Strong Caution/Warning: I've described a childbirth in this story, I don't think it's terribly gruesome, but might not be suited for very young readers.
 

Assumpta and Peter drive slowly and carefully out into the hills; the stone walls and fenceposts acting as guides to the roadway, with signposts still visible at the intersections. The snow continues falling, and the temperature has actually moderated from the previous days, it having been, as the saying goes, "too cold to snow".

"This the right turn now, 'Sumpta?" Peter asks his fiancee, without turning his head. His hands are still tight on the wheel, and his eyes do not leave the road, as the van crunches down the soft dry powder laying unmarked and smooth in front of him.

"Yeah, turn there, we'll go up a hill a bit, and round a bit of a curve, then you'll see the house." Assumpta is leaning forward, peering through the windscreen as the wipers beat back and forth, brushing the snow away with each sweep.

"Why haven't we seen Maggie an' her horse?" Peter's voice is calm, but concerned.

"She must have gone across the country, didn't follow the roads. Probably saw we'd make it through and didn't wait for us, knowing you'd get me there." Assumpta rests her hand on Peter's forearm. "Thank you, Peter. You know I love you, don't you?"

"I love you too, Assumpta, more than anyone in the whole world, and I'll love our baby just as much. But say, isn't it kinda early to even be sure you're pregnant? I mean, well, have you even had time to miss a period?"

"Tryin' to weasel out of it, eh? Thinkin' you might not be the Dad?" Assumpta removes her hand from Peter's arm.

"No, no, of course not...", aghast, Peter actually turns to look at her, in time to see the silent laughter and the huge grin on her face.

"Keep your eyes on the road, ya eedjit, of course I know you're not accusing me of cheating on ya! There, see, there's the house now!"

Peter, chuckling at himself over how easily Assumpta can still push his buttons, coasts the van to a gentle stop at the gate of Sean and Niamh Dillon's house. Assumpta gathers the heavy wool cloak around her and puts the hood up over her head, then opens her door and steps out.

"Here, 'Sumpta, let me get 'round to help you!" Peter exclaims.

"Oh, don't be silly, I'm not the one about to deliver a baby, I won't fall an' hurt myself!" she answers, then closes her door.

Peter also gets out of the van, and closes his door, and the two walk to the front door, and knock.

Young Kieran opens the door, and grins happily to see his Aunt Assumpta and Uncle Peter.

"Hi, Kieran!" Peter reaches down to ruffle the blonde boy's hair, then closes the door behind Assumpta, who bends down to hug the child, who hugs her back.

"Auntie 'Sumpta, are you here to help Mum, she's havin' the baby, but sumpthin's wrong, I think.."

"Yes, Kieran, we're here to help. Is Auntie Maggie here, too?"

"Yeah, an she let me take her horse to our stable, an' I gave him some oats, and filled a water bucket for him, too!"

"Good for you, brave boy!" Assumpta answers him. "Now where's your Mum?"

"In here!" Maggie's voice calls out from upstairs. "Assumpta, can you and Peter put a couple of kettles on to boil, and Peter, keep an eye on the stove, and Assumpta, come on upstairs?"

"Right away, Maggie!" Assumpta calls back, as the threesome, the adults each holding Kieran's hands, go into the kitchen. Assumpta puts three kettles on the stove, then goes back to the staircase, hanging the cloak up on a hook before climbing the stairs. Peter stays in the kitchen, and engages Kieran in conversation, hoping to prevent more worry.

As Assumpta goes through the doorway into Niamh and Sean's bedroom, she sees Sean kneeling at the head of the bed, wiping Niamh's forehead, as Maggie kneels at the foot of the bed, pulling the sheet and blankets back down over the laboring woman's knees and feet.

"She's contracting hard, but barely dilated, Assumpta." Maggie turns to Sean. "Do you know how things went last time?" Sean shakes his head. Niamh raises her head.

"It all went normal last time, Maggie, but this is different, I can tell, the pains are different, sharper, not rhythmic. How far am I dilated?" Niamh lays her head back on the pillow.

"Maybe three, four centimeters, Niamh, that's all. How long have the pains been this close together?"

