The Phoenix saw, from the corner of her eyes, all three of her children tighten as Eliza addressed her, stating that she did not understand what Eliza was talking about. Arcos, fur actually began to stand on end on his neck and his back, puffing his shirt out. Aries let out a breath, not quite a huff, his face changed now from confusion to wariness. Medusa had raised herself on her coils, not to straighten herself out threateningly, but high enough to become the tallest one in the room.
The barb Eliza threw her way definitely hit her, not understanding was something that Phoenix did not like, and she liked being accused of it even less. Her rational mind went through a series of platitudes, Of course you don't understand, all you know about Mormonism is their myths in their books. You've not been turned into a giant animal-person, and then become pregnant. You are being an atrocious hostess, Phoebe, you invite someone over for the first time in almost 20 years, they cook you dinner, and you make them mad? What's wrong with you?… But then, the part of her that was angry, that part of her that didn't like to not understand, that didn't like being wrong, that worked so that it was never wrong, even when her rational mind knew she was, spat out at her, This woman is an ungrateful wretch. She has no idea of how blessed she is. She has no idea how many people would take her 'burden' in a heartbeat and be glad until the day they died. She knew her face was that of the harsh leader of her family, the one that overruled even Chategris with the Grey Cats when she felt the need to do so, and she knew it was not a kind face.
As soon as Eliza's fur began to flatten, and her shoulders hunched down to their normal position, and her face smoothed, The Phoenix felt her own anger fade away. The words, "I'm sorry," made her heart hurt, and Eliza's confession dissipated any vitriol that may have remained from being the target of the ferret-woman's outburst.
At the mention of a baby, along with their mother's tension fading away, all three of children's attitude changed. "Baby?" Medusa said, her black eyes lighting up.
"You have a baby?" Arcos asked at the same time, "Why didn't you bring the baby?"
"Who's keeping the baby?" Aries said, the word baby floating about the room like a bouncy ball. "You could have brought the baby, we would have kept it."
"Nous allons parler de bebe plus tard," the Phoenix said, waving her hand dismissively in the air, her eyes never leaving Eliza.
"Awww," muttered Aries very softly. "I wanna hold the baby."
"I think you make burdens of things that aren't," Phoenix said gently, getting up from the table and walking toward the counter that separated the two women. "I also recall from my catechism classes that none of us are supposed to be burdened, if we give the burden to Christ, that our burdens are all our own doing." She reached the counter, and the tears in the woman's eyes made her own tear up. She put her hands on the counter, next to Eliza's but not quite touching them. She could feel the heat from the ferret's body in them, seeping into the countertop and spreading to her own hands. "I am not a Mormon," she said slowly. "I do not know how one atones for a breaking of one's covenants in your religion. However, I would hope you'd find comfort in knowing that the 'sin' you have committed is just as grievous as pinching gum for a candy story. I'm pretty positive all of Christianity agrees on that one." She smiled, in an attempt to lighten the mood. "I don't know what steps you would have taken if you were still human," she said again, "but I hope you could find comfort, at least, and maybe council here." Her voice was high, like a little girl's.
She did not address Eliza's comment of teaching her daughter, it was a conflict she had within her own heart that she was not willing to air in front of her children. Perhaps she'd be brave enough to broach it when they were alone once again. She pushed it to the side, unable to push it completely out of her mind, and said, "Apologize when you have to, Eliza, but don't ever beg. It doesn't become you."
Aries giggled at the statement, and Phoenix did not stop him.
Eliza's eyes flitted between the excited faces of the snake, bear and ram as they immediately picked up on a baby being entered into the equation but proceeded to misunderstand the terms. Well at least, like their mother, they were excited. That was a positive.
She looked at their mother as she approached. Phoenix's countenance had softened and Eliza felt relief flood her system. The ferret blinked and a few tears escaped only to be absorbed by the darker grey of the furry mask that encompassed her eyes. The other woman's comforting words were like a sweet balm to her heart. She could not reconcile them all with her own feelings, but the love and acceptance with which they were given was not diminished. She felt her soul vibrating within her, accepting the compassion which was being offered. She felt fractionally lighter as the older woman concluded her remarks, enough to muster a small smile at the advice not to beg and the giggle from the table.
Looking down she turned her hand up, palm offered as an olive branch, and smiled when her still friend slipped her small hand into a manicured paw and squeezed. Eliza returned the gentle pressure, feeling the last remnants of her emotional high dissipating.
"I'll try to remember that." She ducked her head in both amusement and embarrassment. "Though, I have a feeling this may not be the last time I'll be apologizing for an emotional outburst." If her face were not covered with fur the blush on it would have been evident. "Grant would always laugh at how much of hormonal whirlwind I could be the first time around." She said with fond amusement as her free hand fell to her abdomen with sweet remembrance of another time when life had been growing inside her. She was brought out of the moment by the sound of hushed whispers coming from the table.
She looked to the children briefly before returning her attention to their mother. She took a breath and made a decision. "I want to accept your offer. I want to come back often, and not just on business. But if I do I think that perhaps it is best for me to be upfront with everyone." Her eyes darted to the table before returning to settle on the healer's. "I can see how accepting you all are and so there is no need to burden myself by hiding while I'm here."
