Collide, Ignite

"Uncle Zayn, I'm here!" Maisie called out to Zayn excitedly as she ran into the house ahead of Reilly. Reilly caught up to her in time to see the little girl leap into Zayn's open arms, grab his face with her tiny hands, and place a wet kiss on his mouth. He grinned widely when she slid her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. "Can we draw?" she asked.

"Can we draw?" he asked and she let her arms go slack so she could look at him. Maisie and Zayn had developed a special bond, and if Reilly had to venture a guess, she would say that he was Maisie's favorite of the boys, though she adored each of them. "Of course we can draw. I have some brand new pencils for us to use," he said. "But first, I have something to show you. Would you like to see?" he asked her, and she nodded furiously at him.

Reilly cleared her throat. "You need to say hello to Uncle Liam and Auntie Aimee first, Little One. And Uncle Harry is in the kitchen. I want you to go say hi to him, also, please," she said. Louis, Cara, and Niall had not arrived yet, though she had never met Niall before. "And what about Auntie Jasmin?" she asked about Zayn's fiance who was standing beside them. "Did even you say hi to her or did you just attack Uncle Zayn and ignore everyone else?"

The little girl giggled and kissed Zayn's face again before she reached for Jasmin, who happily took her from Zayn's arms. Just as Reilly had been welcomed with open arms by the boys and their significant others, so was Maisie, and it warmed Reilly's heart. Jasmin put Maisie down and she ran across the room and jumped up onto Aimee's lap to say hello and then climbed over to Liam.

"Hello there, Princess Maisie," Liam said as her arms wrapped around his neck. "We've missed you round here."

"Missed you, too," she said, jumping down off Liam's lap and racing to the kitchen. "Uncle Harry, guess what?" she exclaimed.

Harry was just putting something into the oven when she burst into the kitchen. "Wait right there one second, Sweetheart," he said as he pushed the rack back into the oven carefully. He closed the oven door and turned to the little girl, holding his arms out to her. She ran toward him and he grabbed her under the arms and tossed her into the air. She was giggling when he caught her and brought her in close to his body. "Now what did you want to tell me, Angelface?" he asked.

Maisie reached up and stuck her fingers in Harry's curls. "Me and Reilly are going to take dance classes while I'm here," she told him excitedly.

"You are?" he asked. Maisie nodded and leaned in to kiss the tip of his nose. He scrunched his face playfully at her and then kissed her nose. "That's great. Are you excited?" he asked. She nodded at him again, her fingers still tangled up in his hair. "I bet she's excited, also. It's been some time since she's been in a proper dance class, hasn't it?" he asked, glancing at Reilly as she came into the kitchen. Maisie just shrugged at him and rested her head against his.

"It has," Reilly confirmed. "And I am very excited, especially because it was her idea. But also very out of shape," she said. Maisie must have suddenly remembered that Zayn was waiting to show her something because she untangled her fingers from Harry's curls and wiggled until Harry put her down. Once she was on the ground, she latched onto Reilly's hand and started to pull her out of the kitchen. "I'll be right back to help you with the food," she called over her shoulder to Harry, but he just laughed in response and waved her off.

Once Maisie got Zayn's attention, which really wasn't hard for her, he led the girls down the hallway. "You remember the last time you were here and we painted on the wall?" he asked her, stopping outside a closed door. Maisie nodded at him, exclaiming how much fun that had been. He pushed the door open and picked Maisie up. The walls had all been painted on with the exception of one plain white wall.

"Uncle Zayn," Maisie said, rolling her eyes, "We painted on all the walls last time. How come that one's just white now?" she asked, pointing at the blank wall.

"Because this is your wall now, Miss Maisie," he told her. "I took all the paint off and made it white so you could paint anything you want on it."

"But Uncle Zayn, how can I paint the whole thing? I can't reach the top," she said matter of factly.

Zayn let out a tiny chuckle. "I can help you. Or you can paint on the rest of it when you get bigger. Not like you won't ever come back here, right? There's loads of time still for you to paint the whole thing," he said. A big smile stretched across her face and she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Well, I'll leave you to it, then," Reilly said and ducked out of the room to head back to the kitchen before Maisie could argue.

It didn't matter whose house they had Christmas at, Harry and Reilly always did the cooking. She jumped right in when she got to the kitchen, taking over a couple of the five things Harry had already started so he wasn't overwhelmed. But as soon as she did that, he just started more things. Even after several years, it was still amazing to her just how in his element Harry was in the kitchen.

Over the next hour, Lexie, who had been finishing some last minute shopping, showed up, followed by Niall shortly after. When he came into the kitchen, Harry was seated on the counter and Reilly was on a chair she had dragged in from the dining room. She immediately got up and greeted Niall with a hug. He returned the embrace and placed a kiss on her cheek. The butterflies in her stomach woke up and fluttered around and a smile slowly stretched across her face as the three of them talked.

