"No, the guy who was strong as an ox, until he let a woman seduce him into cutting his hair," he replied, hearing the story from a slightly different point of view. He'd heard the story for similar reasons, but he hadn't been born in the valley and he'd known different. He'd had a mother once and a sister, and he knew all women weren't like those in the valley.

"Don't look now, but I think you may have missed me seducing you," she laughed, deliberately pressing the gentle curve of their unborn child into his back. "In fact, if you listen hard enough, you might be able to hear the evidence cackling like the insane little megalomaniac that he is."

He grunted before muttering, "Who seduced who," though there was a soft smile on his face at the thought of the child growing inside her. "How do you know it's a boy?" he asked, chancing a glance at her over his shoulder, despite the scissors in her hand.

"Oh, I don't know what this one is," she laughed, pointing briefly to her little bump. "But I think it's a pretty safe bet that Aedan is definitely male, don't you think?" Holding the scissors between her teeth, she ran her fingers through his newly shortened hair, considering it for a moment. "I think I'm done, you know."

"Are you saying he's going to laugh at me?" he asked, sounding worried again. What was everyone going to say when they saw his haircut' He wasn't vain enough to care whether they liked it or not, but he didn't really want to be laughed at either.

"No, I'm not," she told him, sighing softly at this previously unknown talent he seemed to have of considering the worst possible reaction to any situation. "I'm saying if you listen hard enough, you can hear him laughing like an idiot right now. The pool isn't that far away, you know." She was right; the breeze was definitely carrying tones of toddler hilarity if you let yourself listen. "Aedan loves you, Mahon. A hair cut is not going to change that."

"I guess not," the big man replied, turning his head so he could better hear the sound of his son's laughter carrying on the breeze. He didn't want to always consider the worst - it was just something he'd learned in the valley, and yet, even there, he had never given up hope, never given up fighting for his freedom and hers.

She moved around to look at him from the front, her hands resting comfortably on her hips. "It's gonna take time not to expect all of this to go away," she reminded him softly. "I still have nightmares about being back in the valley; about being on that stake; about being the one to hurt you when she wanted it. But that's the past. Marka can't hurt anyone now. This is our home, with our family, and our son. No one can take this away from us."

His frown deepened at the thought of her on that stake. He'd never felt more terrified or enraged in all his life, and yet, here they were - safe and sound in the village with a home and a growing family of their own. That frown softened into a bittersweet smile as he reached to draw her into his lap, despite the snips of hair that still littered his lap. "It's hard to believe sometimes that it's over," he told her, resting the palm of his hand against the swell of her belly. "Should we go see what our son is up to or enjoy the moment?" he asked her in a voice that was uncharacteristically quiet.

Drawn down onto his lap, Nemone wrapped her arms about his shoulders. In the valley, when she had been pregnant with Aedan, they had never dared to be so openly affectionate with one another. Even when they were in the privacy of her quarters, there had always been the chance, however remote, of being discovered doing more than just rutting one another. Freed at last from that tyrannical regime, they had discovered an easiness with one another that came naturally. She smiled as his hand covered the swell at her waist. "That all depends," she mused faintly. "Do you want to splash around with your son, your sister, and your brother-in-law in three feet of icy cold water?"

He couldn't help but smile. "Put that way, I think I'll stay here," he told her, looking like he was in no hurry to join them, perfectly happy to stay here with her. Even now that they were free of the valley, moments like these were too rare and were made to be savored. "Perhaps you'll have a girl. That will make Brona happy," he said, hinting at the remark he'd made earlier about his sister threatening to braid his hair. She wouldn't be able to threaten him with that anymore.

Nemone laughed softly, touching her temple to his as she relaxed in his arms, not at all bothered by the snipped hair that currently decorated him. "Perhaps I will," she conceded with a warm smile. "Can't help hoping for another boy, though. Maybe it comes from growing up surrounded by women." A faint frown touched her brow as a thought occurred to her. "I hope Ember has a boy. A girl ....that might be kicking her where it hurts a little."

