Chapter 73
I sat up, jolting wide awake, a sharp ache ripping through my middle. For a second, I lay there, wondering if this was another false alarm. Then another wave of pain hit, even stronger, and I knew. It was happening.
“Xander,” I panted, waking my husband. “It’s time.”
Xander’s eyes flew open in a mix of terror and excitement. He launched himself out of bed, scurrying around the room to get dressed and to retrieve our hospital bag.
“Are you sure?” he asked in a somewhat shaky voice.
I nodded, teeth gritted as another wave hit. “Positive.”
It seemed as though the drive to the hospital happened instantly. Xander’s hands were firm on the steering wheel, but I noticed the tension in his jaw, the fast, worried glances he cast my way. When we drew closer to the entrance of the hospital, I could see someone was waiting for us.
Zara, our healer and midwife, beamed at us with a reassuring smile. “Right on time,” she said, helping me out of the car. “I’ve set up a special room for you, ready for anything unusual.”
As we headed to the delivery room, I felt thankful for Zara’s preparation. Who could predict what might happen when giving birth to a special baby?
The labor moved faster than I expected. Strange things began to happen around us: the lights in the room would not stop flickering, and once I could have sworn that the chair in the corner was floating in the air a few inches off the ground.
Xander stuck right to my side, holding my hand tightly. With each strong pain, I squeezed his hand, finding strength in his steady support.
“You’re doing great, Aurora,” he whispered, softly swiping the sweat off my forehead. “You’re the most powerful person I know. You can do this.”
Selene rushed in. “Sorry I’m late,” she panted. “The traffic was horrible. How are you going, Aurora?”
Before I could reply, another sharper pain than the rest hit. I hollered in agony, like my body was being torn apart.
“The baby’s coming,” Zara announced. “Aurora, when I say so, I need you to push.”
The next few minutes were really a blur of pain and hard work. I pushed as hard as I could, with Xander cheering me on and the calming words of Selene helping me through it. Finally, with one big, strong push, I felt a relief, and a small cry filled the room.
“It’s a boy!” Zara exclaimed, holding up our son for us to see.
But before I could fully process this miraculous moment, I felt another contraction building. Confusion and panic flooded through me.
“Zara, what’s happening?” I gasped.
Zara’s eyes widened in surprise as she quickly handed our son to a nurse and returned her attention to me. “It seems we have another little one on the way, Aurora. You’re having twins!”
The room suddenly became very busy. Xander’s face showed both surprise and happiness, and Selene laughed with joy.
“Twins,” I breathed, the word barely audible as another contraction seized me.
The second birth was quicker than the first, and soon, another cry joined the first.
“A girl,” Zara announced, her voice filled with wonder. “Congratulations, Aurora and Xander. You have a son and a daughter.”
As the nurses cleaned and wrapped our babies, the room was filled with a gentle, magical light. I felt it strongly inside me a feeling of being exactly where I should be, of everything being complete. These two small beings were part of me, part of Xander, a beautiful mix of our special backgrounds.
Zara brought the twins to us, carefully placing them in my arms. As I looked at their little faces, I felt a huge wave of love. Xander sat on the edge of the bed, tears falling from his eyes as he reached out to touch our children’s cheeks.
“They’re perfect,” he whispered.
As Zara examined the twins more closely, her brow furrowed slightly. “How interesting,” she murmured.
“What is it?” I asked, a flicker of concern cutting through my exhaustion.
“Look at their skin,” Zara said, pointing to faint markings on the babies’ arms. As we observed, the patterns appeared to move and alter, like animated tattoos.
Then, as if prompted, our son opened his eyes. I gasped when I saw his irises changing color, going through a spectrum of shades.
“And check this out,” Xander said, softly holding our daughter’s small hand. As we watched, small sparks of magical energy danced across her fingertips.
“It seems your children have inherited quite a unique blend of abilities,” Zara said, her voice filled with awe.
The news about the twins’ birth quickly reached everyone in Moonstone Hollow. All day long, people kept coming to our house to say congratulations and see the new babies in our community.
Aiden was among the first to visit, and he told us about parties happening all over town to celebrate the twins. “Everyone’s overjoyed,” he reported. “The birth of your twins is being seen as a symbol of hope for our unified supernatural world.”
Even Cyrus paid us a visit, presenting two small, intricately crafted amulets. “These should help stabilize their emerging powers,” he explained. “At least until they’re old enough to manage them on their own.”
As night came, I started to see some unusual patterns in the twins’ behavior. Our son became fidgety as the moon came up, his small hands opening and closing like he could sense the moon’s influence. Our daughter, however, seemed to wake up in the dark, her eyes wide and attentive in the soft light of the hospital room.
Lily came late in the evening to do a blessing for the twins. But as she started her chant, something unexpected occurred. The babies’ natural magic seemed to respond to Lily’s spells, creating swirls of colorful energy around the room.
“Well,” Lily said, looking surprised but happy, “it looks like these little ones are going to keep us busy!”
The following morning, as sunlight filled the room, I observed another intriguing change. Our son’s skin appeared to glisten softly in the light, similar to how a vampire might react to sunlight, but gentler and more delicate. Our daughter’s eyes briefly shone, catching the light like a cat’s.
