[Possile Future][C] Late

"Whoopsie daisy," Darragh chuckled as he held the hands of his daughter above her head, bouncing her along the path in the park like she was walking.

The girl in his arms giggled loudly, squirming in her father's grip.

"Shall we go see if Pa's finished setting out the picnic, Ti?"

The girl looked up at her father with her mother's big blue eyes and nodded her dirty blonde head excitedly. "All right then, up we go." Darragh lifted the girl up onto his shoulders and made his way back towards home base.

"All set up?" Darragh called as they got close to the blanket set out on the grass. It was a lovely summers day and the three had decided on a picnic day.

"Yupp. Just waiting for ma and pa," the young man sat on the blanket replied, grinning up at his boyfriend.

"What, no sign of them yet? Think the traffics bad? It's not usually too bad from the coven to here."

Dallas shrugged and reached out of their daughter. Darragh set her in his arms with one last embarrassing baby-coo at her. "Who's my pretty little girl?" Dallas cooed, nuzzling against his daughter's nose.

"I am, thanks for asking," Darragh chuckled as he sprawled out on the blanket next to his boyfriend. "Ama and Ada will be here soon, Tia. Excited to see them?" Tia had fallen in love with Aodh and Aeker just as quickly as the two had fallen in love with her.

Aeker sat beside Aodh in the car, the Lycan had elected to drive them down to see Darragh, Dallas and Tia.

Aodh was the better driver out of the two of them, Aeker true to form drove like an old woman, his grasp on the modern world was fairly good for a pureblood but he was still weary of cars, though they were far more comfortable than a carriage.

"I can't believe that we are running late."

He murmured as they finally pulled up, the car keys had decided to hide themselves again and it had taken them awhile to find them.

A smile beamed across the Vampire's face as he laid eyes on the rest of their family.

"Hurry and park, I'm so excited."
He adored spending as much time with them as possible.

Aodh shrugged. "Blame that rat you bought home."

Aeker had bought home a scrawny little puppy a few week ago and the thing was a pain in the ass. It was always chewing at things or trying to hide them.

Aodh was just thankful that the pup had only hidden the keys and not swallowed them.

The Lycan parked up quickly and stepped out of the car.

"I say we toss it out." Aodh had loved Maccon; come to love Maccon's pup, but he just couldn't find it in him to like this new dog at all.

"Sorry we're late," Aodh called out as they approached the two of them. "Aeker's rat got to the keys again."

Dallas chuckled softly and shook his head. "You don't have any love for that poor pup, do you, pa?"

"Nope," Aodh replied truthfully as he sat down next to his son, reaching out to ruffle Tia's hair.

"Ada! Ada, Ama? Ama ama ama ama ama ama ama ama ama ama," Tia babbled over and over, expecting Aeker to appear out of nowhere. Tia loved Aeker.

"He is not a rat and we are not tossing him out."

Aeker mumbled, he had found the pup at the animal shelter, no one had adopted it and it was in line for being put down, he couldn't help himself, they had been without a dog for so long that he had brought it home.

"You can't talk either, fluffy stole more things than the pup has."

He knew Aodh would grow to love it...eventually.

"Ada is just an old grump."

The Vampire replied, rolling his eyes.

"Afternoon you two."

Aeker rushed over to press a kiss to Darragh and Dallas' foreheads before heading over to see the little girl.

"How's my favourite little princess?"

He asked, leaning down and giving her and affectionate kiss.

"You're right," Aodh agreed. "I like rats. I don't like that little nuisance."

The Lycan rolled his eyes. "We've had Fluffy for nearly thirty years. If course he'd have taken more things than your nuisance. We've had him for longer."

He stuck his tongue out at Aeker. "Ada is not old, thank you very much."

Dallas smiled when a kiss was laid on his forehead, pressing an affectionate kiss to Aeker's cheek in return. "Afternoon, Ma. How've you been?"

Darragh copied his boyfriend, kissing his mother on the cheek. "Dad hasn't driven you around the bend yet, has he?"

