Birth

[survivesitall]

Sleep has been elusive at best, something that she chases most nights. Her accelerated pregnancy and the worries that she had because of that were only part of it. There were the regular worries that impending parenthood brought. Her sleeplessness tonight was another thing entirely, she realised too late.

She'd called Mindy and had grabbed her bag before Clayton had driven her to the hospital. They had Mindy's word that there wouldn't be any questions about it, that she would manage that end.

Labor itself was terrifying, and took far too long in her mind. When it was over and she had two newborn babies clutched to her chest it seemed worth it. A boy and a girl, just like her future. But were these babies the same or different? That was something Elena wasn't ready to wrestle with. For now she would look at her children and be grateful.

Comments

[cleverness]

"Maybe not. Though there is something nice about having someone with whom you can immediately bond with, based on the name," Hermione says softly, her expression melting immediately when she sees Elena reach out for Paige, holding her with an almost instinctual gentleness, like her hand knows exactly how to comfort the child.

Hermione's heart aches at the very sight of it.

"At least for now, neither of them are any the wiser. But someday, I'm sure they'll appreciate learning the stories you have to share with them."