A Flawed Fragility: Chapter 22
Author: TheLadyHoll
Pairing: Andy/Miranda
Rating: PG13
Disclaimer: Yes, they are mine. I own them. Come to me my pretties and dance, DANCE I SAY. Or, more truthfully, not...
Chapter 22: Growing Pains Pt.1
Meh...the second half of this chapter feels disjointed to me, but I've played around with it all I can if its going to be updated before Christmas (Don't worry, that's only an exaggeration...kind of).
DO let me know what you think, as always I shamelessly await & cheer for every 'ping' of an email notification :) xxx
Miranda seemed to have the same concern regarding the girls, Andy noted as they sat curled up on the couch one evening, looking through lists of baby names and debating the pros and cons of choosing more 'C' names and coordinating girl to boy and vice versa.
"D'you think Cora is too close to Caro?" Miranda looked up, peering over her glasses as she drew the younger woman's attention away from the list of names on her laptop screen. "I don't want Caroline to feel like she has to give up her name as well."
"Hmm, Caro, Cora, Cora, Caro," Andy rolled the names around on her tongue, mulling over the syllables and the cadence of the two words. "Um, I don't think so, but we can always ask her. You KNOW how the girls have been on us to let them help choose the names."
"I just don't want to make this harder on them than it needs to be."
"Miranda, the girls are ecstatic about the babies. They are SO excited."
"What happens when the excitement wears off and we're left with two screaming teenagers alongside two screaming infants." Miranda was working herself into a state again and Andy sat up from where she was laying on the carpet next to the couch.
"Relax…Breathe, baby." Andy's fingertips rubbed soothingly across the distressed woman's breastbone over her heart before moving to the lower right quarter of her belly.
"Tell me, what do you want to name this baby right here, underneath my hand. Who's this?"
"Cora," the older woman whispered uncertainly before repeating in a stronger voice. "Cora," a smile lit up her face then that was mirrored in the younger woman's.
"Okay then," Andy's grin continued to threaten to split her cheeks.
"What are you guys doing?" the girls appeared in the doorway of the study.
"Talking about names for the babies."
"Awesome! Have you decided yet?" the girls dropped down beside Miranda on their respective sides, each placing a hand over the babies to feel them kick as was their routine.
"We think so," Andy turned to the older woman who then turned to her eldest baby.
"Sweetheart, we wanted to ask you first before we made any final decisions."
"Why me?"
"Well darling, you know we wanted to give the babies names that started with 'C', just like you and your sister, and we've come up with a name we like very much but we wanted to get your permission first because the shortened version of her name would be very similar to yours."
"What is it?" The little girl looked dubiously at the two women in front of her and then at the now very conspicuous bulge at Miranda's waist.
Andy smiled, absently reaching out again without realizing it to circle her hand over where the baby girl lay. "This baby would be 'Cora'."
"Like Caro?" the redhead whispered, going silent for a long moment, looking at her hands before removing them from Miranda's stomach.
"So you ARE going to forget about us!"
Everyone in the room was shocked at the outburst from the opposite twin. Cassidy was on her feet in a flash, hands tightly fisted at her sides as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Sweetheart, what are you talking about?" Miranda was horrified at her daughter's reaction. She had perhaps expected the girls to feel slightly jealous of their siblings, as was common, but she hadn't imagined anything like the scene in front of her as both redheads ran from the room in tears, the twins slams of their bedroom doors resonating like gunshots in the ensuing silence.
"My God," Miranda breathed, tears springing unbidden to her own eyes.
"No, sweetheart, no"; Andy spoke firmly but gently "there's something else going on there. The girls I know would never throw a tantrum like that over something like this. There's something we're not seeing here."
Miranda's first response in her current wounded state was to push the younger woman away and point out that 5 months was hardly enough time to say she could know her girls. But memories of their last monumental argument and subsequent separation, no matter how brief, was enough to make the distraught editor hold her tongue.
Wary brown eyes watched the play of emotion in steely blue until the latter closed and opened once more and Andy was once more looking into the gaze of 'her' Miranda. The steely blue widened slightly in amazement at the remarkable creature in front of her as the young woman smiled softly and leaned forward to kiss her lips, nose and forehead all while gently running her fingers over Miranda's forearms as her breathing evened out after the near panic attack.
The hand Andy had offered to the older woman to help her off the couch stayed tightly clasped in hers as they made their way to the second floor. The two women knocked lightly before entering the girls' bedrooms, and seeing the adjoining door between the rooms flung open and noises could be heard from inside, Miranda began to speak.
"Bobbsey's, I…"
"Mom," Caroline appeared in the doorway, hands on her hips and lips pursed in an eerie replica of her mother in full dragon mode. "We get it. We're almost eleven, we're not stupid, or babies, you don't need to call us Bobbseys anymore."
