Chapter Ten #2
“You need to finesse this,” Bash responded encouragingly.
“Don’t come at him with gruff orders and strict rules, because it sounds to me like he’s been on his own for a long time, even longer than Soren, who from your account had a huge, loving family until the council took it away.
Coming from a place like that, I think he’d understand that you are stepping in and creating rules and structure when you feel like he needs it.
But it doesn’t seem like anyone has ever done that for Taggart, at least not in quite some time.
I could see you two butting heads if you tried to be too firm with him. ”
“Then what can I do?” Arlo questioned, desperate to find a solution that worked. “Aside from what I did last night.”
Bash’s brows arched. “Which was what?”
“I set up a movie for them, and we just watched it together and laughed. It was light, easy and fun, with snacks Soren had made earlier in the day,” Arlo admitted. “But I know that isn’t going to work every time he needs a breather.”
“No, it isn’t, nor is keeping them in the house with Taggart’s workspace right there to tempt him.
” Bash clicked his fingers. “You know, there is a Little’s picnic Friday night, and Saturday night there's a double feature of the live action Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast. Romy’s excited about it.
Your boys might enjoy it too, and the picnic.
Just think about it before you say no. I know you're not one for social gatherings, I’m not big on them either, especially outdoors ones where there are no clearly defined entrance and exit points to keep watch over.
But the other night, Romy suggested maybe I needed some downtime too, where I didn’t always have to be on the alert.
You and me, we’re never going to be able to turn off our training altogether, it’s too ingrained, but we can let our boys teach us how to dial it back, so we can just enjoy living a little. ”
“With everything going on…” Arlo began, only to have Bash shoot him a look that silenced him.
“I know. Which is why we need it more than ever,” Bash said firmly. “We’ve seen things we’ll never forget. Too many things to even compartmentalize at this point, especially when the hits keep coming. Those breaks you want Taggart to take, you need them too. We both do.”
Sucking in a deep breath, Arlo considered Bash’s words and couldn’t find a single argument against what Bash had said. As the idea slowly took root, he could see not only where it had merit, but where it could actually be beneficial to all of them.
Soren had come from a place where he’d been surrounded, every day, by people he could laugh with, talk to, and interact with.
With the way he loved listening to the voices that Arlo had done the night before, he was willing to bet that someone had read to him often.
There had probably been storytellers among the flock, especially elders who loved sharing their memories with the younger generation.
It wouldn’t be the same, but they had a strong, vibrant community here, and if being around the crash, the pack and all the other shifters who lived in and around Cookietown could give him back some semblance of what he’d lost. Arlo decided he would make it a point to keep up with the activities taking place, so he could bring his boys as often as possible.
And maybe if the other Littles saw the way Taggart and Soren interacted, they wouldn’t be so fearful of Taggart’s size.
Arlo was certain that the clumsiness he occasionally glimpsed from Taggart linked directly to him feeling like he needed to hurry in order to be included.
The one thing Arlo already knew with all certainty was that Soren wouldn’t allow Taggart to be left out of anything, and that he’d stay by Taggart’s side no matter what activities were going on around them, which might go a long way towards easing Taggart’s nervousness about being the biggest Little in the room.
“We’ll be there,” Arlo said, earning a smile from Bash, who clasped his shoulder.
“Good. I’d better get to work, but you know I’ve got your back, whatever you need, never hesitate to reach out.”
“I know. Thank you, brutha.”
“After everything you did for me”—Bash held his stare—“there’s never any thanks needed.”
As Arlo watched Bash return to his crew, he felt like some of the weight had gotten lifted off his shoulders.
Just knowing that Bash understood what he was struggling with, and that his friend was working through some of the same things, made it easier to move forward without feeling like he was spinning his wheels.
Always waiting for the next bad thing to fall out of the sky or crawl out from under a rock.
Coffee cup empty, he headed back inside, relieved to find that the house was still silent.
Creeping back to the living room, determined not to wake them if they were still sleeping, Arlo felt a rush of warmth surge over him when he heard soft giggles, one a little higher pitched than the other.
There, still bundled up like a burrito, were his boys, with a tablet on the pillow.
Soren had flipped around, so that Taggart now spooned up behind him, the opening scene of Penguins of Madagascar unfolding on the screen.
At that moment, Arlo knew exactly what he needed to do.
Slipping in behind Taggart, he snuggled up close, draped an arm over both of his boys, and started doing the voices they loved.