"Since just before you got here, Maggie, maybe half an hour?" Sean answers her. Assumpta goes to the head of the bed opposite Sean, and takes her friend's other hand, squeezing tightly. Niamh squeezes back, then gasps, as, hardly five minutes since the last, another contraction clenches in her abdomen.

"This is not good, Niamh.." Maggie has laid her hand on Niamh's taut stomach. "I'm not doing a C-section here, an' I'm not driving you down to Cilldargan in that van, either, I don't think we have time. I think that, between us, Assumpta and I can get you dilated, but we have to have your permission, I'll not do anything against your will, or yours, Sean."

Sean's face is white, he nods desperately, knowing his wife and child are both in danger of death. Niamh exhales forcefully and lays back again. "Maggie, do it, I don't care what, just don't let my baby die...". Sweat is pouring off Niamh's face, which is flushed in the cheeks, white around her lips, and dark around her eyes.

Maggie reaches for her backpack, opens it, and pulls out a box. She hands it towards Assumpta, who stands, and takes it. "Make a pot of tea from this herb, Sister, use three or four teabags, four if the pot's a big one. Bring honey and a mug and the pot when it's done, okay?"

"Yes, Sister, I'll be back as soon as it's ready." Assumpta's face is serious, and Sean notes the formality of her voice as she responds to Maggie. Maggie reaches into her bag again, and pulls out a bundle of vegetation, tightly bound, about six inches in length.

"I need to light this, Sean, is there a smoke detector in this room?" Maggie asks Sean. He shakes his head, and Maggie pulls a shallow silver dish out of the bag, and a disposable lighter. She stands, walks to the head of the bed, and, holding the bundle above Niamh's head, she lights it. Sweet smoke begins to float upwards in tendrils, and Maggie draws a clockwise circle above Niamh's head, waving some of the smoke into her face. She then paces a clockwise circle around the bed, closing the circle above Niamh's head again. She then circles Sean's face as well, waving smoke into it, and telling him "breathe in, deeply if you can". She finally circles her own face three times, wafting smoke into her face and inhaling strongly each time. Just then, Assumpta re-enters the room, a tray in her hands, which she sets on the nightstand. "Come, Sister." Maggie turns to the younger woman, smudging her three times, and Assumpta cups her hands, waving the smoke into her face, her eyes closing as she breathes in the sweet, spicy fragrance. Maggie lays the still smoking bundle in the silver plate, setting it at the foot of the bed. She goes to her bag,
and pulls out a small silk bundle, unwrapping what turns out to be a small silver token, a circle with four spokes.

Downstairs, Peter has asked Kieran if he wants to play a game, which the child refuses. "I wanna go upstairs an' see my Mum!"

"Well, okay, but she and your Dad are kinda busy right now, an' I have to keep these kettles hot," Peter answers him, then stands, and turns the heat down low on the stove, to keep the water simmering. He
reaches out and takes Kieran's hand, and the two go upstairs slowly. They peek in through the doorway, Maggie and Assumpta both look up, and Assumpta shakes her head, while Maggie holds up her hand, palm out.

"Kieran, dear, your Mommy is going to be having your baby brother or sister pretty soon now, do you know what's going to happen when she does?" Maggie has gone to the doorway, and knelt down in front of the child. He nods his head solemnly. She turns to Sean. "Sean, Niamh, can Kieran be here?" Niamh's body arches with another contraction, Sean is holding her hand when she cries out wordlessly. Kieran cries and tries to lunge forward as he hears Niamh's cry of pain. Peter puts both hands on the boy's shoulders and Maggie hugs him. "Just a minute, honey. Your Mommie's pushing right now. This is going to be hard for you, your Mommie's going to be hurting, and she won't be able to hug you or talk to you much, either." Niamh's contraction ends, and she gasps for breathe for a few seconds, then looks at Sean, who turns to Maggie and nods. Maggie nods back, and stands. "Come on then, but stand just inside the doorway a minute, both of you, okay?" Man and boy pause, and Maggie picks up the smoking herbs, circling first Peter's face, then Kieran's, and tells them both "breathe in now, please?" They do, and Maggie puts the bundle back in the silver dish at the foot of the bed.

