| Details for Fresh Fawley Farm Foal |
| Summary: | A bit of girl bonding time, Cami has Josie help her when Princess Liz, one of the Fawley Farm Granian's goes into labor. |
| Date: | April 3rd 1939 |
| Location: | Hogsmeade - Fawley Farm - Barn |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
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It is a spring afternoon. The weather is warm and fair.
Nestled between the Scottish Mountainside and the Forbidden Forest, at the end of a long long gravel road that stretches out a few miles between the end of Crook Road and the property of the Fawley Farm is the largest of the properties in the area and it takes up near 100 acres. It's a beautiful sprawling farm. The property is completely self sustaining with plenty of meadow for the livestock, fields and orchards for growing feed for both the animal and human residents, a brook with cool water that feeds the land and the livestock and a thicket at the edge of the forest and on the mountain rise to the north side of the property. While the Farmhouse with surround porch is relatively quaint all things considered built in the usual Tudor era style it is a two story work of whimsy.
The farm is a busy bustling place. The farm is used by the resident to house and care for creatures both mundane and magical that can not live in the wild or at the Zoo. All manner of species reside in special locations sprawled out over the 100 acre property. Behind the barn that's larger than the farmhouse is a newer addition to the property being a very small lake for marine animals. Quite like a small zoo in itself every species has it's own space that's been modeled to resemble their native habitat.
It is going to be an extremely busy spring at the Fawley farm this year. Every single one of the Granian Mares is expecting to foal this season. Not to mention all of the other animal babies that are due. Lucian has been camping in the section of of the Hippogryphs because Princess, Dragon's mate is expecting to lay her egg at any moment now. But the Farm Girls have their own camping to do. So on a stack of tiered bales Cami sits above Josie with the girl between her opened legs sitting one tier down so that Cami can brush and braid and style Josie's hair. Both of them facing the largest of stalls that is for foaling and breeding. Princess Liz is pacing within the stall. Her wings stretching out and buffeting the air around her, trying to keep cool, a typical sign along with the twitching and tensing of her stomach that she's in labor. But the foal hasn't presented yet, so Josie and Cami are just having some Girl time while they wait. "Jojo, can I ask you a pretty personal question?"
Josie watches the animal, mostly holding still as Camilla works on her hair. Well, as much as she can manage, anyway, holding still isn't really her thing. She tilts her head back a bit to look up to Camilla, and then says, "'Course you can."
Camilla bites on her lower lip a moment, looking rather hesitant to actually ask the question. But she takes a deep breath to stall for emboldening and then asks in the slow rush of the exhale. "Does your Da talk about me…at all with you?" Now that the question is out there, she makes a cute scrunched up face like she instantly is regretting asking at all.
Josie nods and says, "Sure.. but.. um.. probably not the way you mean. He talks about how good you are with the animals and stuff like that, but he doesn't talk about romantic stuff or anything. Not with me, but don't think he'd talk with anybody about that. He's too stuffy to talk about that stuff."
Camilla softly mutters as she continues to gently stroke the brush through Josie's hair, "Including me." She bows down enough to kiss the top of Josie's head. "You know if you would rather spend more of your time away from School over at your father's I really wouldn't mind. When you first came here it was under the guise of you being an Orphan. But now that we all know differently now…and you seem to be thinking of following in Bannon's footsteps… So long as you visit me often, I don't mind you striking out Jojo…"
Josie thinks about that and then says, "Maybe this summer. I miss London." She giggles a little, "Never thought I'd say that." Then she says, "But not all the time, he's so busy with work… and I don't know if he wants me there all the time."
Camilla wraps her arms around Josie's shoulders from behind. "Of course he wants you closer and there more of the time. It will be good for him. You too, it's been enough time that I think he should be acclimated enough to take up the reins a bit more. Just know that I love you and I support you and you are welcomed here whenever you want to be here. I'll expect you to at least peek in every Hogsmeade Weekend next year."
Josie leans back against Camilla and says, "It's still so weird with us. Even when I give him a hug, he seems surprised. He doesn't tense up like he used to, but.. it's still weird. Maybe if I live with him this summer, it'll help? But I wanna be here for camp," she adds emphatically.
Camilla laughs softly, "Of course! You are the best helper ever you know! Shhh, don't tell Lucian." She teases and then perks up when Princess Liz starts to stomp and paw at the hay padding the floor of the stall. "I think we're getting close. How much do you want to get in on the action?"
Josie smiles again and says, "I won't," giggling a little. She looks back to the animal then and says, "I wanna help. As much as I can without getting in the way."
Camilla spares Josie the bulk of the more graphic parts of foaling. Having her at the mare's head to talk to her and sooth her and make sure she doesn't thrash. Because as one could imagine, thrashing happens during the more graphic bits. Cami is very instructive the whole time however, keeping her calm and speaking in Cloptrop to the mare. Then when it comes time she waves Josie over. "Alright, the foal is half out and she's getting really tired. So come here, take the baby's left leg above and below the knee and we are going to help pull it the rest of the way out and get it landed gently." Foaling a Granian is certainly a two person job as the baby is the size of Josie! They perhaps could use another pair of hands, but Cami wanted to do this alone with Josie. A bit of bonding time.
Josie does her best to comfort the animal through most of it, though unlike Camilla, she doesn't speak the animal's language. When Camilla calls her back, she hurries around, and then nods, "Ok!" She reaches forward to help, not hesitating in the slightest. She is gentle, however, so as not to hurt to foal as she pulls.
Camilla with Josie's help they wrangle the baby free of the mare and manage to keep it from flopping too badly about, or from it getting dumped straight onto the head. "Good job Jojo!" They are both a bit messy now in the arms and hands so instead of a hug Cami leans over to give Josie's cheek a kiss. "Isn't that something?! You sure you don't want to take after your old Farmer Cami instead?" She says with all the hope of a mother trying to gently steer her child away from such a dangerous life-style as being an Auror.
Josie grins happily as she looks back up to Camilla, but then shrugs to the question, "Maybe. I promised dad I'd look at other jobs before I decide, and that one's one I'm definitely looking at."
Camilla grins and does a little happy dance in one place. But then it's back to the task at hand. Her wand is pulled from the special front pocket of her bib top and with a flick the cord is cut clean and cauterized. The baby gives an indignant sneeze of snot and membrane and embryonic fluid at Cami when she bends over to take a peek underneath the baby. "A girl!" Another happy dance break and then with a big grin she looks over to Josie, "Why don't you watch her and make sure she doesn't tumble over. While you do….think of a name." That's right! She's letting Josie name her first Fawley Granian!