Tia gave a loud excited screech when Aeker leaned down, reaching up desperately for the Vampire.

"She's been well. Very excited to see Ama again. Sometimes I think she's more excited to see you than her own fathers," Dallas tutted softly as he lifted Tia out of his lap to hand her over to Aeker. They'd hear never ending screams if Tia didn't get to cuddle with Aeker.

"After thirty years you get use to it, I haven't murdered him yet so that's always a good sign." He replied with a chuckle.

Aeker lifted Tia up into his arms, hugging the girl tightly and pressing kisses to her face.

"I've been well, darling, thank you. Trying to keep Aodh from tossing out my puppy when I'm not looking."

The Vampire replied with a roll of his eyes as he took a seat on the blanket, perching the little girl in his lap and bouncing her gently.

"Ten years is too long, let alone thirty" Aodh groused.

He didn't want to keep that dog. It was a pain and it couldn't even make up for that by being cute. It avoided him at all costs and Aodh put forward the effort to do the same.

"Must be a full time job. Pa is very persistent. Poor puppy mustn't get a moment's rest."

Dallas stroked his daughter's hair gently as she was bounced in the Vampire's lap.

"But y'all can rest easy for a while. I bought the best lunch I could make." Dallas was a good little cook and he made sure that whenever he got the chance to cook for people, they needed to be rolled home afterwards.

"Find a new home for him if you hate him so much but you're not taking him back to the shelter and you're not tossing him away."

The Vampire replied with a huff, he was sick of arguing with the man about the dog, in truth Aeker was feeling a little like an empty nester, he was so use to Darragh being around and now the boy had a family of his own so it was just him and Aodh again, and now they didn't even have Mac like they use to.

"You have no idea." He replied, rolling his eyes, clearly exasperated with the whole thing.

"Be sure to get everyone else fed before the old man digs in, his inhales your cooking."

"I will do." Aodh paused for a moment. "Hey, Darragh, we've got this puppy we don't want and I was wondering if you wanted him?"

The human laughed and shook his head. "We're staying out of this one. Find someone else."

Dallas smiled brightly. "I made a lot. We have more in the car. I knew pa would eat as much as he could. Lycan stomachs are amazing things."

Dallas knew better than most people that Lycan stomachs were as good as black holes. Darragh had the stomach of a Lycan and more often than not Dallas found his cooking gone in a matter of minutes if he disappeared for a moment while Darragh was in the vicinity.

"Tia, come back to pa. Dinner time."

The girl pouted up at her father, clinging to Aeker. "Ama yum. Ama yum. Ama."

Dallas shook his head with a fond little smile. "Do you mind feeding her, ma? She is obsessed with you."

Aeker smiled brightly down at the girl as she insisted on staying in his lap.

"I'd love to."

He replied with a smile, he hadn't gotten to experience Darragh when he was this little so it was fun to be with the girl in these young years.

"You hungry sweetheart? Dinner time."

He cooed down to her, brushing the hair from her face as he sat her down, ready to eat.

"Yum time," Tia cooed, clapping her hands together.

Darragh smiled at his daughter. She was the sweetest little betton on the planet. "Hard to believe that all of us were one that age, aye?"

Aodh snorted. "You're kidding me, right? Most the time I find it hard to believe I used to be your mothers age, let alone Tia's."

Darragh smirked. "That's because you're an old man, dad. They've found fossils younger than you."

"Oi, watch it, kid. I'm a Lycan, remember? I'm tougher than puny little human kids." They had gotten over the fact that Darragh would forever be human and now the subject had become the butt of a lot of jokes and playful threats.

Darragh laughed it off, shaking his head. "All right, I give. I won't be able to match up to a Lycan. What we got for lunch, Dal?"

The Shifter perked up and reached for the basket of food he'd bought along. "My best BBQ chicken baguettes for you and pa. I made a lot of them so the two of you should be okay. Avocado and steak baguettes for ma and I. I hope that's okay." His eyes turned up to Aeker questioningly.

