Part 19- The Bad News
"Sister what is it?" asked Matthias in a hoarse voice.
"I-I-its Lia...."
"What about her?" he inquired, beginning to panic.
"S-s-she d-didn't m-make it," the sister choked out.
"What in Mossflower are you talking about?" he asked, dreading the answer.
"I don't know how it happened. I think it was because she wasn't strong enough. Maybe she wasn't completely developed. I truly don't know."
Tears fell down Matthias's cheeks unchecked. He let them. He didn't care who saw.
"What will I tell Cornflower?" he whispered.
"I don't know. I really don't think you should be the one to tell her, though."
"No. She must hear it from me. I will tell her when she wakes."
Sage nodded and passed him a handkerchief. "Do not hide your feelings about this from her." With this Sage went and brought their son back and handed him to his father.
Matthias took a seat again, staring at his sleeping wife. He was devastated. His daughter, barely a few hours old, died. He knew not why. Nobeast did. Tears were still running down his face, landing on the small, downy head of his newborn son. He wiped them away very gently.
Matthias was still crying over an hour later when Cornflower woke up. He jumped up, put Methuselah Mortimer in his cradle and ran to her side as soon as he heard her stir. She smiled at him when he reached her side.
"I've thought of what is missing from his name. How do you think Matthias Methuselah Mortimer sounds?"
Matthias tried to smile, but couldn't. He merely nodded in agreement.
"What's wrong," she asked, seeing how distressed he looked. "Why are you crying?"
He looked at her with his sad, mournful eyes. And he tried to respond. But he couldn't.
"Matthias?" she asked, a questioning look on her face.
"I-it's L-l-lia. S-s-she d-d." he dropped off, taking a deep breath before continuing. "She didn't make it," he finished, in a whisper.
Cornflower felt her heart jump up to her throat. "What?"
He nodded.
She burst out in tears, sobbing into her pillow. Matthias pulled her into a hug, and she wept into his shoulder. They cried for the longest time, until the Father Abbot entered.
As soon as Mordalfus entered the birth room, he saw Cornflower sobbing into Matthias's shoulder. He cleared his throat to get their attention. When they broke apart he spoke.
"Sister has informed me of your loss." He sighed, looking grave. "And also of your gain," he added, motioning to the cradle. "You must be devastated."
Cornflower nodded, the tears stopping momentarily. "Sister Sage said she was extremely healthy when she firs gave her to me. What happened?"
"I can only guess that she wasn't yet completely developed and her body couldn't survive alone."
Cornflower felt the tears returning. She let them fall, knowing that it was useless to try and stop them. Matthias placed a paw on her shoulder, his joints white.
"Martin must have known that she wasn't meant to come to us. That is why she didn't make it. It was not meant to be," concluded Matthias dejectedly, wiping his eyes.
"And you still have your sons. And each other. Do not grieve for the loss of your daughter, but rejoice for the life of your son," the abbot said. "Have you thought of a name for your son?"
"Aye, we have chosen Matthias Methuselah Mortimer."
"What a mouthful! Will there be a nickname?"
"Perhaps eventually. We shall probably call him Matthias, and when that gets too confusing we may make up a nickname."
"Let me be the first to congratulate you then, and to welcome Matthias Methuselah Mortimer to this abbey. May he be as good a mouse as his parents."
"Thank you, Father. Would you like to hold him?" asked Cornflower, also wiping her eyes.
"Certainly."
Matthias jumped up and retrieved his now awake son from the cradle. He passed the small bundle to the abbot gently, sitting again.
"My goodness! This little fellow looks like his father. Eyes and everything!"
Matthias smiled, kissing the top of Cornflower's head.
"Lia also had his eyes."
"Was Lia the maids name?"
Cornflower nodded, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall. She fought with them throughout the rest of the abbot's visit, knowing that no matter what anybeast said she would grieve for a long time.
The abbot left the small family later, leaving them in peace. Retto returned not too long after, and was elated to see that his brother was awake. The fact that one of the babes was missing did not even register with him.
"Ooh. he wakey! Can I play wiv 'im now? Pweese mama?"
Cornflower smiled at her older son. "I don't think he knows how to play yet, but maybe he will when he is older. Then you can tell him about all of your favorite things to play."
"My favit thing t'do is play wiv daddy," he proclaimed, climbing onto Matthias's lap.
Matthias was wreathed in smiles at hearing this. "Thanks, pal. I like playing with you too!"
