The Story of JJ Part 2

"Fuck!" Sydney doubled over in pain and clutched her stomach. Her face scrunched up and her teeth clenched together.

"Well, if you hadn't done that, you wouldn't be in this situation in the first place." Skyler watched her a few feet away from the infirmary bed she was laying on.

Sydney glared at him. "Not funny."

Skyler shrugged. "I thought it was. This labor thing has killed your sense of humor."

"Shut up," Sydney growled.

The doctor walked in with a shake of the head. "Oh, yes. You are definitely in labor. How do you feel?"

"Like I've just been shot… and still being shot. I knew labor hurt, but I didn't think it was this bad."

"Mortal labor, no. God labor, like every other part of this pregnancy, is different. There's a lot of energy being transferred. It will hurt, and don't think that this is the worst of it. The one benefit, is that it will be relatively quick. You should be holding your baby before the half hour is up." The doctor paused and studied Sydney. "If you want to that is."

Sydney bit her lip and looked away. Skyler sighed and put his hand on her shoulder. "You should at least try to be a mother before you give your child up. I stand by what I said. You will be a great mother. You just have to get over this fear you have."

"You don't have much time to decide," the doctor spoke up. "Because when that baby is ready to be here, there's no stopping it."

Sydney's fists clenched as another burst of pain shot through her. "I can tell. Gods, this hurts! Can't you get it out now?"

The doctor shook her head. "No, but I do need to prep you now." She turned to Skyler. "Are you planning on staying here for the birth?"

"Um…" Skyler nervously stared at Sydney out of the corner of his eye.

"It's okay, Sky," Sydney spoke through gritted teeth. "I understand if you don't want to be here for this." She threw her head back and groaned in pain.

Skyler's face hardened. "I'm staying."

The doctor shrugged. "Very well then."

"Sky, you really don't have to do this." Sydney watched him.

"I am not going to leave you now. I've never abandoned you when you were pain, physical or mental, before, and I'm not going to start now." Skyler smiled down on her. "Now, let's get this baby out of you."

A loud wailing filled the room. The doctor held up a squirming baby boy and quickly swaddled him to still his waving arms. The baby continued his high-pitched crying.

Despite the annoying sound, Skyler grinned. "Syd, you have to- Syd?" Skyler had been so focused on the baby he hadn't noticed Sydney had passed out. Her hand felt cold in his. He started and stammered to the doctor, "Uh, doc? Something is wrong with Sydney. She's not responding."

"Hmm?" The doctor glanced up from trying to shush the baby. "Oh, yes. She will be recovering for a while. No need to worry. She'll be fine. The time energy just needs to refill her veins. However, while she is out, it will give us enough time to check over the baby and prep it to give to his new caregivers."

"Wait. Don't give it away just yet." Skyler reluctantly stepped away from Sydney.

The doctor raised an eyebrow. "I thought she didn't want the child?"

"I think she's going to change her mind." Skyler glanced back at Sydney. "Look, do whatever you need to do to make sure the baby is okay and any other post-birth procedures required, but don't give her son away yet."

"Whatever you say." The doctor nodded to Sydney. "She should be up in an hour or so. I trust you'll be staying here with her?"

Skyler nodded in response and the doctor left with the baby in her arms. He returned to Sydney's side. "Don't worry, Syd. I'm looking out for you. The baby will be yours."

The bright light enhanced by the stark white walls blinded Sydney's eyes as she gained consciousness. She struggled to remember what had happened. The last thing she could remember was a searing pain in her stomach, then blackness had started to close in on her. She must have blacked out, but not before she heard the feint cries of a newborn.

The baby. Her baby.

Sydney shot up and rapidly searched the room. She was immediately hit with what felt like a punch to the back of the head. She groaned and began to sway and fall back onto the bed.

"Easy there." A pair of strong arms caught her before she could collapse.

Skyler. Sydney leaned into his reassuring arms. She may have given up her child, but her best friend was here to comfort her. An ache bloomed in her heart. She never even had a chance to look into her child's face or know if it was a boy or a girl. A sharp pang of guilt ran through her.

"What have I done?" Sydney buried her face in her hands.

Skyler wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "You just gave birth to a lovely baby. And he is now on his way to his new guardian."

"He?" Sydney looked up. "It's a boy?"

"Mhmm." Skyler nodded. "With quite the set of lungs."

"So he's okay? I mean, he was healthy and… and… he's okay?" Sydney clung to Skyler's shirt.

Skyler gently laughed and pushed her hands away. "Yes, he is okay. Doctor said everything went well. His guardian won't have to worry about a thing."

"Right…" Sydney's eyes focused on her lap. "His guardian…"

"Is that regret I hear? Why? I thought you couldn't wait to push him away and give him a better life. As soon as you get de-godified, you can leave this place once and for all now." Skyler smirked at her and watched for her reaction.

"I did, but…" Sydney felt tears well up in her eyes. "Do you think I made the right choice? I didn't think I would miss him this much, I never even saw him, but I don't know that I should have given him up."

