* Hello again. Despite my disappointment of receiving no reviews for the last chapter, I couldn't wait to post this chapter once I had it typed up. Thank you to those who read, though, :) And thanks for the story alerts and favorites

enjoy :)


Fang helped me out of the car when Jeb pulled up to the emergency room entrance. The automatic doors opened for us and we were greeted by the girls and Gazzy, who were able to fly much faster than Jeb could drive. Miranda informed the staff that I was on my way, so the doctor had a wheelchair waiting to take me to labor and delivery.

Everything seemed a blur as I was wheeled down the dingy corridors. The sterile hallways and antiseptic smell brought me back to the School. Though it had been many years since I had been there, I could feel the panic attack rising inside me.

"Fang." I grabbed the hand dangling by his side as he walked next to the chair. "I changed my mind. I don't want to do this here. I want to go back home."

I tried to stand up but the nurse put a firm hand on my shoulder. "Please Miss, you have to stay in the chair," she ordered kindly.

"Mrs." Fang corrected and scowled. He held onto my hand. "It's too late to go back, Max. This is better. It'll be safer, too.

I was getting more and more agitated, trying several more times to get out of the chair, even as I was wheeled into a cheery bedroom-looking space designed to make one feel at home. It still had an antiseptic smell. Fang helped me onto the bed. It reminded me of a hotel bed-not the softest sheets and not the most comfortable bed, but I'd been on worse. Jeb, the nurse, two doctors and Fang watched as another contraction took over. I squeezed Fang's hand tightly and did the breathing thing my mom taught me. I felt like a dog panting on a hot summer day.

"How far apart?" the nurse asked.

"She had one right as we got to the emergency room door. Maybe four minutes," Fang told her.

"Okay, there's still some time," she said. "Everybody out. She's got to get into a gown."

She ushered everyone out the door except Fang. He glared at her when she made a move toward him.

"I promised my wife I wouldn't leave her for any reason," Fang said defiantly.

The nurse chuckled. "I wasn't going to kick you out. But you need to change into scrubs. If you want to change out here instead of the bathroom, that's fine with me. You don't have anything I haven't seen before."

I laughed out loud as Fang began to unfurl his wings-just enough for her to see that he did indeed have something she hadn't seen before. The nurse's eyes went wide.

"I stand corrected," she said, shaking her head. "They told me, but I didn't really believe it. Now I can say I've seen it all." She laughed, handing Fang a set of scrubs. "You can use the bathroom. I'll make sure she's okay while you're gone."

The nurse began to help me out of my clothes. As a contraction hit, I panted and focused on her name tag. It read Ivy Davis. When the feeling passed, we continued disrobing me.

"Wow, you have 'em too," she commented. "They sure are pretty."

"Huh?"

"Your wings. They're beautiful." She proceeded to slip a gown on me and gently pushed me back onto the semi-upright bed.

"Thank you. Ivy. Can I call you Ivy?" She didn't really look like an Ivy to me. She was tall and broad. Not heavy, but solid. Someone you wouldn't want to mess with. But her eyes were a serene blue color and the skin around them crinkled slightly when she smiled, so you knew it was a genuine smile. Upon closer inspection, her face was rather feminine, though her overall appearance was not. Her hands were large with long fingers and neatly trimmed nails. I would have named her Bertha or Helga if I was making her up. She looked like a fighter. I liked her from the start.

"We'll be spending a lot of time together over the next few hours. Next couple of days, really. You can definitely call me Ivy. What should I call you?"

"I'm Max," I told her. "His name is Fang," I said when he came out of the bathroom. Ivy simply raised her eyebrows.

Fang was tugging at the shoulders of his shirt and pulling at the collar. "This is a little uncomfortable. Do you have a pair of scissors?"

Ivy gave a puzzled look. "Scissors?"

"To cut slits in the back." Ivy cocked her head.

"Oh, for the wings?" she asked. I must say, she took the whole situation in stride. I guess as a nurse, she had to keep her cool under the most stressful conditions. I was glad to have her there with me.

Three doctors and Jeb walked in.

"Is my-" A contraction hit and I started panting again. Fang took my hand, letting me squeeze as hard as I wanted. I remembered thinking that if I broke it, at least we were in a hospital. I laughed at the thought when the contraction was over. Ivy looked at her watch.

I tried my question again. "Is my mom here yet?"

"She's on her way. The rest of the flock is here," Jeb told me.

"Can they come in?" I looked to Ivy.

"In a bit," she said. "Maybe one or two can visit, but it's going to get pretty hectic in here soon. Right now I need to set up an IV and hook you up to the monitors. And we'll take a peek at what's happening." She smiled at me. As long as all she's doing is peeking, I thought.

