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joezworld · 3 years

Text

Fools in Love (8/10)

Double Date, Quadruple Header

1980

"And the last item on the agenda..." said the inspector as he assigned locomotives to trains. "There is a series of special trains going to Suddery from the mainland on this coming Sunday. 46 040, you and 35 102 will take the morning arrivals, and more engines will be assigned at a later time."

"Wow," said Delta with a healthy dose of sarcasm and faux cheer - she didn’t like this inspector and his clear bias towards steam engines. A special train from him could easily be carrying garbage. "A special! Is it a special special, or is it a really special special?"

"I hope it's a special special special, with special carriages." Bear said with equal sarcasm. "Then everything will be specially special!"

"Special has ceased to be a real word now." Duck said in a small voice while the inspector glared over the top of his spectacles.

"You will find out on Sunday." He said firmly. "Now get to work."

Bear and Delta arrived at Barrow on the front of separate trains - the Limited and the Express, to find the yard in disarray.

A seething Class 08 was shuttling back and forth while the trucks laughed at him. Bear, who had arrived second, watched as Delta didn't even try to help, and instead was mocking the 08 as he hurled insults at her, the trucks and the coaches.

This didn’t make the shunter any happier, and he began bumping and banging coaches until a particularly bold rake of third class carriages slipped their brakes on and refused to move an inch, trapping the disagreeable shunter deep inside a siding.

To make matters worse, none of the cars for the "incredibly special specials" had arrived yet. The trains were late arriving in Barrow, and the Yard Master was tearing out what little of his hair remained.

Noon arrived, and so did Edward, bringing a train of ballast wagons from Arlesburgh. "Oliver failed." He gasped, not having been remotely ready for a cross-island jaunt on a heavy train. "So this missed Bear's goods and- oh, hello Bear."

Bear grimaced. "There hasn't been a goods train yet - I'm still waiting on my special."

"Oh." Edward paled. "Well that would explain why BoCo was so frantic."

Bear and Delta winced. If a freight train was canceled it was usually folded into the next pick-up goods; BoCo was probably having to flat-shunt a quarter mile long train at each station, the poor engine.

After having a drink, Edward was drafted into helping out in the yard, and was soon sorting out the mess, although he did leave the 08 in the yards until last - the third class coaches had some choice words for him, and they were not brief!

At this point, BoCo finally arrived, or rather, his train did - Toad the brakevan was on the leading end, while a plume of steam wafted into the air from near the back.

"Mister BoCo had engine troubles." Toad explained. "So we left him at the works and Mister Henry had to push. His passengers aren’t pleased about that!"

They weren't. As Edward and the 08 sorted the massive train, the passengers swarmed out of the coaches, unsure of who to be upset at but hopping mad nonetheless.

"We've surely missed our connection!" They shouted at the stationmaster, who wrung his hands before telling them that the connection hadn't even arrived yet!

"There’s been a signal failure further up the line, " he said nervously. "So no train has been able to get through."

Strangely, this didn’t make the passengers any calmer, and Henry was forced to retreat to the sheds to escape their ire.

"Well, I suppose that this day can only get worse..." he muttered darkly as he looked out onto the empty BR line leading inland.

"What makes you say that?" Delta asked, not particularly upset that her "special" was late.

"The concert will be delayed!" Henry cried. "And I was rather looking forward to it - it isn't every day that you get to be tour support for Led Zeppelin!"

"What?" Bear was shocked. "Led Zeppelin is coming to Sodor?"

"Yes," Henry explained. "They're going to the Suddery fairgrounds. They did a show in Germany a few days ago, and they're coming here by train. I’m taking them."

"Really? The Suddery fairgrounds?" Edward asked as he shunted the last of the coaches into place. "But there's barely a gazebo there. How will they perform? It's all muddy!"

"I don't know how they plan on doing it, but my driver is certainly quite eager." Henry looked over at his driver, who was wearing an old band t-shirt over his normal work clothes.

"Make fun all you want, but I will get an autograph!" He yelled at Henry, who rolled his eyes.

"He's been like that all day."

