It really was astonishing how quickly you could put a house together, given the right motivation. After meeting Fliss and making their formal application, Johnny and Liv had thrown themselves into making their new house a home, working hard over the course of a day and a half to furnish the place to their liking. Liv had even stocked the dresser and closet in what she had privately termed "Fliss' Room" with clothes she hoped the girl would like. All this work, however, left little time for conversation, and there were a few things they needed to talk about. But even that was stalled when, just a few days after that successful meeting, Agnes Cunningham called around to check on their home, their finances, and their determination to see this hasty application to foster through.
Johnny had been meaning to talk to Liv for days, ever since he'd taken her to meet Fliss, but it seemed that every time he got a chance, something came up, and by the time they fell into bed, they were both too tired to talk. And so, he never got a chance to ask her about the little hint she'd dropped about her past; he never even got a chance to ask her if she thought all this would work. As soon as the news spread that they'd moved to the Grove, people were coming and going night and day, welcoming them, offering help, bringing them food. There were daily trips to see Fliss so Johnny could keep his promise in helping her learn control, sometimes several times a day, if she was having trouble. By the time the visit with Agnes Cunningham rolled around, Johnny was exhausted, and it showed.
That exhaustion didn't seem to matter much to Agnes, who was more than happy to declare that their home was perfect, their experience relevant, and that she would be recommending their approval to the fostering panel at the next sitting. As soon as she was gone, Liv collapsed onto the couch, heaving a sigh of relief. "Okay," she said, apparently addressing the ceiling for a moment. "The crazy can stop now."
Johnny was already sprawled on the couch, Bella's head in his lap, looking for attention. "Looks like we passed the audition," he remarked dryly, wondering if having a baby was even half this much work, but it wasn't just preparing for Fliss to move in as it was moving in themselves, too. "Things are starting to come together, though," he added with a smile as he wound an arm around Liv's shoulders and brushed a kiss against her temple. "Have I told you lately how amazing you are?"
She smiled, happy despite her weariness, and curled into his side contentedly, rubbing her fingers over Bella's fur. "Amazing might not be the right word," she mused playfully. "Demonically organized is Lucy's preferred description." She laughed softly, tucking closer into Johnny's side. "At least now we can slow down a bit. The waiting is going to be excruciating, though."
"I don't think we'll have that long to wait, do you?" he asked, as he, too, scritched at Bella's fur, hoisting his feet up onto the coffee table and lazily leaning into the back of the couch. "You really think we're doing the right thing?" he asked for what must have been the hundredth time since they started this little venture.
Liv twisted to look at him, a little concerned that he kept asking, kept needing to be reassured that he had made the right decision. "It's only the right thing if we're both happy to do it," she told him quietly. "If it feels right to you, then it's the right thing. I can't tell you how you're feeling, sweetheart. Only you can do that."
"I think it's the right thing. I'm just nervous, that's all. I've never been a....whatever I'm going to be before!" He wasn't sure what the technical term for it was. Foster father" Would Fliss call him Johnny or Dad" He thought it would be a while before she felt comfortable enough to call him anything but Mr. Storm.
"I know what you mean," his wife nodded in agreement, rubbing her cheek against his warm shoulder. "I'm terrified that I'll make some awful mistake and that she'll never trust me. I just want to keep her safe and give her somewhere she can learn to be happy, but I keep worrying that I can't."
"Listen to us, Liv. Trying to talk ourselves out of something we both want. Fliss is counting on us. Fliss needs us. We can't let her down." Was he trying to convince Liv or himself" Both maybe, but what prospective parent doesn't doubt themselves and the ability to raise healthy, happy children at some point, even foster parents"
"No, I know," she promised him. "I'm a worrier, Johnny, you knew that when you married me." She smiled, brushing a kiss to his lips. "Besides, all I have to do is feed her and keep her clean. You're the one she really needs."
Johnny frowned into Liv's kiss. "That's not true, Liv. You never give yourself enough credit. Do you think that's all you do for me is feed me" Fliss only needs me because I can help her with her pyromancy. What she really needs is a mother."
"She needs us," Liv countered softly. "It's not as black and white as we're making out. She'll get so much more from time with you than control over her talents, and in time, she'll start to get more from me than the basics she needs to survive. It's all a question of building a relationship with her, and that will take time."
"Why does it seem this is so much harder than having a baby?" Johnny mused, frowning thoughtfully. He hadn't really expected it. He'd expected fostering and adopting to be easier. After all, they didn't have to worry about bottles and diapers and two o'clock feedings and colic, but with bigger children came bigger worries.
"It might help not to think of it as becoming a parent," Liv murmured gently, stroking her fingers through his hair as they talked. "Think of it as opening your home to a new friend. Whenever I get overwhelmed with all the details and the panic about essentially being a mum, I tell myself to just be her friend and see what happens."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," he admitted, especially since there was no way of knowing if they'd actually end up adopting her or not. Johnny had a bad habit of getting too far ahead of himself and it sometimes led to disappointment. "Too point in putting the cart before the horse, I guess," he added, scooting to stretch out on the couch and rest his head in Liv's lap, without asking first.