"Yeah, you can save that name for the NEW twins." Cassidy emerged from the walk-in closet, her little face a thundercloud as she pulled out a suitcase that was nearly as tall as she was.
"We're supposed to go to dad's this week anyway. We might as well just stay there so you can start getting rid of our stuff."
Miranda felt her stomach rise into her throat, and despite the steady warmth of the young woman's hand against her back that was keeping her from crumbling, Miranda could feel the brunette trembling slightly as brown eyes filled with tears.
It was Andrea who found her voice first, dropping to her knees in front of the bed.
"Why? Why would you EVER think we wanted to send you away?"
"You have mom and the new babies to be your family. You don't need us."
"Yeah, we're just extra baggage that's in the way."
Something about the young girl's turn of phrase didn't sit quite right and Miranda found her voice as she pulled out the stool from the girls vanity, lowering herself awkwardly onto it, using her hand as a counterweight to her belly so she didn't overbalance.
"Darling, has someone said something to you to make you believe that?"
"It's true, isn't it? Stacy said that's what happened to her family when her dad left and her little brother was born. Now she hardly ever sees him cuz he spends all his time with his new wife Juana."
"Sweetheart, you know you're only spending the two weeks in a row with your father because of Paris, and the way the schedule worked out this year. It's not because we don't want you around."
"But now you spend all your time focussed on the babies 'cuz they're sick and you're afraid they're gonna die."
"They are NOT going to die," Miranda's voice changed, her tone uncharacteristically harsh and with some difficulty she stood and left the room.
Andy sighed, running a hand across her eyes as she tried to choose her words carefully. So much for the easy night she thought she would have. Now it seemed there was endless damage control to do on both sides. "Girls, I think you need to apologize to your mother. You know how important it is that the babies grow as big and strong as they can in case they need to be born early. That's the only reason I'm going to Paris too for part of the time; it's not a vacation so much as it is a health precaution."
"We know, Andy. We don't want them to die, we just…don't want them anymore. It's changing stuff."
Andy sighed, realizing this was a battle that wasn't going to be won in an evening. "Alright. I'm sorry you guys feel that way, because your mom and I know you'll be the best big sisters these babies could ever have; but they're not going anywhere and neither are you."
"They're not even here yet"
"Yeah, and they're not even yours."
"Girls, that's enough." Andy snapped before closing her eyes and counting to ten slowly. When she opened them again she saw the door close behind the girls and heard the 'clunk' of their suitcases as they dragged them down the stairs to meet their father.
Miranda's door was still closed, but before the girls had the chance to leave, a familiar voice could be heard from the top of the stairs, and the heads of the four people standing in the foyer turned towards the direction of the sound. The editor was coming down the stairs; one hand was on the railing while the other clutched a soft, worn cream coloured rabbit, whose patina finish on the button nose had long been worn off by years of kisses.
"Cassidy? Darling? Bobbsey you forgot Mr. Bun."
Cassidy shook her head. "No. That's okay, give him to the baby. I'm really too old for stuffed animals anyway."
Miranda's lips parted soundlessly, dismay evident in her features, but the little girl had already turned away and was lugging her bag out the front door with only a wave back in the direction of her mother.
"She's had him since she was a baby," Miranda whispered, absently stroking the whiskers of the stuffed animal and picking at errant bits of fluff. "The first night we put her in the crib by herself instead of the bassinet to sleep she grabbed onto him - it was almost as big as she was, and every night after that she would reach out one little hand for him and would not settle if she was put in her crib without the silly thing."
Miranda hugged the stuffed animal to her chest. "When she was 3, it was lost for a week once. I fired 3 assistants that week, one for every night I had to come home and find that my baby had cried herself to sleep again; not one of them could find a duplicate."
"Where was he?"
Miranda let out a deep belly laugh before covering her mouth. "He had gotten mixed up in the dry cleaning somehow. We got him back the next week, carefully pinned to the clothes hanger by his ears. The tag was checked off as 'Accessories; other; fur: animal; faux".
"I've never had to speak to them like that before," Andy remarked sadly as her mind turned back to the earlier events of the day. "Guess my reign as the 'cool parent' has ended."
"Mmm, I'm afraid you're finding out what it really is to be a parent."
"And you're sure you want to do it again?" Andy joked weakly.
"I do…Unfortunately, reality…"
"Is a bitch," Andy supplied, huffing frustratedly as she flopped face down on the bed dramatically once they'd entered the bedroom.
Miranda snorted, "I was going to say 'is never as good as the fantasy', but I suppose either works."
Knowing Miranda was leaving the next day for Paris, the two women spent the evening at home, making final preparations for the trip. As Miranda's luggage was already packed and had been sent on ahead of her, this consisted mostly of Andy packing and re-packing Miranda's carry-on and making sure the editor had everything she needed for the 6 hour plane ride. But before the younger woman could go over her checklist for the third time, Miranda's cell phone rang showing Cassidy's number.
