AN: Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter! Here's another one for ya! Sorry for the delay between updates, but we are getting to this story's end! Every time this chapter has a ... separating a section of the story, it is safe to assume that two months have passed since the previous ... Does that make sense? Haha. I'm not sure.
Catherine was the first one to speak. It was just after new years that she opened her perfect shell pink lips, and uttered the word "Papa" in the sweetest little voice.
"That is my sweet girl. Say it again, darling, come now, I know you can!" Matthew begged, spinning his perfect angel around in a circle.
"Papa!" She giggled, and hit her hands against his cheeks.
"I told you that Catherine would be the first to speak- and that she was quite a Papa's girl." Mary said, beaming from ear to ear as she nursed little Reggie.
"And at only a year old! You're so clever darling! Papa is so proud of you!" Matthew said, and kissed her face.
"Papa!" She chirped again, nestling against his neck.
"Yes, Yes, Papa! I love you my darling girl, I love you!" Matthew said.
"Goodness, I'm feeling quite left out." Mary laughed.
"Of course I love you too Mary, though in a much different way than I love this little angel here!" He said, tossing Catherine just a bit into the air.
"Well, I should hope so darling!" Mary said, with a sideways smile as he leaned down to kiss her where she sat in her rocking chair. "I'm sure that William wont be too far behind. He's a clever thing too. Just shy." she said, looking where he sat playing with the little wooden animals Edith had bought for them.
"I'm certain of it. He's going to be a very smart boy. Perhaps He'll grow up to be Lord Chancellor." Matthew said with a wink.
"At the very least, he'll make a fine earl one day- a very far away day of course." Mary nodded.
"And what will Reggie here be?" Matthew asked, and sat down on the floor to allow his daughter access to the wooden animals her brother was playing with. "Because I never want him to feel as if he's jut the second son- the spare, you know."
"Of course he wont be just a spare. He's our son. And as of now, our youngest. He's going to be just as smart as William! Perhaps he'll follow in his Papa's footsteps and become a country solicitor. Though it's silly to plan our children's futures. They'll grow up to do whatever they want to. Who knows, Perhaps Catherine will marry a butler." Mary laughed as she twisted her child around to gently pat his back.
"And if she does?" Matthew asked between making sounds of various ferocious beasts.
"Well, Sybil married a chauffeur, and I supported her. I'll do the same for her. I'm wise enough to know that a smart person doesn't object to love." Mary rolled her eyes in that beautifully classic Mary way.
"I know that you're very smart darling." Matthew told her, and then at his daughter's insistence made a loud snort much like a pig would.
"I don't know that I can say the same for you!" Mary laughed and he raised his brow at her. "Well, I can hardly even call you a person when you keep making sounds like a wild beast! You sound more like a savage!" She smiled at him as she stood up from her rocking chair, and put Reginald in his cradle. "Now, Catherine and William have had their baths, and it's time for bed!" At that word William began shaking his head vehemently.
"You're going to argue with Mama then? Come on my little prince, let's get you into your cradle!" Matthew insisted and he lifted William on one arm, and Catherine on the other. "Mama and Papa love you both so terribly much. I'll read you a story first though, my little darlings." He said gently as he lay them both in their beds. Mary smiled at him as she left the room. She walked down the hall into the bedroom she shared with Matthew, and began undressing. She had given Anna the night off, knowing that the doctor had given her the go ahead to be with her husband again. She blushed merely at the thought of that conversation, but smiled any how. The last month and a half her body had craved him, even though he had hardly been gone from her side. When she was left in only her creamy silk shift, she sat down at her vanity and dabbed her neck with perfume before she began tugging the pins from her hair.
"Need some help?" Matthew's voice was soft and gentle as he approached her.
"Certainly." She said, and in an instant he was behind her, his hands quickly working through her hair. "Thank you my darling." She said when the last of her hair fell against her shoulders. She stood up, and turned to place her hands on his chest as she placed a very soft kiss against the spot on his neck that she knew he favored.
"Mary..." He sighed as she kissed her way up his neck. "Mary- are you sure? Because if you aren't we'd best stop now."
"The doctor told me it was alright to resume...Normal married activities." She said as she finally put her lips to his, and felt his soft groan against her own mouth. His hands traced over her back until they went lower and rested against the outside of her thighs just under the hem of her slip. "My my, someone isn't behaving like a gentleman is he?" Mary laughed.
