Nine Shillings

The Nellyphant in the Room

London - 1842

If Gale had been anyone else I would have chased her down, but I couldn't catch her if I didn't have a plan to stop her draining energy. Getting drained of all our energy wasn't the preferred outcome.

I chewed a pencil as I read through Bran's notebooks on the supernatural, trying to ignore Edward talking to Bran, his sisters running around upstairs, the thwack of Millie's practice sword against her training post, and the thought of Josef in his workshop, shirtless and delicious... The honeymoon sex window was distracting. The fellas were distracting. In the best way.

'Papa, what would happen if I turned into a... nellyphant?' Edward asked, sitting on Bran's chest.

'You'd squash me,' Bran said.

'Why?'

'You'd be too big.'

'Big as a house.' Edward looked towards the ceiling with his hands over his eyes, he'd got experimental in his hide and seek tactics and abandoned Bran's desk to better follow in Bran's shadow all day, it was where he felt safest.

Despite Edward always hiding under the desk Mary and Merry were still rummaging in the upstairs cupboards for him, which meant mess all over the floors. Unless they 'tidied up', so soon as the cupboards were opened there'd be mess all over the floor.

'Could boop your nose from looooong way,' Edward said.

'You could...' Bran replied. The last time Edward had tried to boop Bran's nose with his it had been a head-butt, it was unwise to head-butt a vampire.

Edward took one hand off his face, eye squeezed shut. 'Boop.' He missed Bran's nose and smacked him in the face.

'Thank you,' Bran said.

I coughed.

'Ooopsie.' Edward wriggled about, kneading Bran's chest with his knees, and blew a slobbery raspberry on Bran's face in place of an apology. 'Love, Papa.' He lay on Bran's chest to give him a hug.

'Papa loves you too, Eddy.'

Edward looked at him with big puppy eyes. 'Canna have nellyphant?'

I pressed my lips together to hold back a laugh.

'Where would we keep an elephant?' Bran asked.

'Can sleep under my bed an' share bikits.'

'I don't think an elephant would fit under your bed.'

'Just little nellyphant.' Edward raised his thumb and forefinger.

'Little elephants tend to grow into big elephants.'

'Please, Papa.' Edward burst into tears.

Bran gave him a squeeze and kissed the top of his head. 'I think you want a nap.'

'Noooo!' Edward wailed. 'Want nellyphant.'

I covered my face with my hands and shook with suppressed laughter.

'You're mean, Papa.' Edward sobbed. 'You don't like me.'

'I love you, little fella,' Bran said, stroking his head. 'Ask your mother.'

I glared at Bran and he grinned.

Edward climbed down and toddled over to me with Rawr under one arm. 'Muma,' he cried and stuck his arm out to me. 'Want nellyphant.'

I lifted him onto my lap. 'I don't know about nellyphants, where'd you learn about them?'

He sniffed loudly. 'Dada told story 'bout nellyphants. They went up a big, big hill, an' was man called...' He scowled. 'Hand-bull, but don't got bulls, just nellyphants. Can ride nellyphants an' squish people.'