Take My Hand

[Tree]

Marina looked unsure, glancing back towards their bedroom over his shoulder.

"Ok..."

If he believed in her.... then it was decide which place she wanted to go. She shifted up in his lap to steal a couple kisses.

"You're sure? "

[Sushi]

"completely positive. Besides, you deserve to have her love and attention to help."

[Tree]

Marina looked up at him. She felt less confident they're, but gave a slow nod, nuzzling into him.

"Wanna come shower with me? "

She needed up wash before going elsewhere.

[Sushi]

"who in their right mind would turn that down?"

He got up with her in his arms, caring them that way.

[Tree]

Marina was eased a bit on the shower. Her sparkle was dim, but she seemed nearing stable as she lathered up.

"You'll be alright while I'm gone? "

[Sushi]

"I'll be fine," he reassured as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"I'm feeling a lot better thanks to you."

[Tree]

Marina didn't see any reason he could think she'd been any kind of help at all. Still she leaned over into the water to let it wash her clean.

/I think I'll go see Warren and the kids, if the schedule doesn't show them busy. The kids would love Fritz and I suspect he wanted to see me more anyway. /

He'd come the moment he had heard she was back..... he cared.

[Sushi]

"is he who you want to see?" Ryder pressed gently.

[Tree]

Marina looked up at him, eyes growing really sad.

/Not as much as others. .... I love him dearly, and he's gentle with me when I need it..... most of the time. Sometimes I'm more than he can manage. /

She admitted softly, looking down. She didn't even blame him. She just felt guilty for it.

/I want your brother but I'm not going to put either of us at risk for that decision.... and then if I can not have him, I want to go to Ephriam.... but... that seems unwise. He does not seem to really want my company, even if he offers to accept it anyway ....

And I miss and want Jethro... but.... but when I'm like this all I can feel is the weight of all my mistakes and feel like I've ruined his life and...../

Warren was the only one who wasn't busy off the top of her head that wouldn't come tangled with the others. Nikki and Hale were both gray last she'd looked and Lucas, Tito, and Timmy came with the Jethro bit.... and while she technically hadn't broken up with Iago, finding out he had caused her lover's death and the fact he'd said he'd kill her child if they wished to remain where they'd known home to be..... yeah....

[Sushi]

((full disclosure: I forgot Iago existed and remember almost nothing about him.))



Ryder pulled her hair back from her face.

"Things are going to be okay," he soothed.

"If he's all you can handle right now, then he's the right choice. I just wanted to make sure that you weren't asking the decision purely for someone else's sake."

[Tree]

( hehe, yeah. She sort of ghosted Iago, honestly. She uncoupled with him when she uncoupled with Zenith after Zenith opted to be a dead beat baby daddy. )

"He's normally gentle and I think maybe making playdoh castles to letting the kids give Fritz fifty middle names might be better than hurting my heart more right now..... but.... as for someone's sake.... I can't care for those I know need my company right now. For one reason or another. "

[Sushi]

"okay. Take your time."

He turned off the water and fetched them both a towel.

[Tree]

Marina watched him go, eyes saddening.

"Ryder..... thank you for being here for me when no one else can. "

She recognized that her loves all had full lives and they had needs to tend.... but he was here for her. Loving her and putting his life on hold.

[Sushi]

"more people would if you'd let them "

He traced her jaw.

"The only difference between them and me is that I'm more stubborn," he teased.

[Tree]

Marina smiled a tiny, tiny bit.

" Ephriam wouldn't. Hale would hire someone. Ryker can't. Jethro might not even realize I'm not one of the children. Tito would put in as much effort as he could, as would Timmy.... but they feel more like their being submissive rather than caretaking and it is draining on me to be that role for them. Nikki..... would do his best, but he's so adorably helpless in so many ways.... and Warren. .. he might. But he does our children with insufficient support from me as it is. I'll not take that sort of care from him when he's go so many....."

Marina barely shifted to cover herself with the towel in time to take her little girl from the nanny that tended Nikki's and her's children (plus the girl now in her arms that was just hers. ).

