A House Filled With Night

There was some distant sound was trying to pull Runa out of her sleep. It wasn’t Torin. She could still feel his breath falling rhythmically on her ear, and one arm squeezing her a bit too tightly around the waist—he only did that when he was deep in sleep.

It was just too difficult to pry her eyes open. But by now, she was growing aware of the distant, shrill cries of a child, and footsteps approaching their bedroom. The cries stopped for a moment as they reached the door. In what may have been an effort to be quiet, the door opened slowly; unfortunately, that just made the creaks last longer.

“Mama,” came the whisper of a little girl. “Mama, are you awake?”

The bed squeaked as the girl clambered up and perched comfortably upon the curve of her mother’s hip.

“Mama—I have something to tell you. It’s so, so important. Are you awake?”

Runa sighed and tried to turn around. “Yes, Aislyn, I’m awake. What is it?”

Aislyn began bouncing up and down urgently, causing Torin to stir and snuggle into his wife’s neck.

“Papa! Let go of her, I have something important to say! It’s an emergency.”

“Aislyn …” groaned Torin. “Is that you, sweetheart?”

“Everyone, listen! Uncle is trying to steal Kitty! He—he said—he said—”

Tears burst forth, so Torin finally had to sit up and stroke the girl’s head. “Sweetheart, calm down. What are you talking about?”

“Uncle stole Kitty and—and he said he’s going to make her into a stew! Papa, why would Uncle want to eat my kitty? I’ve never even heard of people eating kitties!”

“Darling, which uncle are you talking about?” said Runa, sitting up as well. “You only have four of them—”

“Aislynnnnn!!”

They turned to the door upon hearing the incoming cry. Fiske slammed the door open, cuddling a cat in his arms, followed quickly by a little boy with a baby in his arms.

“Aislyn,” he panted, bringing the cat forward, “Uncle was just joking. He would never do that to Kitty, okay? Please don’t cry! I’m sorry!”

The cat jumped out of his arms, hissed, and jumped away. The little boy who had come in with Fiske silently tottered up to the bed and handed the baby, now wailing, to Runa, who bounced him in her arms to try and quiet his cries.

Torin smacked himself in the face.

“Fiske, what have I told you about coming into our bedroom?”

“They’re here!” retorted Fiske, pointing at the kids.

“They’re my children.”

“Well, I’m your brother!”

“You’re an adult!”

“Don’t kid yourselves—you’re both children,” said Runa, coming out of bed with the baby still in her arms. “Let’s go have some breakfast. Fiske, why don’t you call Niko and Meriel over? It’s Saturday.”

Ten minutes later, they were gathered in Runa and Torin’s little kitchen, flipping eggs and making toast. Fiske took Meriel by the arm and led her to a seat, bringing her tea and fussing over her until she had to shoo him away. Niko sat on the floor with Aislyn and her twin brother, Aldrin, playing with marbles.

“I suppose your brothers are pretty busy today, Niko?” asked Runa.

“Mm-hm. Casimir is preparing some new music for tonight, and Sylvain started baking early, as usual.”

“We need to have breakfast with Sylvain’s family soon,” said Runa. “Poor Lydie is so ill these days.”

“Runa, did you get that sick when you were pregnant?”

“Don’t ask questions like that, Niko,” scolded Meriel. “It’s not decent.”

Runa chuckled. “I did, but not like Lydie. At least she has a very caring husband.”

“Are you implying something?” asked Torin, looking a little hurt.

She smiled and gave him a little kiss on the cheek. “Of course not, love.”

“We all know you’re horrible at being a husband,” whispered Fiske to Torin, very loudly.

“Try it yourself,” said Torin, jabbing his brother in the ribs.

Fiske choked and Meriel patted him on the back, a small smirk upon her lips.

“Uncle,” called Aislyn from the table, “Why aren’t you married yet? Aren’t you just as old as Papa? Is it hard to find a woman at your age?”

