Ever so slowly, I let go of Cain's shirt. Mostly because I was holding it so tightly my hands were starting to ache. He hadn't moved, I don't think he was even breathing as he just sat there. I shifted backwards curling up my legs as I hid my face in my hands.

This was a mistake.

I'm sorry, Blueberry.

All I get in response is a new wave of stomach cramps. Of course, why not. I remember the box of ginger pills and leave, getting water and tearing open the box with a quick glance at the instructions. Take two before travel- not helpful. I take three, hoping for the best but apparently, I should start travelling so these things work or maybe look at taking them in advance.

The only travel I get to do now is back to the bathroom and I barely make it in time.

"Fucking. Ginger. Chocolate Cake. This is bullshit."

There are few times in my life when I actually wished to die. This was one of them and just when things couldn't get worse, I felt a hand on my back, another gathering my hair and a shadow formed beside me filling the space between the wall and the toilet.

"You okay?" Cain asks gently.

I groan, resting my head on my forearm. "Please let me die in peace."

"You're not dying. Even if you were, I wouldn't let you."

"Cain, I-" I hold up a hand, take a deep breath and since I know that would be the truth, I wished to disappear instead.

"Don't." He soothes, rubbing my back as I close my eyes for round two. "So, this is where you've been hiding out lately. I can see why. The acoustics are decent. You really get to enjoy the full experience."

"I hate you."

We sat there for a while.

"You done?" I shrug, looking at him through blurry eyes I blink a few times to try and focus. "Come here."

He pulls me towards him and I go with it. I close my eyes as he kisses my forehead, and rest against him.

"I'm so yuck right now." I groan. "I need to brush my teeth."

"If it helps, I've seen you throw up many times and once even onto me." His hand slides over my face and I don't miss the taste of mint in my mouth. "Better?"

"For now."

"We really do need to talk, don't we?" He says slowly.

"I take it back. I'm not better. How long will that give me?" I look up at him as he kisses me again. "Like an hour? A few days?"

"What about a free pass for the last couple of weeks?"

"I'll take the deal."

"Good choice. Did you want to stay here or can we go somewhere a little more comfortable?"

"You don't like cold tiles with a lingering aroma of partially digested chocolate cake, and pure suffering?" I sigh, turning to hold onto him.

Sure enough, we're back on the bed in the blink of an eye. We sit there for a minute and slowly I lean back to look at him. I take a breath, opening my mouth to try and work out what to say, but from the slightly unimpressed look on his face, I think I've said enough. His brows dip, those worry lines returning and I brace myself for whatever is next. I'm not expecting him to grab my leg, come forward and then pull me closer so I'm sitting against him. He guides my arms up, dropping them over his shoulders and I don't need any more hints. Cheek to cheek, I hold Cain as tightly as he holds me.

"I should have guessed from your questions the other day, especially with how weird you've been." He sighed. "I just never thought to suspect it. A baby. I didn't expect to be having this talk for a while."

"Like a hundred years or so?"

Cain leant back as far as my hold would allow, "Well, yeah. Maybe more. It's honestly never been something I've wanted or considered. The timing isn't exactly ideal, I also didn't think much about making sure it didn't happen either. Never had to, our kind doesn't exactly procreate as easily as the mortals."

I slowly nod, understanding, and let it all sink in. My hands drop, folding around my torso as I hug myself. I didn't completely understand that last part, possibly another Power fact I missed in the manual. Was it because I wasn't born as one of them the reason this happened or was it like Kara had said, just basic biology - one that we hadn't made more of a priority.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" There's a hardness there I know he regrets, I can see it all over his face. "How long have you known? That. About. That you're, ah pregnant?"

Oh yeah, I get the whole trifecta. Regret. Suspicion. Pain. He hasn't left yet, disappeared. Got angry. I mean, if he'd kept something huge from me I'd be pissed off and I'd make sure he knew it.

