Torian just stared at his lap. He didn’t move a single muscle.

He stared at the tiny tiger-striped baby shoes like they held the secrets of the universe. He picked one up with his giant, calloused fingers. It was smaller than his thumb. Then he let out a massive, watery sob. The giant White Tiger wrapped his huge arms around Roxy and buried his face in her stomach. He cried happy tears for a solid hour. Zarek tried to make a joke about it, but Torian just threw a couch cushion at his head. He proudly announced he was going to be the absolute best dad in the world.

Fast forward nine months. You wouldn’t believe the noise.

The private hospital room actually shook. Roxy delivered Torian’s son, and the boy didn’t just cry. He roared. He was a tiny tornado of pure human muscle and completely endless energy.

Torian held the boy up like a trophy. He was so proud his chest looked like it was going to burst.

By the time that kid learned to walk, the mansion wasn’t safe anymore.

Smash.

That was the sound of a priceless crystal vase hitting the hardwood floor. Torian’s son loved breaking things. He loved wrestling. He constantly tackled his uncles. He would run at full speed and wrap his tiny arms around Caspian’s leg, trying to pull the giant Sea King down. It never worked, but the kid never stopped trying.

He wrestled Zarek’s son every single day. The two boys rolled around on the expensive rugs, destroying the furniture and laughing their heads off. They broke lamps. They tore curtains.

Torian didn’t discipline him at all. He cheered. He stood on the sidelines and yelled instructions on how to get a better grip. Roxy had to constantly step in and separate them before they broke a window. She grounded Torian more times than she grounded the actual children.

Then it was Kaelen’s turn.

Roxy got pregnant one last time. The Wolf King finally got his baby. Kaelen spent the entire nine months treating Roxy like she was made of spun glass. He wouldn’t let her carry a cup of coffee. He walked right behind her on the stairs, ready to catch her if she slipped. He threatened to fire the private chefs if her food wasn’t perfectly hot.

When the baby finally came, the delivery room felt completely different.

Silence.

Kaelen’s daughter didn’t scream. She didn’t cry. The tiny girl just opened her eyes and stared at the doctor. She had piercing, icy blue eyes, exactly like her father. She was perfectly calm. She just watched everything with a quiet, intense focus that actually spooked the nurses a little bit.

Kaelen held her against his chest. He looked down into those freezing blue eyes and promised to give her the entire world. He didn’t cheer like Torian. He just held her tight and refused to let anyone else touch her for three straight days.

The giant stone mansion was completely overrun.

Seven kids.

Think about that number for a second. Seven completely energetic, totally spoiled children running around a billionaire estate. The security guards gave up trying to look intimidating. Mr. Vance basically became a full-time babysitter. You couldn’t walk down a single hallway without stepping on a toy block or a tiny stuffed animal.

But a very clear divide quickly formed in the house.

Five girls. Two boys.

The math hit the boys incredibly hard. Zarek’s son and Torian’s son realized they were entirely outnumbered. It wasn’t a fair fight. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The five girls ruled the house with an iron fist. They didn’t use pure muscle to get their way. They used their big puppy eyes to get the six mafia bosses to do absolutely whatever they wanted. They stole the boys’ toys without any regret. They demanded the best snacks from the private chefs. They were ruthless.

Let me give you an example.

If Zarek’s son wanted to watch an action movie, the five girls just voted for a princess cartoon. The girls won every single time. If Torian’s son built a nice tower out of blocks, Caspian’s sweet daughter would just sit on it. Then Ren’s clever redhead daughter would blame the boys for making a mess.

The Kings were completely useless. Zarek tried to tell his daughters no one time. They just sniffled, and the terrifying mafia boss instantly bought them a pony. Syris tried to teach them discipline. They braided his hair and painted his fingernails pink. The girls owned the house.

The boys couldn’t win.

They decided they couldn’t take the disrespect anymore. They needed a safe space. They needed a headquarters where they could just be boys.

They plotted a rebellion.

They waited until the girls were busy eating cookies in the massive kitchen. Then the boys went to work in the living room.

They dragged every single heavy cushion off the giant leather couches. They dragged thick winter blankets out of the closet. They pulled heavy wooden dining chairs across the floor to use as support beams. They sweat and grunted, working together like a tiny construction crew.

Zarek’s son commanded the operation. Torian’s son provided the heavy lifting.

They built a massive fort right in the middle of the room. It had a tunnel, a roof, and thick walls. It was a masterpiece of toddler engineering.

Zarek’s son grabbed a piece of cardboard from a shipping box. He grabbed a black marker and scribbled a messy warning right on the front.

No Girls Allowed.

He taped it to the front of the pillow fort. The two boys crawled inside. They brought their favorite toys and foam swords. They sat in the dark, feeling incredibly proud of themselves. They finally had a place where the girls couldn’t boss them around. They high-fived each other.

But they severely underestimated the enemy.

The girls finished their cookies. They marched into the living room and stopped dead in their tracks.

Ren’s cunning redhead daughter spotted the cardboard sign. She didn’t cry. She didn’t run to her dad to complain.

She smiled.

It was a wicked, totally terrifying smile. She gathered her four sisters in a tight circle on the rug. They whispered. They pointed at the weak spots in the pillow fort’s walls. They formed a brutal battle plan.

Inside the fort, Torian’s son peeked through a small crack between two cushions.

He gasped.

"They’re coming," he whispered, grabbing his foam sword.

Zarek’s son scrambled to the peephole. He saw the girls marching toward them. They weren’t walking like sweet little princesses anymore. They were walking like a tiny, terrifying army.

Ren’s daughter took the left flank. Caspian’s daughter took the right. Kaelen’s quiet daughter just stared a hole right through the center cushion, looking completely unbothered. The other two marched right up the middle.

The boys swallowed hard. They gripped their foam swords tighter. Their hands were actually shaking.

"Hold the line," Zarek’s son whispered. "Don’t let them breach the pillows."

"What if they use the puppy eyes?" Torian’s son panicked.

"Don’t look directly at them."

They thought they had built a fortress. They had actually just trapped themselves. A massive sibling war was about to pop off right in the middle of the house.

Roxy stood in the doorway holding a cup of hot coffee. She watched the entire military operation unfold. She didn’t panic. She didn’t call the Kings for backup. She just shook her head at the absolute chaos she had created.

She took a sip of her coffee and smiled.

"Come girls, don’t bully your brothers."