#sunshine fitzherbert

"You six got a bottle for that baby, or do you need me to grab some formula?"

Pwease 🥺

-birb

She was planned, Ginny was planning on getting pregnant and having a kid. Ginny was extremely diligent about prenatal care and making sure she was keeping herself healthy during the pregnancy. She was so, so excited for this.

Sunshine is Diego's, they can tell because her hair is black at the roots but silver at the ends, kind of like the iconic de Vil black-and-white hair, only her hair is silver instead of white because she has Ginny's magic. Of course, the plan was to raise her with both Anthony and Diego as her dads, and Harriet and Ginny as her mums, the same way Aeden and Faolan were being raised. Diego got so, so, so excited when they found out Sunshine was a girl. He wanted a daughter so much (he loves the boys just as much, of course, he was just thrilled because now they had two boys and a girl.)

Aeden and Faolan were already being pretty good brothers to her. They didn't quite understand the concept of what was going on because they are also babies but they accepted her pretty much instantly. They just know the boys are going to grow up to be such good older brothers.

So far, Sunshine has been a pretty easy baby. She sleeps well, eats well, and she's perfectly healthy, no concerns for any part of her health.

Unfortunately, the malnutrition Ginny has grown up with means she can't feed Sunshine, and there's no formula on the Isle. That's why she needs to send Sunshine away, because it's either that or let her starve. And Ginny is Sunshine's mom, she wants the best life possible for her baby girl. Even if Sunshine having that best life means she has to live a life away from her mother. Besides, the Isle is getting too dangerous to raise a baby on, anyway. Especially when Sunshine is the baby of such a high-profile person, founder and leader of the Silver Cross, former leader of the Forgotten Children Ginny Gothel. And Ginny's "grandmother" is getting kind of weird, Ginny was worried she'd find out about Sunny and react negatively. So Ginny needed to send Sunshine to live with Ginny's birth parents, Sunshine's grandma and grandpa. She'll be safe there, and they'll have the resources to get formula to feed her. It breaks her heart, but she'll do anything for her baby.

And by the way, when Ginny finally gets to visit Sunshine, her baby recognized her immediately. Ginny had been so scared she wouldn't, but the way Sunshine lit up, her joy glowing as brightly as the light she'd been named for, told her that her little girl recognized her mommy. And Ginny definitely didn't cry (she did but Anxelin didn't mention it.)

Seeing the nursery her parents and sister had set up for not only Ginny's baby but for the boys (Jasmine housed Aeden and Faolan with Rapunzel and Eugene because she knows that Harriet and Ginny are together, so Rapunzel and Eugene are basically their grandparents, too,) and she knew she'd made the right choice in sending her baby to live with her family. Sunshine and the boys would be happy there, healthy, safe, cherished as all children deserve to be until they could reunite and be a family again. It was the biggest relief of her life.

She may have seemed furious, but Ben could see the frenzy and the glittering in her eyes. She wasn't angry, she was terrified.

"Fuck this, I'm calling in the big guns." Before he could ask what that meant, Maverick put her fingers to her temple and closed her eyes. "Maverick Mim to all points-" Mal and Evie startled, their hairs flying to their heads. "Beast's men are on the Isle. I don't know where they are and I don't know how many, so I'm calling a heavy DEFCON two until further notice. Be prepared for this to escalate to a DEFCON one." Her face was grim and seemed far too old. "And be prepared for evacuation."

Hook's daughter and the de Vil boy shared an unhappy look. The silver-haired girl gave them a watery smile. "It's okay, loves, go help. Your teams need you. Anthony and I will make sure our sunshine stays safe."

The Hook girl nodded and, as the de Vil boy wiped away the start of tears, gave the silver-haired girl and the Indian man a kiss, then dipped down to press a kiss to the forehead of the baby. "No matter what, Sunshine, remember that we love you. I'm sorry. Please, my beautiful girl, remember that all we want for you is the best. I love you."

The de Vil boy copied her, kissing the other two and then the baby. "Te amo, mi luz del sol. Nunca olvides eso."

I love you, my sunshine. Never forget that.

With only a final lingering glance at the baby, as though trying to remember her tiny face, the two left. The silver-haired girl let out a quiet sob.

When he looked back at Maverick, it was to see another tear harden into a diamond. Still, her voice didn't shake. "Maverick Mim to Exile. We're preparing to evacuate and I need as many as you can spare over here for defense. I'm sending Gonzalo over. Over and out." She glanced at Mara. "Maverick Mim to the Thirteen. I need you all in the bunker now. Over and out." She nodded to Facilier, who stepped through the doorway and seemed to vanish into thin air. "Maverick Mim to all members of Sanctum. We're preparing for a large-scale evacuation and we are in a heavy DEFCON two, likely going to go full nuclear. Get everyone you can to designated bunkers and await further instruction. Over and out." And then, after a moment of deliberation, she cursed. "Fuck it. Maverick Mim to Grandma Gert and Auntie Del. I need your help down here. It's Riah and I don't wanna take any chances. Over and out."

"Evacuate where?" How exactly were they going to evacuate anything, let alone have a "large-scale evacuation," if there was nowhere to evacuate to?

Maverick gave him a nasty look. "Well, sweetheart, I obviously can't tell you that because if you betray us and join your daddy in trying to wipe us out, you'll know exactly where to send your armies to wipe us out. Besides, it's not your business." She glanced behind them, back to the doorway, and Ben turned to see what she was looking at.

