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Date Posted: 18:25:13 07/15/13 Mon
Author: Nettie
Subject: Life Goes On (Lily Series) Chapter 30

Disclaimer: the usual...

Thanks to those sticking with this family - I do appreciate it.

Life Goes On - Moving On 2/5

As was customary, when the children arrived home from school, they inundated the farmhouse making a lot of noise and devouring everything set out for afternoon tea. Jessie and Lily were eager to finish quickly and to go down to the hangar to sort out a few items they wanted to take to school. Harry and Rosie wanted to play outside, so Aidan volunteered to go with the girls to the hangar.

“How about I do it?” offered Trish, collecting the now empty platters, “Frank’s down there and I need to speak to him.”
“Oh, okay,” he said looking around nervously. That only left him with Harm and Mac.
“Don’t look so worried,” Harm said, placing a hand on the boy’s shoulder as the children, including Frankie, disappeared out the back door.
“Oh, I’m not worried,” Aidan said but his fidgeting told another story.
“Come and sit down,” Mac said, taking his hand and leading him into the living room. “Now, Frank came and spoke to us last night and we wanted to talk to you.”
Aidan looked around the room. “Looking for something?” Harm asked.
“Oh, no...” he said slowly. “Just that grandpa said he’d be here with me when we spoke.”
“We can wait until after the littlies are in bed,” Mac said, standing once more. “We want you to be comfortable.”
“No, no, it’s alright,” Aidan said gaining some confidence. “I can do this by myself.”

Harm chuckled and shook his head. “Son, you have to know by now, in this family, you can never do anything by yourself...there’s always someone there...”
“True,” Mac agreed. “Even going to the bathroom is sometimes considered a group event.”
Aidan nodded, not too sure of what to say, so Harm continued.
“Now, if we understand dad correctly, you had concerns about what you should call us and whether we wanted to or we were going to adopt you and Jessie, is that right?” he asked quietly.
“Yes, sir,” he said looking from Harm to Mac and back again. “But I also said if you didn’t want...”
“Oh, we want,” Mac interjected not wanting him to think for a second they didn’t. “The adoption papers can be lodged this week and should be finalised early in the New Year.”
“And, as for calling us mom and dad,” Harm said. “That can start now.”
“We were going to offer earlier but we didn’t know if it was the right thing,” Mac explained. “It would be easy for you both to call Harm dad but we didn’t want you to call me mom if it made you uncomfortable.”
“I guess it would have been a bit strange calling you dad and Aunty Mac...that would be more confusing,” Aidan said shaking his head. “I guess we’re ready now.”
“Have you and Jessie spoken about it?” Harm asked, glancing at a photo of the girl in question.
“Sort of,” he replied. “A couple of weeks ago we were talking about something and she referred to Aunty Mac as mom. I looked at her and she blushed and just shrugged. Then she asked if I thought mom would mind and I said that I thought mom would be really happy that we’ve got a new mom and dad and a family who love us very much.”
“And that’s exactly what you have,” Mac said taking his hands as her eyes filled with tears. “I know it can get chaotic here but never ever think you are not loved and so very important to us.”
“Thanks...mom,” he said slowly as a tear rolled down his cheek.

With that, Mac’s arms encircled him and held him tightly. “You’re more than welcome,” she whispered before kissing his head.
When they were both suitably composed, Harm asked about names and Aidan sighed.
“I’ve been thinking about that,” he said before standing up. “As you know, my name is Aidan Cormac Murphy...I have no idea why mom named me after grandfather...maybe she thought he’d accept me more if I had his name.”
“Maybe she did,” Mac agreed nodding.
“But I want nothing to do with him – ever, including his name,” he said defiantly. “So, if it’s possible, I’d like to change everything but my first name.”
“What would you like to change it too?” Harm asked, wanting to hear it from the boy himself.
“Well, Aidan Ronnie, after mom, then MacKenzie Rabb but only if it’s alright?” he said quickly.
“That’s definitely alright by us,” Harm said standing up and moving towards Aidan. “What about Jess?”
“Something similar. Keep Jessie, change Anne, which is grandmother’s name to Veronica and then have MacKenzie Rabb too,” he said, he’d given it a lot of thought. “But I guess she should be the one who decides.”
“We’ll talk to her after dinner,” Harm said as the twins came running back in.
“Daddy! Daddy!” yelled Harry bounding into the living room.
“What’s wrong?” Harm asked standing up.
“Kermit’s on the roof and won’t come down and it’s so high and ...and...” he said panting as he pulled on Harm’s arm. “You have to get him down!”
“Harry, Kermit will be fine,” Harm said. “Cats get up on roofs all the time. They like to climb.”
“But, daddy,” Rosie said grabbing his other hand. “Kermit’s not a cat he’s a kitten and he’s too little and you have to get him down.”
“Come and show me,” he said with the patience of a father.

