane kneels beside them, scooping both into her arms, laughing and crying all at once. Whispering "You'll always have each other, won't you?"
Cassia resting her cheek against her brother "Yah."
Things tend to happen all at once.
Later that same day dusk had fallen over the fields, the air was thick with a smell of baked bread, warmed figs and something sweet cooling on the windowsill.
Red sits in a chair, shirt unbuttoned, boots off, utterly at peace. Jane hums softly while folding tiny clothes at the table. The pale light from the moon and flowers seeping in.
Cassia and Anecus crawl between them, play wrestling with wooden blocks and wool scraps. Until Anecus grabs a piece of fabric that had fallen off the table and holds it up toward Jane
"…Mama?"
Jane looks at Anecus not quite sure if she heard correctly. She puts down his little pair of overalls gets on all fours and had excited breaths "Say it again baby."
With an even wider smile than the first time "Mama!" This makes Cassia perk up, looking for Red "Papa!"
Red's hands stop mid motions and he slowly sets down the toy. sitting in front of Cassia and in a gruff but shaky voice "yeah that's me baby girl…Papa's here."
Cassia giggling crawls over and flops into his lap "Papa!"
Looking down at her with warm eyes "...That's me."
Jane pulls Anecus into her lap pinching his rosy cheeks "you said my name." Her heart was aching in the best possible way. She looked into Anecus's beautiful eyes and smiled.
Anecus throws his arms up "Mamaaa!" Cassia squeals in excitement making Red covers his heart like he had been struck.
With the initial excitement subsiding, Jane and Red were rocking Anecus and Cassia in their arms. Both quickly falling asleep.
Jane looks up at Red with a smile. "We were feared warriors once, turned survivors…and now we're just mama and papa."
Red let a soft chuckle escape his lips as he gently rubbed a finger over sleeping Cassia's cheek, "and somehow its is more terrifying than any battlefield."
They had fought beasts, braved storms, burned through borders and bloodlines but nothing ever shattered them more than two tiny voices, calling them home.