...We Could...

Fumi FORTY!

Feliciano smiled, holding Tiri as he sat next to his brother.

"Hey-a, Tiri, this is-a you're sorallina!" he told him proudly. (little sister)

The small child blinked his big hazel eyes. "Sora... Llina...?" he repeated. The word was new to him. What did it mean, exactly? Who was this small child?

Lovino was smiling--smiling--down at his newborn daughter, cooing to her softly in his native tongue. "Ehi, là, Lovina. Sei abbastanza sonnolenta, non è vero? Non vuoi aprire gli occhi per noi? Beh, possiamo aspettare di vedere quei bellissimi occhi color nocciola. Ci vedremo molto di loro in futuro." Looking up, he smiled at his son. "Ehi, Tiri, vuoi tenere la tua sorellina?" (Hey, there, Lovina. You're pretty sleepy, aren't you? Won't you open your eyes for us? Well, we can wait to see those beautiful hazel eyes. We'll be seeing much of them in the future; Hey, Tiri, would you like to hold your little sister?)

He nodded, though he didn't know what was going on. His uncle set him down between them and helped him to hold the newborn in his lap. The boy looked down at the tiny bundle of blankets to see a miniature him; she had the same little nose, the same plump lips, and the same creamy skin. Tiri was awed to see how peaceful she looked, and how delicate.

Suddenly, she stirred. Tiri jerked back a bit and watched with wide eyes as she yawned hugely and her dark lashes fluttered open, revealing two bright hazel eyes. They blinked lazily a few times before finding the owner's brother. Lovina grinned, and giggled.

Chatter quit.

All the adults looked at the two small children.

The only sound was Tiri talking to his sister in Farsi and their giggles.

"Was that... Lovina...?" Kiana asked, hushed so as to not draw Tiri's attention away.

The nurse was scribbling away on her pad. "That's not something you see everyday... She's quite a smart baby. Now that I think about it..."

Kiana turned her head to see her looking into old data. "Tiri was the same, wasn't he?"

She nodded hesitantly. "Y-yes, he was..."

The nurse smiled at her. "You have two very smart, and very beautiful children."

"Thank you," Kiana smiled in return, sighing with relief at their fortune.

Lovina went back to sleep peacefully in Tiri's arms. Now that he had held her, he understood that she was going to stay with them. He liked that idea very much.

Feli carefully scooped her up out of his nephew's lap and carried her close to his chest as he set her into the hospital bassinet. Tiri followed after him and went up on tip-toe to try and get a good look of her. All he got was a glimpse of her nose, though. Scampering back to the bench, he scrambled up it and stood, now able to see his sister.

He smiled, satisfied that she was safe where she was, and sat back down, getting wrapped up into his father's arms.

"You'll-a protect her just-a fine," he told him, placing a gentle kiss on his dark head.

~*~

Tiri kept track of his baby sister all the days long. He hardly played anymore, which worried Kiana, but Lovino told her to enjoy Tiri's eagerness to watch his sister while it lasted. So she did, gathering many pictures and sending them off to the other countries for them to enjoy. Of course Grandpa Rome loved his little great-grandbabies, and would visit often to help out Lovino and Kiana.

"What in the-a world is going on in-a here?" Lovino asked, having to yell over her daughter's yelling.

"I don't know!" Kiana responded. "Baybe Vina just won't stop crying!"