There was a lot of unknowns. Of course, there was, this child growing within Athenodora's womb should be impossible. And yet everyone of these unknowns were slowly weathered.
As soon as Carlisle had made his world=-changing announcement he was sworn to complete secrecy. His family would never know just why he was taking frequent trips to Volterra. And frequent they became. Before he would take next to no days off, but now he was booking 2-3 days off every month. He had more than made up for it, but it did not make the shirking of his responsibilities much easier.
The first test within the pregnancy came with discovering just what species the child was. Logically one would think it was vampire, but although the blood supported it due to the pure nature of the placenta it soon became obvious it was not enough for the foetus, the growth was slower than it should have been. As such Athenodora was put on a flurry of human vitamins and healthy diet. It became obvious it was working when the food did not make Dora nauseous and the baby started to develop in leaps and bounds.
The Child was a well-kept secret in not only the world but Volterra itself. Only a select few knew, Carlisle, Aro, Marcus and the parents themselves being the obvious ones. The queens were notoriously private and so a secret of there's was easily kept. Yes, the only ones outside of top authority that knew were the Witch Twins. Dora had cursed Aro for turning them young, especially as he only saw them as the weapon of their gifts. As such, over the millennia, Dora had taken on a parental role towards the youngest members of the guard and outside of Caius they were the only ones allowed access to her private chambers.
And despite the front they put on for the Volturi, Dora could think of no better siblings for her child. They were already proving themselves, Jane in particular was ecstatic, when she was not on duty, she found herself in Dora's chambers. She spoke so softly to her growing stomach, in fact if Dora did not hold so much affection towards the girl, she would have kicked her out for pure over-bearing.
The pregnancy reflected the creature that was growing. Dora was glowing as her ninth month neared, her stomach larger than it had been in her entire life, and that wasn't saying much, she had been from a poor family as a human and so food had been scarce.
Dora watched with a detached acceptance as she felt water flow down her legs. It was 2 days after she was due and so she knew what to expect. Carlisle had been here since the due date and so summoning the doctor was as simple as pressing a button. Likewise, she summoned her husband, if this was going to be as painful as people suggested then he was going to be there to support her.
He was there quicker than Carlisle was, his face impossibly pale even for a vampire. Yes, Dora's pregnancy had made the great Caius Volturi into a bona fide worry-wort. Dora dreaded to think just how spoilt the girl would be as she grew up. Her musings were interrupted by the pain of a contraction pulling her attention to the child ready to make itself into the world.
Carlisle arrived soon after, a warm smile on his face. Caius had come to accept Carlisle over his visits, not only was the man thankful for the Doctor's support in this they had bonded over similar interests as surprising as that might be. Of course, they each had a distinct ideology the other would never agree to but they accepted that in each other and had developed something akin to a brotherhood. Carlisle talked them through each step of what he was doing to prepare Dora for the birth as he did it, though there was very little to prepare past ensuring levels of cleanliness and making sure there was access to the child when it came.
Once everything was prepared it was merely a case of waiting for dilation to occur. This was Dora's least favourite part, where the contractions had been far apart they started to come increasingly close together, if not for his vampiric healing Dora would have been worried for the bones in Caius's hand and the fractures she was surely causing. But he was stronger than that, and plus, this agony she was in now was his fault!
It was another five minutes of contractions before the doctor gave the clear.
"You're doing great, Dora, but I need you to start pushing now. When the next contraction comes, work with it." She nodded, her face scrunched up but her vampire nature saving her from being drenched in sweat from the exertion.
If she had thought the contractions had been hard then that had nothing on now. She had not felt agony like it as she pushed, despite the dilation she could feel her walls getting stretched even further.
"Keep going, we're starting to crown." The gender was unknown, human ultrasound kits had not worked properly on the vampire and so other than it's health the child was a mystery.
It felt like hours passed before finally she felt the child fall away from her, and a second later a cry, loud and strong, rang through the room. Carlisle held the babe in his arms, a warm smile on his face, as he cleaned it of amniotic fluid and blood. He wrapped the child in a clean blanket before placing the bundle in Dora's waiting arms.
"Congratulation, meet your healthy little girl." Carlisle did not disturb them for moments after that, merely cleaning the room as she and Caius stared at their child with wonder. She was everything they could have hoped for, a dark little tuft of hair sticking to her head, her nose small and scrunched up, her smile more of a grimace at the minute, her eyes closed as she dozed. Dora touched each part of her daughter's face with reverence, her eyes full of tears that wouldn't fall. She was tiny, so precious and she and Caius had created her. She looked to her husband, his eyes full of wonder as he gazed at his daughter, she placed a tender kiss to his lips. They had neither expected nor desired a family, but this was perfection right here.
Unsurprisingly the first people to meet the babe was the other kings and the Witch Twins. Caius wasn't quite sure he enjoyed having this many people not only in his personal space, but around his delicate new-born child. Unfortunately, Dora seemed to thrive on it, welcoming and introducing everyone, revelling in the attention that they gifted onto the child.
Marcus and Aro did not stay long, they congratulated each parent, cooed over the child for a few precious moments before exiting the room. They knew their brother well enough to know he wouldn't appreciate the attention being lavished upon them, rather he would feel like an over-protective trapped animal.
The same could not be the said for Alec and Jane. Upon first sight they were besotted. Everyone had a very distinct opinion of Jane and her personality, partially bolstered by the front she put on, but mostly due to the fear her gift instilled. It stood to say that when everyone was too scared to get to know you then the chances of you becoming bitter certainly increased. And so it had worked, she was bitter with the vampire world at large, but not here in what she considered home, here she could be her true self, Dora accepted her with open arms, likewise with Caius, gruff as he may be.
Jane's face lit up with an inarguable joy as Dora placed the babe in her arms, cradling the tiny bundle in her small arms.
"Well aren't you just the cutest," She poked the baby's nose experimentally, giggling just slightly as the baby's eyes crossed to follow the action, "I'm going to be your big sister, Stellina, and I already love you very much." The baby just looked back at her, too young to react to the words of adoration. Jane looked away from the baby to the vampire King and Queen.
"What are you going to name her?" Dora had a fond smile on her face as she looked on to Jane and her daughter. Her and Caius had argued many a night during her pregnancy on what they were going to call the babe but, in the end, they had settled on one name for a girl and another if it ended up being a boy.
"Well, big sister, meet Isabella Stella Volturi." Alec's eyes crinkled in amusement at the name, taking the babe from his twin, though she did not look happy to let the child go.
She was smaller than he was expecting, and that was saying something considering he was the smallest of the male's in Volterra, she fit in his arms with space to spare, just staring up curiously at all the people and her surroundings, "Beautiful Star, I think that's a fitting name Little One." After some time being passed around and being rocked in Alec's arms the Isabella succumbed to sleep, her already baby-peaceful face relaxing even more. Alec gave Isabella back to her mother when he noticed she was asleep, glad to have had the time with her.
"Off you two go back to work now, you will see the child again soon." Unbelievable to most of the vampire nation, Jane pouted at that, but nodded knowing better than to ignore a direct order. She placed a soft kiss to the baby's head before making her leave. She couldn't wait to have a child about the castle.
Bella has still got to grow up, so as you can imagine it's going to be a few chapters until we see any of the Cullen's bar Carlisle.