anything and everything

fluffy babies

"Erin have you seen Elyse!" Jennel called for her friend. The infant neko girls were starting to shift. They couldn't control it yet, so they'd do it at random.

Jennel had Cherry in her arms and Cherry was snuggling a tiny black kitten. "Rin Kitty. Kitty Rin."

"Yes that's kitty Rin, be gentle." Jennel always encouraged the girls to speak up and interacted when they spoke. It would help them learn to speak. Well, she hoped it would. She really didn't know.

"Kitty Rin, kitty Rin." Cherry continued to him her little song as she stroked Rins fluffy head and back. Rin seemed happy since she was kneading and purring along.

"Erin?"

"In the mess hall! I've got Elyse!" Erin called back.

"Where did you find her, I've been looking everywhere!" Jennel rushed to the mess hall to find Erin sitting at a table playing with a kitten formed Elyse.

"She was in the pantry, climbing the shelves."

"Lyse!" Cherry made grabby hands towards Elyse.

"I see you found the other two." Erin said.

"I never lost them, I was just chasing them. Well, Cherry was chasing Rin. So much for nap time."

Jennel sat down next to Erin and gently rubbed Elyse's head. "How long until they're adults again?"

"Oh about 16 years give or take." Erin laughed. "Let's get them back to the room. Maybe a meal will help them settle down and go to sleep. Cherry is almost out already."

"Yeah. Thanks again, Erin."

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

"Well, would you look at that?" Jennel looked over at the blanket where baby Theo had been left for some floor time. They were keeping half an eye on him but he wasn't going very far.

Rin and Elyse were both in their cat forms and had been playing with and around Theo. Now all three were in a pile napping. Theo was hugging Rin and using her as a pillow while Elyse was snuggled up against his back.

"They've gotten so big since the last time I saw them." Erin said, looking down at their three children. "I hope they stay close when they get older."

"You can always send Theodore to work at the palace." Jennel said.

"So you're going to stay there?"

Jennel looked at her lap then back to her friend shyly. "I wouldn't know where else to go, honestly. Besides Im a bit attached to princess Cherry now. I can't just walk away from my third daughter."

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

"Vel! I can't find Somn!" Jennel called for her husband, unsure of where he was. Veliko responded to the summon immediately by appearing beside Jennel.

"Where did you leave him?" Babies can't go very far on their own.

"In his crib! But he's not here!" Jennel was starting to panic. Babies don't go far on their own. Babies get stolen. At least, hybrid infants do.

"Calm down, I'll find him." Veliko said before he suddenly vanished again. He was using minds to travel and look for their child.

Jennel immediately assumed Somn got stolen. Vel assumed he was in someone's mind. After all, Somn was part nightmare. He'd likely have some of Vels abilities.

So Vel was off to Somn's favorite people. Jennel, Elyse, Rachel, and Theodore. He'd have checked Sitris mind if an incubus could be possessed in such a way.

He found his infant floating around in the mind of Lukas who had fallen asleep at his desk. Somn was causing quite the interesting dream for poor Lukas. It wasn't a nightmare, rather it was just strange.

"Come here, Somn." Vel found his son in the infinite space of Lukas mind and took hold of his spirit. "Let's go home to mama."

.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

Daniel held his wings above his head to try to protect himself from the rain as he ran back towards the shelter that he and Ariel had built.

Three months they'd been gone, three months he'd been surviving on his own out here in the wilderness. It was a lot colder without his siblings to keep him warm.

"Kid, slow down!"

Stop chasing me! Daniel didn't dare look over his shoulder, he could hear how close behind him they were. He dropped his wings to stop protecting his face so he could run faster. He was going to lead them right to his home at this rate!

"Kid!" A hand caught the back of his shirt, stopping Daniel suddenly enough to make him fall.

"No. No. No. No. I'm sorry!" Daniel got his hands up to protect himself. "I'm sorry!"

"Calm down kid, I'm not going to hurt you." The gruff sounding man looked at Daniel with surprisingly soft eyes.

Daniel had stolen food from a woman in town and this man, Daniel assumed it was her friend or husband, had chased him back. It was just a loaf of bread, probably soaked from the rain now. He was never very good at pick pocketing, that was Ariel's specialty.

"Where's your family?"

"Gone. . ." Daniels voice wavered with sadness when he spoke.

"You don't have a home?" He guessed.

Daniel shook his head no.

"You can't just steal food, kid. It's wrong and you'll get in trouble." He said sternly. "get up. You can sleep in our spare room the night. If you're willing to work, we'll feed you and you can stay for a while."

.
.
.
.
.
.
.

"How old are you Daniel?" Scilia asked her new roommate. She was still in her teens, she'd left her mother pretty young to come work here.

"14." Daniel answered.

"That explains why you're so small."

"I'm not small! I'm average." Daniel crossed his arms with a huff. He hated being called small.

"Sorry. It explains why you're not full grown." Scilia rephrased. "Do you know how to start a fire? It's really cold in here."

"Yeah..." Daniel got out of his bed and walked over to the fireplace she was curled around before using magic to light it.

"You practically radiate heat."

"What are you, hey!" Daniel blushes brightly when an arm snaked around his waist before Scilia pulled him into her arms.

"You're so warm~" she nuzzled her face against his head. "just cuddle me for a couple minutes?"

Daniel huffed but relented. He needed to be on good terms with his new roommate. Besides, she was way stronger than him. "fine."