Summary: The title is pretty self-explanatory. Plus baby Anna is a little thunderstorm and her family loves her a lot.
Length: +2k
CW: none
It's a fic for my dearest friend and one of the coolest people I know. happy late birthday!! <3
The lightwood Townhouse, London 1886
Two-year-old Anna Lightwood marches from the nursery, eyes twinkling. She walks across the lounge as her father follows her, trying half-heartedly to retrieve his stolen hat. "Mam!"
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Gabriel puts no real effort into it, more concerned Anna doesn't crush into a wall. He seems amused if anything, and by the mischievous smile plastered to Cecily's little girl's face, it's clear she's quite enjoying herself too.
She only stops pacing around the room when she's in front of her, Gabriel on her heels. Bright, eager blue eyes look at her, a replica of her own.
"Ma," Anna says, in that childish, high-pitched voice of hers. Cecily smiles and crouches down so Anna doesn't have to tilt her head so high. Cecily wouldn't be able to do it soon.
The hat was far too wide on her small head, falling forward and covering her eyes. The dark-haired woman fixed it for her daughter. "What a lovely hat you have there, cariad bach."
Anna touches it, pleased with the compliment, and giggles. Her chubby hands grasp the brims of Gabriel's hat – with effort, as it was huge on her – and tilting it as if she's in a show, bowing to her crowd. It only results in the hat falling on her face again. Cecily's heart fills with warmth as she laughs. So confident her daughter is, making mischief and standing for what she wants. Even if it was her husband's hat.
Cecily finds it hard to believe one can possibly love so hard. But she looks at her husband, his green eyes meeting hers. There's this undeniable emotion in his eyes as he looks at her and their daughter, pride and adoration and happiness she feels just as much.
While she gets back on her feet, Gabriel swoops Anna into his arms. The toddler squeals and squirms, her dark hair is revealed when he lifts the hat from her face and puts it neatly on his head. Anna, in an instant, retreats to kicking her arms and legs in protest. The maid enters the lounge just a moment after, quick to bring Anna a hat fitting her size. It matches her dress, a blue shade or two lighter than Cecily's own outing dress.
Gabriel thanks the maid while Anna, still not satisfied, attempts to steal his hat once again. The pout on her face makes it hard to do anything but laugh. "You're a little troublemaker, aren't you?" He says, arching an amused eyebrow at his oldest daughter. Anna, ever unapologetic and confident, puts her hands on her waist and makes a sound of pure dissatisfaction.
"You two, stop it," Cecily sighs. Inside, however, she finds it very entertaining. Being done herself, she takes Anna from Gabriel so he can finish the last touches on his appearance.
"Well," he says with a broad grin, finished fastening his cuffs. He gestures broadly to the door as he links his and his wife's arms together. The graze is gentle and warm. "Off to Wales, we go."
*
"I can't believe it," Gabriel grumbles. It's the fifth time he says this sentence accompanied by a grumpy face he wears ever since they entered the carriage.
"Oh, hush," Cecily says. "There are worse things than that."
"It’s the third time this week!" Gabriel proclaims, visibly annoyed. "And it is only Wednesday." The blue-eyed woman presses her lips at his words, adjusting the toddler on her lap as he continues. "I have never," Gabriel huffed, "ever imagined I'd be subscribed to the `steal-your-in-law's carriage` membership."
Much to their surprise, when they left their townhouse earlier they found the carriage raider – without the carriage and with a note. Soon Gabriel came to the realization his dear in-law, Will, had 'borrowed' his carriage to a visitor of the Institute that wished to go to town but had no carriage available. Had Gabriel's brother lived far from them, they would have gotten stuck.
"I don't believe you had much of an option," Cecily responds, biting down a snort. She seems hardly as irked by her brother's antics. It only agitates him more. "Not that you were asked, for the matter."
The carriage comes to a halt in front of the London Institute. After climbing the stone stairs leading to the door, the three Lightwoods are ushered inside by a maid. She offers to take Gabriel's hat. He refuses, instead letting Ana toy with it like she so loves to do.
The maid bows and quietly rushes to call her masters. No longer than a few minutes later, Tessa Herondale steps into the room.
