The Park on Sunday morning - picnic.

[hernando_fuentes]

The puddle of children had woken in the morning and asked to go to the park. After feeding them - and shooing the teenager out of his kitchen so he could have the privilege of making breakfast - Hernando walked them all to the park.

The children knew the way and it wasn't that Hernando was any sort of helicopter parent except yes, perhaps today a little bit, he was. Sparkle was making a quick dash into town to put a 'closed today on account of children' sign on the door of his store but planned to join them later.

Hernando had packed an entire antique picnic basket full of food and snacks and put Quinn to work hauling a rolling cooler behind them. The children had acted as if this were a usual thing and that made Hernando smile a bit. Abney was wearing the folded picnic blanket as a superhero cape and was running ahead with her arms out, making zooming plane noises.

There was way more food than the children would need, even if one was a growing teenager. To his rueful chagrin, Hernando found that the store had decided to help when he spread the blanket out and began to unpack. The basket never seemed to empty. He set out only enough plates of sandwiches and baskets of fruit for the moment and let the children go run. There were thermoses of tea and sodas and waters in the cooler as well.

Once free of her superhero cape, Abney lead the way to the playground and commenced burning off the energy. Quinn was more interested in reading a book but he, too, occasionally joined his sister in playing.

[Open park with picnic food! Come let the kids play together!]

Comments

[unusual_sith]

Lana paused what she was doing when the text came in and read it.

Then read it again before texting back.

I don't have any candy or a starship. Do you?

What other kind of help did he want?

[uncertain_dume]

Kanan sighed. Lana. Lana, why was he watching your child. He could barely watch his own.

... Where had Jacen gotten off to, anyhow?

I probably have both.

[unusual_sith]

Jacen was off stealing your ship. At least Lana's child was asking for a ride.

Even if only because she couldn't reach most of the controls.

Can you keep her occupied until I get there? Lana asked. I don't suppose they'll mind if I close the library a little early.

[uncertain_dume]

Yeah, I figure I can do that.

"Hey, kid? You ever meet an Earth dog before?"

When in doubt, unleash Stance.

[usual_suspects]

"I've met Stance!" Marshan declared, looking around and finding him. "Stance!"

Congratulations, Kanan; you had actually managed to get the animal-crazy little's attention before your dog.

[uncertain_dume]

Kanan was actually kind of flattered. He grinned a little as Stance finished a circuit around the park, and then came for a beeline toward the little girl who had called his name.

Meanwhile, Kanan was considering the kid, and considering Lana, and considering Stance and wondering just how long Earth dogs lived.

Kanan, buddy, this puppy was going to outlive you, probably.

[usual_suspects]

Fandom pets were immortal; science fact!

Marshan shrieked in joy as Stance nearly bowled her over, then clung to his neck as he licked her face all over.

[uncertain_dume]

And Kanan just smirked a little and let the dog do the babysitting, there.

And paused, and looked around, frowning a little. Where the hell had Jacen gone, anyway?

[unusual_sith]

Lana showed up a few minutes later, sighing.

"Sorry about that," she told Kanan. "She wanted to explore, and it's not like I could say it wasn't safe. She found me all on her own Saturday, after all."

She did the bemused shrug of someone who had been surprised with a child.

[uncertain_dume]

"Yeah, mine both found me just fine," Kanan replied, doing the bemused shrug of someone who had started the day with two kids, and who now had non and a bad feeling about where the eldest might have gotten off to. "The island is always a little more safe than usual on weekends like this. Still."

He gave Lana a wry smile, "Can't hurt to be aware of what they're getting into, right?"

Take, for example, your daughter, who was being viciously devoured by an alternate-dimension apex carnivore.

[unusual_sith]

So vicious!

"Oh, she's strong enough in the Force to have traced me down, and that's probably how she found you, too," Lana said. "I have no doubt she could make herself heard if she were in trouble."

She shook her head, utterly bewildered. "How in the galaxy can I have a daughter, and with a Jedi?"

[uncertain_dume]

Kanan gave his shoulders a shrug.

"My guess is you went about it the usual way," he offered, because he was helpful like that. "At least you only have the one."

His were both confusing in their own special ways.

[unusual_sith]

"Thank you for that." Honestly, Kanan. "I didn't even know there were any Chiss Jedi!"

Because that was the takeaway here.

"I have no idea how she came about for any number of reasons, but she's...a bright spark, isn't she?"

Still bewildered, here.

[uncertain_dume]

"She's definitely got it," Kanan agreed with a nod. "She seems like a good kid."

A brief smirk.

"And a bit of a handful. If I'm pulling even half the babysitting duty she insists I do, I really have to wonder about what I'm doing with the rest of my time."

[unusual_sith]

"And I have to wonder what's so dangerous if the Sith and Jedi are getting along enough for two of us to marry," Lana said.

At which point Marshan noticed her.

"Mommy, help!" she said, still giggling, "I'm being eaten alive!"

[uncertain_dume]

Kanan was thankful for that distraction, yes. It saved him from having to actually answer that question.

"Stance is a vicious, vicious beast," he said instead, grinning. "Careful, he might lick your whole face clean off, and then what?"

[unusual_sith]

Lana shook her head and went over to lift the little girl up and fend off the vicious beast with a ruffle of his ears.

"We can't have you without a face, can we?" She swung Marshan up into her arms and carried her back to Kanan.

[uncertain_dume]

Stance all too happily trotted alongside them, too. All the better for keeping an eye on his prey, probably.

"I have it on good authority that faces are pretty important," Kanan added, still grinning a little.

[usual_suspects]

"Most people need faces," Marshan agreed, grinning up at them both. "Except Miralukas have no eyes, so they maybe only have half a face?"

[uncertain_dume]

YOU MONSTER

Kanan gave a soft laugh at that.

"Pretty sure they have a full face," he replied. "That's the face they were born with, they'd probably take exception to having someone suggest otherwise."

[usual_suspects]

Marshan thought about that solemnly, then nodded. "They have different faces, but they're still whole faces. Like how Ithorians don't have extra faces just because they have two mouths. Are there people with more than one face?"

[uncertain_dume]

"The Troig, Danzikan, Yuvernians, and Dyclops all have two heads," Kanan offered. "Paaerduags are two beings in a symbiotic relationship. So, two faces, all of them."

He was probably missing a few. It was a vast and varied galaxy, after all.

[unusual_sith]

"I've only heard of half of those," Lana said curiously. "I'll have to do a bit of research, I think."

"Take me with you!" Marshan piped up, swinging her body upside down in Lana's arms.

Lana laughed. "You'll have to ask the older version of me about that, little devil. I'll be researching from the library."

[uncertain_dume]

"Hey, maybe she can help here," Kanan joked. "How's your High Galactic, huh?"

He grinned a little, settling back.

And then blinked up toward the MCA and squinted.

...

"Hey."

[unusual_sith]

"She was reading the books in the library just fine until she got bored," Lana said. She followed Kanan's gaze. "Hey what?"