Peter moves to the head of the bed with Kieran, and lifts the child up to sit next to his mother's head. Niamh props herself up a bit, and Kieran scoots closer.

"Love, can you let Mommy lean on you?" Niamh's face is strained but she still manages a smile for her oldest child.

"Yes, Mommy. Can I help?"

"Yes, love, just let me lean back on you, and when I'm resting like this, can you wipe the sweat off my face, like Daddy's been doing?"

Peter is standing next to Assumpta, he leans down and whispers, "Shouldn't I take him downstairs, he shouldn't be here, should he?"

"He needs to feel useful, an' this way he won't sit down there and worry himself sick, he'll know what's happening!" Assumpta whispers back to him. Peter nods, though his face is still doubtful.

"Sean, do you have a bathing basin for the baby yet?" Maggie asks him.

"Yeah, it's in the baby's room." he answers.

"Good, can you and Peter go get it, and check the hot water kettles, too? Assumpta, can you pour Niamh a cup of tea, and put lots of honey in it?" Maggie wrings out the terrycloth square in the cold water at the head of the bed, and hands it to Kieran. "Now you just dry the sweat off your Mum's face, honey, and hold her hand while I go see what's happening, okay?"

Kieran nods seriously, and wipes Niamh's forehead and cheeks. Niamh tries to raise up a bit, and Assumpta helps her, then helps her drink some of the tea. Niamh sips gingerly at first, then swallows it quickly, and lays back down, smiling.

"What is it, Maggie?"

"Red raspberry, Niamh, it will regulate your contractions and make them progressive instead of just random clenching. Now, Assumpta, before another one hits, come and stand opposite me, and give me your left hand." Maggie pulls the covers up, exposing Niamh's stomach. She lays the silver circle on Niamh's belly, then reaches her right hand across the bed to Assumpta, and her left takes Niamh's right hand. Assumpta reaches her right hand up and takes Niamh's left hand, and Maggie and Assumpta close their eyes and bow their heads. Kieran's eyes grow wide, but he remains kneeling silently behind his mother's shoulders as Niamh breathes deeply and deliberately. Peter and Sean re-enter the room, but stop and stand still, staring. Maggie and Assumpta begin a chant of soft syllables Peter does not understand, but Sean's face shows dawning realization.

"Bright Lady, Blessed Lady, hear our prayers. Send your Daughter, Holy Brigid, here to our aid. Our Sister Niamh labors to bring her child into your blessed world, Lady, we beg of you to send your aid through Brigid to ease her work and speed the passage of this child, that both may live long lives in honour of your love for them."

Maggie and Assumpta have been speaking in an archaic Gaelic form, but enough words are clear for Sean, though Peter catches only "Brigid", and Kieran understands nothing, continuing to wipe his mother's face. A soft green glow begins to emanate from the silver talisman on Niamh's belly, and Peter crosses himself. As quickly as the glow starts, it fades away again, and the three women let go of each other's hands; Maggie goes to the foot of the bed, and Assumpta to the head, where she sits and puts her arm around Kieran. Sean hands the large basin to Peter, and goes to the other side of the bed, taking his wife's hand in his. Niamh is smiling, the strain is gone from her face. Peter hands Maggie the basin, carefully not looking at Niamh's exposed legs and stomach, then goes to stand by Assumpta. Maggie has knelt and examined Niamh carefully, and then rises again.

"Niamh, you're starting to dilate, but it'll still be about half an hour, I think. The next contraction shouldn't hurt so much, it'll feel normal, I hope!"

"I already feel better, Maggie, whether it was your tea or your prayers, thank you!" Niamh is smiling, but it turns into a grimace as her body arches. She grips Sean and Assumpta's hands, and Maggie kneels again, resting one hand on Niamh's stomach. Maggie smiles as she feels the ripples start at the top of the abdomen, working downwards. "Yes, this is a good one, Niamh, push if you want to! Peter, go bring some towels, those we brought, please, and one kettle of hot water, please?"