Cornflower chuckled at her husband. He was able to put on a strong front, even though she knew he was being torn up inside.
"I think it's high past your bedtime, young sir," she said. "Cummon, you can sleep in here with mommy, okay?"
Retto yawned, suddenly aware that he was tired. " 'K. Nitey nites, daddy. Nitey nites mama. Nitey nites likkle brotha."
He fell asleep almost instantly, still in his play clothes. Matthias stopped trying to hide his grief.
"Why did she have to die, Cornflower? Why?"
She shook her head. "I don't know."
He blinked several times. It was obvious he was trying to overcome his tears.
"Matthias don't hold it in."
He obeyed her, allowing the tears that had welled up to fall. He sat next to her, pulling her into his arms.
"I'm so glad I didn't lose you," he cried. "I don't know what I would have done if I lost my wife and my daughter."
Him saying this triggered Cornflower's tears as well.
They fell asleep a while later.
********
The next morning Matthias awoke in the same room in the infirmary. He was facing Cornflower, and she was holding her son in her arms. In that moment he resolved to try and stop crying and mourning, and to look to the future. He kissed her forehead and woke her up.
"Mmmmhhhhhh...... Matthias? What time is it?"
"I haven't a clue. I suspect Sister Sage will be in shortly to check up on you, though."
She nodded, closing her eyes again.
"How do you feel?"
"Not so good," she replied in a whisper.
"What do you mean?"
"I feel tired. All I want to do is sleep."
"Sister said you might be drained for the next few days."
"That's not why."
Matthias understood immediately. "I have resolved to try and stop mourning and grieving. I am going to look to the future, and not dwell on the past."
She nodded. "I agree with you on that. I shall try to do the same."
He kissed her again. He was still sad, but he knew that life was never perfect. In a way he was happy. He was married to a wonderful maid whom he loved, he had two sons who were very well behaved, and he lived in a beautiful abbey He got up, stretched, and picked up Retto, who had just awakened.
"Good morning, pal. How did you sleep?"
"I dweamed we went to see my gwandmovva."
"Your grandmother?"
"Yea an' she gived me lotsa candies and let me stay up late and play. Can we go an' see 'er?"
Matthias looked to Cornflower. "How does he know about Aubretia?" he questioned.
She looked bewildered. "I don't know. I've never mentioned anything to him," she muttered. Then she turned to her son who was looking expectantly at her and Matthias. "How do you know about our grandmother?"
"You tol' me. Las' night. In my dweam!" He spoke as if the answer was obvious.
"Oh, of course I did," she said.
"Can we go an' see her? "
Matthias was about to say no, because he didn't think Cornflower was ready to go anywhere, but she spoke before he could protest.
"Of course we can. We can leave in a day or two, alright? How does that sound?"
Retto smiled hugely at her. "Yay! I getta see my gwandmovva!"
"Cornflower, I-I don't think you should be traveling this soo-----"
She cut him off. "Matthias I need this. I need to go and see her. Please?" she pleaded.
He couldn't reject her. He knew how sad she was. "I-I guess, but we aren't going to push it. And the moment you start to feel weak or tired, we're stopping. And we're taking plenty of blankets for Matthias, and--"
She laughed at him. "It will be fine, don't worry. Can you help me downstairs?" she asked.
"You have to stay in bed," he protested.
"Matthias, I can walk you know. I'm only going down, and when I'm done I'm coming right back up."
The look in his eyes told her that he would do it. She kissed him softly.
"Please?"
"Oh, I suppose. Retto, come on, we're going to get breakfast."
They made their way down the stairs, Retto running in front of them while Cornflower followed slowly, carrying Matthias (her son) while Matthias (her husband) followed behind, watchful of how she was doing.
Creatures of the abbey looked at Matthias (both of them) and Cornflower curiously as they came into Great Hall. The Abbot stood up and called for silence.
"Please, everybeast, be silent! I have something to say! "
They all fell silent immediately.
"Thank you. Yesterday afternoon Cornflower, the wife of our warrior, gave birth to a son, whom they have named Matthias Methuselah Mortimer. I want to congratulate them and wish them the best of luck with their newest addition to their family."
They room broke into applause for the young couple. They were bombarded by dozens of creatures asking to see him and wishing them the best of luck. By the time they got to their seats, they had talked to almost of the abbey.
A/N: Hi. Not over yet. I'll update as soon as I can, maybe on Tuesday?