---------

Several hours later, and the special trains still hadn't made an appearance. The stationmaster had attempted to quell the now-riotous passengers by showing a list of delayed trains to them, which did nothing but scare away Edward, who took one look at the large list of delayed goods trains and realized that the lazy 08 would try and make him shunt all of them. When nobody was looking, his crew connected him to an empty stock train and left for Peel Godred, leaving the 08 to have to work for a change.

And not a moment too soon. Edward has just barely disappeared into the distance when the BR home signal dropped, and a pair of furious Class 37s roared into the yard. Too angry for words or help, they banged and slammed their train into a siding by themselves, growled at the 08 as he brought their next train up, and seethed into the distance as fast as their wheels would carry them.

"That was ominous..." Henry said as the home signal dropped again to allow the next train into the yard.

It was... For the next 45 minutes, the yard was practically besieged by train after angry BR train - some over 4 hours late - who raced into the yard, dropped their wagons or disembarked their passengers, picked up new ones, and raced away again. The poor 08 was losing his mind as goods wagons built up around him. The three Sudrians couldn't even help - their shed was on the opposite side of the main line from the yard, and there was no time in between trains for them to wade into the fray and assist. Eventually, as a harried looking DMU rattled across the bridge to Sodor on a through train to Norramby, Bear and Delta were allowed across the main line to pick up their specials from the yard.

Bear had been given a short line of funny-looking vans, while Delta had a longer string of flatcars carrying lumpy shapes covered in tarpaulins.

Problems emerged before they were even coupled up.

"These hoses don't fit." Said one of the men as he tried to connect the brake pipes on Bear's wagons.

Several more attempts were made before the problem was found: the vans were from Germany, and used air brakes, while the two diesels used British vacuum brakes. Neither system was compatible with the other, which meant that this train would have to go without brakes.

An inspection of Delta's wagons revealed that they were also German, and had similar brake lines.

"How are there two separate trains from Germany?" Delta asked. "Why didn't they keep them together when they got off the ferry?"

"Ve took two different ferries." Snapped the lead flatcar. "Und ve vere suppozed to be hier three hourz ago!"

Hauling an unbraked train was not a huge issue - it merely required more care and a brake van - but a much bigger issue arose when a search for brake vans found only Toad.

"Well that’s torn it," Bear said. "We can't share a brakevan unless we double head our train, and I don’t know where we're even going with these."

"Actually, Mister Bear," Toad interjected as the yardmaster frantically flipped through his train orders to see if the situation could be salvaged. "If you are double-heading two normal length trains, you would need two brake vans then, to counter-act the increased weight. Standard practices." He paused to inspect the train.

"And that's enough wagons that I would recommend a second van and a second engine in the name of safety."

The yardmaster cursed and threw his clipboard to the ground - all of these special trains were going to the same station and he still didn’t have enough vans!?

"Toad, does it have to be brakevans?" Henry called from the platform. His special train had arrived on the back of the most recent passenger train, and unlike the other specials, it was fully braked. "Could we just put it on the back of my train?"

Toad inspected the train - three Pullman carriages and a baggage car. "It's very unusual Mister Henry, but it should just work!"

The unusual cavalcade was quickly assembled - Henry and his coaches, then Bear, his wagons, Delta's wagons, Delta herself, and then Toad. This ensured that the unbraked wagons wouldn't slam together and cause trouble, while also providing enough braking power for the entire train.

The unusual makeup of the train attracted the attention of its passengers as well, and the members of Led Zeppelin came out to look at what was going on.

"You know that Rod is going to lose it when he hears about this?" One of them remarked.

"Oh yeah he will. That paint's not prototypical, oh no!" Another man with long blond hair said mockingly as he snapped pictures of Delta and Toad.

"Hey!" Said Delta. "My paint looks amazing!"

The rocker held his hands up. "I mean no disrespect, it's just that one of our friends is into really accurate model trains, and he's going to flip when he sees these pictures!"

"Oh," Delta blushed a little. "Well make sure to get my good side, which is all of my sides!"

The man laughed as he went down the platform to get more pictures.

