10 YEARS LATER

Given how rare it was for the British summer to actually feel like the summer and to remain that way without receiving a downpour of rain, I had forced Theo out of the house. Of course, he had resisted the idea of going for a picnic and it had taken so much persuading to convince him that once in a while it was a good thing to leave the house. Eventually, I had resorted to using my wand and threatening to change the wards to keep him out, but he had finally seen sense. Now if only he could have agreed right away without forcing me to spend almost two hours trying to get him out of the house. Rowena, now I knew where Rhydian got his stubbornness from. And it certainly wasn't from me.

Although Theo had been the one to complain about leaving the house when 'it really wasn't necessary', I could tell from the way that he was stretched out on the picnic blanket that he was content. He was more than content to be lying back in the sun with his eyes closed. I didn't even need to prod him to keep an eye on Rhydian – we could certainly hear his voice from the other side of the park. Just seeing the way Rhydian was running around like he was on a sugar high, I decided then and there to bring him out of the house more often. Maybe I would just get Theo to take him out, instead.

"Mum!" he called out from all the way over there as he ran back towards us. "Ducks!"

"We can see them from here," Theo said, even if Rhydian hadn't been talking to him. He propped himself up on his elbows to watch as his son crash to his knees on the blanket. I looked between both father and son and wondered whether it was possible for a child to receive 100% of their DNA from one parent because Merlin, Rhydian didn't seem to take after me in any way. Hopefully the next would be 100% mine.

"Rhy," I protested, watching as he prepared to run off again. Reaching out quickly, I grabbed him by the arm and held him hostage as I tried to feed him some of the fruit that his father was busy trying to feed me. "Eat something before you run off again."

"Ok," he conceded with a frown, surveying the blanket. When he didn't find what he was looking for, Rhydian looked towards me with an exaggerated pout. I resolutely didn't even look his way when he asked, "Chocolate?"

"Not until after you've had some of the sandwiches Eunnie made for you," Theo admonished, gesturing towards the plate of sandwiches that had been cut into small squares.

"Eunnie," Rhy repeated, looking torn at the prospect of disappointing his beloved nanny elf. I shared a smile with Theo, watching as he inched the plate towards our son who eyed the sandwiches suspiciously. Eventually, he sighed, snagging one and putting the entire thing in his mouth. Even before finishing his mouthful, he reached for some juice and spoke some sort of gibberish that I could never hope to understand.

"Where did he get those manners?" Theo grumbled, acting as if he wasn't currently sending heart eyes towards Rhydian who was still talking with his mouth full.

Rhy, either not understanding or not caring, rose to his feet and prepared to run off again. He even ignored my call of, "Be careful or you're going to fall!"

"He's not going to listen to you," Theo said as if I didn't know that myself. Sitting up and crossing his legs under him, he held out the plate of sandwiches towards me, "Don't think I didn't notice you've been picking at your food. You shouldn't do that, especially in – "

"- my condition," I finished for him, shaking my head with a small smile. Even if only to appease him, I stole a sandwich off from the plate and slowly nibbled on it. "How many times are you going to – Theo!"

My hand that had shot instantly towards Theo upon spying Rhy as he fell face first onto the floor beside the duck pond, but it didn't even make contact with my husband. He had shot to his feet even before I called his name, rushing towards Rhy and drawing him into his arms. And Rhydian, brave little Rhydian was so obviously in pain but was doing his best not to cry, even as he clung onto his father's shoulders. I tried not to frown – it was all his grandfather's teaching, something he had done to Theodore during his childhood as well.

"It's ok," I heard Theo say as the pair drew closer to me. He brushed his hand soothingly over Rhydian's hair as he continued to console our son, "It's ok, Rhy. You can cry if it hurts. You're allowed to cry."

As if he had been waiting for those words, for permission to cry, Rhydian started to bawl. He released loud, wailing sobs that he didn't even bury into his father's shoulder as they finally reached my side. Spying my concern, Rhy sniffled and wiped his running nose on his sleeves and completely missed the disgust that crossed his father's face at the gesture. Instead, he held his arms out for me and Theo readily set him down beside me on the blanket.

Rhydian, wanting nothing more than to crawl into my arms, but currently unable to do that because of the sibling I had growing inside of me, settled for clinging to my side. With a sigh, I brushed a hand over his hair and peppered kisses to his hair as he finally managed to quiet himself. Withdrawing himself from my arms, Rhydian wiped away at his tears before surveying the space around us. He reached out for the plate of sandwiches and started eating without needing to be convinced. It appeared that falling and crying had made him hungry.

Theo scoffed an incredulous laugh, falling silent when I shot him a look, he couldn't laugh now or else Rhydian would probably start crying once again. Shuffling guiltily under my eyes, he offered me an orange to appease me.