Cat and Mouse

Chapter 13

What April Showers Bring

The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances; if there is any reaction, both are transformed. Carl Jung

"Why don't you want to know what you're carrying?"

Emma sighed. She thought Shalimar would feel the same as she did. "It keeps it a surprise until the baby's here. Look, I found out after 4 years that I had twin daughters. I can wait another 7 months to see what this one is."

Shalimar smirked behind her hand at Emma's adamancy. "Well, I want to know so I can buy the right clothes and we can plan the nursery color scheme. I'd hate to have pastels and we have boys."

"You find out then. Only thing I want to know ahead of time is if it is healthy. Anyways, the first couple of months they won't be wearing much but diapers and those cute little onesies."

Emma was moody today and this little argument with Shalimar didn't help. She flounced out of the room and nearly collided with Jesse who had been coming down the hallway after hearing the raised voices from the girls' room. Emma ignored him though. He raised an eyebrow at Shalimar.

Shalimar waited until she could tell that Emma was well out of earshot before she answered. "We just had a disagreement over knowing what we are carrying. I want to know so I can plan. She wants to be surprised. Nothing to worry about. I'll do it my way and she'll do it hers."

….

As soon as they were certain that Mare' wasn't going to do anything crazy over Tabby's death, they bundled her off to the Estate House to finish her recuperation. It took them a full afternoon to move her there, even though she had only a duffle bag of belongings. They had to be careful of the compression splints on her leg and keep her hip stable. Jori and Chessy were sad to see her go. She weaved them stories of the dance studio, Marya and Emma everyday, much to Emma's chagrin and Shalimar's secret pleasure. The twins were consoled by the fact that they were to continue their dance lessons with Mare' over at the Estate House. Emma also arranged for them to take swimming lessons with Clara on a regular basis. Mare' was also able to start therapy on her leg with all the equipment and adaptations that Marya had already installed there.

She soon became bored with the bed rest though and sought out diversions for her boredom.

….

Adam respected each girl's wish on the knowledge of her baby and the progress of their pregnancies. Although he secretly wished Emma would back down, he did keep progress notes.

Everybody was excited at first and they took all sorts of forays to the baby store to buy another cute outfit or toy or box of diapers or formula. When Adam informed Shalimar after one of her ultrasounds that she was having twins, they had a big powwow session over what to expect. Adam agreed with them on breast-feeding their babies, and even bought two pumps for them to use. He constantly was monitoring their diet and adjusting the vitamins he had them take, much to their chagrin.

Emma and Shalimar finally decided on a Beatrix Potter theme for the nursery, with lots of pastels and cute animals all over the place. Shal put up glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling. They spent several happy afternoons with all of them painting the room and setting up the three baby beds. They expanded the Dean area to include a second sleeping alcove for their "nannies". Clara and Sarah volunteered right away for the job. Adam made some extra purchases and outfitted a room at the Estate House the same way, knowing something the two girls didn't.

….

Mare' felt left out of the preparations for her friend's babies, so she busied herself with learning more about Marya from the staff. They all had stories of how generous she was and how she rescued one or the other of them from some dire straits. A chance remark from Heidi who loved to brush Mare's hair out "You know if I cut your hair and dyed it a little darker, you could pass for Marya—no problem."

That got Mare' to thinking and she soon proposed the idea to Adam one afternoon as he worked on the books with her. He had found out the first month that she was extremely good at bookkeeping, so he always went over them with her.

"Adam?"

"Hmmh."

"You know you can't keep hiding from some of the public that Marya is dead? With my bum leg and a few changes to my hair, I could be her double. You also need somebody who knows the ins and outs of the foundation's business, like I do. Emma's in no condition to do it, even if she did look like her. Plus you need her for other missions."

Adam looked Mare' up and down. "Let me think on this. It does sound plausible. But, I don't want you going out on your own."

"Clara and Sarah or any one of the staff always went with Myra to help out. They miss all the trips to conferences and that." Mare' retorted. "I don't have any family to speak of since my mother's gone, other than Star. And I know I can't go back to dancing. My leg will never heal correctly after that accident. That's not your fault, either, Adam. Just my quirky genetics. Besides, you all opened your home and hearts to me and I want to pay you back for all of your kindness and generosity. I can't fight for you like your team does, but I can do this. Please, Adam?" Mare' begged.

"Alright, alright. I'll talk this over with Emma and see how we should proceed. I do want you to know how to defend yourself, bum leg or not. I'll get Brennan and Jesse to set up some simulations for you to start practicing with…"

Mare' grinned. She had won the hardest part of the battle.

….