"Are you saying you want him? You're willing to take on the responsibility of being a mother?"

Sydney nodded. "Gods, Sky. It hurts to not be holding him right now. I'm his mother I should be with him right now!"

"Well, lucky for you, you're best friend was here for you." Skyler got up and motioned outside the door to someone.

Sydney looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"I may have told the doctor that you had changed your mind and weren't going to give him away." Skyler shrugged nonchalantly and pretended to not notice the huge grin that had broken out on Sydney's face.

The doctor entered the room carrying in her arms, a green blanket wrapped around a small being.

Skyler grinned. "Sydney, meet your son."

Sydney instinctively reached forward for her child, desperate to hold him. The doctor gladly handed him over to her. Skyler had never seen such joy on Sydney's face before. She held her son close and softly cooed at him. "Hello, baby." Sydney's fingertips gently caressed his dark-skinned face. The baby stared up at her with wide green eyes. He had quieted down from his earlier cries and was now calm. Sydney's eyes stung as fresh tears started to form. But this time they were tears of joy.

Skyler strode over to her and leaned against the bed. "He is cute, isn't he?"

"He's perfect." Sydney managed to look away from her son temporarily to glance up at Skyler. "Thank you, Sky. If you hadn't told the doctor I wanted him, I don't know what I would have done."

"Don't sweat it." Skyler grinned at her and the baby. "So, what are you going to name him?"

Sydney smiled down on her son. "I think Joseph Arthur Junior seems apt. JJ for short."

Skyler nodded. "He certainly looks like his dad. I think it's a great name. You sure about this whole motherhood thing?"

Sydney's eyes hardened with determination. "Yes. I want to be the one to raise my son." She bent over and softly kissed JJ's forehead. "I love you, JJ and I will never let you go again. I promise."

One Year Later…

Sydney leaned over JJ's crib and watched him as he slept. He had grown so much in one year, and he looked more and more like Joe every day. They shared the same brown hair that liked to stick straight up and even the same magical green eyes, even though JJ's had the godly bright green ring in them. It seemed like just yesterday she was holding him in her arms for the first time. Now here she was over one year later, about to go through one of the biggest changes of her life.

Sydney reached down and stroked JJ's cheek. He smiled under her touch and shifted around in his sleep. Sydney never knew it was possible to love someone this much. She couldn't imagine her life without JJ in it… and soon it would be.

"Hey." Skyler walked into her room-turned-nursery. "I'm here for babysitting duty. How's the little guy doing today?"

Sydney continued to run her fingers along JJ's face. "Tired. He's been asleep for a while now. But I did manage to wake him up to feed him a little bit ago, so you should be good for a while there." Sydney straightened up and turned to Skyler. If there was ever a doubt in her mind that Skyler was her best friend, it had completely vanished in the past year. He had been with her every step of the way and was always there when she needed the support… and gods did she need it. Especially now.

"You have your worried face on." Skyler crossed his arms and tilted his head at her. "What's wrong?"

"My worried face?"

"You're a very expressive person, Syd. And in the past six years that I've known you, I have learned to identify each one of your wild emotions by facial expression." He stepped forward. "Now, what is bothering you?"

Sydney sighed. "Are you sure you're going to be able to handle JJ during my procedure?"

"Of course. JJ and I will be fine. You'll only be gone for an hour."

"A week."

Skyler blinked. "What?"

"The procedure itself should only take an hour, but Nicole said the recovery time would be at least a week, if not longer." Sydney wrapped her arms around herself. "Becoming a mortal isn't easy."

Skyler shook his head. "Um… okay. A little bit longer than I thought, but it's nothing I can't handle." He gave her his most confident grin. "I will be the best babysitter there ever was."

Sydney managed a small smile. "Good. Thanks for doing this."

"I'm glad to do it. You know I love JJ like he was my own son."

Sydney's smile disappeared. "But he's not, Sky. You remember that, right? One day, when I get back to New York, I'll tell Joe about JJ."

"I know." Skyler grinned. "But you still don't know when that day will be. You sure me watching JJ for a week is the only that's worrying you?"

Sydney ran a hand through her messy hair. Her normal never-go-out-looking-worse-than-you-would-if-your-worst-enemy-were-paying-a-visit attitude had quickly died when she started caring for JJ. Making sure he was happy and healthy was far more important to her than how she looked.

"It's not. I can tell." Skyler sat down on a maroon Victorian chaise lounge and patted the empty spot next to him. "Come on, tell Dr. Skyler what's wrong."

Sydney sat down heavily next to him and gratefully leaned into Skyler's side. "I know I can't stay here forever, but I can't bring myself to leave JJ behind."

"You'll figure something out. You always do."

There was a hard knock on the door, stopping their conversation.

Sydney straightened up and marched to the door. She took a moment to brace herself before opening the door. "Hello, Nicole."

Nicole briskly stepped into the room. "It's time. The doctors have everything prepped and ready to go. By the end of the day, you will no longer be a goddess. You will lose your immortality and all of your powers. This is your last chance to change your mind."

