June 9th 2023

Chapter 160
We Could Live In Music

"Aubrey... Juliet... Friar... Please show yourself, or make a noise, Lucky?" Maya sighed as she went on looking for her youngest. She wasn't worried that she could have somehow left the house, she was very much there, but she was hiding for some reason. Hide and seek was always good and fun, just not so much when it was bed time on the eve of a doubly important day. "Okay, fine, try this one..." she mumbled to herself before singing out the first part of one of Aubrey's favorite songs. She could never help herself, she'd always join in with all the words and she'd be so happy about it.

Finally, the words caught Maya's ear, quiet but enough to direct her until she tracked down her girl's hiding spot and found her little self, curled up with her favorite and most squeezable sleep buddy in her arms. When she realized she had been found, she looked up to her mother and gave a small wave. Maya lowered herself to sit on the ground and Aubrey immediately crawled to sit with her.

"What are we doing here, huh?" Maya whispered, brushing at her daughter's hair, casually guiding her toward sleep.

"It's gonna get me, Mommy..." Aubrey whispered back.

"What is?"

"The Big Three."

"The..." Maya paused, looked at her. "Go on?"

"Remy said, she said Pappy Tom said... Big Three is coming after me..." With this information now, Maya understood. She had to try not to laugh, but she understood.

"Honey, it's just an expression, it's not a thing, okay? What's tomorrow?"

"My birthday," Aubrey replied and at once held up her hand, with her thumb and little finger closed in.

"There, see?" Maya smiled and held the small hand in hers before tapping each of the extended fingers. "One, two, three. That's how old you're going to be, and that's great, that's amazing. That's 'the Big Three.'" Aubrey looked at her, then at her hand, gave a small laugh, and rested her head back against her mother. She dozed off before she could be settled in her parents' bed for the night.

The looming approach of 'the Big Three' did not disturb her sleep for even a second, though it for sure had her parents contemplating the passing of time the following morning, as they contemplated her. As of yet, she remained their baby girl, their youngest child, no matter how hard they tried to make her lose that title. Sure, they enjoyed every part of the effort, from the act itself to the banter it created between them, but it was getting harder not to lose sight of that and instead focus on the lack of result. But then she woke up, and she blinked those baby blues away with her own pair of baby blues…

"Hey…" Lucas smiled, quietly greeting their birthday girl. It wasn't so long ago they had been having a very similar morning with her older sister, but that was as far as the comparison went for them. "Happy birthday, Lucky," he told her, and there was no mistaking how she was still only halfway out of her slumber. The last memory she had of the night before had been of being in her mommy's arms, and that was where she wanted to be, so badly that she climbed her way right on top of her. Maya gladly received her and closed her arms around her, giving little care to what her daughter needed to do to get comfortable so long as she got there.

"Hi," she told her.

"Hi, hi," Aubrey replied, unmoved, and even though she couldn't see it the way Lucas would, Maya only had to hear her daughter's voice and feel her face pressed to her, and she could conjure up exactly what she looked like. She could feel her face moving again, could just barely hear her voice, whispering, and she gave Lucas a look, wondering if he could make it out. He just grinned and mouthed the same words their baby girl was merrily chanting to herself. Big three! Big three! Big three!

The quiet moment was interrupted before long, not so much by noise, not when it came from the quietest of their children. Lucy came on hushed steps from her room across the hall and stopped at the edge of the bed, seeking out her little sister, her buddy. When Aubrey saw her, she brightened eagerly and looked to her mother. Maya couldn't even pretend to be disappointed, not wanting her daughter to feel bad on her birthday. Instead, she just scooped her up, passed her to her father, who saw to getting her on to the ground and on to her feet. The only reason she didn't make it there exactly was that Lucy held out her arms, insisting that she be handed her sister, and so she was. Maybe it was that she had once been their very smallest baby, but it was just very emotionally stirring to watch her go and carry off her baby sister all by herself. Aubrey didn't need to be carried, but try and tell her that right about now…

They knew why Lucy had wanted to come and collect her buddy the birthday girl as soon as she could. She wanted to get the chance to participate in making this day special for her while she could, because soon she'd be off to school, sadly not participating in the greatest part of Aubrey's special day. That responsibility would fall into the hands of their biggest home sister, Marianne, as by some chance time had aligned in order to have the premiere of Annie Annie be pushed back a night and have it land right on the three-year-old's birthday. And so, Marianne had had the brilliant idea – according to her and her baby sister, too – to take Aubrey along with her throughout premiere day.