"Girls night." I admit it for the second time today. "I'd been sick, and my boobs were crazy sore and that was all Raya kept talking about at the hens night. I'd been feeling weird since just before the wedding. Tired. I was at the store and I walked past a bunch of tests and I don't even know why I just grabbed one. I did it, left it, took a bath, got ready, and then remembered to go look. Then I did a couple more, and another and then I got different brands."

"Kara knows?"

"She walked in on me in the bathroom. You nearly did too. I just, I didn't believe it. I wasn't expecting it either. I didn't want this to happen. I didn't plan it. I needed time to think, and she wanted me to tell you straight up, but I didn't know how, and I didn't believe it. I still kind of don't. I ended up going to one of those free, women health clinics and she did a blood test for me which also confirmed it. I'd just left there and was walking back the night we went to Max's. That's why I was at that park."

He thinks about this, I can almost hear him processing what I just said as that old computer Doctor Vallerie had. Cain closes his eyes, shutting down as I just sit there and stare at him.

"Who else knows?"

"Um, Raya. Doctor Vallerie, if she counts." I can feel the burn behind my eyes, a build-up of tears that is threatening to explode. "I'm sorry. I just, I freaked out. I'm so fucking scared, and the morning sickness is a joke, I am so damn tired and I don't know what to do. I wish I had told you before, I tried. I couldn't do it. Saying it out loud makes it real, too real and I couldn't deal with that. This clearly isn't what either of us planned on or want, but the little leech is as big as a blueberry now and I talk to it and I can see him, or maybe her, here, with us, and I don't think I'm as scared as I was before. I think I might actually want this. And I get it if you don't or you need time to process. Day by day is suddenly living together with a baby on the way and we haven't even got a puppy to test ourselves with first and-"

"Elise, stop." He orders giving no hint at what's going inside on the outside. "Breathe."

I quickly nod, taking a deep breath or maybe three.

"I hate that you didn't tell me sooner. This isn't only your responsibility." He unwraps my arms and holds my hands. "It's ours, but I don't know what to do. Try not to tell anyone else, not yet. I'm trying to process all of this as best I can."

I can feel him panicking.

I've been there.

A part of me was still there too.

"Are we," I start to feel sick again for a completely different reason. "Are we good? Like, is there still-"

"I'm still here." The sincerity in his voice helped those tears find their freedom. "Nice try, but I don't scare easily. What else you got?"

"Fresh out of ideas at this point, that was my wild card." I shrug before that little lightbulb goes bright above my head. "Oh, nope. I got something."

One eyebrow arches, caution creeping in as I wiggle closer again. He holds my thighs, and I roll forward, taking his face in my hands. I kiss him slowly, crying harder without meaning to as relief makes me giddy. Nothing had changed and it wasn't going to. The passion was there, I was breathless in no time, we both were.

"This is your Plan B to scare me away? Hate to see what you'd come up with to make me stay."

"Oh, right." I bite his lip, earning a smile. "You're gonna have to tell my parents, my Dad, about this eventually."

His grip on my thighs tightens, almost painfully.

"And my brother." I bop him on the nose. "Zane too."

"You got me." He holds his hands up in surrender. "I'm out, only I think there's one part in all of this you're forgetting."

"What's that?" I laugh, suddenly finding myself on my back with him leaning over me.

"You'll be telling them too."

"Shit." He smirks, a hand sliding down across my hips towards the button on my jeans. "That'll give me something to talk my therapist about."

"You've survived worse, we both have. Just maybe not tell them yet. The fewer people that know at the moment the better until, I, we, work out a few things." Slowly Cain moves to rest on his side, his hand lingering before it sprawls out across my stomach. I'm positive I can feel it trembling. "Therapist?"

"He may call that deflecting." See, I'm learning already. "It's something new, well, an old thing, I'm trying. I feel bad offloading onto Ailin all the time but it was her suggestion anyhway, and with how well I handled this news I decided it wouldn't hurt. Life has been intense and Ailin found him, seems legit but I dunno. I might go again, he thinks weekly sessions but-"

"You don't have to explain yourself to me, El." Cain's eyes are glued to his hand. "Ailin likes it, don't feel guilty for accepting her help."

