Day 55 - Morning
I woke to the sound of excited chattering, specifically, two young voices conspiring about something in whispers that were far too loud to actually be secret.
"...and then we show him the garden expansion and he'll be SO impressed!"
"But what if he doesn't like the layout? I put the mint next to the basil but maybe that's wrong?"
"It's PERFECT! Papa Knox loves everything we do! Because we're his daughters and he's legally required to think we're amazing!"
"I'm not his daughter. Not officially. He just... he's nice to me."
"YET! Not his daughter YET! But you will be! I decided!"
I opened one eye to find Dewdrop hovering near my face, and Web perched on the windowsill, her eight legs arranged carefully on the stone ledge. Web's white-blonde hair was sticking up at odd angles, and Dewdrop's wings were shedding sparkles everywhere in her excitement.
"You can't just decide someone gets adopted," Web said, but there was hope in her voice.
"I can decide ANYTHING! I'm a princess! That's what princesses DO!"
Through our bond, I felt Nyx's amused awareness. She was awake, listening, and deliberately staying quiet to see how this played out.
"Good morning, girls," I said, sitting up carefully to avoid dislodging Kas, who was still asleep and had somehow claimed my entire left side.
Both girls jumped, startled.
"PAPA KNOX!" Dewdrop recovered immediately, launching herself to land on my shoulder. "You're awake! Perfect! We have garden updates and Web has questions and I have OPINIONS!"
Web scrambled down from the windowsill with surprising grace, her eight legs carrying her across the floor to the side of the bed. She stood there at about waist-height when I sat up, looking up at me with all six eyes full of nervous hope.
"I don't have questions," Web protested, one of her front legs tapping anxiously against the bedframe.
"Come here, both of you."
Dewdrop was already on my shoulder. Web hesitated, then carefully climbed up onto the bed, settling beside me. Her spider body took up a considerable amount of space, but she tried to make herself smaller, tuck her legs in, not take up too much room.
"You don't have to make yourself small," I said gently, reaching out to steady her humanoid torso. "You're allowed to take up space."
"What questions?" I asked.
"I don't have questions... "
"She wants to know if you'll adopt her!" Dewdrop announced, completely undermining Web's attempt at subtlety. "Like you adopted me! So we can be OFFICIAL sisters instead of just best-friend sisters!"
Web's entire body went rigid, her darker complexion somehow managing to show embarrassment. "Dewdrop! I didn't say... "
"You THOUGHT it very loudly! I could hear the thinking!"
"That's not how thinking works!"
"It is when you're best friends! Best friends hear each other's important thoughts!"
I looked at Web, this small arachnae girl who was actually not that small at all, her spider body was nearly three feet long, her humanoid torso adding another foot and a half. She'd been so scared three days ago and was now nervously hopeful beside me.
"Web, is that something you'd want? To be officially adopted?"
All six of her eyes focused on me with desperate intensity. "I... would you even want to? I'm spider-folk. I'm different from Dewdrop. I'm not glowy or magical or princessy. I just like plants and I'm good at climbing and I have too many legs and... "
"Web."
She stopped mid-ramble, one of her legs still tapping nervously against the bed.
"Do you remember the story I told? About Princess Aria who forgot she was royal?"
"That was about me," she said quietly.
"It was about you. And in that story, did Princess Aria's eight legs make her less royal?"
"No. They made her better at climbing."
"Exactly. And do your multiple eyes make you less valuable?"
"No. They help me notice things others miss."
"Right again. So why would having eight legs and multiple eyes make you less worthy of being my daughter?"
"Because..." She struggled for words, her front legs curling inward protectively. "Because I'm not like Dewdrop. She's special."
"You're both special. Just differently special. Dewdrop is special because she's fearless and loud and makes everyone feel loved immediately. You're special because you're thoughtful and kind and help things grow. Both kinds of special are good."
"Really?"
"Really. Web, I would be honored to adopt you. If that's what you want. If Thissith approves. If you're sure."
"Aunt Thissith said I should ask you," Web admitted, her legs relaxing slightly. "Last night. She said you'd make a good papa. That you already act like my papa. That making it official would just be... acknowledging what already exists."
Through the bonds, I felt everyone's attention. Apparently, this conversation was being listened to by most of my family.
Kas, pretending to be asleep but definitely awake: "If you don't adopt that precious spider baby I'm doing it myself."
Mo: "The psychological benefits of official adoption versus informal guardianship are well-documented."
Yuzu: "She's already calling you Papa Knox in her head. I can tell."
