A/N: This takes place sometime after For A Few Demons More, around there.
Also, if anyone was wondering, I don't own the Hollows series or anything related to it, not even a little bit. It belongs to Kim Harrison.
Ten minutes later, she emerged from the bathroom, hair still damp, skin freshly scrubbed of all the dirt. She padded over to Rachel in her stocking feet, kneeling down to see that she had indeed rolled into the pillow barrier and was hugging one of Ivy's pillows like a teddy bear, half on top of it.
Ivy slowly bent and picked her up, pausing when she stood as Rachel rearranged herself in her arms, shifting around in her sleep with the pillow she had not let go of. Ivy smiled softly at her mumbling, then started moving towards the sanctuary.
She was so mesmerized by Rachel's peaceful face that she jerked and almost let out a yelp when a blur of light streaked in front of her face.
"Sweet mother of Tink, woman! Why are you holding a kid? Last time I checked, that took 9 months!"
Ivy gave him a withering glare for startling her, unsure of how to begin explaining what had happened while he had been asleep.
His surprised yelling stopped and gave way to subdued shock as he started to fit the pieces together. "You know what," he said slowly, "that kid looks a whole lot like Rachel…"
His wings slowed a bit, and Jenks drifted closer to the girl lying in her arms. He peered at her face, then looked up at Ivy. "Where is Rache, Ivy?"
"Umm…" Ivy shifted her feet, realizing she had unconsciously been rocking Rachel back and forth in her arms. "She's right here," holding her up to Jenks.
Jenks blinked at her, wings flapping unevenly as he forgot to flap them, dipping and rising in the air. "What?" he asked faintly. "How…"
Ivy stepped forwards and extended her elbow for him to land on, since she didn't want to let go of Rachel. He gratefully dropped on to it and clambered up to her shoulder before he fell out of the air.
Ivy hid a tiny smile when she heard him mumbling to himself. "-Take a three hour nap and one of those stupid lunkers gets herself turned into a freaking baby-"
She walked into the sanctuary, and felt him grab onto her ear. "I don't know how it happened," she told him, cutting into his grumbling. "The witch we were tracking hit her with something. The I.S. have him now. Could you go see if Ceri's awake? We should ask her for her opinion. I think it was some sort of demon curse."
"Yeah, yeah, I'll get her. She better be able to save Rachel's sorry ass, because I am not raising another kid. Especially a witch. Do you know how much trouble they can be? Wait, scratch that, especially Rachel. She better not remember how to do ley line spells, because if she does…"
Ivy grinned at him as he lifted off her shoulder, back to grumbling as he flew out. "Don't wake her up if she's still asleep, just tell Keasley to send her over when she wakes up."
Jenks waved his hand at her. "-And Rachel is not well-behaved, I mean, she got into enough trouble when she was grown up! Probably going to try and dress me up like a freaking doll. Human-sized kids are trouble. If she crushes my wings, I will pix her until next week. Stupid lunkers crawling everywhere, touching everything, breaking things. At least when they can talk properly they have a little respect for us and don't try to eat us. Tink's titties, the last time that kid thought that I…" His voice faded as he flew out a pixy hole and across the street.
Ivy sighed when the silence reappeared. She looked down to see tired green eyes blinking at her. Jenks had woken her up with his chattering.
"Hey you," she said softly, smoothing her hair away from her face. "Sorry he woke you up. Are you still tired?" Rachel nodded, rubbing her eyes. Ivy examined the girl's wrist, noting that her demon mark was still there. "Well, why don't you go back to sleep. We're just waiting for Ceri, I don't know when she'll be over." She walked over to the couch as she spoke, leaning to place Rachel on the cushions.
As Rachel felt Ivy's arms leaving her, she let out a sound and reached for her again. Ivy stopped withdrawing and looked at her questioningly, letting her grasp her hand.
Rachel struggled to sit up, letting go of Ivy's pillow and rubbing her eyes. "Don' go, Ivy. Pease stay." Ivy took a moment to decide, then nodded. A happy grin spread on Rachel's face. "Yay," she mumbled contently, watching as Ivy stretched out on the couch.
