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Crack-BOOM!
Sarah jumped, having been tip-toeing down the hall when a particularly loud bark of thunder sent goosebumps skimming over her arms and legs. A chill had seized her right after she stepped foot outside the bedroom. The cold wood floor penetrated her thin slippers and the darkness seeped thick as soot around her. On a night like this, staying in bed and snuggling up to her snoring husband would have been ideal. However, those plans had been put on pause since she'd regrettably forgotten to lock the inn. What was scarier than a big bad storm coming to huff and puff and blow the place down was a stranger with unknown intent at this hour.
Once the entry door was bolted and the service light shut off, the tired innkeeper shuffled back upstairs. She crept along as to not wake the occupants, lamp in hand to guide her back up to the top floor. Sarah was not fooled by the momentary breaks where rain pattered the roof. It would have been somnolent if the eerie wind and startling flashes didn't haunt the halls.
Drawn to a distinct sound amidst the raucous, Sarah knit her brows. Her baby was crying.
She hurried to the nursery, fumbling to unlock the door and disliking the fact she had to do so. Jim's wails were as loud as the growls of thunder, and he was probably having the worst time falling asleep.
"Shh, it's okay, sweetie." Reaching into the crib, Sarah pressed the squirming child to her chest, hoping her presence made him feel less afraid. Jim was having trouble overcoming his little scare and every flash of lightning revealed his flushed face, scrunched up and unhappy.
Oh, how that rubbed like sandpaper at Sarah's heart. He shouldn't have had to sleep in a separate room. Yes, she and Johnny needed those precious hours to themselves... though the more she thought about it, that was a silly reason for keeping her baby confined to a nursery, hoping guests could sleep peacefully or none of them got nosy. Caring for a baby had to be done 24/7, and while Sarah was new to the job, she knew the best way to do that was by having her child close and safe. It looked like Jim wasn't going back in the crib tonight.
All the way back to the bedroom, Jim wailed. Sarah rocked him, already worn and not sure of how to let him know the monster outside was just terrible weather. Frankly, she was still convincing herself that the shadows slinking in the corners were only shadows and not angry residents coming after her. Making it inside, she slinked past her slumbering husband (as sneaky as she could be with a crying baby in her arms) and sat on the edge of the mattress. Sarah tried rocking Jim again, feeling like the number one most useless mother in the world.
"Shhh, Jim, come on, honey, it's okay," she whispered, kissing his balmy forehead. "You're okay, you're okay."
The bed gave a slight lurch, and the nightstand lamp flicked on, chasing the consuming darkness away. Grunting, Johnny sat up with the help of his available arm. He squinted at his wife and the crying bundle she cradled. Adjusting his vision, he murmured huskily, "Everythin' alright, love? Wha's a' ma'er wit' the pup?"
Sarah sighed, adjusting her son in the crook of her elbow. "Just missed Momma and Poppa, I guess."
Jim whimpered, but the light and attention provided a slim sense of ease. His tiny fists clenched the lavender cloth of his mother's dress tightly.
"Squall's got a temper t'night." Johnny looked toward the windows with grave observance. He then scooted beside his wife, rubbing the sleep out his good eye, though his voice wouldn't be rid of it so easily. "'S Jimbo gonna sleep 'ere?"
"Looks like it." Sarah grimaced, taking in his tired appearance. "Is that alright?"
"Ain't ever a bother ta me so long as he keeps that marriage music to a minimum." Johnny gave a goofy, good-natured grin and held out a hand. "Give 'im here and get comfortable."
Wearing a rosy smile, Sarah handed Jim over to rest back against the pillows. It may have been a mere four months since meeting Jim for the first time, but she could have been convinced that Johnny had been waiting his whole life to meet him. He could read her son like a book, hold him without needing those frantic "Watch-his-head!' reminders, and in turn, the baby had a bond with him Sarah wasn't jealous of at all. She was happy as could be that her dear Jim had someone to watch out for him and potentially look up to. She had an unfathomable amount of love for the cyborg man as well as her son.
One-armed but taking great care, Johnny handed the baby back to his wife. After attaching his prosthetic to be able to cuddle his family properly, he slid into the sheets, wrapping his organic arm around his small wife.
