The very day that they found out that their baby, barring any rapid changes in its genetic code, was going to be a little girl, Brady and Severa swore to each other that they wouldn't go crazy with letting people know of this development. While the prospect of getting all sorts of free stuff from friends and family was hard to resist, they knew from their experience with their mothers that people would try getting far too involved if they found out about the child's gender before they were ready. So, to keep everyone they didn't want knowing the news from finding out, and to keep the chances of their mothers hearing down to a bare minimum, they promised each other that only a select few people would be given the information in complete secrecy.

They may have made it a point to not tell anyone with a history of ruining secrets, yet Maribelle still managed to find out in a matter of days, way before they planned on letting her know. "How dare you keep this wonderful news away from me!" she yelled through the phone upon calling her son. "As your mother, I should have been one of the first to know, but I had to find out secondhand through dear Lissa!"

At the sound of his aunt's name, Brady groaned, knowing the exact sequence of events that would have resulted in her knowing the news. "Ma, she wasn't supposed to know either, if that makes ya feel any better," he said, before being hushed by the groggy Severa that was lying in bed beside him. He looked over at her, on her side with her face contorted in some expression of pain, and sighed. "Listen, Ma, now's not a good time to be talkin' this over with ya. I'll have to call ya back later when I've got a chance. Pretty sure I'm bein' a bother to Sev right now."

"Not a bother at all," Severa corrected, her voice soft with a noticeable hint of almost being in tears. "You're not the one who's learned to kick around inside of me like I'm a damn playground. Just keep talking to your mom, I don't mind." Despite the statement, Brady still ended the call with his mother, repeating the part about how he was being a bother, leading her to sigh dramatically, which quickly turned into a long outcry of pain, complete with shaky words. "Gods damn it, B! I don't like this at all! Stop blaming yourself for something that is clearly the fault of our child!"

"I'm surprised you're not lyin' there blamin' me for her existing in the first place." He sat up, hearing her demand for him to stay right where he was so they could talk, and eventually stood next to the bed, leaving her there still very much in pain. "I mean, I know it's not all my fault, so maybe you see that, but when you start not feelin' great you like pushin' blame off on me, and it's kind of surprisin' that you haven't yet."

She winced, rolling onto her back to try and find a comfortable position to be in. "I know whose fault this is, yeah, but there's no point in putting the blame on anyone. We can't feel like our little girl is a problem, even though I would so call this kicking thing a problem. I've got to go through this for the next four, or five, or whatever months, and I'm not sure I'm okay with that."

"Sorry about that, I guess." He felt quite a bit of regret for being at least partially responsible for her current state, but he knew he couldn't dwell on it, not with other things on his mind, such as his mother knowing the big news. "You can get through this and we both know it'll all be fine. You're one of the strongest ladies I've ever met, ya know."

"Mental and emotional strength are different than physical strength and you know that." Wincing again, Severa brought herself to a sitting position, her hand pressing down on her side as she did. "Still, hearing you say that makes me think that maybe I've got a chance of surviving all this. These kicks hurt, though."

"From what it sounds like, everythin' about child-bearing hurts. I'm sure in a matter of days her kickin' around like that won't even bother you anymore." He smiled, although her look of pain was not reassuring in the slightest. "Come on, Sev, you know that's how it'll be. Just don't let it bother you so much now and it definitely won't be botherin' ya later."

She took in a sharp breath. "Oh yeah, that's so how it's going to be. In fact, I'll just ignore the whole 'she's kicking my organs' thing to go right on along with what you're saying."

"We just saw pictures of her the other day! There's no way she's big or strong enough to be causin' you that kind of pain!" They could easily have bickered back and forth for hours, but he knew that in the end, they would come to a stalemate, so he took the initiative and left the bedroom, leaving her sitting on the bed yelling for him to come back. While he had the time to be alone, he went into the kitchen, which was as messy as ever and had several containers of pink-frosted baked goods sitting around, looking for something in particular that he knew was in there. By the time Severa dragged herself out of bed to join him, still complaining about the kicking and movements that she wasn't used to, he had found the small stack of papers he'd been searching for and had relocated to the couch to look through each and every one of them.

"What even are you doing?" she asked, looking at him with a concerned gaze. When she didn't get an answer, she simply repeated herself. "Seriously, Brady, what are you doing?" His delayed reaction was to hold up a few of the things from the stack, mostly receipts from each of the clothes shopping trips that they'd made, but the envelope of the gender reveal photos was among the items. "Oh, are you just looking for the pictures? Why couldn't you just tell me that?"

"Because," he finally said, casting aside everything he didn't need for what he had collected, "we've got to take this over to my parents' place so Ma can see everything. She knows, there's nothin' we can do to take that back, and now we've got to let her see the evidence and make good on our promise that gave us the money to buy this stuff."

Severa's eyebrows furrowed as she looked at him and what he was holding. "You're kidding, right? How does she know already? We made sure not to tell Cynthia this time so she didn't ruin the news." He was still looking at what he was holding with heavy eyes, meaning he didn't give her a response. "If not her, who? It couldn't have been your sister, she's too trustworthy and loves us both too much. So that leaves one of us, which duh, it wasn't, or Owain, but he wouldn't…would he?"

"It must've slipped his mind that he wasn't supposed to tell anyone, and he had to have told his dad while at work. Which meant that Aunt Lissa knew probably right after that, and Ma found out through her." Brady flicked the corner of the envelope. "And now we've got to go over there and show her why that's true, before she comes over here and sees it for herself."

"I don't think I want to do that." The way she spoke was deliberate, every word forceful and serious. "I think I want her to understand that she doesn't need to see everything for herself and she can suck it up that we're not showing her." He gave a small gasp at what he heard, shaking his head rapidly as he knew what not showing Maribelle would mean for them, but she was undeterred in her choice. "Besides, she can appreciate it that we've got to either name the kid after her or go back on our word, and I really don't think I want that kind of karma coming after me."

"But Sev, we've got to show her. There's not much of a choice at this point." He waited for her to realize that he was right, but no such realization came; instead, she told him that she was going to back to bed and that he was more than welcome to join her. Opting not to follow, he spent quite a bit of time just sitting there on the couch, staring at what he was holding and how it was his mother's right to get to see what he had. But going against Severa's wishes wasn't something he wanted to do, not when she was already sacrificing so much and working so hard to make things happen, so he had to settle with just calling Maribelle back and telling her everything through the phone.

Even with the amount of time that had gone by since he ended their last call, she still wasn't thrilled about how the news had been broken to her. "Brady, it should have been you to tell me, not your aunt. While I could tell that she is very much excited for you, it wasn't the type of excitement I had hoped this revelation would be coupled with." Something on the other end of the phone was drowning out what Maribelle was saying, and from what he could tell it sounded like she was somewhere out in public. When questioned about that, she laughed. "Why yes, I am out and about today. Now that I know what my grandchild is, I have to begin preparing to spoil her every day until she's an adult."