As we got ready to bring the twins home, Xander and I exchanged a glance that mixed excitement with worry. “We’ll need to make the house safe for them,” Xander said. “And that means more than just physical dangers.”
I nodded, considering all the magical safeguards we’d have to set up. “Definitely an adventure for sure.”
When we got home after what felt like forever, guess what? Some of our family were there waiting for us! The front yard was decked out with balloons and banners, and oh man, you could smell the delicious grub from a mile away.
We introduced the twins to all present, and I couldn’t fail to observe their reaction to different supernatural beings. Near the vampires, their skin seemed to glow faintly. When the werewolves held them, they gurgled happily, as if recognizing kindred spirits. In the witches’ embrace, they softly hummed, almost like they were trying to copy the rhythm of magic spells.
That evening, while Xander and I were putting the twins to bed for their first night at home, we found another unexpected thing. Each baby seemed to require a unique bedtime routine. Our son fell asleep with the howling of wolves, our daughter with the soft chanting of witch lullabies.
This was like taking an eternity, until we could get both babies sleeping in the crib. Xander and I just fell onto our bed; we were exhausted, really, but happy.
“Can you believe it?” I whispered, not wanting to risk waking the twins. “We’re parents. To twins!”
Xander pulled me close, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “They’re amazing, Aurora. Just like their mother.”
We were silent for quite some time, lost in our thoughts. Finally, I spoke about my concern that had been haunting me since the birth of the twins.
“Xander,” I said gently, “what if we’re not prepared for this? These aren’t just regular babies. They have abilities we don’t fully grasp. What if we can’t provide what they need?”
Xander was silent for a moment, his hand softly running through my hair. “We might not know everything,” he said eventually, “but we have each other. We’ll figure it out, together as always.”
His words comforted me as they always did. He was right-we were not alone in it. We had created a community, a family, that went beyond just the two of us. Our Children would grow up with all different kinds of supernatural beings showing them love and support, too.
“You’re right,” I said, snuggling in closer to him. “We can handle this. Together.”
A soft cry from the nursery interrupted our moment. We both chuckled, the reality of our new life settling in.
“I’ll go,” Xander said, pressing a quick kiss to my lips before getting up.
I was listening to the soothing noises of Xander trying to put our baby girl back to sleep. And I couldn’t help but get all curious so tiptoed to the nursery.
When I peeked in, my heart totally melted. Xander was just standing there, swaying back and forth with her in his arms like the sweetest dad ever, trying to get her to sleep off again. It was the cutest thing. Our son lay completely oblivious to the world, going in and out with every breath he took. The room was dimly lit, bathed in a soft, magical glow that seemed to emanate either from the nightlight or from our children themselves.
As I watched, our daughter’s cries softened, and she nestled happily against Xander’s chest. He looked up, saw me, and smiled-a smile full of love, wonder, and a touch of the nervousness we both shared.
I wrapped one arm around Xander’s waist and gently touched our son’s cheek with my other hand as I approached them. We were in silent awe for a moment, miracles we’d built between us.
“What should we name them?” Xander whispered.
We had talked about names previously, but nothing seemed to fit. Now, however, with our kids in our arms, something just clicked.
“Kaia,” I said softly, moving my fingers through our daughter’s hair.
Xander nodded, a smile starting to curve his lips.
I considered that for a moment, my mind straying back to the strange shifting colors of his eyes, like those within the constant flux of a sky. “Kade,” I said.
“Kaia and Kade,” Xander repeated softly. “Our little moon and sky.”
Both babies, as if recognizing their names, stirred slightly in their sleep. Kaia’s fingers twitched, releasing a small spark of magic that leaped into the air before dissipating. Kade’s skin shimmered in response-like moonlight on water.
We tucked Kaia back in the crib next to her brother and covered them snugly. We stepped back, and I felt this. Emotion: love, fear, excitement all tumbled together in a potent cocktail of new parenthood.
“I love you,” I whispered, rubbing myself along his solid heat.
“I love you too,” he replied, and the arms tightened around me. “All three of you.”
I stared at our sleeping children and thought about the long journey that had brought us to this spot. From the time I first entered Moonstone Hollow through all the battles, forged alliances, and into this new chapter in our lives, every step led to this happy moment.
I didn’t know what trials tomorrow would have in store. Raising twins with completely unpredictable supernatural abilities was sure to be an adventure different from anything we’d ever been through. But standing here in the nursery with the love of my family, I felt ready for whatever came our way.
Because we weren’t just Aurora and Xander anymore. We were a family. Kaia and Kade, the moon and the sky. And we’d write together the next chapter in the ongoing story of Moonstone Hollow.
We slipped silently out of the nursery, leaving our sleeping children to their dreams, and I felt a feeling of tranquility fall around me. Whatever the future held, we would face it together-families, communities, one united supernatural world. And that thought filled me with joy and anticipation of the journey ahead.
The soft glow of the nursery followed us down the hall, a gentle reminder of the magic now building in our lives in an utterly new way. Tired, but so much happier than I’d ever thought possible, Xander and I sank back into bed, knowing our biggest adventure was just beginning.
And I couldn’t wait to see where it would take us.