x- the new room in the tardis -x- a log -x

[catherine dtardis]

"HAH! I beat you, now you have to give it back." said the doctor to his young son after beating him at a staring contest and he held his hand out for the sonic screwdriver that his son had one in a previous staring bout. Killian gave it up, but not after the single most heart wrenching adorable look of crestfallenness a child could muster." nono, i won this fair and square. you have your own." a firm nod and the Doctor leaned back, pointing his screwdriver at the new mobile he had installed in a now furnished room, it was the basics for now. allowing kitty to decorate the room how she wanted. the crib, was killian's old one, having gotten him a big boy bed, and installing a pressure plate alarm system in the hallway, to make sure he stayed in his bedroom." how we need to hurry, lumie said he'd stall kitty, but we don't know how much longer its gonna be."

"lumie, this is....really?"  it was that rare sound in catherine's voice, where one could hear her trying very hard to keep her patience intact.  "i've seen you wear neckties a million times and they all always look just fine for me and you've never thought they were slightly crooked before..." as she said that as calmly as a woman who was about ready to pop out a baby any day now could, there were the sounds of scuffling in the hallway.  because when catherine moved left, lumie yipped and moved to block her.  when she moved right, he moved to block her again and the result was a sassy redheaded outburst, "oh my god lumie does it have to be right this second?!"

"see. se what your pouting did, she's here now and this isn't up all the way, here, you go stall mommy for a moment while i get this finished, this is a big job killian, and I'll signal you when its ready and you can usher mommy into the room." The boys eyes got soo big at that and he turned and ran his toddler bottom to the door which he was able to manage to open and then kitty would see killian barreling towards her." mooooommmmmmmmmmaaaa!!"

killian had good timing, because catherine had somehow managed to use her large round belly to her advantage and she had just muscled lumie to the side despite his yipping protests about needing his tie just right for when he went out 'later'.  "well later is not now, lumie!"  she'd just said in her practiced, 'and that's final' tone that she'd developed from being a mother for three years.  speaking of her being a mother, she'd won the first battled just in time to see her son rocketing down the hall calling for her.  catherine took a very nice big deep breath in through her nose, pinching the very top of the bridge as she closed her eyes.  "my body is a hollow reed, troubles flow through me like the wind..." it was something gran had made her repeat whenever catherine got over excited, impatient or temperamental as a child.  she dropped her hand from her face, and said in the best 'i love you sweetie even though i hate your timing' voice, "what's wrong, baby?"  just over three with his sister about to be born, and killian was still her baby.

"hi mommy!  Lookit this." said the boy who produced his own toy sonic screwdriver like his father did from a pocket and he showed it up to mom. "daddy said that if I'm good and listen he gets to fix it so its like his, and then me and oomie are gonna go and do like daddy does." Killian was trying not to sound too excited because kitty did sound tired,  but he was supposed to stall her.

did her family think she'd just come out of some long standing coma?  catherine was absolutely bewildered, but she was doing her best to hide it so she didn't hurt the feelings of her son. still, though, she'd seen his toy sonic screwdriver a million times before.  first the tie that was suddenly crooked, now look at this toy she's already seen before...  catherine leaned her shoulder against the wall to take some of the pressure of her weight off of her feet, lifting her right hand to rub the top of her stomach in small, coaxing circles.  the last thing she needed was for the baby in her womb to wake up and start showing her it knew how to kick her square in the kidney when she's already demonstrated that plenty of times in the last couple months.  "that sounds very exciting, baby.  what do you have to be good and listen to for daddy?"

Killian smiled big best charming boy smile, and he put his sonic screwdriver toy away and  then beamed up at his mom,  rocking form side to side." Daddy said that I had to listen to grown ups. aannnd that I had to help oomie with his work... aannnddd I have to be a good big brudder for the baby... and I have to help mommy." all rattled off while his eyes looked around, as if he was trying to remember all that.

this time, catherine didn't hide her bewilderment.  that was an awful lot to ask of a three-year-old, well catherine thought so anyway.  but that was the doctor, he expected a lot of everyone who he loved.  it was just his way of loving them.  still, catherine's reply popped off her lips before she really thought about whether or not it was a good idea to say it.  "my that's an awful lot for even a big boy to do.  you should be negotiating an allowance from him for all of that..."  with her free hand catherine reached down, smoothing her fingers through her sons hair.  it was always slightly wild, just like his father's.  then catherine moved around her son to continue down the hallway, adding, "speaking of daddy, where is he?"

