The Elementalist Diaries

Part II Entry I My Favorite Characters :)

Ashlynne's POV

"Nathaniel Jacob Black-Clearwater!" I yelled at the small, baby bear-sized, black wolf in the crib with blue accessories. "Shift, now," I warned, picking up a placid Lilly from her crib, green footie pajamas and all. Lilly, unlike her brother, was NOT in the body of a wolf cub. Lilly was holding tightly onto her rabbit, Bunny, with one arm, and sucking her thumb with the other. Lilly is pale, with blonde curls and green eyes. She's adorable, quiet, and shy.

Sarah, their sister as well, stood up and waited patiently for me to get her. Sarah, the oldest, was dressed in the same outfit as Lilly, except her color was pink. Sarah had black hair and brown eyes, and was probably the most responsible out of the four four-year-olds. Yes, four.

Bella, in her purple footie pajamas, was trying to climb out of her crib, and was failing miserably. Bella had dark brown hair and green eyes, and was more spirited and adventurous than the other two girls put together. I picked her up and set her on the ground. The wolf cub, by now, had been replaced with a boy with dark brown hair and brown eyes. I dropped Lilly to the floor, grabbed a blue shirt and a diaper, and reclothed him, since shifting had torn his clothes to shreds.

"Nate, you've gotta stop shifting so often, you're going through clothes like a writer through paper," I said, pulling his shirt over his head. I picked him up and he hugged me tightly.

"Sowwy, Mommy." Yep. Mommy. I am the mother of quadruplets. And they are definitely the best part of my life. I smiled at my only son and kissed his forehead. "I lowve you, Mommy." I put him on the ground.

"I love you, too, Nate," I told him. He took my hand and we walked out to the kitchen where the other three had congregated. Sarah and Bella were in their color-coded high chairs, but Lilly was still on the ground, at a loss as to how to get into her chair. I lifted Nate into his chair, then Lilly, and then I retrieved their color-coded bowls from the counter. Everything but the things they needed forthis morning was already packed into the truck. Their cribs were collapsible, and Luke was coming in about five minutes to do that for me.

I poured Lucky Charms into each one's bowl, poured the milk, and handed each one their own bowl and their own spoon and left them to eat while I went to get their clothes packed. I left each girl an outfit I knew they would like and left Nate's jeans on the doorknob. Everyone's shoes were by the front door, so I only had to deal with THAT at the last minute.

I had been up and ready to go since six o'clock, and now, an hour later, all I'm waiting on is my best friend, who is SUPPOSED to be here to help me. I took the shreds of Nate's pajamas out of his bed and threw them out, collapsing it as I went. I didn't have time to wait for Luke, Gwen, and their new daughter, Ashleah.

What is so important about today, you ask? Well, today, we are all moving back to La Push. Yep, back to my family and back to Seth. I have no idea how he will react to the kids. I've kept in touch with everyone except him over the four and a half years I've been away. I've graduated from Juliard early and I've actually decided to go back to La Push and give horseback riding lessons, which I also got a degree in.

I'm kind of excited, but I'm dreading seeing Seth's face after I come back with kids. I loved him then, and I love him now, but... I need m family and I need my team more than I need to cater to his wants. He didn't want kids so I hid them far away so he wouldn't be unhappy. But now I'm coming back, and... I want him to accept them, for their sake and mine. They're only four and they are already asking where their Daddy is.

Plus... I can't teach Nate anything about being a werewolf. He needs to be with a pack when he shifts for protection and for discipline.

These are the things I was thinking of as I closed Lilly's collapsible crib on my hand.