"Excuse me, Mister Plant?" Toad asked as he came near. "Will you be performing Stairway at tonight's show?"

Robert Plant blinked. "Why yes we are! Are you a fan?" He asked the brake van.

"A little bit sir."

"Well I'll be! We have fans everywhere!"

---

Eventually, the strange train rumbled out of Barrow yard and across the bridge into Sodor.

It was slow going - they were using the path cleared for Henry's train, and it had been timetabled for a much faster speed than the unbraked wagons were allowed to travel at.

By the time they had arrived at Kildane, they were running quite behind even the most generous schedule, and had to wait for other trains to pass.

The electric branch had just received new electric locomotives, but they were nowhere to be seen. Edward was there however, sitting in the yard with a dazed look on his face.

"They're very chatty." He said, sounding quite overwhelmed.

After waiting at the station for about ten minutes, the station master came out and spoke to Henry's driver.

"We need this train taken to Suddery." he said, pointing to a line of ten wagons loaded with aluminum.

"You do know this is a special, right?" Henry’s driver protested. "We can't stop to pick up more cars at every station! Have Edward do it!"

"He can't. Whatever foul-up the mainland is doing has thrown off the schedule for the entire region. There isn't another path until nightfall.” He paused. “You'd probably need to take Edward with you as well, considering that he needs to be in Wellsworth by four."

The stationmaster had phrased this like a request, but it was actually a demand, and so the unusual train got even longer, with Edward and the (thankfully braked) wagons now in front of Henry. On the platform, the members of Led Zeppelin were taking a huge number of photographs, and one - Henry thought his driver had said his name was Jimmy - was at a payphone on the platform, describing the train to a friend. From the sounds of it, the friend was very displeased at the amount of work it would take to recreate this scene on his model railway.

After leaving Kildane, there were mercifully no more stops until Wellsworth, where Edward was uncoupled from the train.

Henry quickly realized that there was a problem as he tried to move the train out of the yard. "I can't see anything!" He called back to his driver.

It was true. The wagons stretched so far in front of Henry that it made seeing the rails ahead almost impossible.

Considering that all the aluminum wagons and the Pullman coaches were vacuum braked, it was decided to uncouple Henry and put him in front of the wagons.

This plan was working well, until:

"The coupling is stuck!" Shouted Sean the driver from between Henry and the lead coach.

The coupling links had jammed together at some point, and it would take heavy tools to separate them - heavy tools that weren't on hand, and more importantly, would have broken the links on the chain, meaning that they wouldn’t be able to couple the train back up again!

To make matters worse, neither of the diesels could be attached, as the station at Wellsworth had a single track leading onto the branch from the main line, with the yard beyond it. There was no way for either diesel to reach the front of the train.

Henry, having accepted that this day was going to be one of the longest ones in his life, sighed. "Am I just going to have to go very slow then? Will Led Zeppelin still be popular by the time we get to Suddery?"

"Very funny." His driver said as he tried to think of another way. "We can't even do that - we'd end up delaying Edward's commuter train, and that's about the only thing that hasn't been late tod-"

He was cut off as James clattered into the yard tender-first. "Those menaces at the docks blocked the turntable!" He growled as he was uncoupled from a rake of China Clay wagons, leaving little doubt as to the identity of the menaces.

"Good to see you too James." Henry chuckled at his friend's distress.

"Gah! Henry? What are you doing here!" James yelped. He hadn’t seen Henry.

"Oh you know, just being incredibly late."

"Well don't let me stop you, Old Square Wheels."

"Oh you won't be a bother," Henry said as an idea flew into his smokebox. "Actually, you might be able to help us..."

James had no idea who Led Zeppelin was, and quite frankly didn't care, but once Delta shouted at him to show a wheel, he quickly agreed to pilot the train, and they were soon underway.

Suddery fairgrounds had its own sidings and platforms, used for when the annual livestock show takes place, and the train was unloaded in short order. James quickly shunted the aluminum wagons to the goods depot, and then he, Toad and the other engines watched as the lumps under the tarpaulins were revealed to be parts of a massive stage that was rapidly assembled by men who came pouring out of the coaches. Then massive speakers were pulled out of the enclosed wagons, while a number of wheeled cases were removed from the baggage car.

