They stayed in that room for several hours. They could time her contractions based on the sounds they heard and the way the room reacted to it, and Moira knew from experience that they were close to birth at this point. There hadn't been a single word from the other room, and she wondered if they would be invited in for the actual birth.

Azazel hadn't sat at all. Kurt was still lying on the couch, going between sleep and wake. Moira went between sitting and standing with her husband, who she could see was fretting with worry. She grabbed his hand, pulling it up to place a kiss on it. He smiled and kissed her head.

They heard another contraction, and Azazel sighed out. "He'll miss it. They have us in here and will keep us here."

"I can go talk to Magneto," Moira offered. She knew she could be far more diplomatic than her husband. She looked to Kurt. "You want to see it, right angel?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Is your baby being born," Azazel stooped down beside him. "You will want to be there."

"No," he shook his head again. "No, I don't. I can stay here."

Moira could tell her husband was irritated by that, and almost stepped in before there was a fight, but instead her husband took a breath. "Kurt," Azazel began. He looked to Moira, then back to the boy. "Nothing is same as seeing your child born. Nothing. When Christine was born, seeing her come into world was greatest gift I could get as father. Holding her when she takes first breath." He shook his head, closing his eyes. "Is my greatest regret in this life, that I couldn't be there when you were born. Because you were the one who made me father. I took that moment for granted, and now I wish I could go back."

Azazel had never voiced this to Moira. It was a given he would be at their daughters' births, as they did it alone. He delivered both of them. She knew he regretted being away for Kurt's birth because he'd almost lost his son, but she didn't think about the bond between a father and child in watching the birth.

"I-" Kurt shook his head again. "I really can't. Please don't make me."

Azazel was about to speak again, but Moira cut him off. "If you don't want to, you don't have to."

The man's head snapped to her. She took his hand and guided him out of the room, knowing he disagreed. "He should be in there," Azazel told her.

"Alek," she began. "We can't make him want to be a father. The more we push him into it, the more he's going to resent it. He's still a teenager, regardless of everything else." She squeezed his hand. "We need to let him become the father he wants to become. If that means he has regrets, then he has regrets. You said yourself, he needs to grow up. What's more grown up than making your own decisions, whether or not they are the right ones?"

"Moira," he started.

"Please, Alek," she interrupted. "Let's just trust him. Let him meet his child on his terms."

Azazel only sighed and went back into the other room. She followed, giving a quick glance to the door across the hall. It was slightly ajar, and she fought herself over taking a peek. It'd be over soon.

~&Q~

There was another hour before they could hear the final stage of birth in the other room. Wanda was being encouraged to push, and with every breath, every scream, Moira moved closer to the edge of her seat. They were literally moments from meeting their grandchild.

Kurt sat still, his eyes wide over every sound. His hands were shoved deep in his sweatshirt, and he sunk lower and lower into the couch he sat on. The three of them were exhausted, no one getting any sleep in the night. Moira watched her son carefully, as he seemed to pull into himself. She moved to sit beside him, placing her arm around his shoulders. He curled up into her his arm going around her waist.

"It's ok, angel," she soothed, patting her hand through his hair.

"I can't do it, Mom," he breathed. "I can't."

"You can, my love," she kissed his forehead, pulling his face up to look at him. Tears were streaming down his cheeks. "You're stronger than you know."

He tried to shake his head, but she held his chin and gave him another kiss on the cheek. "It's going to be ok."

The boy melted into her embrace again, holding tight. She looked up to her husband, who had a disapproving look on his face. She didn't care. She wanted to treat him like her little boy, at least this one last time. He was being thrust into manhood a bit too soon, in her opinion, but it wasn't something they could change. Kurt was still her baby, the little thing that smacked her life off course in the most unexpected and wonderful way.

She began to rock slightly, still holding him close. They listened intently to what was going on in the other room, and suddenly the sounds changed. Wanda could be heard, but she was punctuated with a new sound. The loud, high pitched cry of a newborn. Moira could feel a primal instinct at the cry, and she looked to her husband. He smiled at her, wiping his hand over his face and turning to the door. She looked to Kurt and nudged him. "Hear that?" she pulled his face up again. "That's your baby."

His face was terrified. She extracted herself from him, standing to join her husband. Azazel put his arm around her, and they watched the door. They waited a few moments, then as they decided to take matters into their own hands, the door opened. Magneto stood there, his eyes bloodshot from both lack of sleep and the tears that tracked down his face. He looked to the three who sat, waiting for news, and gave them a smile. "It's a girl."

Moira smiled wide and Azazel pulled his arm tight around her. "Can we see her?"

Magneto nodded and led them into the other room. Wanda lay in the bed as the doctor cleaned up around her, holding tight to a small bundle. Her smile was wide and her face tearstained as she spoke gently to the infant, rocking ever so slightly.

