She held on tightly as he spun her around, giggling in delight. He really was the bestest biggest brother ever. She loved her other brother, too, but Joey had a special place in her heart. She nodded again in answer to his question and stood up on her tiptoes to press a finger to the doorbell.

"Wow, good job! You're getting so tall!" Grinning down at his baby sister, Joey hugged her into his side to keep the chill off while they waited for someone to answer the door.

Amy beamed a proud grin at her brother and tried to stand a little bit taller, as slip her hand into his.

"I'm aw'most as tall as Ollie!" she declared, though it was unlikely she'd ever catch up.

"You really are," he agreed, though there was still a long way to go before any of them caught up to him, and Adam was just a giant.

Amy grinned back at her brother, prouder still that he thought she was so tall. She might have said something more, but just then, the door opened, and they were greeted by Ana's father, looking a little more rumpled and sleepy than usual.

"Sorry, I was just finishing up changing the baby," he told the pair, pulling the door open to let them inside. "Come on in. Ana's around here somewhere."

"Dude, you look wrung out," was Joey's greeting to Rhys as he ushered Amy inside, catching her to get her coat off before she went hurtling headlong through the house to find Ana.

"Nah, I'm okay. Just a little tired. The doctor thinks Dylan is a little colicky," Rhys informed him, though that word could mean a lot of things these days.

"He's only a week old, how does he have colic already?" Joey, it had to be said, knew very little about babies, but was willing to learn just about anything. A squeal from the living room suggested the girls had found each other, making him laugh.

Rhys shrugged. "Beats the hell ....heck out of me," he said, quick to correct himself. He was obviously tired, but newborn babies would do that to a person. Despite that, he chuckled at the squeal coming from the other room. "You'd think they hadn't seen each other in years."

"Amy's missed Ana a lot," Joey told him cheerfully, hanging up his jacket and Amy's coat. "Dad had to promise her she'd be the first one to come over here when you got back to make her stop moping." He turned back to Rhys, tilting his head curiously. "Anything you need doing while I'm here, man?"

"Yeah, quit calling me man," Rhys teased the teen. "Whatever happened to Uncle Rhys?" he asked, wondering how Joey had grown up so quickly.

"Boy howdy, Uncle Rhys, you sure are grumpy today," the teenager shot back, affecting a wide-eyed, Boy Scout style enthusiasm that was just a little grating.

Rhys cringed. "You would be, too, if you just changed the diaper I did!" he complained, though it didn't really bother him all that much. "You wanna take a peek at the little stinker?" he asked, a familiar smirk returning to his face.

"Sure!" Ever since Ana had been born, Joey had been involved in the lives of Rhys' children, albeit with fewer complaints now he was older about doing the smelly stuff as well. He was as interested as anyone to meet the newest Bristol. "How's Nat doing?"

"Good," Rhys replied. "Tired, but good. She's with the baby," he explained as he started toward the nursery before changing his mind. "Ana! Do you wanna show Amy your new brother?" he called toward the girls.

"Is he all not stinky now?" Ana asked from the living room. Joey bit his lip, glancing around as he realized he hadn't heard a peep out of Micah yet, wherever the boy was.

"Yes, he is not all stinky now," Rhys mimicked his daughter with a smirk. "C'mon. But you have to be quiet so you don't wake him," he warned, pressing a finger against his lips for good measure.

"You wanna come see my Dylan?" the little girl then asked her best friend, beaming hopefully.

"So how long am I gonna be second fiddle to a baby this time?" Joey murmured to Rhys. Ana's delight in Micah had worn off within a few days of his birth, but this was the first time Joey had walked into the house and not been tackled by the wild child of the family.

"Relax, Romeo," Rhys murmured back. He elbowed the teen, unable to resist teasing him a little, an amused smirk on his face. "Give her a chance to play Show and Tell with her bestie. She'll get to you."

Joey snorted with laughter, rolling his eyes. "Pretty sure she loves me a whole lot more than I love her," he assured Rhys. "Besides, I'm not a cradle-snatcher. Gotta wait for her to be at least my age before I make any moves on your daughter."

Rhys furrowed his brows a moment at something Joey had said, even though he knew the teen was just kidding. "Better not let her hear you say that," he murmured, knowing how much Joey meant to his Ana. "Anyway, she's not going on her first date for at least another decade."

"I went on my first date at fourteen," Joey pointed out with a grin. "Double standards, dude."

He stepped sideways as Ana and Amy appeared from the living room, whispering loudly to each other about being quiet as they climbed the stairs toward the nursery.

"I went on my first date at ..." Rhys started in an attempt to one-up the teen - which he wouldn't have had any problem doing - when he realized he'd only been contradicting himself. "What about you?" he asked, changing the subject as the two girls headed toward the stairs. "Wanna see the new addition?"

"I thought I was," the teenager answered, patting Rhys on the back only slightly patronizingly. "C'mon, grumpy, before the girls smother Nat and the baby in whispers."

Rhys narrowed his eyes at the kid, knowing he was being a bit of a smart ass, but recognizing a little of himself in the boy, even though he wasn't his father. "Careful, Joey. I might not be able to take you over my knee anymore, but I can tell your father to withhold the car keys."

