Sleepless Night Pt 1 of 2

Writers: Chelle, Eimi
Date Posted: 15th February 2012

Characters: Parale, Ioven, Syren
Description: Syren doesn't want to sleep in her own bed, again.
Location: Sunstone Seahold
Date: month 6, day 9 of Turn 6
Notes: Pt 1 of 2

It had started at dinner with a few heated looks... Then one foot
caressing another... A hand stealthily slipping along a thigh...
Brushing close to one another purposefully as they went about their
evening routine... More heated looks holding a silent promise... And
now, finally...

"Are they asleep?" Ioven asked as she walked through the door. His
hands were clasped behind his head as he leaned back against the
piled up pillows, wearing only his light sleeping trousers.

It had been a long day and she was looking forward to cuddling with
him and releasing her tension. "Just went down, finally." She walked
to her wardrobe and pulled off her clothes. Her hands slipped on some
of the buttons, but she finally managed. Not even bothering to put on
a gown since it was muggy, she turned around and crawled into bed.

Pushing herself up against her husband, she lazily began to kiss Ioven
on his shoulder, neck, and chest.

His fingers began caressing her hair, rubbing her neck, tracing her
spine. As she did so, Ioven breathed out a long sigh. He'd been so
busy lately, getting things together for the Gather and all. It was so
nice to come home and just _relax_, and coming home to a very willing
woman was just an incredible bonus. Shards it felt so good. But he
knew it put a lot of pressure on her. "I'll put the girls to bed
tomorrow."

"That'll be fine. I think they've been wanting you to tell them a
story." She smiled as her hand lazily touched him. He was so familiar
now. It gave her a small thrill to think about the things she could do
to this man. He was the only person she'd ever been with but there
were still things to learn.

Ioven's hand stilled as he heard a quiet knock on the door. A small
voice called, "Daddy?"

Shards, he thought as he looked down at his wife. Not this again. She
always had such wonderful timing. "Yes, Syren?"

"I didn't get to say goodnight to you," was the muffled reply.

He shook his head with a little snort. "Goodnight, Syren."

Parale had stopped moving as well, pulling the bedcovers up around
her. Syren wanted Ioven, not her, so he was the one to deal with it. It
was becoming irksome, though she understood it. He had been working
more hours so they didn't get to see him as much. It was natural for a
little girl to want attention from her father. Still, this was becoming
too frequent a habit.

"Daddy, can I have some water?"

"Oh, for Faranth's sake," he muttered, still hoping she'd go away. "You
need to sleep, Syren. Good night."

There was silence for a moment before she called again, "But I'm really
thirsty..."

She was not going to go away on her own. Ioven knew that much. "All
right, just a moment." Turning to his wife he said, "I'll get her a
water, I'll put her back to bed, and then I'll be right back." And
hopefully they could start back from where they were leaving off.

"Mmhm. You might want to ask why she didn't just get the water herself
too." Parale was slightly amused. "I'd just like to know what she comes
up with."

He chuckled, swinging his legs off the side of the bed. "So, just why
can't you get your own water, hmmm?" his wife could hear him ask as he
slipped out the door. The water was poured and drunk, and the little
girl carried back to her own bed. He made sure to give her a few extra
kisses good night in the hopes that would satisfy her.

"Water tastes funny when she pours it," he reported as he softly closed
his bedchamber door once more.

"Of course. We can't have funny tasting water." She shook her head with
a mock frown. "Seriously, though, she's been doing this a lot lately now
that you're not here as often. I understand why but how are we going to
try and get her to stay in her own bed?"

"Locking her in?" he suggested satirically, crawling across the bed.
Ioven looped a finger around the sheet and pulled it back down her body
and started making a ring of light kisses around her navel, problem
solved in his mind.

Suitably distracted, she allowed things to run their course. Satisfied
and tired, Parale curled into Ioven and fell asleep. She was still this
way when a knock came at the door again. It got louder and it woke
her up. "The shells?"

"Hmmm?" Ioven grunted, his own eyes cracking open slightly.

"Daddy? I had a bad dream..." It was Syren once more.

He groaned, carefully pulling away from Parale before sitting up. "I'll
take care of it. Where'd my pants end up?"

"Good question." It had been dark at the time, so she hadn't a clue.
She also knew that it was only about three hours till she had to be up.
Groaning, she buried her head in the pillow.

"Just a second, Syren." Ioven found them in a pile at the foot of the
bed and slipped them on. "Go back to sleep," he said to his wife,
though it looked like she had every intention of doing so. "Right, so a
bad dream?" he asked, lifting the little girl in his arms and carrying
her back to her bedroom.

A good quarter candlemark had passed when Parale could feel a gentle
hand tapping her shoulder. "Parale, wake up," Ioven whispered, then
shaking her lightly. A piece of cloth was draped over her. "I need you
to put your nightgown on. Syren is using the necessary and then she's
going to crawl in with us."

"What?" Her mind wasn't working very well but she finally thought she
understood what he was saying. "Why?"

"Well, I don't think you should be completely naked when she gets under
the sheet. Don't worry about underthings." He picked up her nightgown
once more and made sense out of the holes. "This is the hole for your
head, I believe. Here you go."

"No I mean why is she coming in here?" Parale sat up and began to look
around, but she was waking up quicker than usual. She didn't reach for
the nightgown.

"Because she wouldn't let me leave, so it was either sit awake for the
next candlemark trying to think of stories and risk waking Venrys in the
process, or let her sleep with us which is what she really wants and I
can get a couple candlemarks more sleep before I have to go to work."
It seemed the obvious choice to him. "Now come on, the sooner you put
this on the sooner you can go back to sleep."

She got out of bed then. Instead of putting on her nightgown, though,
she put a dress over her head. "I'm already up now." Walking out of the
bedchamber, she realized she couldn't do much without waking up Venrys.
So instead, Parale headed for the door. The situation was stupid, it
really was.

Ioven was baffled. "Parale, where are you going?" And in the middle of
the night! What had gotten into her head? Was she still half asleep?

"For a walk," came the answer before she disappeared. She needed to
think. Otherwise, she was sure she was going to say something she'd regret
later. **A girl of her turns does not need to be in bed with her father.**
She didn't blame Syren. She blamed Ioven for allowing it. A picture of
Parale curling up against a small girl in sleep without realizing it also
entered her mind and she shivered.

Last updated on the February 16th 2012

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Sleepless Night Pt 1 of 2