"Right!" Peter trots out of the room, secretly relieved to be able to escape what he fears is about to become a messy and embarrassing situation. As he nearly gallops down the staircase, it hits him that in a few short months, this will be HIS wife and HIS child, and HE will have to be there, seeing everything and helping much more closely than he is going to have to do right now. He doesn't stop, though, but grabs up a stack
of towels and a kettle, and climbs back up, careful not to spill the steaming pot. As he re-enters the bedroom, Kieran is wiping Niamh's face, and speaking.

"Mommy, is the baby coming, is everything all right?"

"Yes, love, it is, everything's all right now." Niamh answers him. "Are you scared? Do you want to leave? I know we've told you what's going to happen, but if you don't want to be here, it's okay, Mummy doesn't want you to be frightened!"

"No, Mommy, I'm brave, I wanna help you. I don't wanna leave." Kieran squares his shoulders, and Sean cannot help but smile broadly.

He answers his young step-son, "Okay, Kieran, we'll both be right here to help your Mum, right?"

"Right!" The boy nods definitively.

Maggie pours some of the hot water into the basin, pulls a bar of soap out of her bag and washes her hands, then rinses them and dries them on a clean towel. "Niamh, I need to do a digital exam and see if I
can feel the baby's head, and how far you're dilated, okay?"

"Sure, Maggie, go ahead!" Niamh answers.

"Assumpta, can you help me?" Maggie asks, and Assumpta moves to the foot of the bed. Maggie checks, and smiles. "A good six centimeters, Niamh, and another contraction will be along soon, do you think you can swallow half a cup of tea before it hits?" Niamh nods, and Peter pours some tea in the cup. "Two spoons of honey, Peter, she needs blood sugar," Maggie tells him without looking up, she has laid the silver talisman on Niamh's abdomen again, and rests one palm on it.

Niamh drinks the cooling tea, and Peter sets the cup back down, just as Niamh arches up again, pressing her heels down into the bed, but not crying out, simply panting, then grunting, as she begins to push, feeling things moving as she remembers them doing at Kieran's birth. Peter watches Sean's face as it shadows concern, fear, and joy rapidly across the surface as he coaches his wife, saying "pant, pant, pant, now puuuush!". As the contraction eases, Sean looks up, smiles at Peter, and says "ante-natal classes". Peter nods, confusion still on his face. No amount of written descriptions in the marriage counselling manuals had quite prepared him for what lovemaking would be like with Assumpta, but his instruction in this aspect of married life was going to be considerably more real than he felt quite ready for!

Assumpta and Maggie are spreading towels under Niamh and across the foot of the bed, as well as on the floor. Maggie washes her hands again, and Assumpta then takes the basin to the bathroom, dumping it and rinsing it well. When she gets back to the bedroom, Niamh is contracting again, just three minutes since the last big push. She goes to the head of the bed, and takes Kieran's hand. "You sure you want to stay, Kieran, this is going to be messy, I'm afraid." The boy nods. She smiles, "Brave boy, you should be proud, you're really helping your Mum!" She goes back to the foot of the bed. Sean has taken over wiping Niamh's face, Kieran simply kneeling behind his mother's pillows, his hands gripping her nightgown at the shoulders.

"Won't be long now, she's dilating fast, good going, Niamh! Peter, can you take this kettle downstairs, get it hot, and bring what's already there back up with you? And Assumpta, can you find the dental floss in the bathroom, or does Sean need to get it?" Maggie asks, massaging Niamh's calves and trying to relax her legs a little as the contraction eases.

"I can find it." Assumpta leaves the room again.

"Say, Sean, do you have any dull old scissors you've been cutting paper with, anywhere in the house?" Maggie asks.

"Yeah, in my desk, downstairs." he answers.

"Great, can you go holler at Peter where to find them, and ask him to bring them upstairs, when he comes?"

"Yeah," Sean answers again, and goes to the head of the stairs, calling instructions down to Peter in the kitchen, who is soon back with two kettles of hot water and the scissors.

"Great, Peter, take those into the bathroom and scrub them with hot water and soap, and rinse them with rubbing alcohol, then lay them on a clean towel and lay them here beside me, okay?"

Assumpta has returned, and begins to pour the nearly boiling water into the basin, setting it at Maggie's left side, and kneeling beside it.