"Weren't you the one who called me a savage?" He growled and quickly tore the fabric away from her skin, letting it fall away from her skin in tatters. Mary giggled as he lifted her off of the ground and tossed her lightly against the mattress.
"Goodness Matthew, what's gotten into you?" Mary teased and smiled at him seductively.
"Well, my wife told me I was a wild beast, a savage. I wouldn't want to disappoint her." He said and in an instant he was kissing her once more.
...
"So you see, I was hoping that you would be my matron of honor." Lavinia asked. Mary almost choked on the tea she had been drinking, and looked at her skeptically.
"Me? Truly Lavinia?" Mary asked.
"Truly. You may find it difficult to believe, but I haven't got many female friends or acquaintances. No sisters, or female cousins either. So I thought that you would be the best choice- and you always look so lovely in purple. But if you don't wish to, I'm certain I could find someone who would be willing." Lavinia stammered nervously.
"No, no! I'd be delighted to be your matron of honor, Lavinia, if that's truly what you wish for." Mary assured her with a kind smile.
"Thank goodness! To be quite honest I wasn't sure that you'd accept...I was worried I'd have to ask one of the daughter's of my father's business associates, and they are all nasty and mean." Lavinia laughed.
"Well, We can't have that now can we?" Mary smiled at her, and then went back to stirring her tea.
"It's funny, isn't it?" Lavinia asked after a moment.
"Pardon?" Mary asked.
"That we can be friends like this, you and I. Honestly, after...Well, you know, I thought that I'd absolutely hate the very sight of you, and never wish to be in your presence again." Lavinia explained. Mary nodded in agreement. "But I was very wrong. You've proven to be a true and loyal friend, and I'm sorry I ever doubted that you would be!"
"Oh, Lavinia, you had every reason to doubt it! After all, not many women would be as gracious as you are in a situation like that one." Mary chuckled.
"You know, when I think about it, I always knew that you and Matthew were much better suited for each other than he and I were. But I was so in love with the idea of being in love that it was very easy to give my heart away. I'm actually very grateful that Matthew broke our engagement, because when I think of my Thomas...Well, there's no one else in the whole world I'd rather be with. And I know that's how you feel for Matthew." Lavinia said.
"Yes, that is precisely how I feel for him. He's the love of my life, Lavinia, the only man I could ever be happy to be married to." Mary said.
"Now, I believe the original purpose of this visit was to finally get to meet little Reginald Carson Crawley." Lavinia said as she set down her china cup.
"Of course! He ought to be awake now, he usually only sleeps about two hours at a time. Which is excellent, because Catherine and William do the same. Oh- but Catherine is talking now! She can only say Papa, but I'm certain other words are not far behind!" Mary explained as they rose from their chairs to go to the nursery.
"How you handle three children all at the same time without a nanny, I cannot understand!" Lavinia said, completely in awe.
"Oh, it's not so difficult as you think. I never would have dreamed of doing it, but now I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm so in love with all three of them, Lavinia, they've truly become a part of my soul." Mary explained as she opened the nursery door. "Hello my darlings, Mama has brought Aunt Lavinia for a visit, isn't that nice?" Lavinia smiled as she watched Mary transform. She had always thought Mary to be a rather sweet person, but when she saw her with her little ones, Mary was nothing short of saintly.
"Papa?" Catherine asked as her mother lifted her from her cradle.
"No, My sweet, just mama and Aunt Lavinia for now. Papa will be home later." Mary explained, as if Her sweet girl could understand. She set her on the floor beside several of her favorite toys, including a stuffed bear and a wooden horse, and then moved on to William. "And how is Mama's little prince today? Oh, you're so very handsome, just like your Papa! One day you're going to cause quite a stir with all of the noble men's daughters, I can already see it!" She sat her son down beside his sister, and he quickly joined in her play. "And here he is, dear little Reggie. Mama loves you so much darling!" Mary cooed softly as she lifted him from his swaddling. "My mama always tells me I must keep him tightly swaddled, but he always kicks free from it, even at two months he is very active!" Mary laughed, and turned to face her friend.
"OH! Mary, he's the most precious thing I've ever seen! And he's wearing the booties I made for him!" Lavinia squealed with delight as Mary gently handed off her son.