"Cecily, Gabriel," she welcomes them warmly with open arms, a smile tugged on her lips. They rise from their seats to embrace her. Cecily presses a kiss to her cheek as well, and Tessa kisses Anna's forehead. "It's been some time, hasn't it?"
"Indeed," Cecily agrees, putting her hand on her sister-in-law's forearm. They met in enclave meetings and when they had to visit the institute from time to time, of course, but nothing other than work for the past month. "We've been so caught up with tending to Anna, we barely had time for anything else."
Tessa smiles kindly at them. "The joys of parenthood, I suppose."
Gabriel glances at Tessa's hand, resting on her swollen belly, pregnant with her and Will's first child. "Is it truly safe for you to travel through portals?" he asks. "Do pregnant women suffer any kind of side effects from it?"
Tessa waves her hand dismissively, clearly unbothered by his concern. "Frequent travels through portals are not recommended, but there's no real harm. Besides," she adds as if in an afterthought, "Charlotte is the consul and she visits Idris and London regularly. I doubt she – or Henry, frankly – would have put the fetus in danger if that was the case."
"Oh," Gabriel seems and sounds relieved. The tension set in his shoulders loosens by a fraction. "Right, of course."
Tessa eyes him suspiciously. Before she can query him about that, he changes the subject. "If we're yet at the topic of children," Gabriel grimaces. "You should know that dear husband of yours is one, too. And a thief."
Tessa raises her eyebrows in question, so the green-eyed man elaborates. "He stole our carriage."
"Again?"
"Exactly what I was saying," Gabriel nods. He looks at Cecily who just rolls her eyes. He sighs, and Tessa sighs, and if Church – who is asleep on the lounge's window - could sigh, he would have done that too.
Tessa shakes her head, but shrugs. "William," she says if it solves all Gabriel's problems. "I'll have a word with him."
"I hope your baby won't grow up to be a thief like their father," Gabriel murmurs. "I hold high hopes for it, considering it shares at least half your genes." He'll love the child nonetheless even if they would be an immaculate copy of Will, and all three of them know that. Still, he wishes his nephew would be a bit less impish. Wistful thinking, he knows.
Tessa pushes back brown curls behind her ear. "No matter, now. Shall we go to the portal?"
They agree, so Gabriel picks up little Anna, still fiddling with his hat, and together they go towards the portal of the London institute.
*
Heronadle estate, North Wales
"Oh my," Linette Herondale says when they appeared on her estate's doorstep. "My beautiful granddaughter, how much you've grown!"
"Hello to you too, Mother," Will jokes, then lets himself be swept into a tight hug. "We’ve come for the food."
"I'm sure you did, cariad, " Will and Cecily's mother says in a lighthearted tone as Edmund opens his arms to welcome his family as well.
Cecily hugs them and watches as her parents hug her husband and daughter just as firmly. After they all get inside, they sit around the broad dinner table. Scents of Cecily's childhood food flare her nostrils. It's been too long since she had a meal of her homeland - the maids serve them cawl, and bara brith, and she feels so nostalgic she almost burst into tears. She concentrates on eating, meanwhile keeping a watch Anna doesn't devour anything she shouldn't. Gabriel, on his part, concentrates on bantering with Will and discussing the latest events of the London Enclave. He asks for a napkin and Will throws it at him.
"Anna, aren’t your father and uncle ridiculous?" Cecily smiles softly at her daughter. She points her finger up, then continues, "Please, never learn from them."
Anna burst out laughing. Gabriel shakes his head at the accusation. It's hardly his fault he has Will as his brother-in-law.
"Why are you so cruel, younger sister, despite we share the same blood?" Will chuckles, just as Gabriel says, "Well, you still married me."
"Not much I can do about the first thing, " Cecily drawls. The people around the table laugh, while Gabriel seems pleased with himself and Anna babbles happily for no reason.
At one point, once they finish dinner and drank some wine - except for Tessa, who's pregnant, and Cecily who said she doesn't feel like it - they settle in front of the fireplace. Cecily and Gabriel sit on the loveseat in front of Cecily's parents, Tessa in the armchair while her husband plays with Anna on the rug.
They brought various toys Anna enjoys with them to dinner, but she is entirely fascinated by a new game her grandparents brought her. It was a colored wooden train carriage, big enough to not be a hazard to Anna's safety.