"Niamh, when the next one comes, push hard, okay, I think we can get the baby with another two good contractions, you feel pretty wide open to me." Maggie is massaging Niamh's legs again, as another
contraction begins, and Maggie and Assumpta brace Niamh's knees and feet as she arches and pushes, puffing and panting. "Yes, yes, we've got crowning, good job, good job!" Maggie takes her hands off Niamh's
knees, dips one hand into the basin, says "good", and reaches up to the baby's head, just as Peter comes into the room with the scissors, and bends to lay them down, averting his face.

Niamh pants, and lowers herself back down to the bed for a moment. She notices Peter, and motions him to the head of the bed. She smiles, "Now, Peter, you've heard my confession, that's more private than a birth! Don't be embarrassed, I'm just glad you and Assumpta are here to help!"

Peter takes her hand for a moment, his face is red, but he nods at Niamh, "I, well, I guess I'm entering a new phase of life, it's just a little more, well, *real* than I thought it would be. But I'm proud I can help, Niamh, just tell me what you want me to do!"

"Then grit your teeth, Peter!" Niamh gasps, as another contraction starts. Peter gasps in turn as her grip tightens.

She arches again, grunts hard, and Maggie yells, "Head's out, Niamh, push!"

Assumpta braces her friend's knees, Niamh cries out hoarsely, and Peter hears a wet, rushing sound, and Maggie's whoop of joy.

"We have a baby boy, Niamh, Sean, a fine baby boy! Hold on, now, and Niamh, push when the contractions come again, and we'll get the afterbirth." Maggie's voice is full of exhultation. Sean stands and steps to the foot of the bed, seeing Maggie lower the baby, wriggling, into the basin of warm water, holding his head up so his face is clear of the surface. Assumpta moves to the head of the bed, and motions Peter to the foot, he shakes his head, and smiles ruefully. She smiles as well.

"Why isn't he crying, is he all right?" Niamh tries to sit up, but Assumpta pushes her gently back down.

"He's fine, Niamh, he's just in the warm water, so he's breathing, but not shocked, he doesn't need to feel cold and afraid just as he leaves you to come into the world. It's as good as we can do without your Dad's hot tub. When the afterbirth comes and we can cut the cord, we'll hand him to you, all clean and wrapped up, okay? You just rest now, can you drink more tea?"

"Yeah, I could, yes." Niamh answers, and Assumpta pours her another cup, though it's cool now, and the honey doesn't stir in as well. Niamh drinks it down quickly, and Kieran takes the cloth, and again begins to wipe his mother's face.

"Are you okay, Mommy?" he asks.

"Yes, love, I'm fine, do you want to see your baby brother?"

"Yeah!" comes the eager answer.

Assumpta pulls the covers over Niamh's lower body, as Kieran climbs down off the bed, and walks carefully around to the foot of the bed, peering downwards.

"Come on, Kieran, he's right here in the little bathtub." Maggie smiles as the child kneels down next to his stepfather, who is holding the baby supported in the warm water. The baby's eyes, at first screwed shut, open slowly, and he seems to glance up, fixing immediately on his half-brother's face. Kieran smiles, and the baby's mouth also opens in a clumsy grin. Kieran reaches down, and touches the baby's forehead with a gentle finger, then looks up at his stepfather, still smiling broadly. Sean nods, and Kieran stands and goes back to sit next to his mother.

Maggie pushes the blankets away from Niamh a little bit, and rests her hand on Niamh's abdomen. "Get ready to push, Niamh, and we'll have the afterbirth out, and the cord cut and tied." Maggie smiles, and turns to Assumpta. "Do you want to catch, or cut, 'Sumpta?"

"Um, catch, I think, Maggie."

"Right, then, get ready with that towel."

And sure enough, Niamh grunts, and manages to say, "This is ALOT easier!", and, bearing down again, delivers the placenta.

