[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

white trainers struck the tiled floor as she strolled through the airport, narrowly avoiding the hoards of people rushing to get through passport control to be first at the baggage claim. some were going so fast, they could probably give olympic speed walkers a run for their money. she never understood why people acted like storming norman at the airport - unless they were actually late for their plane. it didn't make the plane leave any faster and where people really that eager to get back home? the weather was absolutely abysmal for a start. as she reached boarder control, she adjusted the backpack slung across her shoulder in order to pull out her passport. the guy behind the glass scanned it briefly before handing it back to her. she offered him a small smile with a thanks, slipping the passport back into her bag as she walked toward the baggage claim.

she skipped through a couple of songs on her phone as she leant against a post, waiting for her suitcase to make it around the conveyor belt. hopefully it had made the trip in one piece. riley stifled a yawn and glanced at her watch. it was nearing 9am and she was desperate for a coffee. she'd had to wake up at a god awful hour in order to catch her 6:30am flight and she was started to crash. spying her bag, she zig zagged through the crowd and dragged it off of the belt in one motion. finally free to escape the hustle and bustle, she grabbed the handle and made her way to the car park, where her brother was hopefully waiting. although she was desperate for a nap, she felt a buzz of excitement as she waited by the curb. she had only seen her family in the flesh a handful of times over the past two years and seeing them over a screen just wasn't the same.

[BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN]

Ben drummed the steering wheel with his knuckles as he waited. He was early - as was his usual MO when he had to be somewhere for a set time - but in his defense, sometimes they caught you out and landed early. It was rare but it happened on occasion. He sipped his coffee and watched as a gaggle of weary faced travellers exited the building. Ben looked up, searching the faces for his sister, but she wasn't in this group of new arrivals. He looked back down to his phone, he checked the time - any minute now - and then went back to scrolling through the news. He didn't have Facebook or the like, he didn't have the time for social media, but the news was depressing, and he soon put his phone back in the cup holder with a sigh.

The doors opened again and he looked up by reflex, scanning the faces again and then pausing on one that looked pretty familiar. A wide grin practically split his face as he opened the door and hopped out of his car, hurrying around the front of the car, he enveloped his sister in a giant hug. "Riley!" He squeezed her, lifting her slightly from her feet before he put her back down and stepped back to look at her. His gaze searched her face in that too close way he inspected everyone he loved. "How was the flight?" He asked, stepped forward to grab her bag and heft it into the boot - pressing a button so it popped open before he got there.

[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

she'd barely had a chance to look around the car park for her brother when she felt arms wrap around her. a grin made it's way onto her face as she hugged her brother back tightly, laughing softly when her feet left the ground in the moment. "Benny!" she smiled when he inspected her in his usual way "I haven't grown a third eye if that's what you're worried about". she let him take the bag as she moved toward the passenger door. "same as usual. . cold and boring with overpriced snacks". she ditched her backpack into the foot well as she sat down in the front seat - eyeing the coffee in the cup holder enviously. "can we please stop for coffee? I feel like i've been awake forever". dramatic but she always was when she was tired. she'd only been awake for six hours but had slept for three at most the night before.

her original plan was to come straight home from the final destination along with her horse but her coach had convinced her it would be good to get some r & r and she had agreed as it wasn't a terrible idea - so she sent Nova home with her coach along with a charming threat to get the mare home safely in one piece. Riley had spent some time exploring more of Germany before flying over to tenerife for a week of much needed sunshine. she looked out of the window and rolled her eyes at the grim weather "always a downer when you come home to weather like this. ." she huffed and looked over at Ben "so how's my favourite brother?" she called them both her favourite to their face because honestly, who could choose between them. "catch me up on the goss." she figured she was up to date on most things in her family life but she was a sucker for small town gossip.

[BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN]

"Benny!" He rolled his eyes at the old nickname, but there was no lingering resentment for it now he was older - he hated it as a kid, but then her tone had changed as they grew older. Now, it was an endearment, not a tease. "I haven't grown a third eye if that's what you're worried about" He snorted, her sharp sense of humour made him chuckle. "Just checking - you never know what they put in the water." He warned, though it was more to check that she looked well, as inconspicuously as possible. He'd only seen her in fleeting visits the last couple of years but she'd seemed to be doing well, he just wanted to make sure.