Soren
“Daddy?”
“I’m right here, darlin’.”
“Did we fall asleep again?” Soren asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
“We all did,” Arlo chuckled, looking flushed.
“My tummy is empty, but I don’t want to move ‘cause I don’t wanna wake Taggart.
He needs to sleep more.” He wasn’t sure what time Taggart had gotten up, but he figured it was very early.
Taggart’s brain was an amazing thing that exhausted Soren, he wasn’t quite sure how Taggart managed all the time when his thoughts spiraled so fast it made Soren dizzy.
“Yes, he does,” Arlo murmured quietly. “Want Daddy to order something?”
“I-I really want the cheesy omelets I’d planned to make.” Soren kept his voice soft. “Could you make them?”
“I doubt they’ll be as good as yours, but I’ll try.”
Soren felt the doubt and offered eagerly, “I can talk you through it.”
Chuckling, Arlo stroked his arm and gave it a gentle squeeze. “That would be perfect. You just keep doing what you’ve been doing and keep Taggart here. It’s the best thing for him right now, and you are doing a wonderful job making sure he stays put.”
He could feel his mate’s pride and pleasure at being told that, and grinned as Soren hugged Taggart’s arm around him and touched the button to start another movie.
Arlington kissed them each on the cheek, then headed for the kitchen.
Soren thought for a second about where everything was that Arlington needed.
On the top shelf, you’ll see a green and white box of garlic and herb cheese, right next to the eggs, butter, and heavy cream and a little container of chives.
You need all of those and the yellow onion in the hanging basket by the sink.
I see them. Arlo was concentrating so hard, Soren giggled. I’ll let you know when I’m ready for the next instruction.
Okay, Daddy.
While he waited, Soren hugged Taggart’s arm and watched the movie trailers, his mind drifting a little.
Over a year ago, he had an idea for a puppet show he’d always wanted to put on.
He and Taggart could do it, he knew they could.
Soren had found the thrift store in town, it would be the perfect place to find outfits and materials to make the puppets and dress them, and he was certain that Arlington could make them a little wooden theater big enough for them to sit behind.
How good would that be to create little shows just for Arlington?
They could make him laugh, especially after he’d come in from a long shift.
Okay, everything is on the counter.
Grinning at how accomplished Daddy felt, Soren focused on the steps, so he could make it as easy as possible to make the omelets.
The pan you’ll need is already on top of the stove.
I put it there last night. The cutting board is on the counter, you’ll need that too.
And one knife from the bottom row on the block.
There are three bowls beside the cutting board, one is deeper than the rest, that’s for the eggs, you don’t need that yet.
The shallow ones are where you are going to put the onions and the chives after you dice them.
Dice, that means small and thin, correct?
He grinned at the screen, not paying it any attention. Yup, Daddy, that’s perfect.
Alright, I’m going to dice, you enjoy your movie for a bit.
Yes, Daddy.
Soren returned his attention to the screen, happy that he’d not missed any of the movie, seeing it had just started.
The Sword in the Stone was one of his favorites, even if it wasn’t one of the modern Disney movies.
He loved classic cartoons just as much, and sometimes even more than the newest ones.
As he watched, his thoughts shifted back to the puppet show idea.
One thing he was uncertain about was the size of the wooden theater they’d need.
What if Taggart didn’t want it cluttering up the place?
Maybe he wouldn’t want to play pretend with puppets.
What if he saw it as a distraction, rather than something they could do together, the way Soren hoped it would be?
He sighed, quickly looking at his sleeping mate, hating how his thoughts did a one-eighty on him like this, and left him frozen and uncertain.
Rather than risk one of his mates picking up on his shift in mood, he shoved the whole idea from his head and focused on the movie while he waited for his Daddy to finish what he was doing.
He didn’t have to wait long. Dicing completed, ready for the next step.
Now you are going to melt a tablespoon of butter in the pan, and spread the onions in an even layer on top of it. Don’t do anything to them for about four minutes.
On it.
Arlington sounded so serious that Soren smothered his giggles.
Step by step, they made five omelets, and Arlington assembled the fruit salad Soren had prepped the ingredients for the night before. By the time Arlington said it was time to eat, Taggart was blinking sleepy eyes at him, muttering questions about what time it was.
“Eating time,” Soren said, rolling so he could squishy hug him. “Come on. Daddy made us something yummy.”