Maggie squeezes the last of the cord blood downwards, then ties two ligatures near the baby's stomach, and cuts the cord, wrapping the placenta in a towel. Assumpta takes clean towels, and she and Sean lift the baby out of the now cooling water, dry him, and wrap him in soft blankets, and Sean carries him up, and lays him in Niamh's arms. Maggie and Assumpta are standing at the foot of the bed, and as Peter looks down at them, he sees tears streaming down Maggie's face, as Assumpta puts her arm around her friend's shoulders. Sean sits next to Niamh, and Kieran leans over his mother's shoulder, all three of them looking down at the sleeping baby. Peter steps back, and moves to the foot of the bed, hoping that he will not faint at what he expects to be a decided mess, but is suprised to see that anything bloody has been tidied and covered.

"Well, since we still have power, I'm going to start washing linens, Niamh, if that's okay?" Maggie has pulled herself together, and stood up squarely.

Niamh looks up enough to nod, and Maggie and Assumpta begin gathering up the towels. Peter gets told to empty the basin in the bathroom, and is able to handle the slightly pink-tinged water without cringing. As the three are about to leave the room, they hear the baby stir and start to fuss.

"He'll be hungry, Niamh, shall we take Kieran with us?" Maggie asks. Sean nods, and Peter steps up and reaches for Kieran's hand. "How about we fix some lunch, Kieran?" Assumpta asks the boy, who jumps off the bed, grabbing Peter's hand and reaching for Assumpta's.

"Yeah, I'm hungry, we didn't eat breakfast, cuz Mum was already hurting, trying to have my brother! Hey, Mum, when are we gonna tell everybody his name?"

"Yes, I'd like to welcome him properly, have you decided on his name?" Maggie asks, moving up towards the head of the bed from the foot. Assumpta and Peter follow her.

"We decided if it was a boy, we'd name him after his grand-dad an' his dad, so his name is Brian Sean Dillon," Niamh answers them, and pushes the blankets away from the baby's face, as he wriggles and
pushes against the restraint with tiny fists, beginning to turn pinker and pinker, obviously getting ready for an all-out complaint about what he considers a less than satisfactory state of affairs vis-a-vis his tummy.

Just then, Maggie leans down, and kisses his forehead, then places the small silver charm on his head for a second, and says, in English, "Welcome to this miraculous world and the love of your family, Brian Sean, and know that the Goddess loves you, too!" Niamh and Sean look up, smiling back at Maggie as she nearly glows with joy.

Peter and Assumpta both kiss the baby as well; Assumpta also whispers, "Welcome", and Peter rests a hand on the boy a moment, saying a private prayer. He then takes Kieran's hand again, and the four of them leave, letting Sean and Niamh tend to Brian's first meal.

In the kitchen, Peter and Assumpta start lunch, Kieran pointing out his favorite foods in cupboard and refrigerator, and, after starting a load of laundry, Maggie, carrying one towel, goes outside. The snow
has stopped falling, and Maggie walks through it, knee-deep, down the road until she is out of sight of the house. She lays down the bloody towel, and kneeling, clears the snow away from a small section of the
road, then moves the towel onto it, and hold out her hands.

In the kitchen, Assumpta realizes Maggie is not there, and turns to Peter, saying, "Peter, did Maggie go out to check on Iblis in the stable? Would you go see if she's all right?"

Peter stands, goes to the door, and puts on his coat, going outside. He sees the clear footprints leading down the road, and follows them, reaching the curve just in time to see Maggie's kneeling figure, hands outstretched, and a sudden flash of bright white light, then a red glow on the ground in front of her.

"Maggie! Are you all right?" Peter begins to trot through the snow towards the kneeling woman, coatless in the still, cold air.

As Peter reaches her side, Maggie looks up. Peter stares down, and sees a glowing mass of embers on the bare ground. Maggie turns back to the ground in front of her, and says, softly, "Well, for those who have eyes to see, let them look," and stretching out her hands again, closes her eyes, her chin lifting towards the sky. The glowing embers flare up, red flames licking outwards, melting the snow, and tiny rivulets of water trickle down, hissing as they creep towards the fire. Soon, nothing is left but ashes, and Maggie scoops the snow back into the depression and stands up, brushing her knees with her hands. She turns to Peter Clifford, who looks back at her, saying nothing. "I had to burn the afterbirth, Peter, there are evil things that can be drawn to it if it were buried, and from it to those it once joined together. I'm too old to let carelessness leave open an avenue of harm to the innocent!"