Nyx: "Adopt the child, Knox. Make it official. Give her what she's seeking."
"What do you want to call me?" I asked Web gently. "Right now. What feels right?"
She was quiet for a long moment, all her eyes studying my face like she was memorizing it.
"Papa," she whispered. "I want to call you Papa. Like Dewdrop does. But I didn't know if I was allowed."
"You're absolutely allowed. You've been allowed since the moment you wanted to."
"So I can just... decide? That you're my Papa?"
"We decide together. You want a Papa. I want another daughter. We make it official, and then it's real."
"Just like that?"
"Just like that. Family doesn't have to be complicated."
Dewdrop, who'd been vibrating with contained excitement during this entire exchange, finally exploded. "DOES THIS MEAN WE'RE OFFICIAL SISTERS?!"
"If Web wants to be adopted, then yes, you'll officially be sisters."
"I KNEW IT! I told you, Web! I TOLD YOU! Papa Knox loves everyone and you're OBVIOUSLY daughter material!" Dewdrop was doing aerial loops. "We're going to be the BEST sisters! We'll garden together and have adventures and I'll teach you about fairy magic and you'll teach me about silk and we'll be UNSTOPPABLE!"
"We're already best friends," Web pointed out, but she was smiling.
"Now we're OFFICIAL best friends who are also sisters! That's different! That's BETTER!"
I looked at Web, this little girl who'd watched her mother die, who'd spent two years learning the world was dangerous, who'd arrived at Ashenhearth three days ago expecting another temporary stop in a long flight.
"Web, do you want to be my daughter? Officially? With all the Papa-daughter time that includes?"
All six eyes filled with tears. Her front legs reached out, wrapping around my arm in what was clearly meant to be a hug. "Yes. Please. I want to be your daughter. I want to call you Papa. I want to be Dewdrop's official sister. I want..." Her voice cracked. "I want to belong. Really belong. Not just be tolerated or hidden or temporarily safe. I want to be chosen."
I shifted, wrapping my arms around her humanoid torso while she held onto me with her front legs. "Then you are. Officially, completely, permanently chosen. You're my daughter. Web Ashford, if you want the family name."
She made a sound between a sob and a laugh, pressing her face against my shoulder. "Web Ashford. That sounds real."
"It is real. You're real. And you're mine. And I'm yours. That's how family works."
Dewdrop flew down, landing on Web's head and patting her white-blonde hair comfortingly. "See? I told you! Papa Knox picks the BEST daughters! We're going to be SO GOOD at being sisters!"
"I have a Papa," Web whispered. "A real Papa who chose me even though I'm different."
"Especially because you're different. Different is what makes you precious."
Through the bonds, I felt everyone's emotional response: Kas crying (again), Mo making notes through tears, Yuzu planning celebration logistics, Nyx's possessive satisfaction at family expansion.
And from Thissith, somewhere in her workshop: "Thank you. For giving her what I couldn't. For making her chosen instead of just kept."
The Official Announcement
By the time breakfast rolled around, word had spread through mysterious means (Dewdrop, definitely Dewdrop) that there was going to be an Important Announcement.
The dining hall was packed. Every resident of Ashenhearth seemed to have found a reason to be present, all of them trying to look casual while clearly waiting for something.
I stood at the front with Dewdrop on my shoulder. Web stood beside me, her spider body at about my waist height, one of her legs nervously tapping against my leg. I rested my hand on her humanoid shoulder, feeling her trembling slightly.
"So," I began, and the hall quieted immediately. "Some of you may have heard rumors about an adoption."
"WE HEARD!" several children shouted in unison.
"We heard!" Dewdrop echoed unnecessarily from my shoulder. "Because I told everyone! Very efficiently!"
"Very subtle, Dewdrop."
"Subtlety is BORING! This is IMPORTANT!"
I looked down at Web, who was trying to hide behind my leg despite being far too large to actually accomplish this.
"Web," I said gently. "Do you want to tell them, or should I?"
"You tell them," she whispered, pressing closer to my side. "I'm too nervous."
"Okay. Everyone, I'd like to officially announce that Web has agreed to be adopted. She's now officially my daughter, which makes her Dewdrop's official sister, which means she's family in every possible way."
The hall erupted.
Children cheering. Adults applauding. The bear kin doing their traditional welcome roar. The fairies creating impromptu light shows. The arachnae clicking their legs in their version of celebration.
Web pressed closer to my side, all eight legs shifting nervously, but I could feel through our developing bond that she was overwhelmed in a good way.
"Speech!" someone called out. "The new daughter should give a speech!"
