Wish I May

Isobel couldn't sleep.

Rolling over didn't help. Laying on her side didn't work. If she lay on her back, she just stared up at the ceiling. Blue eyes drifted to her brother who had managed to find slumber so easily. Thinking that if Christian could do it, then so could she, the four year old attempted again to drift off. But she was unsuccessful. Jutting out her lower lip in a pout, the little girl sat up in bed, tossed the blankets away, and considered what to do next. Eyes fell on the doorway, the light from the other room seeping in. There were sounds too, so there were other people awake.

Hopping down from the bed, pausing to turn back to her bed, little hands grabbing the by now very old stuffed koala bear, Isobel held it close to her chest and made her way from the bedroom with little, almost hesitant steps.

Meanwhile, in the lounge, Jon pulled the blanket up over Madeline's shoulder. The woman had fallen asleep on the couch not long after putting her children to bed, and he just didn't have the heart to wake her and suggest she too go to bed. Tenderly brushing away strands strands of brown from her face, a small smile crept over his lips, watching her sleeping so peacefully. A soft kiss was placed to her temple before he moved away, settling down in the armchair to watch some television.

With his attention fixed on the television screen, his peripheral vision picked up movement near the door that lead to the twin's bedroom. Pulling brown eyes away from the show to focus more on the doorway, he shifted in his seat, then patted his lap. "Come on then," he said quietly, motioning with his head that it was alright for Isobel to come over.

With Beren clutched tightly to her chest, the four year old carefully made her way over to Jon, big blue eyes looking up at him. With a soft chuckle, the mean leaned down and picked her up, allowing the little girl to settle on his lap, snuggling up against his chest. "Is everything alright?" he asked, looking down at the little girl who still wore an expression that seemed like she was feeling unsure if she was allowed to be up or not.

"Can't sleep," she admitted honestly.

Hand smoothed over her hair before he planted a kiss to the top of her head. "Do you want to curl up with Mommy?"

Isobel shook her head.

Jon scratched his chin in thought, the stubble tickling against his fingers. "Well, do you want to watch some television with me?"

Isobel nodded.

It was rare that the little girl was so quiet, and the Scot couldn't help but chuckle at the drastic change. Wrapping his arms around her tightly, he settled down to continue watching his show, occasionally glancing down at the little girl who sat on his lap, her blue eyes fixed on the screen, expression of one of pure curiosity.

And then she spoke up after a few minutes of silence.

"What's wrong with that man's ears?" she asked, looking up at her step-father's face for answers. "They're all pointy."

"Well, his ears are like that because he's an alien."

At this, Isobel frowned. "He doesn't look much like an alien."

"Well, that's because he's a Vulcan," Jon replied with a chuckle. "He can read minds, and even share his with another person's. But he can't show his emotions. He doesn't laugh when he's happy, or cry when he's sad."

"That can't be fun, not laughing," commented the little girl.

"Well, he doesn't even have fun, because that's an emotion to - finding things fun."

"He must be really boring."

Jon laughed, ruffling Izzy's brown hair affectionately. Trust her to find flaws in something like Star Trek. "But he's really clever, and can do this special move where he holds your neck, and makes you faint. Like this," and Jon curled his fingers at Isobel's neck, but instead of hurting her, his other hand crept up and tickled her side, making the little girl squirm and giggle on his lap.

Somewhere in all her laughter, Isobel exclaimed "Tha's cheating!" and nearly dropped Beren on the floor.

Ending his tickle attack on the little girl, he caught the falling stuffed animal, and handed it back to her. "They also have this saying," He held his hand up, his index and middle finger pressed together, and his ring and little finger pressed together. "Live long and prosper"

Blue eyes watched her step-father's hand, attempting to mimic it with her own little stubby fingers. "What it mean?"

"It's like a goodbye, I suppose," he replied, curling his arm around her again. "So do we have anymore questions, or can I go back to watching Voyager?"

With a bright grin and a quick nod of her head, Isobel looked back at the television. She lasted another few more minutes, until another question bubbled up inside of her, poking Jonathan in the chest to get his attention. "What's wrong with that lady's head?"

"Well, that lady is named Belanna, and she's a half Klingon. Klingons are aliens too."

"There's lots of aliens in this."

"That's because it's Star Trek. It's set millions of years into our future, when the human race travels through space to explore whole new worlds."

"So are Klingons like the man with pointy ears?"

At this, Jon laughed again. "Oh no, not at all. Imagine Daddy in a very, very bad mood. Like that time when Uncle Jojo managed to loose his rat in Daddy's piano"

"Daddy was very angry when that happened, but it was funny. Jojo was all 'Oopsies!' and Uncle Tetsu couldn't stop laughing."

"Well, that's kind of like what Klingons are like, only if Daddy had been a Klingon, he would have pulled Jojo's head off," he explained, glad that Morgan was actually a very easy going man. When the rat had been rescued, the punishment for letting it loose was for Jojo to replace and repair all the broken parts.

With her questions answered, Isobel was content to go back to watching the people on the television. Some time passed before she felt the need to ask another question, and by that time, there was the sound of movement on the couch. Jon was the first to notice, looking over at the woman who was sitting up, rubbing at her tired and sleepy eyes.

"Mommy!" Isobel chirped happily.

Her mother smiled, swinging her legs over the side of the couch. "What are you doing up, hm?" she asked.

"We're watching aliens!" the little girl announced proudly. "Papa Jon is telling me all about it!"

"No Doctor Who?" Madeline asked, standing up and moving to the chair the two occupied.

Jon smiled up at her, tilting his head back to accept the kiss she gave to him as Madeline leaned down, lips pressing together. On his lap, Isobel let out a "Ewww, Mommy!", causing both adults to laugh.

"I didn't want to go answering questions as to why the man on the TV looks a lot like me," he replied to Madeline, sliding his fingers into her long brown hair. "Are you going to bed now?"

Madeline nodded. "Don't stay up too late," She waggled a finger at both of them. "Either of you," and with that she moved off to her own bedroom, pausing at the door when her daughter called out to her. Turning around to look at Isobel, lips broke out into a smile.

Isobel was leaning over the arm of the chair, her hand held up, her fingers set into the way Jon had showed her earlier. "Live long and prosper, Mommy!"