*author's note* caution; this chapter contains graphic depiction of childbirth and major character death. also for conveniences sake y'all are gonna have to pretend that myrtle didn't get burned at the stake and then later resurrected mmkay.
*Before the apocalypse...*
Primrose Goode was sat on both knees in the flowerbed, dirt lightly gracing the skin of her shins as she tended to her fledgling rose bushes. She could easily use her magic to conjure up all sorts of plants (she had always been extremely adept at the magical art of horticultural witchcraft), but given that the garden was one of the very few places Cordelia allowed her to relax and play in unattended, she preferred to take the slow path, and let her flora and vegetation grow naturally.
"Oh, what darling rosebushes. Simply divine-looking, dear."
Momentarily tearing her eyes away from her work, Prim looked up and nodded a 'thank you' to the red-headed witch that was watching her amongst the flowers.
"By the way, your mother is asking that you come speak with her in her office. I believe the matter is of some importance."
"Okay, tell her I'll be right there, aunt Myrtle." Prim stood up and dusted the dry earth off of her limbs; these roses would have to wait. Her mother rarely spoke with her in the office as she didn't like to involve her in coven business. Cordelia was intensely protective of her only daughter, her 'miracle baby' she had called her. She knew that Primrose was much younger than she looked, and therefore didn't want to burden her with things she wasn't ready for. She also was insistent that her daughter should have the carefree, loving upbringing she never quite got from Fiona. More than anything else though, she worried incessantly for Prim's safety. Cordelia had spent so long praying for a child, she often thought that if she so much as took her eyes off Prim she might disappear.
Primrose popped her head around the door-frame of her mother's office; Cordelia was sat at her desk, her head propped up by both hands. She was looking off into the distance, her face somewhat contemplative, like she was considering something very seriously.
"You wanted to see me?" Primrose asked, stepping in front of the desk, her muddy hands clasped together around her back.
Cordelia's features softened as she took in her daughter's disheveled appearance. Cordelia liked her best like this, half-feral and hardy and free. It made her appear more like the child she was. Mothers always lament their children growing older, but for Cordelia to see her baby grow so rapidly, well, it had been disconcerting at best.
She knew from the beginning that her baby was not, for lack of a better word, normal. But Cordelia still loved her fiercely, and would die for her if she had to.
After all...
She had already done that once already.
-
"The roads are blocked, they said it's gonna take at least another hour to get here."
It was a late Thursday evening, and New Orleans was well into one of the worst storms it had seen in recent years. While the coven house was protected by magic, the rest of the city was facing almighty wind and rain, the weather was waging war on every street as people were being urged to evacuate.
Cordelia lurched forward from where she sat up against the headboard of the bed, panting wildly through the pain. "I can't wait that long, I need to push now!" She screamed, grasping the bedsheet tightly within her fists.
"It's true," Myrtle confirmed from in between her supreme's legs. "I can already see the head."
"Oh, this shouldn't even be happening! I'm only six months along!" Cordelia despaired.
Realizing that waiting for an ambulance was useless, Zoe hung up the phone and bit her lip in frustration. Come on! Think!
"The new girl! Cindy!" Zoe exclaimed. "She told me she was a midwife before she came here!"
"You must fetch her at once!" Myrtle cried, wiping the sweat from Cordelia's brow.
Zoe burst through the white doors of the master bedroom, pushing past the crowd of witches that had gathered outside in the hall upon hearing the screams. She returned moments later, a meek and nervous looking blonde girl in tow, who Cordelia presumed to be Cindy.
Cindy anxiously approached her bedside with a suede satchel in hand. She almost lost her grip on its handle as she flinched at the bloody scream Cordelia let out. Kneeling down at the foot of the bed, the young girl winced as she inspected the scene underneath the thin white sheet Myrtle had placed on Cordelia's lower half for modesty's sake. The amount of blood staining the bed was not encouraging; truthfully, she had never seen so much blood before.
Cindy let out a ragged breath as her shaking hands opened the contents of her bag.
"Please tell me you have drugs in there." Cordelia wept.
Cordelia's eyes widened as Cindy pulled out a large metal object from her bag. "I'm afraid it's something quite altogether different from that." She gulped.
"What on earth is that?" Myrtle exclaimed, rubbing Cordelia's shoulder in an effort to calm her down.
"Forceps." The girl explained. "To help guide the baby's head out of the birth canal."
"It looks absolutely barbaric!" The red-headed witch shrieked.
"But necessary, unfortunately. The labor hasn't progressed far enough for the baby to be pushed out unassisted, but the safety of both mother and baby relies upon immediate delivery."
Cordelia leaned her head on Myrtle's shoulder, weeping uncontrollably. The pain was unlike anything she had ever experienced before, and she had been violently blinded, twice.
"Come on, you can do this." Cindy nervously mumbled to herself as she fumbled with the metal tongs.
"I'm sorry, you said this woman was a midwife?" Myrtle scoffed.
"I-in training, actually. I've only done this before in theory." Cindy admitted.
