Welcome to Gaia! ::

Eyes wide, Maddie nodded and took Aiodhan's hand. "Bye Mommy!" she called after the departing women. Evan looked up at Aiodhan, trusting him completely.
"OK. I'm ready."

"No no, Gaia General's fine. 'S where Evan was born, actually." Kimie winced as another contraction hit. "Oh! I need to call Lulu!" She fumbled for her phone in her purse. Thank the gods for speed-dial.

Amyla held the car door open, giving Kimie a sympathetic smile. The poor woman looked so harried. Amyla didn't blame her. So much to think of in such a little space of time. "Hop on in. You can call her on the way. And if she needs a babysitter, Aiodhan will be at the house in about the same time it takes us to get to the hospital," she replied.

Kimie hauled herself into the passenger's seat, trying to ignore the pain. Finally locating her phone, she punched in Lulu's number. "Hey. It's me. The baby's coming.-- No, Amyla's with me. Aiodhan's got the kids-- Gaia General. OK. OK. See you soon." She smiled rather feebly at Amyla, snapping the phone shut. "She'll meet us there. Her kids should be OK alone for a bit."

Amyla clicked the seatbelt in place and jogged around to the other side of the car, settling herself in and starting up the engine just as Kimie hung up the phone. "Sounds good. I'll take you in through the ER entrance. It's a much shorter walk, and I can bully the staff there to get you settled faster." Her grin turned malicious as she turned the car down the road towards the hospital and stepped on the accelerator. "Rank has its priveleges."

"Thanks so much," Kimie breathed. "I'd forgot this was your hospital. I guess this wasn't such bad planning after all!" She giggled, her body almost getting used to the cramping in her middle.

Lulu had rushed to the hospital as soon as Kimie has called. Rini had clinged to her leg, and so was with her as well. It was a mad rush in Lulu's land rover, so fast that they had beat the rest of them there. So ther bunny child and Lulu wating were they thought they should, Rini in Lulu's lap ans Lulu fidgeted with the girls hands.


"mom, were you this nervis when i was born?" complained the little girl as she tok her hands back.

lulu smiled and huggle the child, putting her in her own seat "ymuch more so, i turned into a bunny i was so nervis"

Rini giggled "silly mommy"

"You're welcome. Keep laughing," Amyla chuckled as she turned into the parking lot. She wasn't on duty, but she did have one special spot always reserved for her. That was one of the perks of being a staff doctor. It also meant she could get in the ER back door with minimal walking required. Normally she regarded this as lazy. Today she called it 'efficient.' Braking to a stop in her spot, she put the car in park and unbuckled her seatbelt, sliding out of the car door before her body got too lazy to move. She walked around to the other side and opened Kimie's door. "Welcome to Gaia General, ma'am. We hope you enjoyed your ride," she quipped, her eyes glinting with mischief.

"Oww, OK, now it's not funny any more!" Kimie stated as the car jerked to a halt. "Ha," she barked. "Welcome indeed." Wincing, she took Amyla's hand and pulled herself out of the car. "How fast can you get me checked in? And can you ask someone to keep an eye out for Lulu?"

Amyla chuckled and shut the car door. "Laughing helps, you know. Trust me on that one," she added, leading Kimie towards the ER door. "And I can get you checked in pretty fast. I'll have them meet us at the maternity ward with the paperwork. You can give them Lulu's description as you fill out all of the forms. Sorry, but I can't do that for you."

They were just getting close to the door when an nurse that Amyla recognized by face came out with an interestingly bemused look on his face. "Uhhh... h-h-hi, Doctor. Is there something wrong tha-"

"What does it look like to you?! Clear me a path through the ER, and have somebody meet me at the ward with all of those damn forms that you guys love to shove at people, and don't you dare make me fill out any!" Amyla replied. Yep, she remembered this guy. He'd been nicknamed "Twitchy" for his jumpy nature and for his last name that she still couldn't remember.

The man looked completely confused. "What ward?" he asked.

Amyla made an unusual growling sound in her throat and pointed at Kimie's contracting belly.

The man's eyes widened to the size of saucers, and he nodded furiously. "Yes, ma'am!" he replied before disappearing inside, missing Amyla's giggles.

Despite the pain she was in, Kimie couldn't help but be amused at the young man's dithering. "You've.. dealt with him.. before?" she gasped. "Silly to have.. to do paper.. work at a time like this." The last part of her statement came out in a rush. Times like this, Kimie lamented being bipedal. Full felines didn't have any problems giving birth-- something about the position of the hips.

Amyla grimaced. "Yeah, I know, but it's some bureaucratic junk that we have to do. You think you have lots, but your doctor always has several times that amount. For every form you guys fill out when you come in, we get it in triplicate at least. Insurance, full-scale reports, x-ray readings, patient chart updates... and the ER is worse since we have to deal with EMS reports and nearly minute-by-minute vitals readings. It's a nightmare sometimes," she sighed, half-leading and half-dragging the cat-woman through the ER. Despite the fact that it was busy, the nurse had had the good sense to clear a path through for them. Amyla smirked. Yelling "woman in labor!" usually cleared the halls fairly quickly. They arrived at the maternity ward to find their favorite nurse waving a clipboard full of papers.

"My authority ends with the ER, so you get to take over from here since you're the lady with the baby. You name it, they do it. I'm serious. Enjoy," Amyla chuckled, giving Kimie's arm a light squeeze and snatching the waving clipboard. She also attempted rather unsuccessfully to get the attention of the nurse at the desk. Ye gads... was the lady blind or deaf... or both??

