This chapter was a request. For those of you who are a bit sensitive to puberty talk. This chapter may not be for you. The chapter takes place three years after Charlie is born. 12 year old Maisie becomes a woman! Don't worry I didn't go into the gross details. Happy Reading!

Becoming a Woman

The moment girls become a woman is an iconic part of growing up. Like most girls it took Maisie by surprise.

Claire noticed the signs for the past few weeks. The first sign was the morning Maisie snapped at Owen over handing her the wrong cereal for breakfast.

"What are you doing?!" She shrieked, catching both Claire and Owen's attention.
Claire's arm froze, half stretched towards Charlie. The three year old desperately trying to reach for his sippy cup in Claire's hand.

Owen stared, eyes gaping at Maisie. His body stayed frozen in place as his eyes slowly moved to Claire.
Claire shrugged and Owen glanced back at Maisie. "Did I miss something? You've asked for this all week."
"Ugh! You don't get it!" Maisie shoved away from her chair and stomped her feet towards the cupboard.
"Sorry?" Owen raised an eyebrow as he watched the twelve year old shove around boxes of cereal before picking one. He stood straight, still clutching the Lucky Charms in his hands as he watched her.
"Does no one listen to me in this house? Where's the Cocoa Puffs?" She turned to glare at both her parents. Her arms folded against her chest with a huff.
Claire and Owen's eyes met once more. They exchanged a look before Owen took a deep breath and looked at Maisie. "Want to try that one again?"
Claire paid close attention to the way Owen's fingers tightened around the cereal box. She looked from Owen to Maisie waiting for her to restate her problem.
"No I don't." She snapped and slammed the cupboard shut before storming out of the kitchen.
"Hey!" Owen called after her.
"Owen." Claire sighed.
His head whipped in her direction. "Did you just hear her?"
Claire nodded. "Yes. Let her cool down."
She had convinced him to let her be, and it was a few days later when the next hormonal episode erupted.
"Mais, I said an hour on the phone. I let it go over fifteen minutes." Owen informed her. She was laying on her bed and rolled onto her side so he could see her roll her eyes.
"Really?" He growled.
"I'll get off in a minute."
He walked over to her bed and grabbed the phone from her hand. "Sorry, Annie, she'll talk to you at school on Monday." He said and hung up.

"Monday?" She gasped. "It's Friday."

Owen nodded and put his phone she was using in his back pocket. "I strictly said you had an hour on the phone. I was nice and let you girls talk a few minutes over and you still have the nerve to tell me you'll be off in a minute."

"This isn't fair!" Maisie grabbed her pillow to hide her face just as she burst into tears.

Owen took an unsteady step back. Maisie was not one to cry. He started to walk towards her, but he heard the front door open and decided to tag Claire it. He hurried into the living room as Claire was taking Charlie's shoes off. "Hi, I need you." Owen spoke with his eyes wide, immediately catching Claire's attention.

"What's wrong?" She instinctively took Charlie into her arms and looked around the living room for anything to be out of place.

"Maisie."

Claire glanced down the hall to where her room was and let her eyes fall back on Owen. "What now?" She asked and realizing there was no threat, she put Charlie back on his feet so he could go play.

Owen quickly explained the situation and Claire sighed. "You do realize what's going on, right?"

He furrowed his eyebrows and shook his head.

"Hormones, Owen."

"Uck!" Owen gasped and jumped away from Claire. "Really?"

Claire nodded, trying not to laugh at his reaction. "I was the same age. It's bound to happen."

"I'm not going to survive this."

Claire chuckled and leaned in to kiss him. "Says the man who raised four raptors."

"I'd gladly take on four female raptors than one twelve year old human girl."

She patted his chest lightly. "This is just the beginning. I'll go talk to her."

Owen let out a heavy sigh. "Thank you," he said and hurried off to find Charlie.

Claire knocked lightly on Maisie's door and when she didn't answer, she knocked once more. "Maisie it's me."

Maisie mumbled a low "Come in," and Claire opened the door.

"Can we talk?" Claire asked as she sat on the edge of Maisie's bed.

Maisie shrugged. "I guess."

Claire took a deep breath and began the inevitable talk between mother and daughter. The one that would leave Maisie completely disgusted with Claire and Owen for finally understanding how Charlie came to be. This made Maisie regret even asking why girls needed to have their period in the first place.

"Do I have to get it? What if I don't want it?" She asked Claire.

With a soft chuckle, Claire nodded. "I'm afraid you don't have a choice." Maisie huffed and leaned her back against her headboard.

"Any more questions?" Claire wondered.

Maisie was silent for a moment and Claire sat patiently. "No." Maisie finally answered. "I just want to be alone."

Claire rose from the bed and patted Maisie's knee. "Let me know if you think of anything." Maisie didn't look up or respond to her mother. Deciding not to press any further, Claire left her alone.

