Blanc yawned as he opened his eyes that were still adjusting to the darkness around them.
He was in bed, naked, with his still sleeping wives on each side of him.
The fifth day in the taiga, the Moose Path was here, and the search for the path into the next Garden also came with it.
He stood there, listening to their surroundings.
The embers were slowly dying down outside the tent.
Kael and Lune were sleeping peacefully, with Kael snoring lightly, as he sometimes giggled.
A good dream, perhaps.
Outside, a light wind whistled, as more snow was made by the Silver Garden in the Moose Path.
There was no danger nearby, so he exhaled, relaxing his senses back to normal.
For now, he got up into a sitting position between the two and stared at his two wives as he played with their hair.
It was a fun activity he sometimes did for a few minutes on the nights he slept before getting up, since it made for some funny interactions.
"re, Mana," muttered Miyanna in her sleep as she hugged Blanc's leg.
"Oh?" Blanc grinned, looking at her, trying to guess what she was dreaming about from the things Miyanna said in her sleep.
Miyanna sometimes spoke in her sleep, saying the things she was saying in her dreams.
Blanc heard her many times.
Sometimes she was apologizing to those she killed in her past, sometimes she was weeping, otherwise she had conversations with Blanc and Celine, or arguments with Blanc's parents over their marriage.
Some made Blanc chuckle, some made Blanc sad.
"Come here, Leon," Miyanna whispered, "Come to Mama."
"Leon? Mama?" Blanc repeated in a whisper, "Is she sleeping about being a mother?"
He drew his head closer to her face, kissing her on her forehead.
Which weirdly made her giggle, "Hehe, Papa loves Mama, now come, Leon, give Mama a smooch as well."
To which she began pecking at his thigh.
It painted a smile on his face seeing her happy like this, so he kissed her forehead again.
"I do love you, Mama," Blanc whispered in her ear.
"Hehe," Miyanna muttered, but soon her breathing steadied, her talking ceasing.
He then turned towards Celine, who had already taken the lower side of his right thigh as a pillow.
He took a few strands of her wheat blonde hair and twirled them around between his fingertips.
He took the thicker strand and dragged it slowly across her face.
She sniffed, trying to move whatever was on her face away.
When she couldn't, she tried to move the strand with her hand, but only caught Blanc's hand in the process.
A hand that she didn't let go of as she turned to the other side and placed her head straight onto Blanc's hand, using that as her new pillow.
He was trapped, caught between wanting to soon start preparing breakfast and not wanting to move and take away Celine's new headrest.
In an attempt to satisfy both parts of his situation, he decided on porridge as breakfast for today, which allowed him to stay in bed for a little while longer.
As his hand was used as a pillow, he began controlling his breath as he took this time to pray.
He thanked the Vita for all that she provided them and all she will keep providing.
He then prayed for health. His own, his wives, his siblings, present, captured, or married off, his parents, as well as his unborn child.
He prayed for safety next, then for another chance to see his family whole, then for a good life, then, at the end of it all, for a good death.
As he finished his prayer, he went and kissed Celine on her forehead, before gently pulling his hand from below her head, and getting out of bed.
Once dressed, he was out of the tent and ready to start a new day.
As he prepared breakfast and boiled water for the day ahead, he thought on many things, past and future, in order to pass his time.
He planned things, unmade them, and planned again.
He regretted things, wondered what he could have done differently, then regretted them again.
From the time he spent with his family, all the way to the old woman he killed for the vials of Vita's Mercy when the Moroi attacked.
He was haunted by many things, which he commonly spent time overthinking on what he could have done differently.
And he knew that many such things would follow.
Things he would regret, things he would overthink, and regret again.
However, one thought kept comforting him.
A thought that he began telling himself after his last few mental breakdowns.
That, as long as the things he would regret are done to keep those he loves safe and happy, he would do it.
No matter what that thing is, or how much he would regret doing it.
He would do them. Even in silence.
"Vi et Silencio," Blanc muttered to himself.
"Lune, Kael, wake up," he said to the twins.
They were unresponsive, not ready to wake up yet.
"Please don't make me do this," Blanc sighed as he tried again.
Only a frustrated sound left Kael's lips. Nothing more.
Blanc clicked his tongue a few times. "You forced my hand. This is all your fault."
The twins jumped up, their eyes wide, mouths open, as they began uncontrollably laughing from Blanc's tickling.
The weak spot the twins had since birth was also how ticklish they were, a spot that was ticklish beyond all else.
The soles of their feet made them go near berserk as they began flailing and kicking with tears in their eyes from laughter.
But Blanc did not stop.
"Are you two awake?" he yelled.
"We are awake," they yelled back in unison, laughing.
Then all stopped, and all that was audible was the ragged breath of the twins as Blanc got back to his feet.
"Good," he said, his face sarcastically serious, "Breakfast is ready."
And with that, he was out of the tent, ignoring the half-curses the twins were muttering under their breaths to him, and headed towards his still sleeping wives, who barely noticed the yells from earlier.
He only hoped he would not have to tickle them too, as he entered the tent.