The band, feeling somewhat superfluous, waited near the engines. Bear and Henry felt bad that they weren't bigger Led Zeppelin fans, but were comforted in the fact that they at least knew something about the band, unlike some engines they knew.

Toad, meanwhile, had proved that he was a blatant liar - there was nothing 'little' about his fan status, and he knew more about some songs than the band themselves!

Eventually, the stage was built, and the band retreated from the platform to go do a sound test.

The stage was quite close to the platforms, and nobody had been allowed into the venue yet, meaning that:

"Do you lot have any requests?" Shouted Robert Plant over the speaker system.

"IMMIGRANT SONG!" Toad roared before any of the engines could even open their mouths.

Night fell over the fairground, and Bear was thankful that none of them were needed for other duties - the fairground was charged with an almost electric atmosphere, and it felt like something special was going to happen.

He looked to Henry at his right, and James and Delta at his left, and realized something else.

"I think," He said slowly. "That this is technically our first date."

"You're right." Henry said with shock. "It's taken us three years, but you're right."

"And ours too..." said Delta quietly. "Jamie, isn't that great? We managed to go on a date!"

James blinked slowly. "Yes we did. And it's a double date at that. By accident no less. We certainly don't do things by half measures!"

He grinned. "If this concert is half as good as that last song, it might be the best first date ever."

"Oh it will be Mister James!" Shouted Toad, who was choosing to ignore whatever the engines were talking about in favor of watching the band tune their instruments.

The concert began shortly after 9:30, only slightly behind its posted start time.

The band came out to thunderous applause, and Jimmy Page made the introductions to the audience.

"I just want to thank you all for coming out here tonight - back in 1972, we said that we'd come out here and do a show during our last tour of the United Kingdom, but things happened, and we never made it out here. We said we'd come back, and we never go back on our promises! Even if it takes eight years!"

He paused as the audience applauded once again. "And I also want to give a special thanks to some of our audience tonight. We almost didn't make it here tonight because of some trouble with the train, but those engines back there," he pointed to Henry, Bear, Delta, and James. "Worked like mad to get us here safely and on time, so this first song is dedicated to you!"

The band immediately began playing a hard and heavy rock song. It was an incredibly powerful piece, and the engines looked at each other with glee - this was going to be a hell of a night.

Later

As Since I've Been Loving You echoed over the fairgrounds, James quietly whispered to Bear.

"Is this what it feels like for you?"

Bear looked over at James. Even while he directly speaking to another engine, his eyes were glued to Delta, who was enraptured by the music.

"Yes." Bear whispered back. He knew what James meant.

The end of the concert was approaching - or so the engines hoped, considering it was almost midnight. Kashmir had taken quite a long time, and while Toad may have been having the time of his life, the engines were feeling the late hour a bit more.

"And this song I want to dedicate - dedicate to a little brake van out there in the train yard," Robert Plant said into the microphone. "Cause he asked for it by name, which means that we've officially got fans everywhere!"

A very recognizable guitar riff began while Toad squeaked in delight.

Henry and Bear looked at each other, and then looked over at James and Delta. The night could go on for a little bit longer - it wasn’t often you got to see someone hear Stairway to Heaven for the first time.

#ttte #music #sodor #sodor shenangians #led zeppelin #ttte henry #ttte james #ttte edward #ttte bear #OC: Delta #ttte toad #this was the last LZ concert ever #hell of a first date #fools in love #fic #headcanon #long

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aroace-energy · 3 years

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My OC's As Incorrect Quotes, Conveniently Cut Off For Your Scrolling Needs Because This Is A Lot.

Hades: Let me show you a picture from last night that really upset me.

Chija: Okay, but in my defense, August bet me 50 cents I couldn't drink all that shampoo.

Hades: That's not what I wanted to- you drank SHAMPOO?!

Hades: Dammit, Osiris!

Osiris: What? It wasn't me!

