It's About Flipping Time!

The pain was coming faster and faster, her hands/paws were in a near constant state of shift and she knew for sure there was no time to get the hell out of the Guts and Butts Gazette before her baby was howling its way into this world.  It was the last part that pissed her off the most.

It was one thing to work here, play here, and scare the interns here…, but it was something else entirely to have her sweet baby here.  Gah, what a stigma to wear.  Sorry sweetheart…

“Fracking Lupa…cof,cof,” Ziva hollered, even as her vocal cords now joined her hand/paws in the attempted shift.  She was howling, literally howling, and Nick was getting panicky.

“Try to relax Ziva, hold back the shift just a little longer.”  His hands pushed harder on her lower back and the semi-shifted cords came back to their human form.  “Come on, people, I want suggestions on what to do without Doc Leo.”

Ziva relished his snarl.  When her mate got this tone in his voice, he meant business.  His alpha was taking charge and things would get done.

“Okay, bossman,” Penny chimed in first. “There’s always the human doctor a couple of streets over.  If we could hide the shifting parts perhaps he would continue to be oblivious to the state of shifterness in town.  Um, how sure are we this little one will be coming into the world in its human form?  ‘Cause that might be a deal breaker.”

“Oh Lupa…,” Ziva moaned, now additionally worried that she was going to be pushing out a pup with sharp little claws.

“That only happens if the baby is alpha.  Though come to think of it, you, Ziva, and Nickolas there are both fairly alpha in your own rights, so anything is possible.”  Her mother’s wave came on the cusp of some very good advice, but right before she lowered the typical bad parent hammer.  “That is, of course, if she was really pregnant. Release your wind, daughter, you’ll feel ever so much better.”

“OKSANA!”  Three voices spoke her mother’s name at once while Ziva tried to make sense of what had just happened.

“Did she just tell me to fart, that I would feel better if I FARTED?”  She’d had enough.  The pain and the weird partial shifts were bad enough, but add to that a crazy mother who still denied your pregnancy because she didn’t want to be old, well it was just enough.  “That’s it!  No baby…I’m done.  You,” she pointed with her madly changing hand/paw at her mother, “…leave, now. And don’t come back!  Everyone else, out of my office, I have woooooooork…”

“Z!” Nick caught her before her face was planted into the floor and lowered her to the couch.  Nothing mattered except the soul deep pain of a massive contraction that had her eyes crossing and her feet shifting into rear paws.

“Ziva, dear,” her auntie Liliya said in her sweet, quiet voice.  “Let’s meditate and do some deep breathing.  We could even try some of those eee, eee, ooo, whooshes the humans do.”

“Elly!  Get me Elly, Nick.  Get me Elly right now!”

“I’m right here, sweet Zee, no more worries.”

“Thank Lupa,” Elly had been a lifesaver to her over the course of this pregnancy and she trusted her
“hopefully” mother-in-law completely. Though she had gotten here rather quickly…   “How did you know I needed you, Elly?”

“Well, it’s all over town, sweetheart.  Everyone is waiting to see if Nick and Ziva’s baby is a girl or a boy.”

“Everyone?”  She howled with not only the next contraction, but also the knowledge that everyone knew she was bringing her child into the world in the Guts and Butts. ~Sheesh~

“Yep, everyone is so excited.  And the odds makers are overwhelmed.  Who knew so many here in town liked to place bets?” Elly’s smile put Ziva at ease, even when she adjusted her legs to take a peek at what was going on.  “Looks very good sweetheart, I can see the top of a head.  What do you say with the next contraction we get this baby on out here?”

“Yes…” When the contraction hit, she was past caring who knew what and what the odds were on the street.  She was ready to meet her little girl.

“Let’s push, Ziva.”  Elly announced.

“Nick!” Panicked, yet needing to push, Ziva reached out and grabbed at Nick’s hand.

“I’m here, love.  I’m here.  Push for me…”

Ziva bore down, surprised by the ease of things until it wasn’t easy anymore.  Nick cajoled her into pushing with each contraction, Elly encouraged, Liliya comforted and Vernon gave her mother a firm dressing down.  She loved the hell out of that old wolf.  The more she pushed the closer they got to success.  With a few more pushes everyone was encouraging and the sweetest relief was found.

“That’s it, Ziva, stop pushing, hon, your son is here.”  Elly gave her a huge smile as she raised the beautiful baby boy and placed him on her stomach.  He nuzzled in close and sensing food nearby, latched on without fuss to the closest breast.

Ziva laughed and look up at a stunned, but grinning, Nick, “This is definitely your son.”

Nick laughed, loudly and touched the baby’s head.  “Most definitely.”

###

Five to Ten Minutes later…

“Elly, how come you look so worried?”  Ziva eyed the woman still sitting by her spread legs.

“Just waiting, dear.”

“Waiting for whaaaaa,” Ziva moaned as the intense contraction spasmed out of control around her waist and back.  “Is the placenta supposed to hur…holy lunging lupa’s!  I need to push.”

“Liliya, take this sweet boy, now.  And Nick, grab her hand and get ready,” Elly instructed.  “We have another one coming, people.”

“WHAT?!” At least three of the rooms occupants hollered at the same time, but Ziva wasn’t one of them.  The pain this time was unbelievable.  It was like a fire in her loins and the shifting of body parts was uncontrollable.  This time, her tail even erupted.  She be embarrassed, but there was just too much pain for that.

“Push, hon, push”

She did, she pushed over and over until finally it was over.  She was exhausted, but the pain was gone and replacing it was the orneriest little growl she’d heard in some time.  It was loud, but young and by the looks around the room, she knew what she was about to see.  Elly lifted the most beautiful wolf pup she’d ever seen and laid it on her tummy.  With every growly-whine from the pup, her baby let out a wail. 

Twins.

“Well, I’d say there’s your Alpha baby.”  Liliya smiled down at the boy in her arms. “And this little one must be the beta.”

Ziva laughed uncontrollably and then looked up at Nick.  He was pale, but grinning.  There was such love in his eyes for her and their crew and at that exact moment alpha baby decided to shift back into the prettiest little girl.  The McMahon pack had a new up and coming alpha, the first female in a very long time.
~~~

Wow, sorry this post took so long, but life-us inturruptus, you know what I mean.  :)  So Nick and Ziva are parents...holy cow!  I wonder what kind of odds the town had on the birth and who might have won?  Next up...I need some names.  Suggestions?

Have a great weekend!
Serena