"Ai'n," she says to Will, pointing at the train. He grins, nodding. The toddler then yawns, so Gabriel gets up to pull her into his arms. It was soon her bedtime, and his parents-in-law made sure to have a bassinet in cases like this. Before he turns to go, Anna protests. Pushing her palms on his chest to get his attention, she looks her father in the eye. "Ta'ain," she demands.
"The young lady got some attitude," Edmund points out, amused.
"Like mother, like daughter," Will muses as Anna says gibberish to Gabriel, to which he nods. She looks very grave and demanding, probably in an attempt to tell him what she wants.
Cecily's about to remark back to her older brother when Gabriel lands his eyes on Cecily, and there's only admiration in them. "I agree. And aren't they perfect?"
He flushes at the realization of his saying, catching the train toy before quickly disappearing out of the room. When he finally returns, Anna is not with him and his cheeks are just slightly less red.
"Rydw i'n dy garu di," Cecily whispers to him when he takes his seat next to her. Gabriel turns away, mostly so they wouldn't see how he fails to repress a wide grin.
"So, Tessa, how much longer it is until you're due?" Linette asks, sipping from her tea. Her legs are crossed and her other hand rests on Edmund's.
They were always affectionate like that, and Cecily has always viewed them as the perfect couple. She grew out of this, learning no marriage is perfect, but she still sees the way they look at each other with love, even after all those years.
"A few weeks," Tessa replies, leaning back against the armchair. Her voice softens, and Gabriel can't describe the emotion written on her face. "I cannot wrap it around my mind. It's something I feel I still ought to get used to."
"We weren't sure we could ever have this," Will comments. He reaches to caress the back of his fingers against Tessa's belly, no longer a bump like it was a few months ago. "It's still difficult to comprehend, you know? That we're creating life."
Cecily and Gabriel look at each other and smile quietly. They watch the other couple have this moment together. They discussed their lives and their loved ones before Linette lifts herself up from the coach.
"Cecily, annwyl," she says, "can you help me with something in the kitchen?"
Cecily obliges and follows her mother until they reach the small space of the kitchen. When they're inside and there's no one to hear, the older woman starts, 'Is there anything going on?"
Cecily frowns. "What do you mean?"
"You might be a grown woman now, and a mother," Linette crosses her arms, "but you're my daughter, and the fact remains intact. There's something you want to tell us, I've noticed it all evening. What is it?"
Cecily levels her eyes with her mother, the same dark blue both her and her brother share. "Nothing bad, I promise," she brushes dust off her blue skirt and straightens up. "Just wait."
She walks back to the parlor, her mother next to her. Gabriel gazes at her as she sits down next to him with a quizzical look. "I think it's time," she concedes, taking Gabriel's hand in hers.
"Time for what?" Tessa quirks an eyebrow at her, and Cecily takes a breath before nodding toward Gabriel.
"We didn't come just the three of us. Cecily, myself, and Anna, that is."
"Oh?" Edmund looks puzzled. "Who else? I've seen no other come through the portal?"
"Well…" Gabriel and Cecily both turn their gaze down.
To Cecily's flat stomach.
"Don't tell me…" Tessa's voice trails off. Cecily's gleaming eyes are her answer.
"Heavens!" Linette puts her hands over her mouth. "Are you pregnant?"
Cecily nods, letting Gabriel rest a protective hand on her stomach. She doesn't need it, and he knows she can handle it on her own just fine, but he also wants to be close to the baby, to her.
It follows a few reactions from all four of the other people in the toom:
"Pregnant!"
"How long have you known?"
"Oh, angels, another Herondale."
"I'm going to have another grandchild?"
They let themselves be surrounded by the love and questions of their family, smiling the whole time.
*
When they returned home with sleeping Anna, Cecily throws her hands around Gabriel. He wraps his hands around her immediately, holding her close. She says the same thing she has said earlier, and on their wedding night, and when he's done something stupid, and when their Anna was born. "Rydw i'n dy garu di."
*
Taglist (I know it's not tlh sorry if you didn't want to be tagged): @ary-es @all-for-the-fanfiction @justanormaldemon @life-through-the-eyes-of @rainingpouringetc @tessherongraystairs @cordelia-in-the-right-skin-tone @takethetrain