Hades: Sorry, force of habit. Dammit, Chija!

Chija: Not me either.

Hades: Oh... then who set the house on fire?

May: *whistles*

Venus: So are we flirting right now?

May: I am literally stabbing you.

Venus: That doesn't answer my question

*squad reactions to being told 'I love you'*

Chija: Thanks fam!

Oliver: Oh no.

Venus: *cries* I love you too

Hades: Sounds fake but okay.

August: *a flustered mess*

Osiris: Can I get a refund?

Osiris: Isn't weird that we pay money to see other people?

Venus: Plane tickets?

Oliver: Concert tickets?

Chija: Prostitution?

Osiris, hold her broken frames: Glasses.

Oliver: You really put aside everything and came all this way for me? How did you even get here so fast?

Venus: Several traffic violations.

Chija: Three counts of resisting arrest.

August: Roughly thirteen cans of energy drinks.

Osiris: Also, that's not our car.

Oliver: Hey Venus? Can I get some dating advice?

Venus: Just because I'm with Osiris doesn't mean I know how I did it.

Osiris: So apparently the 'bad vibes' I've been feeling are actually sever psychological distress.

Hades, about Osiris: Apparently we're getting someone new in the group.

Chija: Are we stealing them?

Oliver: New or used?

Venus: Wonderful responses, both of you.

Venus: Bridge the generation gap by combining old and new slang into one!

Chija: Tubular AF!

August: Mood to the max!

Hades,annoyed: Groovy, I hate it.

Osiris, just as annoyed: If she breathes, she's a square.

Osiris: Nothing in life is free.

Venus: Love is free!

Oliver: Adventure is free.

Hades: Knowledge is free.

August: Everything is free if you take it without paying.

May: *screams*

Osiris: *screams louder to establish dominance*

Venus: Should we do something?

Hades: No, I want to see who wins.

Chija: Who thinks I can fit 15 marshmallows in my mouth?

Hades: You're a hazard to society.

Osiris: And a coward. Do twenty.

Chija: Are you sure this is the right direction?

May: Certainly, I'm as sure as I am honest!

Osiris: In that case, we're definitely lost.

Venus, going over Osiris's resume: Okay, so right here, it states that you're creative.

Osiris: Yes.

Venus: Okay... may I know what you create?

Osiris: Problems.

Osiris: Fool me once, I'm gonna kill you.

August: Must be hard not being able to laugh.

Hades: I do have a sense of humour you know.

August: I've never heard you laugh before.

Hades: I've never heard you say anything funny.

Venus: Good morning.

Hades: Good morning.

Oliver: Good morning.

August: You all sound like robots, try spicing it up a bit.

Chija: MORNING MOTHERFUCKERS

Venus: Stop buying plastic skeletons for Halloween! It's terrible for the environment!

Osiris: Yeah! Locally sources, all natural skeletons are much more environmentally friendly!

Osiris: What am I doing wrong?

Hades: Do you want me to answer as a friend or a therapist?

Osiris: As a friend.

Hades: See a therapist.

Random person, forced to work with the group: That sounds like a terrible plan.

Hades: Oh, we've had worse.

Oliver: Question. When they shot Bambi's mother, did you find that a sad moment... at all?

Osiris: I'm sure she's mounted on a nice wall in a fine home somewhere.

May: I find it very unseemly of Venus to start dating again. Isn't the customary period of mourning 10 years?

Chija: Die. Let's find out.

August: You think you're smart than everyone else.

Hades: I don't think I'm smart than everyone else, I know I am.

May: I got grounded for a whole week just because I came home late.

Chija: Well, you deserved it. I mean, getting everyone's hopes up like that then showing up again.

August: I may be antisocial and unattractive...

Oliver:... But?

August: That's all.

Venus: You need to react when people cry!

Osiris: I did. I rolled my eyes.

May: I'm useless.

Hades: Nah, you aren't.

Hades: You can be used as a bad example.

Oliver: Hey, can you hold this for me?

Chija: This is your hand...

Oliver: Yeah.