"That's the exact reason why we weren't tellin' anyone until we were ready, Ma. We don't need her gettin' spoiled by everyone!" She laughed, which only made him more frustrated. "Seriously, we don't need it! You spoilin' her is just going to result in everyone else spoilin' her, and how are we supposed to prove we're capable parents when everyone's doin' all the shopping for us?"

On her side of the phone, a voice in the background (one he very clearly recognized as being his aunt's) said, "Is he really complaining about us being nice? I would have thought that he'd love knowing we care this much!"

"Do ya have me on speaker, Ma?" he asked, only to get more laughter in response, this time from both women. "You're just makin' this harder and harder for me to tell you no, and I think ya know that. You're too good at gettin' what you want."

"At least I've chosen not to push the issue of getting to see pictures of my beautiful granddaughter. I'm sure that you'll choose to show me those when the time is right." How did she know that he was torn about that exact topic, and that he had only called her to basically tell her that she wouldn't be seeing anything? "I am also sure," she continued, "that you'll make good on the promise you made with me. I've got several wonderful name suggestions that would make it quite easy for you to name the child after me without actually naming her after me."

"They're naming the baby after you?" he heard his aunt ask in the background. She must have been given a nod of approval or something, because he heard her dreamily sigh. "That's got to be such an honor. If Owain ever has kids, I so want him to name one after me!"

"I don't think him havin' kids would ever be a good idea." Brady would have continued that thought, but it wasn't what he was on the phone for and he didn't want to waste time of his mother's day to discuss the nightmare that Owain and Noire having children would create. "But anyway, glad to hear you're down for not seein' anything right away. Promise ya, we're going to keep very good on the name thing. I don't know what we're going to decide on, but it'll fit the agreement." He thought for a second, before adding, "Which, Ma, the agreement was you give us that bit of money and we do this name thing. None of this spoilin' stuff."

Maribelle sighed, and he was sure that she was rolling her eyes at what he was saying. "If you couldn't pool together the money to properly clothe your wife, I can only assume that you cannot possibly find the funds to purchase anything for your child. I will make sure not to go too overboard on my shopping, but I must buy a few things. Bare essentials. We, as a family, will make sure that your child has the best life possible for her."

Why were the women in his life impossible for him to argue with? "Yeah, okay Ma, you win. You do what you want, but don't make it too obvious that you're pityin' us."

"I am not pitying you, Brady, and even I were, you should be thankful that I'm willing to spend my afternoon shopping for a granddaughter I didn't ask for." He had to hold his tongue and not remind her that it was technically her fault that the situation where the child was created even came around. "She is a blessing bestowed upon our family thanks to Naga's intervention, and I will do my best to make everything perfect for her."

"Sounds like a plan," he said through gritted teeth, hoping that the call would end quickly and without anything else infuriating being said. At that moment, he was rather glad that Severa had insisted they not go see Maribelle in person, because even though he loved his mother, he would not have handled this situation well. For the rest of the time he was on the phone with her, he didn't say more than one-word answers, because she was getting to be more and more unreasonable, until she decided she needed to leave the conversation to focus on something where she was. The very second she hung up, he threw his phone down on the couch beside him, it bouncing back and smacking him in the face before falling to the floor, the screen shattering upon contact.

The resulting frustrated screaming was enough to wake Severa up from the sleep she'd fallen into, and she came out into the main room, rubbing at her eyes with one hand as she did. "What's going on out here?" she asked, yawning as she did. "Sounds like someone's having a meltdown or something. Didn't think you were as crazy as certain others we know."

"Ma is out there doing all sorts of shoppin' for us and we don't need it," he replied, kicking his now-broken phone under the couch so that she didn't see it and freak out about it. "We can handle everything on our own, and she's not understandin' that!"

Severa yawned again, stretching as she did, causing her shirt to ride up a bit over her stomach, which exposed the piece of navel jewelry she still insisted on wearing. As she tried fixing the problem and ended up catching her shirt on the little piece of metal, she found herself replying to her husband in a much grumpier tone than she had intended. "She's allowed to do whatever she wants, really. We can't stop her from still being stupidly obsessed with helping us out, even though we've said we don't want all this attention from her. Pretty sure she's just playing the role of grandma really, really well!"

"Geez, Sev, you don't have to yell at me about that." Not noticing that she was yelling out of self-inflicted pain, not anger, he slumped over onto his side on the couch. "But if you're so set on Ma bein' helpful, I want you to call your mom and tell her the news right now. See how she reacts to it."

After collecting herself and apologizing, Severa took him up on that challenge, calling her mom and expecting a long conversation that would most likely have ended in both participating parties being angry with one another. She instead got a voicemail message, and had to settle for quickly telling her mother that they needed to talk at the first chance she had. Cordelia must not have bothered checking her inbox for days, because it wasn't until a week later that there was a call back, which naturally happened while Severa was working and couldn't spare a minute to explain things to her mother.

For nearly a month, the two missed each other as they called back and forth, trying to be able to have a conversation that desperately needed to happen. The holiday season was drawing close when they finally were both able to talk at the same time, and with Brady sitting right next to her for moral support in the endeavor, Severa told her mother with pride that she would be gaining a granddaughter in a short amount of time. This news, while welcome, was merely not enough for Cordelia, who then asked for different details about the child, including expected date of birth, which she was able to provide, and potential name.

In regards to what the child was going to be named, all they had ever discussed was that they would be keeping true to that promise and that she would be named after at least one grandparent; an answer along those lines was what Brady was expecting to hear Severa give. But when she laughed and gave an actual name that he'd never heard her even express slight interest in before that moment, he was confused but waited until the phone call was ended to ask anything about it. "Hey, question, Sev. What's with that name ya told your mom?"

"That's going to be our little girl's name, obviously," Severa replied, smiling as she did while wrapping her arms around her stomach. "I thought it fit her really well, because it's so similar to my name and I love my name. It just kind of came to me the other day and I figured you'd go right along with it since I already love it."

"I would go along with it, but it's…" He shook his hand in a wavy, unsure manner. "Not exactly what I was thinkin' when we got into this baby namin' business, especially not since we're supposed to name her after one of our parents."

Severa looked offended at what he said and scoffed, "She so will be named after one of our parents. My mother, actually. We're naming our baby Serena Cordelia, and that's that."

"No, we're not doin' that. Can't just name her after your mom when mine means so much more to me than yours means to you." Moving his hand to his chin, which he stroked a few times in thought, he came up with a new suggestion while she grumbled about how much she liked the name she'd chosen herself. "How about this, we do some research, maybe look into some other names that are out there, and come to the decision of what her name is goin' to be together? I get it that you like what you've picked, but I want to honor Ma as well."