"I have yoghurt and avocado for Ti." Dallas began unpacking everything, handing bags and boxes out to Darragh and Aodh with instructions for what to do with them. "I made up a few normal sandwiches for people if they didn't want the baguettes. Cheese. Ham. Pork. Chicken."

He'd emptied the basket by now and everything laid in boxes and bags around them.

"Then cakes and biscuits and jelly for dessert. Everyone dig in."

"I can't say I remember being as young as her."

Aeker laughed, shaking his head, it would be hard for anyone to remember being this age, let alone someone as old as the Vampire.

"It's alright Darragh, I'll protect you against the big bad wolf."

He replied with a smile, more often than not he would take the boy's side just to get a rise out of Aodh.

"Dallas that sounds delicious."

He answered, taking the offered food with thanks and taking a purred bite before organizing Tia's food a spoon feeding her a scoop of yoghurt.

"You better, mom. If you don't save me from him, I'll be coming back to haunt your ass."

Dallas smiled brightly at Aeker as his food was complimented.

"Sweet. BBQ chicken." Aodh was biting into his baguette in seconds. He loved Dallas' home made BBQ chicken. The boy could BBQ with the best of them.

Tia opened her mouth as the spoon full of yoghurt was pressed to her lips. She swallowed the yoghurt happily. Yoghurt mixed with avocado chunks was one of her favourite treats.

"I say we should pit Dal and aunt Moe against each other and see which one of them cooks the best," Darragh suggested with a grin. "We can be the judges. We get to eat all their delicious food and decide who's the best."

Aodh snorted. "No offence, Dallas, but my Sprout's been cooking for ten times the years you've been alive. You wouldn't last a minute against her."

Dallas shrugged with a smile as he chewed on a bite of his baguette. "None taken. Aunt Moe has been teaching me how to cook some things. She's amazing."

Darragh shifted in his spot as he swallowed a large bite of his baguette, rubbing at his chest in mild discomfort. Dallas was the first to notice, his brows drawing together a little in worry. "You okay, Darragh?"

The human nodded. "Yeah, just a little rough going down. Mustn't have chewed in properly," he replied dismissively, though the pain hadn't dulled much. His hand drew away from his chest and he began eating again.

"Of course I would save you, always have so far."

Darragh had a habit of getting in trouble growing up but when ever he was in a tight spot Aeker would always come to the rescue with Aodh close on his heels.

"Good girl, eat it all up and then we can play."

He cooed to the girl offering her another spoonful before taking a bite of his baguette.

"Moe was the one who transitioned me into eating solid food, her cooking definitely made it a lot easier, having nothing but liquid for nine hundred years then suddenly eating solids is not a pleasant experience."

He much preferred human food, the range of flavour was amazing, though washing it down with blood made life more comfortable and in situations like this he always had a flask of it on him.

Aodh grinned. "We could always suggest they do a cook-off, though. I'd be up for inhaling all their food."

Dallas smiled widely. "I'm sure the two of us can collaborate on cooking for a party at some point. Tia's first birthday is coming up. I'm sure we could work together on that."

They loved cooking for party foods; both the hybrid and the Shifter.

Tia giggled as she was praised, opening her mouth for more. She had her father and grandfather's appetite. She ate food quicker than Aeker could feed it to her.

Darragh rubbed at his chest again as he set his baguette down. The pain was just getting worse and worse.

Aodh's brows drew together. "Are you sure you're okay, Darragh?"

Aeker fed the girl a little faster, clearly she was pretty hungry and enjoying her meal.

His gaze turned over to their son, his brows furrowing a little, he didn't look so good."

"Do you need me to duck down to the pharmacy?"

If he was unwell then the Vampire didn't mind running off to grab him something that would make him feel better.

Darragh shook his head.

"Nah, I'm fine. Just think that I'm gonna stop eating. Sorry to waste your chicken, Dal."

The young man shook his head. He leaned over to press a gentle kiss to the human's cheek. "It doesn't matter. I just hope you'll be okay. You'll tell me if it gets worse, won't you?"

Darragh nodded, turning his head to kiss the Shifter slowly and deeply. "Aye. I'm not as stubborn as dad is. If I'm in pain, I'll ask for help." Even when he wasn't comfortable, he could always find a way to poke fun at his dad.