"Funny, he mentioned something about that too."

His hand stays put, resting his head on my chest and I idly run my fingers through his hair. Maybe Hecate was right, happiness was coming. 

It actually felt like it was already here. Just for a moment and with the crazy I called my life, I needed to hold onto it. 

"I was reading about how it grows and, like what's going on in there at the moment. It's starting to get arms and legs."

"Really?" He doesn't hide his surprise. "How old is he? Like, um, how far along?"

"She is about 7 weeks. The doctor I saw said we'll get a scan at twelve weeks or so which will confirm it. I think she said May is the due date."

Slowly he started to trace circles across my skin, and scars. Goosebumps broke out all over, and as I shivered he smiled.

"So, we get to see him?"

"Yes, or her." I point out, making him stop and glance up at me. "What? It could be? We don't know yet though clearly, you're leaning towards team blue."

Cain just looks awkward as he sits up now. "Buntings only have boys, remember?"

I sit up too. "But didn't that get broken when Portia-"

"No, that was a one time deal." He took my hand and kissed my knuckles. "I'm sorry."

"This is why I need therapy." I shrugged. "It's not the worst thing though, right? I mean, cuts out the need for the whole gender reveal thing. I've always liked the name Geoff."

"Geoff? No. I'm not sure you can be trusted with naming rights. I mean, your demon, essentially a snake, is called Alfie. You call fluffy little dogs, Alfie."

"He looked like an Alfie. Did you see him as a baby? He had a little smile and everything."

Cain laughed, but it didn't last before he fell onto his back rubbing his eyes. "Fuck."

"Are you okay? Like, I can go and give you some time if you want to process and-" I offer only he reaches out and grabs my ankle.

"No. Stay." He sighed, glancing up at me. "Please stay. You've been avoiding me enough lately, I need you to be here. Especially now."

"Should I ruin the night by bringing up the obvious or wait until tomorrow?"

"I'm already thinking about it."

"I don't think they know." I decide. "They came to the wedding when it had already happened. I was like, three weeks or something, and in their little head-fuck, they actually used my parents never knowing my kids on me."

"They might want you to think that they don't know." He rubbed his eyes. "But, I think you're right. I said it months ago, they don't know as much as they want us to believe they do. It's all been empty threats. What I don't understand is why."

"Because they hate us?"

"Clearly we're not in their favour, but the reasons behind it. I can't work it out." He sighed. 

"You don't buy the never supposed to have been born theory?" I ask, unable to stop myself from looking at my stomach. Where would that leave this little guy?

"I did for a bit, but I think it's something else. Do you not remember anything from your time as the third? Anything that might help make sense of it?" He sounded desperate, and I was only going to add to the disappointment.

"No. It's not like my brain has backup storage where I could just download all the mysteries of the world and life itself to look back on later." Yet I instantly thought of the wheel thing, and Medusa's cryptic little musings along the way. "Maybe we could go back to Medusa?"

He ignores that. "Our focus should be on Portia, especially if we can keep her away from the other two for long enough. She cares about you. You've always been a soft spot with her."

"Are you positive about that? I don't feel a lot of warm and fuzzies between us these days only she does seem to pop up every now and then to have a chat. Look at the other night." Something else occurred to me and not for the first time. "You two have spent forever together. Now look at where we are. Could she be jealous?"

"No. It's never been like that for us. Our partnership was created out of convenience and a sense of gratitude. Attraction has only ever gone as far as what we could do, or provide to one another at any given time. We both hate my family, and sharing our personal space. She's always had a streak of independence that I once admired, its why I did what I did." His tone softens slightly yet it doesn't last. "I assure you we are otherwise very incompatible. Remember the not being on the same continent together from before? I wasn't kidding."

"How's sharing that personal space going for you now?" I'm teasing, yet he seems to still think about it.