"So you're saying we've got to pick a name that sounds pretentious and gross like hers. Lovely. So much for us raising a normal child." She sounded upset, and rightfully so, but down in her heart she knew that Brady had a real point. She had to simply let go of what she desperately wanted and find some sort of compromise. They found said compromise by building a list of names they liked, giving the reason for why each one was on there; as it was basically set in stone that her middle name was going to be one grandmother's name, if there was to be any inclusion of the other grandmother's name, it would have to be through some combination of the first name. Severa was right, in that the names they were left choosing between all sounded pretentious, but eventually they were able to find something that worked out more than she liked to admit.

The one problem with the name they did find was that they weren't sure how to spell it. "Okay, it's not a million syllables, sure," she said, looking at the name they'd circled on their list, "but it still looks like it belongs to some snooty rich girl. I get it, B, you come from a wealthy family, but I'm not letting their money dictate what my baby's name looks like."

"The fact that we're havin' to name her after Ma already proves that we've done that, but I get what you're sayin'." He narrowed his eyes, squinting down at the list. "Maybe we can drop the 'e' off the end? Do ya think that'll help any?"

She shrugged and rewrote the name below where it was the first time, minus the last letter. "I don't think that looks any better, honestly," she admitted, and when he agreed with her she sighed. "Maybe we've got to try harder. But how hard can it be to come up with a silly name for our baby?"

"Don't give up yet, Sev. Take off another letter. It might just be the double 'l' there that's throwin' things off, and that's an easy fix." She nodded, writing the name again with the next letter missing as dictated, and he actually smiled at the result. "Looks a lot prettier than it did before, I'd say. Sure, Ma's probably going to complain that it's not spelled like hers, but it should sound like it, yeah?"

Mouthing the name a few times, her lips and tongue getting used to the way it felt passing through them, she gave a quick nod. "It should, and it feels, well, right for me to be practicing saying it. Like it's the name she was meant to have all along."

"And all it took was askin' for some names sort of like the one you liked to begin with." Brady practiced the name as well, his voice a breathless whisper as he repeated it over and over again, his lips eventually tingling from it. "I get what you're sayin', honestly. It does feel like the name she's meant to have."

"So that's it? This is what we're definitely going to name her?" When she got a nod of approval, Severa felt like tears were beginning to fill her eyes, and when she blinked she could feel them slipping down her cheeks. "Let me test it out for real before we make this decision definite." She took a deep breath before softly saying, "My little girl, Lunabel Cordelia. Little Lunabel. Little…" She trailed off to gasp, feeling a round of kicking from within her. "I think she loves it, B. She knows it's for her."

"Aw, you're sayin' that our little Lunabel loves her name already?" he asked, laughing as he did, and when Severa told him to feel the kicks in response for himself, he knew that this was ultimately the right decision for them to be making in regards to her name.

The biggest problem with them both having settled on the perfect name for the child was that it could now be used in arguments, particularly when Severa wasn't getting her way and wanted Brady to feel bad for going against her. As the weeks droned on, and she was trying to keep working hard with that child growing within her, she became more and more irritable, not wanting to deal with nearly anything that wasn't to her liking. Some days, that included anything involving conversation or human interaction, and it was those days that she would absolutely rip into Brady, yelling at him about how her and their little Lunabel both didn't want to have to have him around. For the most part, he just let it roll off his shoulders, crying about it only when he knew she wouldn't be around for it.

Sometimes, though, he would have to get out of their apartment and find somewhere else to be for a few hours while she calmed down and got her head about her. Since the weather had turned cooler and aimlessly walking around the streets wasn't a viable option, he always had to find someplace that would open their doors for him. His parents' house was a common destination, but after so many times of being caught there when his father got off work he was told to stop hiding from his problems and to face them head-on (Chrom was definitely a stronger man than he could ever dream of being), he had to find somewhere else to go.

Sneaking off to Owain's place became the new thing to do, on those days where Severa had it out for his blood. His cousin was always willing to lend a hand to someone who needed it, especially someone who he cared for so dearly, although the first thing he'd ask about when he'd see Brady at the door was if he was there to get more sweets for Severa and the baby. "Does it look like I am?" he'd always reply, tears staining his cheeks, and his cousin would open the door all the way and let him in.

"Dude, you've got to stop letting her kick you out like this. It's your place too, and if she's getting crazy now just because she's got your baby inside her, can you imagine what she'll be like once she's actually got to take care of the baby?" Owain may have been supportive, but he sure didn't understand the intricacies of the situation. "It'll be madness! You'll be over here every day and some nights too, I'm sure!"

"I don't get kicked out, I leave on my own because I don't want to deal with it. She likes blamin' me for her bad moods and for everythin' that's going on with her, even though we always have said that it's not my fault." Giving a heavy sigh, Brady took his usual seat against the wall of the mostly-bare living area in the home. "And ever since we came up with Lunabel's name, she's been makin' absolute sure to use it at me. The kid can't hate me for what I do or don't do, she's not even really livin' yet!"

"It's just Severa working out her anger through whatever ways she can. Maybe she should take up a hobby, like baking!" Owain looked towards the kitchen, where Noire was predictably baking something. While she had lowered the amount of treats she took over to the other couple, she was still taking them several things a week, all of which Severa tried to eat on her own, despite the toll all the snacking had taken on her already. He actually seemed to remember this fact, adding, "Or maybe she can do something else. Too much baking might be a bad thing for her."

"Baking can never be a bad thing for anyone!" Noire chimed in, having heard what was said. "When you can create something from your bad feelings, the world just feels like a much better place to be in!"

The corners of Brady's mouth perked up, but he still looked distraught. "No, trust me, if Sev started bakin' on top of what we get brought to our place, I'm pretty sure the world would end for me in a week. You guys weren't there when she realized that most of the growin' that she'd done wasn't because of havin' a baby. She about killed me for it. Said I should've stopped her from eatin' so much, even though I tried."

"Don't hate yourself for her being a bit off her rocker," Owain said, giving his cousin's shoulder a reassuring pat. "Now why don't we take your mind off these real-world issues and get to having some fun? Even escaping into games for a little bit will turn your spirits around, for sure." His words, although true, were just inviting Brady to ignore what was bothering him (that was, the fact that Severa kept taking her anger out on him through her words) for the sake of some mindless gaming. In the short-term, it worked, but in the long-term, it did nothing but make him have to come over more to get away.

Sometime after the turn of the year, while he was hiding from a completely livid Severa—she had taken out her navel piercing with the intent of changing the jewelry but had completely forgotten and due to how tight her skin was stretched she couldn't even fathom putting it back in—he came up with an idea that could possibly make it up to her. "Guys, hear me out," he said, head buried in his hands as he contemplated things over his hurt feelings. "What if we worked together and threw Sev some sort of birthday party? That would be a couple weeks from now, sure, but it would be somethin' that would make her happy if it went well."