Kimie watched various people scatter from her path as she was propelled through the ER. "Oh, I bet," she replied. "Damn bureaucracies. Wait! Does that mean you're leaving me?" Her voice rose a bit, frantically. This was not the time to get all panicky. She tried to control her breathing, half-remembering advice from various pregnancy and childbirth books.

"Of course not! I'm just saying that you're the one they'll listen to now that we're out of my... jurisdiction," Amyla said soothingly, gently patting Kimie's back. "And don't fret too much about your breathing yet. Just relax with it, okay? Now where did that freaking idiot of a nurse go?" she grumbled, glancing around and offering Kimie the clipboard and a chair. "If he isn't back here in about ten seconds I'm going to go rip him an extra hole in an area we aren't going to mention in case there are children in the vicinity...."

"Oh good," Kimie sighed, inordinately relieved. The clipboard and pile of forms gave her something to concentrate on. She wrote quickly and neatly, filling in as much of her medical and financial information as she could remember, under the circumstances. The contractions were coming regularly, and Kimie was almost used to them. "Crap!" she yelled, rather more loudly than necessary. She'd been in the process of writing down her home phone number when she remembered: Danica didn't know what was going on! "Amyla, can you call my house and tell Danica I'm here? I can't believe I forgot!"

It felt weird to be in the hospital and not be caring for some emergency, some car accident victim or a child who'd fallen off their bike or down a flight of stairs. It felt strange to not be in charge, though Amyla was grateful for the time she'd taken off of work to spend with her little family. Kari especially needed her now that she was transitioning towards the 'teen' stage of her life. Her ponderings were broken into by Kimie's outburst and following request. "Call Danica? Okay." She unclipped her cell phone from her waist and dialed the number Kimie had written on the form, glad for something more useful to do as she put the phone to her ear. "I'll tell her that Evan and Maddie are with Aiodhan too," she added, settling herself in the chair next to Kimie as the phone rang on the other end.

Back at the house, Danica dashed for the phone. She had a feeling... "Hello?"
--

Kimie finally finished the last page. "OK, I hope that's it. Ow! That had better be it," she grumbled. Her belly was visibly moving. Where the hell was that nurse??

Amyla heard a familiar-sounding voice on the other end of the phone and breathed a sigh of relief. "Danica? It's Amyla. I'm with your mom at Gaia General and- wait, hold on just a second," she said as she saw the expression on Kimie's face.

Thankfully, the nurse at the desk had taken the initiative and fairly snatched the clipboard out of Kimie's hand and gently took hold of the laboring woman's arm to lead her to a room. "I'll let you beat him with the clipboard later for taking so long," the woman said kindly, steering Kimie down the hall. "We'll get you changed and comfortable in a bed."

"Err.... yeah, they're taking her into a room now," Amyla said rather stupidly into the phone, following after Kimie and the female nurse. The whole hallway was starting to look a little twisted, and she put a hand on the wall to steady herself as she walked.

"Oh! Good grief, um, where are the little ones? Oh, I bet Aiodhan has them," Danica answered her own question, just a bit flustered. "Is Mum alright?" She could hear the voices and other noises in the background. "Does she want me there?"
--

Kimie grinned at the nurse in spite of herself. "Thanks-- he deserves it!" she stammered, trying to keep on her feet. "A bed.. sounds good." She twisted around and mouthed "Thank you," at Amyla.

"Umm... yeah, Aiodhan has Evan and Maddie. And since my phone hasn't been ringing like crazy, I'm guessing they're surviving all right," Amyla laughed dazedly, squinting at the hallway again. It kept moving on her. Why couldn't it stay straight so she could walk properly?! "Hold on a sec, I'll ask her...." she responded to Danica's question, pulling her mouth away from the phone and glancing ahead at Kimie. She grinned and mouthed a "You're welcome" and then added outloud, "Danica wants to know if you'd like her here and .... whoops!" She nearly tripped over her own feet and fell over, keeping one hand on the wall to steady herself.

The nurse chuckled at Kimie's comment and then glanced back at Amyla's seemingly drunken act. "Now what did you do to yourself?" she asked rather sternly, watching the woman wobble her way down the hall.

"Nono, I'm good. The hallway just keeps moving on me," Amyla replied with a vigorous shake of her head.

The nurse looked thoroughly unconvinced but steered Kimie into a room anyway, taking the folded gown off the bed and handing it to the cat-woman. "Here, I'll draw the curtain around the bed to give you some privacy. Did you need some help in changing, or would you prefer to do it by yourself?" She glanced back at the doorway. "Has she been drinking?"

"Tell her to stay at the house, please, that way-- Whoa, are you OK?" Kimie fumbled with the loose clothing she'd been wearing, not particularly caring if various parts of her anatomy popped out just then. Dang hospital gowns being so complicated! "I got it," Kimie told the nurse. "And I hope she hasn't been drinking; she's pregnant!"
--

"What's going on?" Danica asked. "Amyla? You still there?"

"Yeah, I'm still here," Amyla muttered into the phone, plopping herself down in a chair inside Kimie's new room. The walls really needed to stop moving like that. It was bothering her. "And she'd like you to stay at the house."

The nurse chuckled and drew the curtain around the bed to give the woman something resembling a bit of privacy. "Well, that'd explain it. She doesn't look like she's due anytime soon, though," she remarked, watching Amyla with a critical eye. "We'll set your clothes over here on the table when you're down and then get you comfortable. Is there anyone else coming that we should know about? Spouse, children, family, friends?"

