"Mmm Alright." Meredith said getting up, she hadn't realized her water broke in bed while she was asleep, and following him downstairs. Hershel opened the closet and grabbed the two emergency bags he kept in the closet. He helped Meredith downstairs and closed the cellar door and put the bags on the floor.

Meredith sat on the beanie bag chair on the floor and the girls clinged to her, she breathed and rubbed their backs. "Its okay." she smiled slightly. Hershel had a few air mattresses and got them blown up with the manual air pump one for the girls and the other for Meredith and himself. The girls climbed in the one and cuddled with their stuffed animals and blankets. The crate with the puppies are next to the girls sleeping with a blanket over them.

Hershel went over to Meredith and rubbed her back. She had her eyes closed and was breathing more harder. "3 minutes apart." She breathed relaxing after that one was done.

"Want to try laying down on the mattress?" He asked looking over at the girls. He had the radio on and the siren was still going.

Meredith nodded. "Can try it." She said moving a bit, and getting help up to go over to the, he had laid down an old blanket and threw some inflatable pillows on it. She got on it and laid down. Beth watched her and slowly got up and went over to Meredith along with Maggie.

"Mama okay?" she asked worried.

Meredith smiled slightly, "I'm okay." She closed her eyes and worked through another contraction. Hershel sat on the ground beside her and rubbed her lower back.

"Baby being naughty?" Beth asked watching. She climbed on the mattress with Meredith and cuddled with her.

"Not at all." Meredith laughed slightly, she could hear Hershel chuckling behind her. "Just getting ready to be born is all."

Beth watched and nodded. She leaned down and talked to Meredith's stomach. "Be nice to my mama." She said rubbing it. She jumped slightly looking up feeling her stomach get tight. "What's that?"

"Just….a contraction sweetie." Meredith smiled slightly and breathed through it, she was trying to not scare the girls.

Hershel rubbed her back and pressed a little on the bottom. "Doing good dove." He said holding her free hand. He was keeping track of her contractions still. "2 minutes apart." He said softly.

Beth looked worried and glanced up at her daddy. "Fix her daddy."

He smiled slightly, "She's gotta work through it baby." He leaned down and kissed her cheek and Meredith, and Maggie. "It'll be okay. Be patient."

Maggie bit her lip and looked at her dad. "Can I help?"

"Come here." He motioned her to come over. Maggie moved over to him and sat beside him. "Press here." He said softly, and showed her. "It helps a lot."

Meredith let out a groan. "It's okay, keep going." she could feel Maggie stop, Hershel helped her.

Beth sat up and watched. She still looked worried and unsure. "Now what daddy?"

"Just be patient." He smiled. "Beth can you go find the baby something nice in the storage bins?" He had a bunch of baby stuff downstairs still.

Beth smiled big. "Okay!" She gave Meredith a hug and got up and started looking.

The wind was getting louder and the power went out. Hershel got the lanterns and turned them up he had 5 total and placed them around to give some good light making sure 4 of them were spread all around and one next to Meredith.

"Oh. Okay, that feels different." Meredith said shifting around on the mattress. "Pressure. Oh." She breathed and was careful when we moved to not hit Maggie.

Hershel listened to what was going on outside and nodded hearing Meredith. "Alright. Let's get you moved onto your back."

Meredith moved to her back and groaned softly, as he helped her Maggie was trying to help too. She glanced over and saw Beth playing around with the boxes as she was looking. "At least…she..." She breathed she was having hard time talking during them. "Keeping busy."

Hershel smiled slightly. "Good for her right now." he grabbed some gloves from the first aid kit and put them on after sanatizing his hands.

"Ever...delivered a human?" She groaned, why she was asking now was for more reassurance for herself.

"No different than delivering a calf..Just a little smaller, and more fragile." He smiled slightly.

"True….i'm not a heifer." Meredith smiled back, trying to calm down. She held her breath and pushed.

Hershel moved her legs apart and watched. Maggie wasn't sure what to do, she sat there holding Meredith's hand. She looked over at her daddy.

"Doing good." He smiled at her, and then at Meredith. "Keep going, Turtledove."

Meredith nodded and kept going, groaning softly trying to keep quiet. The ground was shaking slightly and Beth came running over and to her side and clinged to her blanket.

"It's alright girls. Just a storm outside." Hershel looked at Beth, and saw the blanket. "Keep that blanket close honey."

"For the baby." Beth said softly curling up in it and watching. She frowned seeing Meredith's face scrunch up and turn slight red, as a few tears rolled down her cheeks. "It okay mama." She said wiping her face.

Maggie watched and moved closer to her dad and looked slightly. She held Meredith's hand still.

"Oh." Meredith groaned softly nodding listening to Beth. "I'm okay." She smiled slightly forcing it. She felt a lot more pressure as the baby was making it's way down. "Anything?"

"Getting ready to crown." Hershel smiled. "Doing good." He had Maggie hold the light. "It's alright honey, get behind me and hold it." He knew she was curious.

