Sianna rolled over, caught amid the net of sheets and blankets, her eyelids swollen and scratching like sandpaper. For a moment, she was completely disorganized, until the light mewling of her son snapped her to attention. The heels of her hands rubbed the sleep from her eyes and she got out of the bed heavily, her bare feet sounding as she staggered across the wooden floors to the nursery. Halfway across the landing, she paused abruptly, recollection slamming her.

Johnny.

The numerous thoughts eager to steal her attention were silenced by a more petulant outcry from Ian. Sianna stole into the nursery and cuddled him quickly to soothe his protests before he woke Meggie as well. "Hush hush, my wee ?igheadair. Dinna ye think yer m?thair kens yer famished?" Her fingers were unusually clumsy as she fiddled with the laces of her nightgown, Ian's impatient mouth opening and shutting like a chick.

She leaned against the rungs of the crib, her face lightly grimaced until the milk let down and the pressure subsided. Her gaze caught on the rudimentary teddy bears Johnny had made for the twins. Moonlight filtered over the button features and the wavery smile so that it took on an oddly compassionate expression. The tears sprouted unbidden from their near empty reserve. It hadn't been a dream at all -- he was home.

The weight of Ian in her arms was growing to be too much, and she shuffled sideways to half-sit on the deep window sill, her gaze going through the open nursery door to her bedroom -- their bedroom -- where the empty bed mocked her.

"I'll be righ' in ta bed. Jus' gonna watch th' babes a bit yet."

Both of them had been past the point of going, the tea and their earlier conversation gone cold along with the hope of any comfort that could've been gotten from it. The sight of him sitting awkwardly in the rocker who's proportions were too petite for his frame, staring silently at his children, had wrenched her heart and awoken a tinge of possessiveness. It startled her and caught her unawares. Long fingers had raked through her curls as if attempting to take the insecurities away with the tangles.

With Katarina's room empty and thinking it too late to pluck Matty from her own bed, Sianna had turned from the scene and sought the refuge of what hours she would be able to acquire. For all their goodness, the schedules of the two infants were proving to be as dissimilar as they were in appearance.

And yet, he hadn't come to bed. Sianna's mind whirled, pulling conjecture and assumption from the air. Had he gone to Sarah? The thought of it set her teeth to chattering with the icy chill slipping down her spine. Had she misheard his comment earlier? In the throes of sleep and emotion, she could not remember for certain. Besides the kiss and care he had given her at first and the touch of hands as they sat at the table and bared their souls to the raw bone, there had been no physical interaction. They were wary of each other, a large shadow hovering between them. And suddenly the shadow had a mane of russet colored hair.

Ian's tiny hand curled into a fist and flailed against her bare breast in sleepy sated dreams. Blinking into the night, she returned the slack form to his crib, tucking him safely away. Meggie stirred a bit and settled again, as if the presence of her brother soothed her. Not one to wake a sleeping dragon, Sianna turned to tiptoe back to her own bed.

But she never made it past the stairs. The sound of his heavy breathing was a magnet that pulled her to the doorway of the parlor. The fire had long since died to ashes, and only one of the oil lamps remained lit, providing a dim gold illumination. Johnny sat on the couch, half-leaning against one arm where he had fallen asleep. He was still fully clothed down to his work-boots, and one of the pillows was wrapped in his arms. It was an oddly familiar position, as if there should have been another person present instead of a cushion.

Her next breath came sharp and short as if her ribs were cracked. The fact that he had not gone to Sarah was of hollow reassurance. An overwhelming longing to be in that circle of his arms washed over her in an instant. Yet, to her detriment, her pride flaired white and hot, her eyes flared with blue flame. She was not going to beg her own husband.

Spinning on her bare heel, she slipped up the steps with stealth only to hear Meggie's cry when she had only ascended the first half. Her pace doubled to reach the crying child, Sianna cradled the girl to her shoulder. "Come along now, cuileag-lasrach, ye'll cuddle with me, aye?"

The bed was going to hold two Smiths one way or another tonight.




{?igheadair = crier; cuileag-lasrach = dragonfly ]}