Work Text:
July 1941
Jimmy Herriot was a happy baby. Most of the time. But over the last two days nothing and no one could cheer the suddenly irritable little boy. He had barely slept, had hardly eaten, and refused to be soothed. On the second evening of this when he had woken up with a slight fever from an all too brief 30-minute-long nap in the midst of the family’s tea, Helen had panicked. Audrey, however, had spotted the signs that the lad was teething and quickly prescribed the small boy a few spoonfuls of cool chamomile tea, and produced a new wooden teething ring from the drawer of her desk while reassuring Helen that all would be well. Though Jimmy’s squalling diminished slightly, when the telephone rang after dinner Siegfried and Carmody had both jumped at the chance to escape the house for the peace and quiet of the Dales. Attending to a colicky horse sounded like a far better prospect than another evening at home with the still fussy infant. As the vets rushed out the door Audrey turned her attention to the young mother who was at her wits end trying to show Jimmy how to gum on the ring his Aunty Audrey had magicked out of her desk.
“Why don’t you give him a little feed and go lie down, love.” Audrey suggested. “Jimmy and I will go for a walk so you can get some sleep. You being tired and upset won’t help anything.” Helen looked as if she wanted to argue, but Audrey quickly gave her a look that everyone in Skeldale House knew meant they had lost before the argument even started and Helen quickly acquiesced. Jimmy managed a short feed before drifting fitfully off to sleep, and Audrey bundled him into this pram. Clipping leashes onto the dogs, she hoped a long walk in the cool evening air would help keep him asleep for a bit longer than his sore gums had allowed the last two days. It was nearing sunset before she returned home. Jimmy had started stirring and she knew she only had a few minutes to get home before his crying disturbed half of Darrowby.
As Audrey maneuvered the pram back into Skeldale’s kitchen, she registered that the Rover was still missing. She hated when any of the Skeldale men had to be out past sunset, forced to drive home over hill and dale in the dark with minimal light to aid them due to the blackout regulations. Before she could spend much time on the thought, however, the volume of Jimmy’s fussing grew and the dogs scampered off in search of a quiet place to snooze knowing their mistress would stay up until their master came home.
Audrey plucked Jimmy from his pram saying, “Now young man, your Ma needs some more rest. And so do you. So, we’re going to rub a little more of this chamomile tea on your gums and we’re going to rest by the fire while we wait for your Uncle Siegfried and Richard.” She handed the baby his teething ring which his pudgy had grasped as he worked to direct the object to his sore mouth.
“Here you go my sweet boy,” Audrey cooed, helping Jimmy meet his goal by maneuvering the wooden ring into his mouth. She pressed a kiss to his forehead, warm despite the cool night air from a combination of his teething and fussing. Picking up the cold cup of tea Audrey made her way to the living room, pleased to find the coals of the fire hot enough that she could easily feed and stoke it with one hand before moving to the radio to find something soothing to listen to. The BBC was playing a swing ballad and Audrey began swaying to the sound of the music hoping the movement would calm the small boy she cuddled in her arms. As she moved in rhythm with the music little Jimmy began to calm, and before long his head came to rest on her shoulder, his breathing slowed and finally the wooden ring fell to the carpet with a soft thud that disturbed only Jess from her slumber. Audrey continued swaying, enjoying the peace that had descended on the house. She buried her nose in Jimmy’s baby soft hair memorizing the scent and the feel of his small body curled on her chest. In a blink of an eye, he would be walking and talking and she wanted to remember every precious moment with the boy she loved so dearly.
Lost in the moment, Audrey didn’t hear when Siegfried and Carmody came through the back door, and down the hall from the scullery, and she didn’t register Carmody climbing the stairs wearily. It wasn’t until Siegfried appeared at the door to the sitting room, leaning against the frame that she noticed she and Jimmy were no longer alone. Siegfried had long ago learned that he would never get used to the sight of Audrey holding the youngest Herriot. Each and every time, it struck him as the most beautiful sight he had ever witnessed and that was saying a lot given he spent his days roaming a place that was heaven on earth and helping to bring baby animals into the world. Their eyes met and Audrey gave a small sigh of relief, happy to see Siegfried home safe and sound.