"I don't know how to speech," Web protested, looking up at me with all six eyes pleading.
"Just say what you're feeling," I encouraged, squeezing her shoulder. "Whatever feels true."
She was quiet for a moment, gathering courage. Then, in a voice that was small but steady:
"I'm Web Ashford. I'm officially Papa Knox's daughter. I'm officially Dewdrop's sister. And I'm..." She paused, her multiple eyes scanning the crowd. "I'm not scared anymore. Because I'm chosen. And being chosen means I belong. Really belong. Forever."
More cheering. More celebration. More overwhelming acceptance from people who three days ago had been strangers.
"Also," Dewdrop added, because of course she did, "Web is a princess! We established this! She's the Princess of Gardens and Remembering, and I'm the Princess of Aggressive Friendship and Absolute Certainty! Together we're UNSTOPPABLE!"
"That's definitely the most important part," Kota called out, grinning. "The Kit-Prince fully supports the Sister-Princesses!"
"You're not a prince," someone pointed out.
"I am now! Self-appointed! Papa Knox's nickname makes me honorary royalty!"
This was descending into chaos rapidly.
"Everyone is honorary royalty!" Dewdrop declared. "Royal family in a royal fortress doing royal things!"
"That's not how royalty works," Mo tried to interject.
"It is now! New rules! I made them!"
I let the chaos wash over me, my hand still on Web's shoulder, Dewdrop still on mine, feeling both daughters' joy and relief and absolute certainty that they were exactly where they belonged.
This was family.
This was Ashenhearth.
This was perfect.
The Ceremony
That afternoon, Elder Mirielle appeared with several ancient fairies I'd never seen before.
"I heard there was an adoption," she said, her impossibly old eyes warm. "And adoptions require proper ceremony. Particularly when they involve a child who needs to know, bone-deep, that she's chosen."
"I don't need a ceremony," Web protested weakly from where she stood beside me.
"You absolutely need a ceremony," Elder Mirielle corrected gently. "Not for others. For you. To mark the moment when temporary became permanent. When 'staying' became 'home.'"
What followed was beautiful in its simplicity.
The ancient fairies created a circle of light in the main courtyard. Thissith stood as witness, representing Web's past and her mother's memory. I knelt down so I was closer to Web's height, representing her future and her chosen family. Dewdrop hovered between us, representing the bridge of friendship that had made this possible.
"Web," Elder Mirielle began, her voice carrying weight beyond words. "You came to Ashenhearth seeking shelter. You found family. Do you choose this family? This father? This home?"
Web's front legs reached out, wrapping around my shoulders as she pressed close. "I choose. I choose Papa Knox. I choose Dewdrop as my sister. I choose Ashenhearth as home. Forever."
"Knox Ashford," Elder Mirielle continued. "You offer this child more than shelter. You offer belonging. Do you accept this responsibility? This daughter? This permanent bond?"
I wrapped my arms around Web's humanoid torso, feeling her spider body stable and solid beneath her. "I accept. Web is my daughter. Now and always. Nothing will change that."
"Then by the old magic, by the bonds of choice, by the power of family deliberately formed... I declare this adoption sealed. Web Ashford, daughter chosen. Knox Ashford, father who chose. May your bond grow stronger with each passing season."
The ancient fairies released their magic, and I felt something... a warmth, a certainty, a bond forming that was different from the others but just as real. Not romantic, not soul-deep like Nyx, but parental. Protective. Permanent.
Through this new bond, I felt Web's emotions, her relief, her joy, her absolute certainty that she was finally, truly safe. That she'd found her forever home.
And she felt mine back, my fierce protectiveness, my pride in her, my determination that nothing would ever make her feel unwanted again.
"It's real," she whispered, all six eyes wide, her grip on my shoulders tightening. "I can feel it. The bond. It's real."
"It's real," I confirmed, holding her closer. "You're mine. I'm yours. That's permanent."
Dewdrop flew down, settling on Web's head. "Group hug! Official family group hug!"
We stayed like that for a long moment, kneeling in the circle of light with my two daughters, one tiny and glowing, one small but substantial, both absolutely certain they were loved.
"I have two daughters," I said, wonder in my voice.
"You have two AMAZING daughters!" Dewdrop corrected. "The BEST daughters! We're going to be SO GOOD at being daughters!"
"We don't even know what good daughters do," Web pointed out, but she was smiling against my shoulder.
"We'll figure it out together! That's what family does!"
That Evening - Papa Time
I'd established mandatory Papa-Dewdrop time. Now I had to establish Papa-Web time too. And Papa-both-daughters time. The scheduling was going to be complex.