Venus: Look, let's just agree to say "I'm sorry" on the count of three.

Venus: One, two, three.

Venus:

May:

Venus: See, now I'm just disappointed in both of us.

Chija: Surgery is just stabbing someone to life.

Hades: Please never become a surgeon.

Osiris: You read my diary?!

Venus: At first, I didn't know it was your diary. I thought it was a very sad handwritten book.

Hades: You're smiling, did something good happen?

Osiris: I can't smile just because I feel like it?

Oliver: May tripped and fell in the parking lot.

August: Things have actually been going really well with Osiris. Our friendship is at a really good place.

August: Last week I said, "Did you know the weiner dog is neither a weiner nor a dog?" And instead of saying, "Shut up August," she said, "okay."

Random person: Excuse me, who is in charge here?

Oliver: Usually it's whoever yells the loudest.

May, to Osiris: I dare you to-

Chija: Osiris isn't allowed to accept dares.

Osiris: Apparently I have "no regard for my personal safety."

Oliver: I want someone to take me out.

Chija: Like on a date or with a gun?

Oliver: Surprise me.

Venus: You will machete through this!

Venus: *make it

Venus: Do not machete your way through this.

Osiris: Too late.

Oliver: *sharpens knife* We've got ways of making people talk.

Oliver: *cuts piece of cake*

May:... can I have some?

Oliver: Cake is for talkers.

Chija: *signs a legal documents with a glitter gel pen*

Osiris: Did Venus just tell me she loved me for the first time?

Hades: Yeah.

Osiris: And did I do finger guns back?

Hades: Yeah, you did.

Hades: I am at a loss for words!

Chija, telling Venus later: Despite being lost for words, Hades yelled at me for the next 45 minutes.

August: Do you miss the imagination of childhood?

Osiris: I never had one.

August: An imagination or a childhood?

Oliver: Time sensitive question, how flirt boy.

Chija: Throw rocks at he

Venus: Hot dog.

Osiris: Kill him.

Oliver: Thanks guys.

#i figured out how to make a cut off on mobile!#you go #:readmore:#on a new paragraph #:D #my OCs #osiris vega #venus blackthorne #hades meyer #august aubert #chija kim #oliver smith

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bbrandy2002 · 5 years

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Birth of an Heir... Part Two

Book: The Royal Heir

Liam x Riley

Part one

A/N: Turned into another total fluff piece, I'm becoming a softy 😕. I had one of my kids choose the baby's name of the ones given in the comments and @kingliam2019 was the winner.

Warning: Drake Walker has a potty mouth and will use profanity in the chapter, but, he's still lovable marshmallow all the same.

These characters belong to Pixelberry.

Birth of an Heir Part 2

Riley stands at the window of her third floor hospital room, observant of the overflowing press crowded below. It had been several hours since the birth of her son and well past midnight. Exhaustion had reached it's peak, yet, adrenaline and a newborn would keep her awake. Another news crew ascends into the mass influx of cameras, sateliites and curious, Cordonian bystanders. "Do they ever sleep?", she asks with astonishment, however, her question is met with silence. She turns, and instantly her heart melts from a simple, yet, poignant sight.

"You are hopeless, you know that right?", she says with a gentle smile.

Liam is sitting in a rocking chair, holding his first born child, whom seems to fit perfectly, like a small package in his arms. His thumb grazing the soft cheeks and his eyes focused, contently, on what he considers the second best thing to enter his life. With heavy eyes, he searches and memorizes every single line and detail, and takes to heart, every sound and breath this tiny creature makes. He is afraid to fall asleep, he cannot fathom for one moment the seperation that comes with it. This baby already has his father under a spell that is similar to the way his mother does.

Riley walks closer to him, still slowed by soreness and tenderness with each step. She shakes her head and playfully rolls her eyes, "Liam, did you hear what I said?"

He looks up to her, "I'm sorry dear, did you need something?".

She bites her bottom lip before lightly rubbing her hand up and down his arm, "I said you're hopeless....you know I have to hold him more than just when feeding him, right?".

Liam nods his head and speaks with a teasing whisper, "We'll see about that", as he gives her a quick wink.