"We've lost too many boys," Mahon said in a quiet voice. While he hoped to have a daughter someday, he, too, thought sons were needed. They'd lost too many sons to the women in the valley, to those who thought sons were worthless. His fingers caressed the swell of her tummy, gentle and tender. "It does not matter to me if we have a son or a daughter, so long as our child is healthy. That is all that matters, Nem."

"I know," she promised him softly, nuzzling close for a long moment. "And we have no reason to think they won't be as disgustingly healthy as their big brother is. Life is good, Mahon. For a long time, I thought this was just a dream to keep me going; now it's a reality. And I will do whatever I have to do to protect it. To protect you."

"It is, isn't it?" he asked, unable to withhold the grin from his face, even if she had cut most of his hair off. It was only hair, after all, and it was probably about time he tried to make himself look halfway presentable. "We'll protect each other," he added, just as they always had, and those they loved, too. "So, think Brona will approve?" he asked of his new "hairdo", with an amused smirk on his face.

Nemone laughed affectionately, pouring her fingers through his shorter 'do. "Well, even if she doesn't, I do," she assured him, nose to nose. "I still have enough to hold onto, you know."

"As if I enjoy having my hair pulled," he teased in return. So, things got a little rough in the bedroom sometimes. He wasn't complaining so long as his sister didn't hear them.

"I've never heard you object," his wife pointed out to him laughingly, tugging affectionately on his hair before pressing a kiss to his lips. She was supposed to be on dinner duty today, since Brona had deemed her capable to cook without supervision, but they had cold cuts and potatoes in the larder. Nemone was planning on making a sauce and winging it.

He made no complaints as he returned her kiss, his hand resting lightly against the bump that held their second-born child. "How long did they say they'd be?" he murmured close to her lips. It wasn't often they had the entire house to themselves for any stretch of time.

"Hmm ..." She lingered close to him, still drawing her fingers through his hair as he caressed the little bump at her waist. "Well, it hasn't been an hour yet," she mused in a thoughtful tone. "Last time they didn't come back until Aedan had actually turned blue."

"Hmm," he murmured thoughtfully, torn between checking on their son and making love to his wife, though there was no one he trusted their son with more than his sister and her husband. "She's going to spoil him," he said, as his lips moved to graze her neck, as if they weren't spoiling him already.

Smiling, Nemone nipped at his neck. "Let her," she murmured softly. "He's going to be a big brother soon, he deserves to be spoiled while we can." She grinned, nipping at the end of his nose as she made to rise from his lap. "Letting him catch us feeling each other up on the porch does not count as spoiling, though."

Joss glanced at the upper storey of the house, his arms already filled with a couple of the pots that had been brought along. "She's been laboring since around sunset yesterday," he told them. "Water's broke about an hour ago. I'd say we're looking at a couple of hours - she's just getting into the good part." He looked down at the load in his arms curiously. "Did you bring dinner and breakfast?"

"Looks like we're spending the night," Mahon replied, his own arms full of whatever his wife had deposited into them, whether it be food stuffs or bags of clothing. "I hope you've got room," he told the other man with a grin. Once Nemone got something in her head, there was no talking her out of it.

"We'll make room," Joss chuckled. "I'll come out and stable the horse in a minute, let's get all this inside."

Nemone rolled her eyes at the pair of them, a basket of bread baked that day in her arms the only thing she was allowed to carry. "Sounds like things are getting started up there," she commented, recognizing the low-level from the upper storey for what it was. "She's a lot quieter than I was."

"She isn't finished yet," Mahon remarked, perking an ear to the upper floor. It was a little too quiet up there, but he had a feeling it wouldn't stay that way for long. He hadn't been there when Nemone had given birth to their son, but he was determined to be there for her for the birth of their next child, whether she wanted him there or not. "At least, Brona knows what she's doing. Ember is in good hands."

"Teeny tiny hands that can reach up there and wriggle it around if they need to," Nemone offered with a grin, not at all squeamish about some of the things that were necessary in childbirth. Well, her mother was a very skilled healer too, after all.

Joss went slightly pale at this, however, swallowing as he lead the way to the kitchen, to deposit his armful of pots and escape hurriedly back to the stable.