"Sister what is it?" asked Matthias in a hoarse voice.
"I-I-its Lia...."
"What about her?" he inquired, beginning to panic.
"S-s-she d-didn't m-make it," the sister choked out.
"What in Mossflower are you talking about?" he asked, dreading the answer.
"I don't know how it happened. I think it was because she wasn't strong enough. Maybe she wasn't completely developed. I truly don't know."
Tears fell down Matthias's cheeks unchecked. He let them. He didn't care who saw.
"What will I tell Cornflower?" he whispered.
"I don't know. I really don't think you should be the one to tell her, though."
"No. She must hear it from me. I will tell her when she wakes."
Sage nodded and passed him a handkerchief. "Do not hide your feelings about this from her." With this Sage went and brought their son back and handed him to his father.
Matthias took a seat again, staring at his sleeping wife. He was devastated. His daughter, barely a few hours old, died. He knew not why. Nobeast did. Tears were still running down his face, landing on the small, downy head of his newborn son. He wiped them away very gently.
Matthias was still crying over an hour later when Cornflower woke up. He jumped up, put Methuselah Mortimer in his cradle and ran to her side as soon as he heard her stir. She smiled at him when he reached her side.
"I've thought of what is missing from his name. How do you think Matthias Methuselah Mortimer sounds?"
Matthias tried to smile, but couldn't. He merely nodded in agreement.
"What's wrong," she asked, seeing how distressed he looked. "Why are you crying?"
He looked at her with his sad, mournful eyes. And he tried to respond. But he couldn't.
"Matthias?" she asked, a questioning look on her face.
"I-it's L-l-lia. S-s-she d-d." he dropped off, taking a deep breath before continuing. "She didn't make it," he finished, in a whisper.
Cornflower felt her heart jump up to her throat. "What?"
He nodded.
She burst out in tears, sobbing into her pillow. Matthias pulled her into a hug, and she wept into his shoulder. They cried for the longest time, until the Father Abbot entered.
As soon as Mordalfus entered the birth room, he saw Cornflower sobbing into Matthias's shoulder. He cleared his throat to get their attention. When they broke apart he spoke.
"Sister has informed me of your loss." He sighed, looking grave. "And also of your gain," he added, motioning to the cradle. "You must be devastated."
Cornflower nodded, the tears stopping momentarily. "Sister Sage said she was extremely healthy when she firs gave her to me. What happened?"
"I can only guess that she wasn't yet completely developed and her body couldn't survive alone."
Cornflower felt the tears returning. She let them fall, knowing that it was useless to try and stop them. Matthias placed a paw on her shoulder, his joints white.
"Martin must have known that she wasn't meant to come to us. That is why she didn't make it. It was not meant to be," concluded Matthias dejectedly, wiping his eyes.
"And you still have your sons. And each other. Do not grieve for the loss of your daughter, but rejoice for the life of your son," the abbot said. "Have you thought of a name for your son?"
"Aye, we have chosen Matthias Methuselah Mortimer."
"What a mouthful! Will there be a nickname?"
"Perhaps eventually. We shall probably call him Matthias, and when that gets too confusing we may make up a nickname."
"Let me be the first to congratulate you then, and to welcome Matthias Methuselah Mortimer to this abbey. May he be as good a mouse as his parents."
"Thank you, Father. Would you like to hold him?" asked Cornflower, also wiping her eyes.
"Certainly."
Matthias jumped up and retrieved his now awake son from the cradle. He passed the small bundle to the abbot gently, sitting again.
"My goodness! This little fellow looks like his father. Eyes and everything!"
Matthias smiled, kissing the top of Cornflower's head.
"Lia also had his eyes."
"Was Lia the maids name?"
Cornflower nodded, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall. She fought with them throughout the rest of the abbot's visit, knowing that no matter what anybeast said she would grieve for a long time.
The abbot left the small family later, leaving them in peace. Retto returned not too long after, and was elated to see that his brother was awake. The fact that one of the babes was missing did not even register with him.
"Ooh. he wakey! Can I play wiv 'im now? Pweese mama?"
Cornflower smiled at her older son. "I don't think he knows how to play yet, but maybe he will when he is older. Then you can tell him about all of your favorite things to play."
"My favit thing t'do is play wiv daddy," he proclaimed, climbing onto Matthias's lap.
Matthias was wreathed in smiles at hearing this. "Thanks, pal. I like playing with you too!"
