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A soft “pap pap pap pap” outside the door woke him.
Tiny feet.
He huffed and yawned, arched his back off the firm bedding and sighed. It had been a good sleep while it lasted.
Tiny feet shuffling again. “Pap pap papapapapap!” and “Pop pop popopop!” and the door flew open. Leaf shot bolt upright in bed before his eyes even opened. The Iron Bull felt his husband’s skin grow cold. Sunlight and squeals filled the room as two little elves scrambled to climb up onto the tall Ferelden bed.
“Papa! Papae! We’re hungry and Orren and Lir say it’s not time yet but we’re hungry now!” Atisha complained, supported with enthusiastic nods from Nehn. The twins were still in their nightgowns, their raven hair a wild mass of fluffy, cloudy, curls. Bull smiled as he sat up in bed, making sure he was properly covered. He really needed to get Vivienne to show him some new braids for the girls. Or he could do those cute little buns again.
Leaf groaned and collapsed back onto the bed, covering his eyes with his hand. The elf never had been a morning person. Whenever Bull was home, he was the one that got up to help their children get ready for the day.
“Girls, what did Papa tell you about coming into rooms without knocking?”
“That sometimes if Papae is asleep, we could frighten the magic,” Nehn pouted.
“How do you think Papae would feel if the magic hurt you?” Bull asked gently.
“He’d be sad.” Atisha answered.
“We’re sorry.” Nehn.
“We’ll be more careful.” Atisha.
“Promise!” they chorused together.
Bull smiled at his daughters. Damn, they were adorable.
“Thank you both,” Leaf mumbled from his side if the bed. “Now, go get dressed. Let your brothers know Papa and I will be down shortly.”
“Yay! Food!” the girls roared as they jumped off of the bed and raced out, the door left open behind them. Leaf sighed and Bull just shook his head.
There it was. A blessed moment of silence. Bull rolled to his side, trailing his fingers over Leaf’s stomach before reaching up to pull the elf’s hand away from his eyes. He leaned down for a good morning kiss.
“Did you wake Papa and Papae again?” Lir’s astonished voice broke the brief silence.
Leaf groaned. Bull laughed and kissed Leaf again.
“Papa was awake!” Atisha answered. Bull could picture her now, knee high to her older brother and ready to take him out at the ankles. She was a fierce one all right.
“We’re hungry!” Nehn added, always ready to defend her sister.
“You’re not supposed to go into Papae’s room!” Orren scolded. The boy was clearly trying to keep his voice hushed, but it wasn’t exactly working, what with the open door and all.
Leaf smothered himself with a pillow.
“Think we have enough kids yet?” Bull chuckled.
“Including the Chargers?” came the muffled reply. Bull laughed, pulling the pillow off of his husband’s face. Leaf grimaced at the light. “As if we could have left them behind,” he mumbled, turning to curl into Bull’s chest.
Nevarra on the border of Tevinter, six years ago. The Chargers had a messy job clearing out a nasty band of Tal-Vashoth that had been raiding farmers and burning crops. Bull remembered finding the two little vashoth boys hiding under a broken cart on a burning farm. Clinging to one another. Their faces bloodied, their lips sewn together, too afraid to cry.
He brought them home.
He remembered Leaf returning five years ago from a Red Jenny errand with Sera and two swaddling newborns.
He welcomed them home.
There was a soft rustling at the foot of their bed. The babies stirred in their cradle. Bull made a soft cooing sound and smiled when it was echoed back.
“Definitely time to get up, Kadan. The babies are awake.” Bull chuckled, leaning over to place a kiss on Leaf’s forehead. “How you want to do this?”
“I’ll get the big ones, you get the little ones, and we all meet in the kitchen for Krem’s creamcakes,” Leaf yawned.
“Anyone tell him he’s making breakfast today?”
Leaf rolled out of bed, padded to their door, and called out, “Lir!”
“Yes, Papae?” the boy called up from the courtyard below.
“Uncle Krem is making creamcakes for breakfast! Pass it along!” The sounds of two very excited little girls and two ‘trying not to sound too excited’ very large teenagers echoed in the courtyard for a moment before feet pounded and pattered away in a great hurry. Leaf closed the door and turned to get dressed.
“Is this because Krem woke the babies during naptime yesterday?” Bull asked as he sat up on the edge of the bed.
“Maybe,” Leaf grinned wickedly as he pulled his nightshirt off over his head, ruffling his wild mane of brown hair. He’d grown his hair out on the sides over their years together and had taken to keeping it in a neat, thick braid that curved down the length of his back. It was amazing how painful a baby’s fingers could be when clutching a fistful of hair.
“Remind me never to piss you off.”
Leaf laughed, finished dressing, and slipped out the door to go make sure the girls were properly dressed before Uncle Krem fed them.
Bull finished dressing quickly and went to change the babies’ diapers before they started to cry. They were good kids. Tiny little human babies; just over a year old. One male, one female; silky blonde hair fluffed by sleep was smoothed by a large, loving hand.
Cole and Maryden had brought them to the villa three months ago. It was the safest place Cole could think of.
When Vivienne had received the news of the new arrivals she stopped by. She had played with the girls and helped them braid each other’s hair. She had tested the boys’ skill casting barriers and checked their aptitude for particular elements. Finally, she admonished the Bull to ‘stop collecting children, my dear,’ with no seriousness to her tone whatsoever.
Bull bet she was secretly thrilled to be an Aunt again.
“Good morning, Genevieve,” he kissed his daughter on her precious little fingers. He changed her, dressed her, and wrapped her in a sling around his chest.
“Good morning, Bastien,” he kissed his son on his darling chubby cheeks. He changed him, dressed him, and wrapped him in a second sling around his chest. Everyone safe and secure, he headed down to the kitchen.
The kitchen was huge; it had to be. Bull and Leaf had made sure it was suited to the need of their vast extended family. Their Orlesian villa was often home to several of Bull’s long-time Chargers when they were in between contracts. It also played host to visiting members of the former Inquisition. Even Dorian had made a trip from Tevinter back when the girls had turned two. The Magister was due for another visit now that he had two new excuses to visit.
Krem, Dalish, and Grimm were already in the kitchen when Bull arrived. Orren and Lir were handing flatware to the girls to help set the long table in the courtyard. The kitchen had sliding trellis-like doors that opened directly on to the courtyard, allowing for an easy flow of movement even when there were a considerable number of people.
Krem made enough creamcakes to feed an army, which was almost enough to feed two teenage vashoth.
Everyone sat at the long maplewood table under the vine covered pergola. Dalish and Grimm kept everyone’s plates full. Leaf wandered up and down the table making sure there were enough juices and water for everyone to drink, occasionally furrowing a brow or narrowing an eye at someone who was a little too unruly this early in the morning. Bull rocked the babies in their slings over his broad chest, alternating feeding between each of them. He grinned madly and adoringly when Leaf fed him bites of fruit and cheese and jam-slathered creamcakes. He ignored Krem’s teasing, as well as his boys mock-gagging and his girls giggles.
It was loud, disorderly, and slightly sticky, but it was home, and hearth, and family.
The Iron Bull wouldn’t want it any other way.