Phases of the Moone 1.10

It took a few weeks, but we found an affordable house somewhat close to Moonlight Falls’ graveyard. It was a modest place, but the perfect size for our future family and we immediately started remodeling to make the place our own.

            The first room we remodeled was me and Jasper’s. I still have the pictures and it amazes me how little our room has changed since we first moved there. 

            The next room we remodeled was Basil’s; unlike ours it has changed many times over the years. However the version that was his nursery still holds a special place in my heart. In hindsight the sheer amount of orange may have been a little much, but the color looked good on him and still does to this day.

 Other items we added during those first couple days including extending the house a little so Jasper had a place for his plants and our unborn twins would have a room. We didn’t do much else to it until a few doctors’ trips down the road when out doctor swore that both of them would be girls. In response we made the room purple and pink.  By the time all that was finish we had a lot of spending we had to make up for and things were a little tight for awhile. Even after the twins were born and we found out they were in fact both boys, there was no money left to change the room, so our newest boys were stuck in a pink and purple nursery.

            Just like Basil’s I remember their birth like it was yesterday.  We were experiencing an Indian summer. Fall leaves danced with a gentle wind. While it wasn’t hot, the breeze was warm and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. On that same day, Basil took his first steps.

 Hours after that my water broke, unlike last time the hospital bag was already packed and we got to the hospital in just a few minutes. Ashe Augustus Moone was born first and even then he looked just like his father. My labor with him was about double the length of his twin and when he finally decided to come out he immediately burst to tears, but just for a few seconds and then a cute little frown appeared on his face and would stay there for most of his childhood.

            Oberon James Moone quietly followed a few minutes later. For a few seconds me, Jasper, the doctor and the nurses held their breath, unspoken worries clouded the air until  he finally cried and cleared his lungs, but only for a few minutes. When he stopped a little smile filled his face and then he drifted to sleep. I held them both, speechless, but happy. It still amazes me how opposite the two of them are, even in appearance. While both of them had Jasper’s skin-tone and wings, Oberon had dark hair while Ashe had light. Oberon’s eyes were darker, although both sets were a mix of both Jasper’s spring green and my yellow. I glanced quickly from our two newest additions to Jasper and indulged in a moment of pride; we made beautiful babies together.

I stayed in the hospital a little longer than I did with Jasper because I’d just given birth to twins firstly, but secondly the nurses were concerned by the fact that Oberon reacted a little slower to things like my face , than the other babies including Ashe. He moved less, looked at people less and cried less.  I started to worry a little more myself with each shot and blood test he went through without results. Finally, after a month the doctors decided we could go home when there were no other tests they could do on my newborn. I eagerly took them home, worries firmly planted in the back of my mind.

            “Oberon is fine, he might just be a little slow,” Jasper assured me.

 His words and gestures of comfort didn’t make me feel any better and for the next year of Oberon’s life I studied manuscript after manuscript about babies and  what phases they needed to hit and when. Ashe was always ahead while Oberon was just a little behind.

            “Babies learn at different rates, he’s fine.” Jasper always assured me and I worried, but tried to put it aside on their birthday. I let them make a mess of their cakes and toddle after Basil wherever he went and I was happy and relaxed but a mother can never put her concerns away  for too long.

Phases of the Moone 1.9

For the longest time Basil showed no signs of being an occult. He didn’t have wings like Jasper and he didn’t transform during the full moon like me. I hoped that meant it was impossible for him to inherit my furry problem. That changed when his first birthday fell on a full moon. The moment the moon fully rose into the sky, just like me he transformed. His first target, our brand new love seat, and then he filled the apartment with a shrill, feral howl.

The rest of the night, besides that reveal, is a blur. I don’t even think my wolf side cared.Giving birth to a new werewolf meant it had the beginnings of a pack. Jasper assures me I never made plans like that, no matter what I thought the next morning. I’m not so sure, but I never acted on them. I  wish I could write my past self a letter assuring her that all the worrying she would do for the next several years was a waste of time, but I couldn't. 

Anyways, the next day Basil seemed unaffected by his transformation, but the next moon was always in the back of my mind in those days.  