She clambered onto her and settled herself on Ivy's chest, snuggling up against her and tucking her face into the crook of her neck. "Don' ever go, 'kay Ivy?" Ivy shifted a bit, wrapping an arm around the child's waist and listening to the mumbling. "Always stay. You can't go. Not ever. Don' weave me. 'Kay Ivy?"
"Okay Rachel," Ivy answered absentmindedly, rubbing her back. "Go to sleep."
"No." Rachel struggled to sit up, eyeing Ivy fiercely. "No! You can't Ivy! You can't go away!" She sniffled, and Ivy realized the girl had tears in her eyes. What? How had that happened so fast? What did I do? Ivy panicked. She sat up, catching Rachel as she slid into her lap. Rachel peered up at her, eyes glistening, and Ivy's face softened.
"Pease don' go away. Pease don' leave me." Rachel clutched the front of her shirt. Ivy stroked her hair calmingly.
"I won't leave you Rachel."
The girl's mouth quivered. "You pwomise?"
"I promise." Rachel's eyes wavered, and Ivy hugged her tightly, stroking her hair. "I'll never leave you."
She felt Rachel tuck her head into her neck and inhale her scent, her body instantly relaxing. Ivy had always known that her scent calmed Rachel, she'd have to be stupid to miss it, but it seemed that now that Rachel was a child, it had an even greater effect on her. Or maybe Rachel was just letting it have a greater effect on her. The feeling that she could calm Rachel down just by being there made her ridiculously happy, at the same time as giving her a strange sense of pride.
Rachel's sniffling had stopped, and Ivy lay back down, Rachel snuggling back into her. After a few minutes Rachel's breathing evened out, the tiny breaths warm against her neck telling her she had fallen asleep. Once Ivy made sure the child was secure, she let herself relax into the couch. It was strangely comforting to have her light weight lying on her, and her eyes slipped shut.
The next thing she knew, something was prodding her nose. Her eyes cracked open, just to slam shut when she saw Jenks hovering in front of her face, the light coming off of him assaulting her eyes.
"Aw," Jenks cooed, "The big bad vampire took a nap with the widdle baby," his voice taking on the gooey tone people tend to use when talking to babies or really cute puppies. Ivy scowled, lifting her hand to swat at him. Cackling, he flew out of her easy reach and landed on the back of the couch. Rachel was still lying on her, sleeping peacefully, and Ivy hesitated to move, not wanting to wake her up.
"Did you get Ceri?" she asked, her voice a bit hoarse from sleep. He snorted at her.
"Your little nap took at least half an hour. I don't take that long to deliver a message. She'll be here in about ten minutes. I thought you might want to be awake for that."
Ivy sighed, rubbing a hand over her face. "Thanks Jenks." Her ears picked up the sudden clatter of pixy wings, and she winced when his kids burst into the room, all shrieking at the tops of their lungs.
Rachel awoke with a start, letting out a small cry and shrinking back into Ivy, trying to hide her head. Ivy raised her voice. "Jenks, get your kids to pipe down!" He rose into the air and emitted a piercing whistle that hurt her ears, causing all the pixy children to scatter, disappearing to the ceiling and out doors and windows.
Rachel was quivering with her hands clenched over her ears. Ivy sat up and lifted her into her lap, holding her close and rocking her back and forth.
"It's okay Rachel," she whispered into her hair, "It was just Jenks' kids." Rachel nodded, once again tucked into the crook of Ivy's neck.
Jenks was hovering around her head worriedly, unsure of what he was supposed to do now that this toddler who was supposed to be his partner was awake.
A few moments later, when she heard the girl's heart rate settle back down, Ivy pulled back and looked at her, resting against her chest. When Rachel saw her face, a smile split across hers.
"Ivy," she said, reaching out to touch her cheek. Ivy smiled back at her.
"Hey," she greeted her softly, wrapping an arm around her waist. "Sorry about that. You okay?" Rachel nodded her head, a slightly puzzled look on her face.
"They were loud." Ivy nodded in agreement.
"Hey Rachel, look who it is," she said, turning her around so she could see Jenks.
"Hiya, Rache," he said nervously, flying closer to her.
"Jents!" she exclaimed, clearly happy to see him. Ivy nodded again, glad that she did remember him. It was looking like Rachel really did remember everything.
