INSERT HEADER IMAGE HERE

Susan over at West of Mars was telling me about writing prompts. Now, I usually have enough stuff to write that I don’t get involved in these things. If I did, I’d never get my Bar posts done! However, her suggestion was to look for a prior Bar post that fit the prompt. I kinda blew the whole thing off in my head, but then I went to Mr. Grudge’s blog. His post today talks about writers stretching themselves. I dunno, somewhere between the two writing things and a grilled cheese sandwich (yes Matt, with Velveeta!), I decided to look at Sunday Scribblings. The prompt was Time Machine.

My excuse to Susan for pooh poohing the prompts was that there are so many Bar posts that by the time I found the one that worked, it would be time for another prompt. Okay, I exaggerated. Well, only a little really, because on a bad week, that is probably very true. However, Time Machine did make me think of a particular post.

In the Bar Story, Alaric and Alexandria find themselves in shared dreams even before they meet. They both have the same dream at the same time, hearing, seeing, feeling, and tasting the same things. The dreams are visions of what their future could be, if only they would take control of their destiny. After they meet, the dreams basically start coming true. So to tie in the prompt in a very creative way, the time machine for Alaric and Lex, is their shared dreams of the future.

And now, without further ado… My Time Machine prompt: Our Lives

The stars were incredibly bright in the night sky. Every one of the French doors stood open to the warm summer breeze. I could see the fountain at the front of the house shooting up into the air, the lights and music making the whole picture a beautiful tableau like a mini Bellagio. My heart swelled with love as I sat in the rocker just inside the French doors. Alaric was so over the top sometimes, I thought with an indulgent smile. Creating his own personal version of the Bellagio fountain was his idea of a gift. We danced on the terrace outside our bedroom whenever he cued up the music from our wedding. He was the most romantic man I had ever known…

“Angel, you bring it out in me,” he murmured, coming up behind me and dropping a kiss on the top of my head. “I was just a drunk before I met you.”

I gazed up at him with my heart in my eyes. “And I was just dying,” I smiled. “We were certainly a pretty pair, weren’t we?”

Alaric pulled up a chair and sat down beside me. “We were, and are, a perfect pair,” he maintained. His eyes dropped from mine to the blanket wrapped bundle in my arms. The baby’s fist was nestled up against my breast as he suckled. His head, with its tuft of dark downy hair, rested in the crook of my arm. The blanket, predictably, had giraffes on it.

I looked up at Alaric and saw the tears in his eyes as he watched his son nurse. He reached out with one long finger and stroked the baby’s cheek. The baby opened his eyes sleepily, and then grasped the finger with his hand. “He knows it’s you,” I whispered. “He knows you love him.”

“Angel, there is nothing in the world I love more than the two of you,” Alaric husked, his voice filled with emotion. “You and Aric are everything to me.”

The baby blinked up at us with dark blue eyes as his little rosebud mouth worked my nipple. My heart ached with love for my husband and my son. “This is everything I ever wanted out of life,” I said softly, reaching with my free hand to touch the side of Alaric’s face. He turned his head and kissed my palm, his blue eyes shining with love. “A home, a beloved, children, and a career. I can’t believe I have it all.”

“And a family too,” Alaric added with a smile. “Mom and Dad and Lucius love you too. And don’t forget Carlisle and Stein.”

I sighed with contentment and looked down, as Aric finishing nursing. His head fell back away from my breast, as his eyes closed and sleep overcame him. I lifted him carefully to my shoulder to burp him, but felt Alaric’s hands stop me. He took the blanket off my shoulder and draped it across his own broad shoulder. Then he took Aric from me and nestled him against the folded blanket, rubbing the baby’s back in circles and giving him an occasional soft pat. I wiped my breast and adjusted my shirt, all the while watching my love burp his son. It was such a beautifully emotional thing to see, the way the huge man cared for the tiny baby.

Aric let out a huge burp, and my startled eyes flew to Alaric’s. He laughed softly and got up to put the sleeping baby in the carousel crib that stood near our bed. He came back and took my hand, leading me out onto the terrace where he drew me into his arms and kissed me, first gently with love, and then with fast rising passion.

“This is our life Angel,” he murmured against my mouth. “Believe it…”

My eyes opened slowly. It was morning. I could hear the birds outside the little round window near our bed at Soleil Sombre. It was dark in the bedroom, as all the windows were covered with blinds to keep out the sun. I lay on my back, feeling the pleasant pull of my muscles after the rigorous sex Alaric and I had engaged in earlier. My husband’s arm lay heavily across my abdomen. I could hear his even breathing, and feel his breath on my naked shoulder.

Then his arm moved. I felt his hand gently stroking the slight curve of my belly. “Is he there yet?” Alaric asked softly. “I wonder…”

I stroked my hand over his hard arm. “I wonder too,” I whispered. “Especially after the dream.”

“His eyes are blue, Angel,” Alaric sighed with contentment.

“They could change and get darker,” I told him. “Most babies have blue eyes when they are born, and his were a very dark blue like Carlisle’s.” I turned my head, and my eyes met Alaric’s. “You called him Aric.”

A grin broke out on Alaric’s face. “I’ve been thinking of names,” he admitted. “My name means noble ruler. Aric means eternal ruler.”

“So no Alaric Junior?” I asked with a smile.

“Nah. Maybe my first name as a middle name, but we don’t need two Als running around the house. You’d get confused love,” he chuckled, teasingly.

I turned into his arms and felt him cradling me close to his big body. I nestled my cheek on his chest, my fingers stroking his collarbone. “No, I wouldn’t.” I sighed contentedly. “But feeling him nursing, his little fist kneading my breast…Oh, Alaric, that was amazing.”

“I know how you feel,” he admitted, holding me tightly. “When his hand gripped my finger, my heart turned over.”

“This is what we have to look forward to, my love. All of it.” I pressed a kiss to his skin, loving the taste and scent of him.

“I guess I better find an architect to handle the fountain,” Alaric laughed softly. “I need someone to redesign the bathrooms anyway. I’ll call Lucius when we get up. He’s had several working on blueprints for Stein.”

“Our bed comes today,” I reminded him. “You picked up the stuff on my list, didn’t you?” When he nodded sleepily, I said, “Then we’re going home tonight, Alaric. We’ll sleep in our bed, in our house.”

He let out a long sleepy sigh. “With you in my arms, it’s gonna be heaven,” he murmured as he drifted back to sleep.

I relaxed in his arms, my thoughts on the dream. I closed my eyes and let the sound of my beloved’s heartbeat lull me to sleep…

Ah, they are so cute aren’t they? Okay, enough of the mushy shit. Here is a hardcore wallpaper for my bitch Mary. Hardbodies. Not one, but three of them! WOOT! Click on this carefully, then when it opens, right click, and save it as your wallpaper. Afterward, make sure your paper towels or napkins are nearby so you can quickly clean up the drool.

Those hotties made me hungry. I need another grilled cheese. And maybe some Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream… oh, yeah. I could live on this. Unless I was going meatless like Matt. In which case, I would crave steak and pork chops incessantly. Hope you enjoyed the Tuesday Tune, the Sunday Scribble writing prompt, and the peek into the Dream Time Machine of the Bar. I’m out… the ice cream is calling me!