"Bobbsey? Is everything all right my darling? Are you with daddy?"
"Yeah, I'm ok," the small voice replied before pausing for a long moment as if the caller were unsure of their next words before they spilled out all at once. "Mommy? Can you sleep with Mr. Bun tonight so he's not lonely? I know it sounds stupid…"
"No Bobbsey," Miranda reassured her youngest daughter, thrilled beyond belief at the prospect of sleeping with a ratty old stuffed animal because it meant her baby was still her baby for the time being. "I'll take good care of him, I promise."
"Oh, um, okay then. G'night." The little girl ended the call quickly and Miranda sighed, knowing her daughter was still upset even if she had called her.
Andy had heard the conversation through the speaker of the phone and she reached over for the device, plucking it out of Miranda's hand and setting it on the bedside before pulling the covers back on the bed. "Alright, hop in," Miranda could see the impish grin on the younger woman's face, her teeth gleaming in the moonlight as she bared them in laughter at her own joke. "Hop to it!"
Miranda casually left the rabbit beside her pillow, but when Andy woke the next morning she saw that sometime during the night Miranda had reached out and was now soundly asleep, the rabbit clutched tightly to her chest as she cuddled into it.
Reluctantly, very reluctantly, Andy left both soft, white denizens of the bed and began to get ready for the day.
When she returned with two steaming mugs of coffee, Miranda was lying on her left side, awake but unmoving as her hand played tag with the babies across her tummy as she tried to feel their position.
"The babies just woke up." Miranda looked up at the younger woman, a soft smile lighting up her face as she moved her gaze upwards. "And it would appear they are greeting the day rather energetically," she added at a firm nudge to her kidneys.
"Good morning baby boy," Andy cooed as she rubbed the right side of Miranda's belly, and she turned her head from where it rested on the swell and pressed her lips to the left side. "Hello, princess." Miranda ran her fingers through the mass of chestnut waves spilling across her chest and closed her eyes in contentment, an unfamiliar peace flowing through her veins.
"You two are going to be good for mommy while she's in Paris, right? Mama's going to come see you in a few days once she's finished her very boring article."
Miranda continued scratching the younger woman's scalp, chuckling as Andrea's resulting growl of pleasure made the babies kick as the vibrations travelled through her skin. "I know it's hard working your way up, darling. But it will pay off soon…"
"Yeah," Andy sighed, "And I know I've already taken off waaay more time than any other rookie should at this point, NOT that I'm complaining or blaming you for that, or you guys for that matter," Andy referenced Miranda first with a light kiss to her lips and then two on either side of the swollen belly.
"Mmm, I do know we've made rather too many demands on your time," Miranda murmured regretfully, feeling even more guilty at the fact that she didn't feel more guilty about monopolizing the younger woman's time.
"But hey, Greg's been thrilled with my work so far even if my hours have been somewhat irregular; and if the office scuttlebutt is to be believed from the times I actually HAVE been privy to talk around the water cooler, there's going to be a HUGE opportunity coming up for a story. The words 'career-making' have been bandied around, so fingers crossed my being in the office for a whole week, plus my work on my current story will put me in the running to cover that, whatever it is."
"Oh my God," Andy grinned even wider, unable to help herself as the older woman's lips pursed in an unmistakeable pout at the idea of Andrea leaving her for any period of time. "Do you have any idea how cute you are?"
"Hmmph," Miranda grunted, "there was a time when you feared me, now I've been reduced to 'cute'." Miranda caressed the head that had made its way back down her body and was nuzzling her belly as she gave further 'instructions' to the babies.
"Mommy has a lot to do this week, and mama's not going to be there, so my little troublemakers, no making her get up to pee more than 3 times during a show, okay?" Miranda snorted and then groaned as the action did, in fact, make her aware of a certain fullness of her bladder that couldn't be ignored.
Glaring at the younger woman as she bounced effortlessly off the mattress, Miranda pointedly refused her offer of help getting up from the bed and stalked to the ensuite bathroom, hoping against hope that Andrea hadn't noticed the breathlessness the action caused.
She didn't, as it happened; watching Miranda walk across the room the only thing the grinning brunette took note of was the fact that her gait had begun to take on what could be distinctly called a 'waddle'.
Miranda's flight left at 3 o'clock New York time, which meant the Runway group would arrive in Paris at 3:30 am their time. It was an overnight flight, which Andy hadn't been pleased about, knowing that it meant a full day of shows a mere two hours after the plane touched ground and knowing that the editor wouldn't have gotten any sort of decent rest on the trip over, especially now that she couldn't take anything to help her sleep. It was Emily, however, who she heard from first Andy noted as she answered her phone, squinting at the clock next to the bed that confirmed it was just about the right time for the commercial air liner to be landing at Charles de Gaulle in Paris.
