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Kevin awoke to the sensation of being smothered. What the...?  Just as he realized that a small body was sitting on his head, there was a sharp whack at his shoulder.  With a shout, he flew up, knocking the small person to the ground.  Small people, he soon saw.  Curly-topped nine-year-old Baylee climbed to his feet.  Next to him, holding a wooden spoon was Benjamin, the younger of Brian's twins.  Next to him was his sister Liberty.  All three stood there with the most innocent smiles on their faces.

"Hi, Uncle Kevin," they greeted.

Kevin blinked. "Hey.  When did you three get here?"

"After breakfast," Baylee replied.

"Na-nell say lunchtime," Libby said. "Get you'n daddy up."

Kevin looked over at Brian's bed.  The man was still asleep; even after all the noise Kevin had made.  Considering how strenuous it had been lately, he was allowed to be exhausted.  Ben dropped the spoon and clambered up onto the bed, crawled to Brian's face, leaned down and kissed his cheek.

"Way-up daddy."

Brian slowly opened his eyes and, seeing the small boy, squinted.  "Benny?"

"Lavi-loli, daddy." Benny reached for his father's hand and tugged. "Gettup!"

"Ravioli?" Brian asked, sitting up.  He blinked and rubbed an eye.  With a gaze that still seemed foggy, he started to look around the room. “What…?”

Kevin smiled and shrugged. "Beats me... literally. Apparently I deserved the 'spoon' treatment and a head smash. How come you get the gentle wake-up?"

He snickered. "The 'spoon' treatment?  They didn't."

"Baylee even sat on my head."

Brian laughed and held his arms out to his children. "Let me have hugs, you guys.  You got so big real quick."

Baylee and Libby ran and jumped on the bed and Brian fell back amid a tangle of arms, legs and tiny kisses.  And yet Kevin had to frown; how long had he been gone that Brian commented on his children’s growth?

"Too long," is all he said when asked.

Kevin shook his head and decided to let the man have his private moment with his kids. "I'm goin’ to get me some of that ravioli and see who else is here."

As he headed down the hall, Kevin noticed bright sunlight shining through the windows.  He paused and looked outside.  With a smile, he opened the nearest window, leaned out and took a deep breath.  It was warm; anything was warm compared to the astral plane, but this was heaven.

Well, almost.

"Daddy!"

Now it was heaven. Kevin turned to see his little girl racing toward him with arms wide open and a smile that filled her entire face.  He bent down as Natalie leaped into his arms, lifted her up and swung her round and round for nearly a full minute; her bubbly laughter made the dizziness worth it.  He slowed down and finally leaned up against the wall, waiting for the room to stop spinning.

“Missed you, daddy.”

Kevin kissed her thick dark waves. “I missed you too, Natalie.”

"Is Uncle Brian awake?”

He nodded; he had been certain that it wouldn’t be long before she’d ask about Brian, yet Kevin had secretly hoped for a little more time with her before her attentions moved on to her favorite uncle. “He’s in the bedroom back there,” Kevin turned and pointed. “Baylee, Libby and Ben are with him.”

“Kay.  Mommy and Aunt Leighanne made ravioli.  We were s’posed to get you and Uncle Brian up.”

Kevin suddenly realized that his stomach was clenching for want of food. Just how long had they been in the astral plane? “Well, Miss Natalie, let’s go get some food before I starve.”

Kevin entered the kitchen and saw his lovely wife and Leighanne standing by the stove laughing quietly.  Nick sat at the table holding little Spencer; Zanell sat beside him trying to get the toddler’s attention.  AJ was talking animatedly while somehow managing to eat his own plate of food.  Howie stood by the window holding an empty plate lightly covered in spaghetti sauce.

He smirked. “So, Howie, what number helping was that?”

All eyes moved to Kevin.  “Good afternoon to you too,” Howie replied with a smile. “It was only helping number two.”

Only two?”

“He’s just started,” Kristin explained as she joined her husband. “Just wait; it’s the homemade kind.”

Kevin’s stomach growled loudly.  Natalie laughed and wiggled out of his arms.  As he grabbed a plate, Kristin whispered, “How’d it go?”

“Pretty rough,” Kevin whispered back. “But we’re all right.”

“And Brian?”

After a moment Kevin replied, “Physically he’ll be fine.  But I think there are a few things he still needs to work out with his family.”

From the slight squint of her eyes, he could tell Kristin was curious; but both of them knew it was none of their business.  They had just sat at the table when the loud laughter of children filled the hallway, mixed with over-exaggerated grunts and groans.  Ten seconds later Brian dragged into view with Baylee and Liberty on the floor gripping his ankles and Benjamin hanging around his neck.

Continuing into the kitchen, he grunted, “No… losing… energy.” Kevin laughed as Brian began to sink to the floor with each step. “Going… down…” As his hands touched the floor, Baylee started to climb to his feet.  Brian turned and leaped at his oldest son with a growl.  The four of them were at once involved in a “big tickle” as their grandmother called it; if they weren’t tickling one, another was soon the victim.  Natalie couldn’t stand it any longer.

“Me too, Uncle Brian!  Me too!”

Brian looked up. “That can’t be my little Nattie, can it?”

Natalie leaped out of her chair and into Brian’s open arms, throwing him backward with a grunt.