Because the full moon interrupted any type of party we could have set on his actual birthday, we had a quiet family celebration the next day.  Jasper also wanted to get something really special for his first birthday, so we went to the Consignment shop of all places.

“There’s this really popular doll sold there that everyone is getting. Basil will love it!” he exclaimed like a child about to spend their Christmas money.

“If you say so.” I said.

It was a nice fall day and the Consignment store wasn’t too far away, so we walked. Basil rode on Jasper’s shoulders the entire time. At the time, that was the sweetest thing I’d ever seen.  Watching them together melted away my worries, at least until we got to the store and saw the dolls.  At the time there was a whole shelf dedicated to them and they all looked like differently colored clowns of the same mold and there was just something strange about them.

Jasper looked up towards Basil. “All right Bud, point to your favorite color." 

“Daddy, I wants that one.” Basil said and pointed to one that was some sort of off-salmon color.

“You don’t have to get one of the dolls if you don’t want it, Basil,”

Basil crossed his arms. “I do too wants her. Her name is Mizteree”

Jasper picked the doll up. “Mystery is a great name.” He handed the doll to Basil and paid the cashier. I didn’t argue anymore because Basil wanted it so badly and we were celebrating his birthday, but things only got stranger from there.  Anytime Basil had free time he was playing with or singing to the doll.

At one point I got so concerned I asked Jasper, “Do you think he’s lonely? Does he need siblings?  I mean I know you work from home, but I am gone a lot during the day...”

“ I’m sure it’s just a phase, plus you should be proud of how far you’ve come, you’re the Assistant Fire Chief now. Plus I wouldn’t call working noon to five working a lot during the day,” Jasper said.

I agreed to stop worrying about it. It was common for toddlers to attach themselves to a certain stuffed animal or blanket. In hindsight I'm glad we bought him the doll, but it never stopped being unusual. 

***

Months went by and Jasper and I worked on teaching Basil anything we though he might need to know. When he learned most of his basics I started wanting more kids for  entirely different reasons.

One day, near the full moon  I randomly burst into tears after work.

Jasper immediately pulled me into a hug. “What’s wrong, Ramona?”  he asked after we ended the embrace.

“Basil is growing up so fast! In just a couple years he’ll be starting kindergarten and then middle school and…”  I blubbered.

Jasper hugged me again and then whispered in a husky voice,“ Does this mean you want to try for more?” 

 My tears stopped and I whispered back, "Sounds fun to me.

***

            It didn’t take long before a familiar wave of nausea woke me up a few mornings later.  The doctor’s visits that followed confirmed it, I was pregnant but this time we were expecting twins.

            The car ride back home was quiet. Basil was asleep in his car seat and both Jasper and I were reeling from the news.

            “Jasper, I think we should buy a house,” I said breaking the silence.

            “I was thinking the same thing,” he said. 

Phases of the Moone 1.8

When my “stomach bug” didn’t go away I took the day off of work and went to the doctor’s office with Jasper. When the doctor told us that I wasn’t sick, but rather pregnant I remember Jasper breathed a sigh of relief and then his cheek-to-cheek grin filled his face.

“Can I feel your belly?” he asked

“As soon as we get back to the apartment,” I said.

Once home I obliged his request and a look of pure contentment filled his face. “What do we want to name our child?” he asked.

I smiled." We don't even know the sex yet, we should figure that out before we start brainstorming baby names.  

What I didn’t tell Jasper at the time was that I was far more concerned about my child’s species rather than their sex. What if they were a werewolf like me and lived in fear of themselves every day? What if a hybrid was born and the fairy and werewolf genes didn’t mix well?  Could I even give birth to a fairy if the baby took after Jasper?  I should have voiced my concerns, but I didn’t. Jasper just looked so happy and excited about the new baby and I didn’t want to kill the mood.

            I kept my issues to myself until the day my water broke. It was a grim, gray, autumn day. Fog hung over Moonlight Falls and by then most of the trees were bare. We were sitting on our couch and a booming thunderclap filled the air.

            Moments later I felt excruciating pain in my abdomen. “Jasper. It’s time.” Adrenaline pumped through my veins as the worries I’d been having surfaced all over again.

