spamalot } { of big sisters and little brothers

[wildkingdom]

Peter: [is home in the kitchen warming up a bottle while Gavin is cradled in one arm fussing] Hold on, little guy. Trying to get it warm so it doesn't make you sick.

Malia: [lets herself in, Cameron sitting on her hip] So he's a cranky one?

Peter: Impatient is more like it. [smiles over his shoulder at his daughter]

Malia: [smirks] Same difference. [makes her way closer to have a look at her brother, while Cameron waves his hand, which turns into repeatedly beating his grandfather in the shoulder with his little baby fist]

Peter: [chuckles and once he has the bottle ready, plops it into Gavin's mouth before leaning over to kiss Cam's forehead] Hello, Cameron. I can't hold you right now but I still love you.

Malia: [Cameron grins before shoving aforementioned fist into his mouth, leaning back into his mom's shoulder] So how's it going so far?

Peter: Surprisingly easy so far. You did provide me with the blueprint on how to be a father, after all. [rocks Gavin a bit as he drinks down the bottle like a starving man]

Malia: I'm helpful even when I don't intend to be.

Peter: You have a habit of that. [shifts Gavin a bit] Gavin, this is your big sister, Malia, and your nephew Cameron.

Cameron: [babble babble babble babble]

Malia: I think that roughly translates to "Hi."

Peter: You're going to have a talker on your hands.

Malia: Indeed. Not a bad thing, though.

Peter: No, not at all. You want to hold your brother?

Malia: Sure. But you're going to have to take this one, otherwise he's going to get needy.

Peter: Of course. [and they swap children, and Peter grins and tosses Cameron up into the air a few inches gently]

Malia: [pleased happy giggles as he kicks his legs and waves his arms, while Malia gets in some sibling bonding] How's Nadia doing with all of this?

Peter: No complaints yet. She's resting since her brothers will be coming in this weekend to visit and meet their nephew.

Malia: Good plan. You guys will probably be smothered in family for a while.

Peter: Which I don't mind. Honestly, I'd probably go crazy if I woke up one day and my family was gone.

Malia: Maybe, but sometimes you want a little bit of breathing room.

Peter: True. [and he motions with his head for Malia to join him in the living room where he can put Cameron on the couch between them and tickle his stomach]

Malia: [follows and settles onto the couch with Gavin in her arms still] He's so tiny.

Peter: He is. But he'll grow. They always do, and boys tend to grow slower than girls.

Malia: [nods] I've read that too.

Peter: But he is a bit smaller than average, but then again, his uncle Nik also was a runt from what I heard.

Malia: Well, we all know how well that turned out. [more to Gavin than her father]

Peter: So who knows, you may be grateful that we waited this long to give you a sibling so you didn't have to have a lumbering little brother growing at Isaac. [smirks]

Malia: [laughs] I think we would have managed.

Peter: Probably, but Laura can tell you how annoying it can be.

Gavin: [he's just looking up at Malia, all wide blue eyes]

Malia: Oh, I'm sure. [and she'll shift him a bit, letting him grab hold of one of her fingers]

Gavin: [for a four day old, he doesn't know a lot yet. But he knows the long dangly things are good to hold while eating]

Peter: And Cameron is going to enjoy hovering over any of his future sister's shoulders when they start dating, I'm sure.

Malia: [smiles a bit, but lets him hold on] If there are any sisters. I might wind up with Allison's luck and get all boys.

Peter: [chuckles] Yes, yes you may. I'll admit, I'm actually surprised you had a boy as your first child. One of the side effects of a matriarchal family line is that Hales tend to have female first borns.

Malia: Oh, I think I dodged that bullet by not being the next alpha. Regina covered that nicely.

Peter: No, you wouldn't have. My first child was a girl, after all. Cora will probably be the one who show how it will go since we'll never know with Derek.

Malia: No, I guess we won't. Which is a shame.