Sarah rested against him and then looked surprised at her baby. "Look who's not crying anymore."
Jim had indeed reduced his fit remarkably now that the sight of his parents distracted him from the rain pelting the windows. He gazed up at them with sweet blue eyes.
Sarah stroked his head fondly. She admitted, "I don't think I'll be able to go back to sleep now."
Her husband chuckled softly, offering his robotic fingers for Jim to entertain himself with. "Me neither, dear. What's say we close the Inn for just tomorrow?"
"During traveler's season? Are you sure, John?"
"Well, I ain't exactly wantin' ta slug about like some kinda broken-down robot. And the boy could use a bit o' playtime with his Pap, couldn't ya Jimbo?" The Ursid then proceeded to baby talk unintelligibly at his son, earning a joyful squeal.
Sarah took that as answer enough, smiling from ear to ear. A nice short break wouldn't hurt anyone or the humble business in any way. It was the busiest time of year anyhow, with the celestial changes in the Etherium causing the flow of foreigners and travelers to shift like the tides. There was hardly a minute to rest, and Sarah was pretty sure she wouldn't find one when she was up to her neck in reservations and community dining.
When her family was involved, she would drop what she was doing in the blink of an eye. Johnny would too, and that had to be one of his best qualities. Maybe she wasn't the worst mother in the world when she had such a great partner to help her out. She couldn't have asked for anything more.
Johnny scooped the baby up using one single paw. In his open palm, he cupped his son's head and a good portion of his little torso while the baby's chubby legs splayed onto his forearm. Held so securely, Jim could have fallen asleep rock-a-bye style, looking like he was nestled on the biggest, gentlest branch up in the treetop. The baby gurgled out a high-pitched giggle as his father nudged his nose around the softness of his tummy. Emitting from the Ursid's chest came a rumbly kind of purr, one that Sarah had come to know his species used around loved ones when they were feeling especially happy.
She got to hear that intimate gesture a lot, and it always made her own happiness bloom. Sarah shut her eyes while the two played, resting her head against her lover's shoulder and breathing out a quiet, content sigh. Feeling safe and warm, every noise from the storm was drowned out by her husband's hypnotic purr and her son's cooing. Sleep may not have been too hard to find after all...
"Ack- Sarah, help-!"
She looked up and immediately had to stifle the laugh that threatened to jump out of her throat. Jim had managed to crawl up onto his father's shoulder, lured by the shiny dazzle of his earring. He had a fistful of Johnny's hair to support himself as he batted at his father's pointed ear, probably tempted to bite it in the next second.
Juggling the youngster and wincing at the grubby little fingers tangled in his hair, the cyborg directed another pathetically amusing plea at his wife. "Oh, he's got me where he wants me! Are ye gonna leave yer poor husband ta die like a dog?"
Sarah couldn't hold it. She let out a snort-filled laugh that held no decency in remembering some occupants could and would complain about a terrible night's sleep in the morning.
"I think I'll let you battle this one out," she snickered.
Her husband gave one unhappy pout. "Curse you, ya bloody witch."
"Hey, hey. Language, John Silver."
"Oh, if tha boy picks it up it'd be fair payback."
Crossing her arms, Sarah put on her best reproachful wife stare. She accented it with a raised finger, and it was a known fact that when that finger came out mercy would soon be scarce. "If he picks it up, you're sleeping in the cellar," she warned.
Sarah almost laughed again as her husband's smirk dropped dead off his face. Johhny held up a hand and sensibly surrendered. He pried Jim off of him, a mighty feat that took true bravery and a tear or two as hairs were yanked.
"There ain't no foolin' you, dear," he sighed. A simper danced on his lips. "Are ya aware yer the most beauteous being ta grace this universe?"
Sarah scoffed but didn't exactly turn the shameless flattery down (or the kiss he snuck into her neck).
Jim rubbed a fist against his eye, yawning and signaling he was ready for bed. Sarah found herself yawning too; it was about time they called it a night and it looked like no further interruptions would occur. As the lamp was switched off and the two parents curled up with their little one between them, the storm continued to prowl and rage outside.
But to Sarah and her son, it sounded a lot like Johnny's purring.