Mahon, too, didn't really like the idea of anyone having to get their hands up inside his wife's womb to make things happen, but at least those hands would be ones he trusted - those of his sister. "You never told me what Aedan's birth was like," he remarked as he followed her into the kitchen to deposit the rest of the items Nem had insisted they bring. Had he known Joss better, he might have called him a coward, but in a way, he envied the man.

"Painful," she admitted, glancing into the main room to make sure Cody was all right with Aedan for the time being. She had every confidence that Ember would be done in just a few hours, silently keeping her fingers crossed that it would be a boy, just for her cousin's peace of mind. "He wasn't in the right position," she told her husband quietly. "Gia had to turn him around before he could get out of there. That's why I was down for so long afterward; why they couldn't get you in to see me. It was touch and go for a couple of days whether I'd get up again." She touched his cheek fondly. "Not gonna happen again, promise."

There was nothing Mahon could do now, but help Nemone with the food and wait with the rest of them. Ember's labor had brought some questions to mind, though - questions he hadn't quite gotten around to asking his wife yet. He frowned worriedly at her, even as she touched his cheek and tried to reassure him. "I'd like to be there this time," he told her quietly.

"Like I would stop you from being there," she assured him softly. "I needed you last time, but I couldn't have you there without putting you in danger. I want you to see your son or daughter born, to be the first person to hold them. You deserve that. Childbirth is a team effort, you know" It's just as important to be the one encouraging as it is to be the one pushing."

It was Mahon's turn to touch her cheek, with fingertips that were surprisingly gentle. "It scares me, Nem," he admitted quietly, that worried frown still in place. The big man didn't often admit to being scared of anything, but as happy as he was to be having another child, he couldn't help but admit that it scared the hell out of him. Thankfully, this time he would be part of it, and they'd be surrounded by family and friends willing and able to help.

"Every birth is different," she told him gently, having assisted at enough births to know that for a fact. "And a first birth is always the hardest. It'll be easier on me this time around, and we'll have Ember and Brona, and maybe even Gia, to keep a close eye. There's no point worrying about what might go wrong, love. If it happens, it happens, and we'll deal with it when the time comes. But just as easily nothing could go wrong. So try not to hold onto that fear, okay?"

"I'll try," he told her, though he couldn't promise. Though they had both always been fiercely independent, they had also become very attached to each other, and Mahon didn't know what he'd do if anything ever happened to his Nemone. "Do you want to go check on Ember?" he asked, though he thought it might be getting a little crowded in there.

She glanced toward the ceiling thoughtfully. "Well, Ethan and Brona are up there," she mused, pausing as her cousin gave full voice to her grasp of exactly what was involved in "pushing". A faint smirk touched Nemone's lips. "I'd say we're looking at about an hour, so ....I guess I should start cooking."

Mahon arched a brow with a brief glance at the ceiling. He had never witnessed a birth before, and though he knew how it was supposed to work, it was still something of a mystery to him. "What do you need me to do?" he asked, feeling a little out of his element. With Cody presumably keeping Aedan busy and Joss taking care of the wagon, it didn't leave much left for the big man.

Nemone considered that for a moment, knowing that he would feel better with a task to keep him occupied. "You could investigate setting up somewhere for us to sleep tonight," she suggested. "Maybe set Brona and Cody up in the main room through there if there's only one spare room. I think we're in with Aedan tonight, but even then, you're gonna have to create a kiddie bed out of nothing. Which you can do because you are a genius with your hands."

"If the bed's big enough, he can just sleep with us," Mahon remarked, though he didn't want the boy making a habit of it. He touched a kiss to her cheek, before starting toward the main room, where he'd left their bags. At least, he had something to do to make him feel useful and to take his mind off the grunting and groaning that was going on upstairs.

"That is true," she agreed, smiling as he moved off to make himself useful. At least she knew that if the groaning went on for too long, that was the only time to get concerned, but it seemed as though she was the only person downstairs who did know that. It was her job to keep Joss, Cody, Mahon, and Aedan busy for the foreseeable future, and my goodness, so she did.

