Ugly Betty

It Takes A Village

A/N: Thank you so, so much for the wonderful reviews. You wonderful people really do rock and I really do suck at updating but look I got a little better. ANYWAY, we in Australia are way behind in 'Ugly Betty' but I assume because Fey is Amanda's mother so Bradford must be her father so I am making it that way in my story. I was going to have a possible romance between the two but I like the brother/sister thing better. Happy reading!

Disclaimer: I do not own nor am I affiliated with Ugly Betty in anyway.

Chapter Nine: Keeping Mum

"Amanda, it's me," Betty whispered. "Can you put me through to Daniel?"

"Sure," Amanda whispered back. "Why are you whispering?"

"I have a fussy five month old that has just fallen asleep after three nonstop hours of crying and I'm just not ready to spend another three hours trying to get her back to sleep," Betty answered, her voice raising just a notch. "Why are you whispering?"

"Because it's fun. Is there anything I can do to help?" Amanda asked.

"Yeah, you can put me through to Daniel," Betty replied.

"You know, before I put you through, Daniel's new assistant sucks. That Margot was barely tolerable but Emily sucks."

"Margot quit? When did this happen?" Betty asked.

"She didn't quit as much as flee. Wilhelmina went for the jugular and she cried like a little baby, gathered up her things and left," Amanda said, unable to take the glee out of her voice. She hadn't changed fully changed but Betty was a stay at home mother (for now) and she loved her a little workplace gossip. It was uncharacteristic but it was just the way things were.

"I thought that if anyone was going to be able to withstand an attack from Wili, it was going to be Margot," Betty replied. "What did she say to her?"

"Oh, I'm not really sure. I'll put you through to Daniel," Amanda answered a little too quickly.

"Amanda, what did she say?" Betty demanded. "You know I'm just going to ask Daniel anyway."

"Well, she kind of accused Margot of being in love with Daniel and then said that you would always be the only woman in his life," Amanda sighed.

"I can't believe you were worried about telling me that," Betty replied. She sighed. "Anyway, Margot left just because of that?"

"I guess Margot really was in love with Daniel and believed Wilhelmina," Amanda said. Betty knew the girl well enough to know that she was shrugging disinterestedly.

"And you didn't want to tell me why?" Betty asked.

"I know that you and my brother are close so I thought it might upset you," Amanda answered. "Anyway, I'm going to put you through to Daniel now. I might come over later and see Belle."

"You're welcome anytime, Aunty Amanda," Betty said. She listened to the popular song that was the hold music until finally Daniel picked up.

"Betty, I am going crazy. Emily can't find anything. Not the expenses forms, not the takeout menus. This place has gone way downhill since you left. When are you coming back?" Daniel asked. He went on without waiting for her answer. "Okay, okay. I know you aren't coming back for a few more months but could you maybe come in for an hour or so to maybe teach Emily the ropes. Margot left so quickly and I really have no idea what you do apart from the assisting me part but I know you do so much more."

"Sure. I'll come in when Belle wakes up," Betty answered. "And when I do, we can talk about you sleeping with Margot leading Wilhelmina to work her magic, send her running and bring another incompetent in."

"Wha- What?" Daniel sputtered. "Who told you I slept with Margot? I did not sleep with Margot."

"Oh, okay, but you did," Betty replied. "Anyway, I actually rang to see if you could more of that syrup your mother gave us. It seems to be the only thing that stops Belle's pain."

"How is she doing?" Daniel asked, his voice immediately taking on a concerned but tender tone.

"She screamed for three hours straight before I could get her down," Betty sighed. "I'm going to have to wake her up for a feed soon but she was tired she could barely keep her eyes shut at the end. I swear colic is going to be the death of me."

"Do you want me to come home?" Daniel asked.

"No, no. Like I said, we'll come in after she's woken-up and I'll show Emily the ropes," Betty replied. "And we will talk, okay?"

