Work Text:
When Esha opened her eyes, it was too sunlight streaming through tall windows. She had been cleaned, redressed in a soft cotton shift, and the bedsheets had been replaced. She had a vague memory of this, but all had been under a heavy haze since her labor started. She squinted at the light and groaned, shifting her body carefully so as not to agitate.
“Oh, you're awake! Sorry Mama, I wanted to draw.”
Esha's attention snapped to the floor by the windows. Oakley, her five year old, was sitting with charcoal in hand, doodling on a sheet of paper.
“Oak?” She rasped.
She could remember Davrin rushing into the room to assist with delivery like he had with Violet, but she wasn't aware he'd brought the kids with him to the Dellamorte manor.
Kal was insistent that she stay there closer to her due date, wanting to avoid her going into labor out in the wild. Esha had insisted her own house would do, now that she lived in Treviso too, but Kal was very worried, to the point of threatening to kidnap her, so she caved.
“Hi mama! Dad said not to bother you, but I wanted to draw them!”
“Not so loud, Oak. You'll wake them.” Esha sat up, smiling at him, then glanced towards the bassinet by the bedside.
Inside were two bundles, wrapped tight. Two little girls. Lily and Lavender. She reached over, hand hovering on the edge before she rested her fingers on the hem of the bassinet, her grin wide.
Oakley hobbled over to Esha and clambered up onto the bed with little agility, fumbling at the last minute before managing to pull himself up. “Hmph! Mama!” He harshly whispered. “Look!” He shoved the paper in her face.
She took it gently, smoothing out the wrinkles from the paper being mishandled. It was a drawing of two little smudges, and what appeared to be herself, standing alongside what she assumed to be Davrin and Violet. She smiled and tousled her son's hair.
“This is sweet, Oak. Where are you?”
Oakley snuggled up to his mama, pressing himself into her side and looked up at her with those big ol’ peepers. “Not in it yet. Cuz I didn't get to finish before Mama woke up.”
Esha winced as he pushed himself closer. Emmrich had warned her of this, of Oakley becoming possessive once he was no longer the youngest. She leaned over and poked his cheek. “You're hurting Mama, bud. She's not feeling the best right now.” She rasped. “Can you go get Dad?”
His eyes went wide, and he took a lungful of air as he leaned back. “Mama?”
She realized her ill choice of words. “Oh, shit. No, honey.” She reached for him as he hiccuped, covering his face. Wrapping her arms around him, she rocked the two of them back and forth in an attempt to soothe. “Hey Lil Blackbird…it's okay, you didn't hurt Mama. But Mama really wants to see Dad right now, okay? Can you go get Dad for Mama?”
“Dad's right here.” Davrin's voice came, both deep and soft, from the doorway, where he was currently giving their seven year old, Violet, a piggy-back ride. Violet was glaring at her younger brother. “And Dad told someone that he was supposed to be playing with his cousins.”
Violet began to pout angrily, her arms crossed atop Davrin's head. “He's a liar, Mama! He said he'd play with us, and then he ran off!”
“Shh sh shhhh my love. Don't you want to see the twins?” Esha reached out, and Violet hesitated for only a second, glancing down at Davrin like she was asking permission before he placed her on the floor and she scrambled over to Esha.
“Twins–” Violet said breathily. “Twins, Mama, dad! Twins!” She bounced, her eyes vibrant and yearning. “And they're sisters! Like me!”
Esha leaned back and let the two of them cuddle her close, though her sides and hips ached. It had been a rare treat as of late to have the two in the same room not fighting each other.
“When are they gonna show us their eyes?” Oakley moved to reach up, like he was about to touch the bassinet, and Esha quickly grabbed his hand as Davrin practically sprinted over, both freezing once she had Oak's hand in hers.
Davrin dropped onto the bed, clasping both Oakley's and Esha's hand in his. “Oak, bud. They'll show us their eyes when they wake up. Which we don't want them to be yet. They've had a looooong journey getting here. Long trip. And they're just now getting to rest after Mama did all that work getting them here. So why don't we all leave Mama to rest, and go play with your cousins downstairs?”
Oakley groaned and Vi stuck her tongue out, but ultimately it seemed the two agreed with the sentiment, because Vi reached out her hand to Oak to lead him to the playroom.
Once their chatter down the hall dissipated, Esha leaned back in the bed and whined. “My…everything feels like it's on fire, Dav.”
“Do you want ice? An iced drink? A massage?” Davrin asked nervously, and Esha had forgotten he had only done this once before, with Violet. Oakley was their little miraculous meteor baby.
“It's okay, Dav, really.”
“You said that last time and then you fainted when you tried walking to the bathroom.”
Esha rubbed her face in annoyance. “Dav, truly. I am well and truly fine. Just tired and hurting. Nothing you can help with at the moment, unless you wanna get me that tonic Viago promised from the bedside drawer.”
Davrin nodded, reaching to rub her arm and press a kiss to her palm. “Just checking. You're sure there's nothing?”
“Just come here, please?” Esha's hands shifted, reaching up to touch his shoulder. “I'm feeling rather lonely.”
“Lonely?” Davrin hesitated as he moved to lay down next to her. “Should we not have sent the kids away?”
Esha's eyes closed as she leaned her head wearily against his chest, seeking that life-giving sound. The one that assured that, for the moment, the lingering effects of the Blight had not yet taken her husband. Esha knew full well by this point the calling should have taken him. They had thought that maybe, with the gods gone, it was a threat of the past. But then a fellow Warden had gone. Then another.
Esha was truly grateful for every day she was getting with Davrin. Sometimes she just wanted to be selfish and keep him all to herself, but there weren't that many opportunities. He wasn't just ‘Davrin’ anymore. He was ‘Dad’ to the kids,‘brother-in-law’ to her siblings, and ‘Warden’ to Viago. He was so many different things now, that sometimes he couldn't keep up with her. So this was a moment she was stealing.
“No…I just need my husband for a moment…” She mumbled right up against his pulse point, feeling the thump thump for herself.
Davrin froze, then quickly pulled Esha in tight, and she wanted to yelp, but his arms were so warm and his face was buried in her neck.
“Love you too, Esh. More than anything.”
“More than Assan?” She asked weakly, chuckling.
“Hey now,” His chuckle was deep, and thoughtful. “Don't push your luck.”
“How dare-”
His lips moved, and she was sure he was going to kiss her, so she tilted back. But right as he was about to press, a wail resonated from the bassinet, and Esha sighed.
“Aaaand one,” Davrin began, sitting up and smoothing out his clothes.
A second wail burst forth, higher pitched and clearly upset at the noise.
“Two…” Esha struggled for a moment to sit up until Davrin helped lift her.
Violet and Oakley burst into the room, Oakley bedazzled with glitter and wearing a paper crown equally covered in Glitter, most likely not of his own creation, given it was glued into his hair.
“Who made the fair maidens cry?” Oakley boomed.
Violet pushed him. “Don't scare them more, doofus! Mama, I wanna show you this cool throwing trick Uncle Kal taught me!”
“And three–” Esha began.
“And four.” Davrin finished, laughing as he handed one of the twins to Esha, but then it quickly became obvious what had woken them, and he passed the other to her as well and helped her open her shirt.
Esha, surrounded by the five people she loved most in the world. And the other three were around here somewhere. She began to hum a lullaby under her breath, though it seemed to be working more on her than anyone else. She couldn't wait to get home and rest in her own bed.
But for now, this would do.