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This was not the first time Caleb had been present for the birth of a child.
Oddly enough, in his scorned and battered life, he had two chances to experience the absolute miracle that was a mother bringing new life into the world.
Once was when he was very young - one of his mother's dearest friends had come over to share stories and soup, and while talking about ingredients, she had doubled over into unexpected labor. He had been upstairs with Frumpkin when he heard the screams, and for a moment thought, as scared young children are wont to do, that someone was attacking the house.
Una Ermendrud, however, was not scared, and she guided her friend to the hearth.
"Bren!" she shouted, her voice level but carrying with it a significant urgency he had never heard before. "Go fetch your father. Quickly!"
He did not see much more after that, for once Leofric had managed to sprint home, he had told Bren to wait outside. The beautiful sounds of a baby crying and a woman laughing came much later, after the sun had fully set, and the evening was filled with joy.
The other time was less joyful. He was older, if only just, out to market with his father, when they happened to pass by the street where the town doctor resided. Limping towards it with a full belly had been a younger woman, wailing in labor, helped feebly along by her frail mother.
Leofric had swooped forward immediately, abandoning Bren's outstretched hand in favor of assisting the woman to the door. Her mother had thanked him, though Bren could see tears in her eyes, and there was already blood on one of her hands.
"Will she be alright, Father?" he had asked naively.
His father had pulled him aside once the door had closed, kneeling to meet his eye level.
"The doctor will do his best. But these things, they do not always go the way of life."
"But that is a life," he had insisted, confused. Already he was aware of the unfairness of it all, and even now he wondered if at such a young age he had already begun thinking of ways to magically undo hurt.
"Ay, yes it is. And by all the gods' blessings, it will continue to be. But right now, we must get you home."
He hadn't questioned why their trip to town was now being cut short, but he was smart enough to pair it with the screams coming from behind them, within the doctor's home, as they walked back to theirs.
Now, he was sitting in a plush chair in the living room of Marion's quarters at the Lavish Chateau, and despite every ounce of effort he was making to focus on the former memory, of laughter and joy and new beginnings, all his mind could torture him with was the latter - the hauntings of something very very wrong.
Veth's screams were not helping.
He knew his best friend. She was tough, she was strong, and though she had suffered much in many battles, he had never seen her give in fully to pain. Yelps and screams of mock torment in her goblin form, screeches of anger as she saw her son burned, one particularly horrible day in the bath surrounded by ignorance. He had heard them all.
Nothing compared to right now.
Now, his friend was in pain. True, awful pain. And the worst thing in the entire world was that he could do absolutely nothing about it.
There was no monster to fight. No evil enemy to cut down. No arcane force that he could muster to defend her.
Now, her only protectors were behind a closed set of double doors, holding her tightly and encouraging her to push.
The rest of the Nein was here too, of course. When Veth's water broke, it had fortunately been in the middle of one of their delightful monthly reunions - food and drink and family. Nobody had needed to travel far to be there for her.
Caduceus and Yeza were by her side instantly, the former of which had been prepared for a potential labor for months. Marion had gently stepped inside after her daughter had burst into the room to help assist, and despite the four of them being what Caleb thought could only be the best possible team for his friend at the moment, the thoughts of blood and horror persisted.
Fjord paced fiercely back and forth before the door, wringing his hands. Beau had resigned herself to punching a nearby mannequin to relieve her stress, with Yasha offering weak pointers as an attempt of a distraction. Kingsley, still quite new to the world, had his ear to the door, facial expressions changing every minute in morbid fascination.
None of them mattered, however, as much as the figure within Caleb's arms. Luc's green-dyed hair was unkempt, his latest batch of eyeliner streaked partially across his face and staining Caleb's shirt, for the boy had spent the past several minutes shivering within Caleb's grasp, teary eyed and terrified.
Another scream pierced the air, and Caleb felt Luc flinch.