She was taken out of her thoughts by Jenks shouting. "Yo Rache, keep away from the wings!" Rachel meekly withdrew her hands.
"Sowwy."
Jenks hovered in place, a bit sorry that he had snapped at her. Rachel looked at him with apologetic eyes, then hesitantly extended her hand towards him, palm up. He cautiously landed on it, and her face broke into a grin, once again completely forgetting the disappointment from the moment before.
She turned to Ivy, eagerly holding her hand out, almost toppling Jenks over when she moved too fast. "Look Ivy! 'S a pixy!"
"Yeah Rachel," Ivy answered, biting the inside of her cheek to contain her laughter. "He's a pretty pixy, isn't he." Ivy's eyes were shining with silent laughter, and Jenks huffed at her, crossing his arms but not taking off from the child's palm, probably because of Rachel's sparkling eyes. Ivy mentally sighed, knowing that if Rachel figured out the proper use of puppy-dog eyes, she'd be doing anything she wanted, no question bout it.
Ivy heard footsteps coming up the steps outside, then heard the person knock on the door. A beat passed, then she heard the door open.
"Jenks?" Ceri called. "Ivy? Rachel?"
"In here, Ceri!" Jenks hollered. He took off towards the hall to lead her in. staying seated on the couch, Ivy looked at Rachel. "Do you remember Ceri, Rachel?" At the girl's nod, Ivy added, "She's going to figure out what did this to you."
Jenks flew back in, with Ceri following close behind. "Hello Ivy," the fair elf greeted her. Her step faltered, and she blinked when she saw Rachel, snuggled into Ivy's front. "Is that really… Rachel?" She drifted closer and bent her head to look at her better.
"Ceri," Rachel spouted out happily, waving a hand at her.
"And she still knows who I am?" she asked, still addressing Ivy.
"Yeah," Rachel piped up before Ivy could answer, clearly wondering why Ceri wasn't talking to her. "You were Al's 'miliar," she said, trying to prove that she still remembered who the elf was. "An you were in the never after. 'N you're like Twent."
Ceri eyed her with a perplexed look on her face. Ivy's brow furrowed in confusion to match her expression. "Is that bad?"
"Well, I'm not quite sure, but it is certainly unusual." Ceri seated herself in the chair across from them and Jenks landed on the coffee table. "I've never seen or done this curse before, but I have heard of it. The thing is that it's supposed to reduce you back to however you were at that age. So the only memories Rachel should have are the ones of her 3-year-old self. Everything should be reset back the way it was. The genetic modifications she received from Trenton's father should be undone, but clearly, she is not suffering from a deadly blood disease. She's… fine."
Rachel had her head cocked to the side, listening hard. "So can you reverse it?" Jenks asked hopefully, "Can you change her back?"
Ceri hesitated. "The reason why this curse is so rare is because it is extremely difficult. The last time I heard of it was at least 700 years ago, and I think that while the familiar successfully twisted it, I do remember something about it backfiring and shrinking him down until he disappeared from existence."
Everyone turned to Rachel, who had given up on trying to follow the conversation and was once again completely absorbed with Ivy's fingers, her head resting on Ivy's shoulder.
"So-so you won't do it." Ivy whispered brokenly. She knew that if it was that dangerous, then of course Ceri wouldn't risk it. She rested her head against Rachel's and closed her eyes to stop the tears. Yes, it was fun having Rachel as a little kid, but she wanted her witch back to normal. Ceri had been the only one with the possibility of reversing it, and she couldn't do it.
Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes and looked at the elf. "Are…are you sure there is no other way?"
"Well," Ceri started, rubbing her forehead with an expression of concentration on her face. "As a last resort, we could ask Al if he knows something."
"As a… last resort?" Ivy repeated slowly.
"Yes." Ceri nodded firmly. "I'm going to try and see if I can twist it. If I do some research, I'm sure I can find some way to guarantee that nothing will happen to me. Or Rachel." She added as an afterthought. "I don't want to make this worse."
Ivy's heart rose, and she could have hugged her. On the coffee table, Jenks whooped and launched himself into the air. "Ya hear that! She's gonna do it! We're gonna get Rache back!"
