Dim Lights and Butterflies

eight

Harry's already started to change. 

It was only last night that Louis gave him that lecture, and Astrid ran away from home to him, and Harry has finally got it into his brain that the way he was acting was in no way a good thing. 

Louis is half asleep, eyes closed as a random dream plays out in his mind. His door creaks open, and a little giggle fills the silence. Pitter patter of feet trot into the room, and suddenly a mass of limbs pile on top of Louis. 

He traps her under his arm, turning over with her in his arms, still feigning sleep. "Mm, teddy. Lovely, cuddly teddy," he mumbles. 

Astrid shrieks a laugh. "I'm not a teddy!" she cackles.

He brushes his palm over her face, her knotted hair getting tangled in some of his fingers. "Shh, teddy, sleepy time."

She tries to wiggle out from his grip. "Louis! It's wakey time, not sleepy time! You have to get up, I have school soon."

Louis groans loudly. "Teddies don't go to school, silly!"

"I'm not a teddy," she exasperates on a laugh. "Let go of me."

He opens his eyes and bolts up right. "Astrid? What are you doing here? I could've sworn there was a teddy here just a second ago."

Astrid giggles into her palm. "It was me. Daddy tell him."

Louis whips his head around to look at the doorway to find Harry leaning against it with a soft smile on his lips and dishevelled hair from sleep. 

"Oh," Louis says, a little sheepish that Harry just witnessed all that. "Um... Morning."

"Good morning, Lou. Astrid still needs to get dressed. I'm going to go get Orion and start on breakfast. Would you be able to help Astrid get her things ready for school? I think she has clarinet lessons today."

Louis quirks a brow, looking at Astrid. "I didn't know you did clarinet."

"We have a lesson at school. Our whole class has to do it. My clarinet is in my room."

"Well then, Missy, let's get you dressed. I'm sure Daddy's breakfast will be the best." He looks to Harry with a wink.

Harry rolls his eyes, but the smile never leaves. "It's just some pancakes. Nothing special."

Astrid gasps at this news, charging out the room to get dressed. "Come on, Louis!"

Louis throws his duvet off him. "Alright, alright, 'm comin'! Lemme get dressed first." He shucks on some joggers and a hoodie. Something easy.

Seeing the excitement on Astrid's face over the simplicity of her father making pancakes, warms Louis' heart. It shows him that Harry is finally starting to turn things around, that he's going to be there for the children, he's going to try. Louis knows it'll take some time, it'll be a long bumpy road ahead of them, but it's something, it's like an olive branch, some sort of talisman to show reason that this is the new beginning, and like a Phoenix, he's going to burn until he rebirths into something new and better. 

Louis races Astrid downstairs, and Orion looks up from his mission on mushing banana in his hands. He swings his arms up in triumph. 

"Ee!" he yells, little legs kicking in excitement. 

"Good morning, RiRi, did you have a good sleep?" Louis asks, pecking the boy on the temple and ruffling his blond hair. "What did that banana ever do to you?" he gasps, seeing the mangled bit of fruit dripping from his hands and all over his tray. 

Orion giggles, sucking one of his banana covered fingers. 

"We've got dance in PE today, Daddy," Astrid converses through a mouthful of pancake.