A/N: I had a plan. Except I don't know where it's gone, so that's out the window.
We're free-wheeling from here peeps.
Oh! Good news, I found the notes. You may all stop looking now.
Taking a HUGE detour. Stick with me, it'll be fun.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author of this story. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any previously copyrighted material. No copyright infringement is intended.
-0-
Sam did not contract chicken pox. What he did get though, was terrible hives after an afternoon playing outside with Cara. They did not have much of a garden, in fact, it was barely more than a postage stamp of a thing, but there was a little communal garden that they shared with the rest of the block. It seemed that having been mowed, Sam decided that he wanted to roll in it, getting covered in grass, but after his shower, also covered in big angry welts.
"Shit," Andy sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Do I need to come home?"
"No, not unless you want to," Cara said, soothing Sam's whines. "I have some antihistamine cream, I'm lathering on him - I have bad allergies myself and make sure I've always got some on me, but I just wanted to let you know."
"Alright," Andy sighed. "I'll let Miranda know and text you if the plan changes."
"No problem Andy, do you want to talk to him?"
"Of course," Andy smiled as Cara handed the phone to Sam.
The great wobbly breath told her that his crying was nearly through.
"Hey sweetheart," Andy said gently. "I hear you're having a rough day."
"I itchy Mama."
"I know baby, but Cara's gonna put some cream on you and make it better okay?"
"Everyfink is itchy!"
"Try not to scratch it, alright? Maybe you and Cara can cuddle in front of Paw Patrol for a while, until it stops itching, how about that?"
"M'kay," he said.
There was a noise on the other end before Cara came back on the phone.
"Whatever you said to him, you fixed it," Cara chuckled.
"Well," Andy winced. "Don't thank me yet, I told him that maybe you might cuddle on the sofa and watch some Paw Patrol."
"Ha!" Cara chuckled. "No worries. See you later."
"Thanks Cara."
She dropped her phone on her desk and looked at Miranda's calendar that was shared with her. She was currently in a meeting, so Andy made a note to let her know later.
-0-
"Andréa?"
"Hmm?" Andy moaned, blinking at the light invading her corneas.
"Andréa?"
"What?" she groaned, rolling over. "Oh!" she smiled, sitting up and kissing Miranda. "Hi."
"I'm sorry I was late darling."
"You've said that, so you don't need to do it again," Andy said gently. "We're okay, remember?"
"Yes," Miranda sighed, sitting back with a look on her face that Andy couldn't interpret.
Andy sighed, sitting up properly and turning to face Miranda, crossing her legs. It looked like a bigger conversation that she wanted to have at, she glanced at the clock, three in the morning.
"Spill."
"I do not spill," Miranda said, halfheartedly.
"Geez," Andy frowned. "It's a doozy. What's going on?"
"I don't want to go to Paris," Miranda whispered.
"What?" Andy said, sitting forward and straining. Miranda's whispers were legendary, but Andy was well out of practice.
"I do not want to go to Paris."
Andy knew the shock was showing on her face, but she couldn't help it. She looked at Miranda, really looked and saw the truth in her eyes.
"You do, you just don't want to leave us behind," Andy correctly surmised.
"Why now," Miranda said, waving her hands. "Why do I suddenly feel this now. Why weren't my girls enough to feel this. Why did I always go off and ab -"
"Stop," Andy said gently, taking Miranda's hands. "Stop right there. Life now is very different to life was when the girls were small. I have no doubt at all that despite your thoughts, you probably didn't want to go and leave them when they were little. You just had no choice. Well," Andy coloured remembering that whole conversation on choices that they'd once had.
"Yes," Miranda whispered. "Exactly."
"Look," Andy sighed. "It's 5 days. You're so busy on those 5 days that you barely sleep. Imagine adding 5 kids to that mix."
Miranda didn't say anything, and Andy didn't know how to follow on from that.
"Let's sleep okay?" Andy sighed. "We'll worry about this tomorrow," she glanced at the clock again. "Today. Are you going in early?"
"I must. I have a meeting at 8."
"Oh darling," Andy said, snuggling down and opening her arms.
Miranda looked down at Andy and stroked her face before turning out the light and settling into those open arms.
"I've never done that before you," Miranda whispered.
"What?"
"Admitted my fears. Discussed them. Admitted them."
"Here's to a healthy relationship that lasts forever," Andy whispered, kissing Miranda's crown.
They fell asleep clinging to one another, thankful for the steadiness each provided the other.
-0-
"Alright guys, time to come and give M'anda big hugs and kisses."
"Why M'anda going?" Sam asked, Bop and his thumb firmly lodged in his mouth.
"Cos that's what M'anda needs to do for work sweetie," Andy said gently. "It's only for a little while and she's coming right back here to us afterwards."
The twins seemed just as forlorn as the little ones as Miranda stood in the hallway. The bags were already in the car, and everyone was sitting on the steps looking at her.
"Guys," Andy said looking at the twins. "Help me out here."
"We'll see you when you get back Mom," Caroline said, getting up and giving Miranda a hug. "We love you."
"I love you," Miranda smiled, cupping Caroline's cheeks and kissing her forehead. "And you, my darling heart."