Ivy hugged the girl close, her shoulders sagging in relief. Usually she didn't get so optimistic when they hadn't actually accomplished anything yet, but she had to believe they could do it, for her sake as well as Rachel's. And anyways, she knew that they were good, and maybe the witch was starting to rub off on her.
Rachel looked up and smiled at her, looking like she was trying to figure out why she was on the verge of crying and Jenks was yelling like a madman over her head.
Ceri gracefully stood up. "I shall begin immediately. If you don't mind, I'm going to take some of Rachel's demon texts with me, there might be something there." She nodded at them, then walked towards the kitchen, ignoring the pixy children starting to swarm around her head.
Ivy placed Rachel on the cushion next to her, then stood up, stretching her arms above her head. She looked back down and saw that Rachel was making noises and holding her hand up towards Ivy again. Ivy picked her up, smiling at her earnest expression. She never would have pegged Rachel for a clingy child, but she'd barely let her go since she turned little. Ivy bounced Rachel in her arms, wondering if she would be this clingy with anyone else, or if it was just her.
Ceri walked past the doorway, arms laden with thick textbooks, a stream of pixies flying ahead to open the door. "Hey Ceri?" she called out to her, and the elf stuck her head back through the doorway.
"Yes?"
"I know you're going to talk to Quen and Trent, but don't tell them all the details, alright?" Ceri paused, then nodded. Jenks flew back in.
"She's right, we don't want any of the bad guys finding out about our little red-headed problem here and getting any ideas while she's vulnerable." Ceri nodded again and vanished out the doorway. Ivy heard the pixies squeal, then the door slammed shut.
Ivy looked at Rachel speculatively, and seeing her expression, Jenks flew over to hover around her head. "What?"
"Do you think Rachel can still do her magic?" she mused.
"I dunno." He answered. "If she can, I hope she remembers how to control it, 'cause I've seen witch kids messing with their magic before they know how, and Tink's panties, it is not pretty."
"What about it Rachel? Do you know how to do ley line magic?" Rachel looked up.
"Magic," she repeated wonderingly. Then her brow furrowed in confusion. "How-how… I have magic, right Ivy?"
"Yeah Rachel, you're a witch." Ivy reminded her cautiously. The frown stayed of the girl's face, and Ivy gently poked her with her finger. "What's wrong?"
"I has magic," she started slowly, "I always has magic. But I cand use it. I can't 'member how to use is. How come I can'd remember how to use it?"
"I don't know Rachel."
"But don't go trying any of those ley line spells if they suddenly pop into your head, you got that Rache?" Jenks said. Rachel nodded. "Who knows what you'll do to us," he added under his breath.
Ivy took a deep breath and pushed all thoughts of worry out of her mind. "Never mind, Jenks," she said. "I'm sure it'll be fine. We're safe from earth charms, all we have to do is keep her away from the spelling supplies, and she doesn't know how to use ley line magic. We'll be fine."
Then she paused and looked at Rachel, unsure of what to do next. She didn't know much about 3 year olds except that they needed naps, and she figured she'd just put Rachel down whenever she got tired. "Umm… are you – hungry?" she tried. Rachel perked up and nodded vigorously. "Okay. Let's get some food" she said, relieved. She could do food.
Jenks laughed at her again. "Well, seeing as you've got this all under control, I'm gonna go tell Matalina and the kids about your latest adventure." He flew out the window, laughter trailing after him.
Ivy carried Rachel into the kitchen, and not seeing any baby-proof spot to put her down, she carried the child into the pantry with her. Grabbing a box of crackers, she walked back out and went over to the table. Putting the box down, she knelt and put Rachel on the floor.
"Just sit still for a minute, okay Rachel?" Rachel nodded up at her, clapping her hands. Ivy sighed and stood up, grabbing an apple and moving to the counter. She took a plastic bowl out of the cupboard and cut the apple into tiny squares, then washed the knife.
She paused as she was putting it away. Casting a sidelong glance at Rachel, she opened the utensil drawer and took out everything that was remotely sharp or pointy, placing them up in a cupboard, way above Rachel's reach.
