Quick Disclaimer: I do not own Jane and the Dragon. The only person I'd actually own here is Luna.
I wanted to elaborate on this topic that was brought up in 'Big Brother Dragon'. Since a few people seemed to like what Dragon thought about the birth scene, I thought it would be nice if I put it up in a more detailed way.
"I hope you never loose your sense of wonder/ Get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger/ May you never take one single breath for granted/ And God forbid love ever leave you empty-handed/ I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean/ Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens/ Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance/ And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance/ I hope you dance/ I hope you dance"~ 'I Hope You Dance' By Lee Ann Womack.
The Miracle of Birth:
"Are you sure that you don't want to lie down?" Gunther asked for the hundredth time that morning. And as usual, Jane placed a resolutely firm hand on her hip along with a resounding 'no'.
In Gunther's defense, however, his wife was practically due any day now, and Dragon was starting to pick up on a bit of this tension. He was looking in through the kitchen window as Jane was trying to help Pepper on the afternoon meal, and as Gunther was attempting to talk her out of it. He wasn't really getting anywhere, however. Trying to talk Jane out of doing something once she set her mind on it would be tantamount to trying to get Ivan into poetry; it wasn't going to happen.
"It is alright if you would like to lie in a bit, Jane. I can manage." Pepper timidly spoke up, also sharing somewhat of a similar concern.
"I am alright, Pepper." Jane rebuked, turning back to peeling some carrots. Gunther gave a light grumble before saying 'At least try not to strain yourself'. When he was sure of at least that, the knight went up to practice, probably to take his mind off the burdening thought for a few hours. Dragon watched the young man go from up on the archway before an odd thought entered his mind. Before he could ask, he felt the lightest nudge on his flank. The reptile looked down to see a blue-clad young man standing there, waiting to get to the other end of the path. Dragon unfortunately did not quite get the message.
"Say, Floppy-hat, what happens when, well, the baby…you know, that…"
Dragon was a little bemused when Jester gave him the oddest set of looks, turning from bemused to slight apprehension faster than insults during Jane and Gunther's sparing.
"If you don't know, then just say so." The reptile threw in impatiently, eager to get his answer.
"Well, quite a great deal of things happen…umm…" Jester for once did not have anything snappy to say, considering the whole awkwardness behind the topic, and partially the fact that the answer the reptile was looking for was probably of the more descriptive kind, which he wasn't going to really get.
"No good. Still need more."
"Well, uh, er, you see it's a little…well…"
"Do you have an answer that isn't a bunch of stammering?"
"Er…"
"I'll take that as a no." Dragon cut in, flapping his wings to take off, going on a long flight to mull this over.
Later, around the time that Pepper would be making dinner, Dragon was still trying to get an answer for his supposedly 'forbidden' question.
This time Smithy would be his unfortunate target.
"So, Hammer-boy…" The reptile started, partially ignoring the fact that Smithy was in the middle of fixing a chest-plate for a suit of armor [Sir Ivon's; dented during one of his weapon testing sessions].
"Yes, Dragon?" The young man answered between bangs.
"…this 'baby'. What will happen when it finally is, well, born?"
That put a stop to the metallic clangs for a half-second.
"It's born. There really isn't all that much else to it." Smithy answered as he dipped the metal in the basin of water, both momentarily ignoring the wisps of steam that rose from the large bucket.
"Can anyone say anything more descriptive than-?!" Dragon's tirade was cut off when a yell came ripping through the air, coming from the direction of the kitchens. Instantly, the two recognized the person in pain.
"Jane?" The lizard was over the wall in a second, and was just in time to see Gunther carrying Jane cradle-style to her room with a speed that would have easily outmatched any horse. And from the looks of it the red-head was in real pain. She was a gasping mess, complete with the pangs of contraction. Her loyal husband, meanwhile, was yelling for the Lady In Waiting as loud as his lung capacity would allow.
Dragon may have been in a little bit of a confused and overall taken aback by the sudden turn of events, but something broke through the haze. His protective nature took hold, and he was over at the tower, peeking in through the window as Gunther lay the groaning Jane down on the bed.
"Gunther, what's happening?"
"The baby is being born!" The rushed raven-hair yelled as he turned to call for the Lady In Waiting again. The reptile's face instantly turned ashen as he fully comprehended exactly what was going on.
"What?! This is what happens?!!"
"Yes! This is what happens! Now make yourself useful!" The knight howled as Jane let out another agonized groan. Dragon snapped to attention and darted up to the roof to get the approaching help's attention, along with everyone else in the castle. Once the Lady In Waiting came, Dragon took his vigil on the wall that he usually slept on, a careful ear on the shutters. And the sounds that were registered weren't all that reassuring. There were a lot of groans, frantic reassurances, and the reptile was about fifty percent sure he heard a strangled scream at one point.
"Don't worry...E-Everything will be fine…" The fire-breather tried to calm himself down, but as long as he was getting the constant feedback, his nerves wouldn't really take the hint. By this time, the commotion had attracted another soul; Jester.
"Why didn't you tell me it would hurt?" The lizard rounded on the fool. Jester took a few steps back, an apologetic look on his features. Another loud yell forced Dragon's attention back to the tower, and the anxious reptile now noticed that Gunther had not come out of the room yet. "And why is the shortlife allowed to stay?"
"He is her husband, Dragon."
"And I am her best friend! Do I not have a say in this?" While Jester was trying to think of a reasonable answer for the stricken Dragon, a quiet addition to the previous rant was let loose into the air.
"D-Do you think it hurts a lot?" He asked softly, eyes focused on the rising moon, lest someone see the quick slip of confidence. The fool though could quite obviously tell that this very experience was raking the poor reptile's sense of protection for his friend from the inside out. He couldn't do anything here. In this ball field, it wasn't something he could help with or do anything to save Jane from. That information alone had to be overwhelming. Jester put a comforting hand on the fire-breather's flank.
"I'm sure everything will be fine."
A small amount of tension appeared to release from Dragon, and he settled into a slightly calmer position, except for the fact that his claws were tapping out their own message on the flagstones.
It was a few minutes before the two were rewarded with a most unfamiliar sound. Dragon's ears perked up as he detected a reedy wail come from inside Jane's tower, and abruptly all sounds of pain ceased. That was it for the reptile, and he practically bolted for the nearest shuttered window.
It seemed as though they had known he was going to be there, seeing as the window opened and Dragon found himself staring right at a slightly perturbed Gunther. Then his eyes landed on the bed, and caught sight of his friend. Despite the fact that she looked as though she were soaked with sweat, out of breath, and overall like she had run about five marathons, the young woman had a content smile on her face, as though all the pain and drama from before had vanished. That was when he caught sight of the small bundle in his friend's arms. She angled it so that he could see exactly what was wrapped up in the blanket, and right away the reptile caught sight of the smallest short-life he had ever seen. It's eyes were open, and obviously alert as they scanned the room, looking hazily confused as they tried to focus on the massive green shape in the window.
"This is Luna, Dragon." Jane explained briefly, chuckling a little at her friend's expression of absolute wonder. The fire-breather edged his head in a little to get a closer look.
"I-Is that a…"
"Yes. This is a baby."
To Jane's surprise, the great lizard gave a close-mouthed grin [displaying fangs really didn't seem appropriate for the moment], and said in the softest tone he could muster…
"Hello Luna."
Yeah, sappy and sweet, or crash and burn. You decide. Au revoir, everyone.