Mrs. Brandon: The Story of Christopher and Marianne

Chapter 10 -Mrs. Brandon's Joy

Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Sense and Sensibility! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates on the second and fourth Saturday of each month!
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Marianne panted for breath in the moments after their baby's arrival as her body worked to stabilize itself while her bleeding ominously continued.

Christopher found himself walking a tightrope between devastating despair and incomprehensible joy as he cradled his ailing wife against him while they both stared down at their new baby.

He watched the midwife huff under her breath and scowl as she worked frantically to stop the flow of blood from Marianne's abused womb.

".......Christopher?" Marianne asked in a dreamy voice as her eyes threatened to close.

Their baby blinked up at them as Christopher quickly replied, "Yes, my darling?"

".........I'm cold." Marianne whispered.

He felt her shiver violently against him as the midwife continued her valiant quest to save her patient.

The baby whined at the unwelcome jolt she received from her mother's sudden motion as Christopher thoughtfully piled the dampened blankets on the bed around Marianne in a desperate attempt to ward off the assaulting chill.

"Thank you......." Marianne breathed gratefully as she closed her eyes.

Between the look on the midwife's face and his darling's clear temptation to enter what he feared would be an eternal sleep, Christopher urged his beloved to remain earthside and speak, "Marianne, my darling........She is truly flawless....What shall we name her?"

"My cousin was called Emma......on my father's side." Marianne whispered slowly, "My mother's name is Delilah."

"Emma Delilah is a beautiful name." Christopher nodded.

He reached around his wife to clutch their baby as he noticed that her arms relinquished their hold as exhaustion overcame her.

Worry and stress creased his face as he asked quickly, "Marianne?..........Marianne? Stay with me, my love......." His eyes softened with the pleading of a desperate man as he begged, "Please don't-"

"-You can let her sleep, Colonel, she'll be alright." The midwife announced as she sat back from her messy task and sighed.

He looked over to see her wipe her forehead with the back of a scarlet hand.

"You were able to stop the bleeding?" He questioned with his brow furrowed.

"I've saved her life, Colonel." The midwife grouched, "Let her rest and when she wakes, we'll see that she has proper food and water. I don't place much importance on doctors' recommendations that new mothers limit their diets....between her ordeal, her loss of blood, and feeding her babe, if she so chooses.....Regardless, she'll need her nutrients. Gruel doesn't replenish a body very well, I can tell you that."

Christopher closed his eyes and sighed in grateful relief as he gently pressed Marianne and their little girl to his chest.

While the midwife cleaned her patients and the bed, he moved his darlings only when absolutely necessary.

As his wife and child slept, Christopher stared down at his loves in absolute enrapturement.

Marianne slumbered peacefully as Christopher bent down and placed a loving kiss of devoted appreciation on her forehead.

Their baby cooed as he pulled away.

The soft smile of fatherly love that manifested on his face in response was touching to see.