Meredith panted taking a break. She smiled slightly at Maggie. "It's okay. Go ahead and help your daddy." She and him had talked about the girls possibly being in the room during the delivery if they could handle it. That and the girls helped out on the farm watching the horses and cows were doing good so far, under the odd circumstances.

Maggie nodded and slowly moved and did what her dad asked. She kept quiet. Beth had curled up in the blanket and watched a little while playing with her stuffed animal.

"That's good. Right there." Hershel smiled at Maggie.

Meredith started pushing again, and kept going. She groaned feeling the baby crown and saw Hershel smile, and Maggie's eye's get big and looked away for a minute, then looked back and kept watching, she smiled a tiny bit.

"Keep going." Hershel smiled looking up at Meredith.

Meredith breathed and kept going pushing harder.

Hershel moved his hands and helped guide the baby out not pulling at all. "Almost. Push Dove."

Meredith groaned slightly louder and pushed harder than before and laid back panting as the baby fully slid out.

Beth sat up hearing her mama groan and looked at her, then at daddy.

Maggie smiled and cried slightly.

Meredith smiled and laughed a bit while crying as the screaming baby was placed on her chest.

"It's a Boy.." Hershel smiled putting a towel over the baby rubbing it's back.

Beth smiled and looked at the baby. "Ew - He's covered in jello - Daddy." She then started crying because the ground started shaking more.

Hershel chuckled and shook his head he took one glove off and felt Maggie give him a hug. He wrapped his gloveless hand around her and kissed her head.

Meredith smiled and laughed more, hearing Beth. "Oh sweetie." She looked at Beth rubbing her back. "It's okay." she panted laying her head back holding her close.

Maggie hugged her dad feeling the ground shake, and because of the baby being born. She felt him kiss her head and started crying more.

"It's okay honey. The storm will be over soon." He promised rubbing her back and hugging her.

"I'm happy because of baby - not sad because of the storm." She sniffled, hugging him more.

"It was slightly scary, wasn't it?" Hershel smiled slightly, trying to calm her down.

Maggie nodded her head.

"I was slightly scared." Hershel said whispering.

Maggie looked up at him. "You were?"

"Of course. I've never done that before, doing something different and new can be scary." He smiled slightly

Maggie sniffed. "Can you do that again?" She smiled. "I like helping."

"If Mama and I have anymore. We will see." He smiled slightly and looked at Meredith, "You did fantastic." He leaned over and kissed her.

Meredith smiled she had undressed from the waist up pushing her gown down and cuddled the baby close with the blanket. "So did you, and so did you girls. I'm so proud of you all." She smiled kissing him back more. She kissed Beth and Maggie too. "I love you all."

"Love you mama." Beth sniffed looking at the baby. "Did you eat jello?" She was still stuck on the jello.

"No darling, that's not jello." Meredith smiled slightly. "It's blood." She said rubbing it off his face and back with Hershel.

"Yuck." Beth frowned. They laughed and sighed softly.

"I love you too - Mer - Mama." Maggie said softly, coming around to calling Meredith her mom. She leaned over and hugged Meredith.

Meredith hugged them both and smiled softly kissing their cheeks. "Daddy has to help mommy clean up.."

"What his name?" Maggie asked looking down at the dark haired baby boy with fair skin.

"Daddy and I were thinking…about calling the baby…" She smiled at Hershel he picked out the first name and she did the middle name. "Joel Matthew." She smiled.

Hershel smiled, he nodded. "Girls time for rest. We might be down here for a while still. Mama needs to rest too.." He motioned his head over to the other mattress. "Goodnight girls." He said kissing their cheeks and hugging them, Meredith did the same and smiled laying back watching them curl up under their blankets listening to the storm outside.

Hershel looked at Meredith, and smiled. He put on a new pair of gloves, tied off the cord and cut it. He also helped her deliver the afterbirth later and got her cleaned up and covered up with a blanket. He cleaned himself up and the mess, and sat beside Meredith holding her close, admiring the baby. "Looks a lot like you."

Meredith smiled looking up at him. "Thank you." She laid her head against him. She kissed him softly, as the baby curled up against her chest, trying to nurse even though her milk hadn't come in at all yet.

"You're welcome." He smiled and kissed her, watching the baby. "Little thing, like Maggie and Beth were."

She smiled back and relaxed listening to him talk about Maggie and Beth being newborns.

The siren finally went off after a few hours. Hershel went up and looked around. Their place wasn't touched - but the neighbors home down the road was destroyed. He looked over to see if Otis and Patty's place was damaged - it wasn't. He looked down at the girls. He helped them upstairs after talking with Otis who came over to check on them, and Patty stayed with Meredith and the girls. Hershel came back a while later and took care of Meredith and the kids. He told Meredith about the damage the McCarthy place.

"Thank you Jesus for keeping us safe." Meredith smiled leaning against Hershel.