Tipping Point.

[Faith Augustin]

100th Vhalar, 717

"An average pregnancy" Faith said, with a smile, "last two hundred and eighty trials exactly. So, we split it into twenty eight ten-trials with the women who come in to the Order." She placed a hand protectively over her swollen stomach and the delight she felt was evident on her face and from the links they shared. "I was sixteen ten trials through this pregnancy yestertrial." Faith was sitting on the couch in the living room in Scalvoris. They'd enjoyed Desnind, but she couldn't deny that it was good to be home. Cosmo had greeted them with an enormous enthusiasm, Quattro seemed both unimpressed and unconcerned.

It had been just short of forty trials since they'd got married, but the swelling of Faith's pregnancy was significantly larger than it had been then and she was tired. The burst of energy she'd experienced had passed and sleeping was becoming an issue. Not least because the baby seemed to get most active when Faith laid down or rested. Padraig's voice, too, set it kicking and more than once she'd offered to go and sleep in the spare room so that he could get some rest. She didn't mind to do so, not at all. Although, once she'd gotten comfortable with a range of pillows on which she rested the bump, she was asleep within trills and more than once, she'd dropped off to sleep on the sofa.

She had been dozing just like that when he'd got home. The snow was pouring outside, they were making the transition from snow showers to snow storms and the clothes she'd made which kept him warm no matter what the temperature were coming in useful, Faith was pleased to see. As she stood and moved over to kiss him, she grinned. "I'm not waddling. You're hallucinating." It wasn't yet the full-on pregnancy wadddle, but it was starting. The longer that she experienced this pregnancy, the more that she realised that the one previously had been an illusion; a well informed lie. "Did you get everything we need?"

As he got all their equipment and supplies together, Faith made them a cup of tea and then brought it out and put his down next to him. "I've been thinking," she said with a smile. "I'm going to speak to the Dean and ask if I can just stop work now. We don't need the money and I'm just tired out." It was strange, but just admitting that felt liberating. "I don't need to keep going, keep doing. I thought I could do some testing of recipes for Cally's here, but cut right back on my shifts in work there, too." She looked at him and smiled. "Originally, I thought that so that you'll worry less when you leave. But then, I realised that when I thought it, I felt relieved. So, I'm going to do that. I thought, if you didn't mind, I'd become a financial leech on you." He wouldn't mind in the slightest, she knew that and in fact it would be his preference, too. It was a major step for her, the idea of just resting and looking after herself. In just over twenty trials, she would have been free for an arc and this was the first time she'd ever suggested or thought of such a thing.

"So. A mobile to hang over the crib, I can do." They were currently trying to make something every few trials, when schedules allowed it. This was what they had planned for the afternoon to-trial. "You've got something up your sleeve, I can see it. What are you thinking?"

[Padraig]

When Faith told him how long a typical pregnancy lasted, Padraig had only smiled a little as he shifted on the couch a little to accomodate Quattro, who considered to be hers, whatever space she wanted on any given piece of furniture. All or most seemed to be the general rule of thumb. Even Cosmo respected that. Most trials. "But you are not typical," he reminded her. "Our lives are not typical though others looking in might think so. I think it would serve us well, were we prepared to be surprised."

Not too surprised though. What he knew about medicine was limited, but Padraig knew enough to realize there was a difference between a child coming a little bit early, as opposed to one born too premature. He also knew that as time progressed and her middle expanded, it was becoming more physically challenging for Faith. Though he did delight in feeling their child move beneath his hand, or even catching a glimpse of her belly rippling a little from a distance. Once he'd even spied a tiny footprint, straining against limited space.

Mere science, even the vastness of the universe and all it's mysteries couldn't compare to the wonder of it. Suffice to say he'd not once wished for her to leave their bed and sleep elsewhere. She was waddling though, but his grin would suffice. I didn't really need saying aloud. "I did," he said when she asked, had he gotten the things on her list.