The Brit's voice came over the line, exhausted but obviously thrilled to finally be 'a Paris'.
"Hey Em, what's up?"
"Andrea, her feet are swollen. What should I do?"
"Hi to you too, Emily. Has she mentioned it or does she look like she's in any discomfort?"
"Andrea, really, do you think Miranda Priestly is going to complain about her shoes during fashion week? In Paris no less? And what exactly would you have me say to her? Oh Miranda, you're looking rather puffy this morning. Why don't we kick back and put our feet up during one of the most important events of the year!"
"Not this year, Em. I'll give you next year and probably the next ten after that to use that excuse because you'll be right. But this year's main event is not Paris."
"Yes. You're right, okay, point taken…" the redhead admitted brusquely. "But still, how do you propose I deal with this?"
"Eh, right now, they're probably swollen because of the plane ride rather than her blood pressure. If she has to do any interviews, don't let her do them on the red carpet or she'll be standing there an extra hour. See if you can find a green room or somewhere off to the side, or even an empty seat next to her before the show starts and bring the interviewers to her for micro-interviews - about a minute and a half should be enough per person for them to forget about any inconvenience over the arrangement as they'll be getting more than a single quote or statement. Also, limit the number to 5 of those, total. She's the reigning 'Queen of Fashion', a little extra exclusivity in the wake of all the media surrounding her won't hurt."
"Right. Got it. Is there anything I should have prepared for her or anything for her suite?"
"If you can, and if it works within the schedule, arrange for a basin or a footbath from the spa to be filled with hot water and sent up to Miranda's room 5-10 minutes before you get back to the hotel, and text me or shoot me an email to let me know so I can 'happen' to call her and make sure she's using it."
"Hot water. Footbath. Fine."
"Thank you, Emily, and you're welcome."
"This is all YOUR ruddy fault you know."
"I do have a job you know, and despite the fact that the babies growing in that beautiful belly are my children, I'm not the one with the penis, Em."
"What I would do to Stephen if I got my hands on him," Emily growled, "then HE wouldn't have a penis either…"
Andy smiled, the redhead tried to hide it but she knew she cared deeply for the editor, past simple respect or hero-worship.
"By the way, you DO in fact realize that you sound like a nauseatingly love-sick puppy when you talk about Miranda?" the other woman sniped.
But the brunette's grin only grew wider, "Mm-hmm."
True to her word though, Emily texted Andrea back in New York once they had arrived at the hotel and been shown to their suites.
Miranda picked up the phone, not bothering with hello as she answered. "I hate that you're not here with me."
Andrea could hear the pout in the editor's voice through the phone and she bit her lip against the fond chuckle that threatened to break free. "I know, sweetheart, I do too. D'you think you could maybe try to lie down for a little bit though? Just for an hour or so until you have to get ready to go."
This was followed by another long-suffering sigh from the Paris-end of the conversation even as Andy heard the faint creak of bedsprings as the editor made herself comfortable as best she could. "Which side is it that's supposed to be better for me to lie on?"
"The left is better for the babies."
"Mmph."
"You're drinking plenty of water, right? Emily also has a prescription bottle with extras of your prenatal vitamins and the anti-nausea meds Dr. Jansen prescribed in case the jet lag makes the morning sickness come back or throws your hormones out of whack, and"
"Yes, yes. Could we speak about something other than my physical needs?"
"Mmm, but I do so love taking care of your needs," Andy purred, laughing at Miranda's resulting growl, picturing the older woman squeezing the pillow between her knees that she had started sleeping with to reduce the strain on her back and scowling at her through the phone.
"Really, Andrea, now you've done it. I won't be able to get any rest now that you've got me, that I'm thinking, that…"
"Ohhh", Andrea teased "tell me where it hurts and I'll kiss it better."
"I'm going to hang up now if you're going to be cruel and torture me like this. Now, to change topics, have you spoken to the girls since I left?"
"Miranda, it's almost two in the morning here."
"Oh, darling I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was so late there. This must be what all those magazines refer to as 'pregnancy brain'." There was a longer, protracted silence until she decided to let her insecurities show. "Do you think they'll still be terribly angry once I'm back?"
"I don't know sweetheart," Andy answered honestly, wishing she had it in her to lie to Miranda. "But even if they are, they'll get over it, you know they will."
A fretful silence met her response, so she tried a different tack. "I love you, Miranda," the young woman's voice rang sweetly through the speaker.
"And I you my darling. I'll ring you later after the shows." Andy smiled, knowing the decidedly British tone the older woman's voice had taken on in the last sentence meant that she was slowly giving in to her fatigue and was close to falling asleep.
"Let me say good night to the babies?"
"No, I know you. You'll just get them all worked up and then Lord knows, I'll never get any rest. Good night, Andrea."