"Like Adam ever does what you tell him to," Joey chuckled. "You can't complain about the attitude, you've been my consistent male role model all my life. So this is your fault."

Rhys rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Well, in that case, I won't hold it against you." He grinned at the young man who he thought of as at least a nephew, if not more, and threw an arm around his shoulders. "Come along then, Junior."

Laughing, Joey let himself be lead up the stairs and into Rhys and Nat's bedroom, where the snug had been converted yet again into a transitional nursery. Nat was in the rocking chair, Micah wrapped up in a blanket on her lap as she rocked, offering up a smile as Joey and Rhys entered. Ana and Amy were virtually glued to the Moses basket, staring at Dylan in adoration.

Micah was asleep, lulled by his mother's warmth and the slow back and forth motion of the rocking chair. The little boy had had a difficult couple of days trying to get used to not being the baby anymore.

Rhys frowned as he moved closer. "Do you want me to lay him down for a nap?" he whispered to Nat.

She shook her head with a warm look in her eyes. "Nyet," she said softly, stroking Micah's hair. "He needed a good cry and a cuddle, and he just dozed off. He will feel better if he's still here when he wakes up."

Rhys' frown deepened in concern, but he knew they'd made sure little Micah didn't feel left out. "Poor little guy," he said, letting his fingers drift through Micah's curls a moment, before exhaling a sigh. He remembered how jealous Ana was when they first brought Micah home, and now they were like two peas in a pod. He hoped the same would prove true for Micah and Dylan.

"At least he knows he can talk to us about it," Nat murmured. She was glad both their talkative children trusted them enough to share whatever was on their minds; she could only hope it continued into their teens.

Rhys would have given his right arm for a brother, but then he'd eventually had Adam. "You think he's gonna be okay?" he asked, with obvious concern.

"I think so. I think he just was not expecting to have to share us so soon." She smiled tiredly once again. "He will be fine, milaya. It will just take a little time, just as it did with Ana."

"He's a good boy. He'll be a good big brother," Rhys said, with a fond smile for their eldest son. "How are you doing" Want to lie down for a while?" he asked. "I can handle things here for a few hours." They'd learned the hard way that it was best to take tours and spell each other through the first few weeks, but it wasn't always easy juggling three children.

She laughed gently. "I am actually pretty good," she admitted. "I'm getting a rest here, that is for sure." There was no way she was moving before Micah woke up, after all, and Rhys knew that if the boy wasn't sleeping on his mother's lap, she would be trying to do everything.

Rhys glanced over at the trio near the bassinet. "Well, at least he seems content for now," he said of the newborn. All their children seemed content for the moment, but he knew that could change at a moment's notice. His gaze drifted to Joey, wondering if the boy felt out of place among a couple of five-year-olds.

"I bet she'd love that," Joey enthused with a nod. "D'you think Ian and Aurelia might let her babysit for them, too' Because they take even less time off than you do, dude."

"Good idea!" Rhys said, though he didn't want to bog Laura down with so many chores she didn't have time for homework and friends. "I'm sure they'd be happy to help."

"I'll ask them," Joey said thoughtfully. "She's twelve, she can do babysitting for little people in a safe house with family close by, right?"

"As long as she wants to, sure," Rhys said, looking over at Nat to see if she was in agreement.

"I think it is a very good idea," Nat agreed, still gently rocking with Micah asleep on her lap. "And yes, for now, she should only be babysitting on this street, with family near in case she needs help. But in a few years, she might decide to branch out a little."

"Or she might decide she hates it," Rhys added with a chuckle, but he didn't think so. From what he'd seen of Laura so far, she seemed like a sweet girl, albeit a bit on the quiet side.

"Also true," Nat agreed with a smile. "But it is a little independence, and she is of the right age to appreciate that. Maybe you should suggest it to her, Joey, before you start lining up work for her."

Joey looked a little embarrassed not to have thought of this himself. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"She'll probably jump at the chance to make a little money for herself, but she might be a little skittish about babysitting," Rhys said, though he didn't know much about tweenage girls. "Nothing's set in stone. If it turns out she doesn't like it, she doesn't have to stick with it."

Joey shrugged. "She might want to get some practice in before ...." He trailed off, looking extremely guilty, and immediately turned his attention to Dylan in the basket. "Can I hold him?"

Rhys chuckled at the boy's abrupt request. "I thought you'd never ask," he said, moving to his feet again. "You remember how?" he asked as he moved over to the bassinet where little Dylan was sleeping peacefully.

"Support the head, tuck him in close, right?" Joey asked, following Rhys to let the proud daddy uncover his new son and lift him up first.

"That's about it," Rhys confirmed as he reached into the basket to very carefully uncover his newest son and draw him into his arms. "Oh, and if he poops, you get to change him," he told Joey with a smirk as he carefully handed the newborn over.

"Tough luck, old man, you just finished doing that," Joey pointed out cheerfully, though he was extremely careful as he took the newborn into his arms, tucking the warm little body close against his chest. "Wow, look at you, kiddo. You weigh a half ton already!"

Rhys hovered a moment, as if to make sure the teen didn't change his mind before returning to his perch on the bottom of the bed. He tossed a wink and a smile over at Nat, glad to see Joey so taken with their son. "Don't be fooled. He gets heavy after a while," he warned him.