"Good idea, but I think I may have a better one." Owain clasped his hands together in the excitement of what he'd come up with. "What if, instead of just a birthday party for Severa, we put together some sort of celebration for the baby as well? That way, she can't complain that we're neglecting the other major part of her. A foolproof plan, if you ask me."

"I actually like the sound of that, yeah," Brady mumbled, uncovering his face to look at his grinning cousin. "As long as you're helpin' me plan this and gettin' as many people in on it as possible without Sev findin' out, I think we can make this work out."

Owain nodded, thinking a bit about what they could do. "Where she works has private rooms for this sort of thing, so we can have it there. Maybe get Cynthia in on it as long as she swears to keep it secret? I don't know on that part." He clicked his tongue a few times, still thinking as he made more suggestions. "I'm sure my mother would be down for helping, as would yours. Your sister, obviously, would want to be part of this. She can help with the plans. Noire would definitely be in charge of baking for us, and…hm. I don't know what—"

He was cut off by the door opening without warning. Brady, fully expecting it to be Severa looking for him with murder in her eyes, screamed loudly, but was shushed by Owain, who told him to actually look at who was there. It was a reddish-haired man, who waved at them both. "Sorry that I'm over here a bit late. Lunch took longer than usual. Cynthia and I got caught up in the most lovely of conversations, this time about the flower shop and the dance studio and how I can do both at once."

"Hey there, Inigo. Funny you walk in right now, speaking of flowers, when a couple bright bunches might be a great addition to this party we're planning." Owain, motioning for the newcomer to sit on the floor next to him, expected to have to answer a question of what party he was talking about, but Inigo just accepted it for what it was. He didn't even seem to be fully paying attention to the chatter between the cousins about the party, instead just absentmindedly staring into space, contemplating his thoughts.

When he heard Cynthia be mentioned in the conversation, he snapped back to reality and laughed. "What a doll, that girl is. So dedicated to her job and making a life for herself. I love every moment I spent with her, even if she is just taking my order and being pleasant towards me because her job dictates it. Now why do you two bring her up?"

"We're thinking about having her help us with this party we're planning, you lovesick loon," Owain replied, no longer wanting to have to answer questions about things that had already been discussed. "And since you've got that flower shop gig of yours, maybe you could help us as well."

"What sort of party might this be? A formal engagement? If so, might I request to bring a certain someone as my date?" Inigo wrung his hands before him. "I understand that you both have known her since childhood, so a simple 'no' will suffice if needed."

Brady laughed, snorting a bit as he did. "This is definitely not a formal thing. Can't even begin to imagine how tellin' Sev to put on a nice dress would go over. It's just goin' to be a little get-together for her birthday and to celebrate Lunabel, that's all."

"Hm, sounds like something I could provide flowers for, free of charge for friends of mine." He was still wringing his hands, but Inigo seemed to be a bit more comfortable talking about flowers than he did potential dates. They continued talking for a while, Noire coming out and joining them after a few minutes to share her ideas for what she could possibly bake for the occasion, and even when Severa eventually came to get Brady, her anger mostly subsided but still yelling at him when she found him, they all promised that this one meeting wouldn't be the end of the planning.

The next couple of weeks got more in-depth with the plans, as everyone else who was invited (minus the guest of honor) found out and began preparing what they were going to provide. By the time the morning of January twenty-first rolled around, everyone was ready, everything was set in stone, and there seemed to be nothing that could possibly go wrong.


Of all the things to be told upon getting to work on her birthday, the news that her afternoon would be spent working on a private party was not a good one, but Severa knew that if it was Cynthia telling her it, it was far too late to argue against. "You don't even take large parties," she said upon the conclusion of what her friend was saying. "Why does it have to be us doing this?"

"Well, you see, the party wanted simply the best server we've got," Cynthia replied with a huge grin, pointing at Severa, "but since that server can't carry all the heavy trays parties require, I got assigned to help out!" Cue Severa griping about how that meant she definitely wouldn't be making any money on the party, which she immediately had a response for. "Hey, I'm just helping with the heavy stuff. You're still doing most of the work, and with that bun in your oven, I'm sure you can sweet talk some mad tips from everyone!"

"As if people will really tip me more just because of what I look like." She tried to speak in a disbelieving tone, but it was far too obvious that Severa knew people would do exactly that. Cynthia didn't call her out on the lie, instead choosing to ask if it would be okay if they started setting up for what was to come. It absolutely was, especially since it gave them a chance to both work and discuss the party that was coming in a bit more. According to what Cynthia had been told, it wasn't too large of a group, but they needed a room to themselves because they were bringing in a lot of extra things—including treats. "Sounds like some group giving a workshop. Hopefully they'll share the snacks with their pregnant and miserable birthday girl of a server."

Cynthia raised her eyebrows in judgment. "Okay, hold on. Pregnant, obviously, and birthday girl, I knew that, but miserable? What, are you sad that you're stuck working today?"

"No, it's these dumb false contractions I've been having. Freaked me and Brady both out the first time they happened. Didn't know it could get worse than the kicking under my ribs, but it clearly did." She sighed deeply, picking up some plates and setting them out on one of the tables that Cynthia had moved into position. "I swear, when this little girl is old enough, she is paying for all this suffering I've done for her."

"Aw, don't blame her! It's just one of the joys of mommyhood! My mom tells me about some of the things I did to her before I was born, but she tells me them as warnings, not trying to make me feel bad about having been a baby." Still moving tables, Cynthia only stopped what she was doing when she heard Severa give a low groan of pain that startled her. "What's wrong? Are you having those contractions right now?"

"They don't just go away," Severa snapped, clutching her side with one hand while arranging silverware around her plates with the other. "They'll fade after a while but for now I've got to suck it up and suffer through them. Hopefully the party will understand why I'm going to be bitchy with them, and if they don't, I'll…" Her threat faded into nothing as she saw the manager on duty poke her head into the room, and when the manager beckoned for her to come to her, she swallowed down in fear. "I d-didn't mean what I was saying, promise!"

The manager smiled and laughed. "No worries, just here to come get you for a quick chat about these next couple weeks before you're out of here for that baby of yours." Sighing in relief, Severa went to tell Cynthia she'd be right back, but the brown-haired woman gave her a grin and a thumbs-up back at her friend, as if she had known this was coming.

And, in all actuality, she had. The very moment she saw Severa and the manager go into the kitchen, Cynthia stopped what she was doing and ran to the front of the restaurant, nearly colliding with several other servers on her way. Upon getting to the front, she saw a good amount of the expected members of the party, all of their arms filled with decorations, gifts, and supplies. "I think we've got ten, maybe fifteen, minutes to get everything all perfect," she announced, before leading everyone back to the private room where she gave another announcement: "She's convinced this is just some normal party, so she will totally be surprised when it's actually for her!"

