trick or treat
"It's Maya's first holiday! It deserves to be celebrated properly! Even if she doesn't remember it, you will!"
That's what Jennifer Severide had told Stella over the phone last weekend. A package had been delivered to the loft addressed to Maya and inside was a orange pumpkin bucket filled with pacifiers, baby toys, and candy Maya was nowhere near ready or able to eat. The note inside told them the gift was from Kelly's mom and he and Stella rolled their eyes. Jennifer had taken to her grandmother role seriously—Maya wasn't even a month old yet and this was the third care package Jennifer had sent for her.
Kelly and Stella couldn't blame her though. Maya was easy to love and even easier to spoil.
Jennifer's excitement and dedication to being a grandmother was also the reason Stella was currently subjecting her three-week-old daughter to a Halloween costume fashion show over FaceTime.
Was it necessary for a newborn to have multiple Halloween costumes? No.
Did that stop Jennifer from buying four different costumes? Definitely not.
Was Maya, wearing a fuzzy white romper with bunny ears on the hood, the cutest thing Stella had ever seen? Absolutely.
"Oh Stella, that's the one!" Jennifer's excited voice came through the phone.
The camera was still pointed at Maya so Stella didn't feel overly guilty about rolling her eyes at her mother-in-law. "She's three weeks old Jennifer, does she really need a Halloween costume?"
"Come on Stella, look at her! She's adorable!"
"I agree," Stella said with a smile. "But it just seems like a lot, especially since I'm the only one who's going to get to see it."
"I'm sure her daddy would love to see a picture of her," Jennifer replied with a smile. A doorbell rang through the phone, followed by muffled conversation. "Tricker or treaters are here, I've gotta go. Give my grandbaby lots of kisses for me!"
Jennifer ended their call before Stella could say anything else, so she locked the phone and stuck it in her pocket. Stella looked at her daughter and smiled, picking the little girl up. "You do look really cute."
Stella carried Maya into the living room. After grabbing herself some water and a snack, Stella settled on the couch and got Maya latched on and nursing.
As Maya ate, Stella aimlessly scrolled through social media on her phone. After a few minutes, Stella came across a new post on the Firehouse 51 Instagram—they were giving away candy at the station, calls permitting, and showing off the rigs to the trick-or-treaters in the area. An idea popped into Stella's head, and she smiled. She knew Jennifer was right, Kelly would love to see a picture of Maya in her costume, but she was going to do one better than just sending him a picture.
Once Maya was done eating, Stella burped and changed her then put her on her playmat for a little bit of tummy time while Stella made herself a quick dinner. Maya was a relatively calm baby, never really crying unless she was hungry or needed changed. However, she absolutely hated tummy time. Hence the banshee-like cries coming from her after just a few seconds of being on her mat.
Stella got to a stopping point in the kitchen and returned to the living room to rescue Maya from that mean playmat.
"Shhhhh," Stella soothed, gently bouncing and rocking the baby. Maya's cries lessened once she was picked up, but she was still upset. "Do you want to go see daddy? Show him your cute little costume?"
Just the mention of her daddy calmed Maya instantly, drying her tears and turning her wails into nothing but sporadic whimpers and a hiccup or two. Stella rolled her eyes. "You are such a daddy's girl."
With Maya calm again, Stella made her way back into the kitchen to finish dinner. All the while, she playfully ranted to Maya. "One mention of 'daddy' and all is right in your world again. What about me, huh? What about mommy? I did carry you for ten months, birth you, AND I feed you whenever you want…but I guess that doesn't compare to daddy, huh?"
Maya just blinked up at Stella, her blue eyes shining. Stella snorted. "Yeah, he is pretty great."
Stella scarfed down her dinner one-handed, choosing to keep holding Maya instead of trying to put her down again. Then, Stella changed Maya's diaper one more time before buckling her into her car seat. Stella grabbed her keys, checked her bag one more time to make sure she had everything Maya might need, and the two headed out towards Firehouse 51.