Myrtle wanted to rage at her, to tell her to take her instruments of torture and get out, but looking down at the girl she thought of as a daughter writhing in pain, she knew that the inexperienced witch was their only hope. Any hesitation Myrtle had vanished when she felt the horrible cold feeling of Cordelia's lifeforce slowly slipping away from her.
"Do it." Myrtle ordered, gravely.
Cindy nodded and told Cordelia to brace herself. She placed two fingers inside her, beside the baby's head, and then as gently as possible she slid one portion of the forceps between her hand and the baby's head, followed by placement of the other portion of the forceps on the other side of the head. Cordelia winced at the intrusion as the forceps were then locked together to cradle the baby's cranium.
"During the next few contractions, you'll push and I will use the forceps to gently guide your baby through the birth canal." Cindy explained, trying her very best to steady her shaky voice. "Do you think you can do that for me, Cordelia?" Cindy looked up at her supreme and felt indescribable dread flood through her system as she realized the woman was not even strong enough to give a response.
Myrtle noticed this too and gave Cordelia's hand a firm squeeze. "Come on, Delia. You can do this, I know you can."
Nodding weakly, Cordelia began to push and Cindy guided the baby's head.
"Almost there, Cordelia. I just need one more great big push, okay?"
It was then that Cordelia realized she had limited energy left; she would have to spend it all on pushing her baby out, and there would not be enough left for her to survive. Knowing she was about to die, she focused all her concern on the welfare of her child.
With one final push, her baby fully exited the womb with a healthy wail. With the knowledge that her baby, whom she had waited a lifetime for just the honor of carrying, would be the last noise she ever heard, Cordelia peacefully slipped into the abyss that had been calling out to her.
Oblivious to Cordelia's departure, everyone in the room was enchanted by the beautiful baby that lay squirming in Cindy's arms. She dutifully clamped and cut the umbilical cord before proclaiming the baby's gender; it was a healthy baby girl. Cindy then wrapped the infant in a towel that Zoe had placed at the bedside, and went to place her in mother's arms before recoiling with horror at the sight of Cordelia's lifeless body.
"Oh, Delia! No!" Myrtle sobbed, shaking Cordelia's limp body viciously as though it might wake her up.
Cindy felt her heart drop into the pit of her stomach; this was her fault. Her brain ran through all the decisions she'd made, such as accepting the responsibilty of delivering a baby knowing full well she wasn't qualified, and her decision to use the forceps knowing it carried risks.
"You... you... you swine! You careless oaf! Your medieval methods have cost us our supreme!" Myrtle roared with grief at the young girl.
Cindy considered running away, hell she felt so guilty she couldn't help but momentarily consider suicide.
But no. Cindy dug in her heels, and after handing the baby girl to Zoe, she walked around the bed to the side where Cordelia's corpse lay.
"Oh, haven't you done enough?" Myrtle protested.
Cindy leaned down closer toward Cordelia's mouth, exhaling softly and praying a silent prayer to Saint Jude that this would work. She then inhaled sharply, closing her eyes and focusing all her energy on Cordelia.
Cindy's eyes snapped open at the sound of Cordelia gasping for air.
Myrtle clasped her hands to her chest with delight. "Oh, my dear girl! You came back!"
Cindy, now assuaged of guilt, stood up from where she sat with a victorius smile upon her face. "I did it!" The young girl exclaimed proudly. In all her triumph, however, Zoe noticed the girl had started to wobble.
"I did it! I did-" Thrusting the baby into Mytrle's arms, Zoe rushed behind Cindy to catch her as she briefly fell unconscious.
Cindy mumbled an apology as Zoe manouevoured her backwards into a chair.
"It's okay, balancing the scales of life and death will do that to a person." Zoe laughed, lightly.
"I-is the baby... is the baby okay?" Cordelia inquired, still very weak from the delivery.
"Oh, Delia. It's a miracle! She's perfectly healthy!" Myrtle exclaimed in jubilation, cradling the precious infant in her arms as Cordelia tried her best to prop herself up to gaze upon her newborn child.
"S-she? It's a she? I have a daughter?" Cordelia cried, happy tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She wanted to hold her desperately, but still lacking in energy Cordelia could barely keep her eyes open.
"Its okay, dear." Myrtle smiled, patting Cordelia's arm affectionately. "You rest now."
Cordelia, exhausted from the day's events, succumbed to sleep.
She awoke next morning to the sun filtering through the white curtains, casting light on the baby that lay sleeping in Myrtle's arms, contentedly sucking from the bottle which Myrtle was using to feed her.
Myrtle felt Cordelia's eyes on her and smiled warmly. "Ah, you're awake. As is most of the house, due to a combination of the terrible weather last night, and your daughter's excellent set of lungs."
Cordelia, already feeling much stronger than she did last night, sat up in her bed and requested to hold her daughter, to which Myrtle did not hesitate to comply.
"Have you thought of a name for her?" She inquired.
"No," Cordelia said, rocking her baby gently in her arms. "I was only six months along so I thought I'd have plenty of time to consider names."