"Have you felt how heavy my school bag is recently?" Joey asked, awkwardly rocking a little because he'd read somewhere that babies liked that. "And Dad says it'll get worse in college."

Rhys shrugged. He'd never been to college, so what would he know" "I guess. Are you planning on going away or staying local?" he asked. Joey was seventeen already, after all. He'd be making that decision soon, if he hadn't already.

"I'm staying close," Joey told him, not even considering any other option. "I don't care how great the experience might be, I'm not going hundreds of miles away just to go to college. I'm going to Brooklyn."

"I'm sure your parents will be happy about that," Rhys said, not to mention Joey's siblings. "You wanna sit down?" he asked, sliding over to make some space. "What are you planning on studying?"

Easing down onto the bed with Dylan steady in the crook of his arm, Joey grinned at Rhys and Nat. "History and Mythology, with a minor in Engineering," he informed them with almost smug pride. "I figure I could make a living securing museums and dig sites against thieves like you guys."

Nat snorted with laughter, fighting not to laugh too hard and wake up the little boy in her arms.

"And what makes you think Avalon won't recruit you someday?" Rhys countered, eying the teen. "Isn't that a bit of a conflict of interest?" he asked, unsure if Joey was serious or just kidding.

He shrugged one shoulder. "They might, who knows?" he said. "And besides, if I'm the one designing the systems, then you have an in to get through those systems without having to hang on a rope from a skylight, right?"

"We'd never put you at risk like that," Rhys was quick to point out. Even if they were charged with stealing from some place Joey had engineered against theft, they wouldn't ask him for help in infiltrating it and risk him going to jail. "Is that what you really want to do?" he asked again.

"Honestly' I don't know what I want to do," Joey admitted with a smile. "But I like history and mythology, and I like doing stuff with my hands. I'm pretty sure Mom would never let me get an apprenticeship to a woodworker, so this is what I've got."

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," Rhys assured him. "Have you talked to Ian at all?" he asked, seeing how Ian was a university professor with a specialty in Arthurian mythology.

"Little bit. He said I should do a couple of semesters on an overview of classical mythology before deciding where I want to focus on," Joey said, a little bemused by this. "Aurelia said I should go pro with the sword fighting, but Ian was laughing too hard for us to go any further with that."

"Go pro?" Rhys echoed, brows arching upwards. "Was she suggesting you audition for one of those Medieval Times places?" he asked. "Or was she suggesting you become a ..." He trailed off at the thought. He had no idea if Joey was interested in becoming a Knight of Avalon or how he'd go about doing that, if he was.

"I dunno," the boy admitted. "I thought maybe she meant a stuntman, you know" I like the weapons and stuff, but I don't know if you can make a career out of it. And, no offense, but I am not becoming a hunter or a Fed."

Rhys laughed. "Thank God for that!" he said, looking relieved. He didn't wish the hunting life on any of his children, or his friend's either, for that matter. "But I'm not really a hunter anymore," he pointed out.

"No, you're King Arthur reincarnated, or whatever," Joey teased him. In his arms, Dylan fussed a little, drawing his attention to the baby boy. He caught one of the flailing hands with a finger, and found himself laughing as that finger was promptly inserted into the newborn's mouth.

Rhys chuckled. "Not exactly," he said, though he didn't elaborate further. He might wield Caliburnus, but he knew he was no King Arthur. "Just how much has your father told you about me ....about us?" he asked the teen, of both himself and Nat.

"Not much," the boy admitted. "Just that you're kinda big on Avalon, and you get jobs from the Lady every now and then. I mean, I'm not technically in on the big secret, so there's not much I'm supposed to know, right?"

"Technically," Rhys confirmed. "But you're at an age when you have to make choices." He glanced over at Nat, knowing you didn't really choose Avalon; Avalon chose you. "I guess what you need to decide is whether you want to be part of our world, or if you think you'd be happier living a more mundane life."

Joey was silent for a long moment. "That's a big decision," he pointed out. "John was part of your world, and look what happened to him. Mom would totally freak if I made a decision like that without really thinking about it."

Rhys frowned. No one had mentioned that name in a long time, and Rhys didn't want to think about John, much less talk about him. He knew Joey wasn't accusing him of anything, but he felt guilty just the same.

"Point taken," he murmured, his mood deflating as the wound was unintentionally reopened. They'd lost a lot of good people, starting with his father, but it had been the demons to blame, not them. "For what it's worth, the world is a safer place now."

"I know. And that's because of you," Joey reminded him. "But if I have the choice to be connected with Avalon, then I gotta talk to Mom about it. I mean, she probably will still want me to go to college, so I can earn a living."

Rhys pushed aside his own grief and guilt and laid a hand against Joey's shoulder, a faint smile on his face. "You do whatever it is you want to do. Whatever you think would make you happy. Your father ....Adam and I never had many choices, but you do. If you want to be an engineer, then you be the best damned engineer you can be. Just be happy, Joey. That's all we want for you."

Joey's smile was relieved. "Might take me a while to work it out," he warned. "But thanks, Rhys. I guess I should start properly thinking about what I want to do, huh?"

"It's okay if you don't figure it out right away, you know. How are you supposed to know what you want to do with the rest of your life when you're just getting started?" Rhys said, his smile warming. "You'll figure it out ....eventually. Meanwhile, have fun."