She did the same to Cassidy, then opened her arms. Nicky was the first one to succumb and raced into her arms, hugging her tightly. He'd not said another word since being locked in the cupboard under the stairs, but Andy and Miranda had both heaved a sigh of relief that he was still progressing in a forward motion.
Sam was next, demanding that she pick him up and hold him. He sighed into her neck and held onto her jacket lapel until Andy took him off her.
"Are you going to say goodbye Miss Olivia?" Miranda asked, crouching down next to her small carry-on bag.
"Not if it means you gotta go," Livvy said, looking up at her with sad eyes.
"I will be coming right back," Miranda smiled. "I will Skype you all every night. Even though that means I have to be awake much earlier than I need to be, because I love you all and I don't want to go away for this little while any more than you want me to."
Andy watched the twin's faces turn to shock as they heard that admission. They looked at each other, then at Andy. Andy shrugged, shaking her head a little and making sure they knew to keep it low key. The last thing she wanted them to do was to make a big deal out of it.
"I love you," Livvy said, throwing herself into Miranda's arms.
"I love you sweetheart," Miranda whispered back. "Now I must go. Roy is waiting for me."
"Hey," Andy said, shifting Sam into the other arm. "You forgot about me."
"I could never," Miranda whispered, closing the gap and giving Andy a kiss that she was sure was the very best kiss she'd ever had in all her life.
She blinked, trying hard to hold onto that feeling, and not listen to the giggles and cat-calls from their children as Miranda walked backwards out of the door.
"Goodbye my darlings, I'll be home soon. I love you all."
And then, she was gone.
-0-
Bath time had not gone smoothly. Samuel had slipped over and hurt his head. Nick had dropped his tablet in the water, despite Andy repeating more than thrice the instruction that they were not to have their tablets in the bath. And Olivia had cried since dinnertime. Cara, bless her heart, had shown up unannounced thirty minutes after Miranda had left, while they were all sitting around looking glum. She'd taken the boys and started on dinner, leaving Andy to hold Olivia and the twins lolling on the sofa. But then she'd left and Andy was left trying to cope with everything, and by the time the younger three were in bed, she wanted to cry.
She had no idea why on this night, of all nights, everything was so hard. She'd done this a hundred times by now, and as she dropped back on their bed, she took a deep breath, breathing in the rich scent that was Miranda.
It took the twins thirty minutes to abandon whatever they were doing and knock on the door.
"Hey," Andy sighed, nodding them in.
"Why does it feel like this?" Cassidy whispered as they all lay looking at the ceiling. "I know we're usually at Dad's, so that's already weird, but why does it feel," she paused and Andy rolled over, pushing the hair out of her face.
"Empty," Caroline whispered, finishing Cassidy's thought. "It feels empty."
"Mama?"
Sam joined them, snuggling into Caroline's arms, and before long, Nicky and Olivia also joined them, and after another hour, all five were tucked up in their bed, sleeping soundly, leaving Andy looking down at them and trying to figure out what to do.
It took her four hours. She sat bolt upright in bed, grabbed her tablet, and started working. It was perfect. Everything was set, and it didn't really hit her until it came time to put her credit card information in. She gulped, looking at the information, staring back at her. It wasn't going to be cheap. She thought back to Miranda's words on the morning of her birthday and hit purchase before she could chicken out.
She sent a few text messages and a few emails, and snuggled back down, accepting Sam on top of her and Cassidy at her side. She fell asleep smiling, knowing she'd done the right thing.
-0-
Andy only got another two hours sleep before she got up again and sighed, thinking about how much work she needed to do. She started in Olivia's room, knowing that the twins would likely not appreciate her rooting around in their wardrobes. She herself, went in search of some luggage, having seen it somewhere, she just couldn't remember where.
She finally found it in the cupboard under the stairs, of all places. She smiled to herself as she opened them up on the floor in the "guest sitting room". The twins could put their stuff in when it was ready, and she carted the little one's stuff in before going back upstairs and standing in the doorway of their room, watching as a few of them blinked awake.
"Mama?" Livvy asked.
"Hey kiddo. You hungry?" She shrugged. "Alright, why don't you go to the bathroom, and come lay back in bed until everyone's awake."
"'Kay."
"Wha's'goin'on?" Caroline asked, sitting up suddenly and disturbing Nick, who growled at Caroline. Properly growled.
"Wow," Andy giggled. "Good noise Nicky. We're waking up," Andy said gently. "But don't go anywhere cos I have some exciting news for everyone."
It took another 20 minutes for everyone to wake up, and that was mainly because Sam poked Cassidy until she opened her eyes.
"Okay Cass, I'm sorry, but we're on a time limit here," Andy said, sitting on the bed and rubbing her leg until she nodded.
"So, last night, I realised something," Andy explained. "Last night, I realised that Cass and Caro were right. Without M'anda here," she sighed. "It's empty. So," she took a deep breath. "I did something crazy, that I hope you'll all be alright with. Cos it's a big deal."
"We're following Mom aren't we," Cassidy grinned, glancing at Caroline.
