Hey! So....This is a little songfic I came up with, and it's based on the song Slow Down by Nichole Nordeman. And I hope this makes up for everything I've not been able to do, Ambidextrous-Drummer. ;)

Here's to you, you were pink or blue
And everything I wanted
Here's to you, never sleeping through
From midnight til the morning

Sierra sighed, hearing her daughter, Nadia, start crying again. She and Peter hadn't been expecting Nadia to come, but it had been the most amazing thing ever. But the one thing that was difficult for that Nadia wasn't able to sleep through the night yet. Peter gently pushed her back down.

"I'll get her." He said softly, rolling out of bed. She smiled slightly, laying back down. Fifteen minutes later, Nadia was asleep again, and Peter was back in bed. He kissed her cheek before they drifted off to sleep, and Sierra smiled. Life couldn't be better at the moment.

Had to crawl before you walked
Before you ran
Before I knew it you were trying
To free your fingers from my hand
Cause you could do it on your own now
But somehow

Cahira smiled, helping her one-and-a-half year old, Caden, stand. He clutched her fingers in his little hands as he did. She looked up at Edmund, who smiled as Caden pulled his hands away. He took a couple shaky steps, and then took a couple more, landing in Edmund's arms.

"Dada!!" He crowed, almost laughing. Edmund scooped him up, and Cahira went over to him, smiling. Caden grinned, reaching for her.

"Mummy!!" He squealed. She took him, smiling, and Edmund hugged the two of them.

"My little boy is growing up." Cahira murmured, smiling slightly. She loved it so much, but she wanted him to be able to stay a baby forever.

Slow down
Won't you stay here a minute more
I know you wanna walk through the door
But it's all too fast, let's make it last a little while
I pointed to the sky, and now you wanna fly
I am your biggest fan, I hope you know I am
But do you think you can somehow
Slow down

Sierra stood with Peter, smiling as she watched their middle daughter, Lena, dueling with Caden, her cousin, who was thirteen. His siblings, Mariah and Ivy were nine and five. Lena wasn't quite twelve, but she was feisty, and she happily learned swordplay with anyone willing to teach her. Their oldest son, Luca, sat with them, listening to the metal clanging. Despite now being blind, he absolutely loved to be out near where a duel was happening. Luca was almost ten now, and he had mostly recovered from the kidnapping incident two years ago. Their oldest, Nadia, was fifteen, almost sixteen, and she'd already had young men try and court her, but she had turned them down. They had two other children, Tristan, who was seven, and Selene, who was three, and they were happier than ever.

"Is it bad that I feel old now?" She asked Peter softly, smiling slightly. He chuckled, kissing her cheek.
"No. We have a sixteen-year-old, and somehow, still have a three-year-old. I think we're allowed to feel a little bit old." She smiled, watching Nadia chase after Mariah, who was trying to catch a butterfly.

"Who do they have to grow up so fast?" He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her.
"It would be nice if they could slow down. But I would not want to trade this for the world." He said quietly, smiling. She smiled, watching them.
"Me either." She whispered.

Here's to you, every missing tooth
Every bedtime story
Here's to Barbie cars, lightsaber wars
And sleeping in on Sunday

"Mummy!!!" Cahira heard a shriek from the bedroom next to her, and rushed in, finding Nia curled up in her bad, crying.

"Nia? What's wrong, baby?" She asked, sitting beside the six-year-old. She looked up, holding up something small and white.

"Mummy, my tooths are falling out!! I'm going to lose all of them, and I'm not going to be able to eat ever again!!" Cahira had to hold back a small chuckle as she stroked Nia's hair.
"It's okay. They're supposed to come out. Soon, you'll get big teeth, and they won't come out." The little girl looked up, sniffling.
"Really?" She nodded.
"Really. Should we go find your dad and uncle Peter and tell them?" Nia hopped up, nodding vigorously.
"Yes!! Come on, mummy!!" Cahira laughed, letting her daughter pull her down the hall to the courtyard, where Sierra, Edmund, and Peter were dueling. Nia was thrilled by their reactions......And almost tried to force the next two teeth out.

Had to crawl
Before you walked
Before you ran
Before I knew it
You were teaching me
The only thing love can
Hold hands through it
When it's scary, you've got me

Peter helped Luca climb up on the horse, and then swung up behind him, helping him gently take the reins, and then placed his hands over his son's.