By the time Brona came downstairs, tired but grinning to the tune of the newborn wailing above them, dinner had been cooked and was staying warm in the oven; sleeping places had been set up for everyone; the wood pile had been restocked; the kitchen and dining area had been cleaned; the horses in the stable had been fed and bedded down for the night. Brona leaned in the doorway, drying her clean hands on a fresh towel. "You wanna know what it is, or are you saving yourselves for a surprise?"

There could only be two choices, of course - a boy or a girl - but Mahon wasn't sure it was really his place to guess. Cody, on the other hand, wasn't shy about asking, but it was Aedan who was really itching to know the answer. "We're gonna find out sooner or later, so you might as well tell us," Mahon told his sister, a little too logically.

Brona chuckled a little, gratefully accepting a cup of tea from Nemone as she moved into the kitchen. "It's a girl," she told them quietly. Aedan cheered, not really caring whether it was a boy or a girl, just so long as it was a real baby, but it was Nemone who reacted in the way Brona had expected.

The redhead let out a low breath, nodding slowly, and glanced toward the stairs in concern.

Brona caught Joss' eye before he could rush up the stairs. "They're gonna need a coupla minutes," she told him. "Just let them get it sorted between themselves before you go up and congratulate them, okay?"

Aedan's answer came from behind his hand, which he had clapped over his mouth to make sure his dinner stayed there. "What's a gir?" he asked curiously. He knew what a baby was, but at three going on four, he still wasn't entirely sure what the differences were between boys and girls.

Brona smirked around her own mouthful. "Oh, I think Uncle Cody can answer that one."

Cody jerked a glance at Brona at the mention of his name, with a look that said, "Why me?"

Mahon couldn't help but smirk at the look on his brother-in-law's face. "Yes, Cody. Why don't you explain that one for us?"

"I, uh ..." Cody muttered, unsure how to answer that question exactly, but then, the answer seemed obvious. "Girls can have babies and boys can't," he replied, with a grin, rather proud of himself.

Aedan considered this for a long moment, and then pointed at Nemone's midriff. "Like Mama," he said, nodding confidently. "And me!" He leaned back, and stuck out his little tummy as far as it would go. "I got a baby, look!"

Cody chuckled at the boy, but remained silent otherwise, focusing his attention on his supper and leaving it up to the other couple to deal with their cheeky son.

"Boys don't have babies," Mahon repeated, in case Aedan hadn't gotten it the first time. This was the sort of thing that went on nearly every night in the Dugan household between the extended family members.

"Girls can't make babies without boys," Brona offered to help explain. "But only girls can grow them inside themselves until they're ready to be born. Like how Mama and Papa made you - Papa helped to make you, and Mama grew you in her tummy, like your little brother or sister is doing now."

Aedan relaxed, frowning as he thought this through. "An' Emby grewed a baby and pushed it out, and Eefan put it there inna firs' place?"

Cody couldn't help but smirk at Aedan's reaction to Brona's explanation, biting back a chuckle as he looked between them. Mahon only groaned, knowing the next question was likely to be how Eefan put it there, or how he put the baby inside Nemone's belly, and it was a question he didn't think he was ready to answer.

"Uh ..." Brona looked at Nemone, a little alarmed by how quickly Aedan had picked up on that. "Yeah, kiddo, that's exactly right."

No sooner had she put her next mouthful past her lips, however, than Aedan spoke once again. "How'd Eefan put it there?"

Mahon rolled his eyes and gave his sister a pointed look, scowling a little, at a loss as to how to answer that question without getting into too much detail, but before he could say a thing, it was Cody who came to the rescue.

"Magic!" Cody exclaimed. "But it's a secret kind of magic that you don't find out until you're older."

"Exactly!" Nemone jumped on that one to prevent any more questions. "And the only way you'll find it out when you're older is if you eat your dinner right now." She grinned as Aedan tucked into his food, glancing between Mahon and Brona as they eyed each other, one scowling and one smiling sweetly.

