KOTLC Sokeefe One-Shots, Alternate Endings, etc

Mallowmelt

A/N: I wasn't planning on posting this until tomorrow, but decided to bump it up a day to make up for accidentally publishing (and then having to unpublish) a draft last night.

This bonus chapter from my main story is for all the #MallowKeefe shippers out there!

"Daddy?" Emma asked in her sweetest voice, looking up at Keefe through her long eyelashes as they ate breakfast one morning.

Sophie grinned. Emma was only three, but already knew exactly what tone of voice to use to get Keefe to do whatever she wanted.

It reminded Sophie a little bit of how her human dad used to joke about how she and Amy each had him 'wrapped around her little finger'.

"What do you need, baby girl?" Keefe asked her.

"Can you stay home and play with us today?"

Keefe set his fork down. "I'm sorry, Emma, but it's a school day, I'll be leaping to Foxfire in a few minutes."

Emma pouted. "But Amy and I want to play outside by the pond with you! And we want you to draw silly pictures of us!"

Amy, who had just clambered out of Sophie's lap, toddled over to Keefe. "Stay home, Daddy."

He looked up at Sophie, helpless.

They love you, she told him.

How am I supposed to leave them when they beg me like that?

"Don't worry, girls," Sophie told them. "I don't have an assignment today so I'll be here to play with you."

Keefe raised one eyebrow at her. "If you're going to talk about playing then I'm definitely staying home."

Sophie rolled her eyes at him. The girls, of course, did not understand his innuendo.

"Okay, girls, how about this: I'll hail Grandpa Grady and see if we can go visit them when I get back from school."

The girls were very excited at that prospect.

Keefe hailed Grady, who of course said they were welcome to come to Havenfield and should plan to stay for dinner.

And maybe help a bit in the pastures.

Then Keefe crouched down and pulled both girls into his arms, kissing the tops of their heads. "I love you, girls. Be good for Mama, okay?"

Then he straightened up and wrapped his arms around Sophie, kissing her goodbye. "I'll see you in a bit."

Sophie was thankful that her workload for the Council was smaller while raising young children. This way she was able to spend a lot more time with them. She took the girls outside to play, and even let them splash around in the water at the edge of the pond.

And Keefe surprised them by leaping home to have lunch with them between sessions.

The girls were still napping when Keefe leapt home after his afternoon session.

"Glad I'm not on study hall duty," he told Sophie as he curled up with her on the couch. "It let me get home early enough for some one on one time with my favorite girl." He presses his lips softly to her forehead.

"How was your afternoon session?" she asked him.

"It was good. It's been fun watching her come out of her shell and embrace her ability. She was so timid and unsure when I first started mentoring her. I remember how scary it is to first manifest, and everyone's emotions are super strong--like if everyone was like you are for me--and it's all so confusing. Hard to tell which emotions are yours and which are someone else's. Especially right at first, before reason catches up to you and you understand that you've manifested. She was so new to her ability. Now she's in her final year and about to graduate and plans to enter the nobility. And I got to be there to guide her through all of it."