"same as usual. . cold and boring with overpriced snacks....can we please stop for coffee? I feel like i've been awake forever" Ben laughed and raised his eyebrows, then reached into the back seat where he'd secured the drinks he'd picked up from Starbucks - there hadn't been room in the cup holders up front so he'd left them in their cardboard holders and driven carefully. He grabbed one and handed it over. "Ta da!" He announced, handing hers over and then grabbing the other - which was actually a coke. He didn't need another coffee. "always a downer when you come home to weather like this. ." He couldn't help but agree with that, "Just one more month to get through and we'll have made it!" Ben couldn't wait for the sun and warmth to make a reappearance. "so how's my favourite brother? catch me up on the goss." Ben rolled his eyes as he started the car and joined the queue to get out of the airport. "I know you call the other one your favourite too," He gave her a look, then pulled out onto the roundabout. "What do you want to hear about first? The Blue Acre barn being burned down? Or the fact Leo threw himself a party so people could meet him?"

[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

She couldn’t help but smile when he rolled his eyes at the use of his nickname - true her and Jake had used the nickname to tease him as a child but over the years it had stuck and she barely called him anything else. She smirked slightly and shook her head ”tell me about it. .the tap water in some places was disgusting.” she knew he was probably looking for any lingering signs of a relapse, just as she would check him for any signs of his leukaemia coming back. Although she had relapsed a couple of times whilst abroad, it had been a while and any signs had long gone. A broad grin spread across her lips as Ben pulled out the goods from the back seat. ”ah you’re a life saver! she took hold of the warm cup and brought it to her lips, inhaling the scent as she took a sip. it was the perfect temperature too. one thing she loved about Ben was that he was always thinking ahead. at least now she wouldn’t have to go through the whole car ride like a bear with a sore head.

She nodded in agreement ”true, then we’ll have warm rain with the odd ray of sunshine” she couldn’t wait for the days when they had all four seasons in a day. She reached forward and cranked up the heating a little, letting her free hand hover in front of the fan - her hands were always cold whatever the weather. ”I have no idea what you’re talking about” She looked over at Ben and batted her lashes, smiling sweetly ”at least you both only have on favourite sister.” She took another sip of coffee and almost choked as she held back a laugh when she heard what he said. ”what!? how did that happen? And wow seriously. .I don’t know whether he’s ballsy or pathetic” she grinned and shook her head. she had to take her hat off to leo, if anybody could pull off a party like that it would be him.

[JAKE MICHEAL RYAN]

BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN & RILEY JAMES RYAN

it had been really really hard for him to keep his mouth shut for the whole trip. it hadn't dawned on him that he should do this until earlier that morning. he'd known riley was getting home today and that ben was picking her up and he hadn't been sure if he'd be able to get to the airport so he'd not made plans to go. but as fate would have it, he'd been able to swing the day off by swapping shifts with someone. he hadn't bothered to tell ben what he was doing, after all it had been all too long since he'd messed with his brother. their last conversation hadn't been one that had allowed him to joke and while he was glad ben had talked to him, it would feel great to get back to normal. well normal for them.

it had been a hell of a job sneaking into ben's car without him knowing, planning that had gone without a hitch, squishing his tall frame into the back seat, pressing himself down into the gap between the front seats and the back seats and covering himself with a few of the horse rugs ben had in his car. he lost count of how long he'd been in the car when they finally stopped at the airport and by some miracle ben hadn't seen jake's hand at all when he'd snuck it out from under the blankets to stop the drinks from toppling over while ben had been driving.

it had seemed like an eternity from when they'd stopped at the airport to when ben and riley had actually gotten back into the car and while jake had thought this was a great idea, he hadn't really thought it all through. he hadn't thought about needing the bathroom, being bored shitless and before he could think of how to jump out and surprise them he felt ben start pulling out into the queue. well that hadn't taken long. he waited until he felt the car stop again and he took his chance, just in time to hear riley talk about being their favourite sister. he hadn't felt the car start to move again so he took his chance, sitting up suddenly and sticking his head through the gap of the front seats. "i think we both much prefer blair." he joked as he turned his head to look at riley. "surprise." he said with a grin before he turned to look at ben. "you need to wash this shit, it smells worse than jupiter does on a good day."

[BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN]

”tell me about it. .the tap water in some places was disgusting.” He wasn't surprised, Ben was always cautious about drinking tap water in other countries - England was one of the few that was 100% safe, though he thought some hotels he'd stayed in over the years had been questionable. ”ah you’re a life saver! Ben grinned and gave her a quick salute. "That's me," He joked, though Ben was anything but a life saver, unfortunately most people spent their time saving his life. ”true, then we’ll have warm rain with the odd ray of sunshine” Sad but true, sometimes Ben dreamed of warmer climates for his life, certainly would help him and his not the best immune system when Winter hit. He liked England though, he wasn't keen enough to move. ”I have no idea what you’re talking about... at least you both only have on favourite sister.” Ben laughed at that and glanced to the right as he hit the roundabout, waiting for a gap in the traffic.

He didn't get a chance to reply. A familiar dark haired head abruptly popped through between the back seats. "i think we both much prefer blair." Ben had just started to move but the surprise sent his foot slamming onto the brake. "Holy fuck, Jake!!" He shouted at his moron of a younger brother, foot still stomped on the brake as he turned his head to glare at him. "surprise." Ben looked down at the slosh of liquid that had hit his previously clean trousers. "You're a twat," He sighed, though what else could he expect from his overly excited brother. "you need to wash this shit, it smells worse than jupiter does on a good day." He rolled his eyes and carefully pulled forward into traffic. "Things like that is why the horse doesn't like you and I swear to God if you have carly hiding under there you better damn well get her out now or you're both walking home." One heart attack was enough for the week let alone the day.

[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

Riley felt a grin cross her lips when Ben saluted, rolling her eyes playfully. She took another sip of coffee while the car was at a standstill, not wanting to swill herself when the car jolted forward. Sensing movement to her right, riley looked over just as jake popped his ugly head through the seats. ”surprise.” the brunette jumped and almost choked on her coffee, the liquid in the cup swishing around, violently threatening to splash out of the small opening on the lid. Thankfully she’d managed to put a finger over the hole as she gripped the cup. She glanced over at Ben who hadn’t been so lucky and now had a coke stain on his trousers. ”Jake! We could have crashed, idiot. ” She narrowed her eyes slightly, more so at the after comment about blair and turned in her chair to smack him on the forehead. ”yeah well right now I much prefer carly. . .such a buffoon.” she muttered the last part as she placed her coffee in the cup holder, biting back a grin. Now that her heart rate had calmed, she was happy to see her dope of a brother, even if he’d tried to give them a heart attack.

[JAKE MICHEAL RYAN]

BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN & RILEY JAMES RYAN

in hindsight, it hadn't been a great idea. okay that was a lie, it had been a bad idea before he'd done it but it had been well worth it. he knew that ben was a safe enough driver that they wouldn't crash, he'd picked his moment when they'd been almost standing still so he could argue that it wasn't that bad. he couldn't help but laugh as he saw the coke spill over ben's pants. "this is news to you?" he responded to the twat comment as he felt the glare of his little sister and he turned to look at her better. "he never drives more than ten miles an hour anyway!" he grinned a little as he shifted slightly so he was more comfortable now he'd reveled himself there was no need for him to stay uncomfortable.

"oh no, that horse is just an asshole." he couldn't help but laugh as ben said that carly had better not be hiding back here with him. "you think she'd have let me come if she knew what i was planning? she'd have tied me to the radiator to stop me." he loved her and he knew she loved him but he was also aware that there were parts of him that drove her insane, this was probably one of them. "i'll tell blair that ben agrees with you about carly being better." he joked, teasing both of them as he reached through to the front seat to see if there was any drink left in ben's coke.

[BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN]

”Jake! We could have crashed, idiot.” Ben agreed with that whole heartedly. ”yeah well right now I much prefer carly. . .such a buffoon.” Ben laughed raised an eyebrow slightly at his sister. "What happened to Blair?" He joked, considering her earlier comment of who was her favourite. "this is news to you? he never drives more than ten miles an hour anyway!" Ben rolled his eyes, "You were definitely dropped on your head as a baby." He muttered, carefully pulling away at the roundabout now that his heart had settled and his idiot brother had settled himself properly. "Seatbelt," He warned to the moron in the back.

"oh no, that horse is just an asshole." He tutted, pulling onto the main road and accelerating away. "No, it's you." "you think she'd have let me come if she knew what i was planning? she'd have tied me to the radiator to stop me." Ben quirked an eyebrow and sighed. "I don't think we need to hear about your sexual exploits." "i'll tell blair that ben agrees with you about carly being better." Ben rolled his eyes again, summoning his usual patience to handle his brother and frowning at the hand groping for his drink. "Uh nuh. I don't think so." He slapped at the hand and went to pick the coke up for himself, mouth reaching for the straw.

[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

"he never drives more than ten miles an hour anyway!" she hid a grin and shook her head. Okay maybe ben was a safe driver but she’d take that over jake’s tendency to bend the rules of the highway code. . "you think she'd have let me come if she knew what i was planning? she'd have tied me to the radiator to stop me. "I don't think we need to hear about your sexual exploits." Riley snorted and pretended to cover her ears. ”yeah I definitely don’t need to hear about them.” "What happened to Blair?" She looked back to ben with a smile ”I love blair! I just meant I prefer carly over Jake when he’s being a dope.” She snorted and glanced back at Jake ”I think he was dropped on the head as a toddler too.” Riley glanced back out of the window as they started moving again, veering away from the traffic as they headed towards their town. She drank a little more of her rapidly cooling coffee and shifted in her seat to get comfortable. She saw Jakes hand reach the gap in the seats out of the corner of her eye and let out a snicker as Ben slapped his hand away. ”ah I’ve missed you idiots.” She smiled, a feeling of warmth spreading through her chest, glad to be home.

[JAKE MICHEAL RYAN]

BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN & RILEY JAMES RYAN

he grinned as he listened to them in the front seat, loving how easy it was for them to slip back into their usual banter. he and riley had been so rough on ben while they'd been kids but they'd gotten better as they'd grown up. now the three of them could give and take with the best of them and they knew that all it would take was a phone call to rally them to arms. "yes mum." he said as he rolled his eyes as ben reminded him about his seat belt, pulling it across his chest and clicking it in and then tugging on it a little so he could prove to ben it was done up. "happy?"

"have you met that horse? it's whole personality is jerk." he said as he rolled his eyes. carly and the boys could do anything they wanted to the stupid animal, but for some reason whenever jake came near he was all teeth, flat ears and flying hooves. "everyone prefers carly to me, she's much prettier." he laughed as he started to lean forward as he thought about grabbing ben's drink. "hey, you were dropped too. i have vidid memories of ben dumping you off the couch when you were a baby." maybe a slightly exaggerated memory, but who were they to know.

he just about had his hand on his brother's drink when his hand was swatted away and he narrowed his eyes, taking it as a challenge as he strained against the seatbelt to lean as far forward as he could, managing to grip his fingers onto the straw before his brother could get his mouth onto it. "now now benny, mother always said to share." he said with a smirk.

[BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN]

"yes mum." Ben glanced into the back seat now his brother was strapped down and less likely to come through the windscreen. Though it was tempting to hit the brakes just to teach him a lesson for being an idiot and hiding in the backseat. "happy?" Ben pressed his lips together. "I would have been happier leaving you at home. It seemed I didn't get that choice." ”yeah I definitely don’t need to hear about them.” Ben whole heartedly agreed but unfortunately could not afford to stick his hands over his ears - his knees were not close enough to the steering wheel to take over driving.