Disaster seemed to have been averted for now, and Mahon's scowl faded as Aedan seemed satisfied with the explanation for now. There would come a time when he wouldn't be, but hopefully, not for a few years yet. Aedan was a good boy, if a little precocious, and it was no secret how much they all adored him.

"So, what?s she look like?" Cody asked, changing the subject. "Did they pick a name yet?"

"She looks like a newborn baby," Brona shrugged. "They're always kind of red and smushed up for a couple of weeks before they start looking like actual little people. She's got dark hair, though, so she's probably gonna take after Ethan." She paused to swallow her mouthful, taking a sip from her cup. "I think they might name her after Ethan's mother, if Joss agrees. They were both devastated when she died."

There was no question the baby wouldn't be named after Ember's mother, who had treated her own daughter so cruelly. Cody's thoughts turned briefly to his own parents, while Mahon preferred not to think on that right now.

"The important thing is that she's well," he pointed out for the second time that evening.

"They're both very well," Brona assured her brother with a gentle smile, wiping up her sauce with a hunk of bread. "I am kinda curious, though ....seeing as how she wasn't supposed to go into labor until next week, does this mean you have to cut your hair every time one of us is due, or it won't happen?"

The big man didn't usually make much of a fuss of his feelings, but he'd grown rather attached to the people around the table, not to mention the young woman who'd just given birth and her family. He'd known Ember by proxy for years, after all, and she was almost as much a little sister to him as Brona. "My hair has nothing to do with it," Mahon retorted, scowling a little at his sister's mention of it, making no explanations or excuses for his hair.

"Oh, so you don't have magic hair?" his little sister teased him affectionately. "It looks good, Mahon. You know, now I can actually see your face."

Beside Mahon, Nemone bit her lip trying not to laugh, and attempted not to catch Cody's eye. Brona definitely wore the pants on the Dugan farm, and she had a definite way with all of them. Unfortunately for Mahon, he reacted far too comically for Brona to ever stop teasing him about anything.

"You couldn't see my face before?" he asked, taking her a little too seriously, as he always did.

Cody cleared his throat to hide the chuckle that was bubbling up at Brona's teasing of her brother. Maybe someday he'd learn not to fall into her trap, but that day wasn't today, it seemed.

"Well, I couldn't see any of your face," Brona informed her brother with a smirk. "Now I can see half, because the lower part's covered with some kind of furry creature you've trained to keep your chin warm."

There was a splutter next to Mahon, but there was no way Nemone was stepping into this conversation.

"If that is your way of convincing me to shave, you'd better try harder," Mahon retorted, taking up a bit of bread and scraping it around his plate to soak up sauce.

"She's just jealous she can't grow one," Cody interjected with a smirk.

"How do you know I can't?" Brona countered to her husband sweetly. "For all you know, I shave every morning before I wake you up."

"You know, Aedan," Nemone said conversationally as she wiped her son's face clean, "I think your papa and your Auntie Brona need to go slug it out on the rug in front of the fire before we let them near the baby."

"See the baby 'fore bed?" Aedan asked hopefully, despite the fact that he looked as though he was about to drop off right where he was.

Brona chuckled, gently sweeping the little boy's hair off his forehead. "I think you guys should definitely go up together," she said, glancing at Cody to make sure this was all right. "We're early risers, I'm sure we'll get a visit of our own in the morning."

"Not too early," Cody said, smiling back at Brona before moving to his feet to hand off the sleepy little lad. He'd become rather fond of the boy, but as fond as he was, Mahon and Nemon were Aedan's parents, and he, too, thought it best if they go up and visit together.

"As promised," Mahon replied, taking the boy in his arms, with a nod of thanks to his sister and her husband. "And then, I think it's time for bed, little man."

"See if you can ferret Joss outta there," Brona suggested in amusement. "They'll never get any sleep with grandpoppy leering at them from a dark corner all night."

Nemone snorted with laughter. "Tactful as always, Bee," she chuckled, stroking her hand against Aedan's hair. "C'mon, fellas, let's go and say good night to Ember and Ethan and their baby girl."

