9 Cylus, 717
The twins had only been alive for thirty five days, and already, Lei'lira couldn't imagine her life without them. They seemed to sleep for most of the day, but their sleep came in small spans, usually no more than a couple of breaks at a time. When they were awake, their needs came first. Whether they needed to be fed, or changed, or simply wanted to be with their mother, Lei'lira stopped whatever she was doing at the time so she could give them what they needed.
The small family had finally found a routine that seemed to work well for them. Lei'lira was tired most of the time, but she had learned to take short naps whenever she got the chance, much the same way her children did. It wasn't enough for her to feel well rested, but she was better off than she had been in the trials following their birth.
Another thing Lei'lira had learned was more of an instinct than an actual lesson. As time passed, she seemed to develop the ability to know when the twins were about to wake up. Often, if she was taking a nap herself, she would wake up a few bits before they did. So when Lei'lira found herself abruptly awake, her first thought was to listen for the twins. Sure enough, their familiar wails filled the room even as she got up to check on them.
Tiran was closer, so Lei'lira reached for him first. His diaper needed to be changes, and Lei'lira did so, while singing softly in the hopes of soothing Taerin long enough for her to deal with her brother. It seemed to help a little since although Taerin didn't stop crying completely, her cries softened, and took on a less urgent tone. And in a few bits, both of the babies were dry, and happy.
Lei'lira made herself comfortable as she held one child in each arm, and positioned them so they could nurse at the same time. It was a difficult task, and her arms often ached by the time they were done, but it saved time. More importantly, it kept both of her children happy when one didn't have to wait for the other to drink their fill before getting their own meal.
"Just think; in another few arcs, I won't be able to do this anymore. You'll both be running around, doing your own thing, exploring this strange, wonderful world you live in. I think I'm actually going to miss holding you guys like this."
Tiran made a happy sound, and Lei'lira grinned at him.
"Let's just hope that the two of you skip "no clothes" phase that I had when I was around two arcs old."
Taerin burbled at her, and Lei'lira blew a raspberry on her exposed belly. This seemed to thrill the baby to no end until her hunger distracted her once more, and she went back to nursing.
"My parents always used to tell me that when I was about two or three arcs old, I hated wearing clothes. At the first possible chance I got, I was taking everything off, and running through the house, shrieking in glee at my success. They never knew if something about the clothes made me uncomfortable, or if I hated the colors, or what. All they knew was that if they took their eyes off of me for a trill, I was gleefully pulling off my clothes, and racing through the house until they could catch me. Between you and me, I think I thought I had come up with a hilarious new game to play. But you two aren't going to do anything like that, are you?"
The twins looked up at her and cooed.
"Yeah...that's what I thought. Somehow, I think I'm going to have my hands full with you guys. Just don't team up against me too much, okay? Two against one isn't fair. Remember that."
Tiran made a sound that sounded a little bit as though he was chortling at her. Lei'lira responded by sticking her tongue out at him. This seemed to amuse him to no end, and Lei'lira laughed at his antics.
"Well, I suppose I'll manage somehow. Maybe this is payback for all the trouble I gave my parents, hmm? If nothing else, I'll know better than to let you guys anywhere near the door if you go through the same phase that I did. There was one time that I managed to get outside after I'd taken all of my clothes off. My pants were still clinging around my ankles, so they came with me when I made my escape. Somehow, I made it all the way to the stream on our land before my parents were able to catch up to me. They've told me this story so many times that it's almost like I can remember it myself. Apparently, when they finally did catch up with me, I was holding my pants in one hand. And when my mother scooped me up, I dropped them right into the stream, where they were washed away by the current before my parents could do anything. And that, my little ones, is how I lost my pants!"
