Sweet and Savory

For the 2018 Castle Halloween Bash

He's pulled from concentration by the thumps, thuds, and chatter of his family's return. Those, and the classic shriek of a witch echoing throughout the loft. Repeatedly.

Hmm, on second thought maybe the doormat is a little much. Lily is already having too much fun with that thing. For the sake of his sanity and his marriage, it might be a good idea to put it away.

"Come on, Little Flower," he hears Kate say after the fourth time the cackle has sounded. Rick winces at the strain in her voice; shopping with a three-and-a-half-year-old and two seven-month-old boys seems to have taken its toll on his wife. Yeah, definitely putting the mat away. Maybe he'll bring it back out on Halloween night, but it's not essential to the ambiance in the loft. "Let's go show Daddy what we bought."

Lily comes skipping into the office seconds later, her pigtail braids bouncing with each step. "Hi Daddy!"

Rick spins away from his desk, catching his daughter with one arm. He pulls her in, planting loud, smoochy kisses on her cheeks until she giggles and pushes away. "Hi, Sprout. How was shopping with Mommy and your brothers?"

She beams, holding his shoulders. "We gots the best costumes!"

"You did?" he asks, allowing his jaw to drop as delight fills his little girl's face. "For everybody?"

Lily nods, looking to the doorway. Rick glances over, too, before deciding not to make Kate come to them with the boys and whatever bags they have.

"What are they?" he asks as he scoops Lil up and swings her over his shoulder. She's light enough still that his back doesn't protest too badly, so he's able to stride into the next room while she's still cackling at his antics.

Kate looks up, her fingers still working to unbuckle Jake from the stroller. "Hey," she greets, lifting her chin when he nears.

Rick steadies Lily on his shoulder and swoops in, pressing a kiss to his wife's mouth. "Hey."

"Get any work done?" she asks against his lips, the curve of her smile telling him she already knows the answer to that question.

He makes a face, lowering Lily to her feet and reaching out to his sons. Reece squeaks, pitching eagerly in his seat to get Rick to spring him from the stroller. "Some. And then I put up more decorations, as you can see. But enough about work; I'm more interested in hearing about the amazing loot you guys found. Did you get me anything and is it delightfully disturbing?"

He sees his wife roll her eyes at his evasive tactics, but both of his girls nod.

"Yes, Daddy," Lily pats his back, flitting around as he and Kate lift the boys from the stroller and he stashes the monstrosity in the front closet. "We got everything, and it's the best! Even your yucky stuff."

Rick grins at Reece, bouncing the boy to hear his happy squeak. "My stuff isn't yucky, is it, Peanut Butter?"

His sweet, shy son beams, turning his face into Rick's shoulder. Rick rubs his back, nuzzling the boy's neck until he giggles again.

"No, it's not yucky. Just a little weird."

Kate snorts from her spot by the couch. Jake babbles from her arms, telling them all about his thoughts on the subject. "You're right, Jakey," she coos. "At least Daddy's got that part figured out."

He doesn't have a chance to feign indignation before Lily grabs his hand and hauls him back over to the pile of bags on the coffee table.

"Me first!" she declares, like that was ever in question. "I haf the bestest costume, Daddy."

Rick sits, holding out his arm to take Jake from Kate. He squeezes both boys lightly, pressing kisses to their heads. He'll take the cuddles while he can; they'll be ready to get down soon.

"You do? Is it better than the kitty cat costume you looked at last week?"

Lily nods seriously. "S'way better."

"Even better than the princess costume?"

His daughter's head bobs.

"Wow. You better show me, Sprout. Because that princess costume was really good. I'm not sure how you topped it."

Lily grins, swaying with excitement. She's been talking about her costume for nearly a month, changing her mind every few days; whatever she'd decided on must be good to get this reaction.

He bounces the boys on his legs while she rummages through the shopping bags. "Give me a hint, guys. What'd Lily choose? Supergirl? A dancer? An even better princess costume?"

He catches Kate's eye to find out if he's getting close, only to see her shaking her head.

"None of the above, babe."

Interesting. "Okay, enough suspense. What is it?"

Lily grins, reaching into the last bag and whipping out something bright yellow with a flash of white. The boys giggle, reaching for it, but she moves it away. "No Jakey, no Reecey, it's mine."