"That's pretty good advice there, Uncle Rhys," the teen commented, grateful for it even if he was a bit annoying at times. "You think I should ask Mom about maybe getting an apprenticeship, then?"

"We can come back tomorrow, pumpkin," Joey told his little sister. "But we gotta go home or we don't get dinner." He wiggled a finger in Ana's direction as the little girl opened her mouth. "And we can't have dinner here, not tonight. Mom's expecting us."

Somehow, Amy knew better than to ask if Ana could sleep over. That was something Joey didn't have the authority to allow without checking with their parents on both sides first.

"Okay," she agreed, grudgingly. But at least, she'd been able to meet the littlest Bristol before anyone else had, so that was a plus. She reluctantly slid out of her chair to give Ana a hug. "See you t'morrow, Ana," she promised her bestie.

Ana squeezed her tightly. "We can make the thingy Mama got me and do plays and stuff," she promised her friend. "And get Mama to help with the sticky stuff, because Papa's baaaad at that."

Joey chuckled at this assessment, knowing better than to rush the goodbye.

That got a smile from Amy. "Okay! And Micah can play the boys' parts," she suggested because she had a kind heart and didn't like leaving Ana's little brother out, even when they were playing girls' games.

Ana nodded enthusiastically. "Yup! And he's good at stickin' things, too," she added. "Better'n me." Skipping for a moment, she hopped over to hug Joey around the waist. "Thank you for bringin' Amy over, Jo-jo."

"Munchkin, it's Joey," he reminded her fondly. "And anytime. You ready to go, Amy?"

Meanwhile, Amy had skittered over to grab her coat, where she'd left it on the playroom floor and now handed it expectantly to Joey to help her get it back on. "Ready!" she echoed, or would be once she had her coat on, patiently waiting until her friend was finished hugging her biggest brother.

"Maybe tomorrow we can bake," Ana then suggested as Joey, helped Amy get her arms into her coat and do it up warmly. "That's something we can do with Micah, too. And everyone likes cookies!"

That was a lot of plans for one day, but Amy wasn't worried about it. One way or another, she and Ana always managed to have fun together, no matter what they were doing. "An' maybe you can come to my house after that," she said hopefully, as Joey helped her on with her coat.

"Ooooh, yes please!" Ana clapped her hands hopefully. Still chuckling, Joey rolled his eyes. "You guys should talk to parents about all these plans, you know," he told them, popping the last button closed over Amy's zipper.

Amy rolled her eyes at her brother. "Well, duh!" she exclaimed, as if what he'd suggested kind of went without saying. Sometimes boys - no matter their age - were so dense.

"You're so lucky I love you, pumpkin," he warned his little sister with a grin, tweaking her nose. "Finish up your goodbyes; I have to grab my jacket. See you by the door."

Amy scrunched her nose as he tweaked it, batting playfully at his hand and giggling. "I'm gonna get your nose!" she warned, taking a swipe in that direction, but too short to reach.

"The day you do, I'll make you pizza," he promised with a laugh, ducking out of the way and through the door to jog all the way down to the ground floor to retrieve his own jacket. He could see Adam's car in the drive across the street - the rest of the Sparrowhawk family were home.

That was followed by another chorus of giggles as Amy and Ana laughed over that, whispering to each other about Joey while he went in search of his jacket. While he glanced out the window, he might have noticed a shimmering of sorts, not unlike the way Aurelia caused the air to shimmer around her when she traveled from place to place, but it only lasted for a moment or two.

If he noticed it, it wasn't anything unusual for this street, though it was unusual for Aurelia to shimmer in plain sight. Usually she restricted herself to doing it only when strangers could not see her. Magic was a part of the big secret, after all. Shrugging into his coat, he called quietly up the stairs. "C'mon, Amy, time to go!"

"Coming!" Amy called back, momentarily forgetting about the baby. Remembering, she tiptoed her way down the stairs one step at a time, rather than the usual thumping sound, like a stampede of elephants. She was smart enough to know she could only delay so long before Joey got annoyed, and so, she finally arrived at his side, beaming a smile up at him and taking his hand. "Ready!"

"Well, howdy there, little lady," he said, wrapping his hand around hers with a smile. "Let's go and find out how Ollie and Laura did at their clubs, shall we?" As he spoke, he was leading the way to the door, reaching to open it with his free hand.

"Okay, Doey," she said, agreeably enough as he led the way home. She'd had fun with Ana and she'd met the new baby. It had been a good day, and she had no complaints.

"You're adorable, you know that?" he informed her, pulling the door open so they could slip out and leave the obviously tired Bristols to their evening.

"I know," Amy replied, beaming a cheesy grin up at her big brother. Maybe she had been spending too much time around the Bristols lately; it seemed Rhys' lack of modesty was catching. "Oh!" she exclaimed, blinking in surprise as they just about bumped into a tall, blond-haired stranger standing just outside the Bristols' door, a startled look on her face.

"Oops!" Gently drawing Amy back and automatically putting himself between his baby sister and the stranger on Rhys' doorstep, Joey looked at the unexpected girl in front of him. "Hi."