A leech, she said as they set up their equipment? "Never that. This is a team effort. You're growing a human. It takes work and it's got to be exhausting. That's your job right now above all others," he told her with a kiss on the cheek. Besides, considering the nature of their savings, they could both stop working for a while and be more than fine. So, a mobile to hang over the crib. "I'm not sure," he said when she asked what he was thinking. "Maybe though, something that would turn partly on its own, without having to rely on one of us getting up and starting it going. I'd considered something triggered by sound. Somehow...But not just any sound, it would be going constantly. I'm not sure how just yet. But maybe the baby's voice?"

[Faith Augustin]

Others looking in might think so? That was a strange thing for him to say, Faith thought and she looked at him with a quizzical expression. But then, he said about being surprised and she nodded. "Well, lets face it, this is us. When, how and how many come out are all very much open to be items of interest and conversation for arcs to come." Her expression was a mixture of amused, resigned and afraid when she said that. She was a twin, as was her mother and her grandmother. Faith knew this. A thought flittered through her mind and she wondered, "You know, I have an aunt out there somewhere. We know that both of my birth parents are dead, but I have two sisters and an aunt. Potentially. I suppose I could ask my mother, but I really don't want to." Realising that she was oh-so-casually talking about summoning the ghost of her mother, Faith grinned at him. "Just like everyone else, that's us."

He was entranced by the growth of their child and Faith continued to do her very best to make sure that he was completely involved in it. How the baby responded to his voice, the touch of his hand on her stomach delighted her and she was amazed at that. "It's astonishing, isn't it? All changes and wakes up as soon as you come home, just the sound of your voice." Taking his hand and placing it just over a particularly acrobatic series of kicks, Faith grinned."As the pregnancy continues, and I get even more waddly, I'm told these kicks can be uncomfortable, but I love them." It was a good job, really. When he moved to kiss her cheek she turned her head as he had once, long ago on the way to Sintih's street party and she kissed him. There was nothing chaste or cheek-peck about it.

"I don't know, Padraig, I can feel myself changing. Not just my center of gravity and the onset of the waddle, either," she teased and dug her elbow into his ribs. "I just feel so overwhelmingly protective." Faith looked at him and half shrugged. "It must seem obvious, but it's all new. It is. It wasn't like this, before. The more I experience the more I think it was just an illusion with Rose. I don't know how I feel about that." Truthfully, she had no clue. "So I've decided to just feel what I do and not worry about it. What will they call us? Mother and Father or.. Padraig and Faith? I mean, you call Cyrus by his name." Faith stopped speaking abruptly, aware that she building herself into a panic. Panic being a relative term, but still. "Names are important. We need to think of names. Imagine having a name from birth, decided before you're born. How odd." Except she realised, probably not so much.

He said, then, what he was thinking of and Faith looked at him in amazement. "You can do that?" She supposed, if she thought about it, "We'd need a reagent that responded to noise. The baby's voice specifically, though?" Was that achievable? With her limited at best knowledge of alchemy, she didn't really know how. "What about... could you make it react to noises only from someone with a specific scent?" Faith asked, a frown creasing her forehead. "Like a wolf can tell the difference, you know? Or a dog." She motioned to Cosmo with her head and smiled fondly at the enormous dog. She did worry that the dog was so big it might be a problem for the baby, but then the other trial Faith had realised that she was sitting and planning emergency escapes if the house caught fire. "Or noise emanating from where the baby's head is, maybe? I.. how will you do that?" He would, she had no doubt, work some kind of miracle.

[Padraig]

The mere suggestion that Faith's pregnancy might result in multiple births tended to fill Padraig with, not a sense of dread or resistance, but a bit of panic if he was honest. He worried enough about his ability to be a good father to one child. Multiplying the possibilities by two or even three, tended to increase his concern. But there was no question that on the other hand, more than one meant more love to give. Still, he grinned a little and shrugged. "If anyone else was aware of the possibility, I think they might be opening a gambling pool."

