"Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit!" Julia yelled as she looked at her cell phone and then tossed it down on her desk as she moved to go find Axel. This was not the message that she had expected to receive this morning. Her family had been silent, had refused to communicate with her for months and now- they were demanding this. It wasn't right and she had no idea how to refuse the demands, she just knew that she could not do what her parents wanted her to do. She had to push back on this or it would hurt what she had with Axel.
"You good?" Kim asked as Julia marched past her and she looked around to see what could have possibly got Julia moving like this- she hadn't seen her this way in months. She frankly shouldn't be this way right now. "Jules- hold up."
"My parents have decided to come to the baby shower," Julia said as Kim froze and she let out a long sigh. The terror that she saw in Julia's eyes was one she had felt in the past. One she would feel if her parents decided to show up again, but it would be different for her now. Julia was not to that point yet and she hoped their relationship could be salvaged. "My parents…"
"Okay. Axel is teaching team tactics with Brandon for another two hours. Can I help or do you want me to go switch out with him?" Kim asked as she grabbed Julia's hands and she took a deep breath, which Julia instantly mimicked.
"They sent a reservation for a restaurant tonight. I'm expected to go, alone. They didn't invite Axe," Julia whispered as Kim clenched and unclenched her jaw. She knew these tactics, she had lived these tactics. The only difference was that she had quickly shut that shit down when she was sure that Tommy was it for her. Julia still had to learn how to stand up to her parents or it would cause them so many more problems. Being rangers was an added stressor to any relationship and they didn't need outside forces questioning them even more. "I can't go without him. I can't deal with them without him. I need..."
"Then tell them that and be prepared to say that you will see them tomorrow if he's not invited along," Kim said as Julia locked eyes with her and she gulped. "I…I know what it's like. The last time I saw my parents was the night I married Tommy. They didn't want us to get married and when I went through with it- they walked."
"Does Tommy know that?" Julia asked and Kim nodded her head yes. Tommy had been there for all of her attempts to keep the door open with her family and had supported her every time her parents had disappointed her. She would never be what they wanted her to be and she was fine with that now- Julia needed to learn to be fine with that. "And he…you…"
"My parents have always been this way- to some extent- but we…we had spent ten years away from each other when everything happened and we weren't exactly friendly during that time. No one was going to keep us from being with each other at that point, especially people that I only see once every five to six years," Kim said as Julia let out a shaky breath and she gave her a hug. "Why don't you grab your cell and laptop and we can work together in my office this afternoon? Tommy is going to be back from the university in a bit. He'd be a good one to talk with Axe- if you want."
"Maybe they'll be fine with him coming too," Julia said as Kim nodded as she watched her head back to her office and she tilted her head back to look at the ceiling. She had had those moments of hope as well, but they had always ended with more pain on her part than anything else. She just hoped that Julia would not suffer the same fate.
"I don't know if you're going to find answers up there," Tommy whispered as he placed his arms around her and joined her in gazing up at the ceiling. One of the benefits of this building was the old murals that were painted on the ceiling and while they had not restored them, they had not covered them either. She settled against him and closed her eyes as she tried to shake what was happening. She had lived this and she hated to see another family doing this to their daughter. "What is it, Beautiful?"
"Julia's parents are in town and they're demanding she meet them tonight. Only her," Kim whispered as Tommy gave a grunt of disgust and she nodded. "Yeah- she's eight months pregnant. It's a great fucking time to pull shit like this."
"So this would be a really bad time to tell you that I got a phone call from the daycare…saying that their grandparents stopped by and wanted to take them for the afternoon," Tommy said, carefully, as Kim spun around in his arms and stared up at him in disbelief. "Yeah. I'm heading down there to handle that, but I wanted to let you know. The daycare was… kind enough to put them in a waiting area."