"I'm honestly surprised ya managed to keep this a secret from her," Brady remarked as he sat down the box of gifts he had carried in. "Normally gettin' ya involved with something spells danger for it stayin' secret."

"I learned from my last mistake," she admitted, before wrapping herself around him in a quick hug. "Oh gods though, it was so hard not saying that you all were going to be here, and that this wouldn't be a waste of her time! She was so worried that she wouldn't make any money today!"

"She certainly will be making money, plus all these presents for her and the child both." Maribelle, setting down the box that she'd been holding, let out a soft laugh. "Whoever had the idea for a combination birthday celebration and baby shower deserves to be praised."

Owain, unboxing the cake he'd been responsible for carrying in, puffed his chest out a bit. "That would be me, Aunt Maribelle. This original idea comes to us all courtesy of—oh hey, is that an actual picture on the cake?" He had gotten distracted by taking a look at the cake, which Noire had decorated with an edible version of a picture of Severa that had been taken under the guise of "making memories". Everyone who wasn't hanging signs and streamers gathered to look, all in almost much shock as Owain had been.

While they murmured and whispered, Noire began beaming from the praise. "I had to try really hard to make that work out," she said, to the approval of the group. "But even still, I think I'm more proud of the cookies than the cake." To demonstrate why she felt that way, she took a single cookie off the tray and held it up in front of everyone, showing them the hand-iced moon on top of it, which had a small bell painted on at one of its points. "I just, uh, thought that the visual representation of her name was…really cute…"

"That's so cool, Noire. Can't thank ya enough for doin' that," Brady told her, at the exact same moment that Owain proudly exclaimed his love for his incredibly creative wife. The cousins looked at each other, knowing they had spoken over one another, and laughed about it for a moment, all while Noire timidly kept holding the cookie for everyone else to admire.

"Uh, excuse me," a voice interrupted, and everyone froze, turning to look at who had joined them. It was a restaurant worker, waving for Cynthia to come closer to him, which she did, fully expecting to tell her some bad news. "Your regular is here," the man said, "and I explained to him that you're unavailable at the moment, but he insisted he not leave and—"

"As I tried explaining, I'm not here for a table for one," Inigo said, entering around the worker and taking hold of Cynthia's hand once he was standing right next to her. "I have come today to do a delivery of very important goods, but there are far too many flowers for myself and my mother to carry in on our own. Perhaps the lovely server in charge of today's festivities would care to assist me?" Cynthia blushed and giggled, and after he gingerly kissed her hand they left the room with the other worker right behind them; the pair came back within a minute, each carrying two large bouquets of flowers, and now trailing behind them was a petite pink-haired woman who merely sat the smaller bundles of flowers she was carrying down, bid Inigo farewell, and left the restaurant. With the last decorations now there, everyone worked quickly to get everything in place, making what once was a plain room in the restaurant into an elaborately-decorated party room.

When they heard Severa's voice coming closer to where they were, her still in the middle of conversation with the manager, everyone's reaction was to stop what they were doing and sit down somewhere. The only exception to this was Brady, who chose to stand close to the door, hoping Severa would see him before the decorations. If she did, she must not have realized it was him, because her eyes were wildly darting around the room, looking at everything that had been set up and everyone who had gathered in her honor. She opened her mouth to speak but was met with silence, and then her eyes closed tightly as she stumbled to lean against the wall. What should have been a loud cry of "Surprise!" turned into a loud chorus of asking if she was okay, the only person not panicking being the one closest to her.

"Hey, let's not start this party out with ya havin' to sit down to collect yourself," Brady told her, stepping closer to hug her tightly. "It's all okay. We're all here for ya today, every single one of us."

"Could have used some advanced warning on this one. Had I known I'd be serving my own party, I'd have made more of an effort to ignore the pain this morning and look like a respectable member of society." Grimacing, she pushed herself out of the hug and walked to the center of the room, taking another look at all the decorations. "This is some kind of fancy celebration here, and all for me! I feel honored, although…" She placed a hand on her stomach and tapped a finger a few times, especially when looking at the pastel pink bags a lot of the gifts were in. "I can't help but think this might be more for Lunabel than me."

"Why can't it be for both?" Maribelle loudly asked, pointing to a carefully-strung "Happy Birthday" sign that was flanked with stereotypical, storks-and-bundles baby shower decorations. "Mother and child both deserve to be honored on this fine day."

Sitting next to her mom, Lucina nodded. "While I can say shopping for my niece is one of the more fun activities I can think of doing, shopping for one of my best friends, who doubles as my sister-in-law, is a much more satisfying experience."

"Plus, we baked you a cake!" Owain found himself elbowed harshly in the side for the incorrect statement. "Er, Noire baked you a cake," he sheepishly corrected, "but I helped her with getting the ingredients. She did everything else."

"And, best of all," Cynthia chimed in, jumping from the seat she had taken, "I totally lied to you earlier and you're not having to do all the work here! You just kick back and take it easy, and I'll make sure everything's perfectly fine for everyone!"

Severa's eyes met Cynthia's, shock and worry filling them. "But that means I'm spending my time here making no money, and I don't think management will be happy if they hear I'm slacking off while on the clock. Sorry, but I'm still serving this party, even if it is for me."

"Actually, no, you're not." Brady sounded stern as he stepped into the conversation, Severa turning to look at him with even more shock. "We talked with your manager back when we set this party up. You've just got to do some helpin' out, not too much work, and you'll be fine. And Cynthia knows that she's splittin' the money with you, no matter how much work you do." Cynthia rapidly nodded, but Severa still looked worried. "Come on, Sev, today's a big day for ya, just let things happen how we want them."

"And what if I don't want them to happen like that? What if I want to make my money like the honest person I try to be? I'm not taking simple handouts from people I know!" She turned back to look at everyone, with their smiling yet somewhat surprised faces all staring back at her. "I don't deserve this sort of kindness from everyone, not unless I do something to earn it."

"I'd say that bein' a friend or family member to everyone here would make you earn what we're doin' for ya here today." Brady placed his hand on Severa's shoulder, and she brushed it off, something that he actually took offense to. "Come on Sev! Stop actin' this way and just accept that this is happenin' right now!"

She defiantly shook her head, making motions to leave the room when he grabbed her to hold her in place. "I'm not doing this the way you want it, end of story. I'm not sitting around and being catered to when I should be doing work."

"Fine, you can help me with drinks and orders and stuff," Cynthia finally conceded, hanging her head a bit. "But that's all I'm letting you help with. I'm taking charge of this party because it's the best gift I can give to you and your baby both today!''

