Mom? [Tabitha] on Defense Against the Dark Arts

Zeus

May 21, 2020 4:57 PM

Mom? [Tabitha] by Zeus

Mr. Dragonbottom and Ms. Quaffle were sitting together for tea and Zeus was very unhappy about the fact that he did not actually have any tea. Mommy and daddy didn't make tea much at home, but Tabby did and Zeus thought that a pot of that would be perfect. It was evening, which meant that he could go ask her, but he'd have to do it soon or Mr. Dragonbottom and Ms. Quaffle would be all done. Sometimes Mary had tea too, but usually she had chocolate and that just wasn't what he was going for at the moment. So Zeus gathered himself to go ask Tabby.

Leaving his room behind and making his way out to the main part of his weird new home, Zeus found tabby sitting on the couch. Mary was sitting on the floor by her side, leaning on her legs, a book in her hands. Luckily, Mary was on the other side of Tabby, so Zeus crawled up on the couch next to Tabby and pulled himself on to her lap before she could stop him.

"Tea, please?" he asked, holding on to the front of her shirt. She was soft and warm and he missed his mom who was soft and warm. He frowned a little and put his head on her chest, determined to snuggle there as long as she'd allow him.

22 Zeus Mom? [Tabitha] 1576 Zeus 1 5

Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

May 21, 2020 6:10 PM

Uh, no, that's not me. I'm not American. by Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

Things were getting better in Tabitha's eyes. They weren't perfect. They were a long way off from perfect but they were no longer at complete rock bottom. If there was a wall they had to climb to achieve perfection, then they had started to scale it. It was sure to be a long and difficult climb to the top but they had to start somewhere.

This didn't mean that Tabitha's feelings towards their small burden had improved or changed very much. She still wasn't the one to get up and soothe him in the middle of the night. She still wasn't the one to tuck him into bed or dress him in the morning. In fact, Tabitha did little more than toss the child a bag of the foul goldfish crackers when he asked for them. She could do that. It was just like feeding an owl some treats. Only he didn't have to deliver a letter to get his crackers. He just had to sit there. Surely that was going to encourage bad behaviour, rewarding him for doing nothing?

Despite all of that, things were getting better. It was currently peaceful and quiet and Tabitha was enjoying the weight of her wife leaning against her legs as she flicked through one of her journals, searching for ideas for a future class. Like this, she could ignore the burden in the next room, pretend that he didn't exist and that it was just her and Mary, just like it used to be.

It didn't last long.

She couldn't help but look up when the child toddled into the room, the movement in her peripheral vision attracting her attention. She held in a sigh. In all likelihood, he needed something and that would mean that he'd steal Mary away from her and the nice quiet moment they'd been enjoying would be over. She turned her eyes back to her book, not wanting to watch as the child stole her wife away.

It was because she was looking at her journal that she didn't notice that he was approaching her until it was too late and he was in her lap. She looked alarmed, unsure what to do but he was in her lap and this was new and unexpected and she didn't know what to do. Despite her resentment towards him, she knew that pushing him off wasn't an option. She could hand him over to Mary but that would mean having to pick him up, something that she also didn't want to do. There was nothing to do but let him take up the space on her lap until he made his own decision to move. Maybe if she didn't make eye contact...

Tea. He was asking for tea. He was clearly expecting a response, too. Damn it.

"You... you want some tea?"

Tea was a hot liquid and Tabitha was pretty sure that it wasn't wise to give a four year old a cup of hot tea. Also, the tea was hers and he was already adept at stealing her wife, she wasn't going to let him steal her tea.

Things went from bad to worse when the little beast suddenly started cuddling her. She was not one of his toys. How had she given him the impression that cuddling her was a thing he could do? She breathed slowly, trying not to move too much. In the wild, it was wise not too move too much so as to not startle a creature. Maybe the same premise would work here? So, Tabitha sat with her arms by her sides while the child cuddled her. She shot a look at Mary and mouthed, "What do I do?"

20 Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne Uh, no, that's not me. I'm not American. 1417 0 5

Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

May 21, 2020 7:07 PM

That's okay though. by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

Mary looked up when Tabitha did, but she continued watching Zeus when Tabitha stopped. Which meant that when Zeus crawled up on Tabitha's lap, Tabitha was the only one who was surprised. Mary stifled her laughter and then smiled, feeling emotional when Zeus curled up to cuddle with Tabitha. She smiled at the look on Tabitha's face, trying not to laugh and disrupt the moment or else make Tabitha feel bad for feeling awkward.

Tabitha mouthed a silent plea for help and Mary mimed putting her arms up around someone on her lap. "Hold him," she mouthed back. Zeus, for his part, didn't move, but maintained his contented snuggling. His blonde curls brushed Tabitha's chin. Mary mimed rocking back and forth, raising her eyebrows at Tabitha and nodding encouragingly. It was more than a little hilarious to see the woman who could tame a dragon be so uncertain about how to tame a child, and even more so when the child was trying to tame her.

