Toddling with sheep

The Gods must have favoured Endymion because the farmer couple had spare children clothing and what's more, they were willing to part with them - for free. The sleeping situation was trickier to resolve. After some thought, the young man decided he would make beddings for the twins himself. He certainly had the skills to do so.

What Endymion lacked were the materials. Fortunately, a wandering merchant was scheduled to come by the area soon and he always had the most wondrous items, from the most basic necessity to the fanciest silks. Since Endymion often traded with the man, the merchant would often lower his prices for him. This was precisely what the young father needed at the moment.

Surprisingly, neither twin behaved as their father had expected. Faced with a new environment and torn away from the only person they had known, their mother Séléné, the twins were holding up very well. Neither of them had started calling Endymion "father" yet, but they didn't treat him as a stranger either. It was like they understood the situation they were in. Maybe, they did. Endymion would not know as he was no expert on child development.

What the young father had noticed, however, was that the twins had contrasting personalities. They were as different as night and day, but not at all because of their colouring. In comparison to his sister, Lucien was much shyer and introverted. The curly-haired toddler would constantly hold onto his twin's clothes, like a baby duckling following his mother. It was utterly adorable, but also - truly ironic.

Endymion had spent less than a day with the twins at this moment in time, but Lycée's personality had already shone through. The little girl had the sunniest disposition he had ever seen, and while it may have been surprising, Endymion had met his fair share of people in his life. Lycée was willful but she had an easy laugh, a wide smile and bright innocent eyes. Watching her observing the world was fascinating. It was as though anything and everything was amazing in her eyes.

This childlike naive innocence paired with Lycée's oddly mature behaviour painted a strange picture. It was difficult to tell whether she was acting her age or not because Lycée's charisma pulled you in like a moth to a flame. Before you knew it, it was already too late and you were already paying her attention. It was like being sucked into her world. She was like the sun, burning bright and puling in the neighbouring planets.

This otherworldly feel to Lycée was something Endymion believed she had inherited from her mother. To some extent, Lucien had it too. It was simply muted in comparison to his twin. Ironically, if Lycée, the daughter of the moon, was like a blazing sun, Lucien was actually the most faithful to Séléné - quiet, cold and detached, just like the moon.

The boy had a different sort of aura. It wasn't instantly eye-catching like Lycée's or heavily shrouded around him like his mother's. Lucien's presence came in waves, it crept on you slowly and swallowed you whole. In a sense, it was more overwhelming. With the sister, her otherworldly aura was evident and you would pick up on it straight away. Since Lucien's was so discreet, you wouldn't notice it was even there - until you did. It had given Endymion quite a scare the first few times it happened.

At first, Endymion was worried about his raising the children while working as a shepherd.

It was not the best upbringing for young children, but it was the best he could currently provide them with. Thankfully, Lycée seemed particularly taken with the lifestyle and in particular, the animals. As the younger twin would always follow his sister's lead, Lucien would be seen toddling after Lycée, who in turn was toddling after the sheep.

The young father had worked as a shepherd for years now, and having only sheep for company was definitely lonely. It was the reason why he had gotten Eureka in the first place - that, and to have some help with herding the sheep. Now, with two toddlers running around the pasture clumsily, chasing each other and laughing like madmen, Endymion's everyday life brightened up considerably.

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Life with the twins reminded him of his relationship with the twins' mother. Before meeting Séléné, Endymion had been content. Life was far from easy but, the shepherd was happy. However, falling in love with the moon maiden utterly ruined the balance he'd found for himself. When Séléné left, Endymion carried on with his life just fine but there now was a void in his heart. And no matter what he did, he could not fill it up again.

To compensate for his longing and unrelenting sense of loneliness, the young man decided to thoroughly embrace it. As he was lonely, he got himself a dog. Every day, he stuck by his routine and kept going. Life was moving on, and so was he.

When Séléné asked him to take care of Lycée and Lucien, Endymion initially had mixed feelings. On one hand, they were his responsibility and a favour Séléné asked of him. On the other hand, the twins stood for everything he had spent over two years getting over. They were literally the product of his and Séléné's love. Having the constant reminder of what he longed for but could never have, was torture.

However, after a few days with the twins, Endymion started seeing it in a different light. Lycée and Lucien were the embodiment of his love for the moon goddess. They were living proof that his love was real. There was nothing Endymion cherished more than his romance with Séléné. Then, wouldn't it be absurd if he didn't treasure the only things he had left from it? Endymion knew it might take him some time but he too would come to love them for the twins were born out of love, for love and with love. Now, the young father could not fathom living without the twins in his life.

Every morning, Endymion would gently nudge them awake. Lycée would wake up quickly and head straight to the water basin to wash up her face and hands - one of the first things the young father had taught them.

Meanwhile, her twin would need more insistent prodding to get up. Lucien was surprisingly grumpy in the morning and would make the meanest pout he could. On him though, it looked utterly adorable.

His sister would probably have more success expressing her discontent as she had less gentle features and was overall a lot more expressive.

After having breakfast, the family of three and a dozen - counting both Eureka and the sheep, would be out in the pasture all day. Endymion did his best teaching the twins to talk but it was fairly difficult.

While talkative, Lycée would not and could not stay still. She would listen, get distracted by a butterfly and ultimately end up chasing a sheep.

Lucien was much calmer and one would think out of the twins, Endymion would have an easier time with him. Unfortunately, it was not true. The little boy barely spoke and was too shy to interact with his father by himself. Trying to get him to speak was like pulling teeth.

The toddler's shyness had improved after a few days but with his temperament, it was rather clear he would not be talking much even after a few months. Endymion held hope but it was unlikely. Luckily for Lucien, his twin sister was a charismatic chatterbox and despite her saying mostly nonsense, like any 20 month old would, she was still able to carry an entire conversation, albeit a nonsensical one.

The young father's favourite time was when night fell. After toddling around the pasture for the entire day, the twins were far less energetic and Endymion would be able to interact with them more. The young man loved telling them stories and writing down some words in the dirt with a stick. The twins would wear the most heart-warming amazed expression whenever he did so.

Good times, however, must come to an end and when both twins were asleep, Endymion would kiss their foreheads lovingly before lying on his back and stare at the ceiling. He unknowingly fell asleep, smiling.