Winterfest
Still reeling with the discovery of her pregnancy, Leia now has to turn around and host Winterfest for her family as planned, or risk revealing that something's going on. Though she was excited about it before, the family gathering now begs the question: will anyone catch on to how large her scandal has grown?
On Tuesday morning, Leia booked an appointment at the Willow Creek Hospital. Ravenwood's was closer, probably, but she didn't want to risk things getting back to her parents yet and a lot of the staff worked fairly closely with Vanessa, as the head Mortician.
Though, she had mentioned retiring soon... maybe future appointments wouldn't need to be so far out.
Leia had also recently gotten a trio of chickens. She'd missed having animals around, and though she would've loved to have a cow or llama again, there sadly wasn't space on her little plot in Crow's Crossing.
She had named them Lady Cluck, Ginger, and Chickaletta.
It was snowing heavily when Leia arrived in Willow Creek for her appointment, and she couldn't help but worry a little about getting home afterwards. It never snowed like this in Ravenwood, she could only imagine how it would shut things down! None of the staff seemed concerned when Leia went to check in, though, and she was directed to their seating area to wait for the doctor.
Leia wished that Hades could be here with her for this, but she wouldn't see him again until Thursday. The Grim Reaper couldn't exactly waltz into a hospital without causing significant panic, after all.
She was still thinking about what their future was going to look like. How was she going to tell her parents? ...Was she going to tell her parents? She really didn't know at this point.
"Leia Constantin?" A doctor called her. "We'll take you upstairs now."
"You're about four weeks along, Miss Constantin." The doctor told Leia. "Baby looks good and healthy, but it's too early to tell the gender yet."
"I wanted that to be a surprise anyway." Leia answered.
"We'll note that in your chart, then. Everything's looking good, so we'll go downstairs for some blood tests and then you'll be good to go. It's early still, so you have time, but have you thought about a birth plan?"
"Not yet." Leia shook her head. "I have to look at my options."
"We have plenty of resources for that information here, should you need them."
The doctor took Leia downstairs, where she drew blood for tests. "This will help us make sure that your body is handling the pregnancy well, and predict and prevent any complications that may arise. We'll call you if there's anything you should know about, but no news is good news normally."
"Sounds good." Leia agreed. "Thank you."
"I did see on your chart that you are from out of town. Will you be continuing care with us going forward?"
"I don't know yet, but I will let you know."
"Very well. Have a good day, Miss Constantin, you're free to go. Don't forget to pick up your copy of the ultrasound on the way out."
It was still snowing heavily outside, but the receptionist assured Leia that the Willow Creek trains were equipped to handle it. She received a printed copy of the ultrasound, and wishes for a safe travel.
If she did decide to do a hospital birth, it would be here. The staff were all just lovely.
Thankfully, the train ride back to Ravenwood was as smooth as predicted, and Leia arrived home in the evening. She was worn out, but threw herself into cooking for the next day. She still had to make desserts, though thankfully she had already finished the prep for the main courses.
Leia decided on a simple Winterfest pudding for her first dessert, then a gingerbread house- which she spent entirely too long on, but look how beautiful it came out! It was worth every second of extra time.
When it was done, though, she was exhausted. It was time to go to bed!
Early Wednesday morning she was up again and getting ready to leave. She picked her outfit carefully to try and conceal her baby bump as best she could for now- she did not want today to be where this news came out, in the middle of the family reunion.
She had reached out to her Aunt Arabella and Uncle Peter to invite them and Lis, but Arabella had declined. Until Peter was fully accepted, she said, they would celebrate on their own. But she appreciated the invitation, regardless.
True to her word, Ava had already gone all out on the decorations by the time Leia arrived in Newcrest. A thick layer of snow covered the ground here too, but there didn't seem to be more falling for the moment.
Leia arrived with many presents in tow, at least one for every member of the family. It made for quite the hefty suitcase!
To Leia's delight, Liliana and Aukai were the first ones to arrive. "I feel like I haven't properly seen you since the wedding, you've been so busy!" Leia laughed.
"I know, I've really neglected my visits home." Liliana agreed ruefully.
"Oh, not to worry. How is college?" "Just as fun as always!" Liliana grinned. "Making good progress. Aukai's picked up a job again as a lifeguard at the Foxbury Pool, I might find a job too in the spring."