Ivy turned around, then lunged forwards to catch Rachel before she fell off the table. The girl was trying to climb up the table leg, reaching for the box of crackers. When Rachel realized that Ivy was holding her, she grinned, completely ignoring her near fall.
"Ivy! Cwackers!" she waved her hands gleefully in the direction of the box. Ivy exhaled. "Don't – don't do that again, Rachel. You could get hurt. You hear me?" Rachel nodded along, still reaching for the box, and Ivy sighed. She gave her the box, then picked up the bowl of apples and walked into the sanctuary. It was safer for her there. More pillows.
She placed Rachel of the floor, the food in front of her on the coffee table. Just as she straightened up, the doorbell rang, and Ivy almost groaned. Rachel looked up at her with wide eyes, munching on an apple.
"Stay here," she said firmly, and with one last look at the girl shoving crackers in her mouth, she moved to the hall. She opened the door, recognizing the visitor as David before she saw him. The Were was in his insurance suit, and Ivy wondered what he was doing here if he was working.
"Uh, hey Ivy," he greeted her.
"Hey David." She looked at him, silently asking why he was here.
"Rachel was supposed to call me after your run with some information on a claim I'm working on, and when she didn't I figured I'd better stop by and make sure nothing had – happened…" He faltered and he blinked, staring at her feet. Looking down, Ivy saw that Rachel had toddled over from the sanctuary and was peeking her head through Ivy's legs, smiling up at David with a handful of crackers. She pushed past Ivy and gave one of David's legs a hug.
"Hi David!"
"Uh…hello," he answered hesitantly, his gaze alternating between Rachel and Ivy.
Ivy gave him a sheepish look. "Would you like to come in? I don't really want too many people to see Rachel."
"Rachel," he repeated faintly, slowly kneeling down to look at the girl. Rachel grinned in delight finding that he was now at her level, and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Wolfie."
"Yeah, sure," he answered Ivy, "I'll come in."
He stood up, now awkwardly carrying Rachel, and Ivy stepped aside to let him pass, getting the impression that David didn't spend to much time around little children either. He walked into the sanctuary and she followed him, shutting the door. He was sitting on the couch, Rachel on top of him, and Ivy took the seat across from them. David looked at her expectantly, his hands unconsciously accepting the cracker Rachel offered him.
Ivy quickly summarized what had happened, and he sighed. "Only Rachel. This would only happen to Rachel." Ivy agreed.
"Ceri's trying to figure out how to reverse it."
"And of course it's a demon curse. Anything else would just be too easy to fix, wouldn't it."
When Rachel tried squirming out of his lap, he picked her up and put her on the floor, just a little bit relieved. She toddled to the table and picked up her apples, her legs getting tangled in the overly-large shirt she was wearing. She then tried to climb onto Ivy, and Ivy prevented her from tipping out the apples by grabbing the bowl from her and pulled her up onto her lap. Rachel settled herself in, the offered her an apple.
"So we're just going to keep her until she's back to normal?"
"I guess so. I have to go shopping though, get her some actual clothes, at the very least. I don't want too many people finding out about this though. Um… are you – busy now?"
David realized what she was getting at. "I'd be glad to help. I have an appointment at 5, but I guess I can stay here and watch her until then. If anyone asks, I just decided to do my paperwork here instead of back at the office."
"Thank you," she said gratefully. She stood up and put Rachel on the floor, not too surprised when the girl wrapped one arm around her leg. "For, well, essentially you're babysitting."
David grunted at her as he stood up and took off his jacket and hat. "I can't be that bad, right? I mean, you said she's still an adult, just in a little body."
Ivy held up a finger as she pried Rachel off her leg with her other arm and held her out to David. "Yeah, sort of. She acts like a child. Exactly like a child." She let go of Rachel and walked into the hall to grab her purse and jacket, and David followed, now starting to look a little worried. "I should be back in an hour, maybe a bit more."
"I don't really know how to take care of a kid," he reminded her, somewhat urgently. Ivy shrugged at him.
"I don't really know how to take care of a kid." She grabbed Rachel's car keys and put a hand on the door, wanting to get out before Rachel realized she was leaving. The girl was already looking at her, a pensive expression on her face. She let out a questioning little sound, and Ivy's breath caught. She spotted tears forming in the child's eyes, and she knew she would never be able to leave if they started falling.