Niall left when he heard Louis loudly come in the house and the kitchen fell silent. Harry fixed his gaze on Reilly and held it there for several moments, long enough to make Reilly shift nervously. He blinked and she turned to get a beer from the refrigerator. It would likely be the only one she drank the whole night since she had more than just herself to think about with Maisie there.

"Reilly," Harry said finally, after she popped the top off the bottle and took a drink from it. She glanced over at him but didn't say anything. "Do you still love Niall?" he asked. His voice was low and even, and he said it in the way he always did when he already knew the answer to the question he was asking.

She let out a sigh and took another drink before answering. "I don't recall ever saying I loved him," she said, choosing her words carefully.

He nodded, a look of agreement on his face. Because she was right. Those words never came from her mouth. "Right, okay, but if my memory serves, it was almost exactly five years ago when I said to you that I thought you loved him, and you didn't tell me otherwise. So, maybe you never said you did, but you also never said you didn't. Which leads one to believe-"

"I don't really care what it leads anyone to believe," Reilly said, interrupting Harry before he could finish. "I'm engaged-"

"Ahh, alright," Harry cut her off. "But that's not the question I asked. I know you're engaged, Reilly, but I'm asking if you love Niall," he said.

She sighed heavily and took a drink from her beer. "It's not that cut and dry, Harry. It never has been, and you know it," she conceded.

He nodded at her again. "I know. But that's still not what I'm asking," he said. "Look, I know you're not going to answer the question. I don't really want you to. But I want you to think about it. And I mean actually think about it. I know you're engaged, and I know that loyalty is something that is very important to you. But don't forget that there are sometimes things that we do because we think it's the right thing, when really we're holding ourselves back from the ones who have been loyal to us," he said.

"I'm not," she started, and then paused, taking a moment to think about what he said instead of just reacting to it. Another sigh escaped her and her grip on her beer tightened. "I don't want to talk about this right now," she said and Harry nodded in understanding. "I'm going to go say hi to Louis and Cara. I'll be back in a little bit to help with," she paused again, "whatever."

Without waiting for a response, she left the kitchen. She had barely hugged Louis when she heard an excited screech and turned quickly to see Maisie tearing down the hall, giggling the whole way. Her hands were covered in paint and Reilly quickly ran and grabbed the little girl from behind, holding her around the waist as she made her way to the bathroom.

"If you get paint everywhere, Uncle Zayn is never going to let you come back here," Reilly told her as she set her down on the counter and turned on the sink.

Maisie only giggled more. "Yes he will. He's the one who told me to go running down the hall," she said matter of factly. There were times when she spoke in a manner that made her seem older than she was.

Reilly rolled her eyes and pointed at the sink. Maisie obediently stuck her hands under the faucet and let the warm water run over them. "Did you have fun painting?" Reilly asked as Maisie pumped some soap into her hand.

"Yeah," she said, rubbing her hands together. "You have to come see what I did. That's why I was running down the hall. I was coming to get you." She rinsed her hands off and took the towel Reilly was holding.

When she finished drying her hands, she put the towel on the counter and reached for Reilly. Even though she was a little old to be carried all the time, Reilly picked her up and put the towel on the rack on the way out of the bathroom. Maisie's arms immediately went around her neck and she rested her head against Reilly's, who couldn't help but smile at the little girl's affections.

After she saw what Maisie had painted with Zayn, the girls went back to join the group. Reilly put Maisie down and and she immediately ran over to Louis, who was sitting on the floor, and tackled him to the ground. He lifted her into the air and then brought her back down to his chest and ticked her sides. She squealed with laughter and squirmed until he let her go. She jumped up and gave Cara a kiss on the cheek before running back over to Reilly and hugging her tightly around the legs.

Niall had moved to stand next to Reilly, and it took a minute for her to remember that the two hadn't met. "Here," she said, giving her beer to Niall. He took it from her without question and took a drink from it as she reached down and picked the little girl up. Maisie looked questioningly at Niall, trying to figure out if she'd met him before. When she finally decided she wasn't sure she leaned over and whispered something in Reilly's ear. A smile stretched across Reilly's face and she shook her head. "This is my friend Niall," she told her.

Without hesitating, Maisie leaned toward Niall and wrapped her arms around his neck. He was surprised by the action, to say the least, but he grabbed her around the waist and shifted her to his side. "Hi Niall," she said, a sweet smile pulling across her face as her bright blue eyes met his.

A smile quickly overtook his face, reaching all the way to his eyes and brightening them even more than they already were. "Hello there," he replied. Her face lit up and the sound of his accent.

"I like how you talk," she told him.

His smile grew even more. One of the first things Reilly had said to him was that she liked his accent, and now this child who was a fair skinned, blue eyed version Reilly had done the same thing. "Thank you very much. I like how you talk, also," he said. "And what's your name, Little One?" he asked.

Maisie's face lit up even more and she looked over at Reilly when he called her the same thing she always did. "Maisie," she told him. A giggle escaped her for no reason, and she leaned in to kiss Niall's cheek.