Johnny had been meaning to talk to Liv for days, ever since he'd taken her to meet Fliss, but it seemed that every time he got a chance, something came up, and by the time they fell into bed, they were both too tired to talk. And so, he never got a chance to ask her about the little hint she'd dropped about her past; he never even got a chance to ask her if she thought all this would work. As soon as the news spread that they'd moved to the Grove, people were coming and going night and day, welcoming them, offering help, bringing them food. There were daily trips to see Fliss so Johnny could keep his promise in helping her learn control, sometimes several times a day, if she was having trouble. By the time the visit with Agnes Cunningham rolled around, Johnny was exhausted, and it showed.
That exhaustion didn't seem to matter much to Agnes, who was more than happy to declare that their home was perfect, their experience relevant, and that she would be recommending their approval to the fostering panel at the next sitting. As soon as she was gone, Liv collapsed onto the couch, heaving a sigh of relief. "Okay," she said, apparently addressing the ceiling for a moment. "The crazy can stop now."
Johnny was already sprawled on the couch, Bella's head in his lap, looking for attention. "Looks like we passed the audition," he remarked dryly, wondering if having a baby was even half this much work, but it wasn't just preparing for Fliss to move in as it was moving in themselves, too. "Things are starting to come together, though," he added with a smile as he wound an arm around Liv's shoulders and brushed a kiss against her temple. "Have I told you lately how amazing you are?"
She smiled, happy despite her weariness, and curled into his side contentedly, rubbing her fingers over Bella's fur. "Amazing might not be the right word," she mused playfully. "Demonically organized is Lucy's preferred description." She laughed softly, tucking closer into Johnny's side. "At least now we can slow down a bit. The waiting is going to be excruciating, though."
"I don't think we'll have that long to wait, do you?" he asked, as he, too, scritched at Bella's fur, hoisting his feet up onto the coffee table and lazily leaning into the back of the couch. "You really think we're doing the right thing?" he asked for what must have been the hundredth time since they started this little venture.
Liv twisted to look at him, a little concerned that he kept asking, kept needing to be reassured that he had made the right decision. "It's only the right thing if we're both happy to do it," she told him quietly. "If it feels right to you, then it's the right thing. I can't tell you how you're feeling, sweetheart. Only you can do that."
"I think it's the right thing. I'm just nervous, that's all. I've never been a....whatever I'm going to be before!" He wasn't sure what the technical term for it was. Foster father" Would Fliss call him Johnny or Dad" He thought it would be a while before she felt comfortable enough to call him anything but Mr. Storm.
"I know what you mean," his wife nodded in agreement, rubbing her cheek against his warm shoulder. "I'm terrified that I'll make some awful mistake and that she'll never trust me. I just want to keep her safe and give her somewhere she can learn to be happy, but I keep worrying that I can't."
"Listen to us, Liv. Trying to talk ourselves out of something we both want. Fliss is counting on us. Fliss needs us. We can't let her down." Was he trying to convince Liv or himself" Both maybe, but what prospective parent doesn't doubt themselves and the ability to raise healthy, happy children at some point, even foster parents"
"No, I know," she promised him. "I'm a worrier, Johnny, you knew that when you married me." She smiled, brushing a kiss to his lips. "Besides, all I have to do is feed her and keep her clean. You're the one she really needs."
Johnny frowned into Liv's kiss. "That's not true, Liv. You never give yourself enough credit. Do you think that's all you do for me is feed me" Fliss only needs me because I can help her with her pyromancy. What she really needs is a mother."
"She needs us," Liv countered softly. "It's not as black and white as we're making out. She'll get so much more from time with you than control over her talents, and in time, she'll start to get more from me than the basics she needs to survive. It's all a question of building a relationship with her, and that will take time."
"Why does it seem this is so much harder than having a baby?" Johnny mused, frowning thoughtfully. He hadn't really expected it. He'd expected fostering and adopting to be easier. After all, they didn't have to worry about bottles and diapers and two o'clock feedings and colic, but with bigger children came bigger worries.
"It might help not to think of it as becoming a parent," Liv murmured gently, stroking her fingers through his hair as they talked. "Think of it as opening your home to a new friend. Whenever I get overwhelmed with all the details and the panic about essentially being a mum, I tell myself to just be her friend and see what happens."
"Yeah, I guess you're right," he admitted, especially since there was no way of knowing if they'd actually end up adopting her or not. Johnny had a bad habit of getting too far ahead of himself and it sometimes led to disappointment. "Too point in putting the cart before the horse, I guess," he added, scooting to stretch out on the couch and rest his head in Liv's lap, without asking first.