25. Top Of The World.

I was on my way to the nursery when my watch buzzed. Once again, there were wet diapers and cranky customers, but I was smiling. It had been a few days since Mariella's babies had been cured, and she was healthy but irritated by the lingering bug.

Now, Mimosa's babies had upset stomachs, leading to diarrhea and vomiting, so there was no rest for the wicked. Shadow's babies were still sniffling, and she was coughing, so per protocol, the sick ones needed to stay isolated from the healthy ones.

Mariella had recovered and was free, but she was still busy, as taking care of nine babies was time-consuming, even with help. Upon entering the nursery, I noticed that Mario and Marco were wet and dirty. I had to take them one at a time, as they were a handful.

They were cranky because Wulfe had finally gotten their fangs disabled, and they didn't like it as they couldn't sink their tiny but sharp fangs into my ear or finger for comfort. However, they were growing so fast.

I made my way to the care station, flicked on the lights, opened the doors, and got the trash cart ready. Smiling at my babies, I picked up Marco first and put Mario's crib on with his mobile, hoping to distract him for a while. Placing Marco on the padded surface, I gathered his set of clothes and began my work.

I had just finished undressing him and removing his soiled diaper when a voice from the door asked, "Bloody hell, do you need help? That stinks."

Constantine stood there in a t-shirt and jeans, looking at me.

I replied, "Yeah, actually, can you change Mario? He's wet and dirty too."

He walked in and confessed, "Well, love, I have never changed a diaper in my life, so you'll have to tell me what to do."

I nodded and instructed him, "Come over here, flick the light switch, adjust the lighting as needed, and open both doors. The trash is on your right side. Pull out the cart for the dirty items."

Constantine followed my directions, and I continued guiding him through the process.

I explained, "Now, the dirty diapers go in the round trash can and everything else in the square one. Grab the next set of clothes from the blue shelf and place them on the table."

I gave him step-by-step instructions on what to do and prepare.

Constantine remarked, "It seems this is not as simple as I thought."

I reassured him, "It's simple. Just keep everything close to you for easy access. This is my first super care station, so I'm open to feedback."

Constantine replied, "Let's see how this goes. Maybe I'll figure it out, eventually."

I smiled at his uncertainty and then told him, "Now, go get your client. He might be a bit cranky since he's wet, so don't take it personally if he cries."

Constantine picked up Mario, who seemed to sense his magic and responded with giggles and coos.

I cautioned, "He's a siphon, so be mindful of your magic, as he can sense it and is drawn to it."

Constantine sarcastically said, "How hard can this be? I've been to hell, literally, with hellfire in my magic. This is just a baby with a dirty diaper, not a prince of hell challenging me."

I remained silent as he placed Mario on the changing surface. 

I instructed him, "First, undress your victim. There's a laundry sack on the right-hand side of the door; put the clothes there."

He grunted and began removing his pants and socks while still laughing Mario, who had cleverly distracted the wizard.

Mario giggled and cooed as he attempted to absorb his magic, prompting Constantine to curse, "You're not stealing my magic, no matter how charming you are."

I smiled and remarked, "He's great at using charm to get what he wants."

Constantine removed Mario's shirt, revealing an onesie underneath.

I guided him, "There are buttons on the crotch and neck; unfasten them to proceed."

Eventually, Mario was fully undressed, left only in a wet diaper. I then instructed Constantine to unfasten the diaper stickers and pull down the front.

"Now, place the cloth nappy over his private area to avoid accidents. Use your left hand to hold his feet like this," I showed with Marco, "and lift his bottom. With your right hand, gather the soiled diaper, roll it up, and dispose of it in the diaper trash. Keep him elevated; he's still dirty."

Constantine muttered under his breath as the smell reached him. "I'd rather fight in hell than deal with this stench."

I noticed Mariella and Number Three standing at the door, both smiling.

Mariella noticed Milo fussing and walked over to him, cooing softly, "Oh, you're a big boy, aren't you? Yes, you are. What's the matter? Oh, are you wet too, poor boy? Come on, let me hold you."

Mariella picked him up and remarked to me, "He's huge compared to my boys. He's a giant."

I nodded and instructed Constantine, "Now, take a wipe, press two squirts from the red bottle, and wipe his bum. You'll need a lot of wipes, so get going."

Constantine muttered to himself, "How can someone so small smell this bad?"

After I had just cleaned Marco, Number Three came and got his clothes, saying, "I can dress him over there. You have the next client waiting."

Mariella said, "I can change him. I want to check Mimi's care station to improve mine."

I moved away, saying, "Well, my station is set up for my preferences as a left-hander, so it might not be ideal for you."

Mariella chuckled, opened the doors, grabbed what she needed, and was quite efficient.

I glanced at Constantine, who was still wiping Mario, and advised him, "Let go of his legs and turn him onto his belly so you can clean him. Keep that cloth nappy in place."

Mariella had also found the cloth nappies and asked, "Why don't you use them as normal nappies?"

I explained, "They're not as dry when wet, and these have very sensitive skin, so I don't take chances."

Number Three, intrigued, said, "Let's see them," as he examined one of the cloth nappies.

I told him, "I haven't mentioned them to Damon yet. I ordered them a few days ago because I was tired of wasting nappies for just one pee. I can wash them repeatedly. They'll be useful for many more litters to come."

Number three took a few cloth nappies and walked away. I assume he went to ask for number one's opinion. For me, it wasn't a big deal, as they were just something useful. I wasn't particular about sharing every little thing I came up with.