"I think I am adjusting quite well, don't you?" He winked, and I had to smile. Nice save. "This has happened with Portia and I before, many times. We come and go within each other's lives. She has never been the Maiden throughout that time though, yet it seems our cycle remains the same. We reached a point where it was time to part again when the Treaty was being formed. I feel she was disappointed I didn't end up taking another long nap as I had planned while I recovered. We kept going for quite a while after that, and the last few years have been intense so maybe our feud is overdue. Then again, she hasn't been quite the same since the French Revolution."

"The French Revolution? Right. Okay. Again, this is why I need therapy." It was getting later, and I was actually starting to feel hungry. "So, you know, the very unlikely occurrence of someone having unrequited feelings for another person who is fairly oblivious to it and has now moved on, is definitely not a possibility here?"

"No. Portia and I are nothing like me and you." He stated firmly.

"You and Me? That was just some random example I came up with." Cain didn't look too impressed. "Would it hurt to ask, nicely?"

"It seems less complicated than all my other ideas. Portia is their weak link and I am certain she will be the way to finding out exactly what they do and don't know. I think you could sway her to our side, she seems more focused on you than me lately anyway."

We both looked at each other realising that may not be a good thing.

"How do we do that without tipping them all off then? Get her to make a pinky promise?"

"I don't know yet." He sighed.

"You weren't keen on my Medusa idea before, what about now?"

"Still a no."

"Hecate?" I say quickly.

"Maybe something will turn up before they become our only option?" His tone remained flat, like that may be an even worse outcome.

"Look at you being hopeful. Hecate is a more obvious choice, she's helped me twice before. I think she'd do it again. Don't forget, my soul or whatever is distantly related to her, and I am BFF's with her daughter who I also made Queen. Plus no weird mother son relationship or giant snake women to deal."

"You trust her?" Cain fails or at least doesn't try to hide how much of a bad idea he thinks that is.

"She's given me no reason not to."

"With ones like her, that's generally all the reason you need."

"You sound paranoid. They're not all that bad, take Artemis for example. Hades?" I argue.

"You've known them for a minute El, and they've all mostly been on your side. Artemis once turned an Other into a deer for his hunting dogs to savagely kill and then eat, because he out hunted her in a competition. She has a shorter temper than her twin and seeks vengeance twice as bad. Be thankful you've never seen that side of her. Hades well, he's never been as savage as Zeus. He's always had the Underworld as his escape."

"We all have our moments." I shrug. "But Hecate-"

"She isn't like the other Powers. I've not had much to do with her, apart from whatever Hades shares, and I don't particularly want to. I like to know what I'm up against, and with her, I don't. Everyone fears her. I once saw Hera cut out someone's tongue when they said her name."

I thought about the forest and little cottage, the whole eccentric lady on the hill vibe she had going. Everything in that house breathed her energy, and I didn't doubt being stuck in the Underworld had left her weak. My gut told me she wasn't the enemy, but it also was telling me chocolate cake now was so it was becoming harder to know what was right and wrong these days.

"Okay. No Hecate." I agree, watching his shoulders relax as I agreed with him.

"Thank you."

He slides back down and I do too, as his hand lands back on my stomach.

"For now. Can we get some dinner soon, please?"

Cain buries his head into my side, groaning. He doesn't resurface for a few minutes and I start to wonder if he's suffocated himself.

"Elise, come on." He finally huffs.

"What? I'm hungry, there's a small window of-" I start only he shakes his head.

"Not cute. I didn't say no, I said not yet. Please."

"I said I would." He only stares at me. "Fine. I'll wait until you give the go ahead."

He disappears again, his words muffled against my jeans and the blanket, before he bounces up, as if nothing was going on.

"Alright let's eat. Pizza?"

"Yes! Pizza! That's exactly what I feel like." I'm already drooling at the thought. "I don't think I've thrown that up yet either, can't wait to see how this goes."

"I don't even know if you're being sarcastic right now or not?" He frowns, as I take his hand.

"Same. Isn't pregnant me fun?'

"Ask me again in nine months."

_______________________

What was she even worried about...I think that went rather well?