… … …
Despite the above average number of cars and the normal parking arrangements 51 abided by, Stella had managed to find a parking spot down the block firehouse. As she lifted Maya's car seat out of the back, she was thankful they'd decided to go with one of the lighter ones. Short walk or not, car seats were heavy and Maya was over 10 pounds now.
Maya had fallen asleep on the car ride over and somehow managed to stay asleep the walk from the car to the firehouse, despite the sounds of the neighborhood.
The sun was just starting to set which meant it was still a little too early for trick-or-treaters and Stella and Maya would have just enough time to visit Kelly.
Stella walked into the station through the open bay doors and made her way to the kitchen and common room. Standing in the doorway, Maya still sleeping peacefully in her car seat, Stella watched the group in front of her. No one had noticed her yet; they were all too deeply invested in and entertained by the 'best Halloween candy' argument going on between Mouch and Herrmann and Capp and Tony. She smiled at the banter, realizing just how much she'd missed it since being on maternity leave.
Stella noticed Kelly was not with the others and assumed he was in his quarters so, after another minute or two, she headed across the app floor to the bunkroom. Sure enough, as she entered, Stella saw her husband in his quarters, slumped over his desk working on paperwork. Thankfully his door was open, so Stella walked right up to his office.
"Trick or treat," Stella sing-songed, with a smile.
Kelly instantly turned to face her, his smile growing when he saw his wife. He got out of his chair and met Stella at the door with a kiss. "Hey, what are you doing here?"
"I saw the Firehouse 51 Instagram posted about passing out candy to trick or treaters and I thought I'd bring Maya by to visit," Stella said. "You know, celebrate her first Halloween."
Kelly smirked. "You've been talking to my mom, haven't you?"
Stella laughed. "She called earlier, wanting to see Maya in all of the costumes she sent her. According to Jennifer, her first official holiday deserves to be celebrated even if Maya won't remember it."
"Yeah, that sounds like her."
"Something good did come out of our conversation though," Stella explained. She walked over to Severide's bed, placed Maya's car seat on it and began unbuckling her. The baby had woken up at the lack of motion, so her blue eyes were wide open as Stella lifted her out of the car seat. Stella made sure Maya's hood was on and the bunny ears could be seen, then turned to show Kelly. "The cutest costume ever."
Kelly's smile shifted from one of happiness to one of absolute love. He reached forward and took his daughter from Stella, settling her in his arms. "Hey baby girl, aren't you the cutest little bunny?"
"She is," Stella agreed with a smile, stepping closer and booping Maya's little nose.
Maya gave a small smile at her parents. It was one of her newest developments and it melted Kelly's and Stella's hearts each time they saw it.
The Severide family spent a few more minutes in Kelly's quarters before they made their way back to the common room where the great candy debate was still going on. They went unnoticed as they entered, and Kelly and Stella exchanged amused looks.
"Hey, your first trick-or-treater is here!" Kelly announced to the room. He adjusted Maya's position so she was propped against his chest, bunny costume on full display.
The others turned their attention to the Lieutenant and were instantly gushing over the sight of Maya in her costume.
Brett was the first to grab the baby, taking Maya in her arms with just a quick "hey Stella!" thrown over her shoulder.
Most of the others, who weren't fast enough to beat Sylvie to the baby, gathered around to catch up with Stella, knowing they'd have to wait a while to see the baby. It was a well-known fact that Casey and Brett loved their goddaughter and were more than willing to pull rank in order to hold her first.
Everyone did get to hold her though and by the time Stella left the firehouse almost an hour later, she realized that Jennifer was right. Maya's first Halloween did deserve to be celebrated, and spending the evening surrounded by people who loved her seemed to be a perfect way to do it.
A/N: in order to maintain a somewhat regular posting schedule, I'm only allowing myself to write a Maya fic AFTER I've finished a chapter of my other WIP, Forged by Fire. I LOVE writing Maya, so hopefully this little arrangement is beneficial.
got any prompts for Maya? let's chat on Tumblr!
Happy Halloween!