But the worry was all forgotten when they kissed, and she took his hand to place on her belly. Their child moved beneath the palm of his hand as if rolling over and he smiled again. "As long as it's not painful or uncomfortable. It's a wonder." When she mentioned the previous pregnancy, or at least what had seemed to be, he frowned thoughtfully then nodded. "It makes perfect sense. I don't think it's just a matter of having more time to adjust either. There was no frame of reference then. You'd never been pregnant before, we'd never been anticipating the birth of a child. If we'd had this time around to draw on, it's possible..." Possible that what? That they'd have sensed that it hadn't been genuine? There was no way of knowing that, in truth.

"I call Cyrus by his name, and have never called him grandfather because...Well I don't know exactly," Padraig admitted. "But I think he'd actually enjoy being called that, even if he doesn't say so." As for himself, he knew that he'd prefer their child didn't call him by his name. Papa, he guessed. And as for what the child's name would be, Padraig smiled. "I'm not sure. What strikes your fancy?"

But back to the mobile, and the notion of finding a reagent that responded to noise, truth was he had no idea. "I almost think that scent might be more realistic." Like a dog's or wolf's sense of smell as she mentioned, for instance. Or if not sound or scent, maybe movement, he suggested, in the same way a wind chime responded to the movement of air. The larger the chimes, the more movement required. But the smallest and lightest ones, he reasoned, could be moved by even the smallest of breezes.

[Faith Augustin]

The expression on Faith's face was unmistakable; she was amused and then some. "I'm sure that between Kura, Cally and Trudi," she said with a grin, "there is more than one pool and very good odds of.. well, odd." She smiled at him as she rested his hand on the swell of her stomach and rested against him as they kissed. Faith was quite content to linger there awhile; soon enough when this baby came they'd have less time alone than they did now she knew. That would be the largest understatement in the history of them if there was more than one human being growing beneath her heart. It wasn't so much that she was afraid of the prospect they joked about, she realised, it was just that she was woefully unprepared for one and if it came to multiple births then, whilst the number of children might be multiplied, the level of unprepared was exponential. Yet, if there was one thing that Faith knew without a shadow of a doubt it was that there was no point worrying about what she couldn't control.

His face, though, told her all she needed to know when he felt their baby move beneath his hand. Faith's face told a similar story and she grinned in delight; she was usually such a serious soul but with him not at all. "It's our baby. Moving. I still don't believe it, sometimes. I'm the luckiest woman in the world." Her kiss was more intense this time, her silver eyes full of emotion. It was a much more common sight these trials, more than ever before though Faith would vehemently deny any impact of the pregnancy on her psychologically. "It's not painful or uncomfortable. It's wonderful. It's a person, we made a person." Her smile changed slightly, then and she looked at him with a wicked expression. "Good work, us. Wouldn't you agree, Professor?"

On the subject of Rose, though, everything about Faith took on a more serious tone and she looked at him and nodded. They hadn't known, either of them. If they'd had this time to draw on? She looked at him and her eyes showed the sadness she felt at the words she spoke. "We'd have known that it wasn't real. I know. But I still..." She still what? There was no point beating around the bush with him, there were no secrets between them and he knew before she said it. "Love, memory, sorrow and loss. They all fit for her, they're what I feel. I wish she'd been ours to love." Whether it was real or not, that was true and Faith leaned her head against him and just allowed herself a moment of resting there. But then, she looked at him and smiled slightly. "But maybe labour will take less time, this time, and Tristan won't appear half way through, hm?"

It had come within a hair's breadth of breaking them, she knew. Everything that had happened then. What it had actually done was make them stronger. Her hand in his tightened and she said no more. There was no need between them. On calling Cyrus grandfather, though, she nodded. "Katie, too. It's important. And Luna should be Aunt." It put her on an equal with them, being sibling to one of them and Faith felt that would be important for the baby and the young woman. Of him, though, Papa? Faith looked up and nodded, not speaking because words couldn't do it in that moment.

The name, though? Faith shrugged, genuinely. "I don't know. Bun." She'd been calling the bump that for a while, but the idea of a name was something she really struggled with. She spoke the concern though, not hiding it as once she would. "We named Rose and it made it harder. Maybe we should just wait and see and hope that the Bun brings a name with them?" Singular, Faith, keep it singular. It was like a mantra.