Riley sighs, "yep.....hopeless", then leans in to a soft kiss.

She removes her robe, kicks off her slippers, then lowers herself steadily onto her hospital bed. After pulling the sheet over her tired and worn body, out of habit, she rolls to her left side. Riley wants to drift off, but, the events of the day are flourishing in her thoughts. Suddenly, like a vision of sorts, one that is always present in her mind, a familiar story begins to play......

A flash of bright blue that meets her soft brown. An instant spark, a physical attraction, a moment when two lost souls find one another. A beginning.

"Sorry I'm late. Thank you for your patience, Miss...?"

The first time the heat of his lips devoured hers after an impromtu private tour of the Statue of Liberty.

"You're full of surprises aren't you?"

"I try"

"I'm glad to have met you Riley, I'll never forget this night".

A chance of a lifetime, when fate opened a door and offered her an opportunity.

"You want to sponsor me? Why?".

"I'm not doing it just for you, I saw how Liam looked at you last night. I've never seen him so happy...".

The first time he swept her off her feet, literally....the moment her heart felt more than just an attraction, but, the start of a love affair. A waltz to remember.

"I dont....I'm not sure I know the steps."

"Just follow my lead".

Like something out of a fairy tale, darkness surrounded by small, white lights and the shimmer of the moon. Closed off from the rest of the world, it would become a place where memories are made.

"We made it....the center of the maze..and I do believe I won".

"How do you figure that?".

"Easy, I'm on top".

"Hard to argue with that".

"Then don't"

"Something about you...it just feels...right to be around you".

"Liam, I feel the same way".

An exhilerating jump, involving total trust in one another.

"It's said that if two lovers climb to the top of the waterfall and jump in together, they'll get the blessings of the water".

A warm, spring day, filled with pink blossoms and the aroma of freshly baked pies. When she became a queen for the first time and the apple of his eye.

"Meeting you in New York was one of the best things that ever happened to me. You changed my life".

A country soiree, a swing decorated with flowers. He was giddy, playful and childlike.

"...I want you to know, I can't wait for the coronation".

"I can't wait either".

The simple, yet, perfect candlelit dinner, when he opened up to her and shared his biggest dream.

"Maybe this is sentimental, but, its been on my mind lately.....What I really want is to have a family...and not the type most kings have, but, one where we're close and listen to each other....".

The night the stars glistened in the sky above her, three words that rained down and changed everything. A merging of pleasure and senses like never before. The most beautiful , endearing intertwining of bodies and demonstration of devotion ever.

"I've never said this before, but, its more true than my own name. Which is all to say...Riley...I love you".

"Liam, I've been madly in love with you since the day we met...".

"I love you and I want you".

"Then take me, Liam".

And after a period of turmoil, secrecy , and undeserved scrutiny, when she realized air doesn't exist without Liam....she doesn't exist without Liam....they came full circle.

"Riley...all that I want in this life is to dedicate my life to being the best man and king that I can be...for you...Lady Riley Brooks, queen of my heart, I have yearned to say these four words for a very, very long time...Will you marry me?".

"Yes...a thousand times...yes".

When happily ever after truly began....

"I promise to love you, honor you and cherish you. To support you, fight for you and inspire you....as you have always done for me....No matter what the future holds for us, I know that together is where we're meant to be".

A warmth overcomes her body and the corner of her lips curl. She opens her eyes again and peaks once more at the two most sacred things in her life. One is her soulmate, her king, her love; the other is their finest masterpiece.

A faint cry echo's through the calmness of the darkened room. Liam gently lifts the baby to his chest, its head nuzzled securely into his neck. He places one hand on its bottom and the other lightly presses soft chubby cheeks closer to him. He leans forward, planting a lingering kiss through a blue cap, covering fine, peach fuzz hairs. Liam senses her stare and glances up. A faint smile emerges, that not a human in Cordonia could wipe away. With a low, raspy voice, he utters, "I love you".

Those words always send a chill down her spine, however, the emotion and pride in his voice this time, causes her to shed a tear, "I love you, too".

