Not the moment, not the place

Maeve always liked to wait for Lucien to finish her job in one of the old rooms in the highest floor of the university. It was a more secluded place, with less people going around which allowed her to rest on the old velvet couch and read comfortably like if she was at her own house. She had even closed the door so that no one would bother her, after all Lucien could just open the door when he arrived it. The lock had creaked a little when she closed it but perhaps it had been just a “noise that old mechanism does” kind of thing.

Suddenly she felt a cramp in her lower belly and she scowled, since the birth was near she was getting random cramps lately and it she couldn’t wait for it to be over. She felt clumsy and uncomfortable and couldn’t wait to pop out the kid.
Suddenly she felt two cramps coming and they were a bit too intense and a bit too closer but she assumed it was just a coincidence, besides Lucien was about to come.

Lucien had been doing his best to finish up as much work as possible before the baby came. He planned to work from home for a while after, so that he can help Maeve adjust and not feel like she is going to have to do it all on her own. He wanted to be an active part in raising their child. The University seemed to understand. He planned to ease back into work slowly after the child was born.

As he finished grading the last few papers he had sitting on his desk, he decided it was time to head home. He locked up his office and went to find Maeve in her usual spot. He entered the room, but closed the door behind him a bit harder than he’d planned, not realising how bad the lock was.

Hey my sweet. You ready to head home? He asked as he walked over to her and kissed the top of her head. Then took a closer look at the look on her face that she had at the moment. Is everything all right? He asked, something about her demeanour felt off, but then maybe it was just a pregnancy thing.

“I feel …crampy” she said as she placed her hand on her lower belly, another cramp hitting her with a strenght that left her breathless. She got up as fast as she could suddenly feeling that something was coming, she should have expected it a lot of other nobles with kids had warned her that it wasn’t uncommon for a birth to happen a week or two before the theorical date. “I want to go home, just that” she said as she moved towards the door, trying to open it without success.

“Andraste’s flaming ass what in the Maker’s name” she said pushing harder as she twisted the knob in order to open the door, only a creaking of the door lock being the only answer “What the fuck is happening”

And another cramp hit her, more intense than the previous ones and she felt a shift of pressure. Before she could see it she felt the telltale feeling of a liquid running down her legs. “Shit” she said as she tried to hit the door with the shoulder “This fucker won’t open!!” she said in panic.

Lucien didn’t like the way the cramps sounded, he also didn’t like seeing the woman he loved in pain, but there was little that he could do about that beyond be there for her and be morally and emotionally supportive.

Well, we should get to the healers, or doctors, or, somewhere He followed Maeve as she went to the door, and nearly walked into the back of her when she couldn’t get it open. He backed up a step. He tried to stay calm. Here, let me try. Not that Maeve wasn’t strong enough, but he couldn’t just stand there and do nothing. He tried, and pushed and pulled, and nothing. The door was good and jammed. He turned back to Maeve.

Think anyone would hear us if we pound and yell? Suddenly a thought came to him, if she was in labour, and they couldn’t get out, and no one else could get in, then that meant she was going to have the baby right there with him being the only one that could help. His face suddenly went as white as a ghost.

If Maeve had been a bit more calm she would have realized that the way that the door was jammed meant that the lock had possibly broken when the door had closed, which could only be fixed with hours of work and good thief tools but a part of her refused to believe that the damned door was locked.

“I don’t know but I am fucking going to try” she said as she started to aggressively pound the door despite of the pain. She was sweating, as pale as Lucien when another cramp made her lean against the door while sweating. “You keep going, I am going to the couch” she said swallowing.

She laid down on the couch “Rosalie told me that first time delivers could take up to 12 hours to give birth, surely someone will assist us before?” she said trying to convince herself.

Rosalie was carrying some books back to the library when she heard some muffled yelling in the end of the hall. She sighed, it seemed to come from the old study room where she had caught people doing more stuff than studying. She was about to turn around, deciding that whatever was happening there wasn’t her business when she heard another voice, a stronger one which was familiar.

She approached carefully “Hello? There’s anyone there?” she asked curiously as she got closer; the door was definitively closed and she wasn’t going to open it again until she was asked to; she still had too fresh in her mind what had happened the last time that she opened a door without asking for permission first.

Twelve hours?!?! He definitely sure as fuck hoped they’d get out of there before that long. The full realisation that the fact Maeve was in labour, coupled with the fact they were stuck in the room, probably meant delivering the baby himself if someone couldn’t get them out of there was just starting to sink in. Which urged him to pound and yell louder on the door that was still stuck firmly in place.

When he heard a familiar voice on the other side of the door, his face lit up. This was perfect, even if Rosalie couldn’t get the door open, at least she’d be able to help him with what he needed to do. He vaguely remembered his younger siblings being born, back when he was a child. He remembered a lot of screaming coming from his mother’s room, but he’d never actually gone inside while it was happening.

"Rosalie! Oh thank God it's you!" he cried out upon seeing me, his voice edged with a palpable mix of fear and relief. "We're stuck here! We can't get the blasted door open and, to top it all off, Maeve has gone into labour! She's started contractions and we're trapped here without any medical help!" His words tumbled out in a rush, each one heavy with the overwhelming anxiety that he was experiencing.

