Pausing my ugly crying to ask for a drabble of vilya and vesper playing together under the cherry tree, please?

(I told you I was gonna ask for it. No rush, obviously.)

turned my water into wine #43

In a million years, this is never where Vex thought she would be at this stage in her life. If she were being honest with herself, which she is, sometimes, she hadn't expected she would make it to this stage at all, not considering the life she and her brother lead for so long. There were so many opportunities for tragedy, for missteps, for one or both of them to falter in their desperate attempts to stay alive.

And yet here they are, backs against the sprawling cherry tree on the castle grounds in Zephrah, watching their young daughters stumble and giggle around the hill in front of them. Vilya is up to Vex's knee now, unbelievable as it is, and Vesper, with her shock of white hair and her father's piercing eyes, scoots about after her, shrieking happily and sticking fistfuls of grass in her mouth.

"Is this real, brother?" she murmurs, tipping her head onto his shoulder.

He presses his cheek into the crown of her head. "Which part, the children or the diseases Vesper is undoubtedly giving herself right now?"

She elbows him. "All of it, you ass."

Just then, Vesper falls to her side and lets out a wail. Before either of them can move, Vilya is there, her favorite stuffed bear in hand, which she unceremoniously plops onto her cousin's chest. The crying ceases at once, and Vesper coos into the bear's fur. Vex can feel her brother grinning.

Vilya toddles up to them, then, leaving Vesper to enjoy her borrowed toy, and says, "Papa, Ves sad!"

Vax reaches out to snatch his daughter up in a hug. "Ves was sad, seedling." Vex straightens up to watch him plant a big kiss on her cheek. "But you made her feel better. That was very kind of you."

"Snack now?" The question is asked with a twist of hope, and Vex laughs.

"Generosity shown in the hopes of a future reward?" Vex tickles her side. "You are my niece, after all."

Vax rolls his eyes and stands, deftly flipping Vilya around so she's perched on his shoulders. "Someday I'm going to have to bail her out of some kind of trouble she learned from you, you understand that, don't you?"

"Nonsense." Vex pads over to her own little girl, whom she scoops up and rests on her hip. "She's going to come to me for such assistance, because she'll know by then that Auntie Vex can get her out of anything." She kisses Vesper's nose, and the baby giggles.

They head back toward the cottage, where Keyleth, with her round belly and her remarkably improved culinary skills, should be close to having the girls' lunch ready. As they walk, Vax nudges Vex's hip with his own. "Hey Stubby?"

"What?"

"It is real. All of it."

And Vex grins from ear to ear, because he's right, and there is no more astonishing miracle than this little life.