"Um?'

She didn't get to ask as she watched the baby vanish out. Those bright eyes looked about with a giggle and reached right towards Ryder.

" I can't really let anyone but you take care of me, you see? "

She completed her thought, nuzzling into her little baby girl. The eldest two girls had been dropped off with daddy at work. Mila was thrusting her knife at one of Nikki's men with a very threatening little look on her face as she demanded in a mix of Russian and English that someone give her grape juice. Ekaterina was much more content to draw on daddy's desk.. directly..... with sharpie.

Sacha was presently unaccounted for but if one were to hunt about the castle they'd find him sound asleep in a hamper, tuckered from crying and waiting for someone to help him out. Poor kid did not get noticed and was even under a few discard towels from morning showers.

[Sushi]

"people can surprise you."

He tucked the towel in so it would stay around his waist as he slid his fingers into the reaching hands.

"Well hello. Isn't this a surprise?"




Nikki was secretly delighted by Mila's actions and thought Ekaterina was adorable. However, he was making a show of being very serious.

"You heard her."

He wasn't helping his poor underling that didn't speak English and couldn't figure out whay the child was asking for.

[Tree]

Mila thrust her little knife at the man with a loud little "juice now! " in Russian and a frown as she glanced back to her daddy.

"Bad ...."

She said, giving up at the word finding and just thrust her knife towards the guy.

Ekaterina looked up, blinking slowly as she paused in her coloring, asking the guy first "English? ", then pausing and trying Spanish, then Russian. Poor kid was a mess of languages but she was doing surprisingly well with them.

[Sushi]

Nikki reached out and patted the littler one's head.

"Maybe we should leave these guys behind and go back to my house?"

[Tree]

Mila squinted at her daddy..

"Grape ?"

She asked him.. if he had juice? She'd go.

[Sushi]

"we can get some on the way," he agreed.

"Maybe some animal crackers too?"

[Tree]

"Sprinkle kind? "

Ekaterina asked eagerly now, little first clenching tight to the sharpie. Like he was gonna take it away.

[Sushi]

Nikki picked her up. He probably shouldn't buy cookies. That was a recipe for disaster. But look at their little faces.

"Just icing." He negotiated.

[Tree]

He was met with "sprinkles" and " SPRINKLES!" By the two. One was just a cute plea while the other was straight a demand. Mila poked get daddy with her knife, just a little prod, trying to emphasize her point.

Marina watched him play with her little mini me, smiling at the two, carefully handing the baby girl to him.

" If she's here I need to see if I've still got enough for her or if I need to get some things before heading off. "

She kissed him softly, going to find her laptop to send the nanny an email about what just happened. There had to be a reason, but she wasn't sure if this was acceptable behavior or not at this point.

[Sushi]

Nikki grabbed her hand and squeezed just enough to be uncomfortable.

"No," he told Mila sternly, his expression severe.

"We don't stab family. Not for any reason. Not ever."


"No problem. Is everything okay?"

[Tree]

"No clue.. normally he tells me what's up. But given how quickly he dropped her and left.... he does help us with Nikki's kids and her. So it's kinda dicey chances he's facing every now and then, I've discovered. "

She shared with a tiny shrug..

"But you've seen my lover.... there's just not a mean bone up that man. It's so hard to imagine him making any lasting enemies..."

She finished up the email and leaned over the side of the bed to pull out the tote stored under there to start looking through things..

"She looks like she's still in six months.... would you double check? "

She was a tiny little thing, even now. She was trying to catch Ryder's eyelashes. Marina couldn't help but smile as she watched him with her baby girl.

/ You're wonderful, you know. /

She couldn't love you more if she tried.

[Sushi]

Ryder shrugged.

"You never know. Some people are practically strangers when you compare who they are with loved ones versus who they are in public."

He checked the tag, confirmed the size, and then blew a raspberry on the child's belly.

