Chapter 198

The palace is quiet as Daphne slips out, stifling a yawn as she trots down the front steps, her bag slung over her shoulder and a portfolio clutched in her arms. She shivers a bit in the cold as she hails a cab from the busy street in front of her, sending one last wistful look at the sleeping palace before she climbs into the car. Because she left too early to say a proper goodbye – everyone’s still asleep after the late night last night. But Daphne has an early train to catch home for the holiday, and an errand to run first.

Daphne smirks as she settles into the back of the cab, thinking about how Ariel didn’t come to bed last night – didn’t even make an appearance before sneaking out to Jackson’s room. It’s a shame, really, that Daphne didn’t get to say goodbye to her but…well, she understands. Plus, the allure of your mate sleeping all alone a few hallways down?

A temptation that Daphne, herself, wouldn’t have even bothered to try to resist.

She takes a deep breath, resting her head back as she watches the city flash by, heading off to the wealthy semi-suburban area where the other branch of the Sinclair family lives. As she travels, Daphne wonders, passively, if she should have had her own midnight adventure, sneaking off down the hall to rap quietly at Rafe’s room, steal a few hours for herself…

But her little wolf turns once in her soul, discontented at the idea, so Daphne just brushes a warm mental hand over her wolf’s fur and turns away from the thought. Her wolf is right, after all – it’s not really worth wondering about. Not when there’s so much to do.

The cab pulls up in front of a large, beautiful house, pulling through the open gates into the driveway. Daphne and the cabby both peer up at the house, which looks quite quiet.

“Are you…expected, miss?” the cabby asks, clearly wondering if everyone inside is asleep.

Daphne grimaces a little. “Sort of,” she murmurs. “Um, do you mind waiting?” she asks, knowing she’ll need a ride to the train station after her errand.

“Not a problem,” he murmurs, “as long as you know this is running.” He taps the top of the meter with a cheerful finger.

Daphne agrees, thanking him and climbs out of the cab, leaving her bag and taking the portfolio with her. She starts eagerly for the house, thinking that if everyone is still asleep – which makes sense, after such a long night of strategizing – she can just leave the portfolio. She walks eagerly to the door and lifts a hand to knock on it but…

Well…

The door’s open, just a crack. And cheerful yellow light is streaming through the thin aperture, along with some light laughter. Daphen drops her hand, leaning closer, and then bursts into a smile when she hears the sound of children inside – yelling and laughing. Not hesitating anymore, she pushes the door open a bit and peeks inside.

“Hello?” Daphne calls, curious.

“Daphne!” a voice calls, instant. And then there’s a series of shrieks, and three little kids come dashing for her – Jesse’s three youngest – with their hands outstretched.

“Come in!” sings Bella, delighted, grabbing Daphne by the hand and tugging her inside. “Oh, please come in! Come play!”

“Hi! Hi Daphne!” Chase calls out, desperate for her attention, jumping up and down and shooting his hands up in the air. Daphne grins, a little delighted by the reception. She’s not used to little ones and is quite pleased to find that she’s already so popular a guest after only knowing them for a few days.

The littlest one – a little girl only four years old – just grins and wraps herself eagerly around Daphne’s leg, holding on for dear life. Daphne bursts into laughter, looking between the three kids, not knowing what to do next.

“Good god, they’ve got you now.”

Daphne’s head snaps up and her face breaks into a grin when she sees Jesse standing in the doorway to the living room, leaning casually against the door jamb. “You’re their captive – you’re never getting out.”

“Yessss!” Chase hisses, victorious. “We’ve got her! Captive! Prisoner! Yes!”

“Bring her in, then,” Jesse calls, still beaming at Daphne as he turns into the living room and waves for them all to follow. Bella and Chase dash after him, but the little one just grins up at Daphne, not moving.

“Well?” Daphne asks, playfully raising an eyebrow at her. “How do we do this?”

“Up!” the littlest Sinclair commands, releasing her arms and holding them up to Daphne. Daphne laughs and obeys, leaning down to scoop the little girl up into her free arm, balancing her on her hip as she, too, follows Jesse into the living room.

Daphne eyes go wide when she sees the chaos inside. Just – toys, and candy, and children all over the place.