"By the way," Myrtle began, "the warlocks have sent you this bouquet along with their warmest congratulations on the birth of your daughter. Speaking of flowers, I ought to send some to that poor girl from last night. I was... rather short with her, to say the least." She grimaced.
Cordelia looked over at the bouquet that Myrtle had lovingly arranged in the vase on her nightstand. "Primroses? Isn't it a bit odd to send wildflowers?"
"Yes, well. Men are indeed odd. What do they know about the art of floristry?" Myrtle said, shaking her head. "I mean of all the flowers to send a new mother."
"Why? Do primroses mean something bad?" Cordelia asked.
"Heavens no. It's simply an unusual choice. The Victorians believed in gifting them to a person you held great affection for. The most popular meaning for the primrose is quite simply 'I can't live without you'".
Cordelia watched Myrtle leaned down to inhale the flower's scent.
"Hmph. Primrose." Cordelia said, thoughtfully. "I like that."
-
Shaking these thoughts from her head, she got up from where she sat at the desk and enveloped Prim in a hug.
"You're going to get mud on you!" Primrose giggled, returning the embrace warmly.
Cordelia withdrew from the hug and placed both hands on either side of her daughter's head. "Misty would've adored you." Cordelia said, softly.
Prim rubbed her mother's shoulder as a show of support; Cordelia rarely spoke of Misty, she found the subject to be too upsetting to bring up too often, which made Prim wonder why she had decided to bring her up now.
"Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?" Primrose asked, cocking her head to the side inquisitively.
Cordelia hesitated. "It's not entirely unrelated, but no." She replied, evasively. Cordelia motioned to the chair behind her and offered for her to sit.
"Do you remember two weeks ago, when I left for an emergency meeting with the council?"
Primrose nodded in affirmation.
"The council was called to discuss a matter regarding the supremacy." Said Cordelia, gravely. "My position is being challenged."
Primrose stared up at her mother in confusion, the gravity of what she was saying not registering in her juvenile mind.
Cordelia crouched down to talk to Primrose at her level. "You remember me telling you about my mother, your grandmother, Fiona?"
Prim nodded. "She was supreme and then she died."
"Yes," Cordelia confirmed. "She had to die in order for me to become supreme."
Primrose suddenly understood what her mother was implying.
"But... won't that mean that you...?" Prim began to panic at the thought of losing her mother, her hands shaking and a lump steadily rising in her throat at the very thought of it.
"Hey, look at me." Cordelia clasped her daughter's hands tightly within her own. Primrose looked up to meet her mother's eyes and found that they too were glossed over with tears.
"My beautiful girl." Cordelia sighed, reminiscently. "I still remember the day I found out I was pregnant with you."
-
Myrtle exhaled smoke upward into the air, her vape pen hanging daintily from her hand as she stood outside the bathroom, the sound of Cordelia retching inside escaping underneath the door.
"Poor dear." Myrtle tutted. "A rising supreme is supposed to be at the height of her powers and her health, and yet here you are, no less than a day after your coronation with your head in the toilet bowl. Perhaps it's a case of too many celebratory flutes of burnt champagne?"
Cordelia wiped her mouth with the back of hand as she emerged from the bathroom, the faintest of smiles playing upon her lips.
" I am in perfect health, Myrtle." She whispered.
Myrtle stood in the doorway, confusion evident upon her face.
She took Myrtle's free hand and placed it over her stomach, her smile widening as she watched the realization on Myrtle's face.
"Oh, b-but... surely you don't mean?" Myrtle covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes now glossing over with tears of happiness.
The two women embraced each other warmly, both overcome with joy at the news.
"H-how?" Myrtle asked, pulling away to look at Cordelia.
Cordelia shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose I'm merely blessed."
-
"A beautiful child of immaculate conception. So long had I prayed for you. My life beforehand had been barren and desolate; it was truly the winter of my discontent. You came along and brought with you the springtime. You brought me life." Cordelia sniffled. "And now I am faced with death."
"Don't say that, Mom!" Primrose desperately exclaimed.
Once more, Cordelia held the girl in her arms. Primrose was so helpless on her own, she thought to herself. The most painful part of it all was the thought of leaving her.
"I suppose what I am trying to say is," Cordelia said, regaining her composure. "Difficult times are ahead. I want you closer to me, so I can keep an eye on you."
Primrose didn't like the idea of her already limited freedom being restricted even further, but she understood the profundity of the situation and yielded.
"That's why when I leave for California today, I would like you to accompany me. I can't take any chances in the current magical climate." Cordelia said, ominously.
"Something is coming."
-
authors note; just wanted to say like fyi that i have never given birth nor have i ever trained as a midwife, my knowledge on that stuff is pretty limited so part of the reason i had such an inexperienced character to deliver the baby was so like if theres any inaccuracies its bc cindy doesnt know shit and its not just me being a terrible writer lmao. also this chapter is a little longer than usual bc ill be busy all day tomorrow so i wont be updating until sunday (uk time) at the earliest. peace x