Work Text:
Ms. Delilah Morreo was fine by herself in her warmly lit home, with her comfortable chairs in her dust smelling rooms. The average visitor would think she ran an orphanage, but she didn’t get visitors. Not until the sun fell behind the horizon.
That was about to happen soon, in the real world. Now, time didn’t pass in her home. At most, the sun would dip ever so slightly to shine like it would in a natural sunset. That only happened when Delilah wanted it to, though.
Delilah waited ever so patiently in one of the cushioned chairs in the main room, like the lobby or waiting room of perhaps a doctor’s office. Her ears were strained to pick up on the sound of her children’s footsteps, when they finally woke up and trailed down the stairs. One after the other, they’d come and say hello to her.
Her children often had stories to tell her. Some of them were make believe; stories of cowboys and pirates and bands with superpowers. Some of them were recollections of their day. Sometimes they talked about Peter Walter VI. She didn’t quite fully trust the young man. Not after her children’s father.
Ms. Delilah Morreo almost lost herself in her head, when the faint sound of padded footsteps down old, creaky stairs grabbed her attention. It was Jackrabbit. She knew for she had plenty of time to get used to the sound of each of her childrens’ footsteps.
“M-M-Mother?” her eldest daughter called, poking her head into the main room. Jackrabbit’s face lit up at the familiar sight of Delilah in her chair, waiting.
“Hello, Jackrabbit. How have you been, dear?” The name slipped off of her tongue as easily as any other word. It was like being renamed, her children had said. They liked her names for them.
“I’ve been al-al-al-alright. Peter came into the woods with us today. He wanted to play, I think. He didn’t really like tag, though,” Jackrabbit found herself another cushioned chair to situate herself in, close to Delilah.
“What a shame. Did Chimera or The Beast play with you any?” Delilah questioned, though she knew well that her each of her children often had different definitions of ‘playing.’
“Not too much. I think they’re coming, by the way. Here, I mean.”
Ms. Delilah Morreo nodded at her eldest daughter, then offered her a cup of tea, which was declined. Jackrabbit wasn’t huge on tea, but Delilah would probably end up making a cup anyways. If she wouldn’t drink it, The Beast would. He quite liked tea.
Almost as if her child could read her mind, The Beast made his way down the stairs. His steps sounded nearly identical to Jackrabbit’s, though he had a different walking pattern. Delilah was familiar with it. She could tell them apart well.
“Hello, dear,” Delilah once again called. Her head was turned opposite of him, but she could practically feel the way he shifted on his feet for a moment before walking into the main room. Maybe she did feel it. Her home was basically an extension of her, or at least her mind.
“Hello, Mother,” The Beast responded, making his way next to her. He was growing tall these days. Much taller than her, but that was alright.
“I’m off to make you a cup of tea. Do you think Chimera would want one, too?” She asked, pulling herself out of her chair.
“I’m not too sure. It might be better to wait and ask him,” The Beast spoke slowly, as if he was running his words through his head several times to make sure they were right. A moment later, he sat himself down in a free chair next to his twin.
“He doesn’t like tea too much, d-d-does he?” Rabbit said, her words more of a statement than a question. She watched as her brother sat himself down close to her, her expression questioning as the two thought of their younger brother.
“I suppose not. He drinks it sometimes, though,” The Beast countered, frowning.
“I won’t make it for him, then,” Delilah decided before turning on her heel to head towards the kitchen. Her children went along with her decision, the conversation dropping.
Chimera always took a second longer than the twins to wake up, perhaps he fell asleep later. He greeted Delilah exactly like her other children, and found a chair right beside the two of them. There was always a chair for everyone here. She made sure of it.
A few minutes and a momentary conversation between her children about sleep later, the tea Delilah had made was done. She stepped back over to the main room and handed it to The Beast, then situated herself back in her normal chair. The Beast pulled the cup up to his lips and drank, while Jackrabbit thought of a story to tell. Once the three of them started, it was forever before they stopped.
Their stories would drag on through their time here. They often told stories to pass the time in Delilah’s home, but sometimes they ran off through the dusty hallways together and found some odd game to play. It was always sweet and entertaining, for Ms. Delilah Morreo to watch her children play. They had such a strong bond, she doubted she would’ve ever seen such without them.
She loved her children.