"Goodnight, my loves."
Pairing: Andy/Miranda
Rating: PG13
Disclaimer: Yes, they are mine. I own them. Come to me my pretties and dance, DANCE I SAY. Or, more truthfully, not...
Chapter 22: Growing Pains Pt.1
Meh...the second half of this chapter feels disjointed to me, but I've played around with it all I can if its going to be updated before Christmas (Don't worry, that's only an exaggeration...kind of).
DO let me know what you think, as always I shamelessly await & cheer for every 'ping' of an email notification :) xxx
Miranda seemed to have the same concern regarding the girls, Andy noted as they sat curled up on the couch one evening, looking through lists of baby names and debating the pros and cons of choosing more 'C' names and coordinating girl to boy and vice versa.
"D'you think Cora is too close to Caro?" Miranda looked up, peering over her glasses as she drew the younger woman's attention away from the list of names on her laptop screen. "I don't want Caroline to feel like she has to give up her name as well."
"Hmm, Caro, Cora, Cora, Caro," Andy rolled the names around on her tongue, mulling over the syllables and the cadence of the two words. "Um, I don't think so, but we can always ask her. You KNOW how the girls have been on us to let them help choose the names."
"I just don't want to make this harder on them than it needs to be."
"Miranda, the girls are ecstatic about the babies. They are SO excited."
"What happens when the excitement wears off and we're left with two screaming teenagers alongside two screaming infants." Miranda was working herself into a state again and Andy sat up from where she was laying on the carpet next to the couch.
"Relax…Breathe, baby." Andy's fingertips rubbed soothingly across the distressed woman's breastbone over her heart before moving to the lower right quarter of her belly.
"Tell me, what do you want to name this baby right here, underneath my hand. Who's this?"
"Cora," the older woman whispered uncertainly before repeating in a stronger voice. "Cora," a smile lit up her face then that was mirrored in the younger woman's.
"Okay then," Andy's grin continued to threaten to split her cheeks.
"What are you guys doing?" the girls appeared in the doorway of the study.
"Talking about names for the babies."
"Awesome! Have you decided yet?" the girls dropped down beside Miranda on their respective sides, each placing a hand over the babies to feel them kick as was their routine.
"We think so," Andy turned to the older woman who then turned to her eldest baby.
"Sweetheart, we wanted to ask you first before we made any final decisions."
"Why me?"
"Well darling, you know we wanted to give the babies names that started with 'C', just like you and your sister, and we've come up with a name we like very much but we wanted to get your permission first because the shortened version of her name would be very similar to yours."
"What is it?" The little girl looked dubiously at the two women in front of her and then at the now very conspicuous bulge at Miranda's waist.
Andy smiled, absently reaching out again without realizing it to circle her hand over where the baby girl lay. "This baby would be 'Cora'."
"Like Caro?" the redhead whispered, going silent for a long moment, looking at her hands before removing them from Miranda's stomach.
"So you ARE going to forget about us!"
Everyone in the room was shocked at the outburst from the opposite twin. Cassidy was on her feet in a flash, hands tightly fisted at her sides as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"Sweetheart, what are you talking about?" Miranda was horrified at her daughter's reaction. She had perhaps expected the girls to feel slightly jealous of their siblings, as was common, but she hadn't imagined anything like the scene in front of her as both redheads ran from the room in tears, the twins slams of their bedroom doors resonating like gunshots in the ensuing silence.
"My God," Miranda breathed, tears springing unbidden to her own eyes.
"No, sweetheart, no"; Andy spoke firmly but gently "there's something else going on there. The girls I know would never throw a tantrum like that over something like this. There's something we're not seeing here."
Miranda's first response in her current wounded state was to push the younger woman away and point out that 5 months was hardly enough time to say she could know her girls. But memories of their last monumental argument and subsequent separation, no matter how brief, was enough to make the distraught editor hold her tongue.
Wary brown eyes watched the play of emotion in steely blue until the latter closed and opened once more and Andy was once more looking into the gaze of 'her' Miranda. The steely blue widened slightly in amazement at the remarkable creature in front of her as the young woman smiled softly and leaned forward to kiss her lips, nose and forehead all while gently running her fingers over Miranda's forearms as her breathing evened out after the near panic attack.
The hand Andy had offered to the older woman to help her off the couch stayed tightly clasped in hers as they made their way to the second floor. The two women knocked lightly before entering the girls' bedrooms, and seeing the adjoining door between the rooms flung open and noises could be heard from inside, Miranda began to speak.
"Bobbsey's, I…"
"Mom," Caroline appeared in the doorway, hands on her hips and lips pursed in an eerie replica of her mother in full dragon mode. "We get it. We're almost eleven, we're not stupid, or babies, you don't need to call us Bobbseys anymore."