“Come on, kids,” Leighanne interrupted. “Now that daddy’s here, let’s eat lunch or we won’t have mint chocolate chip ice cream afterward.”

In less than four seconds they were off the floor and in line for food.  Kevin didn’t think he’d ever seen the kids move that fast.

“So it’s when ice cream’s involved that they move like that?” AJ asked.

“Only if it’s mint chocolate chip,” Brian remarked as he climbed to his feet.  If Kevin hadn’t been watching him, he would have missed the wince.

"Do you need to bribe them when it’s time to clean their rooms?” Nick wondered.

"Only Ben and Baylee,” Leighanne remarked. “Libby likes her portion of playthings just so.”

Brian hadn’t moved, just watched his wife.  When she finally noticed, she smiled.

“Hello beautiful,” he murmured.

“I was beginning to wonder if you’d be back in time for Libby and Benny’s birthday.”

Brian winced. “Sorry I’ve been gone so long.”

Benny broke the brief silence that followed. “Hugs, mommy!”

“Promised!” Libby added.

"Yeah, mom,” Baylee joined in. “You promised you’d give dad a big hug after he came home.”

“A hug and a spanking for leaving us like that,” Leighanne finished as she moved to her husband’s side.

“No spankin’s!” the twins protested.

“I deserve more than a spanking,” Brian softly replied, wrapping an arm around her waist.

“No,” Leighanne corrected, with a kiss. “We’ve already forgiven you, dear.”

“You don’t know what happened – “

“AJ told me some of it.”

Brian jerked around to stare at AJ. He gazed back in confusion. “What?  She deserved to know and you weren’t awake.  I was convinced of the same things you were, so I thought that might help her understand.”

Brian nodded slowly after a moment. “Thanks, AJ.”

In a way, he was right.  Hearing another perspective of belief might let her, and everyone, understand what drove Brian to do what he did.  Brian grabbed a plate and reached for the ravioli.

“Daddy, can we go swimming after lunch?” Natalie asked.  Baylee’s eyes got big, and the twins smiled.

"Swimming!”

“Please, Uncle Kevin?” Baylee begged. “I haven’t been able to swim all week!”

“That’s what you get for forgetting sunblock,” Leighanne replied. “You should have listened with Leigh told you to reapply.”

That’s when Kevin suddenly realized that Howie’s wife was the only one missing. “Where is Leigh?”

“In town,” Kristin replied. “She’ll meet up with us later.  There were some things she needed to get.”

And it couldn’t wait till later?  But Kevin didn’t voice the question when he noticed the look on her face, the “don’t press, you’ll find out later” look that was often combined with a smile as it was now.  He turned his attention back to Baylee and Natalie’s words.  When was the last time they had had a family get-together?  Kevin realized that with the distance between homes, at least a year had gone by since they, as family, had gotten together.  Since the last gathering with the Kevin and the Boys… it had been a lot longer.  Time together was long overdue for all of them.

“Please, daddy?” Natalie asked again.

Brian glanced over with a smirk on his face. “Your place is biggest, if I remember right, Kev.  Might as well use yours if it’s alright with you and Kris.”

“Why doesn’t everybody come?” Kevin finally offered. “We need a little fun together.”

“Perhaps you could all stay through Independence Day,” Kristin suggested. “It’s only a few days away and we could have a great party for the twins.”

Libby and Benny squealed in delight.  Kevin looked over at their parents and found that Brian was already looking at him.  He could see it in the blue eyes; celebrating wouldn’t be the only thing happening do while they were together.  He glanced at Leighanne and smiled.  “It sounds terrific,” he said.

“I think Ben and Libby deserve a great party,” Leighanne added.

A mischievous smile came to Brian’s face. “That way Kevin can dunk the kids for sitting on his head and giving him the spoon treatment to wake him up.”

 "Didn’t do nothing!” Liberty protested and pointed to the boys. “It was dem!”

 “Hey!” her brothers protested.

 “Don’t be arguing, now,” their mom intervened. “You do, and we won’t go swimming.  No ice cream either.”

 They shrieked in protest and promptly set to eating in silence.  AJ shook his head in amazement.

 “I should take notes so I can be ready for when Becky and I have kids.”

 “When is the big day?” Kristin inquired. “Can I do something to help?  Would-“

 Kevin laughed. “Easy, love.  We just found out the other day.  We need to relax a little before getting involved in something big like that.”

 “Oh, we want a small wedding,” AJ said. “A lot of the details are already done.”

 The conversation continued for several more minutes until Nick remarked, “Brian, I just realized something.”

 “What?”

 “Ever since we got back to Earth, you haven’t had any more…” he paused to think of the right word, “outbursts.”

 Brian paused in lifting his glass and set it back down on the table. “You’re right,” he said quietly.

 “Then you must be healed,” Zanell suggested with a smile. “The powers of the amulets are separate again.  How do you feel?”

 He inhaled deeply and leaned back in his chair. Leighanne took his hand in hers.  Finally he looked up and spoke. “Free.”

 The six that had been present smiled in relief.  Leighanne and Kristin looked a little confused, but Kevin was certain that Leighanne would eventually understand.  The children were completely oblivious, intent on eating all their food so they could be rewarded with ice cream and swimming.