[Tree]

The giggles were pure delight and little tufts started floating about the air. The powder pink bits were nearly opaque, looking much like tiny little koosh balls made of rich plush yarn. Twinkling like the very stars of the night sky they floated about Ryder and the babe in an unnatural gentle breeze.

If he attempted to touch one, they'd float right through you inspite of their solid appearance.

Marina was now watching her daughter closer, inching off the bed with a few dresses and sleepers in her hand, looking over the duo.

The first bit that would touch him be it his curiosity or (super)natural occurrence would give him a gradually building sense of.... happiness? Joyous delight that would turn even the most glum and gloomy of days into something to be embraced and wondrous.

[Sushi]

Ryder laughed at the sensation.

"Wow. What an amazing gift you have!"

He reached to pull Marina closer.

"Look."

[Tree]

Marina bumped into the bits and felt them dance through her, swallowing and blinking to smile down at her precious daughter.

"Oh sweet little girl of mine......"

She kissed her daughter's forehead, eyes dancing with the induced happy, shining brighter than she had in a while.

" You're such a special gift already. "

She shifted to check the diaper size and leaned up to kiss Ryder, smiling as she playfully stole his towel on her way past him to the hall closet. Rifling through things to start creating a diaper bag for her little joy maker, Marina was feeling tension easing from all over her body.

Ryder was getting serious babbling, clearly intentional as she grabbed towards his face. If she caught his face she'd pull him in for a big opened mouth kiss. Just like mama's!

[Sushi]

His playfully scandalized gasp was quickly replaced with another laugh.

"She has a heart just as big as yours."

[Tree]

Marina returned to watch the open mouthed, repeated kisses from daughter to lover, smiling as she shook her head and booped her baby girl.

" You can love him. You can kiss him, hug him, call on him when you're older..... but he's mine."

She was so warm and kind to her baby though, nothing in it was aggressive. It was just the knee jerk urge to soothe her inner insecurities. Her lover..... she shared with those who stole his heart before and after her. But.... not with her children, that was a line she wasn't comfortable with.

[Sushi]

Ryder chuckled and booped the baby too.

"Don't worry. I have some younger siblings if you want one of us too."

[Tree]

Marina growled a tiny bit, smile still in place as she reached to poke his abs lightly.

"No cradle robbing. "

She chided, leaning over to kiss her little girl on the side of the head.

"You could do so much worse if many loves is your life. "

She shared kindly, the truth and warmth in those words a window to how she treasured her relationship with the incubi.

[Sushi]

Ryder made a face.

"I would never."

He handed her the child, though. It was his turn to get dressed.

[Tree]

Marina would take her little girl and get her changed, settling a soft pink bow headband about her little girl's head as Ryder returned from dressing.

"What do you think? "

She asked as she turned her little to face him.

They were nearly identical, though Marina's had a sweetheart neckline that the babe obviously did not. As well as Marina's hair was a half up half down pulled back into a large pink bow of the same material as her baby's headband. She definitely wouldn't have picked this if not for the strong surge of happy fed to her. But with that boost? Why not? She had the outfits and when would the perfect situation arise again to use them?




Https://www.matchinglook.com/cdn/shop/p ... 1627869280

[Sushi]

Ryder made a girlish noise, and you could practically see the happy hearts floating off him

"I'm going to die of cuteness overdose!"

[Tree]

Marina glanced over the baby.

"I haven't talked with Warren yet.... what if we spent today together? "

She wanted the happiness he was funneling into her cup, intentional or not. Seeing him so happy to just look at her and her little girl? Uplifting at the least.

"It seemed fitting with her deciding to share her pretty little gift with us. "

[Sushi]

He reached out to pull them both into a hug.

"I'm always glad to have you. And this is your home - your always welcome here."

[Tree]

Marina smiled at him, snuggling in as the baby giggled and tried to kiss them both with enthusiasm.

"I like how it feels to be like this right now. "

Loved and wanted.

[Sushi]

"then staying sounds like the perfect plan."

He gently tickled the child.

"She's such a happy baby. Did you figure out what happened?"