"Dad? You'll stay on with me, right?" Peter smiled slightly.
"Yes. I'm not going anywhere." He gently nudged the horse, and they started out at a slow trot.
"How high are we?" Luca's soft voice broke the almost-silence. Peter smiled, gently ruffling his hair.
"We're not that high up. You won't fall. I promise." His son nodded.
"I know. You're with me. I'll be okay." Peter smiled, almost sadly, as he heard that. It broke his heart to see his oldest son blind, but he was amazed by the faith he had in so many people. They started going faster, and he felt one of Luca's hands slip into his.

"It's so fast. It almost feels like we're flying." He murmured, but there was a touch of fear in his voice.
"It's okay. We're safe, I promise. Nothing's going to happen." Luca nodded, finally relaxing, and he thoroughly enjoyed the rest of the ride.

Slow down
Won't you stay here a minute more
I know you want to walk through the door
But it's all too fast
Let's make it last a little while
I pointed to the sky and now you wanna fly
I am your biggest fan
I hope you know I am
But do you think you can somehow
Slow down

Edmund nearly grinned, watching as his son, Caden, dueled with his cousin, Lena. The two went at it so much, it was almost a normal occurrence to see them fighting. Caden tried to disarm Lena, but let his guard down, and he was flat on his back in less than a second. Cahira chuckled, coming up behind him.

"Again?" Edmund smiled, giving his wife a quick kiss before answering.
"This is the second round. They're going for two out of three. Caden won the first one." She rolled her eyes slightly as the two came over.
"Hey, mum. Hi, dad." Caden said, breathing heavily. Lena chuckled, waving. Then, her mouth dropped open, and she laughed.

"Uncle Ed? Did you realize Caden's taller than you now?" Edmund rolled his eyes slightly, smiling at his niece.
"Yes, I had. Thank you for reiterating what had already been stated by my wife and daughters." She chuckled, giving her aunt and uncle a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Delighted to oblige. And no, my dad did not put me up to this." Caden laughed, watching her run off. Edmund sighed, shaking his head and chuckling. Then, he looked over at his son.

"Would you mind being done growing now?"

Please don't roll your eyes at me
I know I'm embarrassing
But someday you'll understand
You'll hold a little hand
Ask them if they can

Nadia groaned as she watched her father talking with Rilian again. Rilian was the young man she had been courting for nearly a year, and things had been going well. Well enough for her father to start insisting he talk with Rilian. Her mother, Sierra, came up behind her, sliding one hand into her daughter's.

"It'll be alright. Strangely enough, I never actually had my father threaten your father. Of course, it wasn't really necessary, and my father wouldn't have really done anything." Nadia chuckled.
"Yeah. And you told me about the first day you and dad were together. You wanted to strangle him." Sierra laughed.
"And that wasn't the last time. It has happened many times since I married him. And there will probably be many more." She sighed quietly, smiling at Peter and Rilian as they came over towards them.

"I never expected to fall in love with him, especially after so long with having my heart broken. But I'm glad I did. It'll be alright. Your dad just wants to protect you." Rilian smiled at Nadia, and Peter stepped away, going to stand beside his wife.

"You two behave, got it? No fooling around....No shenanigans.....got it?" Nadia rolled her eyes as Rilian gently took her hand.
"Dad, we know." Sierra laughed, and Peter gave his daughter a teasing look.
"Come back when you have a daughter this age. Then tell us what you think about this!" He called as they left. He sighed, and Sierra leaned against him.
"He's going to ask her to marry him. He was asking my permission tonight." He said softly, and she smiled.
"They grow up too fast."

Oh oh ho oooh
'Cause it's all too fast
Oh oh ho oooh
I am your biggest fan
I hope you know I am
But do you think you can
Somehow
Slow down

Edmund and Cahira stood off to the side, watching as Nia and Ilia tried to waltz with each other. Edmund and Cahira had planned a ball as a celebration for Peter and Sierra's 20th wedding anniversary, and their own 18th anniversary was coming up soon. Caden came in, smiling, and he went over, taking Ilia's hand. He led her through the waltz, and then led Nia through the dance. Their parents watched, smiling as they danced together. Caden was 17 now, Nia was 14, and Ilia had just turned 9. Edmund turned to Cahira, smiling.

"Should we join them?" He asked, holding one hand out. She smiled, taking his hand, and they joined their children in the waltz. The three watched, smiling, as their parents danced. They finished, and Cahira smiled at their children, who tried to copy their exact movements.

"They grew up too fast." Edmund smiled, placing his hands on her shoulders.
"And I'm getting a little bit of grey hair." He mumbled, complaining. She laughed, kissing his cheek, but then turned back to the kids.

"They just had to go and grow up quickly. I wish they could've slowed down."

Slow down