Lucas had been elected to go off with them that day, naturally, as he could step away from his job for a day a lot easier than she ever could. This left in charge of getting the triplets and Mackenzie ready and off to their respective schools, which was more than fine by her. She did have to deal with some amount of grumpiness from all of them at the fact that they didn't get to go with their sisters. She was certain that they all understood why that had been, somewhere deep down, but that was just not able to be the part of them that would be in charge. Instead, she was left with four little dolls, each of them imbued with a different level of bodily animation and each of them needing to be dressed and brought down to the minivan. It was not her favorite part of the day, but she got through it with remarkable patience. Her only genuine concern in all this was really just whether or not this would continue to be a problem by the time they made it to the theater in the evening. She didn't want to have to leave any of them behind in order not to ruin Marianne's big night.

"Mommy, I can't go today," Mackenzie shook her head when her turn came to be dropped off at preschool.

"You can't, huh?" Maya asked, allowing some room for her four-year-old daughter to speak for herself. "How come?"

"I'm sick. I have fever," she declared, sinking in her seat and pressing her hand to her forehead in such a perfect little pose that Maya just resisted bursting out laughing.

"Wow, did Nana Katy show you that one? I think it might still need some work," she whispered in confidence, reaching over to check for herself. "Look at that, perfect temp." Mackenzie frowned, like she didn't see how her mother could possibly know that. "You're looking at the pro here," she pointed to herself, deciding not to elaborate on her own exploits, guessing that even at her young age, Mack Attack might do a lot of damage with that kind of inspiration.

Even as Mackenzie would reluctantly be left in Miss Alma's hands for the day, Lucas would already be having the very opposite of his wife's experience. The two of their daughters he had with him were the opposite of inanimate. He almost needed to put some trackers on them, for fear that he'd lose sight of them. It didn't help that this premiere day, with one of these girls being the lead of their local production, had them going every which way for interviews, and rehearsals, and costumes, and hair, and makeup, and everything else ahead of curtain. As promised, Marianne never left Aubrey behind, always had her either by the hand, or in her arms, or sitting not so far off, if she couldn't have her by her side.

And Aubrey was loving every moment of it. She had particular relationships with each and every one of her older sisters, and the one she had with Marianne, now… She idolized her, and it didn't matter that she was only nine years old. To Aubrey, Marianne was right up there with their Aunt Haley, or their Nana Katy, or their Mommy… She would have that look in her eyes, more and more nowadays, making it clear to one and all: if she had one wish in the world, it was to be just like them when she got to be a big girl.

As endless as it would have felt to some, and as impossibly brief as it would to others, the day finally came to a head. Everyone was collected from school, brought home to change, and they headed to the theater, the better to be reunited with the rest of the family and soon joined by several others. No one was going to miss Marianne Friar's big night. This production may not have been world news, but where the temporary redhead's circles were concerned, this was huge. Not everyone would get to attend on the first night, but for sure before this was over they would get their turn. Friends from school, from the afterschool program, from soccer, turtle uncles and aunts, junior turtle cousins, grandparents and great grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins… They'd all get to see her step into the spotlight.

And even though they would have gone through something like this before, when she'd done her first musical, this would be a whole other thing for Maya and Lucas, seeing their baby girl, their firstborn, as the star, the main character… Possibly, their hands never came unclenched from one another's from the first instant to the last, breaking only for intermission. There were moments where they would look at her out there and wonder if they hadn't somehow imagined it all, the idea that this amazing girl had been born of their union. They couldn't get over it. Maybe they weren't supposed to. Maybe part of being a parent was going to be constant, lifelong… bafflement… at the people they had created, literally or not. The surprises would never cease, and that was just fine by them.

"You were amazing!" Kacey was the first to get a word in, after it was all over and she and the others got to see Marianne again. In the next instant, all the voices were tripping over one another, words breaking through and others getting lost, but generally being understood to mean they had loved the show and they had loved her part in it most of all. Everyone was sparking with energy, none more than Marianne, who had that look in her eyes not unlike the one her mother would get, after getting off the stage from a TXNY show. In the midst of all the congratulations bombarding her from left and right, the thing she wanted to do the most was find her baby sister, and when she did she lifted her up into a hug. Aubrey gave as good as she got and didn't let go. She'd had a wonderful time, the first of her birthdays, they were sure, she would not soon forget.

TO BE CONTINUED

See you tomorrow! - mooners