Her body gives way to sleep, assured that her two boys will keep one another company until she wakes.

************

Eyes slowly flutter open and Riley recognizes the presence of early dawn's light. She lifts her stiffened neck to see Liam laying in a small bed near the window; when you're the King, the hospital ensures you continue to sleep like royalty. Next to his bed, he had slid the baby's cot next to him.

She rubbed her eyes, trying to fully awaken. After getting out of her bed, she slips her shoes back on and treks to her infants side. Liam actually fell asleep with his hand in the cot, so Riley picks it up and moves it, placing it on his chest, -Hopeless.

She then lifts her wiggling bundle up and carries him back to her bed.

Lowering her gown down, the baby latches on after a few tries, suckling with tiny fingers gripped to her breast.

Riley watches in awe and amazement, as the most precious bond in the world takes shape. His little eyes twinkle and he is full of energy. She chuckles at his arm movements and how he seems to be devouring his breakfast.

She smiles at him, then tilts her head; she couldn't tell last night, but, relishes in the fact that he definately looks every bit like her husband.

There is a tap at the door and Riley gives permission for them to enter. The first thing she sees is a cascade of balloons and a large stuffed teddy bear, followed by the always gleeful, Maxwell. Trailing behind him, a seemingly recovered Hana, and weary eyed, Drake.

Once Hana slaps a few balloons from her face, she makes her way over to Riley's bedside. "Oh my goodness...Riles, he's so small and handsome".

After Drake gets caught up in the balloons as well and Maxwell runs into him a few times with the stuffed bear, he gets another glance at his namesake. Realizing she is breastfeeding, his face begins to blush, he stammers and fidgets. "Um...um...yeah...I'm just going to...um...look at this wall...that's some fine craftsmanship...this wall". He starts knocking on the wall as if he is checking the quality of its structure.

Maxwell laughs, "Augh, come on Drake, its just boobies....besides, the kids head is blocking the good stuff."

Hana and Riley look at each other, both chuckling at the two men.

Riley notices that Bertrand was not with them and asks Maxwell if he plans to visit.

Maxwell and Hana look at each other and snorted out in laughter.

Confused, "What's so funny guys...what am I missing?", she asks.

Drake still facing the wall, himself amused by the answer to her question, can't help but chime in, "Let just say, ol' Bertrand....", he starts laughing again, "Bertrand....". Drake can"t get the words out before he starts snickering even harder.

Annoyed by all the laughing, Riley threatens to kick all of them out unless they tell her what is so funny.

All three make attempts, however, are still struggling; they have tears running down their cheeks and faces that are bright red.

"That's it...out", Riley finally tells them.

Drake is able to compose himself, taking in deep breaths, "Okay, so...last night at the shower...everyone got...well..got sick from Maxwell's fucking punch as you know", he continues with some difficulty in spitting the words out.

Maxwell wipes a tear from his eye, "Let's just say, Bertrand had to call someone about the mess Madeleine made off the balcony last night".

Riley's grimaces, "Okay. I don't even want to know".

Hana asks if the baby has a name yet.

She looks down at her son, who has finished his feeding and covers herself back up. Riley adjusts the baby into a more comfortable position and looks up with a smile. "I would like to introduce you to the new Crown Prince of Cordonia...Nikolas Drake Beaumont Lee".

All three are touched as she explains how important each one of them are to her and Liam, and hopes the baby carries a little pieces of his namessake. After a short visit, her friends leave, Maxwell promising to return later with junk food and booze.

Shortly after, Liam stirs, surprised she didn't wake him up.

He shuffles to her bedside, kissing her tenderly. Liam searches her eyes, cupping her cheek, "I just want you to know, you are the most incredible woman I have ever met. You have always amazed me, but, I will never be able to thank you enough for making all of my dreams come true".

He has a way with words, always has, she thinks to herself. She gets a mischievous smile, "I know a way that you can start thanking me".

He raises an eyebrow, intriqued, "Anything for my queen".

She lifts the baby up and gently places him in Liam's loving arms, "He needs a diaper change".

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