Hey everyone, Alleskeins here. I've decided to go back a bit and write a bonus chapter to one of my previous stories. See it as kind of an epilogue. If you like this one, let me know. I have a few others half finished and am going to finish and publish them, should you want to see more like it. Hope you enjoy.
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It had been five years since I met Zephyr. Five of the most fulfilling years in my entire career as a weaver. Not many moments in ones life can be considered life changing, but this one certainly was.
I looked at her and the beautiful daughter she gave me everyday, and wondered how I could've gotten so lucky. My family was never rich, nothing noteworthy or special. And now I owned the most contracted weaving business in the region.
Even after my parents passed away with me as the sole heir, I continued day in and day out working on new patterns, commissions, colors, weaving techniques. It's all I knew and I never knew life could have so much more in store for me.
It's thoughts like these that cross my mind when I see my little girl Sapphire sitting on the stool I used to sit at, humming a sweet little tune to herself as she finished up one of our smaller commissions. Just like her mother, she adored flower patterns, so she was over-the-moon excited when we got commissioned to produce tulip themed patches for the local city guards' uniform. Our town had become somewhat associated with flowers so we decided to wear that badge with pride.
With the last few new customers being dealt with, I sat at the front counter and watched my little girl with a smile. She seemed to have so much fun stitching these little patterns together and her fingers moved swiftly across the cloth canvas.
I didn't even notice my wife sneaking up behind me. I smiled when I felt her hand slide over my chest and her all-too-familiar fluff press against my back. She rested her head on top of mine and even without looking, I just felt the air of happiness radiating from her. "She's growing up really fast, isn't she? And already so interested in her dad's work. She's so cute when she's trying to be like you, Archie." Zephyr fawned on me, softly squeezing my head against her from behind.
I laid my hand on top of hers and chuckled. "She's got that from her mom more than anything else. You looked like that the first time as well. Just like a giddy little kid too."
She squeezed me once again, just enough to make it hurt a bit. I could practically feel her pouting. "Aww, don't say I was like a kid! I was curious. I've been living in your closet for the most time before that. Of course I'd be interested in the stuff you do after a while!" Her being 'mad' wasn't really convincing when she was clearly aware of how childish she could be sometimes.
I craned my head a little and looked up at her, laughing as my hand caressed her cheek. "Why would I not say that? It's one of the reasons I fell in love with you. You were so damn cute. Even back then."
"And what about now?" She asked with a little bit of a frown.
"Now you're even cuter. And you're making it harder and harder for me not to notice." I gently guided her face to mine and gave her a little kiss on the lips. But as usual, once I gave Zephie an inch, she took the whole mile. She cradled my head like it was the most precious thing in the world and passionately kissed me back way deeper than I intended. I chuckled in my mind, thinking how silly I was to expect anything else.
I knew better than to stop her when she was like this, so I happily let her do as she pleased. Her cute, tiny tongue snaked into my mouth and tried its best to overpower my own. Most definitely an emphasis on 'tried'. I helped her along, giving her some way for our tongues to snake around each other and tasted the sweet saliva that was dribbling down into my mouth. I don't think any other woman in this world would be able to make me feel the unconditional love I felt in Zephyr's kisses. It was moments like these that made me aware of how much more of my time she actually deserved. And that day, it was about time I gave it to her.
Zephyr and I would've continued peppering each other with kisses for longer, had it not been for a little, gentle hand tugging at the hem of my shirt.
I snapped back into regular position as I noticed Sapphire, her pair of crystal blue eyes inquiringly looking up at me. Zephyr was visibly still flushed after we parted and clearly not done yet, but she put on the most kind, motherly smile as she spoke to our daughter.
"Nghh... hey sweetie. Sorry, your mommy and daddy were a little distracted. What's up?" She bent down a little and rubbed the head of Sapphire while she beamed proudly.
"I finished the badges! Look! They're like a rainbow when they're all together!" She presented her patches of cloth like they were a deck of cards and indeed, she used as many different colors as she could for the tulip petals. Everything from blues and purples to yellows and reds. And put in order, just like she said, like a rainbow.
"Wow, you've gotten quite a lot better on the stitching patterns. You might even just knock me off my throne one day." I chuckled, joining Zephyr in petting Sapphires head.
She folded the pieces together and jumped onto my lap, giggling with pride. "I'm not THAT good, daddy. Not yet anyways." She said with a cheeky, playful smirk. I laughed with her and tickled her sides, making her wings and antennae wiggle along with her body.
Suddenly, she froze up like she just remembered something. "Ah, how late is it?" She asked, worriedly looking at the fading sun outside. "Must be around 7. Don't worry, you're still on time."
After hearing these words, Zephyr, who was the only one of us three who had no idea what I was talking about, cocked her head. "On time for what, Archie?"
Sapphire was quick to answer that question. "Daddy said I could sleep over at Annabelle's house tonight. I didn't want to go during the day because of the sun so I finished the badges first!" She explained.
I continued as Zephyr looked at us confused, hearing this for the first time. "I thought she deserved it after helping us out so much in the shop. Also, I think she's old enough now for our big girl's first night at her friend's house." I petted Sapphire's wings gently as she flung her arms around me and squeezed me tightly.
Zephyr seemed like she wanted to say something, but when she saw her daughter this happy, she was pretty heart-pressed to say something to stifle her enthusiasm. "Well, I hope you'll have fun with Cheeko. Maybe your dad's right. You really ARE a big girl now. Just make sure that you'll stay safe on your way."
"It's just across the road, mommy. I'll be careful, I promise!" She beamed at us reassuringly, pulling her mother into the family hug and giving her a sweet little kiss on the cheek before she enthusiastically hurried to the door. "I'll be back tomorrow by noon! Love you!" She waved us one more time before she went out the door into the orange-glowing evening streets.
The second the door swung shut, Zephyr's demeanor changed to that of confusion and slight frustration. "Why didn't you tell me that she was having a sleepover? I thought we always talked these things through before we do them. I thought we were a team."
"I know." Zephyr was surprised by my serious tone as I got up from my chair and faced her directly with my arms crossed, looking at the ground with a bit of guilt that I hadn't told her. "I've been thinking a lot lately. You and Sapphire... I kind of dragged you both into my business. I know you two like doing it, and I'm happy about that. But above all, we're a family and you and Sapphire deserve to have some off days now and again. So I figured if Sapphire had a chance to be a regular kid and visit her friends and we closed the shop a bit early..." I trailed off as I shortly reached past her and flipped our 'open' sign to 'closed'. "...I'd get 2 birds with one stone."
I planted my hand on the door, cornering Zephyr between it and me. We were so close we could feel each other's body heat radiating from each other.
"You do know I... I don't mind working with you as long as we do it together, right?" She shyly looks away, her increasing embarrassment written clearly on her expressions.
I smiled gently and whispered to her. "I know Zephie... I know." I opened my lips slightly and guided hers onto them. Her body felt frail. Almost like it was melting against me. My heart raced as I felt her soft warmth. This time it was me who invaded the cavity of her mouth and I was ready to taste every inch of it. As I pushed Zephyr more and more against the door, flattening her breasts with my chest, I kissed her deeper and deeper.