"There's nothing to talk about," Daniel cried.

"There is something to talk about!" Betty cried back. Too late she remembered her sleeping infant and she tensed. No noise came from the nursery so she carried on. "There is so much to talk about. What's happening to us, Daniel? We never talk anymore. We live in the same house but we're strangers. We used to talk all the time."

"Betty, we still do talk all the time."

"Not really. I ring you to bring things home and when you get home we discuss the difference between home-cooked baby food and pureed baby food. We don't talk about the important things like you getting a new girlfriend!" Betty answered. It was then that she heard her daughter crying. "Sybella's just woken up. I'll see you soon."

Daniel's ears were suddenly met with the dial tone. He sighed knowing that what Betty was saying was true but he didn't know how to deal with it. It was like their lives were so wrapped up in little Sybella and their apartment was the manifest of that. Their apartment revolved around the comings and the goings and the doings and the being of Sybella so that when they were there, she was all they talked about and all they knew.

Where did they go from there?

"Ooh, Betty, let me look at the adorable little thing," Christina cooed as Betty entered the Closet, baby carrier in hand. Betty placed the carrier on top on the desk and let her Scottish friend pick Sybella up. "Oh, love, she is gorgeous."

"I know, right," Betty grinned. She reached out and tenderly brushed Sybella's fine hair back. "I think so."

"She makes me wish I'd had children of my own," Christina sighed wistfully. She brightened quickly. "Have a look in the top drawer over there. I have something for you."

Betty walked over to the drawers in question and opened them up. She reached in and pulled out a soft, squishy gift wrapped in metallic purple paper. She opened it to reveal a long, stripy scarf made of bright colours- purple, pink, red and orange- and with it, a mini, Sybella-sized scarf in identical stripes.

"Oh, Christina, they are adorable," Betty gushed. "Thank you so much."

"I know I swore I'd never go matchy-matchy but I saw the wool and I just couldn't resist," Christina shrugged. She continued to coo and make gooey faces at Sybella.

"Hey, do you want to watch her for awhile while I go upstairs and show Daniel's new assistant the ropes?" Betty asked.

"Umm, what?" Christina asked her face suddenly panic-stricken. "I can't be trusted to look after a baby!"

"You'll be fine," Betty said. "She'll probably fall asleep soon because she's already had her screaming fit of the day and I could really use some Sybella free-time. I love her but she's wearing me out."

"And there is something else you aren't telling me," Christina said, ever-wise.

"Daniel and I had a sort of a fight," Betty admitted. "It was totally dumb but we need to fix it."

"Oh, fine. Go on, love. Sybella and I will be fine here... I think," Christina answered. "If anything happens but, you can't blame me because I told you I was no good at the children thing."

"You can't do much to hurt her. Just put her back in her carrier when you're done fussing over her," Betty instructed her. "I'll just be in Daniel's office if you need me."

"Betty, where's the baby?" Amanda asked as soon as her friend entered the Mode offices.

"I left her downstairs with Christina," Betty answered. Amanda pouted and Betty smiled in reply. "You're going to see her tonight anyway."

"I know but I wanted to see her anyway," Amanda replied. She frowned once more but then shrugged. "Oh well. Your baby-daddy is in his office and his new wife is in there too."

"He's not my baby-daddy and I've asked you to stop calling him that," Betty retorted. "And wife? Did you guys call me that?"

"Um, no," Amanda answered but Betty knew the truth. "Hey, Evilmina is lurking. You may want to watch yourself."

"How's she doing without Marc?" Betty asked.

"Oh, you know. She's pretending she's not feeling the loss but it's screwed her," Amanda said. "I miss him."

"I know you do."

"He was the only one here who got me, who understood me and he was the only one fashionable enough and bitchy enough to keep up with," she said wistfully. "But he and Frederico are happy and going well. They're thinking of buying a house in Queens."

"So he'll be back within a month?" Betty asked. The entire magazine had been rocked two months ago when Marc had left his job to follow the 'love of his life' over to London.