Maeve lied down on the couch taking deep breaths as she heard Rosalie’s voice on the other side of the door. It was reassuring to have someone that actually knew that was to deliver a baby even if she wasn’t next to her physically “Don’t let her go!” yelled Maeve when she heard Lucien speak. She knew that the most logical course of action would be to allow Rosalie to go leave to seek help but she was scared and stressed. The pressure in her lower abdomen was increasing and the contractions were starting to get closer and stronger.

Maeve could feel tears running down her face, she didn’t know if it was because of the pain or because of the situation. She tried to keep her shit together “Rosalie what should we do now?” she asked out loud.

One would think that someone as sweet and soft as Rosalie would block in this situation but the medical instincts kicked in and she entered in business mode, her voice calm and she gave the pair the instructions.

“Lucien, try to find clean linens, as many as you can in order to create a clean surface for Maeve to give birth. Depending on the dilatation downside we do have time to look for help or not. If it’s more than 10 centimeters things are getting started now but don’t worry if there’s no incidents you don’t need real assistance, only guidance” explained the blonde as she waited to hear feedback from Lucien, since she assumed that Maeve wouldn’t be in position to do anything but panic.

Lucien, overwhelmed but determined, began to scurry around the room in search of linens. I'm here, Maeve, he called out, trying to reassure her as he gathered what he could. Despite the chaos, he was doing his best to follow Rosalie's instructions. He laid out the linens on the floor, trying to make a comfortable space for the impending birth. Alright, I’ve got fabric, I hope old drapes will do. What's next, Rosalie? As he talked he worked at getting Maeve situated on the drapes and in as comfortable position as possible.

“Pay attention to the amount of blood that she’s losing; to bleed during birthright is normal which is why I asked you to arrange the linens but if the amount starts to be worrisome or Maeve starts to feel weak we will have to perform a caesarean section” she said really hoping that he wouldn’t have to do that, because it was a new technique which was already hard to perform for experienced surgeons. Her faith on Lucien being able to do one on his own was low at best.
Rosalie thought for a moment to give him instructions to check on the cervix dilatation but she thought quickly that likely it would be too much for Lucien “Ok so now Maeve has to relax and let things go on it’s natural pace, meanwhile I will pay attention to see if someone comes across”

Maeve didn’t know what normal amount of bleeding was and considering how the contractions were getting closer and stronger she wasn’t in the position to give a shit anymore. She merely grabbed Lucien’s hand, crushing his fingers with each contraction; if she broke him a finger then collateral damage was meant to happen.

The pressure was shifting and going lower as time passed, she couldn’t believe that the fucking university was empty or whatever the fuck was happening for no one to come around to help. She knew that this area was less busy but really? Only Rosalie and Lucien? She couldn’t keep track of time, as far as she knew hours had passed or perhaps it had been minutes as the pressure point on her abdomen got lower and lower.

Lucien took a deep breath, trying to steady himself despite the fear gripping him. He glanced at Maeve, offering her a reassuring smile, even though his heart was pounding.

Alright, Maeve, you're doing great, he said, his voice as calm as he could manage. Rosalie, I've got the linens ready. I'm watching for the blood. Maeve, just keep focusing on your breathing, like we practiced.

He squeezed Maeve's hand gently, trying to convey strength and calm. We're in this together, love. You've got this. Just let things happen naturally, and I'll be here every step of the way.

Turning his attention back to the door, he called out to Rosalie, Okay, Rosalie, what do I need to do next? Please, walk me through everything. We need to make sure Maeve and the baby are safe.

He kept his voice steady, hoping it would give Maeve the confidence she needed. Inside, he was terrified, but he knew he had to stay focused for her sake.

@Maeve Valathrian
@Rosalie Rutherford

Rosalie took a deep breath as she heard the rustle of Lucien moving around through the door. She couldn’t know how it was going or how long it would take. Usually deliveries lasted for hours so technically she could try to leave in order to find help but what if something happened while she was away? No, she preferred to remain here with the couple. If she was there she would have ways to know how long there was left for the real delivery but she didn’t want to make Lucien more nervous with such specific instructions.

She sat down, giving gentle reassurance through the door as the minutes turned into hours when she heard a sharp cry followed by a sob. Well, either things had turned very wrong or things were getting started. “How is it looking? If everything is going right the most difficult part which is the head should go first, you don’t need to do anything unless I specifically instruct you Lucien, just place your hands so that obviously the baby doesn’t like you know…fall down.” It was a obvious instruction but you never knew with first parents.

Maeve bit her tongue in order to not reply something very rude at the bit of you got this. She felt so incredibly out of control in this precise moment that her head was spinning but even she knew that taking it on Lucien was not the right answer.
Time passed and the pain started to increase slowly until there was a contraction that was markedly worse than the previous ones. Maeve yelled at the sudden increase of pressure, a sob escaping her lips before she clasped her mouth shut.

“Yea yea don’t drop the kid because considering how much this shit hurts it’s gonna be the only one we are getting” she said attempting to joke in order to calm her own nerves.