"Thank you," Kim whispered as she gave him a hug and he held her tight. "I can go with…"
"I got it. I'll see if I can convince them to do dinner or lunch sometime while they're in town. Something that is actually appropriate when you haven't talked to your own daughter in over five years," Tommy said as Kim nodded against his chest. "I'm sorry, baby."
"Just make sure that they…that they don't…" Kim trailed off as he pulled back a bit so that she could see him nod. "Okay. Go. I'll take care of what's going on here."
"Dr. Oliver- hi- you got our message?" Kristine asked as Tommy nodded and she gave him a tense smile. "Madeline Beaumont and Doug Hart- we grabbed their ids."
"Thanks," Tommy said as he shook his head. He knew that it was not his parents- if they flew across the country to surprise his family, they would show up on their front doorstep. Kimberly's parents probably didn't even know where they lived and they certainly didn't have keys to get up to their loft. "Do they know you called me?"
"No- we mentioned that they were all down for naps and they would need to wait. Which isn't exactly a lie," Kristine said and Tommy gave her another nod. Their daycare was aware of the threats to their children and they had chosen them specifically because of their security measures. He had hoped that it would just be a precaution and had never expected to be called because of Kimberly's parents. People pissed at the Power Rangers? Sure. Instead he just hoped that his wife would be alright with however this shook out. "Second room on the left."
"I'll try to be quiet," Tommy said as Kristine paused but then nodded. The Olivers had been great since their kids had started here and they knew enough about their background that this had concerned them. If Tommy was loud enough to disturb the children, she would get concerned, but otherwise none of the staff was going to stop him. "Mrs. Beaumont, Mr. Hart- to what do I owe the pleasure?"
Madeline and Doug froze as he closed the door behind him and leaned against it. They weren't going to leave here until he was satisfied with their answers. He'd protect his entire family from them if it was necessary, but mostly- he was going to protect Kimberly. He would not let her parents tear her heart apart again and if that meant that they hated him even more he was fine with it. He wanted them to truly understand that it was not alright to continue to do things like this to his family.
"Last time I checked, there's nothing wrong with wanting to see your grandchildren," Madeline said as Tommy rolled his eyes and took in a deep breath. There were plenty of times when they could have seen their grandchildren that would have been welcome. Their birthdays, family holidays, any of the times that Kim had invited them to come spend time with their family. Showing up now was extremely suspicious. "Show some decorum, Thomas."
"The last time Kimberly saw you was five years ago. She's invited you to every holiday, baby shower, and family event over the last four years and you decide to show up now?" Tommy said as he looked between the two of them. "What do you want?"
"We don't want anything. We just want to see our grandchildren," Doug said as Tommy studied the both of them. It was rare that Kimberly's parents got along, it was even rarer that they would join forces on something. He settled into the silence and waited for them to say something that was actually the truth. He was fine making them a bit uncomfortable if it actually got him answers. "Our friends, the Wingates, were traveling and we thought we would accompany them. Their daughter is also in New York."
"You son of a bitch," Tommy muttered as Doug and Madeline exchanged a glance. "I'm well aware that their daughter is in New York, she's...well you know what she is. So you're helping them try to tear Axel and Julia apart."
"Their daughter will not make the same mistake as ours," Madeline forced out as Tommy shook his head. This was why he had come and part of why he wanted to keep Kimberly away. He suspected that the timing was too much of a coincidence once she had mentioned Julia's parents being in town. While he had only had a hunch, he knew there was a possibility that they ran in the same circles. "Where is our daughter?"
"At the Academy, finishing up her work for today and then she's helping to put together stuff for Julia's baby shower tomorrow. Let me make something clear- if they have plans to mess this up for her, I'd suggest you convince them otherwise," Tommy said as they just shook their heads. "Fine. Do you really want to see them or were you just using this as an excuse to try to get intel?"
"I have no interest in seeing your bastards," Doug spat out and Tommy opened the door and motioned for him to leave. He was not going to argue with him, it would just be a waste of words. He also was not going to come even close to giving them what they wanted.