"Yes, he quite prefers them to any other type of sock or slipper!" Mary laughed, watching as Lavinia gently swayed and cooed to the baby in her arms.
"He has Matthew's eyes." Lavinia observed as he wrapped his tiny hand around her finger.
"Yes, he does. Isobel says they may fade to brown like mine as he ages, but she said that about William and Catherine as well, and their eyes are as blue today as the day they were born." Mary told her with the pride only a mother would have.
"It amazes me every time I see them, how much they look like you and like Matthew. I always expect to find more of one of you in them, but I can't." Lavinia said.
"I think the boys are all Matthew- and Catherine got a great deal from him as well. But Matthew says they look exactly like me. It's an argument neither of us ever wins." Mary laughed.
"They're perfect. Truly, Mary, I've never seen more precious children." Lavinia grinned at her friend.
"Well, I'm certain you'll think differently when you have your own." Mary said with a knowing smile. "But until then, I'll accept your compliment as is."
...
"I knew it!" Mary laughed as she took her sister's hand.
"So did Gregory! The only one who didn't realize it was me!" Edith said with a slight smile. Finding out that she was two months pregnant despite the precautions she had taken to prevent it had been...Well, a surprise, but not an unwelcome one. "I still can't believe it."
"I can- you're a young woman who's married to a young man, it's only logical that children should come!" Mary chuckled.
"Mary, you're terrible!" Edith laughed.
"Not terrible darling, just logical." Mary said with a sly smile. "Sybil, you've been awfully quiet, is everything alright?"
"What? Oh, yes, Everything is fine. I'm just a bit distracted is all." Sybil said softly as she looked at her hands.
"I know it must be difficult, having to move back under Mama and Papa's roof with your husband darling. I wish there was something we could do to cheer you up." Edith said, reaching out her hand to take her sisters.
"Oh, it cheers me considerably just to be here with both of you. I always miss you when I'm in Ireland, you know. I just wish that we were here under happier circumstances." Sybil sighed. She bit her lip to keep her tears of frustration from falling down her cheeks. The news that Edith was pregnant again, even though she had been trying to keep from becoming so, was too much for her. She yearned to have a child of her own, so much so that holding any of her dear nieces or nephews was a form of sweet torture. Because they simply weren't her own. For just over one year they had been trying to conceive a child, and each month she found that her hopes were dashed once more.
"Sybil, are you sure you're alright?" Mary asked after a moment of silence.
"No, I'm not. Not at all actually." Sybil said, and then began to cry. In an instant she was wrapped in both of her sister's loving arms as they gently crooned words of comfort in her ears. So she spilled her troubles to them, as calmly as she could, and they listened patiently. "It's stupid really, I know, to blubber about it like this, but I can't help it!"
"Sybil, darling, you've got every right to blubber." Mary said gently.
"Do you think that...perhaps there is something...amiss?" Edith asked as delicately as she could.
"Oh, no, no. Tom and I make love very often, almost every night, we never argue." Sybil said, "Well, almost never."
"No, dear, I didn't mean to suggest that you weren't trying hard enough. But I was wondering if you've considered the possibility that one of you may have a...um, problem, with fertility." Edith said. Sybil's eyes went wide and she shook her head.
"No, I- I don't suppose I did. On a subconscious level I suppose I knew it, but I never wanted to admit it to myself!" Sybil said, and began to cry again.
"Oh, no don't cry darling! There's so much that can be done to help this sort of thing now! It's hardly the eighteen hundreds any more!" Mary insisted.
"It's easy for you to say that, you've got three children in the nursery in two years of marriage, Edith has a second on the way, and then there's me, the broken sister!" Sybil hissed and buried her face in her hands.
"Now now, there's no guarantee that anything is wrong! It was only a suggestion. Many couples try for much longer than a year before they have a child. To worry about it now is almost ludicrous!" Mary insisted.
"I'm sorry, I am sorry. I think I need some air." Sybil insisted as she stood and ran towards the door, leaving Mary and Edith sitting dumbstruck behind her.
(AN: Again, sorry it's been so long between updates, but this chapter is kind of like three small chapters in one? Haha, The story is coming to gradual close, so I'll do my best to post more frequently through the end!)