“Come here, Fifs, you disaster, let poor Daphne go,” Jesse calls, holding his arms out for the baby in Daphne’s arms. He’s sitting on the floor in front of the couch now, a puzzle spread out before him, both Chase and Bella on either side of it, sorting through the pieces. Seraphina – called Fifi by those who love her best - wiggles in Daphne’s arms, struggling to be put down, so Daphne places her back on the floor and she dashes immediately to Jesse, throwing herself in his lap.

“Hi, Daphne!” Rose calls, waving from her spot in front of the television where she’s playing some dance game, her movements tracked by the device. Chase, the eldest after Jesse, is slumped over an armchair, playing a game on his phone. Daphne grins at the fact that he completely ignores her.

“This is…quite a scene,” Daphne murmurs, looking around, kind of impressed. “What on earth are you all doing up after a late night?”

“Come sit,” Jesse says, patting the spot next to him on the fourth side of the puzzle.

Daphne obeys as Jesse wraps his arms tight around his youngest sister, planting a solid kiss on her head while Daphne settles in.

“Unfortunately,” Jesse says, smiling softly at Daphne as he rests his head against Seraphina’s, “even if their parents stay up until two in the morning worrying about the state of the nation, the children still wake up at the crack of dawn, demanding sustenance.”

“Sustenance!” Fifi shouts, throwing her fists in the air.

Jesse laughs but otherwise ignores her, keeping his attention Daphne.

“But why are you up?” Daphne asks, grinning at Jesse, charmed by it all. She doesn’t have any siblings, so sitting in a house so cozy and warm and noisy with love? It’s a welcome change. “You were up late worrying too.”

“The demons demanded my presence,” Jesse replies, raising one of his feet to give Chase a little kick that topples him over a bit. Chase growls, playful, and sends Jesse a wicked grin before leaping on his foot and pretending to attack it. “They like my scrambled eggs better than mom’s. Because they have taste buds, you see.”

“But isn’t that a lot to ask of you?” Daphne asks softly, leaning against the couch with her portfolio still tucked under her arm. “You’re one of them, after all. A sibling.”

“Yeah, but mom and dad need a break,” Jesse replies, equally soft, holding Daphne’s gaze as he speaks honestly for once instead of cracking a joke. “Besides, I miss my buddies, and I can sleep at the Academy when I only have Rafe and Ariel to take care of.” He grins, looking over his siblings with very clear affection.

Daphne laughs a little and he turns his smile back to her. “What do you have there?” he asks, lifting his chin at the portfolio under her arm.

“Oh!” Daphne says, looking down at the neatly bundled papers and then hesitating before pulling them out and settling them on her lap.

“Gimme!” Bella says immediately, snatching the portfolio out of Daphne’s hands.

“Oh, um!” Daphne gasps, hesitating.

“Bella,” Jesse scolds, his voice low and slow. Bella stops instantly with her hand on the cover, grimacing and looking up at her big brother. “What do we say about important paperwork?”

Bella sighs, looking down, ashamed. “No sticky fingers.”

“I washed mine!” Chase declares, reaching for the portfolio with his apparently clean hands.

Jesse raises an eyebrow at Daphne and she shrugs, thinking that it’s just some preliminary ideas, it wouldn’t really matter if they got smudged. Everyone leans forward – even Caleb, clearly eavesdropping from his place on the armchair – peering at the designs as Chase reverently opens the portfolio and quickly spreads them out.

“Oh, ew, girl stuff,” Chase sighs, jumping to his feet and running across the room – though Daphne doesn’t know where he’s going or why.

“Girl stuff!?” Rose gasps, turning immediately and abandoning her dance game as she falls to her knees and starts to sort through the sketches. Bella likewise leans in, curious.

“They’re designs,” Daphne says, unable to keep the pride from her voice. “Your mom asked me to think up some dresses and outfits for her. These are the ones I thought of this morning.”

“Just this morning?” Jesse murmurs, raising his eyes to her. “Talk about getting no sleep.”

“Hard work takes the time it takes, Sinclair,” Daphne replies, mock-haughty and raising her eyes to his.

Immediately, he grins. “I wouldn’t know, Baros.”

Daphne just wrinkles her nose at him, just a little. Because she knows he’s lying – that he pretends to be lazier than he is. Because how can he call himself lazy when he’s clearly gotten up early to let his parents catch some sleep?

As Jesse smirks at her, Daphne just turns her head slightly to study this boy, who is constantly revealing himself to be more and more of a mystery.