Niall beamed at her. "You got yourself a Gaelic name. Very good. And a beautiful name as well," he said. "And how old are ya, Maisie?" he asked.

"I'm four," she said proudly.

"Four!" he exclaimed. "That's the best age to be, don't you think?" he asked, and she nodded excitedly.

They chatted back and forth for a few minutes until one of the boys called her from across the room. She looked over to see Louis pointing at Liam sprawled out on the floor, and then looked back at Niall and he quickly put her down. "Uncle Liam," she squealed, dragging out the middle of his name as she ran across the room and jumped on his stomach.

He let out an audible and pained oof when she landed that made Reilly cringe. Usually something like that would send Niall into a fit of laughter, but he was quiet. Reilly looked over to see him focused on the little girl giggling on the other side of the room.

"Are you okay?" she asked him.

It took a minute for Niall to respond. His eyes stayed fixed on Maisie for a long time before he slowly turned to look at Reilly. Their faces were so similar, it was almost weird. "So," he said finally. There was a look of uncertainty in his eyes. "Is she your, um," he said and then paused. The air between the suddenly felt thick.

"Sister." Reilly finished for him. He let out the breath he'd been holding in and relaxed noticeably. And it hit her. "Wait," she said. His eyes snapped to hers immediately. "Did you think she was," she paused and Niall opened his mouth to speak, but she didn't let him. "You really think I wouldn't tell you if we had a child together?" she asked. Her tone was harsh, but her voice was hushed so she didn't draw attention to them.

His eyes went wide. "I, no, just," he stuttered, and then paused, trying to get his thoughts together. "With everything that happened, and she looks just like you," he said, but his thoughts were still jumbled knowing he didn't have adequate time to gather them and string together a coherent explanation.

"You really think that little of me?" she asked. "Regardless of what was going on between us at the time, I would have told you. There's no way I would have kept something like that from you. And neither would any of them," she said, referring to his band mates and best friends.

He caught her arm gently as she turned to walk away. "Reilly, wait. I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I didn't mean-"

She shook her head and didn't look at him. "I just need a minute," she said. Without another word, he let go of her and she went back to the kitchen.

Harry looked up as she entered and watched her carefully as she grabbed onto the edge of the counter and drew in a deep breath. He waited as she slowly exhaled and drew in another, held it for a moment and breathed it out slowly. "Are you okay?" he asked her finally.

Reilly shook her head and drew in another breath. "Niall thought Maisie was his," she said.

Harry chuckled. "Well, of course he did. She's the right age, and she looks exactly like you. Can't really blame the guy, can you?" he asked.

She raised her eyes to meet Harry's and glared at him. "Yes. I can. Because that's not the kind of thing you keep from a person," she snapped.

He raised his hands in the air in a motion of surrender. "Whoa, easy there," he said, walking over and placing his hands on Reilly's arms. "What I meant was, he was looking at the spitting image of a person he loves very much. It makes sense that his mind would go to that place. It doesn't mean he really thought that you would not have told him. It just means that he was trying to fit all the pieces together." She sighed heavily and Harry pulled her to his chest. "You need a cuddle," he said as he wrapped his arms around her and rubbed her back. "Feel better?" he asked after a few moments.

She nodded as she pulled away from him. He was right. Somehow, he always seemed to be right. There were times it infuriated her, but it was one of the reasons she could always go to him. He could offer her a perspective she couldn't see, a reasoning she couldn't understand, or sometimes just simply words of encouragement.

The rest of the night sped past too quickly. They all sat down to dinner where conversation flowed easily, both throughout the entire table and in pairs or small groups. After dinner, they opened gifts. Maisie was spoiled to almost no end, but all the girls were, really. Niall and Reilly even exchanged gifts, both of which had been purchased last minute.

As they were getting ready to leave, Reilly pulled Niall aside and apologized for how she'd reacted earlier. He tried to apologize again, but she refused to hear it. He grinned at her stubbornness, and gave her a light kiss on the cheek before she walked away.

Lexie had decided to go to Harry's, so it was just Reilly and Maisie for the night. It was late and Maisie fell asleep on the drive home, exhausted after expelling so much energy playing with the boys all day and into the evening. She never really stopped when she was with them, and always crashed hard afterward. Reilly carried her inside and carefully tucked her into bed before retiring to her room.

She dropped her purse on her bed and a small box fell out. The corner of her mouth twitched upward as she opened it and looked at the necklace Niall had given her. The chain and pendant were bronze and the pendant was shaped like a door on a house in a fairy tale. Reilly took it out of the box and looked closely at it. The hinges looked real, and she carefully pulled on the tiny doorknob. It opened easily.

There was a small piece of white paper sitting inside. It took a minute to get it out, and she unfolded it. The smile on her face only grew as her eyes swept over the neat handwriting that slanted slightly to the left.

You can't have a fairy tale ending without first slaying your dragons.