He glanced over to Riley as she answered, then quickly looked back to the road. ”I love blair! I just meant I prefer carly over Jake when he’s being a dope.” Ben rolled his eyes, "Anyone is better than Jake when he's being a dope, that's hardly a compliment." He joked, a smile playing on his lips. "have you met that horse? it's whole personality is jerk. everyone prefers carly to me, she's much prettier." Ben snorted and rolled his eyes. "There's more too it than that, but that's a good start." He laughed, it was too easy to rib his young brother, he really set himself up for it.

"hey, you were dropped too. i have vidid memories of ben dumping you off the couch when you were a baby." He shook his head and turned again, the countryside flashing past them as they left the motorway behind. ”ah I’ve missed you idiots.” He let the smile develop into a grin and he reached a hand to squeeze his sister's arm lightly before returning it to the wheel as they turned onto a smaller road. "We've missed you too." And it was the truth. He may have struggled with them both growing up, but that had passed as they'd gotten older and the idiots had turned from bullies into friends.

Ben frowned as he suddenly found fingers in his straw and his brother's obnoxious face straining to reach it. "now now benny, mother always said to share." He slapped again - not too hard but harder than the first go - at the face. "Oi, you should have got your own. In fact, you would have if you'd been invited like a normal person." He wrestled slightly for the cup, taking care not to lose his concentration on the road. "Go wrestle the passenger for their drink instead!"

[RILEY JAMES RYAN]

Riley glanced back at their dopey middle brother as he strapped himself into the as seat. "hey, you were dropped too. i have vidid memories of ben dumping you off the couch when you were a baby." She rolled her eyes. ”At least I had a cushy carpet and cushions to land on, I vividly remember mum telling us she dropped you in the bath by accident once.” She retorted with a playful smirk. "everyone prefers carly to me, she's much prettier." She snorted ”Yeah, that we can agree on” She wasn’t about to make his head any bigger if he was expected them to disagree. She glanced at Ben with a grin as the brothers bantered back and forth. Yes she had definitely missed them. She was happy she’d been missed too. It was easy for life to go on when someone left, especially when they led a busy life and there was always that worry she’d find it difficult to slip back into her old life after being gone for so long. She let out a laugh when Ben slapped Jake. ”Now now boys. . let’s not cause an accident, we’re almost home.” She knew it would be rare for Ben to lose concentration on the road but still. "Go wrestle the passenger for their drink instead!" She grinned and moved her coffee out of reach. ”Hell no. .I’ve been up since 4am, I need it.”

[JAKE MICHEAL RYAN]

BENJAMIN CHARLIE RYAN & RILEY JAMES RYAN

jake pressed his hands to his heart in mock hurt as ben said he'd have rather he'd stayed home. "but then i would have missed out on the chance to make you shit yourself." he said with a smirk as he reached past the headrest to flick his older brother on the ear lightly. there were perks to being in the back seat and bugging the driver, he couldn't turn around and retaliate, at least not without pulling over and taking double the time to get home from here. "oh there is nothing more to it, you're just biased benny boy." he said as he glanced out the window to see where abouts they were. he couldn't remember the last time he'd sat in the back seat of a car. though it was rather cramped sharing the back with blankets, tack and whatever else ben had stashed in here.

he felt ben's hand slap his face as he tried to steal some of his drink again and he mock gasped. "violence! mother dearest would not approve." he said as he straightened a little and leaned his arms forward, letting the seatbelt slip to his waist as he leaned his arms against both of the seats in front of him, sitting the exact way he often stopped his daughter from sitting like in the car. "she drinks coffee .. i have a thousand children. coffee doesn't work on me anymore." he said with a smirk. "soda works much better." he said as he made a quick grab for the drink again, determined to snatch it from ben now more for the fun of it than to get the actual drink. "if anything's going to take me off of this earth, it's going to be carly." he said with a grin. "i don't think a car would dare take that honour away from her." he joked, but he was very aware that death was a very real part of life.