Determined to make this go as well as possible for them and also to not be any more help than necessary, Mary pushed herself to her feet, setting her book on the coffee table and gesturing for Tabitha to stay put. Smiling softly, she disappeared around the corner into their kitchenette, ready to fetch some tea, cooled to a safe temperature for small human consumption.

22 Mary Brooding-Hawthorne That's okay though. 1424 Mary Brooding-Hawthorne 0 5

Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

May 22, 2020 1:41 PM

That might be but this situation isn’t. by Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

Tabitha watched Mary go, wishing that she wasn’t being left alone with a small child. She supposed that, technically, he was their child, she should think of him as such but Tabitha couldn’t bring herself to. He didn’t feel like theirs. He felt like an intruder, messing up the balance of their lives. He was certainly being an intruder at the moment, invading her personal space. She was going to have to teach him about interrupting people when they’re reading and climbing up uninvited onto their laps.

She let out a long, slow breath and put her book down. There was no point in holding it now that she couldn’t read it and the small beast didn’t seem like he was going to be moving anytime soon. Tabitha wasn’t really sure why. Given how reluctant she’d been with interacting with him, she was pretty sure that Selina was more likely to get a cuddle from him than Tabitha. So, considering that, why was he wanting to sit on her lap and snuggle into her?

She couldn’t move without disturbing him and she had pretty quickly discovered over the last couple of weeks that four year olds were prone to crying and screaming when they didn’t like something and she really didn’t want to deal with that. At least he was currently quiet and calm.

It felt a little awkward, a child cuddling her and her not cuddling back. If he had been Mary, her arms would’ve wrapped around her wife instantly. That was probably because she loved Mary. She loved Mary with all her heart. She did not love this boy. She didn’t even really like him. Not at all. He was annoying and distracting and when he cried, the sound pierced her eardrums and made her wince. However, by the same token, she didn’t hate him. Not really. Despite all of the annoyances and irritations and the problems he caused, she couldn’t hate him. She couldn’t bring herself to hate the boy for the situation they were all in because as much as it wasn’t her and Mary’s fault, it also wasn’t his.

It was these thoughts that pushed her and allowed her to bring up her arms and slowly wrap them around him, copying the motion that Mary had mimed earlier. She frowned a little, smelling something and, unable to ignore her curiosity, pressed her nose into his soft blonde curls and inhaled the smell of sweet citrus and just caught a very faint smell of jasmine that could’ve only come from Mary. She wondered, vaguely, if he could hear the thumping of her heart inside her chest. It felt like it was hammering so hard, sped up by her own nerves.

It was quite... nice. He was soft and squishy and it helped that he smelled nice and wasn’t currently sticky. She also couldn’t help but feel almost protective of him. He was so small, it felt like her arms were shielding him from the outside world. She supposed that she and Mary were now the only people who were responsible for protecting him now. Tabitha liked to think that she was good at protecting people. She was the Defence teacher for a reason. She had the skills and the reflexes and the years of practice. She could protect him. And now, according to a piece of paper and a law, it was her responsibility to protect him. She could do that. She would do that.

“I’m sorry...” she began, her voice barely louder than a whisper. She didn’t know if he was listening or if he was, if he’d understand what she was saying but she was still going to speak to him. “I’m sorry that you were put in this situation like we were. I forget that you didn’t exactly have much of a choice, either. If you did, you might not have chosen us... Well, you probably would’ve picked Mary because she’s wonderful and nice and lovely. You just... might not have picked me.”

Tabitha took another deep breath, inhaling the smell of citrus again. It was oddly comforting, like the smell of Mary was comforting. That was something she hadn’t expected. Slowly, she lifted a hand and gently started to play with one of his curls, wrapping it around her finger. His hair was so soft, almost reminding her of Ailuros’ fur. That was nice too. Slowly, hesitantly, she pressed a gentle kiss to the top of his head.

“I’m sorry...” she paused, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. She felt exhausted. It was tiring, resenting a small four year old child. This whole messed up situation was so exhausting and while Tabitha may not love him or even really like him, she was too tired to carry on being resentful of a child who was also in this horrible mess. “I’m sorry, Zeus.”

20 Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne That might be but this situation isn’t. 1417 0 5

Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

May 22, 2020 1:53 PM

No, it isn't. by Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith

Zeus had been right. He was usually right, but it was nice to know for sure that he was right: Tabby was soft and warm. She was also a bit stiff, but she got less stiff when Mary went away and Zeus could have very happily fallen asleep right there. It was nice to be held onto and safe. His mom and dad used to hold on to him and he hadn't seen them for a long time now. But Tabby was nice. She smelled like pretty flowers and she smelled a little bit like home. Zeus couldn't quite remember the way home used to smell, but it smelled a bit like Mary and Tabby these days.