Pulling him through the kitchen and out the back door, the twins gestured wildly to the roof of the barn.
“There, daddy!” Harry yelled pointing to the black furry bundle on the roof.
Looking up, Harm spied a very frightened kitten peering at him over the edge at least 10 foot above his head, mewing pitifully. Wondering how on earth the kitten had managed to get up that high, Harm shook his head.
“Kermit will be fine,” Harm said, “He’ll come down himself when he’s hungry.”
“Get him down now, daddy, pleaseeeee,” begged Rosie. “He wants to come down.”
“He has to learn to get himself down,” Harm said as he scanned the area to figure out the best way to retrieve the frightened feline.
“But, daddy, he’s so sad...” Harry protested before his tears started. “I don’t want him to get hurt.”

At that, Harm’s resolve faltered and he agreed to try and rescue Kermit. Aidan followed him into the barn to retrieve the tallest ladder they had but neither were sure it would be tall enough as the cat was perched at the peak of the roof and seemed too scared to move.
“Maybe we’ll have to put it at the end and walk over the roof to get him, Uncle Harm,” Aidan suggested and Harm looked at him. “Oh, I know I want to call you dad,” he said quickly, “But I thought I’d wait until you’d spoken to Jessie.”
Harm just smiled and nodded; the boy did seem to think everything through.

The problem with a barn the age of theirs was that the roof wasn’t all that sound in places and Harm was reluctant to walk on it. When Aidan suggested he do it because he was lighter, Harm shook his head, they’d have to find another way.
“Daddy, hurry up!” Rosie ordered running into the barn. “Kermit’s crying and crying and mommy’s holding Harry’s arm because he wants to climb up to the roof.”
“Tell Harry to go and get Kermit’s dry food bowl for me,” Harm replied as they picked up the ladder.

As the twins scurried inside, Harm placed the ladder at the closest spot possible and hoped that the food bowl would entice the kitten to make the three feet trip to get to it. With the bowl in his hand, Aidan and Mac holding the ladder and instructions from the twins, Harm climbed the ladder and spoke quietly to Kermit, shaking the bowl and encouraging the cat to move. It didn’t work much to Harry’s dismay.
“Move closer!” he ordered from below and Harm stretched a little closer.

With a sad mew, Kermit tried to take a step before Harm realised the problem, his collar was caught on a nail.
“Okay, buddy,” Harm said quietly. “I’m going to help you out.”
Climbing down the ladder, much to the twins’ dismay, Harm repositioned to be directly under the cat before climbing up once more.
“Harm, don’t go on the top step,” Mac cautioned when she realised what he was going to do.
“I’ll be right,” he replied, holding onto the eaves before taking the final step.

It took Harm a minute to free the collar and pick up the scared feline. As he did, he realised Kermit was bleeding from somewhere. Not in a position to inspect now, he bundled him under his shirt, knowing the cat wouldn’t move. Slowly, he descended the ladder, making sure his footing was secure at each step.
“Come on, daddy, what’s taking you so long?” Rosie urged causing Mac to laugh.
“Quickly, dad,” Harry encouraged wanting nothing more than to hold his cat.
“Okay, okay,” Harm said finally on the ground. “I think Kermit has a boo-boo, so let’s go inside and check it out.”
Mac and Aidan put the ladder and food bowl away as Harm and the twins headed to the house, the twins urging Harm to go at warp speed.

“Now,” Harm said quietly, as he pulled the chair from the table. “I need a towel...”
“I’ll get it,” shouted Harry as he raced up the stairs.
Unbuttoning his shirt, both Harm and Rosie saw the bloody streaks and Rosie’s tears started.
“Oh no, poor Kermy,” she cried staring at the lump.
“He’s okay,” Harm soothed as he pulled the cat out. “Aren’t you, buddy? Hey?”