Sydney folded her arms over her chest. "Never. I'm ready to give this all up."

Nicole frowned at her daughter. "Very well then. I assume you're ready to leave?"

"One minute." Sydney headed over to JJ's crib. He was still asleep and Sydney had to fight the urge to bend over and pick him up. "I'll be back soon, my little prince. Be good for Uncle Sky." She waved her hand over his crib and several time currents appeared. They slowly danced above JJ's head and formed random shapes and pictures. The boy stirred, but remained sleeping. The time currents would remain there until Sydney pushed them away.

Sydney leaned over to give JJ a final kiss goodbye before heading over to Skyler. "You know where all the diapers are, and I filled plenty of bottles that should hopefully last the rest of the week. If not, there's some formula you can use. He hasn't been weening too well, so if he doesn't take the bottle at first, just hold him for a little and try again. Make sure he still gets all the sleep he needs, about fourteen hours a day. And-"

"Relax, Syd. I know." Skyler placed his hands on Sydney's arms. "I've been with him just as long as you have."

Sydney nodded and gave Skyler a tight hug. "Thanks again. I don't know where I'd be without you."

Skyler returned the embrace and got one last look into her sky blue eyes with the familiar bright green ring that would soon be gone. "Just returning the favor for all you've done for me all these years."

Sydney smiled at him one last time before following Nicole out the door.

2 Months Later…

JJ giggled as Sydney bounced him up and down on her knees. He was a lot bigger than most one-year-olds and had grown and developed more and more each day. He was already walking (though mostly stumbling) and could even say a few words.

JJ's eyes lit up as Sydney continued to play with him. She didn't know how much time she had left with him, but she planned to enjoy every minute of it.

Sydney glanced up at Skyler walked into her room. He had been here almost every day since JJ was born and at this point it just seemed like he was coming home to help with their baby. Skyler may not have been JJ's actual father, but he had acted like it this past year and he had been great at it.

Skyler grinned. "Hello, JJ."

JJ smiled and waved at Skyler. "Hi!"

Skyler ruffled JJ's hair and sat down across from him and Sydney. "And how's mommy today?"

"Exhausted." Sydney blew her bangs out of her face.

Skyler tilted his head. "Want me to watch JJ while you take a nap?"

Sydney shook her head. "It's more of a mental exhaustion."

"Oh?" Skyler watched her. "What's up?"

"Nicole told me that unless I've changed my mind, I need to leave in a month."

Skyler was silent for a moment. "And have you changed your mind?"

Sydney sighed and focused her attention on JJ. "If I stay, Nicole is going to force me to go back to being a goddess and I'll be right back where I started. Endless training and mental torture. But if I leave, I can't take JJ with me. I can't just abandon him like that. I'd be no better than Nicole."

"You would be a lot better than Nicole. You love JJ and he knows that. Anyone who has ever seen you with him would know that." Skyler smiled sympathetically at her.

"Love!" JJ pointed to his heart and smiled at Sydney.

Sydney chuckled and pointed to her own heart. "I love you too, JJ."

"See?" Skyler watched the two interact. "He knows how much you love him and he loves you too."

"So what? You think I should leave?" She turned to Skyler with questioning eyes.

"I think you should do what's best. You and I both know if you stay here and get forced back into Nicole's psychological warfare, you won't make it. Not to mention you probably wouldn't be able to take care of JJ if you were constantly being subjected to Pluphoria injections."

Sydney nodded. "I know I can't stay. No one would benefit from it. But I can't leave JJ behind, Sky." Sydney pulled JJ in close and held him against her chest. "What's to stop Nicole from doing all that stuff to JJ?"

"Well, you'd have to leave someone in charge of him. Just make that someone not Nicole."

"I want to take him with me, but warping with him when he's so young would kill him. But I can't afford to stay here for a few more years until he can warp. I was debating on who I should leave him, but I don't know…"

JJ squirmed and pushed himself away from Sydney. "Mommy sad." He gently touched her face and frowned.

Sydney offered him a soft smile. "Mommy isn't sad." She leaned her forehead against his. "Mommy just loves you too much." She kissed his nose and JJ giggled in response.

"What about Ashleigh and Kyle? They're good with JJ and with their jobs, they're both living up here now."

"I thought about that, but with Ashleigh being pregnant and all, I don't know if I should leave JJ with them."

"You know they could handle it. They're the best people to look after JJ while you're gone. It's not like you'll never see him again. We'll get pocket watches when we leave and we can come back any time to see him." Skyler reached over and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "It will all be okay."

Sydney bit back tears. "I don't have a choice, do I? I'm going to have to leave my son behind." She closed her eyes and recentered herself. "If I have to do this, I'm going to make sure he is safe and properly taken care of."

A/N - So I know I said this would be two parts, but I'm turning it into three because it got a lot longer than I had anticipated. So let me know what you're thoughts are so far with a review! Add this story to your favourites if you really like it and don't forget to follow me to be alerted to when I update! Thanks for reading!

PS: I've updated my profile with some news and updates about what's going on in my life, so check that out and stay tuned for more info!