Silent night

[Leander Grantham]

Le had never been a morning person.  Sure, a couple decades of working meant that he was almost always up in the mornings but that didn't mean it came naturally to him.  Some part of him always protested when it came time to start the day but there were a few brief hours in the early morning, hours before any sane person would choose to wake up, that he slept uncharacteristically lightly.

It was in this small window of time that the soft mewling coming the nearby bassinet pulled him from bed with ease.  It was cold outside the warmth of his bed and decided it was time to get the fire going again.  He gathered his daughter into his arms with all the tenderness of a sleepy first time father, grabbed his wand and a spare blanket, and made for the fireplace in the living room to stoke what embers were left back to life.

"Shhh come now." he murmured as he settled onto the couch, drawing the blanket around them both. He smiled, staring transfixed at the wonder in his arms. A wonder who apparently wasn't sure if she wanted to fall back to sleep or break into a full cry "We can manage this, just you and me." He bounced her gently in his arms and couldn't help but chuckle when a whimper was given up in favor of a yawn. "There, see?"

  

[Veronica Grantham]

With a young child, sleep was not always a thing many mothers came by easily. Vic had always been a lighter sleeper, having cared for many of her siblings over the years and now her own daughter giving her excellent hearing. However, having somebody in bed next to her made her so comfortable, plus she was exhausted, that finding that sweet sleep spot wasn't as hard as it had once been. There was something about Le's soft, steady breathing, and of course the warmth of him next to her that almost instantly lulled her to sleep most nights.

It hadn't come entirely naturally though, when Lena had been a tiny infant, Vic had heard every sigh, grunt and hiccup in the middle of the night, but as the months wore on, she became used to it and slept through the little noises. Anything more, a whine, discomfort or a squeal for attention was quickly seen to- she didn't want to wake Betsy on the other side of the house after all- but Vic had been pleased to find that she was not always the one to make the first move in their daughter's direction. Though obviously Vic was the one to do the feeding, Le was very good about getting up to soothe the baby when it wasn't time to eat. So naturally when she rolled over in the early hours of the morning to find the other side of the bed empty and no noise from the bassinet, she wasn't entirely surprised.

Smiling sleepily to herself, Vic allowed herself to float in and out of consciousness for a little while, happily dozing soft morning light of the room. She could feel a chill and half thought about getting up to see to the fire, but figured that's part of what had also dragged Le from bed at this hour. She didn't hear any crying either, so the two of them must have settled in the living room for whatever reason. With every faith that her husband could care for her daughter, Vic rolled over again to see if she could see them through the mostly open door of their bedroom, but no such luck. Deciding she could probably find the motivation to get up and make breakfast, Vic rolled out of bed and found her dressing gown, though quickly accompanied it by her slippers and one of the blankets from the bed.

Without making it much past the doorway, she stopped, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders to watch the scene on the couch unfold, a smile hidden by the blanket as she watched the pair.

  

[Leander Grantham]

Le flicked his wand at the fireplace once more, encouraging the feeble flame larger before reaching for a cushion to prop his arm on.  Lena wasn't especially heavy but it was especially early and his body was definitely not awake yet.  In leaning for the cushion he stopped the gentle rocking motion for just long enough to ruin his luck.

Without the rocking there was clearly nothing left to do but cry. Confident in her misery this time, a strong cry pierced the quiet.  "Aww, no no no." he whispered, nearly pleading.  He stood immediately, ignoring the cold against his feet.  He was not nearly as good at this as his wife but he did know standing and walking usually worked better for him in situations like this.  "We were doing so well!"

  

[Veronica Grantham]

Quietly, Vic rested her head against the door frame, unwilling to interrupt. Watching the two of them together, just watching Le, her wonderful husband, interact with their daughter was an overwhelming feeling she wasn't sure she'd ever be able to describe. The moment was so tender, so fragile, she felt as though she were intruding, but the warmth she felt observing filled her so entirely that she couldn't feel bad about it.

If anyone had told her a year ago this was what her life would be like she probably would have broken down crying in disbelief. It all seemed so long ago, so far away, and she couldn't have been any more pleased by the way things turned out. To think she'd almost run away from this. But here she was and she wouldn't have it any other way.

The cry came and Vic nearly giggled, hiding it behind her blanket as she watched Le stand and try to remedy the situation. They had long ago put a soundproofing charm on Betsy's door so that she wasn't constantly woken up by Lena, so Vic wasn't worried about that, but she very nearly ducked back into the bedroom to leave Le to it, but couldn't quite bring herself to move and just hoped that he wouldn't see her. He'd get it. Honestly Lena was a fairly easy babe, at least compared to some of her siblings, and Vic had complete confidence in his daddy skills.

  

[Leander Grantham]

The warm blanket wrapped over his shoulders and around them both did little for his ankles and feet.  He could feel the morning nip through his socks and tried to keep his pacing to just in front of the slowly building fire.  

"It's not time to eat is it?  I don't think so."  He muttered in feigned conversation with the restless bundle in his arms.  Asking himself as much anyone else, he glanced absentmindedly at the door to their bedroom as if the answer would radiate from the general direction of his wife only to find her stood in the doorway.