Amyla faintly heard a remark about drinking and gave Kimie a smirk through the curtain, not caring that the woman couldn't see it. She wisely covered the mouthpiece of the phone. "No, I haven't been drinking, Kimie, but it does remind me of a good story to keep you entertained."

"Er.. OK. I'll stay and hold down the fort," Danica said, wondering what on earth was going on in the background. "Tell Mum I love her, and I'll try to clean up a bit."
---

Working to tie the hospital gown around her neck, Kimie stifled a giggle. "I'll definitely need to hear this story!" She turned to the nurse. "No spouse, and the kids are accounted for. My friend Lulu should be on her way. Short, light blue hair, turns into a bunny." For a moment, Kimie thought of how strange her description might be. Ah well. Gaia. xd

"Oh, you shall hear it." Amyla smirked. "And Danica says she loves you and that she'll try to clean up the house a bit," she added as an afterthought, settling happily into her chair. At least everything had stopped moving around and she could see properly. She hated being dizzy.

Spying Kimie's difficulty, the nurse took the strings and helped the woman tie it properly, careful to leave enough slack for her to move. She knew how damned uncomfortable the things could be if tied too tightly. "No spouse and no other kids here to worry about... you've got things easy, don't you?" she chuckled. "And we'll be on the lookout for your friend. Now, let's get you comfortable in bed here so I can leave you two to talk about whatever it is that I don't want to know."

Danica hung up the phone and proceeded to go on a manic cleaning spree.
--

"Oh yes, this is real easy," Kimie drawled. At least the contractions didn't seem to be getting any worse... She let the nurse heave her onto the bed. "Urgh. Shall I yell if anything changes?"

"It could be worse. You could have a spouse fussing over you, and kids wailing every time a contraction hit," the nurse pointed out, trying to settle Kimie as comfortably as she could. "And yes, if anything feels horribly different, do let out a call. The call button is on the side of your bed there, right beneath where your right hand would be if you were lying on your back. I'll be back every fifteen minutes or so, and the doctor will be too. You take it easy." She gave the woman's shoulder an affectionate pat, granted Amyla a wary look, and then promptly strode out the door to investigate cries coming from down the hall.

Amyla grinned. "I've got time until I'm in your spot, and I'll enjoy myself until then. How're you feeling?" she asked, getting up and moving her chair closer to Kimie's bedside. "You look so excited," she added with just a hint of sarcasm.

Kimie made a face. "Good point," she told the nurse, grimace turning to a smile at the woman's friendly manner. "Ooh, that doesn't sound pleasant," she said, cocking her head in the direction of the hallway.

She stuck her tongue out at Amyla. "Hey now, just you wait! You'll be like this soon enough. And yes. I'm thrilled," she finished dryly.

"No, it doesn't sound pleasant at all. And I'm just going to watch you enjoy yourself for now. My time will come.... eventually." Amyla hid a snigger behind her hand. "Now, how are we to amuse ourselves while we await your child's appearance?" she asked, nestling deeper into her chair and folding her arms across her stomach.

Kimie shifted her weight, trying to get as comfortable as possible under the circumstances. "I believe you had a story to tell me..?" She waggled her eyebrows.

Amyla watched Kimie shift herself in bed. Being fifty pounds overweight and feeling like you'd swallowed a moving bowling ball did not look appealing at the moment. She was very grateful for the time she had before she really started to grow around her midsection. "Ah, yes.... the story of how I met Aiodhan. It involves alcohol, a thunderstorm, and a young doctor who was far too curious for her own good," she chuckled, grinning at the memories.

Indeed. It wasn't appealing. "Ow," Kimie grumbled as another contraction hit. "Ooh, this does sound entertaining!" She rubbed her eyes, wondering how much longer this was going to take.

Amyla patted Kimie's hand in a sympathetic gesture. "It'll be over soon enough. The more you stress over it, the worse it'll be." She squirmed a bit in her chair. Now her back was beginning to ache. Excellent.... would the problems never end? "Well, to start with, Aiodhan wasn't always the way he is now. He used to be fully human, and he was the most arrogant, stuck-up, conceited, pigheaded womanizer you could ever imagine. He got leukemia when he was about eighteen and mistakenly got an improper bone marrow transplant. He got dragon bone marrow instead of human. Let's just say it didn't go well. He continued his career as a writer in self-imposed solitude. He was ashamed of his body, not to mention the fact that he couldn't save his little brother's life when the kid got the same form of leukemia not three years after Aiodhan's diagnosis." She sighed and looked down at her hands, absentmindedly twisting her ring around.

Kimie raised a brow, not too far gone to notice the other woman's discomfort. Maybe she needed a pillow to put behind her back or something... She nodded, content to listen to the tale.

Amyla took Kimie's silence as assent to continue. "Anyway, Aiodhan finally got so sick of himself that he... well, he tried to kill himself by drinking himself to death, but since he only had a six pack of beer and his draconic half made him more tolerant of it, that didn't work well. So, he walked outside and tried to get struck by lightning, and that didn't work either. Then he got the brilliant idea of flying up into the storm to get struck by lightning, but since he couldn't fly well, he ended up crashing... in my backyard. We found him there the next day, and I was pretty sure he was dead. It is kind of strange, you know, finding a naked, dead, half-dragon, half-man on your lawn. He ended up rambling something, and I dragged him into the house and slowly nursed him back to health. What a joy that was." She half grinned, half grimaced at the memories. "We did nothing but fight the first two months. He was still so conceited and wrapped up in self-pity that he didn't care what effect he was having on the rest of us. He also hated clothing and refused to wear any in the house. You can imagine how much we fought about that. He never left the property, never tried to fly, never did.... anything, really. Then he found my diary."