Kurt hung back as the new grandparents moved close to get a good look at the newest addition to the family. Moira sucked in a breath as her granddaughter came into view. She was the spitting image of Kurt, her skin a robin's egg blue, her ears ending in delicate points. Wanda played with a small, three fingered hand wrapped tight around her index finger. She looked up to Moira from the child, her face beaming with pride. "Isn't she beautiful?"

"Gorgeous," Azazel's voice choked up as he gazed on the child. Her eyes opened, a weary golden gaze falling on them.

They were so enraptured by the child, they forgot about Kurt. Moira looked behind them, the boy still hanging by the door. She went to him, and pulled him by the hand to the bedside. "Your daughter, my love."

Kurt's mouth fell open as he looked at the tiny bundle, then closed, his jaw tightening. His eyes filled with tears. "I-" he started, then shut his mouth again.

"My beautiful angel," Wanda said sweetly to the baby. "That's your daddy."

Kurt began to shake minutely. The baby closed her eyes again with a tiny yawn. Wanda giggled at it. "She's so cute!"

Moira put her arm around her son. She had no idea what was going on in his head, but she wanted him to know that she was there, for him, if he needed. Her support seemed to solidify him. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the small unicorn. "For-" he started, cutting himself off and simply thrusting it toward Wanda.

The girl looked at it a moment, before taking it in her free hand. She held the unicorn above the baby, dancing it around. "Your daddy loves you so much," Wanda leaned in and kissed the girl's forehead.

Kurt was simply silent. Wanda put the unicorn aside, and looked up to him. "Do you want to hold her?"

His face was frozen in fear. Before he had a chance to answer, the infant was transferred into his arms. He stood, unsteadily, looking down at the little girl who looked so much like him. "She-" he seemed to be unable to put together a single sentence. For a few moments, he just stared at her.

Azazel put his arms around Moira from behind, resting his head on her shoulder as they watched their son and granddaughter. Moira's eye fell on Magneto, who watched the moment with a small smile on his face.

The baby squirmed and began to whine. The whines escalated quickly into cries, and Kurt looked around the room panicked. "What did I do?"

"Nothing, angel," Moira told him. "She's probably hungry. Give her to Wanda."

Wanda put her arms out to receive her daughter, and Kurt clumsily tried to pass her over, but stopped each time. He turned to his mother. "I can't. I'm going to hurt her."

"Here," Moira stepped over, seeing panic creep onto Wanda's face at Kurt's statement. She put her arms below his, and coaxed him to slowly lower the baby into her embrace. He did, gently, and Moira felt the weight of this tiny infant in her arms. She couldn't help but smile as the girl's tiny tail, unseen by her to this point, wrapped around her arm. She took a shuddering breath, feeling transported to the day she first held her son, first felt the then alien feeling of a tail on her arm, which was now such a hallmark of her children. The tiny girl wailed, but Moira didn't want to hand her over. She knew she had to, this wasn't her child. Wanda waited expectantly, and Moira carefully transferred the precious bundle to her mother. As the baby cried, Wanda looked around nervously at the others in the room.

Magneto picked up on her nerves, signaling to them. "Let's leave her to feed the baby alone," he said.

"Kurt can stay," Wanda added. Moira looked to her son, whose face was blank. He stayed rooted in his place, so she decided to leave him be, following Magneto and her husband out. They settled in the room across the hall, and a moment later the crying stopped.

The three parents sat together in silence. Moira and Azazel on the couch, his hand resting on her leg, Magneto across from them on the chair. She looked from Azazel to Magneto, this new man who now was bound to them. Their new family. Moira smiled, her thoughts turning to the infant. "We have a granddaughter."

Magneto nodded with a smile. "She takes after your son a lot," he said, settling back into the chair.

"She takes after Wanda too," Moira added. "I can see it in her face."

"She does," Magneto agreed. "But she's so brand new. It's hard to see much now." He paused. "Wanda did a good job. She kept her powers in check. Agatha helped, of course, but she did so well." He sighed. "I'm proud of her."

"We are too," Azazel said. "She did very good."

They were silent again. Magneto stood and went to the window. The sun had risen, and he could see people milling about outside. "We'll have to make a proper birth announcement. The people will be pleased. Their new princess." He paused, then turned. "You three are welcome to stay for a bit. You can bring the girls too, if you like, to meet her."

"We'll give it a day or so," Moira said. "To get everything settled."

The silence enveloped them once again. Azazel put his arm around Moira, who yawned as the lack of sleep caught up with her. It had been a long night. But one that was well worth it, as she thought of that little girl in the room next door.

~&Q~

I feel so bad for this orphaned little fic. I just have been stuck for a LONG time. Though I got the most AMAZING review, and it reminded me that I do have some stuff written that I just have not posted yet! So here is another chapter. I have several more I will try to get up over the next few months :).