She studied her mate's body while she lay sleeping beside her. Already some signs of the pregnancy were etched in her shapes: the puffy face and hands, the rolls around the ankles, and the most tell-tale sign of all—the bulge at her waist line. Only when her mate was sleeping was there no lines of worry and no dulling eyes of tiredness. Shalimar made note to talk to Adam privately about Emma, because she knew Emma wouldn't say anything. She was too proud to do so sometimes.

The twins were mirror replicas of Emma's attitude every day. If she was happy, they were ecstatic. If she was sad, they were crabby. If she was worried, they were beside themselves, literally.

Adam had approached Emma and Shalimar yesterday about Mare's proposal. In actuality, he talked to Emma with Shalimar sitting there. Emma knew her emotions were going to the extremes and even more so as the days went by, and as their pregnancies progressed. She relied more and more on Shalimar's even tempered and behavior, quite a contrast from their relationship just a few months ago. Emma hated being out of control. But she agreed to having Mare' be her stand-in for Marya, after she sat by the Tranquility Pool for a while.

That business affair behind them now, the two mothers turned their attention to the twin's schooling. They downloaded all the accredited home schooling curricula, until Jesse protested about how much memory they were using. They picked and choose and eliminated and finally came to a decision about which methods they would use. Almost every shopping trip to the mall included a stop at the bookstore to pick up workbooks for the twins. As Adam predicted, Jori and Chessy were testing at a second grade level. Emma and Shalimar kept the lessons fun and short at this point.

Jori and Chessy were very active four-year olds on top of that. Mare' even though she couldn't demonstrate the moves, over saw their dance curricula. All of the staff at the Estate House participated in group and individual lessons for dance, tumbling, martial arts, defense and meditation. Even though the security system at the Estate House surpassed even some of the measures at Sanctuary, Adam didn't want the staff to rely on just those measures.

Jori and Chessy expressed great interest in how babies grew and pestered everybody with questions about Shalimar's twins and Emma's baby. Emma soon required a daily nap in order to keep up with the pace. Jori and Chessy insisted that they were the only ones who were able to keep Emma safe during those naps. Shalimar loved their protectiveness and encouraged it to a point. As much as she enjoyed being with Emma, the nap time gave her a chance to relax and not worry as much about Emma's well being. The twins loved to lay beside Emma with their heads on her stomach listening to the baby inside.

Adam was perplexed about the differences in the girls' progression through their pregnancies. Shalimar seemed to blossom more and more as each day went by. Emma faded a bit more in contrast. Her iron levels remained constant and there was no sign of gestational diabetes. He stayed up late many a night trying to figure it out, but did not find an explanation. He hated not being able to tell Emma the one fact about her pregnancy, even though it was a significant one. She even made him promise not to tell Shalimar anything.

….

One afternoon in April, Shalimar dragged Emma out for an afternoon without the twins. Mare' was finally allowed to walk now and so she took the twins around the Estate to plant spring flowers. Shalimar wanted to plan the twins' 5th birthday party. Emma, who was normally the official party planner, was non-committal about every idea Shalimar suggested. Shalimar finally pushed the notes aside.

"Emma, what's wrong?" She asked.

"Nothing."

"Come on. Don't lie to me, sweetie. This is Shalimar, remember."

Emma sighed. "We don't have any "us" time anymore." She blushed and ducked her head.

"Oh, Emma!" Shalimar was surprised. She missed some of the intimacies too, but they had the twins around and their pregnancies to consider too. She scooted around the table to sit next to Emma and held her tight. "We've had so much happening in the last few months, and with both of us being pregnant at the same time has indeed put a damper on everything." She mentally did some calculations in her head and waited until Emma squirmed away.

"Yeah. The twins. Mare'. Missions. The foundation." She stood up and stretched. "I'm gong to use the restroom." She blew Shalimar a kiss and ran off.

Shalimar clicked her com-link and called Adam. "Adam?"

"Yes, Shalimar!"

"I think I've figured out what Emma's problem is. Do you have anything for us to do before tomorrow morning? I want to take her out on a date to cheer her up."

"I don't have anything right now. That does sound like a good idea. Keep your links handy though. See you two in the morning." Adam signed off.

Shalimar called Brennan and Jesse next. "Brennan, Jesse? How do you feel working on your uncle skills tonight?"

Brennan groaned and Jesse laughed. "Sure Shalimar. We'll watch the twins tonight for you two."

That matter taken care of, Shalimar called their favorite restaurant and made reservations for her and Emma later on.

….

Brennan groaning and Jesse laughing looked at each other across the room. "Ok, Brennan, what do you think? Pizza and a movie with the girls?" Jesse asked.

"Yeah, man! That's sound like fun!

TBC