"Did you put alcohol on it, or what, to get it to burn?" Peter's eyes are wide.

"No, Peter, simple fire magic, clean and easy if you know it. I'd have brought Assumpta, but destructive magics aren't really safe for her right now, and I wanted to shield the family as well. If I'd have known you were interested, I'd have invited you and told you what I was doing." Maggie has turned, and begins to walk back towards the house, Peter follows her.

"Assumpta was worried, she thought you'd gone out to the barn to see to your horse. Um, Maggie, you know I have to tell you, the Church teaches that magic doesn't exist, or at least if it does, that it's evil." Peter is trying to keep judgement out of his voice.

"Suffer ye not a witch to live, eh?" Maggie laughs, and Peter, shocked, stops and turns to look at her. He sees a woman looking a decade younger, glowing with a happiness and content he has never seen in her face. "Well, Peter, if saving the lives of a woman and a child is what your Church calls evil, then I have to disagree. Do you realize, Peter, that if Niamh's cervix had not dilated, and those wrenching contractions had continued, they would at least have detached the placenta, and the baby would have died, unable to breathe and no longer getting oxygenated blood from his mother? Or, worse yet, Niamh's uterine arteries might have ruptured, and she'd have bled to death? Would that be what your God had wanted to happen? Sean's little truck, with no weight in the back to give his driving tires any traction, would never have made it to the hospital in Cilldargan in time, but because I could get here, and I could use my knowledge and my faith, my magic, if you will, to remedy the hormonal and electrical mis-fires that were going on, Niamh is alive, and she and Sean have a healthy baby to love and raise. In normal weather they'd have driven to the hospital, and maybe they'd have been able to dilate her with drugs, or maybe they'd have had to section her, and all would have been well, but this isn't really normal weather. I don't know why it snowed today, maybe it's just all weird coincidence, but I do know that without Iblis and I, a terrible tragedy would have happened here, and I am grateful I was given the opportunity to avert that." Maggie starts walking again, as the sun breaks out, turning the white snow into a field of diamonds.

Peter jogs a few steps to catch up, and says, without turning or slowing, "Maggie, what I've seen today is beyond any doubt one of the strangest things I've ever seen, but I also saw a miracle, a healthy baby born into a loving family. If what you did was evil, I can't see it. I don't know how you did what you did, I don't know if the God I've known all my life has a more inclusive view than we have ever given Him credit for, but I can't believe He could be anything but happy at what you were able to do to help Niamh bring Brian into this world."

"Thank you, Peter, I hope you're right. Now go tell Assumpta I'm fine, I'm going to let Iblis out of the old stable so he can go back to Danny's, and I'll ride back to town with you. This snow will last, but I don't think any more will fall for a while, so we can all get home safely before dark." Maggie opens an old wooden door to a low stone structure, and a black head reaches out, snorting and whickering.

Peter stops on the front doorstep, and watches the horse stride out into the snow. Maggie pulls her furred cloak off his back, and he trots out into the field, his tail thrown high in the air, his head up. He snorts, bucks, kicks up his heels, and tosses snow about, pawing with a front hoof. He throws himself down, rolling back and forth, then stands and shakes. Maggie, dragging the cloak behind her, stalks out into the field, her head lowered, then stops, and holds her arms out, the cloak between them, shaking it, off to one side of her body. The horse turns, and also lowers his head. He paws the snow again, with one front hoof then the other, and leaps forward, charging at the cloak. Maggie laughs out loud, and shouts, "Toro!", as the horse, ducking aside at the last minute, skids to a stop behind her, and, rearing, turns. Maggie drops the cloak, and walks forward, and the stallion walks towards her as well. The two meet, and Iblis lowers his head. Maggie again leans her head against the stallion's forelock, and reaches out, tangling her fingers in his mane. She lets go again, steps back, and the horse walks by her, then breaks into a trot as he moves onto the roadway, and vanishes from sight around the curve.

Peter turns to open the door, and sees Assumpta and Kieran, peering out the front window at the pair who had been frolicking in the field of snow. Maggie picks up the cloak, and dashes to the front door, and Peter holds it open for her, and closes it behind her as she hangs up the cloak.