"Yeah, you can save that name for the NEW twins." Cassidy emerged from the walk-in closet, her little face a thundercloud as she pulled out a suitcase that was nearly as tall as she was.
"We're supposed to go to dad's this week anyway. We might as well just stay there so you can start getting rid of our stuff."
Miranda felt her stomach rise into her throat, and despite the steady warmth of the young woman's hand against her back that was keeping her from crumbling, Miranda could feel the brunette trembling slightly as brown eyes filled with tears.
It was Andrea who found her voice first, dropping to her knees in front of the bed.
"Why? Why would you EVER think we wanted to send you away?"
"You have mom and the new babies to be your family. You don't need us."
"Yeah, we're just extra baggage that's in the way."
Something about the young girl's turn of phrase didn't sit quite right and Miranda found her voice as she pulled out the stool from the girls vanity, lowering herself awkwardly onto it, using her hand as a counterweight to her belly so she didn't overbalance.
"Darling, has someone said something to you to make you believe that?"
"It's true, isn't it? Stacy said that's what happened to her family when her dad left and her little brother was born. Now she hardly ever sees him cuz he spends all his time with his new wife Juana."
"Sweetheart, you know you're only spending the two weeks in a row with your father because of Paris, and the way the schedule worked out this year. It's not because we don't want you around."
"But now you spend all your time focussed on the babies 'cuz they're sick and you're afraid they're gonna die."
"They are NOT going to die," Miranda's voice changed, her tone uncharacteristically harsh and with some difficulty she stood and left the room.
Andy sighed, running a hand across her eyes as she tried to choose her words carefully. So much for the easy night she thought she would have. Now it seemed there was endless damage control to do on both sides. "Girls, I think you need to apologize to your mother. You know how important it is that the babies grow as big and strong as they can in case they need to be born early. That's the only reason I'm going to Paris too for part of the time; it's not a vacation so much as it is a health precaution."
"We know, Andy. We don't want them to die, we just…don't want them anymore. It's changing stuff."
Andy sighed, realizing this was a battle that wasn't going to be won in an evening. "Alright. I'm sorry you guys feel that way, because your mom and I know you'll be the best big sisters these babies could ever have; but they're not going anywhere and neither are you."
"They're not even here yet"
"Yeah, and they're not even yours."
"Girls, that's enough." Andy snapped before closing her eyes and counting to ten slowly. When she opened them again she saw the door close behind the girls and heard the 'clunk' of their suitcases as they dragged them down the stairs to meet their father.
Miranda's door was still closed, but before the girls had the chance to leave, a familiar voice could be heard from the top of the stairs, and the heads of the four people standing in the foyer turned towards the direction of the sound. The editor was coming down the stairs; one hand was on the railing while the other clutched a soft, worn cream coloured rabbit, whose patina finish on the button nose had long been worn off by years of kisses.
"Cassidy? Darling? Bobbsey you forgot Mr. Bun."
Cassidy shook her head. "No. That's okay, give him to the baby. I'm really too old for stuffed animals anyway."
Miranda's lips parted soundlessly, dismay evident in her features, but the little girl had already turned away and was lugging her bag out the front door with only a wave back in the direction of her mother.
"She's had him since she was a baby," Miranda whispered, absently stroking the whiskers of the stuffed animal and picking at errant bits of fluff. "The first night we put her in the crib by herself instead of the bassinet to sleep she grabbed onto him - it was almost as big as she was, and every night after that she would reach out one little hand for him and would not settle if she was put in her crib without the silly thing."
Miranda hugged the stuffed animal to her chest. "When she was 3, it was lost for a week once. I fired 3 assistants that week, one for every night I had to come home and find that my baby had cried herself to sleep again; not one of them could find a duplicate."
"Where was he?"
Miranda let out a deep belly laugh before covering her mouth. "He had gotten mixed up in the dry cleaning somehow. We got him back the next week, carefully pinned to the clothes hanger by his ears. The tag was checked off as 'Accessories; other; fur: animal; faux".
"I've never had to speak to them like that before," Andy remarked sadly as her mind turned back to the earlier events of the day. "Guess my reign as the 'cool parent' has ended."
"Mmm, I'm afraid you're finding out what it really is to be a parent."
"And you're sure you want to do it again?" Andy joked weakly.
"I do…Unfortunately, reality…"
"Is a bitch," Andy supplied, huffing frustratedly as she flopped face down on the bed dramatically once they'd entered the bedroom.
Miranda snorted, "I was going to say 'is never as good as the fantasy', but I suppose either works."
Knowing Miranda was leaving the next day for Paris, the two women spent the evening at home, making final preparations for the trip. As Miranda's luggage was already packed and had been sent on ahead of her, this consisted mostly of Andy packing and re-packing Miranda's carry-on and making sure the editor had everything she needed for the 6 hour plane ride. But before the younger woman could go over her checklist for the third time, Miranda's cell phone rang showing Cassidy's number.