The mobile, though, he spoke through some options and Faith nodded. "I think scent or movement would be great. I mean... " Looking at him she considered it. "So, a particular scent or movement and this moves. That's like what you did with the chameleon cloak in a way - it senses what is outside and responds to it? That works. I think." He'd be so glad to know that she thought it worked, she thought with a smile and she raised an eyebrow. "So, where shall we start?"

[Padraig]

"I wouldn't put it past my grandfather to be a part of one," Padraig said when they talked the possibility of betting pools. It would be just like Cyrus to do it, and yet to remain so inscrutable that no one would ever know it. In fact, Padraig suspected that not only would it amuse him, should the pregnancy result in multiple births, the older man would actually enjoy it. As for himself? More to love. There was plenty to go around, even if the idea of two, or three at once filled him with a distinct sense of panic.

As for luck, he smiled and shook his head. "That's one lucky baby too, to have you as a mother." But yes, he added and kissed her again. "We do good work, you and I." As for Rose, well, the grin disappeared and was replaced by a more solemn expression. No, she hadn't been real in a physical sense. "Love is love," he said. She was real in the heart, and that's what had mattered. He felt that too. "But no visions of Tristan. That's a very good thing." The man's name could never come up without reminding Padraig how much he didn't like him. But that's all it was. The anger, the resentment, the act of not liking. Those things were in the past and forgotten. Padraig wasn't the sort to hold a grudge.

"Bun it is then, until he or she comes along and lets us know their wishes," he agreed. As for the mobile though, the more he thought about it, the more they talked? " You know, I'm starting to think that we're making this too complicated. Not at all like a pair of scientists, yes?" he teased her. A mobile that reacted to their child's scent would be turning every time the child was put down, whether they or the child wanted it to or not. The same for sound, if the babe was to whimper or mutter in it's sleep or for movement, turn over.

I'm starting to think that maybe in this case, old fashioned might be best. Maybe we're trying to build a better mousetrap when an ordinary one works just fine." There was a reason after all, that some things endured. "I say we start by making a mobile. Unique to us or our child. But just a mobile. We can worry, or not, about all the bells and whistles later."

[Faith Augustin]

The thought that Cyrus Augustin might be involved in one of these alleged betting pools made Faith raise an eyebrow and then chuckle, with a slight shake of her head. Now that he said it, she had to admit, he was probably right. Cyrus would be in that betting pool and they both knew that he'd be delighted by the prospect of more grandchildren. As would they, albeit the thought of more than one caused her to panic, it also made her realise very clearly what she was feeling. Unbidden tears sprung to her eyes and she looked at him with some surprise at the sudden overwhelming emotions she felt. "I never imagined, never dared to, you know. I hear people say that someone else made their dreams come true, but it isnt' that, Padraig. I could not even conceive of this life of ours and you held my hand and brought me here. I can't... oh, why am I crying?" She looked at him and smiled, aware that she was making no sense. "My apologies, truly. I just... it's overwhelming, sometimes. I have so much happiness that I can't fit it in to my hands. And piffle." The last was said with much more of a business like tone. "Piffle that this baby is lucky to have me. I am frankly clueless, overly emotional and tend towards over organisation. And terrified, did I mention that? This baby is lucky to be surrounded by so much love."

Forcing herself to breathe, Faith grinned as he agreed that they did good work. Her eyes met his when he spoke the simple truth. Love is love, he said and that was it, in a nutshell. No visions of Tristan, though? Faith would and could only agree. It might even be that he'd served a function for them, when they'd been in Rharne, but that wasn't how she wanted this birth to happen. She considered, for a brief trill, asking him if he wanted to be there, checking to make sure and fussing, but she felt what he felt, heard his thoughts and knew, even without those things. There was no where else he'd be. Plus, he knew she wanted him there, so that added to the certainty that he would be there. There was no need to ask, she already knew that answer.