Rick tilts his head, doing a quick mental assessment of what he's seeing. There's no puffy skirt, so it's not Belle's dress, and Lily isn't a Spongebob girl, so he's at a loss.

"It looks cool, Sprout. What is it?"

She cackles, bounding over to Kate for help. "It's a Ghostie Banana, Daddy - a Boonana!"

He blinks, wondering if perhaps he's misheard her, but seconds later when she steps into the suit, he gets his answer.

And, unable to stop himself, he laughs.

"Sprout - you're - oh, this is the best costume ever."

Any uncertainty that his mirth may have inspired flies out the window and Lily strikes a pose before bounding over to him.

"You picked the coolest costume, sweetheart," he assures, making sure Jake is steady before he reaches out a hand to his daughter.

Lily comes eagerly, crinkling her nose at her own cleverness. "I know."

"What made you pick it?" he asks, looking her genius choice over. It looks like an ordinary banana costume, save for the pale white, grinning ghost face on the torso, and that makes it even better.

"It's awesome, Daddy," she gushes. "And it's so silly! A BOOnana!" She cackles, repeating the word again.

"It is so silly, he agrees, pressing a kiss to her nose. "But it's the best kind of silly. You made a great choice."

She beams, leaning into him. "Thanks, Daddy."

Rick dusts his lips over the stem of the banana. "Anytime, Sprout. Now, do you think you can help your brothers show me what they picked out?"

He fights the urge to chuckle as her head bobs and the suit goes with her. God, she's adorable in that costume.

"We gots Peanut Butter and Jelly the same fing so they can match."

"Perfect idea," he praises, blowing a raspberry on Jake's cheek. His son giggles, patting Rick's hand as he bounces. "Yeah, you like your costume, don't you?"

Reece mimics his brother, squeaking at the tickle of Rick's fingers over his sides.

Lily giggles, reaching into the bag once again, returning a moment later to slide a headband - horns, an interesting choice - behind Jake's ears. "Here's yours, Jakey." She does the same thing for Reece, clapping her hands in triumph when both of her brothers cooperate.

The boys giggle, kicking their legs.

Castle grins, looking them over before glancing at his wife. "Little devils?" he asks. "Beckett, just what are you insinuating about our children?"

Kate chuckles, shaking her head. "Funny, but you're close. Here, Lil, show daddy the rest." She hands their daughter a bundle of white fabric.

"Demon brothers? Oh! I know: the battle between good and evil," he guesses. "Oh, that's genius."

"Mmm, yeah, not quite," Kate says. Her lips quirk at his confusion, but she doesn't tell him the answer yet, instead reaching out to help Lily wiggle her brothers into the outfits. Rick keeps his head turned, studiously preserving the surprise.

"Wook now!" Lily insists once they're dressed.

Rick grins, looking down at the boys. Laughter wells in his chest. His sons are decked out in white, save for the red horns on their heads and the yellow patches on their bellies.

"Why do I get the impression that you were hungry when you were shopping?" he teases, nudging Kate with his elbow. She snickers, resting her chin on his shoulder. "A boonana? Deviled eggs? What's my costume? A roast beast sandwich?"

Kate laughs, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "No, but that would've been good."

Lily bounces in front of him, looking eager once more to share. She thrusts a bag his way, letting him see his costume for the first time. It's the grim reaper, but it keeps with the theme; instead of black robes, it looks like he'll be wearing brown and carrying a scythe that bears a familiar logo.

"Death by chocolate?" he asks, getting it immediately. His lips lift higher. "You really were hungry."

His wife laughs. "Yeah, maybe."

"And what are you?"

Kate's mouth opens, but Lily beats her to the punch, eager to share Kate's part of the shopping haul, "Angel food cake! Mommy has a hawo!"

His lips dust Kate's. She smiles against his mouth, leaning into the kiss. "Perfect," he says, thumbing Reece's belly. "And now that you've made me hungry, I think we should get you guys changed and eat some dinner."

Lily starts squirming out of her costume before he even finishes his sentence.

Two days later, the five of them take their sweet and savory supernatural scheme on the road, coming home with enough treats to last them for the next year.

This was originally inspired by a photo (that can be seen in the cover art for this story), but it kind of took on a silly and sweet (or savory?) life of its own. Thank you for reading!