A loud chant erupted amongst everyone sitting at the table; Owain started it, naturally, banging his hand down on the table as he did, and it spread around quicker than wildfire. It wasn't much, but it was enough to let Severa know that her being stubborn was doing nothing more than prolong the inevitable ending to the day. "Let it go!" they all shouted, table hits in sync with one another. Some of them were laughing, some doing the chanting stoically, and some looked deathly serious about her just giving up the fight and taking the opportunity to be paid for not actually working.

"I get it, everyone," she said after listening to everyone chant for a minute or two. "I'll let Cynthia do all my dirty work and I'll just take part in the celebration you've got planned for me. As long as the only surprise here is that this is happening in the first place, I guess I can't complain too much about things." The chanting subsided, but replacing it was some awkward laughter and a few of the people trying to look anywhere but at her. "Okay, really? What else did you all do?"

No one wanted to own up to doing more than planning the surprise party, so she had to accept that if she were to find anything out, it would have to be naturally. While Cynthia started taking care of everyone as if they were regular customers and not a group of people she knew personally, Severa had to endure becoming the guest of honor at the party, everyone rushing to talk to her and ask her a million questions she had no real desire to answer. For every time she was wished a happy birthday, she was asked several questions about her current physical condition, people wanting to get as much information about the baby as they could in as little conversation time as possible. For most of the questions, she would just direct them to asking Brady instead, trying to move on to anything that could be more interesting than people wanting to know about how she felt in regards to having a child residing within her.

By far the nosiest person of all was Maribelle, who kept asking things over everyone else. She chose not to move from where she was sitting, as to not get trampled by the other partygoers, and she didn't seem to care that everyone had come up with some sort of order as to how to approach Severa. Whenever she had something to ask, she'd simply cut off whoever was speaking and talk over them, despite her questions always being ones that were deflected. She didn't even seem to mind that she wasn't getting answers to what she was asking, because she just kept trying—until she asked a question, about half an hour after the party officially started, that got everyone else to move away from the quizzing. "I'm sure that dear Severa would like to be able to sit down and rest those tired and swollen feet of hers, rather than being swarmed by everyone," she started, earning a reluctantly agreeing mumble from Severa. "So why don't we have her start opening gifts instead?"

"You know, I never thought I'd hear such beautiful words come out of your mouth," Severa replied, as everyone backed away from her to let her take a seat at the big table. "I didn't come in to work today expecting to get actual gifts, so whatever you've all brought is bound to be better than what I assumed I'd be getting today."

"I would love to be first to present a gift, then," Maribelle said, finally standing up and coming around to the other side of the table, picking up the box of gifts she'd brought to the restaurant with her and carrying it around. "Or, rather, a wide selection of gifts, purchased over the last few months, beginning with the moment that I learned that I was to be blessed with a granddaughter." She saw how Severa began to look annoyed when she heard that timeframe, and after adjusting how she was holding the box, she gave a wave of her hand. "Oh, I am well aware of how you didn't want any of us to spoil the little one, but I couldn't help myself. A first grandchild only happens once."

She set the box down at Severa's feet, expecting her to get into it herself, but after a few moments of Severa staring down at it and getting more and more annoyed that she couldn't just bend over and get it, the box was picked back up. "I can't believe that just happened. Seriously. Thirty-five weeks pregnant and someone assumes I'm going to be able to get something off the ground." Severa sounded equal parts hurt and amused at what had just happened, and after Maribelle apologized for it she turned all the emotion towards amusement. "No big deal. Guess you'll have to keep holding that for me while I go through it, won't you?"

Blinking a time or two, Maribelle nodded, and so she was stuck standing there, the box in her arms, while Severa went through and opened each gift that was inside of it, one at a time. She remarked on every one, all of which were some sort of necessary item for raising a child, always having some sort of smart comment to make. Once she got through opening the bags of bottles and little clothing, she looked Maribelle straight in the eyes and genuinely smiled. "Thanks for all this," she said, holding a few of the outfits she'd been given. "It really, honestly, shows that you care about me, and your son, and our child."

"Well of course I care about you! I could never not care about someone who loves my Brady so much, and as this child is his I have to care about her just as much as both of her parents." Setting the box down again, she moved to give Severa a quick hug, surprised when the orange-haired woman returned the gesture. "You will make a lovely mother to my granddaughter, and I am so glad that he chose you to be with in this world."

"Aw, Ma, you're makin' me tear up hearin' ya say that kind of stuff," Brady said with a sniffle, watching his mother and wife having their exchange. "Never thought you'd be approvin' Sev for who she is, but here ya are, doin' just that."

"Before he bursts into tears, can I give my present?" Lucina asked, pulling one of the bags out of the gift pile. "Or, rather, I should say, show mine and Laurent's present? It's not quite ready for her to have it yet." No one objected to the idea, so while her mother stepped away, she took her spot at Severa's side. "I wish Laurent was here to help explain why this is what we're giving you, but he's busy and will be late, if he shows up at all, and you need to see this and understand it."

"It just looks like a bag to me," Severa said with a laugh, taking the bag and pulling out the thick book from inside of it. She looked at the cover, pink with light polka-dots and a small teddy bear on the front, and scrunched her face in disgust. "Liked it more when it was just a bag. Is this some parenting guide? I'm not into that sort of reading."

"It's not a guide to parenting. Here, open it up." Carefully, Severa did as instructed, opening to a page about halfway through the book; she found that it was covered in writing, but more importantly, it had a copy of one of the sonogram pictures that had been taken to determine the gender of the child. She gasped, looking at Lucina for some sort of answer, which she was ready to provide. "It's a book documenting all the milestones of your pregnancy. Laurent suggested we make it for you, since you don't seem like the kind of person to care about these things, and so we've been putting this together over the past few weeks."

"But it's not done, so we're just going to leave it at this point?" Severa still looked disappointed with what she was holding, although she did flip the page a few times to see what else the book had within in.

Lucina shook her head. "Not quite. As I said, we're not ready to give this to you today because it's not finished. Once your sweet Lunabel is in your arms, we will be ready to give the completed product to you, filled to the brim with interesting facts that Laurent feels you would be interested in looking back on, as well as the important things that matter only to you and this journey."

"Why does it look like some of this stuff you got from…" Looking at one of the pages closely, Severa rolled her eyes. "Oh my gods, Brady, did you really have to tell your sister some of these things? I would like to never remember some of this stuff!"

"She asked, and I just happened to know what she needed!" He was still sniffling, rubbing tears from his eyes. "I bet years from now you'll love knowin' some of those things, even if they are kind of weird!"

She closed the book, but when she went to put it back in the bag, Lucina shook her head once more. "Not yet, Severa. There's something else in there for you."