Upon first glance, the girl looked young - not more than a teenager herself - with long blond hair and blue-gray eyes. She was dressed oddly, at least by modern standards, in a gray wool coat, brown pants and leather boots that came almost up to her knees. Her hair was loose, except for a few small braids arranged to hold the rest of her hair away from her face. She blinked again in surprise to find herself facing an unexpected stranger, but certainly an attractive one. She looked a little confused at his greeting, as though it was unfamiliar.

"Hullo," she greeted him instead, blinking again before pulling her gaze away to take a look around. She was certain she had the right house, but they all looked the same. "I'm sorry. I'm looking for ..." She hesitated a moment before turning back. She knew better than to ask for the Champion. "For the Bristols," she told him.

Joey tore his eyes away from the unexpectedly pretty face to take in the rest of her appearance and made an intuitive leap. "You're lookin' for Rhys," he said confidently. Glancing down at Amy, he winked at his baby sister. "Hey, pumpkin, mind running up and telling Uncle Rhys he's got a visitor from the special place?"

"Okay, Doey!" Amy replied obediently, tearing her eyes away from the pretty, blond stranger to dart back inside, calling at the top of her lungs as she thumped back up the stairs, "Unca Rhys! You gots a vis'tor!" If the baby wasn't awake by now, he soon would be.

Joey winced at his little sister's loud declaration, unsurprised to hear a sudden wail from the newborn napping upstairs. He offered the stranger a faint grin. "You wanna come in" I'm Joey, I live across the street."

Meanwhile, the blond girl cleared her throat and shifted uncomfortably, relieved she'd at least got the right house. They all looked the same to her. She nodded, looking equally relieved to be invited inside where she wouldn't stand out like a sore thumb. "Yes, thank you," she told him. "You are of the Sparrowhawks clan?"

"Uh, yeah." He closed the door behind her, gesturing for her to come through to the kitchen. "Rhys'll be down once he's quieted the baby, I reckon. And we don't call them clans here on Earth, we're just a family."

"Family, of course," she said, as she followed him through the house, looking curiously around her - as curiously as one might who found themselves in the twenty-first century for the first time in their life. Though they had never met, she had obviously at least heard of his family. "I come with a message for the Champion," she explained, presuming Joey could be trusted, as he was a Sparrowhawk.

"Figured you did," he told her, stepping back so he didn't feel too dwarfed by this pretty girl in front of him. He was a bit of a late bloomer, height-wise, and she was definitely taller than anyone else his age. "That's not bad, as disguises go."

"Disguise?" she echoed, blinking again in confusion before realizing he was talking about the way she was dressed. "Oh! This is not a disguise," she assured him. "But I do not have clothes like yours," she asked, wondering just how those pants of his stayed on without any visible ties to hold them up.

"Oh, uh, you should get Nat to take you shopping," Joey suggested, inwardly cringing. He was terrible at talking to girls. "She loves that stuff. I mean, I'd offer to let you borrow some of mine, but ..." He blushed, shaking his head. "Never mind."

"Borrow some of your clothes?" she asked, brows arching upwards in curiosity. She'd noticed his blush, but wasn't sure what the cause of it was. It couldn't possibly be her, could it' Perhaps he was just warm; it was warm inside this house, after all. "Why would I do that?" she asked, as if there was nothing wrong with what she was wearing.

"I ....have no idea." He rubbed a hand through his hair, wondering where Amy had got to. "You got a name" Or am I just supposed to call you Avalon girl?"

"Oh, I see," she said, brows furrowed as she still didn't quite understand. Who gets what of what, she wondered. She considered her tea a moment, before adding a dollop of honey and taking up a spoon to stir the mixture together. "Your world is very different from mine," she said before taking a sip.

"Different isn't always so bad, is it?" He barely noticed the slight hopeful tone in his voice as he sat down at the bar with her, careful to stay on the opposite side so he didn't get too close.

"No, I suppose not," she admitted, though she wasn't too sure, seeing how this was the first time she'd been away from home. "Thank you for the tea. It's very good," she told him, a bit awkwardly.

"It's from Avalon," he told her, rubbing his neck as he looked down into his cup. "Nat's obsessed with it. That's, uh, she's the ....Priestess" I think?"

Diantha nodded enthusiastically. "The Priestess, yes. She and the Champion are favored by the Lady," she said, suddenly talkative, though she didn't know everything about the pair in question. "Have you ever considered offering your service to Avalon?" she asked, hopefully, trying to keep her gaze focused on the tea in her cup.

"I'm not a squire," he pointed out. "I mean, I do medieval swordplay, but that's only been for, like, two years. I wouldn't even know where to start to get permission for something like that, even if my Mom did agree to it."

She wasn't too sure about the word "medieval", but she understood swordplay. Her face brightened, hopeful he wasn't as unqualified as he seemed to think. "You know how to wield a sword?" she asked, hopefully.

"Not very well," he admitted. "I kind of know the basics of sword and shield, you know" Took me about a year not to get so tired in the first ten minutes that all I could do was hold up the shield and try not to cry."

Not everyone in Avalon knew how to wield a sword, though if they were called upon the defend their homeland, they would gladly take up arms in her defense. Diantha nodded and smiled at what he was telling her. "The first time I tried to lift a sword, it was so heavy I dropped it!"

"Do you enjoy it?" he asked, trying not to stare as her smile transformed an already pretty face into something breathtaking. "The sword stuff, I mean?"