            After that  the car ride, hospital lobby, serious-faced doctors and pain  blurred together until I held Basil Windstone Moone in my arms and then everything crystallized into a single moment of elation as I looked into my son’s face.  The elation faded and I burst to tears.

            “What’s wrong?” Jasper asked and all my worries came flooding out. After a few soft assurances by Jasper I felt a lot better and a few days later we returned home with our brand new son. 

            Rasputin regarded him with wary acceptance and all my worries seemed to have gone to bed. I wasn’t even worried about the full moon, because I knew I would never hurt my own child. He didn’t even cry when my wolf side came out once  as I was putting him down for the night. 

 A year later I would realize that his lack of fear foreshadowed a whole new issue that Basil would have to deal with his entire life. 

Phases of the Moone 1.7

        A few weeks passed and we still hadn’t made any real wedding plans, nor had we set a date to go up to the courthouse because work kept us both busy. Jasper was getting more and more clients asking about his fresh produce and there was always one fire or another for me to put out, including a few big ones. Eventually all of our work paid off and we were both up for promotions again. Jasper’s stipend increased and I became a Back draft Specialist, which basically meant I handled all the paperwork while still jumping when the alarm went off in the station.

After one particular tedious day where I never even left my office I went home in a grumpy mood.

            My mood immediately lifted when Jasper greeted me with a big smile and said, “Let’s get married.  We can have a little private ceremony right here and then we can go to the courthouse and get the papers signed in the morning.”

            “Sounds good to me. I don’t think there’s really a need to wait any longer,” I said.

            Jasper got the rings and we used the extra room (that used to be his) as a makeshift chapel.  We exchanged rings and sealed the deal with a soft, lingering kiss. I still don’t regret that we got married like we did. It was short, sweet and the perfect expression of our love we still have for each other.

The next morning, even before the ink was dry on our wedding certificate I found Rasputin a kennel and booked  us a trip to Bridgeport so we could have some sort of honeymoon, even if it was for only a couple days.

*** 

The moment  we stepped off our plane in the Bridgeport airport we were hit with a wave a heat simply not found in Moonlight Falls. The wave practically knocked me off my feet.

            “Fall should not be this hot.” I grumbled.

            Jasper smirked and desire filled his eyes. “I can think of something we can do while we wait for it to cool down.”

            I pulled him into the elevator and to our sky rise style hotel room. Even before the door completely closed behind us we were pulling each other’s clothes off. By the time we actually reached the bed we were already half undressed and in the middle of making out.

            “I love you, Ramona” Jasper said.

            “I love you to.” I answered.

I’d rather not go into detail about what happened next, most people can guess what happened on their own.

     A little while later it cooled down enough that we decided to tour the Plumbob Pictures Backlot.  While the history of Plumbob pictures was interesting and everything our tour guide spoke in a monotonous voice and rushed through most of the film studio. We eventually just slipped away from the group to do a little exploring on our own. Jasper was much better tour guide. Not only was he ten times more handsome than our guide, but his interpretation of him was hilarious, especially when he did that after shifting to a smaller size. While tiny, his voice was super high pitched, like he’s drank a whole canister of helium. I still laugh whenever I think of that impression.  He’ll still do it occasionally, but I’m no longer his main audience.

  

            By the time we were done with the backlot the sun had set and all the clubs, sports bars and lounges Bridgeport is known  for were open ( not to mention it was a little cooler).  We decided to keep it simple the first night and went to a little place called Bridgeport Sportszone. The term greasy spoon fit  Sportszone to a T. The place was tiny and not exactly pretty and there wasn’t even any live music. Despite the ramshackle appearance, it actually did have a VIP room and Jasper used his magic to distract the bouncer in front of it so I could slip in and he could follow a little while later.

 Once inside we ordered pizza from the barkeep and found a quiet  table in a corner of the to eat it.  Each slice was about the size of my face and literally dripped grease, but it was the best pizza I’d ever eaten.

     After I finished the pizza I went back to the bar and ordered a drink.  While it tasted fine, it wasn’t nearly as good as the pizza. Jasper and I concluded  the Sportszone made a better lunch place where you grab a beer simply to wash down the incredible bar food the cooks offered. 