He was surprised when Tabby started talking to him, but it was good because she should talk to him because he was a top notch conversationalist. Why else would Mr. Dragonbottom and Ms. Quaffle want to have tea with him? Obviously he was great at talking about whatever stuff adults talked about when they drank tea.

He wasn't really sure what she was apologising for but it felt nice when she kissed his head, and he felt really safe. That was a nice feeling. Maybe she needed to feel safe, too? That must be it. But he couldn't reach the top of her head, of course.

"Is okay, Tabby," he told her, trying to talk quiet too, although whispering was really hard. He turned his head and nudged his way up a little higher, putting one tiny hand on each of her shoulders so he could lean forward and kiss her cheek. "Don't be sad."

Then he yawned, and went back to where he'd been laying before, curled up against Tabby's chest, safe and warm, and fell asleep listening to a heartbeat that he thought was probably a bit like what home sounded like.

22 Zeus Brooding-Hawthorne-Smith No, it isn't. 1576 0 5

Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

May 22, 2020 3:36 PM

I might not be 'Mom' but maybe, one day in the far, far future, I could be 'Mum'. by Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne

Tabitha didn't really know what to say in reply to the child on her lap. She wished that it was as easy as just deciding not to be sad anymore but, unfortunately, there was a lot to be sad about. Even this moment was tinged with negativity. The only reason the boy was on her lap in her company at all was because his parents had been stolen away in an accident. She'd have probably never met him if that hadn't happened. In this moment, Tabitha felt that the world had a terribly cruel nature and the only way that she could comfort herself was with the thought that at least he had ended up in her and Mary's care.

She knew that she wasn't naturally maternal, that looking after wild creatures came easier to her than looking after a small human being (or in his case, half-veela, half-human being). She didn't really know what to do with him, how to talk to him, how to play with him. She knew that she probably wouldn't be anybody's first pick when it came to choosing a mother. She did, however, understand the dangers in the world, the nastiness that lurked in its dark corners and she knew how to defend against it. The thought of the small child now sleeping in her arms being placed in the care of somebody who didn't understand those things made her feel a little bit sick. She didn't like him but he needed protecting and she would do her absolute best to do so.

She felt horribly guilty for feeling so negatively towards him and she inhaled slowly, feeling tears starting to sting her eyes. How could one child cause so much emotional confusion? This wasn't a comfortable feeling. Tabitha wasn't very good at handling her own emotions and this boy had done nothing to help her with those. Everything was complicated and difficult and she hated it. She was resentful of him but didn't wish him harm. At times, she wanted him to go away but then wanted to protect him. His screams and cries were awful and noisy but when he was asleep, he was okay. How could one child make her feel so many things?

"I really don't like you for making me feel these things," she murmured, listening to his slow and quiet breaths as he slept. "But it seems like I'm stuck with you."

Gently, she brushed a curl away from his face. "One day, I might be okay with that."

20 Tabitha Brooding-Hawthorne I might not be 'Mom' but maybe, one day in the far, far future, I could be 'Mum'. 1417 0 5

Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

May 22, 2020 4:22 PM

I'll be mom, if he'll have me. by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne

Making tea did not take very long, particularly since she wasn't worried about doing a good job. She had long since learned that Tabitha was probably best left to make her own tea and that the best Mary could do was get the hot water and dry tea for her, but this was for a child. Zeus didn't need a perfect cup of some fancy blend in the right temperature water (who paid that much attention to the temperature of water??) and so she didn't try to make it that carefully. Also, it was nearly bed time, so she mostly just got him a cup of water with a little bit of tea flavor in it.

Ready to return to the living room, Mary paused in the doorway when she heard Tabitha's voice. Straining to listen, she leaned forward some, in time to see Tabitha press a soft kiss to the little boy's head. Their little boy's head. Zeus drew a smirk fro Mary when he reached up to kiss Tabitha's cheek and then promptly went to sleep on her. She couldn't hear the small conversation they were having, but she didn't need to. From here, she could feel it.

She made her way to the couch next to Tabitha, setting the "tea" on the coffee table (did British people have a different word for those tables? She'd never asked Tabitha before) and quietly wrapped her arms around her wife, tugging her over so they could lay together, with Zeus curled up happily on top of them both. Tabitha required a bit of convincing but the promise of Mary's closeness seemed to do it and they were soon laying together parallel on the couch, Zeus curled up with his back to Mary and most of his weight still on Tabitha, his arms sprawled out across her.
He adjusted some as they did and Mary brushed the backs of her fingers against his cheek before looking at Tabitha with misty eyes.

"I love you," she mouthed before pressing her forehead against Tabitha's as best she could and closing her own eyes, content to lay like this with her small family for as long as she could.

OOC - Tabitha's actions approved by her author.

22 Mary Brooding-Hawthorne I'll be mom, if he'll have me. 1424 0 5