She shrugged. "I enjoy the bow better," she admitted, taking another sip of her tea, which was doing wonders to warm and relax her, inside and out.

That was reassuring, at the very least. He hated the thought of anyone being forced into something they didn't at least enjoy doing. "I enjoy the sword stuff, but I'm not sure I'd want to make a lifetime out of it," he admitted. "I like making things with my hands, but there's not much support here for that kind of stuff unless you know the right people. Everyone's really focused on academic stuff."

"What sort of things do you like making?" she asked with interest before drawing another sip of tea from her cup. Both hands wrapped around the mug as she lifted it to her lips, savoring the warmth and the flavor of it.

"I like working with wood," he admitted. "My dad, Adam, he taught me to whittle a couple of years ago, and I carve stuff whenever I can. I wanna make my mom a rocking chair, but I don't know where to start."

"If you were in Avalon, you could study with someone as an apprentice," Diantha told him. "Do you not have apprenticeships here?" she asked, not knowing much of modern-day Earth, but what little she'd seen since her arrival on the Bristols' doorstep.

"Apparently they do?" he said, though he didn't sound certain. "But I'd have to find a woodcarver in New York City, which is just ....huge, and they'd have to be a part of a program that takes on apprentices. If I could, I'd try to find one on Avalon, but I'm not a part of the secret. I'm lucky I'm trusted enough not to blab as it is."

She smiled at something he'd said. "If you are known about Avalon, then you are part of the secret," she said, contradicting him. There were only a handful of people on Earth who knew of the secret and even fewer who'd actually been there, but the secret was not shared with just anyone. If you knew of it, there was a chance you might be called upon at some point to serve.

"Well, maybe, but I found out when I was, like, twelve," he pointed out. "And Aurelia said that they can wipe your memory, so it could be that they're waiting for me to hit eighteen and then I get all those memories taken away."

She frowned, unsure about that. She supposed there had been times when that had been so; when it had been deemed that it was too risky to trust someone with their secret. And there was something else, too. "Wouldn't you miss your family?" she asked. "If you went to Avalon, I mean."

Joey frowned, looking at her in surprise. "You mean ....you mean if I went there, I wouldn't ever be allowed to come back?" he asked, horrified by that thought. "Hell, no! I'm not going to abandon my family just to have a job I like!"

"No!" she was quick to point out, alarmed at his reaction to her question. "But if you were apprenticing there, you would not be here as much as you are now," she tried to explain, flushing with embarrassment that he misunderstood her. She wasn't even sure why she was asking him this when she hardly knew him.

"Oh." His face flushed dark as he realized his reaction had probably been a little too forceful. "Sorry, I ..." He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. "A lot of people move to a different state, or even a different country, to go to college, but they come back home for holidays. I mean ....it'd probably need some negotiating, right' But I could work out a way to be home on weekends, maybe."

"I suppose," she said uncertainly, lowering her gaze to the dregs of tea in her cup. "But it is not my place to speak of such things or to invite you to Avalon," she said, worried now that she might get into trouble for doing so. She had been sent here to pass along a message and that was all.

His momentary enthusiasm was dashed by her reaction. "Yeah," he agreed, hope fading. "I guess it's a lot to ask. I'll work something out over here, one way or another. You don't need to worry about me."

"I am sorry, Joseph," she said with downcast eyes, using his full name, rather than his nickname. "I could tell the Lady of your interest in woodworking and ask if she would consider you for an apprenticeship," she offered. It was the least she could do, but she couldn't make any promises.

"I don't want you to risk your place as a squire just to help me out," he told her, offering up a rueful smile. "It's okay. I, uh, I'll work something out."

"And what are we discussing here?"

Nat appeared in the doorway, Dylan resting against her shoulder. From upstairs came the sound of Ana and Micah engaged in play together, much brighter than they had been earlier.

Diantha blinked, her face turning pink, as they were abruptly and unexpectedly joined by the Priestess of Avalon. Then again, it was her house.

"My Lady," Diantha stammered, bowing awkwardly with the mug of tea in her hands. "I was sent with a message for the Champion, but he ..." She trailed off, glancing toward the door and wondering what was taking him so long and realizing she'd lost all track of time.

Nat chuckled gently. "Calm down," she told their visitor. "There is no need to stand on ceremony in this house. Finish your tea."

She glanced at Joey, one brow raised curiously. He shrugged.

"He took Amy back home and told me to keep Diantha company."

"I-I am finished, my Lady," Diantha admitted, blushing again, as there was really no reason for her to remain except to deliver her message. She set the cup on the counter, wringing her hands at her waist. She might have offered to give Nat the message, but her instructions were explicit.

"Then hold this for a moment, would you?" Without any warning, Natalya Bristol, Priestess of the Isle of Avalon, plonked her newborn son into the nervous girl's arms, and winked at Joey. "Time for me to test my lungs, I think."

She left the kitchen, and they heard her moving to the front door. Joey bit down on a laugh, pretty sure Diantha would not be happy if he openly showed how funny the look on her face was.

"Hold this" Oh!" Diantha muttered, blinking in terror, all the color draining from her face as the Priestess dropped a newborn baby in her arms. "Wh-what do I do?" she asked, looking to Joey for help. She knew how to wield a sword and a bow, but she had learned very little about babies.