"Is she happy?" Madeline asked as Tommy nodded his head yes and she let out a sigh. Doug glared at her and Tommy then stepped between them. "Can I see them?"
"If you'll give me your number, Kim and I will reach out with some options for when you can meet them," Tommy stated as Madeline gave him a shocked look before scribbling the number down on a piece of paper. "Just you- if he shows up- the deal is off."
"Absolutely," Madeline whispered as Tommy glimpsed a bruise on her neck and glanced back at Doug. Madeline gave him a quick shake of her head and Tommy let out a sigh. He could handle Doug, but he knew that it would kill Kimberly if what he suspected was true. However, that did not mean that Doug would get away with this- he had connections too and he'd be more than willing to call in a favor.
"We had to pull a lot of strings to get an extra seat tonight," Alastor Wingate said as he gave Julia a hug and she stiffened as she pulled away from him. They had spent the last two hours raiding closets and quickly altering clothing to fit for Gotham Restaurant's dress code. Luckily for the both of them, between Kim's maternity wardrobe and Carrie's eye for fashion- they'd been able to pull something together with time to spare. "You've fattened up."
Julia froze as Axel looked between her and her father. He could not have said what he thought he just said. The maitre d' whisked them back to a table and Axel glanced over to see the tears streaming down Julia's face. He helped her take her seat, but didn't move to take his own as he stared at her parents. He would place her overall health over any relationship he might build with her parents and if that meant walking her out of here to protect her- he would. Tommy had given him a quick rundown of what Kimberly's parents were like and it seemed like Julia's parents were cut from the same cloth.
"If you're just going to be cruel, we're going to go," Axel stated as Julia clutched his hand and for the first time Axel felt Alastor taking in the damage he had done. His face, however, remained blank, unreadable and Axel felt his gut clench. "I don't know what I've done, but I'm here because I love your daughter and I love our daughter and I want for both of them to have you in their lives. I'm not going to let you do this to her though."
"Let me? Let me!" Alastor yelled and Axel calmly nodded. "Do you know who I am?"
"Alastor Wingate, my fiancee's father," Axel responded as Alastor glared at him. "I don't care what position you hold. Your position doesn't mean that you can treat her, us, like this."
"I can't do this, Dad," Julia forced out as she looked up at him and then over at her mother. "I will choose him over you and all of your expectations of me. Every time. Always."
"Oh Alastor, stop it. You've seen what this did to Madeline and her connection with her daughter. I will not let this continue," Clara said as they all turned to her. She sat down next to Julia and cupped her cheek as Julia's face crumbled. "Baby, I'm so sorry."
"Mom," Julia whispered as she grasped hard onto Axel's hand and her mother pulled her in tight. "Mom- don't just say this to get what you want. I need you to mean it."
"Your dad's the diplomat," Clara reminded and Julia locked eyes with her and she looked away. Alastor might be the diplomat, but Clara was the politician and Julia knew that all too well. Her father would not have had the positions he held without her mother by his side. "We raised you better."
"You didn't raise me. Nannies and au pairs raised me. You just showed up when I was the perfect little girl. You showed up when it was convenient. I have someone that shows up for me, because he wants to, because…" Julia looked back at Axel to see a look on his face that stopped her in her tracks. She was used to seeing his feelings for her on his face, but she rarely saw him look touched by what she said. "Because we meet each other where we are and he fills in the gaps on days I'm tired and done and I do the same for him. He's my person."
Clara released her and Axel squatted down next to her, placing a hand on her stomach, immediately being greeted with kicks and punches. He tucked her hair behind her ear as so much passed between their eyes. He didn't know what to say, but he knew what to do as he leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss.
"You're my person too."
Screams rang out through the Command Center as Kim and Tommy tumbled down into the main bay at 3 am on December 18th. The city above them was frozen in this unseasonably early winter blizzard, but that didn't stop the activity in the Command Center this morning.