"Oh uh..." his started, looking sheepish as he stopped the ineffective pacing.  "We were trying not to wake you."

  

[Veronica Grantham]

"It's alright." Vic assured Le quietly as she stepped into the room. "I almost went back to bed, but I was enjoying watching you." It was so mushy, but she fell even more in love with him every time she saw him with Lena. "I was up with her not too long ago, she shouldn't be hungry." Though Vic felt like she could hardly keep up with the little piglet sometimes! This whole motherhood thing was one wild ride after another, up down, once she thought she had it figured out something changed. She was certainly kept on her toes!

Moving toward her husband and daughter, Vic made a silly face at the latter, watching her daughter squirm and squeak a little bit. "She might need a good burp?" Everything could be solved by a good burp, Vic believed. Vic would never claim to be the perfect mum, she guessed as much as she knew what to do, but they were making it work together.

  

[Leander Grantham]

Le grinned in spite of himself.  He guessed it might be a strange sight, him puttering the sitting room having largely one sided conversations with his daughter, but he didn't mind so much.  He didn't have the same notions that some men did about not helping with kids at all.  He probably wouldn't be caught pushing a tram around the park but burping at home?  He could do burping.  

He awkwardly lifted Lena to his shoulder, mimicking what he'd seen Vic and Betsy do.  "If this doesn't work all bets are off"  he joked, patting lightly in probably the wrong place.

  

[Veronica Grantham]

Vic shuffled further into the living room, more toward the kitchen to get some tea on; it would help take the edge off while the fire got going. She kept an eye on Le, not for any particular reason other than the immense sense of love she felt when she saw the two of them together. It really was something special, the love of a father for his daughter. Vic never quite had that growing up. Sure there had almost always been a "father" in the picture, but thanks to her mother they didn't always manage to stick around. It had never bothered Vic too much; she always blamed her mother, but she sometimes felt that her siblings could have benefited from having a more stable family dynamic growing up.

With the kettle on the stove, Vic tangled her fingers in her blanket-shawl once more and moved back into the living room. "You really have to whack her good." Vic said of Le's gentle pats on the baby's back. "She's a stubborn creature." She laughed again, looking at the pair of them. "Don't be afraid to really give her a good thump right in the middle there." Lena was a champion eater, but she wasn't always so forthcoming with the burps.

  

[Leander Grantham]

Le's grin,  inspired by her word choice 'whack',  quickly grew to a chuckle.  "Stubborn?  Your daughter?" he asked with a raised brow, feigning shock.  As if the poor girl had any hope of being anything else with a mother hers.  

With a couple more tries that were probably more about proper placement than actual whack force he finally succeeded.  His shoulder he heard a burp much louder than he would have expected and then she was still.  "Well then..." he said, shooting Vic an almost impressed expression.

  

[Veronica Grantham]

With her lips pressed together to hide the forthcoming smile, Vic could only shake her head a little and laugh to herself as she watched Le finally manage a burp from their daughter. "I am not stubborn." She added finally, feigning being indignant over the thought!  

"Plus now you've learned to get a proper burp." A little lady her daughter was not quite yet, but Vic would take a satisfying burp from her wee babe over the discomfort of not getting one any day! Now that Lena was comfortable again, she watched their daughter snuggle into Le and promptly close her eyes. "Oh you wee devil, you just wanted to steal my snuggles." It wasn't often anymore than she was able to snuggle her husband without interruption by the little one or by the little one herself!

"Something warm to drink? Breakfast?" It was the least she could do, since Le was already up and she doubted they would be able to go back to bed, though that thought was tempting...

  

[Leander Grantham]

Le didn't trust the new quiet from Lena to put her down just yet.  He knew she could start back up at any moment if she wanted, he'd seen it with his own eyes.  He stepped closer to the fire, letting the warmth that spilled from it wash over his feet.  It had finally taken hold and was slowly pushing the chill from the room.

In the flickering light he couldn't quite read the old clock on the mantle but a glance at the shuttered window gave him his answer.  The faint light that threaded through the seams told him that the sun was just starting to rise and there was no going back to bed.  Still... maybe the day didn't need to start just yet.

He shook his head to the offer of breakfast.  Coffee was tempting but it sounded too much like the start of the day.  Instead he moved to the couch and gingerly lowered himself, breathing easier when he'd settled with out a peep from the child in his arms.  "Sit with me?"

  

[Veronica Grantham]

Oh if they were lucky they could all snooze together on the couch for a little while. It was far too early to really start the day and Vic moved over to the couch, sharing her blanket with her husband. Lena was very snugly wrapped in her own wool blanket and probably not the slightest bit chilly. Of course the fire helped too.

Snuggling herself in beside her hubs, Vic got comfortable without jostling anybody too badly. It would be a shame to wake the baby just as she'd managed to fall asleep again. Fickle little minx she was, much like her mother, as Le would say. "I could fall asleep again myself." Vic whispered, glancing at Lena again, though by way her daughter had her hands up by her face, Vic knew she was out. "You're an excellent pillow." She chuckled, poking him gently in the ribs.