The Reluctant Birthday Girl
by Donna and Toni

The morning of Faith MacDonald's 18th birthday dawned with a layer of clouds moving in, and a cooling breeze to make the normally hot town of Edan feel comfortably pleasant. As was her habit, Faith slipped over to the church at the break of dawn to say her prayers, and then returned to her house to begin working on her sewing. She had specifically asked that her sisters not throw a birthday party for
her. Grace, understanding her shy little sister all too well, agreed, and was up early herself, making a special breakfast for her.

The other two women were very careful to carry on as usual, and as they all sat down to breakfast, neglected to mention the fact that they'd let the priests know exactly when Faith's birthday was. If anyone could get the word out, they could. Faith sat down, smiling at Hope and Grace. "It looks lovely," she told her older sister. "Hope,
did you pick the flowers when you were out on that walk yesterday with Father Ralph?"

Hope blushed and smiled. "Yes, I did. I wanted to brighten the table in honor of your day."

Breakfast was the fluffiest pancakes the birthday girl had ever seen, complete with homemade biscuits. All three enjoyed their meal very much, talking about things that were going on in the town as well as thanking God for this break in the heat. They'd just cleared things away afterward when a knock on the door sounded, and the older girls asked Faith to get it, as they were busy finishing up with the dishes.

Faith made her way to the door, and smiled happily when she opened it to see her Irish friend from the Secret Garden, Fiona McFadden, and Father Philip. "You're back!" she said, clapping her hands gleefully. "Did you have a grand time on your holiday?"

Fiona laughed and hugged Faith. "Aye, we did! And didn't Vanessa have a hard time leavin' the garden there at the Legacy House?" Her eyes sparkled with mischief. It was more than the garden that Vanessa had been reluctant to leave.

It was Philip's blush though that really gave it away, and to partially explain it, he smiled, "She, ah, took a likin' to Derek. A special one." That was as close as he was going to get to the truth, especially for Faith, who was even shyer than he was!

"That's grand," Faith said, inviting them into the sitting room. "I'm glad for her!" As they sat down, Fiona saw the healthy rosy glow of her little friend's cheeks and asked her if she had gone to the garden to have *tea* with Hydra. Faith laughed and said she had.

Philip swallowed a smile as he thought about the "special waters" in that garden, and the couple hadn't been chatting for too long when the door sounded again! This time Grace said she'd get it.

It was Father Alec this time, holding a basket in front of him. Inside of it were two sleeping kittens that had been sent to Edan via the stagecoach that Fiona and Philip had returned on, courtesy of the folks at Esperanza, who were only too happy to find good homes for the cats that seemed to be everywhere in that town.

Grace was thrilled; after she ushered the priest inside, several people came over to look at the precious balls of fur. "Father, they're beautiful, thank you! Are they weaned yet? They look so small!"

"They are," he assured her. Alec had seen the way that Faith had enjoyed playing with the kittens belonging to Sarah Jo, and had requested that Philip arrange for some of her own for Faith. "They just ate in fact." He stroked their little round tummies and they wiggled and curled up even tighter. Grace led him into the living room, and waited to see Faith's reaction to the kittens before going to fetch the tea for all the guests.

When Faith saw the little fur balls, she just was absolutely delighted. "Happy birthday," Father Alec said, leaning over to give her a hug. Then he announced to the group at large, "And, I have a special piece of happy news direct from Esperanza; Xylia and Julius are to become parents!"

This made things even better, as everyone offered well wishes of all kinds for the couple. Of course, no one would think of leaving the kittens alone in a bedroom, even for awhile, so the basket was given a safe perch on a table right next to the sofa. This way even their tiny cries would be heard when they woke. Meanwhile, Grace and Hope had noticed that Faith hadn't shied away from the good Father's touch, and exchanged a glance and a smile, without anyone else noticing, of
course.

When their latest guest had been made comfortable, they'd barely been settled when there was yet another knock at the door. Those priests had certainly been busy, Grace thought to herself, as she went to answer!

This time it opened to reveal one of their neighbors from a nearby farm, Finley MacNab; they'd been introduced at the Barn Dance that celebrated Ceara's 18th birthday, and she'd often thought about the big, quiet farmer since then. She wondered if her happiness to find him on her doorstep showed in her eyes, as she smiled and welcomed him inside. He came in, being careful to wipe his feet of course, and then went over to the birthday girl with a beautiful bouquet of mixed wildflowers and a small basket of perfectly ripe apples, as he knew she loved them. He presented them to her with a slightly shy, "Happy Birthday, Faith. I hope this is enough of a gift, I know it's not much."

"It's a lovely gift!" she said, smiling at him. "We can make some nice apple pies with these, and the flowers will look grand on the table!" Hope took them from her, and went to add them to the ones she had picked the day before. Just then, Grace came in, carrying the tea tray, and Finley jumped up to help her, making all the women giggle. It was obvious who he really came to see, even if Grace was blissfully unaware of his attraction to her.

She thanked him for his help, letting him set the tray down, and no sooner had they found a place for him to sit than the knock sounded again! This time it was Mercy and Joy Campbell, and as if drawn by a magical magnet, within no more than 10 minutes after their arrival Rob Roy MacGregor showed up!

The MacDonalds' sitting room was getting crowded. Faith looked accusingly at her sisters, who just shrugged. They had no idea who all the priests had told! "It's a good thing I made lots of sweets for our tea," Grace chuckled. Not that there was a shortage. Mercy and Joy had brought a large basket of treats to share. But no sooner had they all sat down to enjoy them, than someone else showed up! This time, it was
Sarah Jo and Duncan, and he was carrying a large Blackberry Jam Cake for her.

Sarah Jo of course exclaimed over the kittens, who were miraculously still asleep even with all the conversation around them, and chose her seat near them so she could listen for when they woke as well. In the next couple of hours, Prudence and Patience MacInnes also showed up, along with the McBains, and the connecting door to the kitchen had to be propped open so that some of their guests could be seated in there
as well. Considering they were still newlyweds, Temperance and Walter were fairly quiet, with an air of unhappiness about them; they tried to hide it well, but it was there. Fortunately, though, no one asked them about it; if there was one thing these people did, it was respect a married couple's privacy.

The crowding situation got to the point where Grace took Father Alec aside at one point, and asked, in a whisper so no one else would hear, "Father, I'm very pleased at the turnout here, but....just how many people did you and your fellow Men of the Cloth tell? If we have many more guests, we'll have to start opening the bedrooms!"

He just smiled and shrugged. "I only told Mercy and Joy!"

Grace shook her head and laughed. All day long, people came and went, until she was sure that everyone in town had come by at least once! That afternoon, picnic tables were set up underneath the shade trees, and a pot luck dinner was spread out for the town to eat and afterwards, there was even music! Faith MacDonald may not have wanted a party, but the residents of Edan were not going to let her have her 18th birthday without one!