short, sweet snippets

Prompt: A family outing of Stella, Kelly and Maya to the cabin. from ducibarros

"The forecast said it was supposed to be sunny," Stella grumbled from her spot at the window.

She was right. They'd been checking the forecast religiously in the days leading up to their trip. Not once was rain ever mentioned but here they were, stuck inside the cabin as a thunderstorm rolled through with no end in sight.

It was Maya's first trip to the cabin, something Stella and Kelly had been planning for months, practically since the day she was born. Benny's old cabin held amazing memories for Stella and Kelly, interrupted honeymoon aside, and they had been waiting for the day they could bring Maya.

Stella had the weekend all planned out. Then the rain came and threatened to ruin it all.

Kelly walked over to Stella and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her back against his chest.

"I know," Kelly said gently. "But this weekend will still be fun."

"It's Maya's first time at the cabin. It was supposed to be perfect." Stella argued sadly.

Kelly chuckled and placed a kiss on Stella's head. "It still can be. Sure, we might not be able to go outside, but we can still make this a memorable weekend."

… … …

Prompt: "we can't risk it" from wine-and-fics

Stella sat in her car outside the station, talking to Kelly on FaceTime. She watched as First shift made their way to their cars as Second shift started to trickle in. It was her first shift back after taking several off to be with Kelly as he recovered from his most recent near-death experience.

That had been over a month ago. Kelly was back home with her and Maya, on the mend, and their family was together again.

This hadn't been the first close call since they became parents…but it was the first one since learning their family of three was soon to become a family of four.

When Stella was pregnant with Maya, they waited a little while to tell everyone. This time, though, Stella had found out the day Kelly got hurt, making the realities of their job smack Stella in the face. They couldn't wait this time. Should something happen, they'd need the support of their friends and team.

"I'm telling Boden, and the others, today," Stella told Kelly over the phone.

"Are you sure?" Kelly asked.

"We can't risk it," Stella declared. "With our jobs and the risks we face every day, after what happened to you? They need to know."

… … …

Prompt: comparing hand sizes, then linking fingers together for Stella and Maya from princess-olaf

It was a quiet morning in the Severide household. Kelly had left early that morning to meet the newest round of Academy recruits and Maya had found herself climbing into her parents' bed.

Eyes closed, Stella smiled as she felt the bed move. As Maya got closer, Stella moved the blankets back so Maya could crawl under. Hoping to get a few more minutes of sleep, Stella cuddled Maya closer with one arm across her little body.

Maya wasn't in the mood to go back to sleep but the 4-year-old was content with cuddles. She played with Stella's hand and her fingers, eventually pressing her own palm against Stella's to compare their sizes.

Stella had given up on sleeping and watched Maya's ministrations with a soft smile. "You know, when you were a baby, your hand use to be so small that the whole thing fit right here." Stella traced a circle around the middle of her palm.

"Really?"

Stella nodded. "Really really. And now, you're a big girl, and we can do this!"

Keeping Maya's hand in position, Stella curled her fingers and linked her and Maya's hands together. Maya looked from their joined hands to her mom and smiled a big, toothy grin.

… … …

Prompt: "It's bedtime Maya" from lady-rhaesnow

"It's bedtime Maya."

Maya looked up from where she was lying on the couch, teddy bear tucked under her arm, to stare at Kelly. "I not tired daddy."

Kelly smirked and raised an eyebrow. The little girl had been struggling to stay awake for the last fifteen minutes as the movie ended. Even now, she fought against her heavy lids. Kelly walked over and sat next to her on the couch. He ran his fingers through her hair and Maya's eyes got even heavier. "I think you are tired," he said gently.

"Mommy's not home yet," Maya mumbled quietly. The now undeniable exhaustion in her voice added a small whine to her words.

"I know baby. She had to help Uncle Herrmann at Molly's a little later tonight," Kelly said gently, his fingers still combing through Maya's soft curls. "But she'll be here when you wake up in the morning, okay?"

Maya nodded, her eyes barely open, and raised her arms towards her daddy. Kelly chuckled and picked Maya up, hugging her close as he steered them towards her room.

Maya buried her head in Kelly's neck. "Can we read a story?"

"Yeah, baby girl, we can read a story."

A/N: I know this is short, and if you follow me on tumblr you've seen them before, but motivation and inspiration have been hard to find. I'm hoping life calms down a little bit and I can get back to writing for Maya because man I love this kid.

Please let me know which of these prompts you want me to expand on first, because most of these are spoilers for possible future one-shots.