Kermit’s crying did nothing to help the situation and soon Harm had a towel and two crying children.
“What’s his problem?” Aidan asked pointing at the black bundle.
“I’m not quite sure,” Harm said, turning the cat over and trying to find the site of the injury.
“Fix him, daddy!” Rosie said, as Mac picked up the towel and wrapped Kermit up to stop him wriggling.

Slowly, Harm inspected each limb, paying close attention to the paws but found nothing. Next he inspected the tail and found that was fine too. Scratching the kitten’s head, Harm raised the fluffy face and checked it out, finding a small nick on Kermit’s throat but not a lot of evidence of bleeding. Making his way down Kermit’s body, Harm soon found a bigger cut surrounded by matted black fur and a second one nearby, all most likely caused when he tried to free himself.
“Okay, Kermit,” he said, gently stroking his head. “You’re going to be just fine.”

Taking the kitten back from Mac while she collected the first aid provisions, Harm let the twins get a closer look but stopped them touching the animal, promising they could both have a cuddle before bedtime when Kermit was feeling a little better. He was sure they’d hug the poor thing to death if he let them have the kitten earlier.

With his doctoring skills being closely supervised, Harm cleaned all the wounds and removed the collar which had trapped Kermit. Applying a dressing pad to his chest, Harm wound the crepe bandage around him before taping it in place.
“See, he’s just fine,” he said, carefully showing the twins the kitten. “Now, we just have to keep him quiet and settled and...”
“I think he’s quite settled with you,” Mac observed as Kermit tried to snuggle up against Harm, something he had never done before. “The poor little thing must have had a big scare.”
“I know I did,” Harry said nodding, his eyes still on Kermit.
“I know what daddy can use!” Rosie shouted causing the kitten to jump, before she ran up the stairs to her bedroom.
Just as quickly she reappeared with a small calico handbag that she often wore around her neck with either Kermit or her cat, Misty, shoved into it.

Soon, despite Harm’s protests, Kermit was in the bag hanging around his neck, once again secured under his shirt. Mac could only laugh at her tough husband kitty-sitting, one who never wanted cats, never wanted them in the house and definitely didn’t want them curled up on him.
“What?” he asked when he realised Mac was laughing at him as she packed up the first aid supplies.
“Nothing,” she replied with a chuckle. “Just thinking that you are utterly adorable as a kitty-sitter.”
“Hmph,” he snorted. “Like I don’t have other things I should be doing this afternoon.”
“Isn’t Kermit more important?” Harry asked tearfully. “He’s only a baby and needs to be looked after and he’s part of the family, isn’t he?”
“Kermit is a part of the family,” Harm conceded. “And he is important.”
“Thank you, daddy,” Rosie said hugging a leg as Harry moved to do the same.
“Okay, guys,” Aidan said. “How about we play outside for a bit?”
“Cool!” Harry shouted heading for the door, his sister close behind him.
“Thanks, Aidan,” Mac said, glad they’d be able to get a few things done before dinner.

When dinner came around, Harm moved a cat basket into the laundry and put the two cats in there. Mac asked why he hadn’t just put them outside in their enclosure and he just shrugged. As Mac stood at the door, she watched as Harm scratched the injured kitten’s head.
“You’ll be right, buddy,” he whispered, unaware he had an audience. “We’re just going to have some dinner and I’ll come right back and get you,” he soothed with one last scratch.

Turning around he spied his wife biting down on her lip to stop laughing.
“No comments, thank you,” he said realising he’d been caught.
Mac wrapped her arms around his neck and drew him to her. “You are such a softie,” she said, standing on tiptoes and kissing his nose.
“Not what you said last night,” he sassed, thrusting towards her.

After dinner and baths, Frank supervised the Kermit-lovefest in the living room with each child allowed a ten minute gentle cuddle before bedtime. When the youngest three had had their turn Mac came in to collect them for bed and Harry tried to take Kermit with him.
“Not tonight, Harry,” she said taking his hand. “We don’t want him to get squashed in your bed.”
“But I’ll be careful, mommy,” he protested with a pout.
“Daddy said he’ll be in the laundry and warm and safe there,” she soothed. “He’ll be just fine.”