"Wow," Kimie said, trying to equate the strong man she knew with the whiny selfish one Amyla described. "You do still fight though," she pointed out. "Not vicious stuff, though. Teasing."

"Oh, of course we fight!" Amyla laughed softly, still half-lost in memories. They enjoyed the arguments. It actually brought them closer together, resolving their differences like that. "He read my diary and realized what a selfish, conceited ingrate he'd been, and his attitude improved. He started wearing clothes again, he got a job, he got on better terms with the rest of my 'children' and the menagerie. We still didn't get along, though. I thought it was just an act until we had another thunderstorm. The power went out, so we lit a fire and settled down in front of it. The rest of the household drifted off to bed, but we stayed awake talking and.... well, you can imagine how that night ended up." She had just enough modesty to flush a bit.

Kimie snorted at the "ending" to the story. "No, what happened?" she asked, feigning innocence. She kept a straight face for approximately three seconds... and then burst out laughing. "Ow! Ow, OK, laughing is a bad idea! Oh, crap!" Kimie turned red as she realized the bed underneath her was wet. "Er.. I think my water broke..."

Kimie's laughter was infectious, and Amyla started laughing too right up until the point where Kimie announced a bit of progress. She sobered up immediately. "Oh, well... I think we might want to get some help in here, then," she said, reaching over to push the call button. She was nearly shaking with excitement, and it wasn't even her child. Oh dear... that meant that she'd be a shivering wreck when it was her turn. That also reminded her of.... "Lulu! We forgot to tell them about Lulu!"

Kimie started to reach for the button before realizing Amyla was handling it. "I thought I told the nurse? I dunno where Lulu is.. She should be here by now..." Distracted by the arrival of new, stronger contractions, she flopped back against the pillows.

"Oh, you told the nurse? I don't remember." Amyla frowned, lost somewhere in her thoughts. Was she really getting that forgetful, or had she been on the phone during that conversation? She saw Kimie flop back on her pillows and quickly sat upright, looking rather relieved when the nurse bustled in and started fussing over Kimie again.

"What'd you- ah, I was wondering when your water would break. We'll get you sitting a bit more upright to so the doctor can check how you're dilating."

"I think you were on the phone." Kimie let herself be fussed over. She could use a bit of pampering after the past few weeks. "Oh goody," she said dryly. "Dilating." How had she managed to forget how uncomfortable Epona had been during labor??

"Ah... yes, well, that'd explain it," Amyla muttered, scooting her chair back to the nurse didn't have to work around her. She grinned at Kimie's expression. "Shall I tell you how many emergency C-sections I've performed, or should we wait on that until later?"

The nurse gave Amyla a frosty look and then settled Kimie in an upright position. "All right, feet flat on the bed and as far apart as you can get them with your knees pointed straight up. Then we'll get the doctor in here to check on you..."

Meanwhile, another nurse had come in and was setting up a variety of things for the delivery, ranging from a padded table to rest the baby on after the birth to scissors for cutting the placenta, gloves and masks for the doctors, and a host of other things that made Amyla's smile grow even further.

"I've got my camera, or would you murder me if I used it?" Amyla chuckled.

"C-sections? Urgh, tell me later." Kimie rolled her eyes and situated herself as the nurse instructed. Oh yes, that had to be an appealing view. She glared at Amyla at the mention of the camera. "Ha, very funny." >.<

Amyla burst into an unrestrained fit of giggles, practically doubled over in her chair. She couldn't help it. Kimie's response was just too.... well, it wasn't all that amusing now that she thought about it, but the giggles just wouldn't stop coming.

Both nurses rolled their eyes. "You sure about that drinking?" the one fussing around Kimie asked, giving the giggling woman a critical look.

Amyla tried to respond, but she was cut off by the arrival of the on-duty doctor who thankfully was female.

"Ehhh, you just wait until you feel like a leaking beached whale!" Kimie laughed in spite of herself, not particularly caring what the nurses thought just then. She managed a little wave at the doctor. Let's get this show on the road..!

Lulu and Rini were in the waiting room still, and lulu was getting pissed "K I M I E, KIMIE you BRAINLESS buffune" and there the third one went off crying "for the LOVE of ALL THINGS HOLY!! WERE is KIMIE!!!" she was screaming now, the birth had to be over by now.

Rini had tacken her moms purse to the vending masense and was now having a blast with all the food.

Fortunately for Lulu (and the rest of the waiting room), one of the attending nurses just happened to be making a brief trip to the vending machines. Hearing the shrieking woman, she approached her.
"Um, excuse me, ma'am, you wouldn't happen to be a Ms. Tiffany, would you? Your friend is in delivery. Catclaw, right?" She smiled, used to dealing with cranky visitors.

Rini was right behind the woman "yeah! thats us! thats us!"

Lulu smiled "oh thank you!" and hugged the woman "yes, thats me, please, you can take us to her? i feel so bad! shes not alone, right? how is she?"