"We can share Papa time!" Dewdrop announced when I brought up the logistics. "We're sisters! Sisters share!"
"But what if Web wants Papa time alone?" I asked. "Special time that's just hers?"
Web, who'd been sitting beside me with her legs folded beneath her spider body, looked up with all six eyes wide. "I can have that? Special time that's only mine?"
"Of course you can. Dewdrop has her special Papa time. You get yours too. And we'll have together time. All three of us."
"That's a lot of scheduling," Web said, one of her legs tapping thoughtfully.
"Mo will make a schedule!" Dewdrop announced with absolute confidence from her perch on my shoulder. "Mo makes schedules for EVERYTHING!"
She wasn't wrong.
That evening, I walked with both girls to our secret grove. The one I'd shown Dewdrop. Now Web's too.
Web moved beside me on her eight legs, her movements becoming more confident each day. She was still careful, still watchful, but no longer trying to make herself invisible.
"This is our place," I explained as we entered the hidden grove. "Just for us three. Papa and daughters. Where we can talk about anything without the whole fortress listening."
"It's beautiful," Web breathed, taking in the impossible flowers, the natural spring, the way light filtered through the canopy. She moved forward carefully, exploring with curious eyes.
"It's OURS!" Dewdrop corrected from my shoulder. "Our secret place! Where we plan things and share secrets and Papa tells us special stories!"
"What kind of special stories?" Web asked, settling near the spring. Her spider body folded beneath her as she sat, her humanoid torso upright and attentive.
"The TRUE ones! About us! About family! About how we're all different and that's what makes us perfect!"
I settled against the tree, and Web immediately moved closer, pressing her humanoid side against me while her spider body curled comfortably on the ground. Dewdrop relocated from my shoulder to my beard, her usual spot.
"Tell us a story, Papa," Web requested quietly. "About... about two sisters. Who were different but loved each other anyway."
"And make one of them VERY small but VERY fierce!" Dewdrop added.
"And make one of them scared but learning to be brave!" Web added, her front leg reaching up to rest on my arm.
So I did.
I told them the story of two sister princesses who were nothing alike. One was tiny and glowing and absolutely certain about everything. The other was quiet and thoughtful and good at making things grow. They shouldn't have been friends. Shouldn't have understood each other. Shouldn't have worked as a team.
But they did.
Because family wasn't about being the same. It was about choosing each other despite being different. About making each other stronger through your differences. About loving each other not despite your quirks but because of them.
"That's about us," Web said when I finished, leaning her head against my shoulder.
"That's absolutely about you," I confirmed.
"We're the sister princesses!" Dewdrop announced from the beard. "Different but perfect together!"
"Are we really perfect together?" Web asked uncertainly, her leg tightening slightly on my arm.
"Yes," I said simply. "You absolutely are. Dewdrop is fearless when you're scared. You're thoughtful when Dewdrop is impulsive. You balance each other. Make each other better. That's what sisters do."
"I never had a sister before," Web admitted.
"I never had one either!" Dewdrop said. "Now we both have one! We're EXCELLENT at sisters already!"
Web's spider body shifted, settling more comfortably against my side. Dewdrop burrowed deeper into my beard. Both daughters, so different in size and species and temperament, but both absolutely certain they belonged.
And sitting there, holding them both, one tiny in my beard, one substantial against my side, feeling their absolute certainty that they belonged...
I knew I'd done something right.
Not building the fortress. Not defeating armies. Not any of the dramatic gestures.
This.
Two small girls who'd been lost, now found. Who'd been scared, now safe. Who'd been alone, now family.
---------
[WEB: OFFICIALLY ADOPTED]
[FAMILY NAME: WEB ASHFORD]
[DEWDROP: OFFICIAL SISTER STATUS ACHIEVED]
[TWIN DAUGHTERS: DIFFERENT BUT PERFECT]
[PAPA KNOX: NOW FATHER TO TINY FAIRY AND SMALL SPIDER]
[CEREMONY: BEAUTIFUL AND BINDING]
[NEW BOND: PARENTAL AND PERMANENT]
[SECRET GROVE: NOW SHARED BY THREE]
[STORY TIME: EXPANDED TO INCLUDE SISTER PRINCESSES]
[SIZE DIFFERENCE: PROPERLY ACKNOWLEDGED]
[WEB'S CLIMBING: NOW PAPA'S SIDE INSTEAD OF SHOULDER]
[SCHEDULING: MO'S NEXT PROJECT]