"I give him three weeks," Amanda said her trademark eyebrow raising and her catty voice coming out. The phone rang then and she turned away from Betty. "Mode magazine."

Betty left too and walked through the familiar office stopping every now and then to chat to someone who stopped her on the way. She got to her old desk and saw a small brunette rifling nervously through the drawers, muttering to herself. She was cute, this one, cute but definitely not up to the normal Mode standard. Her clothes were cheap but well put-together. Betty wondered why Daniel had even hired her. She wasn't his type and she didn't seem overly smart.

"What are you looking for?" Betty asked softly. The brunette looked up and Betty found herself watching a pair of startling green eyes. "I might be able to help. I'm Betty Suarez."

The brunette held her out hand for Betty to shake it and smiled, "You're like a legend around here. I'm Emily."

"It's nice to meet you, Emily," Betty smiled. "So, what are you looking for?"

"Some kind of expense form," Emily answered. "Daniel must be furious. He asked for it over an hour ago."

"Oh, he'll understand. It's the first day on the job. Have you looked in the blue folder?" Betty asked. Emily's face fell and she shook her head.

"I swear I am never going to get the hang of this," she said. She reached into the folder and pulled out a thin piece of paper.

"I'll tell you a little secret," Betty said. "When Daniel asks you for a form, ask him what colour it is."

"What colour?" Emily shot-back. Betty pointed to the blue piece of paper the new girl was holding and nodded.

"If you look inside each folder, you'll see that the colour matches the form you'll need," Betty said. "You take it into Daniel and I'll write up a list of the forms and the colours, okay?"

"Thank you so much. I'd appreciate it," Emily gushed. She quickly stood up and practically sprinted to her boss's office. Betty watched as Emily handed the form to Daniel and started an animated conversation with him. Daniel looked stressed but his slight relief was evident in the way he relaxed his shoulders. Betty started writing the list but looked up briefly to find Emily pointing at her. Daniel nodded in thanks and she smiled.

"So, everything worked out okay then," Betty said. Emily nodded and thanked Betty once again. "I'm going to stick around for a little while and show you how things go around here, okay?"

"I would so appreciate it," Emily smiled and Betty was immediately won over by her.

"Hey," Betty said, walking into Daniel's office. She placed a folder on his desk.

"Hey yourself," he said. He pointed to the manila folder. "What's this?"

"The overview of the articles for the next issue from Features," Betty answered. She took a seat across from him. "Are you ready to talk about it yet? Margot, I mean. I didn't even realised you'd started remembering her name."

"I barely did," Daniel admitted. "And she's not my girlfriend."

"I know. It was just sex, right? Oh my gosh, Daniel, you haven't changed. In this respect anyway. In so many other ways you've matured but you still treat women like playthings," Betty snapped.

"Hey, that isn't fair. She's the first woman I've slept with in almost a year and you know it," Daniel replied.

"I cant have Sybella around this. It's going to have to stop," Betty ignored him.

"What? You'd prefer me not to sleep with anyone ever again? Or is it an 'if I'm not getting any, you cant?'" Daniel asked. He almost regretted it the minute he saw Betty's face but then her face turned pink with anger and he felt angry too.

"You know it isn't like that and I'm not saying you can never sleep with someone again but at least be responsible about it," Betty retorted.

"Oh like you were?"

"I cannot believe you just said that," Betty said but Daniel was already apologising.

"I'm sorry, Betty, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it. I'm just overwhelmed with everything here and I am so sorry. You know I don't mean it," he apologised. "I really am sorry."

"You know, I think Emily is starting to get things now. I'm going to go. I'll see you at home, okay?" she asked. She stood up and looked at him sadly. "I hope you don't screw her before the day is done. Oh, wait. She has potential so you wont screw her. Shame. She's cute."

"Betty," Daniel said. "Betty, wait."

But she was already gone.