When she squeezed past him Killian whined very much like she did and followed her." momma, don't go, daddy said!" killian said as he squeezed past her to stand in front of a new door that was next to his in the hallway." Daddy said you cant till he says." Killian saying that was in his best thats that tone. the way that all kids his age could manage.

the funny thing was that catherine probably would not have noticed the new door if killian hadn't placed himself in front of it, since she'd intended to go straight down the hall to another room.  but as her son pushed by her, the sigh she was about to let fly was cut short with a blink of surprise.  "that door wasn't there before," she said to her son as she knit her eyebrow, stopping in front of it and the three-year-old using himself as a barricade.  "your father's in there?" she asked her son that before she said louder so that she was sure her husband could hear her through the door.  "tick?  what are you doing, you said we'd be ready to leave almost an hour ago…"

"What? I did..... oh..." and the door opened behind killian who looked crestfallen  but just a crack and the doctors head poked through. "I thought it would take longer for you to finish your hair. Almost done in here you look wonderful my love." and the doctor leaned his head out more to steal a kiss before he ducked his head back into the room, and through the small crack in the door the sound of music chimes and the sonic screwdriver could be heard. killian smiled big and wide and reached up to with a show of effort, closed the door." hi mommy!" lets try stalling again.

confused as she was she still returned her husband's soft kiss, which had cut her off from speaking.  by the time she managed to get out what she was going to say, "tick there wasn't a - " her son had shut the door and catherine sighed out the rest of her words.  "door here before."  catherine was no simpleton, at this point why lumie was trying to distract her by asking for her help to tie a better tie made sense.  they were all plotting something, and when she was obviously outnumbered like this by the boys she knew there was no use in protesting.  so she looked down at her son, giving him a little smile and humoring him.  "hi."  after a pause, she pointed to his door next to the new one and she would help her son out in the job he was obviously given to distract her.  "why don't you show me what you want to bring to gran's..."  despite the fact they took the tardis to grans which meant their entire home was parked inside gran's home in the garage - she absolutely insisted the doctor park it in the garage, the doctor had gotten quite a talking to when he parked it in the guest bedroom once - catherine liked to still have the illusion of needing to take only a few precious needed things when you went to visit someone.  she had given birth to killian at gran's house, and she would give birth to this baby there too.

Killian gave a nod "okay mommy." and he started down towards his room to get his things ready to go see gran, he had to gather his new toys and books to show gran, because she hadn't seen the new ones and that was very important for her to see. and before catherine would get a chance to follow the doctor opened the door wide and smiled, leaning against the door frame." hello beautiful." behind him the nursery could be seen.

he caught catherine in one of those weepy little smiles as she watched killian go.  gran was his great-grandmother, and while she didn't look a day over sixty she was many years older.  in this moment catherine was so thankful for the old woman's continued health and vigor, because she had such a huge hand in shaping catherine's life and she wanted gran to have that same hand in her children's lives.  when the door opened, catherine finger 'scratched' at the corner of her eye and she tried to look anything but weepy.  "tick, i - " whatever silly excuse she was going to make was stopped short as her eyes glanced behind her husband now that the door was open.  "oh....."  god, if watching her son go into his room to pack for gran's had gotten her misty-eyed, imagine what this was going to do.

Sorry about that, I had to rush to get it finished since Lumie couldn't find a better way to keep you occupied." the doctor said with a smile,  and stepped back from the door frame, hands stuffed into the pockets of his long brown overcoat. "We left it mostly undecorated because i know you liked doing that with killian's room...