"Brrr, I'm freezing, I hope there's some lunch left for me, or did you eat it all already, Kieran?"

He giggles, and grabs her hand to pull her to the kitchen.

Assumpta looks up at Peter's face, sees he is struggling with a dilemma, and gives him a hug. "What's the matter, Peter?" she asks softly.

"'Sumpta, Ah think Ah've just finally really started to believe it, your friend's a witch. An ya know what else? Ah just can't find it in me to think that's a bad thing, either." Peter's voice is a little shaky.

"I didn't know what to think at first, either, Peter, but the more I know Maggie, the more I believe there isn't an evil bone in her body. I'm glad you are starting to see her that way, too." Assumpta squeezes hard for a moment, then lets go, and takes his hand. "Come on, have some lunch, and we'll take some up for Sean and Niamh, too."

Peter and Assumpta join Kieran and Maggie in the kitchen, and soon they are all carrying a tray of food upstairs. Sean and Niamh eat, while Maggie holds a sleeping Brian, and Peter and Assumpta strip the bed and re-make it with fresh linens. Sean and Peter take Kieran downstairs to do dishes, and Assumpta helps Niamh into the shower for a quick wash and shampoo. Niamh is settled back into bed, Brian is handed back over after a quick check and a light application of iodine on the umbilical cord. Sean then showers, while Assumpta and Maggie sit with Niamh, and Peter takes Kieran outside to make snow angels and a snowman. Sean dresses and starts more laundry, and calls Kieran in for his nap, then goes upstairs to settle his step-son in. Kieran, seriously tired despite his best efforts, is soon asleep, and Sean comes back into the bedroom to settle into an armchair and watch his sleeping wife and son. Maggie, Assumpta, and Peter share quiet congratulations, and Maggie tells Sean to call her if there are *any* problems, leaving the box of red raspberry leaf teabags so Niamh can have more if she wants it, knowing it will also help her uterus regain tone and stop any leftover bleeding. The three friends leave, climbing into a cold blue van, which fortunately is not too cold to start, and drive carefully back into Ballykissangel, parking behind the pub, and entering through the kitchen door.

"I think that roasting chicken is going to wait until tomorrow!" Maggie drops her backpack on the table. "Your room is always ready, Sis, I'm going to go take a nap, and we can have a late supper when we
all wake up!" Maggie trudges upstairs, the cloak trailing behind her.

Peter and Assumpta sit down at the kitchen table. "Tea?" Assumpta asks.

"Yeah." Peter answers, and Assumpta brews a pot, and the two of them sit and sip in silence.

"So, what was that little silver thing Maggie put on Niamh's stomach?" Peter asks Assumpta.

"Here, I'll get it out." Assumpta opens the backpack, reaches in, and pulls out the small silken package. She unfolds the fabric, and there, shining softly, is a silver circle with four spokes like a wheel, looking as if it was woven from strands of something like grass, only much smaller. The whole thing couldn't be more than two inches across, Peter thought, picking it up in his hand. He recognizes the spokes of the wheel.

"Say, isn't this a St. Bridget's Cross, here in the middle?"

Assumpta answers, "In a way, this is the entire original design, a Brigid's Wheel. When Padraig brought Christianity to Ireland, his followers turned the Goddess Brigid into St. Bridget, and made her wheel into a cross, but the circled cross had its arms stretched, and became the Celtic Cross you see in stone all over the country. I guess it's a natural evolution, a new group taking over and modifying the traditions and symbols of the old."

"Yeah, it is, the early Christians did that everywhere, really, not just in Ireland," Peter agrees, and lays down the silver talisman. "It's beautiful, did Maggie make it?" he asks.

"I imagine she did, Peter, she made this for me." Assumpta pulls out the silver cross under her jumper, it is a Brigid's Cross. "I hope she'll make one of these for me, it's really beautiful." She turns the circle over in her fingers, then lays it down on the silk fabric, folding it back up and replacing it in the backpack. She stands. "Ready for that nap?" she asks her fiancee. Peter stands, too, and together they walk upstairs, hand in hand, as the sun, still glinting off the white blanket of snow, settles into its early wintertime bed.