The nurse smiled, disaster averted. "Oh yes, she's just fine. Right this way." She turned and looked Rini over. "We're really not supposed to let children in, but... You promise to stay out of the way and be really quiet?" She might get hell for it later, but then, if the kid behaved... "And no, she's not alone. She came in with one of the ER doctors here, actually." The nurse led the way through the maze of hallways to the delivery room.

Both nurses chuckled, even the doctor cracking a broad grin. "Leaking beached whale? Hmmm... can't say that I've heard that one before," she mused, snapping on gloves and moving beside Kimie's bed. "I'm just going to check to see how far you're dilated..." she explained as she went through the motions of checking, one eyebrow raising up nearly to her hairline. "How long have you been in labor for? You feel pretty well ready to push."

Amyla giggled once more and calmed down, settling back into her chair with a heavy si- ouch! She cringed at this newfound ache in her abdomen, giving her belly an apologetic rub. Laughing that hard did painful things to the abdominal muscles, and she remembered that a bit too late. Ah well.... she simply watched the doctor and nurses go about her work, glad not to be Kimie's shoes just yet.

"Glad I could -oof- make your day." Kimie noticed the doctor's expression and shrugged. "I dunno.. A while?" She glanced over at Amyla. "She rushed me over here," she explained, indicating the (considerably less) pregnant woman.

Lulu ran over to Kimies side and huged her tight, crying a little "KIMIE!!!! I am SO sorry that i am late"

Rini tugged at her moms shirt "um, mom, i think you should stop smuthering her"

Lulu stepped back "right! right! sorry that about that Kimie" she wipped a tear away and heald Kimie's hand, not paying an ounce of attetion to anyone else "so, how are you doing?"

The nurse escorting Lulu winked at the doctor and left the room, which was getting rather crowded.

"Lulu! You made it! Oh, and Rini too!" Kimie made a valiant attempt to hug them both. "Well, uh, I'm OK. Seems you got here just in time..." She waved an arm, encompassing the room: the doctor, Amyla, various nurses.

Kimie had finally found the time to visit the Farland clinic again. This time, she wasn't pregnant. Madoc was tucked into Evan's old snuggli, chewing happily on his tail. Maddie was perched rather precariously on Kimie's left hip-- her right one was covered by the ever-present diaper bag (which also served as a purse and all-around garbage recepticle). Evan skipped along in front of his mother and siblings.

"Is that Ay-oh's car?" he asked hopefully. He scanned the parking lot. "I think it is!" He dashed towards the entrance, coming very close to whacking into the glass.

Kimie grinned and followed the halfling, thorougly covered by lemur-children.

Amyla heard rather than saw someone else enter, but her attention was more on the strange woman in front of her. Never heard of cars or traffic? Didn't understand the implications of a fertility clinic? What hole had she been hiding in?! "Cars are vehicles, forms of transportation. Is English your second language, or are you that new to Gaia?"

Karael held back a giggle, though just barely. Her smile matched Aiodhan's smirk, the hybrid simply shaking his head. He was still watching the mystery man, though, one slit-pupilled gray eye always staying on the man and his nearness to the Ancient child.

Kimie entered the room just in time to witness Faun spilling her guts. She set down Maddie and un-snugglied Madoc, hoping he'd stay put on the chair for a minute. "Are you alright, dear?" She patted Faun's back reassuringly. "Can I help you get to the bathroom?"
Edit: She glanced up at Mili. "Er.. is she with you?"

Evan dashed headlong into Aiodhan. "Hi Ay-oh, Hi Kari! Uh-oh..." He stared as his mother dashed across the room.

Amyla cringed and felt a definite surge of empathy as she spotted Faun emptying her stomach. She watched Kimie and another man she didn't know fussing over the young woman, knowing very well how it felt to be puking up your every meal.

Aiodhan gave an exaggerated "Ooooomph!" as someone crashed into him. "Whew... Evan, you must be getting pretty darn strong. You nearly knocked me over," the dragon-man remarked with a dramatic wobble.

Karael rolled her eyes at her mother's boyfriend and then launched herself off the couch at Evan. "Evan!" she said happily, throwing her arms around his neck and moving to whisper in his ear, "Let'sgetoutofherebeforeweturnintoadultstoo!"

Amyla nodded. "Diamonds are worth quite a bit here depending on their quality, but that is really quite ridiculous. They're made of carbon, one of the most abundant elements. Every year, diamond marketers hold back as many, if not more, diamonds than they sell in order to keep them rare. It is one of the laws of economics. Stupid idea, really, but .... excuse me for a minute." She dragged herself to her feet and headed in Faun's direction, genuinely concerned. Healthy people did not usually empty their stomachs so suddenly.

Kimie patted the girl again. "Some Sprite might help her stomach," she said. "Take it easy, OK?" She led her over to a couch so she could lie down. She waved at Amyla and the others, padding over to join them.

Scooping Madoc up, she flopped into the chair he'd been on. "Hey," she smiled, extending a general greeting to her friends, as well as to those she didn't know.

Evan grinned up at the dragon-man. "Yeah! -- Eek!" He nearly fell over as the little green girl threw herself at him. "Gettoff, Kari, you're choking me!"

Maddie hugged Aiodhan around the ankles. "Zam'n'Maddie pounce!"

Seeing Faun comfortably situated, Amyla debated for a moment if she should extend her assistance as well. She decided against it and went back to her very comfortable chair, settling into it with a happy sigh. "Ah.... better. And 'ello, Kimie. How's the littler lemurling?" she asked, grinning at Madoc.