"that's my fault, i wasn't being very cooperative..." catherine murmured that with a faint pang of guilt as she thought back on the poor kitsune's efforts to distract her.  "my mind was just on getting to gran's, i know i'm not due for another two weeks but..."  it was a miracle she had managed to speak in a calm, even voice for this long and it didn't last very much longer.  staring at the nursery that her family had worked so hard to build for the soon-to-arrive little girl, catherine burst into tears, turning and burying herself against her husband to cry them.  they were tears of joy, mostly, but she was crying just a little bit hard for them to just be joy.  there was something else to it, and the clue what in what catherine said next, "thank goodness for you three, if it weren't for you three....i...so close...." the baby would soon be there and catherine felt entirely unprepared.  being pregnant when lumie was a pup and not yet able to shift to a boy was very different than trying to prepare for a baby when there was a teenage boy and a toddler who needed you, not to mention a husband and a universe right outside the door.

the doctor wrapped his arms around her body tightly and turned his head to kiss her cheek. and then he tilted his head to rest against hers. and pet his hands up and down her back. "we're always going to be here, the three of us, soon to be four... forever and ever my love." words whispered to her while the doctor held his wife close to his body. still petting a hand up and down her back.

catherine was so thankful that the soon to be fourth was quiet inside of her, hopefully sleeping.  impossible as it was, catherine tried her hardest to think peaceful thoughts, do peaceful things, and give a sense of joy to the one she carried inside of her.  sobbing was not any of those things.  as her husband soothed her, catherine squeezed her arms tightly around him, pressing as close to him as she could considering her rounded belly was at the boy where it was 'in the way' of nearly everything she did.  finally catherine pulled her head up, giving her husband a fierce kiss of thanks to his lips.  as she wiped her tears away, she murmured, "i love you, doctor," and then gave him a second kiss just for good measure.  then, after a nice big breath in and out to steady herself, she looped her arms around his neck and smiled sheepishly.  "why don't we finish decorating it right now, the three of us.  gran won't mind if we're a little late."  and having the nursery finished, not to mention the help from her family to do so, would put a lot of catherine's panic at ease.

"well, we're not going to be late, remember. I have a time machine." and then he beamed big and bright, stealing another kiss from her, and stepping back to call the boys in. "you guys can bring in the decorations now. she said she wanted to do it now." yeah, he may have just cheated a bit.

catherine made a face and gave his side a pinch right under his rib on the spot that made him complain the most about poking.  "you know what i meant, tick...." darn know-it-all doctor with his fancy time machine, having to be so literal!  still, between that and the kiss she already looked like she'd calmed down considerably, and when he yelled into the hall about decorations she gave him a sidewards look, "left it mostly undecorated for me, hmm?"  she gave him a cheeky little smirk as lumie and killian came barging in with bags and boxes - well lumie had the boxes, killian was dragging almost one too many bags for him to manage.  they were probably listening at the door this whole time, to be coming in so quickly.

"yes, specially for you." said the doctor definitively with another wild smile as the boys brought the decorations in. "they're separated in divisions, wall decorations, curtains."(because there where windows with simulated day night cycles. so people int he TARDIS didn't go crazy) "blankets, even changing table covers... oh! and there is a book with different wall paper so that you can pick one you like."

"i'll unpack things so that you can see them all!"  that was lumie, wanting to prove how helpful he could be as always.  as did their toddler, who added, "ooooomie, i'll do!" with a little stomp of his foot.  "no no, i have another special job for you baby.  you're going to help me pick out your sister's wall paper.  since you gave her her name i think you'll know best which she'd like...."  catherine had found the book with the samples in it, and she was very slowly getting down onto her knees before rolling her legs out from under her to sit on the floor in a wide indian style.  this was the most comfortable way for her to sit and not squash her stomach, with her back leaning against the wall.  hopefully she'd be able to get up, that was always the difficulty.  not the way down. she set the book just to the right of her where her son was sitting down with a squeal, and she opened it as she advised him, "turn the pages slowly so i can see too..." just in case she had to negotiate with her son about which to choose.  "did you buy a baby trampoline?"  she said that with a teasing little smile up at her husband.  "you should have, with the way she jumps around..."

(( to be continued ))