He spoke about them over-complicating and Faith considered it then smiled. "And you know, if Bun is waking up, then lets let her wake. I suspect I'm going to be standing over the crib waiting for the baby to wake as it is." That was undoubtedly true, in this moment. How it would be when she was getting far less sleep than she currently was, Faith genuinely had no idea. "So, a mobile? Just a mobile for Bun? Well, maybe we need to think about the room. We could.. that is, I was thinking stars? We could paint the walls to look like a night sky, and to have some light in there, I thought you could make some glowing paint or something, and we could paint stars? Can you do that?" If he could, she said, maybe they could make a mobile that combined glowing stars and shimmering planets and so on, using a combination of his alchemy and her sewing.

[Padraig]

"I've been told its what women do," Padraig teased, but also reassured her when Faith wondered why it was that she was so easily brought to tears these trials. He was sure that there was some medical, some scientific explanation for that tendency, for that which caused emotions from high to low to swing suddenly in one direction or another. But it certainly wasn't his field, and he didn't plan on it being. She was right though, there'd be plenty of love to go around.

He was just as concerned as she was, but in regards to himself and his ability to be the father that their child deserved. If it was some sort of learned skill, unlike most others he hadn't had an actual father to learn from. But then maybe he had. Cyrus had played that role and in retrospect, Padraig saw things differently than he had as a child. He couldn't have asked for a better father in fact. "We'll learn together," he promised her. "We'll teach him or her, and I suspect she or he will teach us in return."

But of course she didn't need to ask and Padraig would have been surprised had she done it. He wanted to be there. He wouldn't dream of being anywhere else during the birth. He agreed though, ultimately. He certainly wasn't any sort of expert or even a novice at child rearing. But he tended to think that a child ought to learn coping skills early on. If there was something external to soothe or lull a child back to sleep each time they opened their eyes, how would they ever learn to do it on their own?

"Just a mobile then," he agreed. But as she said, there was plenty more they could do to make the baby's room a place suitable for a child, and one that might soothe on the one hand, and stimulate on the other. "Stars. Now that I can do," he agreed right quick. Something in the paint used to do it, some sort of metallic element or mirror glass dust would work even better in fact. They might, he suggested, create a sense of dawn on one side of the room and dusk on the other. But either way, a roomful of stars it was. The stars themselves would be pinpoints of light, and of course in the daytime the window shades could be opened to let in even more light.

[Muse]

Your review is ready!

Baby talk, nursery talk, feelings and stars. I expect nothing less. This thread is cute. Both of your anticipations and concerns, excitement and planning, is all adorable together. I'm just going to cling to this adorableness every time I read a new reply in Missed Carriage. That's what I'll do.

Faith

Points

XP:
15 | These points cannot be used for magic.

Fame:
N/A

Loot

N/A

Injuries + Overstepping

N/A

Knowledge

Skill Knowledge:
Caregiving: Considering the functionality and appropriateness of furniture
Caregiving: Fostering Independence
Caregiving: Names, and identity, are important to self.
Caregiving: Reassuring an expectant father-to-be
Design: Planning a nursery
Design: Considering a theme for a room
Investigation: Putting together clues to understand when a pregnancy was an illusion
Investigation: Identifying differences, and similarities
Sociology: Cultural significance of relatives' titles

Other Knowledge:
N/A

Padraig

Points

XP:
15 | These points cannot be used for magic.

Fame:
N/A

Loot

N/A

Injuries + Overstepping

N/A

Knowledge

Skill Knowledge:Caregiving: Considering the functionality and appropriateness of furniture
Caregiving: Fostering Independence
Caregiving: Names, and identity, are important to self.
Caregiving: Reassuring an expectant mother-to-be
Investigation: Putting together clues to understand when a pregnancy was an illusion
Investigation: Identifying differences, and similarities
Leadership: Identify the bottom line in a situation
Leadership: Be clear when things are getting over complicated
Sociology: Cultural significance of relatives' titles

Other Knowledge:
N/A

If you've got a question or concern or if I've missed anything, don't hesitate to PM me!

Now that your review is complete,
don’t forget go back to your review post here and drop this image in!

Code: Select all

[center][img]/gallery/image.php?album_id=39&image_id=12206[/img][/center]