Niko guffawed loudly and kept on laughing until Fiske got up and chased him out of the kitchen. Aldrin and Aislyn made quick work of their leftovers.

“Papa,” said Aldrin, as he licked his fingers. “I want to work with you at the store today. I think I’m old enough now.”

“Oh, you’re definitely getting close. Why don’t we wait just a little longer? Right now, Niko needs your help in storage. I’ll start teaching you about carpentry soon though, how does that sound?”

Aldrin patted Niko’s arm.

“Don’t worry, Uncle. I’ll keep helping you, so you don’t have to be lonely.”

—

It had been a several years now since the Sons of Midnight began their family business, aptly, although perhaps unimaginatively, christened “House Furniture & Décor.” To Runa, it felt as new and chaotic as the day they began. After recovering, the brothers returned to the House’s ruins and salvaged what they could—money, jewelry, furniture, clothes, artwork—any small item gave them something to begin with. They pooled their resources together to purchase a storefront to sell their goods, which doubled as a home until they could afford something better. Much of the items they recovered were damaged, so they apprenticed themselves to various tradesmen and learned how to rebuild what had been destroyed. Eventually, however, they became quite adept at creating things on their own.

Most of the brothers learned on carpentry, but Casimir turned to the art of music and instrument design. At first, their store mostly sold furniture. Soon, they were selling Casimir’s instruments as well. After a few years, however, they had saved enough money for Sylvain to open up a small café next door. This gave Casimir the idea of hosting musical performances there at nighttime. It became a popular place to gather in the city, where one could find almost anything.

“Lydie!” Runa exclaimed, rushing to help the young, heavily pregnant woman carry in her bags “You shouldn’t have come in today.”

“I’m fine,” Lydie replied with a wave of her hand. “This store needs me, you know.”

“This store needs all the help it can get, but it’s no reason to sacrifice your back.”

They walked together, approaching a box of supplies that needed to be sorted before opening time. Most of the brothers were occupied with working on new items, so there was always plenty of work to go around.

“How is Sylvain?” asked Runa. “And Jalen?”

“Sylvain won’t leave me alone for a moment, and Jalen is worried the baby will replace him,” she said with a laugh. “I thought husbands are supposed to be less terrified for the second child.”

“Well, this is Sylvain we’re talking about.”

They chatted on peaceably for about a half hour until opening time, when the doors were unlocked, and customers began filing in. Runa worked until lunchtime, stopping by Sylvain’s café for a snack and a break.

“What will it be today?” asked Sylvain with a smile. “Maybe you’d like a surprised? I’ve been working on something new I think you’ll love.”

“I love everything you make, Sylvain.”

“Be honest, now. I want to add this to the menu.”

Runa smiled when he came out with an apple tart. Apples always reminded her of Torin.

“He looks happier right?” whispered Lydie, sitting down across the table from Runa with her plate.

“Of course he’s happy, he has you.”

Lydie chortled. “No, I’m not talking about Sylvain. I’m talking about Niko. He looks happier these days, right?

“Ohhh. I see. Are you saying this because of that girl?”

“Elle. Her name is Elle, and she’s very sweet.”

“I noticed you’ve been spending a lot of time chatting with her whenever she comes in.”

“Why shouldn’t I? Have you seen the way Niko is around her? I’d better get to know my potential new sister before things get too far along—what, what’s with that expression?”

Runa was rolling her eyes.

“Oh, so you aren’t you even a little concerned about it? Don’t you want Niko to find the perfect girl for him?”

“I trust him. He’s a good judge of character.”

“You’re not at least a little curious?”

“I’ll get to know her if the time comes.”

“Hey, hey,” Lydie nudged her. “Look! She’s here!”

Runa’s gaze followed Lydie’s pointing finger, landing on a small girl who had just approached the storefront. She wore an old sundress and had long, brown hair that swished around and covered part of her face whenever she ducked her head (which was often). She always wore that same sundress almost every time she came. Noticing their stares, the girl bowed to Runa and Lydie shyly, hurrying along.

