Baby 83 Part 2: If you got it, definitely DON'T flaunt it

"Are you down to your last drop of love 

Even so you should give it away 

Let it sail with your dreams to the sun 

And return to you laden with promise 

And you can't let go 

I won't let you fall "

I am singing quietly to Willow as she drifts off to sleep. I am now heavily pregnant and bound to give birth soon, I simply hope it is a time when someone can come and look after Willow. She is curled up against my chest and I find myself reluctant to let go of her sleeping form. I comfort myself with the knowledge that we have all of tomorrow to spend together and that I also have another child on the way to love and care for.

I'm also reluctant because once I put her to sleep I have to go and bathe Isis and Lucifer. Let me tell you, there is a reason we gave him that name, and it has nothing to do with the fact that I have a warped sense of humor. I manage to catch Isis and Fuzznugget, but find myself unfortunately lacking in the Lucifer department. There was no real reason I was bathing him other than all the others were having one, but I decide not to bother. Isis and Fuzz are getting older now, and more often than not they only want to lie by the fireplaces or on their beds.

With all the kids gone I find myself once again enjoying the chores which plague all mothers. I stroll around humming Some Nights by FUN and completing these tasks. As I fill up the cats' food bowl I happen to glance up at the clock. I had been doing laundry for two hours and it was getting late. I headed to bed, trying to get some sleep because I had to get up early the next morning for a doctor's appointment.

I had finally given in and decided that the sleepless nights were getting to me. I have a legendary hatred of doctors, but one I hide very well on account of my fabulous powers of fabulousness and so I'd delayed the appointment for as long as possible. 
Of course in a shocking fit of irony I manage to sleep the night through and am awoken at eight by my alarm clock as Isis and Fuzz look up and chirp sleepily. I scratch their ears as I walk past to get Willow up, and lay a hand on my abdomen as I feel the child inside kick. I get the feeling this one is going to be an athlete with all the kicking and punching it does.

Willow yawns as I walk in and sits up. "Mornin' Mama." she says with a tired smile. 
"Hello sweet-pea. What do you want for breakfast?" She thinks for a second but I know the answer she is going to give- oatmeal. The kid has a legendary appreciation for it, and I'm thankful that she is easy to feed.

With Willow having been fed I dress her and then put her in the stroller. My appointment is in an hour which should leave us with enough time to reach the hospital and get Willow settled down in the waiting room play area.

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"Well miss Everard, I have both good news and bad news. The good news is that you have a healthy baby and will be giving birth at some point today, and the bad news is that you suffer from Chronic Nightmare Syndrome. About 1 in every 100 adults gets it, and it is easily treatable, either with behavioural therapy or with some sleeping pills to take which should prevent all dreams." he offers me a list of the side effects and I instantly know that it's going to be what I opt for- I simply don't have the time for therapy. The best news is that these pills are safe to take when pregnant as well, which I find to be a massive bonus. 

I leave the hospital with a bottle of the pills in my pocket and set off home. I plan to spend the day baking and decorating a cake for Willow's birthday this evening and maybe phone Paisley later that night. As it happens that is exactly what happens and when dinertime rolls around I grab Willow and we head into the kitchen. 

She is a real cutie when she grows up, and I notice that her skin has a faint grey tinge to it from her father and that her hair is actually closer to ginger than the purple I had previously seen. I only need to take one look at her eyes to know that my little fairy baby is also a werewolf! 

Unfortunately for her it is not a full moon and she has no reason to be awake at such a late hour and I send her trotting off to bed. It seems that motherhood is an endless cycle of laundry and just as soon as you think you have gotten it all in the machine with a load running, you find a pair of dirty underwear in a room not used for months. Thankfully I am rescued from my drudgery by a pair of hands on my hips. "Guess who?" she quips and I bring a hand to my face. "Santa Claus?" I ask , as Paisley spins me into a hug. 

"Hey. I heard Jesse talking about how he saw you today, and how you were pregnant. I didn't know you were going to be this pregnant. Jeez Skye, this must have happened...on...the night...of our fight." she trails off into the end of the sentence. "So that's where you went? You got drunk and screwed around with a random guy. Wow. Jesse really did learn from the best."
"Pais... Look, what I did was out of anger, and I wasn't thinking. I was irrational and drunk and I'm sorry. If it makes you feel any better I've spent the last few days trying to think of a way to tell you. I didn't plan for this. It just all happened so fast."
"Oh, and you what, just happened to fall onto his dick? Yeah Skye, I believe you. How many times has this happened? Once, more?You're not still seeing the asshole are you!?"
"WHAT!? NO. Yes, we had a long, long night of passion and yes, maybe on that night it may have happened..." I pause to count for a second before realising how horrid that must look "once or twice, but it was just that night. I would never betray you like that. Pais... I love you."

Tears bead in my eyes, oddly reminiscent of a similar argument with Eloise and I find myself crumpled around her legs. "I love you. With all my heart and soul and I will never stop loving you. You're my best friend, hell pretty much my only friend, and if I ever lose you then I don't know what I'll do. You're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. I... argh." my speech, though heartfelt is clearly not enough for little baby kicker in there who decides that it's their time to make an arrival. "Paisley. The baby." 

She looks worried for a second, but helps me make my way into the sauna where I lean on the floor against one of the heated baths which are now pooling steam. "Don't, don't go." This is my first home birth in a while and I want her there with me, even if this is going to be the last time I see her. "I promise, I'll never let go." she whispers as she takes the hand closest to her.  

Despite the pain I giggle at her accidental quoting of Titanic but find myself interrupted by the arrival of Baby 83- Cailain Everard and Baby 84- Alistair Everard.