 Shortly after we finished our drinks we went back to the hotel and ended the night on a high note with some fun in the elevator. After that I’m pretty sure  we both fell asleep the instant out heads hit the pillow.

***

            The next day we woke up a little late and then spent the rest of the daylight hours in our hotel rooms. Partially because it was hot and partially because we kept finding things to do, after the sun set me headed to a nicer bar called Eugi’s where formal dress was required. Inside it was a lot cleaner than Bridgeport Sportszone and the barkeep played music between drinks and higher end bar food.  He played really well too, Jasper and I couldn’t help but dance until our feet grew sore.

 After we finished dancing we had a couple tasty cocktails and some  deliciously rich bar foods.

            After I was pretty sure my stomach was going to burst I turned to Jasper and asked, “Do you want to play a few rounds of darts?”

            He shook his head. “Nah, I’ve never really gotten the hang of  that game, but I’ll watch you. Maybe I'll even provide a little extra luck if you find someone to challenge.

            I’m not sure whether Jasper used his magic or not, but I did find someone to challenge and I did beat them.

 After I won the dart match there really wasn’t much else to do at Eugi’s. For the rest of the night we traveled around Bridgeport trying to see at least one of the lounges, but most seemed to be reserved for the city’s celebrities. We tried to use the same trick we used to get in the Sportszone’s VIP room in one, but that  bouncer was a lot less forgiving and we were kicked out of the lounge. At that point we decided to call it a night.

***

             The next day was our last in Bridgeport. Once again we slept late and had a flight back home at 7:00 pm that night, so we came to the conclusion that we could only visit one last place before the trip was over.  After being kicked out of a lounge the previous night we decided to avoid the clubs and such and went to The True Modern Art Gallery.  Not surprisingly there was still a bar inside the museum. The barkeep was a rather closed off woman who served so-so drinks. She also made really awful cheese plates, but the true star of the gallery was the art and there were a few gorgeous pieces.  My personal favorite was a blue vase displayed with some other, to put it politely, interesting sculptures that included a lawn flamingo.

After we viewed the entire gallery we returned to our hotel room and reluctantly started packing. Once everything was packed we finished the trip by watching the stars until we had to leave for the airport. 

A few weeks later I started puking my guts out, especially in the morning. At the time I was  confused and little terrified, I never got sick! All these  years later I can look back at that "mysterious illness" and smile. 

Phases of the Moone 1.6

The next day at work was pretty slow. I spent most of it working out firetruck to make sure that it ran efficiently.  The combined with many other factors including the small fire I swiftly put out later  on during my swift led me to being promoted to Fire Captain. The only bad thing about the promotion was  I'd be work a little later, but not too late  that I couldn't see Jasper. 

 I rushed home immediately after my shift and told Jasper the good news. Apparently the vegetables he grew to sell were worth a lot more now as well.

                “I can even make them bloom magically so I can sell them faster. Watch this!” he practically skipped over to one of his plants and within seconds it had bloomed.

                “Isn’t that cheating a little bit?” I asked.

                He smirked. “Why work harder when you can work smarter or at least take advantage of your skills?”  I was about to agree when he grabbed my hand. “We should celebrate.”

I wasn’t sure what he planned until when ended up in front of the elevator.  “Want to be part of the floor 10 club?” he asked, his eyes glinting with mischief.

Most of the other people in our apartment were in bed, so I gently grabbed him by his apron straps with one hand and pressed the up button of the elevator with the other, so the doors opened and I pulled him in side. I’m sure most people can guess what happened next.

               

I don’t know  whether I was simply riding a wave of complete bliss or what, but the moment we stepped back into our apartment I dropped down on one knee and proposed to Jasper right then and there. The only ring I had was a white ,plastic one a little girl gave me in return for putting out the day’s fire. Without hesitation he said yes. 

            I spent the next few days on cloud nine. The only other person on it with me was Jasper Windstone. In our little bubble we combined our rooms into one and decided that we’d take my name since I was the main breadwinner between to two of us ( not that Jasper minded that and his gardening business did help quite a bit). He also wasn’t a fan of his last name for some reason. To this day, I don’t know why. The biggest explanation he’s given me is that he simply didn’t like how it sounded.