"Just – watch her, okay David? She tries to climb on things." She opened the door, and looked back at Rachel. "I'm coming back," she reassured her. "I promised, remember?"
Rachel gave her a watery smile, and Ivy looked back at David. "I'm serious David, you have to watch her. Don't let her hurt herself."
David nodded, and Ivy let out a breath. She was being silly. It was more dangerous for Rachel to go to the grocery store, but she also knew that the witch would never run out of ways to get into trouble, even in her own house. But David would watch her. He cared about her too.
"I'll be back soon," she promised again, then stepped outside and closed the door behind her. She walked over to Rachel's car and got in, mentally making a list of things she would need to get and the places she would need to hit, mapping out the best route.
She pulled back into the drive exactly 58 minutes later, car piled with bags. Getting out, she gathered them into her arms, careful not to tip them. Walking up the steps, she paused, realizing she couldn't open the door without kicking it down, and that would probably take some effort, not to mention she didn't really want to destroy their front door.
There was no graceful way to put the bags down, so she leaned forward and hit the doorbell with her elbow, extremely thankful for her vampire abilities.
She heard hurried footsteps approach the door, and it was thrown open to reveal a harried looking David, holding a happily shrieking Rachel over his shoulder.
Ivy looked him over, amusement playing over his features. He had rolled up his sleeves, his shirt had come untucked, his hair was sticking up, and he wasn't even bothering to try and hide the desperate expression on his face. He shrugged helplessly at her and grabbed the top two bags with his free hand, stepping back so she could come in.
She raised an eyebrow at the mess she found in the sanctuary. There were crushed cracker bits all over the floor, and the pillows were strewn everywhere. Easily fixable, but still.
She bent and let the bags drop onto the sofa, then turned and looked at David with her arms crossed. "It was her fault!" he said defensively, holding Rachel out to Ivy.
"Ivy!" she cried happily, waving her arms at her. Ivy took the squealing child from David.
"So this is all your fault." Rachel just grinned cheekily at her. Ivy sighed. "Well, thanks David."
He shook his head. "That girl is a handful. I thought she was trouble enough before. The only difference now is that she can't leave the house and we don't have to go chasing her across the city to get her out of trouble."
Jenks buzzed in. "Tink's a Disney whore, it's good to see you Ivy." Ivy hoisted Rachel higher and looked at him questioningly. "My god, that girl has a set of lungs on her. She has not stopped shrieking since you left. Chased all of my kids outside. First she was crying, then David managed to calm her down, and then a whole other racket began. That," he pointed to the witch in question, "is the quietest she's been in an hour."
Rachel just smiled sweetly up at her from her shoulder and Ivy looked back, amusement glinting in her eyes. "Sure, now she looks like an angel," he grumbled, going to land on the biggest bag David had thunked onto the floor. "So what'd you get?"
"Well, that one," she indicated the one under his feet, "is a playpen, one I'm sure will be very helpful in keeping her in one place. The rest are all just clothes, some toys…"
"All of this? That's all you bought?"
"Well, there's a lot of stuff for a kid. There's a bunch of different things they use, and a surprising amount of it is to get them to calm down or fall asleep, surprisingly."
"Uh huh," David picked up his jacket and brushed off the cracker crumbs. "Well, if you don't need me, no offense Rachel, but I've had enough of babysitting for quite awhile."
"Oh, of course." Ivy nodded at him, "thank you, David."
David bowed his head, "I'd say anytime, but please try and keep it to a minimum. But if you do need some help, just give me a call." Ivy nodded, a smile playing on her lips, and he walked out.
She smiled, looking down at Rachel. "Well, since it sounds like you were so busy while I was gone, please tell me you're…" Rachel was asleep against her shoulder, and Ivy finished, "-tired." She smoothed the hair back from her face. "Perfect timing, Rachel," she whispered.
A/N: So I just wanted to thank everyone who's reading this, and say that if there is something you really want to see happen, just tell me and I can try to fit it into the story. I'm not quite sure where this is going yet, so Ivy and Rachel can take a few detours.