A few days went by and Claire was sitting on the living room floor, propped up against Owen's legs. He was on the couch, focused on the football game on TV. Charlie, busy running back and forth to his toy box, bringing Claire blocks to keep building their tower higher.

Maisie slowly entered the living room, her eyes wary as she stared at Claire. "I think there's something wrong." She whispered.

"What's wrong?" Owen jumped off the couch, leaping over Claire to inspect Maisie.

"I…" she trailed off and met Claire's eyes as she stepped beside Owen. "I—I need mom."

Claire took a deep breath and nodded. Reaching for Maisie's hand she took her to her room and shut the door behind them. "Anything you say to me right now, I can guarantee I have been through the same thing."

Maisie's shoulder's relaxed and she took out the evidence from the hamper.

"Oh!" Claire jumped up and hugged Maisie. Not sure why she felt so proud at this moment, it was a milestone Maisie had no control over, but the motherly instinct in Claire took over. "That's not a bad thing, Mais."

"Is that it? What you were telling me about the other day?" She asked as Claire led her to the master bathroom.

"You're officially a woman." Claire smiled and pulled out the box of pads she picked up a few weeks before. She was on the phone with Karen and she had suggested that Claire be prepared. Right now she was silently thanking her sister.

"I'm not even a teenager yet!" Maisie complained. She looked wide-eyed at the box in Claire's hands.

With a chuckle, Claire was quick to inform her that she was very much still a child, but that it was just a part of growing up.

"My stomach hurts." Maisie groaned and leaned against the counter.

Claire wrinkled her nose and nodded. "That'll happen."

She explained the use of the pads and stepped out of the bathroom so Maisie could have some privacy. Sitting on her bed, she stared at the closed door, trying to take it all in. "She ok?" Owen whispered from the bedroom door.

Claire turned to face him and nodded. "It happened."

Owen dragged his palm down his face and groaned. "What am I supposed to say to her?" He hissed. His eyes stayed locked on their bathroom door.

Crossing the room, Claire shoved against his chest. "Just go back in the living room. There's nothing you need to say to her. Act like nothing happened."

Maisie opened the bathroom door and Owen ran down the hall before she noticed he was there. "You ok?" Claire asked.

She shifted uncomfortably and shook her head. "This sucks."

Claire couldn't help but laugh. "Yes, it definitely sucks, but luckily it'll only last a few days. Then it'll go away."

"Oh," Maisie let out a sigh of relief. "That's it?"

"Well until your next cycle."

Maisie groaned. "This sucks." She repeated.

"We all go through it."

"What about boys?" Maisie wondered.

Claire raised an eyebrow, pursed her lips and winked at Maisie. "Men couldn't handle what we go through. They're too weak."

This made Maisie laugh and she nodded in agreement. "So…" She trailed off as she shrugged. "What do I do now?"

"What do you mean?"

"Can I play with Charlie or—"

"Oh," Claire was quick to cut her off. "You can do whatever you want. Of course you can go play with Charlie."

She followed Maisie back out into the living room and Owen kept his eyes on the TV while Maisie slowly sat on the floor by Charlie's block tower. Claire watched her for a moment and reached over the back of the couch to run her fingers through Owen's hair. "I'm going to start dinner."

Owen's eyes went wide and he glanced quickly at Claire. "Need help?"

She pressed his shoulders down so he stayed on the couch. "No. Keep an eye on Charlie." She said and quickly went into the kitchen.

Owen watched Maisie out of the corner of his eye. Every few minutes after Charlie was distracted by placing another block on the tower, she wrapped her arm around her abdomen and groaned. He knew exactly what her problem was and opened his mouth to call for Claire, but snapped it shut. Instead of asking for help, he silently got up and went to the linen closet in the master bathroom. He found Claire's heading pad and smiled, knowing this helped Claire sometimes when her cramps were really bothering her.

He hurried back in the living room to find Maisie curled up on the couch and Charlie desperately trying to hand her a block to help him. "I'll help you, Bud." Owen said and took the block from his hand.

Maisie watched him plug in the heating pad and knelt down in front of the couch. "Put this on your stomach. It'll help a little. Do you need anything?" He spoke softly.

She smiled at her father and shook her head. "I'm ok, thanks, Dad."

Claire stood in the doorway, tears in her eyes as she quietly watched the scene in front of her. She backed into the kitchen and cleared her throat. "Hey, Owen!" She called out.

He handed Charlie the block he was holding. "Be right back." He told his son and hurried into the kitchen. Before Owen could ask what she needed, her lips devoured his in a kiss that knocked him backwards. With his back pressed against the fridge, he broke the kiss, both of them panting for air. "What was that for?"

Claire pecked his lips once more before answering him. "Because you really are an amazing man. I saw what you did for her. That's exactly right."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I've seen you do it, so I figured it would help her."

"Fatherhood suites you well." Claire leaned in to kiss him again.