"Bobbsey? Is everything all right my darling? Are you with daddy?"
"Yeah, I'm ok," the small voice replied before pausing for a long moment as if the caller were unsure of their next words before they spilled out all at once. "Mommy? Can you sleep with Mr. Bun tonight so he's not lonely? I know it sounds stupid…"
"No Bobbsey," Miranda reassured her youngest daughter, thrilled beyond belief at the prospect of sleeping with a ratty old stuffed animal because it meant her baby was still her baby for the time being. "I'll take good care of him, I promise."
"Oh, um, okay then. G'night." The little girl ended the call quickly and Miranda sighed, knowing her daughter was still upset even if she had called her.
Andy had heard the conversation through the speaker of the phone and she reached over for the device, plucking it out of Miranda's hand and setting it on the bedside before pulling the covers back on the bed. "Alright, hop in," Miranda could see the impish grin on the younger woman's face, her teeth gleaming in the moonlight as she bared them in laughter at her own joke. "Hop to it!"
Miranda casually left the rabbit beside her pillow, but when Andy woke the next morning she saw that sometime during the night Miranda had reached out and was now soundly asleep, the rabbit clutched tightly to her chest as she cuddled into it.
Reluctantly, very reluctantly, Andy left both soft, white denizens of the bed and began to get ready for the day.
When she returned with two steaming mugs of coffee, Miranda was lying on her left side, awake but unmoving as her hand played tag with the babies across her tummy as she tried to feel their position.
"The babies just woke up." Miranda looked up at the younger woman, a soft smile lighting up her face as she moved her gaze upwards. "And it would appear they are greeting the day rather energetically," she added at a firm nudge to her kidneys.
"Good morning baby boy," Andy cooed as she rubbed the right side of Miranda's belly, and she turned her head from where it rested on the swell and pressed her lips to the left side. "Hello, princess." Miranda ran her fingers through the mass of chestnut waves spilling across her chest and closed her eyes in contentment, an unfamiliar peace flowing through her veins.
"You two are going to be good for mommy while she's in Paris, right? Mama's going to come see you in a few days once she's finished her very boring article."
Miranda continued scratching the younger woman's scalp, chuckling as Andrea's resulting growl of pleasure made the babies kick as the vibrations travelled through her skin. "I know it's hard working your way up, darling. But it will pay off soon…"
"Yeah," Andy sighed, "And I know I've already taken off waaay more time than any other rookie should at this point, NOT that I'm complaining or blaming you for that, or you guys for that matter," Andy referenced Miranda first with a light kiss to her lips and then two on either side of the swollen belly.
"Mmm, I do know we've made rather too many demands on your time," Miranda murmured regretfully, feeling even more guilty at the fact that she didn't feel more guilty about monopolizing the younger woman's time.
"But hey, Greg's been thrilled with my work so far even if my hours have been somewhat irregular; and if the office scuttlebutt is to be believed from the times I actually HAVE been privy to talk around the water cooler, there's going to be a HUGE opportunity coming up for a story. The words 'career-making' have been bandied around, so fingers crossed my being in the office for a whole week, plus my work on my current story will put me in the running to cover that, whatever it is."
"Oh my God," Andy grinned even wider, unable to help herself as the older woman's lips pursed in an unmistakeable pout at the idea of Andrea leaving her for any period of time. "Do you have any idea how cute you are?"
"Hmmph," Miranda grunted, "there was a time when you feared me, now I've been reduced to 'cute'." Miranda caressed the head that had made its way back down her body and was nuzzling her belly as she gave further 'instructions' to the babies.
"Mommy has a lot to do this week, and mama's not going to be there, so my little troublemakers, no making her get up to pee more than 3 times during a show, okay?" Miranda snorted and then groaned as the action did, in fact, make her aware of a certain fullness of her bladder that couldn't be ignored.
Glaring at the younger woman as she bounced effortlessly off the mattress, Miranda pointedly refused her offer of help getting up from the bed and stalked to the ensuite bathroom, hoping against hope that Andrea hadn't noticed the breathlessness the action caused.
She didn't, as it happened; watching Miranda walk across the room the only thing the grinning brunette took note of was the fact that her gait had begun to take on what could be distinctly called a 'waddle'.
Miranda's flight left at 3 o'clock New York time, which meant the Runway group would arrive in Paris at 3:30 am their time. It was an overnight flight, which Andy hadn't been pleased about, knowing that it meant a full day of shows a mere two hours after the plane touched ground and knowing that the editor wouldn't have gotten any sort of decent rest on the trip over, especially now that she couldn't take anything to help her sleep. It was Emily, however, who she heard from first Andy noted as she answered her phone, squinting at the clock next to the bed that confirmed it was just about the right time for the commercial air liner to be landing at Charles de Gaulle in Paris.