Tia whined loudly, fussing as she tried to get the Vampire's attention. Aeker's pausing to talk to her dad had meant he wasn't feeding her.

"Sorry sweetheart."

Aeker muttered, pressing a kiss to the top of the girl's head before he gathered another large scoop and brought it to her mouth.

She definitely took after Aodh and Darragh when it came to appetite.

Despite being on solids for years now the Vampire still ate very little for a man of his size, through Aodh always polished off what he couldn't eat.

She swallowed the next large scoop happily, her fussing stopping immediately.

She was enjoying being fed and she wanted his complete attention.

Dallas watched Darragh carefully as he continued eating. He was worried about his boyfriend.

The human smiled at his boyfriend. "Really, there's no need to worry. I'm fine."

The shifter rolled his eyes. "That's not going to stop me from worrying about you. Pa does this, too, doesn't he, ma?" These men were all the same. It seemed to be an O'Ceallaigh trait.

Aeker stroked the little girl's hair as she ate, giving her scoop after scoop hastily.

His eyes turned back up to Dallas, lips pursing in barely hidden concern.

"He does, these O'Ceallaigh boys have no care about their health and would rather act macho than admit they are in pain."

He replied, rolling his eyes.

Darragh shook his head and rolled his eyes while Aodh sat up a little.

"It's not a case of acting macho," Aodh insisted. "We put on a brave from to try not to make you worry so much. But, seriously, Darragh, you look like shit. What hurts?"

The human snorted. "Great pick-me-up there, dad. Do you give mom these compliments, too?"

Darragh rubbed at his chest again. "Just a bad case of heartburn, I think. I'll be fine."

It wasn't heartburn. Darragh knew that just by the feeling of the pain. He couldn't identify it, though, and it was spreading.

"Dallas, lovely, can you find me something for the pain?" The young man shot the human a worried glance but leaned over to Tia's pack all the same and pulled out a strip of painkillers.

"I'm your mother, I'm allowed to fuss over your health."

More so since the boy was human, he was more susceptible to illness than the rest of them were.

Aeker made sure Tia wasn't worried as he fussed over her and fed her, stroking the small girl's hair softly.

"If it gets worse we can take you to go see Ly."

The girl was odd but she knew a lot about the human body and medicine.

Darragh chuckled softly.

"You use that excuse too often," the human pointed out. But he leaned over and pressed a kiss to Aeker's cheek affectionately all the same.

Aeker wouldn't be his mother without that constant excuse for doing things. 'I'm your mother, I'm allowed to do this' was something he heard over and over again.

"I think Ly got sick of me after I turned fifteen," Darragh murmured with a little grin. At fifteen the boy settled down a bt. Before then he was constantly at Ly's being treated for knocks on the head and broken bones.

"Ama ama ama," Tia babbled, holding her hands up to the Vampire. "Cado." He'd been feeding her yoghurt but he'd been neglecting the chunks of avocado in the pot.

Aeker smiled at the peck on the cheek, despite the difficulties in his teenage years, Darragh had grown affectionate and close again when he had calmed down in his twenties.

"I'm your mother, I'm allowed to." The Vampire replied with a laughed, a cheeky grin spreading across his lips.

He knew he did, but it was the easiest way to get what he wanted without a fuss.

"Sorry sweety."
Aeker murmured, looking down at Tia and scooping up a chunk of avocado and feeding it to her before taking another bite of his own lunch.

"I'll let you off because it's the truth," Darragh chuckled softly.

Aodh snorted softly. "That's no fair. Whenever I try to fuss you, you turn the other way."

The human rolled his eyes. "Because when you 'fuss' me, you tell me to raise my chin and get on with it because I haven't lost a limb. What you do isn't quite fussing."

Tia's hands flew to her mouth as the avocado was given to her, holding the chunk as she chewed on it.

"Bad ama, no yum," she scolded when she had finished the chunk, holding her hands - messy with yoghurt and saliva - out for more.