             As for wedding plans, we didn’t make any besides buying matching gold bands. During that phase of our life there were important things to worry about, like paying bills. I called my mom exactly once and asked her about it. She suggested simply going to the local courthouse since big weddings weren’t worth the expense.

            “Trust me, I had a big wedding and it was the most stressful months of my life and your father and I’s ceremony lasted barely twenty minutes, “she said during the phone call. 

One thing Jasper did strongly suggest was a Bachelor party for him and Bachelorette party for me.

“You should always take advantage of an excuse to celebrate if it presents itself,” he said. “It keeps the world sane.”

I agreed, but only if it was a combined Bachelor- Bachelorette party.  For one any party was expensive  enough and for two I really didn’t want one. The closest thing I had to a friend (besides Jasper) was Baylee Howler and even then we weren’t exactly bosom-buddies. He agreed to my  terms.

***

We set the Bachelor-Bachelorette party for the following Friday and I didn’t even bother to take off from work.  The party started an hour after my shift ended and it really wasn’t that great.  The most annoying thing about the whole evening was that Baylee hired one of her friends as “entertainment” for the evening. While I’m sure part of woman’s job description was to be flirty with Jasper, her actions bothered me so much,  my wolf side came out at the party. I vaguely remember fighting Baylee over  the issue, since she hired the exotic dancer. Other than that, no one was hurt, but poor Rasputin spent the rest of the evening hiding in his fish basket. 

Eventually I calmed down, returned to my human form and ended the evening by spraying Jasper with Champagne, thus bringing  the disastrous evening to an end.  After that Jasper and I agreed to never throw a party like that again. 

However, Jasper still insists that despite all the chaos that went down during the party, he had a good time. I couldn't disagree more. 

Phases of the Moone 1.5

                The day after Leisure Day I went to work walking on air. My mood immediately diminished when I realized no one else was at work that day, and their shifts started before mine. Since everyone else decided to play hooky I focused on maintaining the fire station, just in case an emergency did happen. I started with the fire alarms and worked my way through the station, fixing anything that needed it. I finished the day by inspecting the fire truck  and working out a little. 

 By the time my shift ended, everything hurt. As usual Jasper patiently listened to my rants about work.  When I finished venting, I realized there was a childish excitement in Jasper’s eyes, like he wanted to tell me something exciting.  I felt a little bad for ranting so long.

                “How was your day, Babe?’ I asked.

                The usual huge grin filled his face. “Since we’re together now, and have already lived together for a while now, I was thinking that it might be fun to adopt a cat .”

 I paused as familiar worries filled my head.  What if my wolf side hurt the cat or worse yet got hungry and decided kitty tartar would hit the spot?  “I don’t know about that, Jasper. “

                “You’re worried about you wolf side again, aren’t you?” He asked and I nodded. I swear his green eyes can still see right through me.  “How many times do I need to tell you that your wolf side is not violent at all? I bet you’d be more likely to protect your cat than eat it. Wolves are really protective of those they care about after all. “

                I was still hesitant, but said, “All right, but if anything happens, or almost happens to this cat next full moon, we’ll find a safer home for it. Agreed?”

                “Agreed.” 

***

                After a few weeks of research and browsing various adoption centers and houses in town where cats had recently given birth we came across a shy, Russian Blue at a local shelter and fell in love immediately.  Jasper named him Rasputin and I agreed that it suited him.  He took a little longer to warm up to me than Jasper, but the moment he crawled into my lap right before bed my hurt melted.  While not religious, I prayed that he could stay with us as long as he wished. 

Phases of the Moone: 1.4

The days after the full moon passed by without incident, I tolerated my co-workers and struggled between acting on my newly discovered feelings for Jasper and my fear that my wolf side would hurt him or my kids one day. He constantly told me I need not worry, especially since I’d never done anything particularly violent since I’d  first transformed.  All those worried were shoved to the side when I received my first true emergency since I’d become a fire woman.

                Like usually the sound of the fire alarm filled the firehouse and I immediately took the fastest route possible to the firetruck and towards the site of the fire. When to the correct location my jaw dropped, it was much bigger fire than I was used to  and people were actually trapped inside.. 