The Brit's voice came over the line, exhausted but obviously thrilled to finally be 'a Paris'.
"Hey Em, what's up?"
"Andrea, her feet are swollen. What should I do?"
"Hi to you too, Emily. Has she mentioned it or does she look like she's in any discomfort?"
"Andrea, really, do you think Miranda Priestly is going to complain about her shoes during fashion week? In Paris no less? And what exactly would you have me say to her? Oh Miranda, you're looking rather puffy this morning. Why don't we kick back and put our feet up during one of the most important events of the year!"
"Not this year, Em. I'll give you next year and probably the next ten after that to use that excuse because you'll be right. But this year's main event is not Paris."
"Yes. You're right, okay, point taken…" the redhead admitted brusquely. "But still, how do you propose I deal with this?"
"Eh, right now, they're probably swollen because of the plane ride rather than her blood pressure. If she has to do any interviews, don't let her do them on the red carpet or she'll be standing there an extra hour. See if you can find a green room or somewhere off to the side, or even an empty seat next to her before the show starts and bring the interviewers to her for micro-interviews - about a minute and a half should be enough per person for them to forget about any inconvenience over the arrangement as they'll be getting more than a single quote or statement. Also, limit the number to 5 of those, total. She's the reigning 'Queen of Fashion', a little extra exclusivity in the wake of all the media surrounding her won't hurt."
"Right. Got it. Is there anything I should have prepared for her or anything for her suite?"
"If you can, and if it works within the schedule, arrange for a basin or a footbath from the spa to be filled with hot water and sent up to Miranda's room 5-10 minutes before you get back to the hotel, and text me or shoot me an email to let me know so I can 'happen' to call her and make sure she's using it."
"Hot water. Footbath. Fine."
"Thank you, Emily, and you're welcome."
"This is all YOUR ruddy fault you know."
"I do have a job you know, and despite the fact that the babies growing in that beautiful belly are my children, I'm not the one with the penis, Em."
"What I would do to Stephen if I got my hands on him," Emily growled, "then HE wouldn't have a penis either…"
Andy smiled, the redhead tried to hide it but she knew she cared deeply for the editor, past simple respect or hero-worship.
"By the way, you DO in fact realize that you sound like a nauseatingly love-sick puppy when you talk about Miranda?" the other woman sniped.
But the brunette's grin only grew wider, "Mm-hmm."
True to her word though, Emily texted Andrea back in New York once they had arrived at the hotel and been shown to their suites.
Miranda picked up the phone, not bothering with hello as she answered. "I hate that you're not here with me."
Andrea could hear the pout in the editor's voice through the phone and she bit her lip against the fond chuckle that threatened to break free. "I know, sweetheart, I do too. D'you think you could maybe try to lie down for a little bit though? Just for an hour or so until you have to get ready to go."
This was followed by another long-suffering sigh from the Paris-end of the conversation even as Andy heard the faint creak of bedsprings as the editor made herself comfortable as best she could. "Which side is it that's supposed to be better for me to lie on?"
"The left is better for the babies."
"Mmph."
"You're drinking plenty of water, right? Emily also has a prescription bottle with extras of your prenatal vitamins and the anti-nausea meds Dr. Jansen prescribed in case the jet lag makes the morning sickness come back or throws your hormones out of whack, and"
"Yes, yes. Could we speak about something other than my physical needs?"
"Mmm, but I do so love taking care of your needs," Andy purred, laughing at Miranda's resulting growl, picturing the older woman squeezing the pillow between her knees that she had started sleeping with to reduce the strain on her back and scowling at her through the phone.
"Really, Andrea, now you've done it. I won't be able to get any rest now that you've got me, that I'm thinking, that…"
"Ohhh", Andrea teased "tell me where it hurts and I'll kiss it better."
"I'm going to hang up now if you're going to be cruel and torture me like this. Now, to change topics, have you spoken to the girls since I left?"
"Miranda, it's almost two in the morning here."
"Oh, darling I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was so late there. This must be what all those magazines refer to as 'pregnancy brain'." There was a longer, protracted silence until she decided to let her insecurities show. "Do you think they'll still be terribly angry once I'm back?"
"I don't know sweetheart," Andy answered honestly, wishing she had it in her to lie to Miranda. "But even if they are, they'll get over it, you know they will."
A fretful silence met her response, so she tried a different tack. "I love you, Miranda," the young woman's voice rang sweetly through the speaker.
"And I you my darling. I'll ring you later after the shows." Andy smiled, knowing the decidedly British tone the older woman's voice had taken on in the last sentence meant that she was slowly giving in to her fatigue and was close to falling asleep.
"Let me say good night to the babies?"
"No, I know you. You'll just get them all worked up and then Lord knows, I'll never get any rest. Good night, Andrea."
"Goodnight, my loves."