I was just thinking about what to do next. Wulfe informed me he was still ill with a stomach bug, and Magnum had the sniffles, so neither of them could spend time with me.

Mariella was helping Constantine, instructing him on what to wipe and where. She mentioned, "I hadn't thought of putting them on their bellies. It helps, by the way, so that's a good catch."

I nodded and replied, "It works until they try to crawl or reach things; then it gets a little tricky but still manageable."

I was standing there when Mona woke up and started screaming. I went to her, picked her up, and found that she was wet. This little princess wouldn't calm down until I changed her.

I told Mariella, "Move a little; we can do this together."

Damon widened the space so he could help.

I said, "I have to change this little princess."

Mona was crying her eyes out, her tiny face contorted in an angry scowl. I placed her on the table. Milo and Mario were getting upset by their sister's cries. I quickly gathered Mona's clothes, collected my supplies, and started undressing her, attempting to offer her a pacifier, but she kept spitting it out while screaming.

I was swift as I took her clothes off, got her dirty nappy out, and wiped her. Still, her crying did not stop. She was truly making a mess, and it took some time for me to get her clean enough to turn her on her belly. Mariella was already dressing Milo, and she was at the same time telling Constantine how to dress Mario.

As I wiped Mona's bum, I noticed a rash, not a typical nappy rash, but this was a little more irritated. It came sometimes when nappy rubbed in the crease on their thigh. She was screaming, as it felt nasty.

I had made one dental to it, and I said calmly to Mariella, " Would you hand me that blue jar and a few cotton buds? I need to put my special sauce."

She looked at Mona's thigh and said, her voice worried, "That looks nasty. Has Damon seen this?"

I said, "Not sure. It sometimes comes when their nappy rubs wrongly as they move their legs. I have made dental what soothes it in a few days. "

Mariella said nothing, and it was less than a minute when Damon walked in. Mariella carried Milo to his crib as Damon came to stand next to me, took my jar and smelled it, tasted it, conjured the jar with lid and bit through it, flooding something light blue and passionfruit smelling. He opened the jar, took a cotton bud, and wiped the irritated spots. Slowly, Mona's angry crying calmed down.

Damon said, "It is numbing and caring. We need to check on those nappies, if there needs to do some adjustments."

He took one diaper and looked at the leg part; there was a stretchy part on it that kept the mess in the diaper, but it sometimes irritated the skin. 

I said to Damon," We can change to bigger nappies. Sure, sure, they might leak a bit more, but they are looser from the leg part. As these are growing so fast and get all the time new skills, it keeps me on my toes."

He grunted and said, "Fine, let's do that, and I have given orders to make sure that this won't happen to others. That is a nasty feeling rash. I could feel her discomfort. Hence, you have my liquid. It should keep at least eight months, so if it runs out, ask for more."

I nodded. I was dressing Mona when Matteo was crying. I rolled my eyes.

Constantine had gotten his charge ready, and he said to me, "Thanks, love, for the lesson. Still, I have to go check on some potions."

I smiled to myself. Damon said, "Well, I am free. I can take Matteo."

I said to him. "Bigger nappies are in the big cabinet, lower shelf, the violet packet." He nodded and went there to get a few bigger nappies already.

I was still dressing Mona, who was in a better mood now, while Damon moved to the other side to work on Matteo.

His soft voice crooned to him, "You've grown, haven't you? You grow so fast that I can barely keep up!"

I smiled and replied, "Twice as fast as human babies! They're five weeks old today, which means they're like a 10-week-old human baby. Look, they're watching you! When you put him on his belly, he holds up his head the best and tries to grab things. He's one of the most advanced of the five."

Damon made funny faces at Matteo, who giggled at his silly daddy and tried to grab Damon's shirt or anything within reach. He was my most active little wizard, and with everyone awake, I thought we should have a bit of playtime.

I said to Damon, "No need to put him in his crib; they're awake, so let's have some fun rolling on the floor instead."

Damon grunted and said, "Sounds like fun, baby. I'm free, so let's do it."

I was surprised, but hid my expression as I took out the activity mats. I picked up the babies from the floor once Damon had Matteo ready. He was giggling, and Damon sat on the floor and placed him under one of the play arches. His tiny hands eagerly reached for everything hanging above him, and Damon smiled at him.

Milo was feeling lazy, so I had to encourage him to get moving. But when he finally got his hands on a soft, fuzzy ball, he squealed with joy.

After a little while, Damon remarked, "It's wonderful to see how they're improving! Oh, look, Matteo is rolling over! Oh my gosh, he rolled!"

I smiled and noticed Mona reacting to her daddy's voice; she began cooing and trying to roll over too, clearly eager to impress everyone as the princess.

I said to Damon, "Watch our princess; she's trying to roll over way too soon!" 

Damon smiled, genuinely surprised by their growth. I didn't even notice as numbers three, four, and ten walked in to join playtime. Their funny expressions made the babies giggle and laugh while they compared abilities and development.

They also checked on other babies to see who was most advanced and who might need a little push, like Milo, who was as lazy as me. According to initial DNA tests, he didn't have the rage gene, unlike Mona, who inherited it from both of us. Damon had the rage gene, too, and although I wasn't sure if his rage was like mine, it was in his genes.

Sitting on the floor surrounded by my husbands and our kids, I looked at them with love, thinking how perfect this feeling was. It cleared my mind of all the negative thoughts, making me feel like I was on top of the world.