"Can you teleport us?" Axel asked as Tommy shrugged. He wasn't sure what they could do with how bad the situation was outside of the Command Center. He had never really had to deal with snowstorms in Angel Grove or Reefside and from everything he could tell- the teleportation grid was effected. "Tommy, please."
"I don't know if I can get both of you out. I've got to run some numbers- this isn't something we are going to experiment with, Axe. It may be safer to ride this out here," Tommy stated as Axel glared at him and Kim grabbed his arm and dragged him away from Tommy. Axel needed to let Tommy do his job and at this rate it looked like he was ready to clock Tommy for suggesting that this was impossible.
"She's in so much pain…we have to get…" Axel trailed off as Kim grabbed both of his arms and he took in a deep breath. He felt Kim pushing something into him and calm descended on him. "I don't know what to do."
"That's why I'm here, let's try to buy some time while Tommy figures out what we can do," Kim said as Axel nodded and the two of them sprinted towards the sound of the screams. "I can't believe she let you leave."
"Our communicators are on the fritz and the others are back with their families on Christmas break. I didn't have another way to get help," Axel explained as they got to the suite he shared with Julia and Kim nodded up at him. "Just follow my lead on what we tell her."
"No problem."
Axel opened the door and they were greeted with Julia leaning against one of the couches, a sheen of sweat covering her body. Her nightgown was soaked through and her blonde hair was plastered to her face. She looked up and offered Kim a faint smile as she walked in behind Axel.
"Can…am I…please…" Julia muttered as Axel stood in front of her and Kim walked over and placed her hands on Julia's shoulders. She felt the tension in her muscles and felt how much her body was fighting this. This was not what Julia had imagined and she knew how hard it was to let go and go with what was happening in a situation like this. She had fought hard through her first birth and she knew that had not helped her. If there was no way out- they needed to help her relax. Now. "Axe."
"Tommy is seeing what we can do," Axel supplied as Julia let out another scream as she grabbed onto him, her fingernails leaving half moon indentions up and down his arms.
"Hey Jules- what helps you relax?" Kim asked as the contraction passed, looking for something they could use to help her body relax through what was happening. She had labored hard in both pregnancies, even though both of them had ended in c-sections.
"Music, hot bath, back rubs," Julia rattled off and Kim gave Axel a pointed look as he moved around her body and started rubbing out her muscles. Kim walked over to their bathroom and started running a hot bath, that was probably going to be the next place they needed to move her. "Why aren't we leaving?"
"The grid is down," Tommy said as he walked into the room and Axel glared over at him. He wanted to keep Julia in the dark about how trapped they might be at the moment. Tommy, however, knew better than to give Julia false hope on being able to get out of here any time soon. "Apparently a blizzard knocks us out. I reached out to some of the guardians and they're out of commission as well. But we're here for you- whatever you need."
"The storm will lift," Julia whispered as the others exchanged a glance and decided it was not worth breaking the news to her that this storm was just getting started.
Silence. After hours of crying, screaming, and begging it was silent. Their daughter had come screaming into the world and was now settled against Julia's chest, blinking her eyes every so often to try to take in the world. Julia shook as the hormones flooded her body, but she clung to their daughter. She had done it. She was here and she was safe.
"Hey," Axel whispered as Julia gave him a sleepy smile. He leaned down and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Kim and Tommy are cleaning up and asked if you needed anything."
"Just stay," Julia whispered and Axel nodded before looking over his shoulder and motioning for Kim and Tommy to head out. He was sure they'd be back every few hours to check on them, but they knew better than most how important this time was for the new family. "I can't believe that I…that we…that she's here."
"You're amazing," Axel said as he laid down next to her and pulled his family close. He reached over and gently ran a finger over their baby's head. She had come out with a head full of bright white hair, ten perfect fingers, and ten precious toes. "Finley Victoria Mayfield- welcome to the world."
AN: Comments are like candy- they make my day!