If he had thought Maverick was a tank, she was a cupcake compared to the absolute mountain of a woman who had appeared in the doorway.

The woman was easily a foot and a half taller than Ben and bigger than even Gaston, bigger than even his father in Beast mode- easily three hundred pounds of pure muscle. Her shoulders were broad enough that she must have needed to duck through the doorway, her arms as big as a linebacker's leg and her long legs like tree trunks, and her build was strong- not the aesthetic-but-weak muscle of a bodybuilder, but the strong, broad frame of a strongman, like Maui. Her amber face was grave, her red-painted lips pulled into a concerned frown, her heavy, dark red eyebrows drawn, her blood-red eyes tight. She was in full black-and-gold armour and had a massive sword strapped to her hip- that thing must have been as big as Mara- a black-and-gold helmet with a skull faceplate held in one massive hand.

He was so shocked by the tank woman that it took him a second to realize that she wasn't alone. Behind her, with skin so dark she seemed to melt into the shadows, was an Indian woman with curly black hair that went down to her shoulders, and black eyes that made Ben feel as though he was drowning. Her armour was more skin-tight and black, like Cassandra's black rock armour, and she had black leather belts crossed across her torso and slung on her hips with dozens of black throwing daggers.

The third was younger, maybe thirteen, with sly, slanted features. Her eyes were emerald green and sparkled with mischief, and her mouth was wide with thin lips that seemed ready to smirk. She had the longest hair, a thick red braid that went down to her knees, and she was dressed in light, ninja-like clothes for easier movement. She gave him a resentful look, then raised her hand to make an L shape on her forehead.

Somehow, that kindergarten insult genuinely hurt.

"Are you prepared for evacuation?" Maverick asked, leg bouncing nervously.

The tank nodded. "Everything's ready and Circe and Medusa are doing everything they can so you'll have more than you need. The second you make the call, we're ready."

"Thank the gods." The three women shared a smirk. "Justice, I want you and Hades to stay with Riah, let me know the second he's awake. Dawn, I want you in the hall. Hati, I need you to arm the hospital with every trick you've got. Where the fuck is-"

"Lydia?" A child stepped out from behind the tank. She was absolutely tiny, barely five feet tall even with her thick platforms, and thin, with choppy, raven-black hair and strange, green-grey eyes. Gods, she was absolutely tiny- she couldn't have been older than ten! And yet she was covered in blood, most of it fresh. "Maddy was being a bitch as usual. If you hadn't called DEFCON she wouldn't've let me leave. I got two hours or else Constantine..." she grimaced. "Yeah, you know. Now, what happened?"

Oh gods, they had called a child in to screen Riah for internal bleeding. Maverick didn't seem to find anything wrong with it. "He's got von Willebrand and he fell down the stairs, we just want to make sure he's alright."

"Got it. Shouldn't take longer than fifteen, I'll meet you in the commons when the assessment is done. I need Mordred with me. Gotta make sure the kid stays asleep." She stepped further into the room and glared up at Ben. "The fuck do you think you're staring at, Blondie?"

"You're a child."

She moved faster than he could think, grabbing him by the arm and twisting it behind his back, kicking his legs to bring him to his knees. She leaned close, speaking directly into his ear. "Motherfucker, I'm seventeen. And I know more about blood than you ever will. And if I didn't have a patient, I would show your dumb ass exactly why my name is feared on this godsforsaken rock. Now. Get. Out."

"Get his ass, Lydia." The tank strolled into the room and leaned against the wall. If she was staying, that would make her Justice.

Lydia let him go and Jay quickly helped him to his feet. "Trust me, man, you don't want to get into it with that one."

As Jay ushered his out of the room, Ben glanced back over his shoulder at the small girl talking quietly to Hades.

At least so far

Pasha Rasputin- Mischa Rasputin and Ivy de Vil, five years old. She speaks English, Russian, and her father's home sign. Rasputin does not know she exists and so help him gods Mischa is going to keep it that way.

Hayden Westergaard- Anna Westergaard, adopted by Shan Yu, almost six. He really likes the horses and exploring. Shan Yu will sometimes carry him on his shoulders so that Hayden can be tall.

Ash Westergaard- Anna Westergaard, adopted by Evie, almost four. She doesn't talk- they aren't sure if she ever will- so she uses home sign. She loves weaving and sewing. If left unattended she'll go out to Evie's garden and pick plants for dyes. She always knows exactly what dyes to use for the perfect color.

Josiah Westergaard- Anna Westergaard, adopted by Lydia Snoops. He said his first word recently, Mama, and Lydia definitely did not cry for nearly an hour.

Alaric LeGume- Belle LeGume, adopted by Want and Panic, two years old. He's very sweet, a lot like Gil, and he loves to follow Want around to see what she's doing.

Aeden Diego Jones- Harriet Hook, Anthony Tremaine, Diego de Vil, and Ginny Gothel, a few months old. He's a very sleepy child.

Faolan Anthony Jones- Harriet Hook, Anthony Tremaine, Diego de Vil, and Ginny Gothel, a few months old. He's very quiet and he always does what Aeden does.

Hope Uma Yzma- unknown parents, adopted by Yzla, a few months at best guess.

Expected

Sunshine Harriet Fitzherbert- Ginny Gothel, Diego de Vil, Anthony Tremaine, and Harriet Hook.

Stormi Bella Never- Narcissa Never and Jonas Never.