"We are," Andy said. "Will that be alright, you just taking off for a week?"
"Yeah, we'll get them to email our work if there's anything important," Caroline grinned. "When are we leaving."
"Roy's coming in about two hours, which isn't long, so I want you can Cass to get showered and pack some things. We're not going to have any," she made air quotes, "fashion clothes, but we all have nice stuff, so let's make sure you pack some okay? I'm sure your Mom can organise some things for us when we get there."
"Yes Mama," Caroline squealed, bouncing off the bed.
"Yes Mama," Cassidy followed right behind.
"Oh, hey," Andy called. "Do I have to let your Dad know?"
"We'll call him," Cassidy said, running down the stairs to follow her twin. "He won't care."
"Alright loves," Andy said, accepting Sam on her knee. "Do you understand what's happening?"
Liv nodded, but Nicky just shrugged, so Andy made it simpler.
"You know how M'anda went on a big plane?"
They nodded.
"We're going to go on an even bigger plane so we can go and be with M'anda okay?"
"Yeah," Sam said, throwing Bop up in the air as he always did when he was excited.
"Great. What I want you to do, Liv, Nicky. Get your tablets and your chargers," she frowned. "I forgot Nick, you'rs is out. Okay. You can play on mine. Let's do this. Livvy, I want you to put on some clothes. Make sure they're super comfortable okay? Soft pants and a shirt. Get the twins to help you if you get stuck. Then I want you to get your tablet, and Sam's and both chargers, okay?" Livvy nodded. "Put them by the big case at the front door okay? Then get two toys and one book okay?"
"Yes Mama," Livvy said, skipping happily out of the room.
"Nicky, I want you to do the same, think you can do that?"
He nodded silently and also left.
"That just leaves you and me kiddo," Andy smiled, kissing Sam's hair. "First things first. Let's get you dressed and eating, then we'll figure it out okay?"
"M'kay Mama," Sam said absently, happy to be carted off to his room, and set up for the day.
-0-
"Mama, come on we need to go!" Caroline said, her worry, ramping up the tension they were all already feeling.
"Caroline, calm down," Andy said, counting children, then bags, and making sure she had her own. They'd already left it behind once, now it was strapped to her back like it was never coming off. "We've got plenty of time."
"I know, I'm just excited," Caroline grinned. "Sorry."
"It's okay. Help me, it'll be quicker alright? You take Nick, make sure he's got his jacket and his bag. Cass, you stick to Liv. Liv, you right baby?"
"Yes Mama," she said, smiling up at her.
"Good. I'll keep Sam and his stuff is now in my bag. And we're off."
In hindsight, Andy couldn't have realised what a tremendously audacious idea it would be to just pack up 5 children and go to Paris, during Fashion Week. But it felt right, and the kids were excited, and dammit she was too. There had been a hell of a lot of water under the bridge since that fateful Paris, and she and Miranda had been back again since then. But not with 5 kids in tow.
She just really, really hoped Miranda liked her surprise.
She presented passports when they got to the gate and got a funny look as she did so. Thankfully, before the questions had started, she presented the adoption paperwork for the three Walker children and the legal paperwork that named her as all 5 kids' guardian. Miranda had insisted that there be something official tying Andy to the children for such an occasion. She'd never been happier to be proven wrong in all her life. She'd called it ridiculous at the time. Now, she would definitely be eating her words.
Finally sat down, and buckled in, Andy breathed a deep sigh. Sam was in her row in the window seat with Andy in the middle and Nicky on her other side. The twins were with Olivia in front, where she could see them, Olivia peering out of the window with aw.
"Look Mama!" Sam yelled, making Andy wince. "It's so big!"
"I know baby," Andy chuckled. "Keep your inside voice on okay?"
As the plane started taxi-ing, she could see the tension ramp up in Olivia's shoulders. She leaned forward and squeezed her arm, telling her to hold Cassy's hand as hard as she wanted to.
"We go fast Mama?"
"Yes baby, and it's noisy, okay?"
"M'kay."
She felt the familiar roar of the engines and wrapped her arm around Sam as he panicked. They'd obviously never been on a plane before, but they did okay. Sam gripped her arm really hard, no doubt leaving nail marks, but Nick giggled and kicked his feet. She just hoped Olivia was alright too.
Ladies and gentlemen, the captain has turned off the fasten seatbelt sign and you may now move about the cabin. In just a moment, our team will bring some breakfast and refreshments around.
Andy had never been more thankful for aeroplane food in her life, as a hostess bought round three kids breakfasts and three orange juices. Andy set Sam and Nicky up with theirs and watched as Cassidy helped Olvia with hers. By the time they got theirs, Andy was starving, and after swapping her eggs for Cassidy's sausages, was now sufficiently fuelled for the rest of the nearly 8-hour flight. Nick was listening to an audiobook with his cute crocodile headphones on, and Sam was playing with some lego, Bop tucked under his arm. She felt like closing her eyes, but she couldn't. She knew she couldn't and so she sat back with her own book and joined in the quiet.
It was nice, but she couldn't help but smile as the excitement built.
They'd be with Miranda in no time at all.