“Oh, you have been busy!”
Gath peered around baby Retvik’s new bedroom. The last time they had stood in here, the room had been empty, and Gath was due to fly to Thresisa. Relkir had been home more than Gath had, they had left for Thresisa later and come home earlier, as Relkir was still working (not quite full time, but not quite part time either). And in Relkir’s free time, they had secured a spot for baby Retvik in the nursery at the end of the block, but they had also completely decorated baby Retvik’s room. And today was the first day Gath had paid attention and baby Retvik was experiencing their bedroom for the first time.
Relkir had clearly painted other walls around the house, but baby Retvik’s room had been vastly more decorated. The walls were all a soft pink, with clouds dotted across the ceiling and a rainbow painted along one wall. While the ceiling light had a normal white paper shade around it, there was a second lamp next to the table by Retvik’s cot. This lamp had a special lamp shade on it that, when the lamp was turned on, made it so little stars shined across the walls. Relkir had also bought a fancy light box thing that projected the stars of the universe across the walls, but they hadn’t set it up yet, and baby Retvik was too young to appreciate it anyway.
Speaking of baby Retvik, this was baby Retvik’s first proper night in their new bedroom. Since they had arrived back in Phos, baby Retvik had been spending time in the nursery, alongside other baby Rethans.
Because they hatched from eggs, baby Rethans were somewhat well developed, and were able to crawl pretty early on, and baby Retvik was no exception. Baby Rethans were also routinely raised together in groups of similarly aged kids so they could learn and socialise together, they would spend five days a week at the nursery and two days with their parents, but since Gath was retired, they wanted to do half-and-half care, meaning they would spend three and a half days looking after baby Retvik and the other three and a half days would be spent at the nursery.
Baby Retvik had done very well in the nursery though. They had been grouped with three other baby Rethans of the same age, all below three months old. Each one had their own cot, but they were also routinely put into a group pen so they could spend time together and socialise. Baby Retvik may have been the youngest of the three, but they had immediately become best friends. Or at least, as close to best friends as babies could manage. They couldn’t talk but they could wave and gurgle at each other. When Relkir went to visit them at the nursery, they found it odd that, out of baby Retvik’s new friends, one of them was blue-plated, one was light green-plated and one was black with bits of yellow plating, but they didn’t think too hard about it because baby Retvik seemed to be happy.
But since Retvik had been in the nursery for the last few days, that meant this was their first time in solely Gath’s care. Gath was perfectly capable of looking after baby Retvik, but beforehand, they’d had Lesii and Kazim helping, as well as Relkir. Relkir on the other hand was excited to be able to look after baby Retvik more.
“I have been busy, yes!” Relkir beamed. “Everything is all set up! I also got some extra fans and a small fridge, so we can keep some of baby Ret’s food in here, to save us having to clomp downstairs if Retvik gets hungry or upset during the night.”
“I appreciate that…” Gath smiled back. “I do worry though that I am overfeeding Retvik though. Food calms them down.”
“That is only because food is a stimulus that Retvik understands. Once they are out of the “I am literally a tiny baby learning how to be alive” stage, we will find other ways to comfort them. I noticed that Litvir worked out they can calm Retvik down by letting Retvik hold their finger…” Relkir trailed off briefly. “Gath, may I… may I introduce Retvik to their new bedroom, please? I feel I have not been able to spend as much time with my kid as I would like.”
Gath peered into the basket they were holding. Baby Retvik was barely awake but seemed vaguely aware that they were somewhere new.
“Of course. I was also wondering if you wanted to invite Rethais around at some point, so we can appoint them as Retvik’s guardian?”
“We can do that in a few days, once Retvik has settled, and when Litvir is free as well.”
“Alright…” Gath put the basket down on the floor. “They are all yours, dear!”
Relkir smiled, then delicately picked baby Retvik up from the basket and held them in their arms. Retvik was already getting pretty big, but that was normal.
“My little angel, hello!” Relkir whispered. “You remember me, yes? I am your dad.”
Baby Retvik chirped a little.
Relkir started carrying Retvik around the room. As they did so, they turned off the main light and turned on the starry lamp. “You do remember! Well, my darling, I have something to show you! I have made a home for you. Your own space. This is where you will grow up, where you will be safe and happy, where you will sleep soundly. When you are older, you will have lots of toys and books and a desk and a comfy chair and whatever you need. But right now, you have a bed that is perfect for you, and a starry sky to look at. Does that sound alright?”
The baby blinked a little, then giggled and grabbed Relkir’s finger. Relkir hid a tear of joy, then carried Retvik to the cot and laid them in it. Inside the cot was one single stuffed animal, a fuzzy blue fox plushie.
“Good. I am going to put you to bed now. You have had a busy day and need to rest. You sleep well, alright, my love?”
Retvik yawned, then very quickly settled down. Within moments, they had fallen asleep. Relkir watched them briefly, then stepped back and rejoined Gath.
“They are wonderful…” Gath muttered.
“They really are…” Relkir muttered back. “We are the best family.”
“Heh, we definitely are…”