Suspicion narrowed Ewan's eyes, but he automatically ruled out the arrival of another child. It would be, he concluded, some manner of animal. Whisper was more than content to allow Ewan to brush him for as long as possible, but with a warm rub to the exposed belly and then a pat to the head, Ewan rose. "All done there, lad."

With a smile to Avery's arrival, he pulled down the covers and tucked him in. "Now then, all set to sleep? Tomorrow, just you and me, then, yes?"

*And Whisper.*

"And Whisper."

She smiled watching Avery and Ewan have their plans together. She still always enjoyed watching her growing family build ties with each other and all together. Storm moved into the room and patted the end of the bed with her free hand for Whisper to jump up. He did so, and gave a curious sniff to the bundle that was Kellan. She rubbed behind one of his ears, as if it was her own way of telling the dog goodnight.

"Sleep well, son." She moved up to kiss his forehead. *Kellan too.* Avery shifted so that he could lightly kiss his little brother's forehead. Giving a last gentle ruffle to Avery?s hair, she waited for Ewan to step out, before following him and closing the door behind her.

Ewan wrapped his arm about Storm?s waist and gave her a side hug. "I am glad you suggested Avery and I go fishing so he does not feel secondary to Kellan. I had thought about it but did not want to abandon you so soon after returning home for a free time." He kissed her head again and then reached to caress the soft, tiny hand of Kellan as he walked them back to the family room. "You will call if you have need of me." He knew she would, but just felt he must say it again.

"So, is that how you see it? Abandoning me?" She chuckled softly, following Ewan's lead into the family room. "You will have a wonderful morning, and I will be able to nap. I think it is a fair trade." She kissed him gently then, before offering Kellan to him, "He is just about to sleep himself."

He took the baby, hands cupping the head with care, the length of Kellan?s body down his forearms so he might look upon him straight. "Yes, you are the content little lad, are you not? Well fed and snuggled warm to your mother? Naught to complain about there, is it?" He gave a wink to Storm before he looked back at his son and watched the simple little facial movements. The eerie baby blues not yet able to focus far started to become lidded with weariness.

She rolled her eyes at the wink, though a smile was firmly in place, "I hope that his hair will have some more of your coloring in the sun, when it grows in fuller." She leaned against him then, so that she could rest her cheek on his arm and look down at the baby, "I must say beloved, he seems to have your nose and chin."

"You think so?" He considered the possibility and reluctantly gave in with a nod. "Yes, perhaps so, but it is definitely the shape of your eyes. It is hard to say whose cheeks he has, being so perfectly chubby," he chuckled, "but we will hope they are yours."

"Now then, it is a nap you think you will be having? I should think we might want to see you to bed now as Kellan goes off to sleep. It will not be long before he is awake again needing your attention." Ewan looked over his wife with a critical care. The futile desire to take on some of this burden himself was not spoken. Some things he could not offer, but he could help as much as he could so Storm might find the rest she needed.

"Yes, I think a nap is in order." There might have been a tired look to her eyes, but she still smiled and there was no strain of complaint in her tone. "And sleep for all of my boys and man." She gestured for him to place Kellan in his crib, "Or will you be awake longer?"

?A touch longer, beloved. I will see our Kellan to his crib." He placed a warm kiss to her mouth and then a softer, sweeter one to the tip of her nose. "Slumber well."

She returned the warm kiss in kind, and her lips curled from the one to her nose. "Goodnight." She leaned down to gently brush her lips to Kellan's forehead, before heading down the hall for her own nighttime rituals.

"Now then, my lad,? Ewan began in soft words as he drew Kellan into the crook of one arm to hold the infant close, ?I cannot say how long I will be with you, and while I am knowing that you have no right notion of my words, I will be saying these things just the same."

Where to begin was a harder task than he had thought. Kellan?s eyes were but mockeries of the keen instruments they would become in future years, now only able to grasp the vagueness of the world around him without understanding. Still, Ewan looked into them as he began. ?Let me start off with one certainty, my boy, and that is for good or ill, I am your father. I will be trying to do my best to raise you, though you have a weighty difficulty on that growing up. This place where we live most our days is a bizarre one. But always remember, you have good people in your corner should the chaos come up against you.?

Ewan marveled again at the truth of this young life to which he had some measure in creating. ?Such an extraordinary amount of love in such a tiny space.? Out of a distant stretch of memory hidden in the shadows of darker times came a soft tune. His voice picked up the memory and brought it to quiet life. No words accompanied that tune, but its lullaby stretched like a cocoon over the gentle moment where Ewan thought on what all he had to do in the short time granted to him.