"Uncle Caleb?" the boy asked, voice wet and broken. He was a teenager, yes, but within this moment, he was nothing more than a child scared for their mother. Caleb knew that feeling well.
"Ja?" he responded, refusing to admit his voice was just as shaky as his nephew's.
"Is my mom gonna be okay?"
"I…" He didn't have an answer. Why did he not have an answer? Of course she would be! She was with the best, she was tough, she could overcome anything, she had overcome everything. Such a trivial mortal thing such as this could never best Veth the Brave.
And yet as his heart moved to say such things, his fear closed his throat, and he could only nod woodenly.
"She is a very brave woman, your mother," he whispered into Luc's ear.
"I know," came the quiet answer. Caleb smiled.
Time continued to brutally pass. Night had fallen hours ago. It was currently 2:42am. The screams had become intermittent now, punctuating the chilling quiet with ferocity, and Caleb was terrified to think about why they could have slowed.
Beau and Yasha had curled into a small cuddle pile in the corner, holding each other close, frowns of deep concern lining both their faces. Luc had fallen asleep in Caleb's lap, but there was no force in the world that could send Caleb to rest now.
He felt Essek's gentle hand fall onto his shoulder.
"I can take him," he offered, gesturing to Luc. "You should rest."
"Nein."
"Caleb - " Essek began, but Caleb shrugged his hand off.
"What is happening in there?" he demanded softly, determined not to wake Luc. "It seems peaceful, but if it is not done, then - "
Veth's yell this time was not just of pain, but of fear. Caleb could hear it. He sat bolt upright, jostling Luc slightly, who groaned in sleepy protest.
"She may be dying, Essek," Caleb gasped. The stress and the terror of the day was beginning to finally take a stranglehold. "She could be dying and there's nothing I can - "
Essek waved a hand, and Luc was gently transferred to the floor with a waft of graviturgy, a soft pillow pressed under his head for good measure. Essek then knelt before Caleb, taking his hands and holding them tight.
"Caleb Widogast," he said firmly. "If there is anything I know with the utmost certainty, it is that our friends will fight like hell for those they love and cherish. Veth is fighting her own battle tonight. She is with people who will defend her, in their own way."
Caleb was shaking, though Essek's touch was ever-grounding.
"I could do something, I could - "
"Caleb, I firmly believe that if you so much as touched that door, Veth would cease her labor and shoot you with her crossbow herself."
The absurdity of the remark shocked Caleb enough into a nervous bout of laughter, to which Essek embraced him, laughing softly.
"Let this be, my love. This is not your battle to win."
Caleb managed a nod and pulled his lover closer, attempting deep breaths. Essek's scent was calming, his arms warm, and he allowed himself to fall victim to the lure of sleep.
He had not realized he had dozed off completely until he was awoken roughly to the slam of a door.
"The baby is here!!" Jester's voice squealed. "They're both fine!"
There was an absolute surge of overwhelming movement, as each member of the Nein simultaneously leapt towards the doors, Beau & Fjord shoving each other out of the way in an attempt to lay eyes on their newest member first.
Caleb hung back, Essek helping him up out of the chair, and they held each other's hands tightly. Luc was nowhere to be seen, and Caleb presumed the boy had already snuck his way through the tangled web of bodies that were currently crowding the doorway.
"One at a time, please!" came Marion's voice, and just as quickly as the chaos had started, it stopped, as all listened to the Ruby. "Now be quiet and gentle - the baby is sleeping."
One by one, the Nein trickled into the bedroom. Caleb came last, stepping over the threshold, and he beheld a magnificent sight.
Veth was upright in bed, holding a tiny bundle in her arms that looked no bigger than a kitten. Yeza was beside her, rubbing her shoulders, while Caduceus washed his hands nearby, folding dirtied towels away.
Prestidigitation was a powerful spell, despite it being a simple cantrip. But Caleb was also a master wizard, well versed enough to tell the difference between clean laundry and freshly magicked clean laundry.