“It’s about time you got home, Jimmy and I were about to send out a search party.” Audrey quipped, her voice barely above a whisper.
Siegfried smiled, “I rather think young Master Herriot is far too content with his dance partner to be worried about his old Uncle. I should cut in and show the boy a thing or two.”
“I don’t know about cutting in, unless you want the crying to resume, but I think Jimmy wouldn’t mind if you joined us on the dance floor. Though I’ll warn you, I haven’t danced in years so I think you’ll put both Jimmy and I to shame.” Her eyes sparkled at Siegfried as he pushed himself from the doorframe and made his way over to his two favorite people, aware that something was shifting between them in this moment.
“I don’t think anyone could ever put you to shame, Aunty Audrey.” Siegfried replied with a teasing tone. Jimmy’s arrival in the house had helped to usher in more changes than they had ever anticipated before his birth. It had become clear that they were all one big happy family, and within the protective walls of their Skeldale refuge they were no longer “Mr. Farnon” and “Mrs. Hall.” They had dispensed with those formalities one day without discussion. The lines they had so carefully drawn over the years has similarly started melting away over the intervening months.
Making his way over to where Audrey was still swaying with Jimmy, the radio softly playing Glenn Miller’s Moonlight Serenade in the background. “What say you, young Herriot, may I join you and your Aunty in this dance?” Siegfried said softly, unsure if she would change her mind.
“Come on then,” came Audrey’s cheeky reply.
Siegfried moved to gently take Audrey and their godson into his arms. Nine months ago, he had almost lost her for good. Now here they were dancing in their living room, their dogs at their feet and their treasured godson in their arms. It was a perfect fit. Audrey snuggled Jimmy securely between them, supporting him with one arm and resting her other on Siegfried’s chest, grasping lightly onto his lapel as if he might vanish if she held on too hard. Siegfried brought a hand gently to the small of Audrey’s back and the other added support to the baby bundled between them. Siegfried thought about pinching himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming, but if he were it was a dream he didn’t want to wake up from. They swayed in time to the music, both simply living in the moment they were creating together. After a while Siegfried began to hum along to the tune and Audrey pressed her cheek to his as he maneuvered the three of them around the small patch of floor with a grace she didn’t know he possessed.
As the song came to a close Siegfried gently began singing along.
“So don't let me wait, come to me tenderly in the June night
I stand at your gate and I sing you a song in the moonlight
A love song, my darling, a Moonlight Serenade”
As she listened to the lyrics in Siegfried’s velvety voice, Audrey’s heart skipped a beat and happy tears filled her eyes. She once again stopped to commit the moment to memory. One day, she knew that dancing just like this would be a normal occurrence for them but she always wanted to remember this first time. So unremarkable, but somehow so perfect.
As the last strains of the song came to a close, Jimmy began to stir between them, emitting a soft wail. “Impeccable timing as always, young man.” Siegfried joked to cover his disappointment that the moment had been lost.
Audrey adjusted her grip on the baby before pulling back out of Siegfried’s arms slightly. Their eyes met and Siegfried saw the loving tears in Audrey’s eyes and knew that the moment wasn’t lost, that there would be many more like this in the years to come.
“This little one is ready for his midnight snack, I imagine. And we should probably both take ourselves to bed before the phone rings or the air raid sirens go off. We’ve had precious little rest the last few days.”
He nodded silently in agreement as she moved to take Jimmy up to his mother, afraid that his voice would betray him if he tried to speak.
“Siegfried?” Audrey stopped at the living room door and turned back to him with a cheeky grin on her face
“Yes, Audrey?” His voice was barely a whisper.
“Jimmy and I would like another dance lesson tomorrow, if you’re available.”
“It would be my absolute pleasure.”