"What else could there possibly be?" Setting the book aside to reach into the bag, she was pleasantly shocked when she felt fabric, and completely surprised when she pulled her hand out and was holding a visibly worn blue onesie that read "My Aunt is the Coolest". Her eyes, which had narrowed when she saw this was a used piece of clothing, widened when she realized why that was. "This isn't something you just went out and bought, is it?"

"That it isn't. Mother had kept a box of baby things from when Brady and I were young, and this was something in there. According to pictures at home, I wore that very article when I was small, a gift to me from my dear aunt, and I figured that passing it down to my niece would be a good idea." Lucina smiled, now putting the book back into the bag it came from. "By all means, she doesn't have to wear it more than once. But I do ask that I get a picture of her in it, for memory's sake."

"I think I can manage that for you," Severa replied, having to stop herself from tearing up as she did. Behind her, she could hear Brady absolutely losing himself in emotions, overcome too much by the adorable display of care.

"That's all I ask, honestly." Stepping back to where she'd been sitting before, Lucina made sure to lean into her mother's ear and whisper, "Thanks for letting me give her that," to her before taking her seat once more. Maribelle didn't reply, but the smile on her face that appeared as she looked at Lucina was enough of an answer.

More gifts were given, all of which were the typical baby shower fare; it seemed as if everyone who was in attendance had discussed what they were going to bring, because nothing was duplicated and there was more than enough of everything. It was slightly overwhelming to Severa, who was basically opening every gift and adding it to a growing pile of necessities for her baby. Every so often, someone would move the pile elsewhere to let a new one start growing, which was necessary because of how much had been given—and, most notably, no one was placing any claim to any of the stuff. "Okay, seriously, you guys have spoiled Lunabel too much here," she said after opening another bag that had nothing but baby clothes in it. "I didn't ask for this."

"If you didn't ask for this, you definitely didn't ask for what else is coming!" Owain quickly said in return, before covering his mouth at what he had just said. She looked at him, eyebrows raised, asking him without words to clarify what he meant. "I, er, mean, there's bound to be other gifts as well, right? Several important people aren't here right now, after all, so there's time for more things to be bought."

"Owain, you dunce, you weren't supposed to say anything," Noire whispered at him, before realizing that she now had Severa's eyes on her. To try and steer the attention back to what had been happening, she suggested, "Why don't we just forget that he said anything and keep opening gifts?"

"Or we can start eating!" Cynthia's voice brought gift-opening to a grinding halt, as she was carrying with her a large tray of food that had been ordered. "Well, you guys can start eating, technically. I've still got to bring more out for you all before I can eat too." After she doled out her dishes she took her tray and came back moments later with another full one, setting the plates from it in front of everyone who needed one, before she sat down in her chair and sighed happily. "Oh man, I think I did a real good job on that one!"

Everyone who could without looking rude agreed with her with various sounds of approval, but Severa was the only one with something to actually say. "You might have done a decent job, but I'm curious. Is you taking care of us and splitting the money with me your present in all of this? I haven't opened a gift yet that screams 'Cynthia bought this' and I'm shocked."

"That's because I didn't buy anything that's here. I gave my money to Owain and Noire and they bought my gifts for me. So I totally don't know what I got you." She looked over at the pile of gifts that sat towering in the corner, seeing if anything caught her eye. "I could claim some of that stuff if you need me to, though!"

"No, it's fine, I was just curious. Figured I ask you since you weren't in here while I opened everything." Severa shrugged, before looking back at someone who flinched when he caught her gaze. "But if you don't know what you got me, doesn't that mean that Owain does?"

"You would think so," he replied, mouth half-full of food, "but truth is, I gave the money straight to my mom and she went crazy with the shopping. My job today was helping with the cake and the cookies." It was a believable story, and Severa had half a mind to continue asking until she knew what was given to her by who. She had to be stopped by a somewhat still-crying Brady, who had to motion towards his aunt and mention that she would have gone shopping with his mother, and so there was no real knowing who bought what.

Midway through the meal, voices could be heard coming closer to the room, and nearly everyone turned to look and see who was joining them. Standing in the doorway were three people, the presence of which made different people smile. Chrom was at the front, in his hand the handles of a large bag, and when he saw everyone staring at him he set it down and waved hello to them all; beside him was Cordelia, trying to look anywhere but at the mayor next to her and her daughter before her; and behind them both, but just tall enough to be seen over their heads, was Vaike, who seemed to be holding something above the other two so that Owain could see it.

"It looks like the rest of the party has arrived," Maribelle said, clasping her hands together and clearing off the chair next to her so that her husband could come sit there. He did, but not before dropping off the bag at Severa's feet. "Oh, darling, did you really have to set that there? She can't reach that."

He took his seat, staring blankly into Maribelle's eyes. "I don't think I understand what you mean. She's got working arms, doesn't she?"

While Maribelle set him straight, using arm motions as a means of explanation, Cordelia went to her daughter's side, kneeling down beside her. "Hello, Severa. My apologies that I didn't bring a gift with me. I was under the impression that this was just for you, not for you and the child, and you know that I don't give you very many gifts."

"No big deal. Used to it." She chuckled, watching as Cordelia's expression turned to one of relief. "Surprised that you're actually here, though. Figured that you and Daddy would have come here together, not just you." The relief faded at mention of Gaius, causing Severa to assume the worst. "He didn't get arrested again, did he? Please tell me he didn't!"

"He had a court date that he couldn't miss, or he would have been arrested. He really wanted to be here to celebrate his daughter's birthday, but—" Her explanation was cut off by what sounded like metal hitting the table, and she froze, before her and Severa both turned to look for the source of the noise. Next to them, Brady was hunched over, trying to grab something off the floor, with Owain across the table laughing at him, and Vaike still in the doorway looking slightly shocked at what had happened, but without any of them giving answers there wasn't much to assume. "Anyway," she restarted, "he wanted to be here but he had to follow the law and so he's not here. He sends his love."

Severa nodded, sighing as he did. "Sure he does. Now help me open this present that Brady's dad brought for me. I swear, if it's more clothing I might cry." Cordelia was happy to help with opening the gift, holding the bag up so that Severa could reach into it and pull out a fairly large stuffed bear, wearing what looked to be a custom-printed shirt with Lunabel's name on it. "Oh gods, this thing is gigantic! She's going to love it, someday, maybe." She put it back in the bag, turning to smile at Chrom. "Thanks, mister mayor. Good to see you're as in love with your grandchild as your wife is."

"Er, you're welcome?" he replied, not sure if the second part was a compliment or not. "I assumed Maribelle would do the majority of the shopping, so I bought something that could be used as decoration for wherever the baby ends up sleeping." She didn't notice it, but Chrom shot a glance at the person who was still in the doorway, who put his hands up defensively when he caught it. "That is, if you have somewhere for her to sleep."