Aiodhan managed a wave at Kimie before executing a real wobble as something latched on to his ankles. "Gaaaaaaah! .... Oh, it's Maddie. What're you doing down there?" he asked, finally managing to balance himself with his massive wings. "You're going to make me fall over!"

Kari reluctantly released her friend. "Sorry, but the adults are really bugging me. They're acting all serious and treating me like a baby." The Ancient child shuddered and then grinned all of a sudden. "I'm glad you're here. Now I've got someone to talk to."

"He'd doing well, as far as I can tell!" Kimie grinned and patted the boy's mop of red hair fondly. She glanced over at Faun and frowned slightly. "I do hope she's alright..."

Maddie giggled. "Maddie pounce Ay-oh!" she announced. Obviously. What did it look like she'd been doing?

"Stupid adults..." Evan glared around at the older group and stuck his tongue out at his mother, who simply rolled her eyes.

"Go play," she instructed, waving an arm towards a different corner of the room. The corner -not- containing the unfortunate potted plant!

Amyla grinned at Kimie and Madoc. "He is so adorable. Not causing any trouble at all?" she asked, glancing in Farland's direction as the woman's voice echoed throughout the entirety of the clinic. Amyla glanced back at Kimie with wide eyes. Shrieks were generally not a good sign.

Aiodhan noticed the noise but was too preoccupied with staying upright to react. "Yeees, you did pounce on me, but I'm about to fall over, Maddie!" he remarked rather emphatically, finally bracing himself upright with his wings and tail. Whew.... crisis momentarily averted.

"Not stupid... just thoughtless," Kari corrected him, instantly trying to drag Evan off towards the gestured corner. "Got any ideas? I've been bored for ages!"

"Remarkably, no. I bet that will change once he's mobile, though!" Kimie mock-glared at Maddie, who was content to hug Aiodhan's ankle.

"Silly Ay-oh fall!" she chirped gleefully, clapping her hands around his leg. She looked up at him with her best winning smile.

Kimie snorted and peered in the direction of the noise. "What on earth..?"

Evan allowed himself to be dragged off, ignoring Kari's admonition. "I dunno... There's coloring books..." he said, rather dubiously.

"My mother always told me that good babies make for terrible toddlers. I was a horrible baby and never slept, but as soon as I hit my toddler stage, I was quiet, respectful, and well-behaved. Let's hope Madoc just stays the way he is, eh?" Amyla chuckled. She glanced in Faun, Farland, and the other man's direction, giving a noncommittal shrug. "I have no idea...."

"Yes, I am going to fall," Aiodhan said, trying to be frustrated and only succeeding in grinning idiotically down at the innocent little toddler. She was just too cute.

Kari didn't have to fake a gag. "Coloring? I hate it! I can never stay in between the lines," she muttered, releasing her deathgrip on Evan and glancing about for something to do.

"Oh dear..." Kimie murmered, trying not to stare. "Anyway... Well, Evan was a good baby. Noisy, but happy-noisy. Which I guess is the same now." She grinned at Aiodhan. "You alright there? Maddie, let go of him so he doesn't fall and crush you."

Maddie pouted for a minute, then lost interest in her own bad mood. She sat back and leaned against a chair. Pulling her tail into her lap, she patted it and cradled it like a babydoll.

Evan made a face. Coloring wasn't so bad, but.. "Then what do you want to do? Legos? Uh.." He shrugged.

Amyla chuckled at Aiodhan's predicament. "Oh, you should have left him there, Kimie. If our child is anything like either of us, he'll be getting that a lot." She watched Evan and Kari for a moment. "Happy-noisy, hmm? Whatever he is now, he is definitely good for Kari. It's nice for her to be around someone roughly her own age. She was becoming a little too mature."

Aiodhan breathed a sigh of relief at his release and then folded his legs beneath himself to sit in front of Maddie. "Whatcha doing, Maddie?" he asked, watching her play with her tail. He kept his own tail safely out of her reach, well remembering Evan's love of pouncing upon it.

Kari's eyes went wide at the idea of Legos. "Legos? Building stuff? Okay! I like building stuff. I build graham cracker houses a lot, and it drives Mum crazy!" she said, grinning from ear to ear.

((Farland had to go, too, so we can just say they're having a shouting match outside xd
DMR has also left))

Kimie watched the unknown couple leave and shrugged. "Evan needs friends his own age, too. He's barely seen Lulu's girl, Rini, since they were both toddlers."

Maddie pointed at her tail. "Play with tail, see? Take care of." She nodded, as if that explained everything.

Evan grinned at the little green girl. "Legos are awesome!" He dug around for a bit in the toybox, pulling up the plastic blocks by the handful.

"Not enough socialization stunts a child's social maturing," Amyla said in a mock somber voice. "One of my coworkers has only a single child who spends more time at piano lessons, private swimming classes, and tutoring sessions than with other kids his own age. As a result, my colleague has a child who is nine and can do multi-digit multiplication in his head yet can not play a simple game with any of his classmates. I don't want Kari to be like that." She paused for a moment, trying to conjur up an image of Rini from their last meeting when.... oh, at Madoc's birth! She couldn't remember getting a good look at the girl, though. "That long? Kari has seen her fellow Ancients more recently than that, but she is still a little bit secluded. Would it be all right if she and Evan got together to play more often?"

Aiodhan didn't understand the logic of it, but he nodded and agreed anyway to placate the girl. "Ahh, okay," he said, picking up the end of his own tail. Now what? He tried to mimic Maddie's cradling and petting movements and failed miserably, looking rather ridiculous and eliciting a snigger from Amyla when she glanced in his direction.