"Put him against your chest with his head on your shoulder," Joey told her, gesturing to show her the positioning of her hands.

In her arms, Dylan burbled, a very happily awake newborn who had no problem at all being handed to a girl he'd not met before.

"But how do I do that?" she asked, unsure how to manipulate the baby in her arms without dropping him or causing him harm. She really had never handled anything so precious and fragile before.

"Here" Unable to hide his smile now, Joey gently positioned the baby boy upright against her chest, tucking one of her hands under the scrunchy, diaper-covered bottom, and the other against Dylan's back. "He's not going to explode on you."

Diantha's face flushed with warmth, her cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink. "I do not think it likely that I will ever see him again," she said, frowning. Or any young man, for that matter. She was promised to the Lady and she took pride in her place of honor, but she did not think that life allowed for romance.

"I think you should not close the door on that possibility," Nat said, absently rubbing Dylan's back as he gummed on the side of her neck. "The powers that we serve know far more than we do about our lives to come."

"Why would the Lady choose me if I were not meant to serve her?" Diantha asked, curiously. It made no sense to her. If the Lady could see her future, why would she choose her to train for the Lady's Guard, if she was not meant for that position"

"I was chosen to be a templar," Natalya pointed out. "Yet here I am, the Priestess of Avalon. I never looked for it, but the Lady maintains that it was the role I was intended for."

"Only the Lady knows what kind of life we are meant for," Diantha said quietly. She was just starting to realize she might have some choices to make, though she had always assumed the path of her life had already been chosen.

"Indeed. And the Lady does not want you to struggle with the path you are walking, Diantha," Nat told her. "If you need to know what is in your future, ask her. Even if she refuses to tell you, the advice she gives will help you to make the right decisions for yourself."

"Yes, my lady," Diantha responded obediently, though she did not think it was her place to question the Lady of Avalon in any way, even to ask of her own future.

"Young one, the Lady is not a distant figure to worship from afar," Natalya said quietly. "She is a living, loving woman who delights in the people she chooses to surround herself with. She chose you. I do not believe she will ever deny you her presence."

"Yes, my lady," the girl responded again. It was not her place to question either the Priestess or the Lady, but she would give what the woman was telling her some thought.

"Diantha, my name is Natalya, or Nat," she was told, just as gently as before. "I would not be offended if you used it."

"Yes, my lady ....er, Natalya," she said, awkwardly correcting herself. Nearly everyone, it seemed, was her superior, except for those her own age.

"All I can tell you is not to close your mind to any possibility before you," Nat said finally. "Some of the greatest gifts come from the most unexpected places."

"I will try," the girl said, making no promises either way. Until today, she had never questioned her life's path, never thought she'd had any choice. How was it that a brief meeting with one shy, awkward boy could change everything"

Outside, a similar conversation was taking place between that boy and the so-called Champion of Avalon.

"Just ask her," Rhys insisted. "I know that look. She's not gonna say no."

"Oh, yeah," Joey said with dubious sarcasm. "Just ask a girl who doesn't know anything about Earth to go to prom with me in six months' time. I'm probably never going to see her again, Rhys, that's ridiculous."

"Yeah' A couple of years ago, I'd have said this whole thing was ridiculous. Me, Champion of Avalon' Married and with three kids" I'm telling you, Joey ....I know the look. That girl is sweet on you," Rhys insisted, crossing his arms as he argued with the boy. As far as Rhys was concerned, nothing was ridiculous or impossible where Avalon was concerned. "Why do you think she was sent here?"

"Because she's got a message for you!" Joey pointed out, his shoulders rising defensively. "She can't even give it to Nat, she's waiting for you, dude."

"Uh huh," Rhys said, a smug smile on his face. He had a feeling the message wasn't all that important, or it would have been sent other ways. "Anyone could have delivered a message. Why her?"

"I don't know," the boy responded irritably. "You're the one with all the big medieval contacts and all. That was pretty crappy, by the way, just abandoning her in your kitchen with a stranger."

"She's not with a stranger. She's with Nat ....the Priestess of Avalon, remember?" Rhys argued, before he realized what Joey meant and laughed. "Oh! You mean when I left her with you? Would you rather I hadn't?" he asked, with a grin.

For a moment, Joey's expression was definitely rebellious, but he obviously thought better of snapping at Rhys over this one. "Shut up," he muttered, acutely aware that his ears were turning red again.

"Don't blame me. I have a feeling the Lady is playing matchmaker," Rhys said, with a knowing smirk. It was the only explanation that made any sense really.

Joey snorted, rolling his eyes. "You're such a sap these days," he muttered, but there was the suggestion of a pleased smile in his eyes. "Say, uh ....if Mom okayed it, would you ....could you find out if I could apprentice in Avalon' To, like, a woodworker?"

Rhys considered that a moment. Despite the fact that he thought the Lady was matchmaking for Joey, there was still the matter of Gina, who was expecting her son to go the college route.

"I think you should visit again. See what it's like. You haven't been there since you were a kid. Meet with a woodworker and see what you think. Then, if you're still interested, we can ask the Lady for permission for you to apprentice." He'd still have to ask for permission for Joey to visit, but he didn't think it would be a problem, especially if the Lady was trying to matchmake. Hopefully, he wasn't wrong.