 Once I calmed myself down it was simply of matter of killing all the flames, busting the doors down and  carefully guiding everyone out of the house.  The job took much longer than it should have, but no one experienced any permanent damage.  I managed to save most of the house  as well

 When I reached the firehouse house my heart still beat rapidly in my chest. The rest of the firefighters must have been feeling something similar, because nobody said a word for a long time.  Larry being Larry decided to break the tension by pulling the closest woman into a kiss who happened to be me. 

I immediately pulled away and Baylee scolded him. Instead of being affected though he simply smirked and said, “Thank God we made it through that mess!”

       Either  out of annoyance that he didn’t listen to her scolding or from a delayed stress reaction from the fire, Baylee transformed into her werewolf form and wrestled  him to the ground.  Me and my boss buried out heads in books while we waited for the scene to end. To this day, I still don’t understand other werewolves and their out of control behaviors.

            When the day finally ended I was more than happy to return home. The events of the day came back fullforce and I sat down and leaned back on  the coach. Jasper sit next to he  and  listened patiently while I ranted about my day and when I finished he pulled me into is side and squeezed my shoulders.  After the mess of the day just melted away.

His cooldown hugs are still just as powerful as they were then, but what he did next and everything that followed is why that hug in particular stands out in my mind.

            “So tomorrow is Leisure Day, would you like to go to the Summer Festival with me?” he asked.

            “Yes,” I said without even considering a no .

            He smiled. “Great! We can head out tomorrow after I water my plants.”

 ****

 The next day we left for the Summer Festival just after ten.  The delay was caused partially because of Jasper’s garden and partially because of a phone call from City Hall that informed me that I’d been promoted. Jasper congratulated to me and we headed to the Summer Festival.   

            The moment we arrived an ear-to-ear grin filled Jasper’s face and he ran straight to the face painting booth. I walked over to a lone soccer goal with a ball in front of it. I kicked the ball into the goal a few times to sharpen my coordination.

            A few moments later Jasper ran over to me and pointed to his face. “What do you think?”

            I looked up and stifled a laugh; he’d painted his face like a clown’s.  “Looks great. “  

            Jasper gave me a playful glare and then used his whole arm to point at the soccer ball. “I challenge you to a shoot-out.”

            I smirked. “You’re on.”

The shoot-out went on for about half an hour before Jasper declared me the winner. Moments later a blaring horn filled the air. Jasper grabbed my hand and pulled me over to a booth dedicated to a hot dog eating contest. Seeing no other option  and thinking it could be fun I entered the contest with him. 

 Bits of hot dog and bun dribbled from everyone’s mouths in waves, to the point that I started to feel queasy and gave up first.  Every now and then I glanced back at the contest to see how Jasper was doing, but not long enough to lose my lunch. Eventually he was declared the winner just as the sun started to set.

            Jasper cleaned himself up in the restroom while I waited outside, enjoying the cool evening air and the soft music playing in background.

            After he came out of the bathroom Jasper walked over to me and asked, “ Wanna dance? As champions we should reward ourselves.”

            “I agree.” I said and let him grab my waist and pull me to the dance floor.

            My yellow eyes locked with his spring green ones and words were rendered unnecessary.  As the song went on we drew closer and closer until we were moving cheek-to-cheek.

            “Ramona, I would really like to kiss you now. Is that okay?” Jasper asked.

            I hesitated a moment, caught off-guard by the question. Jasper’s ever present smile dropped a little and another formed on my face. “Jasper, I would love a kiss from you.”

            His kiss started out slow and I deepened it. His lips tasted earthy and sweet like the plants he grew.

            “Can I ask you something else?” he said after the kiss ended.

            “What?”

            “Do you want to be my girlfriend?”

            I answered his question by leaping into his arms and kissing him again. 

________________________________________________________________________

A/N I actually blended to trips to the Summer Festival here. Originally it was after the first trip that she fell for him and after the second that they started going out, but decided against it because two dates to the Summer Festival seemed like it could be boring. See previous entry to see how I made her realize her feeling for Jasper.