Kari joined Evan in his Lego-finding, having a bit more trouble clutching at the blocks with her three-fingered hands. She managed well enough, though, and grinned every time a green block was pulled from the box. "What're we going to build?" she asked after awhile, settling herself down on the floor with yet another double handful of Legos.

Madoc began to fuss a bit, nuzzling his face at Kimie's chest. She nodded a brief apology and pulled up her top so he could nurse. Madoc gurgled happily, content with his meal.

"Now pat, see? Nice," Maddie instructed, oblivious to the sniggering and Aiodhan's apparent embarassment.

"That would be just fine. I worry about him sometimes, whether he should be in school, or if he's fine learning from me. He's a smart kid, and I think he'd get bored in a regular school. He is Kender, after all." Kimie smiled, acting more than a little bit the doting parent.

The halfling thought for a moment, rifling through the piles on the floor. "A castle, maybe? Or.. a pirate ship!"

Amyla nodded and glanced over at Evan and Kari for a moment, watching them play with the Legos. She did spare a glance for Aiodhan and his new predicament, just barely containing her giggles.

"Pat.... okay," he said, patting his leathery tail. He felt rather stupid, but Maddie seemed to be enjoying herself. "What next, Teacher Maddie?"

"A pirate ship? I've never made one of those before," Kari mused, picking through the pieces until she found a long flat one. "We can use this as the bottom of it."

Amyla pursed her lips thoughtfully. "I debated that for awhile about Kari too, but I decided to keep her at home in the end. I didn't think it'd be fair to her to put her into a normal school since she matures at such a different rate from the normal Gaian child, no matter what race it is. She doesn't grow so much as transforms at certain points, not to mention the fact that she isn't entirely humanoid anyway. I would just feel badly putting her in a school if she'd be picked on." The woman didn't miss Kimie's smile. "He is a very smart kid. That might be why Kari likes him so much. He knows things that she doesn't, and Kari likes to know everything." She rolled her eyes rather affectionately at Kari's strangeness. She loved the child to death, despite the fact that the green creature drove her batty.

"Then tail happy!" Maddie's tail twitched and did, indeed, seem happy.

Kimie giggled. "I gave her a babydoll to snuggle like that, but I guess this is easier, since her tail is attached!" She watched her little daughter and Aiodhan, eyes barely containing her amusement.

Madoc smacked his lips, fuzzy ears twitching. He liked being around so many people! They had funny voices and were good to look at. Full, he emerged from under Kimie's shirt and peered around, giggling to himself.

Kimie rearranged her top and bounced Madoc on her lap. "Maybe Evan and Kari could even have some lessons together? They don't seem to be bothered by each others' strangeness."

"Good," Evan nodded. "I'll start the sides. Can you make some masts and stuff?" He set about fitting the pieces together.

"Uh... yes, happy tail," Aiodhan agreed, twitching his own tail about.

"It'd be funny to see if she would dress her tail up like a doll," Amyla mused, watching the toddler and dragon-man play. Aiodhan was so patient with the little girl, and they looked so funny that the situation was completely adorable. She heard a series of giggles and turned to grin at Madoc as he bounced up and down on Kimie's lap. "Happy now, are you? Just like all men. Fill their stomachs, and they're happy," she chuckled, ignoring the blatant glare that Aiodhan sent in her direction.

"Okay, but the masts are going to be red since there aren't very many brown pieces. Brown gets boring anyway," Kari remarked, picking up a few pieces and stacking them atop one another to make the start of what was to be the ship's main mast. She found another thin, flat piece to make one of the crossbars for the sails and tried to pick it up with one of her three-fingered hands. She failed. With the piece resting flat on the floor, her fingers couldn't grip it to pick it up. She kept trying anyway, growing increasingly frustrated with each failed attempt.

Amyla, watching this scene unfold from her chair, nodded thoughtfully. "Lessons together would do them a lot of good. I don't know about Evan, but being the only child in a 'class' hasn't taught Kari very good cooperation skills. I know it would do her some good to be working with someone her age, and the fact that he is used to her oddities will make her much less self-conscious. They could learn a lot from each other."

Kimie giggled and fluffed up Madoc's hair. "He likes people. That's why I figured it would be good to get us all out of the house. I think Evan was going stir-crazy." She watched Evan and Kari across the room. "He definitely needs someone his own age around. Maddie is too young, and Danica is so much older."

Maddie smiled at Aiodhan. "Good, good! Happy." She nodded. Clearly, the whole situation made perfect sense!

Evan reached over and handed the piece to Kari. "Here you go. And red is a good color." He sat crosslegged, busily working to make the sides. "White and yellow for the sails?"

Amyla couldn't resist a laugh at Madoc's new hairstyle. "You're stylin' now, Madoc." She watched Kari and Evan in silence for a moment, lost somewhere deep in thought. "You know, I've got a few days off next week. Perhaps you could bring your family over some time. You and I can teach and socialize, Evan and Kari can learn, and Maddie and Zambarau can have another pouncing lesson. Did Maddie tell you about that? Zam wouldn't stop talking about it for ages."

Aiodhan pretended to understand and grinned back at Maddie, still lost as to what the significance was of making one's tail 'happy.' Ah well.... at least Maddie was amused.