"You're not running short on simoleons, are you?" Leia asked.
"Oh, no, not at all. But me and Aukai want to move to Sulani after we finish school." Liliana explained. "So we've gotta start saving some more."
"Sulani! You're moving even further away!" Leia lamented.
"It's the best place for marine biology." Liliana answered apologetically. "Plus, it's Aukai's home turf. Don't worry, I promise we'll visit way more once school is done!"
Vanessa and Teodor arrived next, and were equally happy to see Leia. "You look lovely and healthy, Leia, I'm very glad to see it." Vanessa told her warmly.
"Thank you, Mom. How is retirement treating you?"
"Much more time for painting, now. Though I do sometimes miss being busy all the time."
"I understand. I have a hard time imagining giving up my job eventually."
Before long, everyone else had made it safely there. Once everyone had had a few minutes to settle in and catch up, Leia called them all over to the piles of gifts. "There's something here for everyone, so please don't be shy!"
Leia had made personalized cross-stitches for most of her family members, but some of them got things like crystals or little knick knacks she knew they'd been searching for. Everyone seemed happy with what they got!
After presents were opened, everyone gathered around the tree to sing Winterfest carols. This was one of Leia and Liliana's favorite traditions, and it always felt so nice to do it with the rest of their cousins too.
Nobody had noticed Leia's bump yet- or at least, no one had commented on it. She hoped it would stay that way for tonight.
Presents, carols, and general chit-chat took up most of the evening, and before anyone knew it, Leia was ringing the bell for the grand meal. Her spread consisted of a large tofu-turkey, roasted chestnuts, and cornbread and greens, along with the Winterfest pudding and gingerbread house for desserts. Of course, she also put out a hot chocolate tray!
For being the only one cooking this time, she was pretty pleased with the number of dishes.
"How is your shop doing, Eirwen? Are you open for business yet?" Leia asked her cousin as they sat down to eat.
"Not yet. I'm still filling stock." Eirwen answered. "It's a lot to do, only one person."
"Of course. Are you working a day job in the meantime?"
"Night shifts, but yes." Eirwen answered. "Security. Pretty good pay rate, surprisingly."
"That's good. I hope you're sleeping, though!"
"Oh, you don't need to mother hen over me, Leia." Eirwen chuckled. "I'll look after myself."
As people started to serve themselves dessert, Leia took a moment of reprieve in the bathroom. She normally wasn't bothered by large groups of people, but she was feeling oddly overstimulated tonight. It was a relief to get a moment of quiet to herself, even if it wouldn't last long.
She really wished that her Aunt Arabella and her family were there. Why did Mom have to be so stubborn?
If she'd reacted so badly to finding out her brother-in-law was from a rival Dynasty, what would she think of her own daughter dating the Grim Reaper? Having his baby? Reflecting on that, Leia came to a realization: her mother could never know the real identity of her baby's father.
When Leia emerged from the bathroom, the clock had struck 8 PM and Father Winter had appeared in the midst of the gathering, replacing the piles of discarded wrapping paper with even more presents!
Father Winter pulled Leia aside to give her a gift while the others were celebrating over theirs. "I hear you and a certain someone are expecting. Congratulations from the Otherworld."
After he had handed over the gift, he left to attend to the rest of the family. Leia peeked inside the gift, and there was a knitted baby onesie, just like the ones her Aunt Alyssa had made when all of them were little. She smiled to herself and closed the gift, tucking it away for later.
As the night wound down, Leia began to clean up the dishes, which surprisingly there weren't that many of. Ava had been helping clean up already, it seemed, and Leia thanked her gratefully for her help.
Most of those who had a long way to travel were staying at the rental for the night, and thankfully there were just enough beds. Leia was certainly looking forward to climbing into hers!
Climbing into bed after the cleanup was done, Leia reflected on the day. Things had gone smoothly, thank goodness, and not like their disastrous Harvestfest. She would see Hades at work tomorrow, and they would talk about what to do next.
As much as she loved him, she could not marry him- not in this life, anyway. She could not lose the ties to her family, and he could not lose his position, which he would if he married a mortal. She would not be able to hide her pregnancy forever...
A cover-up was needed, and quickly. But what... would have to be discussed tomorrow.
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