These towels had been filthy not a few moments ago. And though the redness was all but wiped away, the iron tang of blood still hung within the air.
He locked eyes with Caduceus, and he could tell his friend knew exactly what he was thinking.
"She is very tough," Caduceus offered, though they both knew it was a weak reply. "All that matters is that they're safe."
Caleb knew there was more - gruesome details that part of him never wanted to know, and part of him desperately needed, if only so that he could make peace with the fact that, as Essek had said, he truly could not have done anything.
But all such thoughts vanished from his mind when he heard Veth call his name.
"Caleb?"
He turned towards her and found her extending her arms, the bundle shifting slightly within her grasp.
"Do you want to hold her?" she asked softly.
His body moved before his mind could process the words. He took a gentle seat next to his friend and accepted the bundle with the grace of one handling porcelain.
Her eyes were shut tight but her fingers and toes were wiggling. Her head shifted slightly, and he adjusted to her weight immediately to keep her comfortable. Her hair was a tuft of brown, her cheeks round and soft.
"She's beautiful," he breathed. He lifted a finger and touched her tiny palm, and miniscule fingers wrapped around his pinkie.
"Damn right, she is," Veth said proudly. She was smiling, but her face was ashen. Her hands were shaking.
How much blood did she lose? Caleb thought. How close was this tragedy averted?
A small tug on his finger wiped all of it from his mind, as the baby's little arms were now squirming, her grip on Caleb not budging.
"Veth…" He couldn't remember how to talk. "I…are you okay?"
"Of course I fucking am! Who do you think I am, some weak old grandma?"
The joke was weak, but people laughed. Caleb, however, cast yet another glance at Caduceus, who smiled sagely at him, folding the last of the laundry away into a hamper.
"I recommend plenty of bedrest and fluids," he told Veth.
"Sweet, I can be pampered!" Veth announced.
"I can have the Chateau's finest workers provide you with anything you need," Marion reassured her.
Caleb managed to pull his pinkie away from the baby before gently handing her back to her mother. His touch lingered on Veth's hand, as he looked directly into her eyes.
"Are you sure you're alright?"
The zeal and pride in her expression faded, if only briefly, as a flash of fear crossed her eyes.
"Caleb," she whispered, pulling her newborn close to her chest. "You know that if anything happened to me, I would trust you to take care of my family. Right?"
Caleb instantly nodded.
"Of course."
"Then I'm alright," she said with a smile. She playfully smacked his cheek, then looked around.
"Where the fuck is my son?! Luc, you're a goddamn big brother now, come meet your baby - "
A teenage halfling jumped out from behind the bedframe and nearly knocked the baby out of Veth's hands with how hard he hugged the both of them.
"Mom! You're okay!"
"I won't be if you kill your sister before you even meet her!"
Caleb stepped back, allowing the family to finally reunite, albeit in their chaotic way.
Marion was the one who met him as he drifted towards the edge of the room, content to let the rest of the Nein have their turns coddling the baby.
"Y'know, for a palace of pleasure, the Chateau has quite fittingly had several instances of childbirth," she observed. "But none so eventful as this one."
"Was she in danger?" he said. It wasn't even a question, just a simple desperate breath of a plea.
Marion pursed her lips.
"Yes. Gravely so. I will not lie to you and say that she wasn't. But she is brave, as you said. Plus, it helped immensely to have a talented cleric and possibly the loudest cheerleader ever by your side. My Sapphire refused to let her give up. It was like it was her own child, coming into this world. It would not do for either to depart it just as quickly."
"It is her own," Caleb said fondly. "In a way. She may be Veth's daughter, but she is the Nein's family now."
"Gods help her," Marion joked, and finally, finally, Caleb could laugh.
"Caleb, come back here!" Veth demanded from afar. "We need to pick out a good name!"
Marion smirked.
"Have fun. Dearest new uncle."