"Thanks," Kari muttered, clearly embarassed. She placed the obstinate piece across the top of the mast and then rooted around in the pile for some yellows and whites. "Yellow and white make good sail colors. I'll have to find some black for the flag too," she added thoughtfully, adding some very thick brick sails to the red mast.

Fear a feline on a mission.

Kimie traipsed into the Farland Clinic with a lemurling on each hip. Setting Maddie down to explore the toy-corner, she stepped up to the reception desk. "Excuse me, I need to speak with Farland... It's a matter of some importance."

She shifted Madoc over to give that hip a rest. The little boy peered around, wanting to be let down. His sister had toys. He wanted toys! "Dow'!" he demanded impatiently.

"Hush," Kimie said softly, brushing his reddish hair out of his eyes. "I'll put you down in a minute."

"Er, I hope this isn't a bad time," she began, taking in the woman's appearance, "but it's really the first chance I've had to stop by for a while. May I come back to your office and talk?"

Madoc blinked charmingly at Farland, always glad to be around people. "Hi!" he said cheerfully before hiding his face in his mother's shoulder. Kimie grinned. Across the room, Maddie was happily banging a few wooden blocks together, pleased with the noise she was making.

"Oh! Well, I won't take up too much of your time, but.. OW!"
Madoc grinned, a fistful of Kimie's hair in his hand. "Fine, I'll put you down. Go play with Maddie." She rolled her eyes and set the little lemur-boy down. He shot across the waitingroom floor on his hands and knees and promptly joined his sister's game of, "Let's See How Much Noise We Can Make With These Blocks."

Kimie followed Farland to the office, glancing sheepishly at the receptionist who was holding her ears and wincing.

"Congratulations in advance. I know first-hand how hard a long labor is." She grimaced sympathetically. Taking a seat, she sat cross-legged on the chair, suddenly not knowing how to begin.

"I.. well. Hm. I was wondering about Maddie, actually. I mean... she showed up at my house. Looking like me. Calling me "mommy." And well, I figure she has to have something to do with this clinic, since she also looks so much like Madoc," she finished in a rush.

Kimie blinked, nearly too surprised to answer. Farland didn't know?? Regaining her composure, Kimie nodded.

"Yes. She claims to be my daughter. She showed up on my doorstep when I was still pregnant with Madoc. Amyla and Aiodhan were visiting, actually, and we found Maddie playing in the flowerbeds."

Meanwhile, the children in question were busily stacking up the blocks as high as they could and then proceding to knock them down with a crash.

"Hm, now that I think about it, she hasn't really grown since.. arriving."

Maddie hopped up and dropped the handful of blocks (loudly of course) and skipped into the office. She clambered up onto her mother's lap at peered at Farland with her huge teal eyes.

Again, happy to have someone's attention, Madoc smiled winningly at Jeremy. "B'ock!" he announced, thrusting a block at the man.

Madoc, of course, was oblivious to that fact. "Bear!" he chirped, holding out a stuffed bear. He beamed. He knew words!

Kimie raised a slim brow and nodded at Maddie. "Go on, sweets, show Ms. Farland." The little girl slid down and turned around, presenting her shoulder for inspection.

Madoc dropped the bear, distracted by the shiny things on the man's face. "Glass!" He made grabbyfingers at Jeremy's spectacles. Mommy had shiny things like that, too. They were interesting, and he'd been taught how to hold them Very Carefully.

"What the..?" Kimie peered at her daughter's shoulder. "Is that.. a barcode?" She blinked, wondering how she'd managed to miss that. She reached out and patted Maddie's shoulder, as if searching for a sign that this was a new development. Somehow. "What do you mean, a 'toddler'? Of course she's a toddler..." Kimie's voice trailed off, catching the import in Farland's tone.

Maddie squirmed, not understanding why her shoulder was under such scrutiny.

Madoc, who knew that Breaking Glasses Is Unacceptable, as is Touching the Lenses, held them Very Carefully. "Shine. Pretty." Madoc nodded thoughtfully (or, as thoughtfully as an almost-toddler can) and handed the glasses back, much to Jeremy's relief.

"I.. see." Kimie blinked yet again. "But.. why me? And, if these toddlers had some .. other fuction.. why aren't they doing it? I mean, why did Maddie show up at my doorstep, and," she took a breath, "Who would do such a thing??"

Maddie's lip quivered, sensing her mother's distress. "Mommy mad? Not.. want Maddie?" She sniffled pathetically.

Kimie calmed down at once. "Of course I want you, sweets! Mommy is just.. trying to figure things out, OK?" She winced. The last thing she'd wanted was to upset her little.. daughter. The little girl sniffed again and climbed into Kimie's lap, demanding hugs and reassurance.

" I dont know.. But... They somehow had to get your DNA. "

Farland fround a bit, watching maddie " Darling, just think of it this way. Your mommy CHOSE to keep you, become she loves you... " She said, smileing happily.)

Kimie thought about that for a moment. "Really, that's why I came here. Because of Madoc and all. Especially since Maddie is distinctly lemur-ish..." She shrugged and continued petting Maddie.

With a final sniff, Maddie nodded and climbed down. "Go play again." She trotted out to the waiting room and plopped down next to Madoc.

Madoc waved, opening and closing his whole hand, at Maddie. "Pretty," he announced, pointing at Jeremy's glasses. Maddie examined them carefully ("look with your eyes, not your hands!") and nodded in agreement. Pulling her tail into her lap, she patted it, as if cradling a doll.

"That I can understand, I suppose. But.. how would they get my DNA? I've only ever volunteered it here..."