And then it would be time for bed, not only for Aedan, but for all of them. It had been a long day, after all. "Up we go," Mahon said, his arms wrapped around the little boy whose head was already lolling against his shoulder.

"Night, Aedy," Brona called to her nephew as they moved out of sight toward the stairs, only too happy to curl up with Cody in their makeshift bed and loll for a while in his arms until she fell asleep. If she was very lucky, he'd read to her. Aedan's answer was yawning but heartfelt, completely incoherent as he cuddled into his father's arms.

Chuckling to herself, Nemone lead the way up the stairs, pausing to knock on the door to Ember and Ethan's room. "Can we come in?"

Mahon followed her up the stairs, slowly and carefully with his arms full of Aedan. Voices were heard softly chatting behind the closed door before Ethan was heard calling back, "Come on in!"

Pushing open the door, Nemone smiled at the sight of her cousin sat up int bed, looking tired but happy. Ember was leaning against Ethan, their daughter cuddled in his arms, with Joss sat as close to the bed as was physically possible.

"Hey," Nem greeted them softly. "We just wanted to get a look and say goodnight. We're staying tonight, so we'll make sure you guys get a good feed and extra hands until the neighbors start helping out."

Ember raised her head from Ethan's shoulder, smiling wearily. "Thank you," she murmured, her smile deepening at the sight of the sleepy little boy on Mahon's shoulder. "Looks like someone's already in bed."

"We promised him a quick peek at his new cousin," Mahon explained as he stepped into the room behind Nemone and moved a little closer to let Aedan say a brief hello. He didn't want to admit it, but he was just as curious about the newest member of the family as he was.

The littlest member of their family was sound asleep in her father's arms - a small, red face that was at least peaceful, with a shock of dark hair on her head just like her papa's.

Nem moved over to let Mahon and the sleepy Aedan gawk at the new baby, easing close to hug Ember gently. "You did good, kid," she told her cousin softly, gently sweeping her hair from her face. "Gia will be out here in no time to tell you just the same thing."

Ember laughed a little wearily. "More likely to save that trip for when you drop yours."

The big man crouched down, gently swinging Aedan around to have a look at the littlest member of the family. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but he certainly wasn't expecting this, and he found his heart touched not only by the tenderness between the little family but by the little miracle herself. "She's beautiful," the big man whispered, in a rare moment of emotion.

Clinging onto his father's neck with one arm, Aedan leaned over to get his first good look at the baby, not entirely sure what all the fuss had been about. "Baby," he pointed out helpfully, his hand straying a little too close to the little nose for comfort.

"Easy, Aedan. You have to be gentle with her. She's just a tiny baby," Mahon said, reaching out to gently stroke the newborn's tiny hand in demonstration to his son.

Ethan looked on proudly, a smile on his face, just as happy with a daughter as a son. "We named her Finola, after my mother," he told them quietly.

Nem squeezed Ember just a little tighter on hearing that, understanding in a way no one else could why these first few days would be a struggle for her cousin. She kissed the younger woman's temple, her eyes turning to the men just in time to see Aedan lower himself all the way down to plant a kiss onto little Finola's nose.

"Baby gir," he nodded in agreement, leaning back. "She's sleepy!"

"And so are you, so say goodnight," Mahon said, remaining crouched beside Ember so Aedan could say his goodnights. "We'll give you a proper visit in the morning," he told the pair.

Pouting, the little boy grumbled - not unlike his father had a tendency to - and sighed. "G'nigh'." Little fingers wriggled toward Ethan and Ember in a wave as his eyes turned to Joss. "Bwona says you gotta go 'way, or you won't sleep none all night and stare at them from nitmoos."

Joss blinked, biting his lip to keep his smile in. "Brona said what?"

Mahon chuckled, both at his son's mild scolding of his elder, as well as the man's confused response.

"Go get some sleep, Dad," Ethan said, making Brona's message more clear.

Mahon moved to his feet, with the little boy in his arms. "If I were you, I'd sleep when she sleeps," he suggested to the new parents. He might not have any good advice to offer from experience, but this was just common sense.