While the Dawsons were searching for desperate means to escape a life without the luxury they once knew, life on the mountainside was progressing rapidly. As soon as winter passed, Rohan had brought in men to begin working on their new house. Belle had described everything she wanted in it, down to how she wanted the bedrooms and drawing room arranged, and Rohan had sketched the entire house and submitted the parchment to the workers. Only what his wife had pictured was made into something even more elaborate than she had imagined once he put it down in his drawing.
Once the building started, it continued to progress steadily, and each day it grew more into a large mansion rather than a small cottage. Rohan had turned everything Belle requested into something even bigger and better for her, insisting that a larger house was better for their future family. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦
Since the house was still in progress, they continued living in the cottage, and in those months that had passed, Belle couldn’t have asked for anything more. Their children were growing, and Roseline had begun to take her first steps just as Evenly’s babies had also started to crawl, or more precisely, Aryen had begun to crawl, while Arielle, or more like Elle as they all called her, was growing slowly and was often sick and weak despite everything.
Though Evenly tried to act as if she had moved on, Belle could tell she hadn’t. She always caught her staring at Rav’s portrait, the one Rohan had made and gifted her, which Evenly was so grateful for. She had framed it and placed it on her nightstand.
To keep Evenly from always sinking into sadness, and also to clear her own mind from dwelling on the memories she longed to remember, Belle made sure they went out more often to enjoy the spring air or sit under the birch tree next to the flowing creek behind their house. The water there was so clear one could see the stones beneath, and its sound flowing over the rocks was soothing, with their children sitting on the mat, playing... well, not exactly playing, not when Rosey was concerned.
Roseline and Aryen liked to fight over a toy even though Rohan made certain he made each child its own toy; the two would fight over one particular one until one finally ended up in tears, and it was always Aryen, as Roseline was a headstrong little demon who used her strength on the boy, who was just a vampire.
So to avoid their fight, and to keep Roseline from hurting the boy the way she always did, they kept the children apart. Sometimes Angel, who was almost always buried in a book now, would sit with them and take charge. He’d tie a rope around his sister’s ankle and loop the other end around his own wrist to keep her from charging across the mat toward the other toddler, who played on the opposite side in peace.
Arielle was always with her mother or secured gently against Angel’s chest because of her condition. The little toddler always looked interested in playing, but God forbid she was kept with Roseline, who played way too aggressively for her age and liked to go rough. That was why she got along more with Rohan, who entertained her rough play, flinging her around like a doll and catching her.
Sometimes Belle would get so scared with the way he played with the girl, but Roseline seemed to like it, being carried by the back of her dress or being carried on his neck. There were days he treated her like a princess, which he always called her, but their daughter didn’t like the princess treatment like the rough play.
"Was Angel this way when he was a toddler?" Belle had asked one day, watching how Rosey was laughing to the high heavens as her father raised her up above his head with one hand.
"No, Angel was not half as rough as this little princess. I can’t help but wonder who she took after," Rohan had replied with a laugh.

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