Peter: It is, but it's not stopping them from making a family of their own anyway, which I am glad to see. Liam and Lucy are both very special, and lucky.

Malia: Yeah, they are. Has Lucy stopped yanking them around with whether or not she's walking yet?

Peter: Oh, she's walking now. Around everyone else. Derek thinks Lucy is playing a game with them since Liam caught her walking while he was cooking dinner, but she was already back on her hands and knees when he came out.

Malia: Smart kid.

Peter: That she is. She is going to rule that household.

Malia: All too true.

Peter: [bouncing Cam on his knee] You know, when you were about a year old, I didn't realize you had figured out how to open doors. I would find you in the weirdest places and once you were curled up in the cabinet under the sink and had made a little nest of stuffed animals and pillows from the couch.

Malia: [laughs] I guess sleeping in my own bed wasn't an option.

Peter: I was convinced you wanted a wolf den. I finally got you to stop by making you a little blanket and pillow fort in your bedroom.

Malia: Would it have been such a bad thing if I did?

Peter: [laughs] As long as you made the den in the house. Child Services would have taken you from me if I let you live in a cave out on the preserve.

Malia: Fair enough.

Peter: [he reached over and ran a hand along the back of his daughter's head] And I'd hate to think of my life without you in it, sweetheart.

Malia: [glances up with a smirk] Incredibly boring.

Peter: That's a given. [but of course there's more. He could have become a bitter, angry man. The months just after Victoria had left showed just that. Jennifer had shown him that. He barely remembered those times now, but he knew he had the beast in him.]

Malia: Besides, you would have been deprived of mischievous curly haired grandchildren. [like the one who is tugging on his grandfather's sleeve just so that he has something to hold on to]

Peter: [smiles and looks fondly at his grandson] Yes, there is that.

Cameron: [babble babble babble babble]

Gavin: [is fussing again, in that whole burp me or I'm going to explode way]

Malia: [oh dear] Do you have a - ? [vague gesture to indicate a burping towel]

Peter: Here, swap. [puts Cameron on the couch next to him]

Malia: [nods and hands over her brother, before turning to pick up her son]

Peter: [and he's standing up, putting the infant on his shoulder and rubbing his back while walking towards the kitchen] He's a fast burper... [and before he's even out of the living room, yup, that's a baby burp and spit-up. This is why Peter is in a cheap t-shirt] Good boy.

Malia: [laughs]

Peter: [sighs] Your mommy is going to have to buy daddy all new shirts if you keep this up, son.

Malia: He'll grow out of it, don't worry.

Peter: Just in time for the throwing food stage, I'm sure.

Malia: Of course. He'll probably have a good arm.

Peter: Just like his sister.

Malia: [grins]

Peter: And I bet Cameron will too. [smirks]

Malia: My husband played lacrosse. I think we can handle it.

Peter: Mh hmm.

Malia: [their kitchen will totally be a mess]

Peter: [there is a reason they say that your children will bring justice of what you put your parents through]

Malia: [that is very true]

Peter: Just remember that tomatoes stain everything they touch.

Malia: Duly noted.

Peter: After all, the kitchen was painted red for a reason. [smirks at his daughter]

Malia: You mean it's not just because red is pretty?

Peter: Nope. That whole wall over there was dedicated to your spaghetti art.

Malia: I feel honored.

Peter: As you should.

Malia: [nods in agreement, before looking over at Cameron who's starting to slump into his mom a bit] Oh, I think he's ready for a nap.

Peter: Heading home, or want to put him down here?

Malia: Up to you? But he's been getting fussy, where he doesn't want to go down unless things are just so.

Peter: Probably best to take him home. I should bring this one up to his mom anyway to get some sleep.

Malia: [nods] Okay. [she scoops him up and lets him curl up against her shoulder, before making her way closer] I'll see you at dinner on Sunday?

Peter: [ leans over to kiss Malia's cheek] See you Sunday, sweetheart.