Mother Nature’s Son
By ABS and Donna

It was a beautiful autumn afternoon. Gideon had gone to work at the livery as usual that morning, then as usual, ate lunch at one. He was a creature of habit. Andrew and Shannon both knew his schedule, and made sure that as much possible, nothing disturbed his routine. Now that the baby was due any day, Shannon had not strayed far from the cottage, except to cast a longing eye at the river. Andrew was in constant attendance, making sure she lacked for nothing. Monica and Tess were frequent visitors, as well as all the fae in that area. Everyone was waiting, some more
patiently than others. 

Gideon was one of the patient ones. He was sitting on the bench in front of his cottage, whittling away, smiling as a myriad of small animals from the forest played in the meadow grass at his feet. Shannon was inside the cottage, resting on his bed, and Andrew was stretched out on the grass, soaking up some of the afternoon sun that was filtering through the trees. 

Suddenly she came out of the house. Not saying anything, she just smiled at the two men, and started toward a stream not too far away. Andrew sat up immediately; he knew why she was staying away from the water and found it very odd that she was going directly toward it now, as if with a purpose. 

Gideon looked up from his carving and grinned broadly. "The baby is coming!" 

"How do you know?" asked Andrew. 

Gideon only shrugged as he stood up. "I just know things, Andrew. Like I knew you were an angel sent to be with me when I was very sick. Can we go with her? I want to see the baby." 

"Oh, of course!" The two men hurried in her wake, finding her, amazingly, crouched near the streams bank. Andrew thought she was in pain, and ran to her, but when she looked up to him, she smiled. 

He knelt down beside her, a look of dazed amazement on his face. "Is there anything we can do to help?" he asked. 

"Oh no," she said. "I was waiting for you. I can now go back to the River!" Her face was glowing with excitement. Standing with little difficulty, she eased herself into the water. 

Kicking off his shoes, Gideon joined her with Andrew right behind. They took up positions on each side of her, supporting her as she walked through the shallow
water of the stream toward the deeper river. 

As they went, the expression on her face got more and more blissful. Finally she stopped, not quite *in* the deep and swift running river, but close to the mouth of their stream. Lifting her arms, so the men would not hold on to her, she immersed herself in the water and swam gracefully toward the river. Andrew gasped, wondering where she was going, but she turned and swam back, amazingly graceful considering her bloated belly. As she passed them, propelling herself backward, they saw the baby come out! 

Shannon put up her head and, laughing, said, "Catch him, before he swims back to the river!" 

They nearly bumped heads as they both grabbed for the baby, but Gideon was the one who managed to scoop him up into his arms. "Hello, Hiawatha," he said as he
cradled him to his chest. "I'm Gideon." The baby looked up at him with huge, wide-open eyes, and to Andrew's surprise, he smiled. 

Shannon swam back to them. She was beaming. It was the first real smile he had seen from her. "Isn't he just darling?" she asked, reaching out to cuddle her son. Gideon gave him willingly, though she stood close enough that he could still touch the baby if he wanted to. 

"Somehow I get the feeling he will be hard to keep out of the water," Andrew chuckled as he gently stroked the baby's back. 

"He is beautiful, Shannon. Just like you," Gideon said proudly. He then looked up as if listening to something. "Your father is coming. Is he going to make more magic?" 

"He will bless the baby soon. But not now. He just wants to see him. He is a very special baby," Shannon said, her voice turning into a coo as she nuzzled her child. Hiawatha Glenn responded by fluttering his little wings. They were still wet, so they let off a bit of a spray! 

"Quite a bit different than mine," Andrew laughed. 

"They'll grow," Shannon giggled. "Right now he can't fly, but give him a few weeks! As you saw, he can already swim." 

"He is a very special child then," Andrew agreed. "Just like both of his parents. Perhaps one day . . ," he paused, not finishing what he was saying. 

"Yes?" Shannon asked. She put little Hiawatha, whom most people would call Glenn, up to her shoulder as she looked at Andrew curiously. Somehow he knew that she understood what he was proposing. If he wanted to speak to her privately, she would hand the baby back to Gideon. But he had to make the first move. 

The angel blushed and then smiled shyly at Shannon. "Maybe someday we can make a little miracle of our own." 

She smiled. Then she kissed her newborn son, before kissing both of the men who had witnessed his birth, and said, "Maybe!" before skipping off with her baby in her arms.