It took another ten minutes of goodnight kisses and pats before she got all three children up the stairs as Jessie and Lily took their turns. As the clock ticked on, Jessie reached for her k-walker and prepared herself for her trip to bed.
“Hang on a minute, Jess,” Harm said coming into the living room. “Aunty Mac and I would like to talk to you before bed time.”
“Why?” she answered quickly, not sure if she’d done anything wrong.
“Don’t look so worried,” he replied with a chuckle. “It’s not a bad thing.”
“Can I stay too?” Lily asked, patting Kermit who was curled up in her lap.
“Not this time, kiddo,” he said. “It’s your time to get ready for bed.”
“Fine!” she said with a huff as she stood and handed the kitten to Frank. “I never get to stay up.”
“You poor child,” Mac said re-entering the room. “Woe is me.”

Not too sure what it meant, Lily had no reply so headed off to the bathroom to start her bedtime routine.
“Why are you looking so nervous, Jess?” Mac asked, sitting on the sofa beside her.
“Uncle Harm said you guys wanted to talk to me,” she said quietly.
“Well, we do, but it’s nothing to be nervous about,” she said giving her a quick hug,
“I think that’s my cue to see if Trish needs any help in the kitchen,” Frank said handing the cat to Mac and soon departed.

Having organised with Aidan that they’d speak to Jessie alone then call him, Harm sat in the armchair situated at a right angle to the sofa.
“Have I done something wrong?” Jessie asked when the suspense got too much.
“No, sweetie,” said Harm. “We had a chat with Aidan after school about a few things that were concerning him and thought we’d do the same with you.”
“Oh, okay,” she said slowly.
“Aidan wanted to know whether or not we were going to adopt you guys,” Mac said getting to the point. “And we told him that we would file the papers this week.”
“It is something we were always intending on doing, we just had to work with Children’s Services first,” Harm explained.
“Oh, okay,” she said again.
“Is that okay with you?” Mac asked when the child sounded hesitant about it.
“Oh yeah,” she said with a quick nod. “That would be pretty cool.”
“That’s good to hear,” Harm said with a smile. “Now, Aidan also said that he’d like to call us mom and dad and we’re more than happy for him to do that. Is it something you’d like to do?”

For the first time during the conversation, Jessie’s face lit up. “Really? I could really call you mom and dad?”
“You sure can,” said Mac and Jessie threw her arms around her, disturbing Kermit who climbed off Mac’s lap and looked around the living room.
“Thank you ...mom,” she said squeezing her. “And...dad. Does that mean I can be a MacKenzie Rabb too?”
“Would you like that?” Harm asked with a grin.
“Oh, yes please and then everyone will know me and Lily are sisters and everything,” she said excitedly before she considered her brother. “What about Aidan?”
“Aidan would like his name changed to Aidan Ronnie MacKenzie Rabb,” Mac said, still holding the girl close.
“Me too!” she squealed excitedly.
“Would you like Jessie Ronnie MacKenzie Rabb or Jessie Veronica?” Mac asked and Jessie paused to consider it.
“Veronica, please,” she said eagerly, “That way mom will know that although I have a new mom she’ll always be part of me.”
Mac could only kiss her head and fight her tears. This was one girl with an amazing spirit.
“Can I tell Lily? Can I? Can I?” she begged getting to her feet and grabbing for her walker.
“Go for it,” Harm said with a laugh, he doubted they could have stopped her if they tried.

As Jessie headed out the door calling for Lily, Mac watched as Kermit studied Harm before tentatively taking a step towards him, then another one. Kermit knew that he was not meant to be on the furniture and that the Master of the House did not like being sat on. However, he nervously walked towards the arm of the chair before attempting to climb over it, emitting a weak ‘meow’ as his chest brushed against the arm.