She honestly had no clue if she should answer that or not, so she chose not to and instead resumed eating her meal, acting as if nothing had just happened. The three latecomers had their orders taken by a still-cheerful Cynthia, who didn't seem deterred at all that they came in and ruined her chance at enjoying the party, and soon they were filled in on what all had happened while they were dining on their meals. After everyone finished eating, to no one's surprise except Severa's more presents were pulled out, these ones not for the child but rather for the mother, who was now accepting gifts that she hadn't ever imagined being given by these people. "You really did make this about both of us," she said, her eyes scanning across everyone as they brimmed with tears. "I can't actually believe this. I couldn't ask for anything better than what you all have done for me."

"You're only sayin' that because they bought ya things you've been dreamin' of for a long time." Brady rested his head on her shoulder, sighing as he did. "I'm so glad they were okay with doin' all this for ya. Didn't think this would get to be this big of a deal."

"Like I said initially, we have to honor both mother and child." Maribelle put on a large smile as Severa's eyes passed over her again. "While I did spent much more on my granddaughter than her mother, I made sure that what I did buy for the mother was something useful and desired." She was making reference to a rather large scented candle set, which was something Severa had been longing for. "We've got to thank Brady for telling us things that Severa would want, don't we?"

Almost everyone was in agreement, the lone dissenter being Lucina, who claimed that she had decided on her own gift for her friend without any outside influence. It was enough to cause Severa to push Brady's head off her shoulder and nearly knock him out of his chair with the force she used. "You're so dead later," she said to him. "First you tell your sister and her boyfriend about some personal details, then you tell everyone about things I need."

"They asked for it, promise. Didn't share a word that wasn't asked about first." He beamed at her, getting her to drop the offended act to smile back. "There we go. That's the Sev I like seein' look back at me."

"I don't mean to interrupt you two and your adorableness, but I think it should be time for dessert." Noire was standing up from her seat, her eyes focused over on the cake table. "And that means that we need Severa to see what I made her before we destroy it." Naturally, Owain was first to agree with the suggestion, jumping up to state his approval, and everyone else followed, taking to their feet as well.

Severa was last to stand, unsure of why she had to do it, despite being urged by everyone to go look at the treats, but once she was standing in front of the table, staring at the image of herself on the cake, she knew exactly why. Her face was lighting up as she looked around for where Noire was, and once she found the purple-haired woman she let out a hesitant laugh. "That's, uh, a lovely picture of me you put on there. Couldn't you have, oh, I don't know, picked one where I don't look so much like a fat cow?"

The rebuttals to the harsh comment flew faster than she had expected they would, but Noire tried to speak over all of them to justify her choice of picture. "I just thought it was a nice picture of you, and you look so happy to be having your baby inside of you, and…" Her voice trailed off and she looked down at her feet, before remembering the cookies and grabbing one, shoving it towards Severa. "Look at this instead! A Lunabel cookie!" Laughter filled the air as Severa did look at the cookie, admiring the artwork and the visual representation of her child's name, before grabbing it and eating it without a second thought.
Heading home that afternoon was an entertaining experience. As the party dispersed, several different cars had to take all the gifts over to the apartment, but Severa couldn't go with to help because she was still technically having to work. She and Cynthia had to clean up the room, taking down all the extra decorations and rearranging the tables back to normal, discussing everything that had happened while they did. Once that was done, the manager chose not to make them keep working and instead let them loose for the afternoon, a decent idea as they had both made quite a bit of money off the party, even after splitting it. Rather than making her friend walk home like she was used to doing, Cynthia offered Severa a ride, which she immediately accepted, and for the few minutes' drive they had together, they just kept talking about the party and how great it had been in the end.

When Cynthia pulled up to the apartment complex, Severa noticed first that no one was lingering around from what she could tell, but then she saw something she didn't expect: her father's car, the one she'd returned to him upon his release from jail, was sitting in her parking spot. "Gods, really? This too?" she asked, opening her door and unbuckling herself to get out. Cynthia laughed, acting innocent by saying she had no idea that was a thing as well, but it was clear by her behavior that she had known.

The front door to the car that she could assume was now hers was unlocked, so Severa opened it and looked inside, finding nothing out of the ordinary. But things were beginning to not add up, starting with how Cordelia had said she hadn't gotten anything for the party, so she opened the trunk and went to investigate inside it. The scream she let out when she saw the wrapped boxes in the back was certainly loud enough to wake the dead, but it wasn't loud enough to summon the person in the apartment not that far from where she was standing. If she could have ran to get Brady, she would have, but as running wasn't one of those things she was exactly capable of, she had to settle with walking as fast as she could into the place she called home—to find her husband standing there, surrounded by all the other gifts from the party, putting together what looked like a miniature crib. "W-what are you doing?" she asked, slightly out of breath from her excitement.

"Puttin' together one of the gifts we got. Why do ya look like ya just saw somethin' shocking?" He set down what he was building and let Severa lead him outside, where he first saw the car and seemed not surprised at all, followed by her showing him what was in the back. "Okay, knew your mom said she was givin' us the car because we needed it, but she didn't mention anythin' about more gifts." Together they brought the boxes in, although it was mostly him doing the carrying while she supervised, and once they were inside they opened them.

"I don't know how we got so lucky," she ended up saying after they were all opened. "Never thought my mother would spoil us like this. Your mother, sure, but mine? She hates me most of the time, yet she just gave us a car and more baby clothes and even a little swing and…wow." She took a deep breath, trying to collect herself. "Everyone today seriously just bought us almost everything we need. Which reminds me," she pointed towards what he'd been building, "where did that crib thing over there come from?"

"Cynthia's actual gift to us. Didn't want to spoil the surprise for ya, so she kept it secret. Her parents got us somethin' too, actually." He pointed at another box she didn't remember having opened. "It's a playpen, I guess? Never thought we'd need a small crib and a big one and a playpen for a kid, but here we are."

"Wait a second, did you say a big one? Like, a big crib?" Her eyes went wide as she thought about everything that had happened at the party, the memory of the three latecomers standing out to her. Hadn't one of them been holding something that he then threw…? "Brady, you tell me right now that your uncle didn't come over here and build us a crib. Tell me!" He stayed silent, and she gasped. "That's crazy! How did this happen? How did everyone decide to be nice to us like this?"

His silence lingered long enough for her to go into their bedroom and see the hand-built crib that definitely hadn't been there when she went to work earlier. When she came back, tears in her eyes, he finally found it inside of him to speak. "That's not all my uncle did for us today, actually. He offered me a job at his shop, workin' on cars and all that, and, uh, him and Owain wouldn't leave me alone until I accepted it." She gasped again, putting her hands over her mouth from the shock. "So looks like I'm finally goin' to be workin' hard to provide for my family."


A/N: special Tuesday edition of the fic because the person this story is for, one best friend of mine named Kody, is celebrating his birthday today! Happy birthday, friendo~