Unfortunately, since she was so busy trying to avoid any and all eye-contact, she didn’t notice the store’s door swinging open just then. Then came a mild cry and a crash. Lydie jumped up from her chair, dragging Runa along with her.

There was she was, collapsed onto the ground, now surrounded by an array of boxes and their spilled contents. Niko stood just above her, arms half-full of the few items he hadn’t dropped on her. At first all he could do was stand and stare, clearly unsure what to do. Finally, he decided to throw them all aside and help the fallen girl. He offered his hand to her, but she was too busy trying to hide her blush from his wide-eyed, concerned gaze, so she ended up slipping again. Niko moved in time to catch her this time, pulling her too close and almost dropping her again.

“Oh my,” whispered Lydie. “This is getting interesting! They’re too sweet, aren’t they? Aren’t they?”

Someone poked Runa in the ribcage from behind, making her squeak.

“Who are you spying on?” Torin teased.

“Stop doing that! You’re going to give me a heart attack, I’m not a child anymore.”

“But I am.”

She laughed. “You really are, aren’t you? Well, what do you need, dear? I’m very busy with very important things right now. As you can see.”

He scratched the back of his head. “What do I need? Well, uh…have you seen my…small carving knife?”

“Your knife?”

“You know, the one with the black handle, and the—”

“Love, how would I know where any of your knives are?”

He leaned in to give her a little kiss and pulled back, grinning. “Well, I didn’t really need it anyway.”

Runa reached out to embrace him.

“Oh, I’ll just pretend I’m not here, then, shall I?” giggled Lydie.

Their short embrace was soon interrupted by a tug at Runa’s skirt. Casimir had sent Aldrin to fetch her to the music room. Puzzled, but always happy to visit Casimir, she headed back to the little room at the end of the shop where Casimir spent most of his time. It was littered with paper, pens, and instruments strewn all over every surface, whether a desk or the floor.

“Here you are. Runa, I want you to sing tonight with Torin.”

“S-sing?” she laughed, tucking her hair behind an ear. She laughed. “I don’t really sing in front of others.”

“You did for us. Don’t you remember those days in the music room with Torin and me? Don’t you remember how you sang for us when we were sick?”

“That was different, Casimir.”

“It’s been five years, Runa,” he said. “Five years since we all met. I’ve been reflecting on things. We went through so much together back then. It’s good to remember what we have to be thankful for. It would be nice to hear your voice again.”

She smiled timidly. “I’m not good at singing.”

“Not true.”

“Well, I’m not very good at singing.”

“Music isn’t only about sounding good. And tonight isn’t only about music.”

She hesitated.

“Sing for us? Please, Runa?”

—

The evening arrived, and the storefront of “House Furniture & Décor” shut down. The kids ran around with the Sons of Midnight, pushing around tables and setting up chairs around the makeshift stage they had set up outside the café. They got rid of the main lights and lit lamps and candles all around.

The Sons of Midnight always sat in the same spot: the front seats, to the left. Over time they had grown from one row into two. Torin sat next to Runa, the baby in his arms and twins seated comfortably beside them. Sylvain leaned his head against Lydie’s shoulder and snuggled up closer and closer, until she had to swat him away.

The show began with Casimir making his way onto the stage, where he bowed to the crowd in greeting. “Tonight, we want to remember a time log ago, before we were happy and free. And we especially want to remember how our sister, Runa, found us back then. It’s because of her that we can sing together now.”

The audience clapped, which made Runa’s heart race, but the gentle plucking of guitar strings eased its pace once again. Casimir beckoned for them to come up. Torin’s hand slipped into hers, and he pulled her to the front. She breathed in deeply and smiled, happy to be singing with him. Happy to be with him.

Wake with me at sunrise

When the sky will shine like gold

Each morning comes with gladness

Because I have you to hold

__________________

~ A/N ~

A cheesy epilogue, just for funsies :)