The doctors and Jeb left the room again, leaving the three of us. Ivy hooked me up to so many wires and tubes I felt like a marionette. But she did more than peek and I was grateful for her neatly trimmed nails.

Several painful contractions later, I asked about the drugs my mom said I could have. Ivy didn't think I noticed the worried look she gave Fang, but it gave me a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Ivy put a hand on my shoulder. "Max, honey, it's too late for that. This baby is coming very soon. Your contractions are too close together and you're at nine centimeters already. I'd guess within the next half hour, you'll be parents."

My back muscles constricted and pain hit my belly again. And maybe it was because I knew drugs were no longer an option, the pain seemed worse than anything I'd ever felt before.

Fang wiped a tear from my cheek. "Don't cry. It's going to be all right."

"Easy for you to say," I gritted through my teeth.

Jeb came back into the room, calm as usual, with no less than five doctors following close behind. They were excitedly looking over my chart and checking the monitors. They talked to each other about me like I wasn't even there, until one of them walked over and asked if he could examine my wings. I thought Fang was going to go ballistic, but Ivy beat him to it.

"Okay, that's it!" Ivy yelled. "Which one of you is actually on call?" None of them answered, they just sheepishly looked around. "That's what I thought. Out!" she ordered. She went to the phone and picked it up.

"Karen, it's Ivy. Don't let any more doctors come back to room 142. It's like a damn parade going through here. The only one I want to see back here is Dr. Brittingham."

"And Dr. Martinez," Fang added.

"Is that your mom, honey?" I nodded. "And Dr. Martinez when she gets here. She's the girl's mother."

After about fifteen minutes and a bajillion contractions later, Dr. Brittingham finally showed up.

"So, what's happening in here?" he smiled.

All I could do was pant and scowl.

"She's just about ready to go," nurse Ivy informed him.

He took a quick peek and gave her all sorts of orders I wasn't paying attention to. Fang sat by my head, whispering words of encouragement the whole time.

"Would you shut up!" I yelled at him. He looked hurt. I ignored it. "Where's my mom? Fang, go see if she's here yet." I said before that he didn't want to leave me, but after the way I yelled at him, he didn't argue. Moments later, he and Jeb returned to the room.

"Max, your mother isn't here yet." Jeb started to say something a few times before he finally spit it out. "I don't think she's going to make it in time. She's still half an hour away."

I screamed as the next wave came, more out of frustration than pain. I was managing to deal with the pain by now. Fang hesitated to come back to my side. I didn't blame him.

"Fang," I called and held out my hand. He seemed relieved to have something to do, or maybe that I wasn't yelling at him any more.

I couldn't believe after everything, after taking care of me for the past eight months, my mom was going to miss the birth.

"Jeb?" I looked to him, not sure exactly what I wanted of him.

"I'll go call your mother again to let her know what's going on," he said, trying to anticipate my next question.

Before he left, I called to him again. I don't know why. Chalk it up to hormones and my emotions being all over the place. For a moment, I was an eleven year old kid again, wishing Jeb was my dad. Wanting him to comfort me and tell me everything was going to be okay. Yeah, I had Fang, but he was just as scared as me.

"You can stay," I told Jeb. "If you want. It's your granddaughter, too." I wasn't prepared for the expression on his face. Or the tears welling up in his eyes. I felt my own tears threatening to spill. I squeezed them out, shutting my eyes tight and yelling before I remembered to breathe. Suddenly, I felt an unbelievable pressure and an urge to get that baby out.

Ivy smiled. "Okay Grandpa, quick get changed. This baby is coming right now." She threw him the scrubs meant for my mom.

Ivy pushed a lever and abruptly, the bottom half of the bed disappeared. She put my feet up so my knees were bent. Then she pushed them apart so anyone who wished could see me in all my glory. Funny thing was, I didn't even care. I just wanted it over with.

Fang wisely decided to stay by my side and continue to hold my hand. After what I told him about James' birth, he didn't want to watch. Jeb kept his eyes mainly on the monitors, advising when to push. Ivy stood ready to take the baby as soon as she made her appearance. And Dr. Brittingham sat facing me, hand on my belly, pressing down a little. "Here she comes," he said excitedly.

I don't actually remember a whole lot after that. Jeb had a hand on my back, keeping me forward. I had my eyes closed and only concentrated on pushing and Fang's voice. I thought I heard a small cracking sound. Later, I found out that I actually did break Fang's hand.

The next thing I heard was a cry. My baby's cry. And someone saying, "Oh my. That's unexpected."


* Yikes! A real cliffy. Not my usual style, but I like to mix it up once in a while. Hmmmm, what could it be? Find out in the next chapter.