Cody learns to love

The one chapter where Echo gives Cody some gray hairs

  Aside from the visit at doctor's office, Cody was having a pretty normal weekend. He spent most of the day playing with the kids or doing chores around the house. Bly went for a dinner with Aayla so the task of cooking fell to Cody too. He didn't mind all that much, though. He was trying to engage his little siblings in chores and with Kix and Jesse peeling and cutting the potatoes and Fox cutting the vegetables, cooking was almost easy.

  "Cody, I'm hungry," Fives ran to him. Echo was trailing behind him, like always, but he pouted when he saw Cody looking. He still hasn't forgiven Cody nor Fox for making Fives cry. He even changed out of the red leggings - inherited from Fox - into blue sweatpants as a form of protest.

  "We will have dinner in half an hour."

  "That's a long time," Fives informed him. "I'm hungry now. And Echo is hungry too but he doesn't want to talk to you."

  Cody looked around the kitchen. "If you ask Fox nicely, he will give you some of the carrots he's been chopping."

  Fives seemed to be considering his options but in the end, he nodded and ran to Fox. Echo followed after him at a more sedate pace and he glared at Fox when the older boy smiled at them. "I want a carrot, Fox," Fives demanded.

  Usually Echo, as the more polite one of the twins, would nudge Fives and add a 'please'. As it was now, Echo didn't seem too keen on talking to Fox. It was Cody's place to scold Fives, then. "Fives, what do you say?"

  "I want a carrot," Fives repeated.

  "And what do you say when you are asking for something? The magic word?"

  "Please," Fives added.

  "Careful, don't drop it," Fox handed Fives a plate with some of the neat cut pieces of carrots. He held onto the plate until he was sure Fives had it firmly in his hands. Cody raised a good ori'vod out of him. Too bad he still didn't manage to learn Fives some manners.

  "And what do you say when you get what you want?" Cody reminded him. Fives looked at him, confused, then he looked at Echo for help. Echo didn't as much as nod but Fives still seemed like he got the message. They always could somehow wordlessly communicate with each other and that ability only seemed to grow as they got older.

  "Thanks," Fives muttered.

  "You are welcome, Fives. You too, Echo," Fox gave both of the twins a hair ruffle and ignored Echo sticking out his tongue at him.

  "Echo, what do you say?" Cody reminded him and when Echo didn't react, he continued. "Echo. What do you say when your big brother gives you something?"

  Echo looked at Fox, then at the plate in Fives' hands, then back at Fox. He looked about to say something and hey, maybe he was starting to come around. "I hate you," Echo growled in the end and knocked the plate out of Fives' hands. "C'mon," he took Fives by the hand and dragged him away. Just which part of the parenting guides did Cody skip?

  "Why is Echo acting like that?" Jesse asked.

  "He is just angry and doesn't know how to handle it," Cody explained. He walked over to Fox. He knew how much Fox loved his little brothers, even if he didn't always show it, and he could tell that Echo pulling away from him hurt Fox.

  "Did I do something wrong?" Fox asked as he helped Cody collect the spilled pieces of carrot from the floor.

  "You did nothing wrong."

  "But Echo is mad at me."

  "He is mad at me too. Because we scolded Fives and in Echo's eyes, we hurt him and made him cry. But Fives needed the scolding. Echo will eventually see that, or at least forget he is mad at us. Just don't worry about it, Fox. You did the right thing and you are being an amazing ori'vod."