Mac gave him a hand up then watched as he put a paw out towards Harm and realising he wasn’t being told ‘no’ or ‘get down’ gingerly put it on Harm’s arm. It didn’t take long before the cat was lying on Harm’s stomach enjoying all the attention being lavished on him.
“I think you have a fan,” Mac said, nodding towards the cat. “You’re his knight in shining armour who rescued him from upon high.”
“He really is a cute little thing, isn’t he?” Harm said, smiling at Kermit.
“Well,” said Mattie coming into the room. “I never thought I’d hear you say that,” she said with a laugh.
“Hello, Matilda,” he replied, “I’m just taking care of Kermit as he recovers from his injuries.”
“Is he really alright?” she asked heading across to pet the cat. “Aidan said he thought he was but wasn’t sure if you were just saying it for the kids’ sake.”
“Kermit will be fine,” he replied, smiling at the contented purring coming from the animal. “I think it was a bigger fright than anything. His wounds are relatively minor but he’ll need some adult TLC to recover. I think the twins would love him to death if I let them have him.”
“Is Aidan with you?” Mac asked but Mattie shook her head.
“Was he supposed to be?” she asked looking between the pair.
“No,” she replied before filling Mattie in on the goings on of the day.
“Well, that explains the happy buzz Aidan’s got going on,” she said with a laugh.
“He seemed to be very happy with things,” Harm agreed. “I guess it’s been playing on his mind for a while...speaking of the devil,” he added with a laugh as Aidan appeared in the doorway.

Before they could tell Aidan of their conversation with Jessie, Lily came running in.
“Is it true? Is it? Is it really?” she gasped stopping in the middle of the room.
“Is what true?” Mac asked, feigning ignorance.
“That Jess and Aidan will be adopted and call you guys mom and dad and be MacKenzie Rabbs and be my sister and brother forever and ever?” she said almost panting.
Harm and Mac grinned at their daughter’s eagerness. “Aidan, do you want to answer that?” Harm said with a smile and a wink.
“Yes, it’s true,” he said with a smile which threatened to split his face in two. “We’ll be just like the rest of you.”
“So cool!” Lily said before hugging her newest brother tightly. “Now I have an older sister and an older brother and two younger sisters and two younger brothers! That’s a lot of people to play with!”

Racing across the room she hugged her mother then father and thanked them repeatedly for making it possible. Before running out of the living room and hugging Jessie. Mac had to wonder how on earth they were going to get the girls to sleep.

When everyone was finally bedded down for the night, including the cats in the laundry, Harm entered his bedroom, closed the door and flicked the privacy lock.
“Planning on starting something?” Mac asked tilting her head towards the door.
“Well,” he started slowly. “I figured we actively celebrated the news of four other impending arrivals, so I was just following tradition...”
“That’s good thinking,” Mac said with a grin, although the truth was she would have accepted no reason at all.

Given they were expecting a double addition they celebrated accordingly and quickly found sleep soon after. It was near dawn before Mac stirred and realised her husband must have been up during the night as there seemed to be an addition to the bed. While it wasn’t all that uncommon to have someone come into their bed, this addition had four legs and a tail and was most definitely a newcomer.
“What happened to get you in here, Kermit?” she whispered, scratching the cat’s head as he lay sprawled over Harm.
“Guilty,” Harm mumbled. “I got up to Frankie and figured I’d check on Kermit too and he had more blood on his dressing and was crying, so I fixed him up and brought him up with me.”
“I find this side of you very s...” she started, running her hand down his arm.
“Very stupid...silly?” he offered, unsure of where she was headed.
“Sexy,” she supplied. “In your Dr Harm mode you are incredibly sexy and just to see how you are with this little guy is adorable.”
“I just...” he started before a reply failed him as Mac leant over him and kissed him deeply. “Love you.”
“Love you too,” she replied before they cuddled together for the last few precious minutes before another busy day would begin.

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Replies:

[> Beautiful Nettie. The family grows. Harm is such a softie.so love this family. -- Beth, 21:10:11 07/15/13 Mon [1]


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[> Such a loving, lively family, this series gets better w each new chapter,Harm and Mac really have their hands full and enough love for all. Another good chapter Nettie. -- JoyZ, 23:52:04 07/15/13 Mon [1]


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[> sticking with you all the way Nettie i love this Rabb family story -- Bev uk, 13:47:52 07/16/13 Tue [1]


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[> Oh, just what I needed before getting to bed. Just love your MacKenzie-Rabb family. I also have a large family and when we're together, it's noisy with laughter and lots of love. -- carramor, 23:00:44 07/16/13 Tue [1]


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[> Loving this story -- JagFanUK, 06:40:23 07/17/13 Wed [1]

What else can I say - Loving everything about this story, the characters of the kids, the way they do life, the ups and downs - and i take great delight in Harm and Mac having a huge family.


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