Redeemed (Sequel)

Chapter 14

Artemis P.O.V.

I could hear the normal ruckus that went on in my house when I came in from running errands. Raven came up behind me in the hall--probably just coming in from flying-- and slapped my ass as he went by. "Hey! Hands to yourself!" I yelped, glaring at him over my shoulder as he disappeared into the bathroom. "Sparrow! Put your sister down!" Storm yelled. "You know your wings aren't strong enough for you to carry someone while flying." I dropped the grocery bag in our room and ran back to the living room, only to see four year old Sparrow setting little Lily down. She had just turned two, and she already looked so much like Storm. Her ash-brown curls bounced as she sprinted toward me. "Mommy!" she squealed, reaching upward. "Lily!" I cheered, scooping her up and spinning her around. Her golden eyes identical to mine lit up with glee as she giggled.

"Papa's right, Chickie," I said, giving Sparrow a scolding look. "You or your sister could seriously get hurt." He pouted, staring hard at the ground. Raven came into the room and scooped him up on his shoulders. "It's okay little man. Your wings will be big and strong one day, and you can carry anyone!" he encouraged. "Birdy," I growled, receiving a startled look from him. "Hehehe, Mommy and Papa are right though. You can't try toting people around just yet," he mumbled, setting him down. I fiddled with the ring on my left hand, feeling guilty just looking at Sparrow's pitiful gaze. "You guys wanna see Mama do alchemy?" They all perked up immediately; it was rare for me to perform alchemy around them.

After what happened with Grief, I was let out of the military on medical discharge. When Sparrow was about a year old, I had pursued a writing career. My only pieces were a recollection of my experiences as a state alchemist falling in love with a homunculus and a trilogy about a young faerie named Isle who was raised as a human, but discovers she was born to a family of warrior creatures. I quickly retired from that career, and much of my profits went into my real passion: opening my own café. Raven and his band, Mercy Falls, were the face of music and were scheduled to go on tour in Xing this summer. Storm ran Grief's Hideout with me, and I absolutely adored him for it. So, as a long way of going about explaining it, alchemy wasn't much more than "that stuff Mama and Papa used to do" and "PopPop's career" in my house.

I went into the room and grabbed the grocery bag, coming back and dumping it in the middle of the floor. Chalk and pieces of craft wood fell out, and the children gathered around eagerly. Raven and Storm took a seat on the floor behind them, watching intently. I knelt down and picked up a piece of chalk, drawing a perfect transmutation circle. It came so easily, like I hadn't just gone without using alchemy for nine years. I pushed the materials into the middle of the circle, pressing my palms against the outline. Blue light flashed, and I grinned as the wood took the shape of exactly what I had imagined. The light faded, and I picked up my creation, holding it out to Raven and Storm. "Happy anniversary," I grinned. "Our anniversary isn't until tomorrow," Storm retorted skeptically. It was a small wooden sculpture. "Hey!" Raven chuckled. "There's me and Storm, you, Lily, Honor, Sparrow, and-"

"Artemis!" Storm gasped, squinting at my master reveal. The tiny sculpture was an exact likeness of my family. I was standing in between Storm and Raven, holding an unidentifiable bundle in each arm. I had known I was pregnant for a couple weeks now, but I was waiting to tell them until I had my first ultrasound...which had been today. I was having twins! "Congratulations...?" I squeaked, smiling mischievously. Raven's face split into a wide grin, and Storm looked horrified. "Y-you're on birth control though," he whispered, his icy eyes staring at my stomach. "It didn't work," I replied.

"You're gonna have another baby!?" Sparrow screamed. "Dat means I gonna be a big stister!" Lily shrieked, running around excitedly. "More babies!" Honor cheered. Raven got up and started dancing around with the kids and their choruses of "YAYYYYY!" Raven put Honor up on his shoulders and they stomped around the living room shouting. I looked at Storm, and I could feel the tears welling up. "You aren't happy," I mumbled. It wasn't a question. His expression and body language said it all. His eyes met mine, and I was surprised to find his were filled with tears, too. He crawled toward me and pulled me into his arms, picking me up with him as he stood. "I'm not mad. I'm actually very happy," he whispered as he held me close to his chest. He set me down, catching everyone else's attention. "Papa?" Honor and Sparrow called, looking afraid and unsure. "Daddy, you okay?" Lily asked. He picked her up, setting her against his hip. "Daddy grew up without a family, and now I have a very big one. I'm just really happy," he explained to her, tears rolling silently down his face.

"Storm never cries. Holy shit," Raven whispered in awe. He hadn't even cried when I was pregnant with Lily, when I found out she was a girl, or when she was born. He had just spent a lot of time alone, quietly staring off into nothing. He squeezed me gently, as though I might break. "My family, my big, perfect family," he mumbled over and over again. "Daddy, I'm squished!" Lily whined between us. He chuckled and set her down, his hands coming back up to rub my stomach. "You've never been like this before. What's gotten into you?" I asked. He looked down at me with more tears and grinned. "I've always been like this, just not necessarily on the outside," he replied.

Raven P.O.V.

We were laying in bed that night, the three of us excitedly talking about baby names and whose it could be. Artemis laid back on us with a contented sigh. "I'm so excited!" she cried, absentmindedly playing with my feathers. There was a light tap on the door before it opened, three sleepy little heads poking into the room. "Lily had a nightmare and we told her she could sleep with us," Honor said, his wavy blue-black hair falling around his head wildly. "Aren't you two such wonderful big brothers," Artemis smiled. Sparrow scratched his head and yawned, "Yeah, but now we all can't sleep." Their request came in union, three tired chimes. "Can we sleep with you?" Storm sighed and patted the bed, a smile in his pale grey eyes. The children all climbed into bed, laying around and across us, our sleeping arrangement like a game of Jenga.

As they drifted to sleep, I lie awake watching them. Lily sprawled out on Storm's legs, Storm resting one hand on the top of her head, the other at an odd angle over his face; Sparrow wedged himself in between Artemis and me, his wings tucked around him; Artemis laying on her back, supporting Sparrow's head with one arm and Storm's with the other, her legs tangled in mine; and Honor curled in a ball at the end of the bed, laying on his mother's feet. They were all so peaceful, so happy. They were an ever-growing, strong family...and they were mine. They were all mine. I may not ever gain my memories from before the day I woke up in a strange lab as a chimera, but I was making a hell of a lot more that were greater than any amount of wealth.

That's it for the story of SxAxR...sorta. There's an epilogue after this and a little drabble I made about their wedding, but that's it for this side of Artemis' many many stories. I hope you enjoyed! :)