"I gotta talk to Mom and Dad about it first, but, uh ....thanks." Joey's expression relaxed now the conversation had moved safely away from Diantha. He'd never had quite that flummoxed a reaction to a girl before; he wanted some time to consider it before he decided if it was worth doing anything about.

"Joey, no pressure, but ....everything happens for a reason. Just remember that, okay?" Rhys asked, not wanting the kid to make a rash decision either way, but not wanting him to dismiss what had just happened either.

"All right." Joey sighed, shrugging one shoulder as he offered up a rueful smile. "You should go and get your message and let her go home. She's not very comfortable here."

"Yeah, tell your parents not to worry. There's no safer place to be than Avalon," Rhys said, shoving his hands in his pockets as he turned to go back inside the house, leaving Joey to head home. The kid was probably already late for dinner.

"Play nice!" Joey called back to him, glancing both ways before sprinting across the street and letting himself into his own home.

The front door could be heard closing as Rhys made his way back inside, pausing a moment to listen for Ana and Micah upstairs before heading for the kitchen. "Sorry about that," he said, apologizing to both women.

Natalya smiled at her husband fondly. "Let Diantha give you her message, milaya, and I will send her home," she said. "Earth is a strange place for those born on Avalon."

"It is strange, but full of wonders," Diantha said, taking another look around at the modern surroundings. She didn't bother to mention that one of those wonders just might be a certain seventeen year old boy. She reached into the confines of her cloak and pulled out a piece of neatly-folded and wax-sealed parchment, handing it to Rhys. "For you, from the Lady."

"As is Avalon, for those born here," Nat agreed with Diantha, giving Rhys time to browse the parchment. "But there is peace on Avalon that cannot be found on Earth. It is a very special place."

"Yes, it is peaceful," Diantha agreed. For one born on Avalon, it didn't seem as interesting as the modern world, but Diantha couldn't argue that it was, for the most part, peaceful, albeit a little bit lonely.

Rhys broke the wax seal and unfolded the parchment, a smile turning up the corners of his mouth as his eyes scanned the message. "Ha, I knew it!" he muttered, as he handed the message to Nat.

Setting her cup down, Nat took the parchment, smiling faintly at the familiar cursive hand of the Lady before she skimmed what the words actually said. Her smile deepened even as she shook her head.

"Thank you for bringing this, Diantha," she said to the girl, her eyes warning Rhys not to say a word in front of the messenger. "You may tell the Lady that we are working on it."

Rhys looked like he was ready to burst, and the sooner the girl left was probably the better before he spilled the beans right in front of her.

"Yes, Natalya," the girl replied, knowing it was time for her to depart, now that she had delivered her message. She felt a strange pang of regret, as she took another look around, yearning for home, but almost wishing she didn't have to leave so soon.

"Don't worry, Diantha," Rhys assured her with a smile. "I promise we'll see you again," he told her, without saying too much.

Captured on both sides and fully aware that they were pinning all their hopes for dinner on her, Nat chuckled, gently stroking each little head affectionately. "Of course we can have pizza, moi milyye," she assured them. "Is the playroom tidy?"

Ana blinked her big eyes for a moment, looking guiltily at Micah. "I can tidy up, Mama," she promised.

"Me, too, Mama!" Micah promised, looking as solemn as a two-year-old could.

"Well, you'd best get to it then!" Rhys told his children. "Before she changes her mind!"

"Oh, well done," Nat laughed, as the children scurried back up the stairs. "You have made me both the hero and the villain. Very clever, milaya."

"Isn't that what mothers are?" Rhys countered, pausing a moment as a particularly unpleasant odor reached his nostrils, and it had nothing to do with Nat's cooking. "Eww, dude, did you just drop a load .....again?" he asked, turning his head toward the newborn on his shoulder, as if awaiting an answer. He sighed. "How about you order the pizza while I clean up pooping wonder boy here?"

"I love my husband," was her fond answer. She reached up to stroke Dylan's head as she kissed Rhys's lips with a smile. "I will order," she agreed. "And I think we all deserve a picnic in the living room tonight. No table manners required."

"The kids will enjoy that," he told her, smiling into her kiss. "You can feed him while I get the kids washed up for dinner and set the living room up for a picnic," he added.

"Mmm, you're spoiling me tonight," she teased lovingly, turning to reach for the phone. "We should get started, then."

And not a moment too soon - Dylan seemed to have noticed that his backside was not as clean as it had been a few minutes ago.

"Don't I always?" he asked, brushing a second kiss against her lips before she reached for the phone and the little man on his shoulder decided to make his displeasure known. "Okay, okay!" Rhys chided him, as he left the kitchen and headed toward the nursery and the changing table. "Patience is a virtue, yanno!"

And it was a virtue that was in short supply on a night where pizza was promised. But that lack was balanced out with an abundance of affection from the little people that filled their home. It was nothing short of a joy to know that they lived in the moment of their reward every single day, watched over by friends far and near. And though they might be the Champion and the Priestess of Avalon, in their hearts they were still Rhys and Natalya, two people who had found each other in extraordinary circumstances. Some people wished for a life less ordinary; theirs was all they had ever wanted.

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Dylan Patrick Bristol - DOB 11/1/19