"Aries" she called, sharing a smile with his mother while everyone's attention came to rest on her again. "I will gladly let you hold the baby. But you will have to wait a few more months," she squeezed Phoenix's hand again, seeking support. "until your mother has helped me deliver my child."
The hushed whispers at the table were no longer hushed, and the owners of them were suddenly no longer at the table. All three children leapt up from the table and darted to their mother's back, delighted and shocked smiles on their faces.
"You're going to have a baby? When are you going to have the baby?"
"You're pregnant? How is that possible? How long have you been pregnant?"
"Whose the father? Where's the father? Is he a ferret, too?"
Phoenix felt Eliza's hand jerk slightly at the sudden onslaught, and wasn't sure if it was the assault of questions, or the physical quickness with which her three large children, two of them at the top of the predatory chain, came at the counter opposite the ferret. She kept her hand firmly wrapped around Eliza's paw, to keep it from being jerked away if the jump happened again at a higher intensity. The wide smile on her face at her children's reaction was pleasure tinged with pride. The fact that Eliza felt comfortable enough to say such a thing, shone on the character of her children. She felt, at least. But then, having that kind of outburst in front of her family also shone on the character of her family, now that she was calmer and could think about it. One did not tend to lash out at those they were not comfortable with. That made the Phoneix feel very smug, indeed.
The comment about hiding was not lost on Phoenix, though it did seem to be lost on the children. What did she have to hide, and from whom? Surely she didn't have to hide the fact she'd slept with someone from her host? Unless, he was the jealous type. Maybe he was. She remembered when the two of them had first met, and Eliza could not take the underground hospitality any longer. That didn't bode well. The Phoenix knew more about jealous types of men than she ever thought she would.
"Nous allons parler de bebe plus tard," she said again. With her eyes still on Eliza, she said, "Why don't you kids go make yourselves useful, and we will call you up when dessert is done."
It took no more prompting for the three of them to head to the stairs, leaving the ferret and healer alone.
Phoenix had not let go of Eliza's hand, and hoped her look was, at the very least, non-threatening. "Eliza," she said gently, "since we are going to be seeing a bit of each other, is there anything you would like to tell me?"
A nervous laughed escaped her throat before she could smother it. "That's a bit of a loaded question isn't it?" The look that the medicine woman gave her wasn't particularly amused.
She took a big sigh, letting out some of the tension she had been holding in since the children had rushed at her. Not that she really thought that they were going to hurt her, just that they were a lot to take in all at once. Their questions were not completely unexpected and though it would have been somewhat awkward she had been prepared to answer some of them. At least they were direct.
Their mother's query on the other hand was almost too opened ended. Phoenix had just, in essence, not only become her friend, something she desperately wanted, and her midwife, a service that she needed. She usually liked to develop such relationships slowly, allowing them to build over time. Yet already she had crossed the boundaries of polite behavior and been not only forgiven but still accepted enthusiastically by the family. It was a grace that she was thankful for.
Yet at the same time, inviting Phoenix and her children to become part of her life meant that she would expose the other people she was connected to. Something that was definitely frowned upon by Master Splinter. It was his home that she lived in, it was his rules that she felt bound to respect. How could she balance her needs and still hold to his edicts. She thought it over for a moment and decided that the best was to just be as open with her new confidant. If she was going to trust this woman with the life of her unborn child and her own safety then she might as well trust her with the circumstances of her life.
"But you deserve some answers. As you may have guessed, Yoshi, my host, doesn't know that I'm here nor would he approve of me being so. He is very insistent that his family maintain secrecy, to not be detected by the surface world in order to maintain the safety of everyone. Because Gwyn and I live in the lair, their home, we fall under that same edict." Eliza laughed self deprecatingly "Ironically Gwyn has a bit more freedom than I do. She goes off with April often enough and the teen seems to be making an attempt to live a split life. Going to school while recently spending much of her free time with the boys, his four sons."
"I, however, am no longer human and not properly 'trained' to avoid detection. I think he sees me as a liability frankly." She shrugged not really being able to determine what was going on in the rat-man's head. "He even insisted that I hide from Lee, the…" she swallowed heavily still finding it painful to even think about the man whom she had once thought was going to be her future in terms of the current situation. "the fa… my fiance', what had happened."
She placed her other hand over their already entwined ones. "So you see, Yoshi is not going to be happy to find out that I went against his wishes by coming to the surface and being discovered." She huffed. "I guess that his arguments weren't entirely unfounded. But once I tell him the situation, and that I'll be going above ground for my care I doubt that he will be accommodating. Like I said, I'm not afraid of him turning me and Gwyn out, but he is a formidable mutant and very skilled. If he takes it upon himself to keep me from coming here again or more likely, shadowing me. Well," she looked at Phoenix with trepidation. "I doubt there is much I could do to stop him."
"So, even though I very much enjoy the warmth and hospitality of your home. Until an understanding has been reached, perhaps it's best if we find a more neutral place for our check-ups." She tried to feign a smile. "Yoshi is a good man, I owe him a lot. But lets just say that to describe him as 'overprotective' would be an understatement."