Cornflower chuckled at her husband. He was able to put on a strong front, even though she knew he was being torn up inside.
"I think it's high past your bedtime, young sir," she said. "Cummon, you can sleep in here with mommy, okay?"
Retto yawned, suddenly aware that he was tired. " 'K. Nitey nites, daddy. Nitey nites mama. Nitey nites likkle brotha."
He fell asleep almost instantly, still in his play clothes. Matthias stopped trying to hide his grief.
"Why did she have to die, Cornflower? Why?"
She shook her head. "I don't know."
He blinked several times. It was obvious he was trying to overcome his tears.
"Matthias don't hold it in."
He obeyed her, allowing the tears that had welled up to fall. He sat next to her, pulling her into his arms.
"I'm so glad I didn't lose you," he cried. "I don't know what I would have done if I lost my wife and my daughter."
Him saying this triggered Cornflower's tears as well.
They fell asleep a while later.
********
The next morning Matthias awoke in the same room in the infirmary. He was facing Cornflower, and she was holding her son in her arms. In that moment he resolved to try and stop crying and mourning, and to look to the future. He kissed her forehead and woke her up.
"Mmmmhhhhhh...... Matthias? What time is it?"
"I haven't a clue. I suspect Sister Sage will be in shortly to check up on you, though."
She nodded, closing her eyes again.
"How do you feel?"
"Not so good," she replied in a whisper.
"What do you mean?"
"I feel tired. All I want to do is sleep."
"Sister said you might be drained for the next few days."
"That's not why."
Matthias understood immediately. "I have resolved to try and stop mourning and grieving. I am going to look to the future, and not dwell on the past."
She nodded. "I agree with you on that. I shall try to do the same."
He kissed her again. He was still sad, but he knew that life was never perfect. In a way he was happy. He was married to a wonderful maid whom he loved, he had two sons who were very well behaved, and he lived in a beautiful abbey He got up, stretched, and picked up Retto, who had just awakened.
"Good morning, pal. How did you sleep?"
"I dweamed we went to see my gwandmovva."
"Your grandmother?"
"Yea an' she gived me lotsa candies and let me stay up late and play. Can we go an' see 'er?"
Matthias looked to Cornflower. "How does he know about Aubretia?" he questioned.
She looked bewildered. "I don't know. I've never mentioned anything to him," she muttered. Then she turned to her son who was looking expectantly at her and Matthias. "How do you know about our grandmother?"
"You tol' me. Las' night. In my dweam!" He spoke as if the answer was obvious.
"Oh, of course I did," she said.
"Can we go an' see her? "
Matthias was about to say no, because he didn't think Cornflower was ready to go anywhere, but she spoke before he could protest.
"Of course we can. We can leave in a day or two, alright? How does that sound?"
Retto smiled hugely at her. "Yay! I getta see my gwandmovva!"
"Cornflower, I-I don't think you should be traveling this soo-----"
She cut him off. "Matthias I need this. I need to go and see her. Please?" she pleaded.
He couldn't reject her. He knew how sad she was. "I-I guess, but we aren't going to push it. And the moment you start to feel weak or tired, we're stopping. And we're taking plenty of blankets for Matthias, and--"
She laughed at him. "It will be fine, don't worry. Can you help me downstairs?" she asked.
"You have to stay in bed," he protested.
"Matthias, I can walk you know. I'm only going down, and when I'm done I'm coming right back up."
The look in his eyes told her that he would do it. She kissed him softly.
"Please?"
"Oh, I suppose. Retto, come on, we're going to get breakfast."
They made their way down the stairs, Retto running in front of them while Cornflower followed slowly, carrying Matthias (her son) while Matthias (her husband) followed behind, watchful of how she was doing.
Creatures of the abbey looked at Matthias (both of them) and Cornflower curiously as they came into Great Hall. The Abbot stood up and called for silence.
"Please, everybeast, be silent! I have something to say! "
They all fell silent immediately.
"Thank you. Yesterday afternoon Cornflower, the wife of our warrior, gave birth to a son, whom they have named Matthias Methuselah Mortimer. I want to congratulate them and wish them the best of luck with their newest addition to their family."
They room broke into applause for the young couple. They were bombarded by dozens of creatures asking to see him and wishing them the best of luck. By the time they got to their seats, they had talked to almost of the abbey.
A/N: Hi. Not over yet. I'll update as soon as I can, maybe on Tuesday?