Offspring of Nowhere (Centaurworld Fanfic)

Chapter 11: Late Night Questions

That night in Centaurworld, in the village, Elk was on the floor with the twins playing with them, laughing. They run around him, making noise and Elk catches Aldara, "I gotcha! Rar!" Aldara playfully screams, laughing, "Oh no! He's got me in his clutches! Save me dear brother!" Divoky lifts his stick, pretending it was a sword, "The Nowhere King is no match for my sword! YAAAA!" He pretends to stab Elk in the chest and Elk collapses to the ground, "NO! I have been defeated." He plays dead and the twins climb all over him, "TICKLE FIGHT!" They start tickling him and he busts out laughing, "HAHA! HEY HEY! HEY NOW! TAKE IT EASY! AHAHAHA!" His eyes fill with tears of laughter, and he manages to sit up and tickles them back, and Adalie watches from the kitchen smiling sweetly at them as she pulled some cookies out the oven, the aroma filling the cottage.

Once the smell hit their noses, the twins look over at the kitchen and get excited, "Cookies!" They carefully climb off Elk, and he was finally able to stand up as they huddle around their mother, watching as she placed them on a plate. They sit around the table and grab a couple and start munching and Adalie watches the twins smiling and Elk sits next to her and puts her arm around her waist and pulls her close. Divoky looks at Elk, "Hey Dad?" "Hm?" "Why did.... why were you called the Nowhere King?" Adalie looks at her son, "Divoky..." He looks down, "Sorry.." Elk shakes his head, "No no it's fine. I don't mind." The twins looks at their father and he clears his throat, "Well...I wasn't really a king king, like I didn't have, riches and stuff." He chuckles and he continues, "But the nowhere part...well...I didn't really belong anywhere. Nowhere at all. So, I made my own "family" and well...they saw me as like a king and that's how I got the name, 'The Nowhere King.'"

Aldara bites into her cookie, "Are you scared of the rift, daddy?..." Elk looks at her, "What was that sweetheart?" Aldara puts her cookie down, "When we were going through the portal, you had a look of fear, like you saw a ghost...were you afraid of the portal or..." Elk looks at the table, "It's not that I was scared...I was having bad memories." The twins walk over and sit next to him, "What happened?..." He sighs, "Well...a long time ago...I...I had a lot of...well, I wasn't myself. I thought if I changed myself maybe people could show respect back to me, like if I blended in with the crowd...however, it got out of hand...one side didn't want to go back and things escalated. It was just a war with myself for years...but in the end, I payed my dues, spending about a year in nothing but darkness....then I met your mother, who gave me another chance and showed me that I don't need to change a thing." He smiles at Adalie and holds her hand, and they kiss each other.

Divoky sticks his tongue out, "Bleh!" Aldara giggles, and Elk ruffles his son's hair. There was a soft knock and Emilia and Josiah peer in, and Josiah chuckles, "I smell cookies." The twins run over to them, "Grandpa! Grandma!" Josiah picks the twins up, laughing, "Oh look how big you two are getting!" Adalie hugs her parents and giggles, "They're on the table. And it's close to the twins' bedtime." The twins groan, "Aww." Adalie takes the twins and takes them to their room and sets them in bed, tucking them in and kisses their foreheads. Elk comes in and smiles and sits with her and the twins snuggle in their bed. Aldara smiles, "Can you guys sing our lullaby please?" Divoky nods, "Please?" Adalie and Elk smile at each other and begin singing together to the twins.

"Hush now, there's no need to feel afraid.

I'm here to shelter you from the pain.

Wipe the tears away from your eyes.

Oh how it pains me to seeing you cry.

I promise that you are safe, you don't need to fear.

You are alright for I am here.

Quiet and clear your tears away.

I'm here, from the darkest of night until day.

I won't ever leave your side

It's alright, there's no need to cry.

You'll be okay, every day of the year

You're alright, I am here."

The twins yawn and snuggle under their blanket, falling fast asleep. Elk and Adalie make sure their tucked in and kisses their foreheads, and quietly walk out the room. Adalie quietly closes the door and smiles at Elk, and they join Josiah and Emilia and sit with them. Through the twins' bedroom window, there was a figure standing there, watching quietly. Keres smiles underneath her hood, and she quietly opens the window, sneaking into their room. She looks at the twins as they sleep and she gently caresses Aldara's cheek with her finger and does the same to Divoky, "How precious...so small... so fragile....so innocent." She looks at the door and then opens a basket, smiling and she reaches for the twins.

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