Any Day Darling: A Feysand Story

Part 25: A Pregnant Pause

Rhys was soaring high above me, weaving between the trees that surrounded the clearing, just outside his old Illyrian training camp. It was a good place for a picnic if we had time for picnics. We must have, as there was an old blanket under me, a basket of food under my arm.

"Show off!" I shouted up at him from my spot on the ground. He chuckled and swooped back down, blowing up my skirt with the wind from his wings. He rested his hand on my swollen stomach and gave me a quick kiss on the cheek.

"I can't wait till we get him out of there, so we can fly together again." I bopped him upside the head.

Not to meet him?" I asked with a smirk. He moved in front of me, leaning so close I could practically feel his lips moving when he spoke.

Well, of course, I can't wait to see his little face, but it will be rather splendid to get you back up in the air." I pulled him in for a quick kiss, but my stomach got in the way, keeping us from becoming completely entangled in one another. "Plus," He muttered, "I would really like to be able to fuck you again without being scared, I'll crush his little head." He made a move towards the basket of food and started unpacking the lunch Elain must have made us.

Personally, I can't wait until I can drink again." I said, taking the sandwich from his hand. "It's no fun watching you all drink while I just sit there with my nausea tonic. It made me realize how insane we look wasted."

"Tell you what," He said, sliding closer, "Until he decides to make an appearance, I'll sit through sobriety with you."

"That's very kind of you," I teased. "I'm just ready for him to hurry up and get here. I wanna meet him more than anything." Rhys put a loving hand over my belly. The baby let out a little kick that made us both grin like maniacs.

"Any day darling," He purred, "We will meet him any day now."

✩✩✩

It was the first nice dream I had since I found out we'd be going to the Spring Court. Not that I was having nightmares every night, but they haven't been pleasant. It was a nice change, just like last night. When I woke, the sun was peaking over our window ledge, dancing across Rhys's nose. He was still deep in sleeps arms; his dreams probably not as pleasant as my own. I brushed my lips to his forehead before slipping out of bed. Thankful for the lack of morning sickness, I pulled on my robe and went to the kitchen for a bite to eat before it caught up to me. Disregarding the jelly that had been in the icebox for who knows how long, I sliced Elain's bread and moved over to the table.

Rhys's mothers' book was still open from where we shoved it aside the night before. Her handwriting was so much like his. They both wrote with a large slant and forgot to cross half the T's. The only noticeable difference was in the loops. His were thin and tall, but every loop in his mother's writing was short and fat. I knew she tutored him, and the other brooding bats they lived with, but I never thought about how much attention she must have paid for their script to be so similar. Maybe that's where his patience for teaching me all those years ago came from.

He always said she would have loved me. I wanted to believe him. Rationally, I knew that the woman who sewed dresses for me before I was even dreamed of, who hid my engagement ring in the Weaver's lair to ensure I was a fair match for her son, the woman who should have been High Lady herself would at least tolerate me. But, if she could see me, would she ever forgive me for my association with the man who hung her wings on his wall like a hunting trophy? I would never know.

I flipped back to the first page, but before I could start reading, I heard Rhys's footsteps thundering down the hall. He was white as a ghost when he slid into the room. I stood up and walked over to him as color reentered his cheeks.

There you are, he said down the bond, You weren't there when I woke up, and you always sleep later than me, and I thought for a minute—I kissed him to ease his rambling thoughts. He wrapped his arms around my waist and scooped me up. I wrapped my legs around him as my robe fell off. Just as I started kissing down his neck, there was a sharp rattling on the door.

"Put some clothes on, you horny shits, I got news."

✩✩✩

Fifteen minutes later, after throwing on some clothes and grabbing everything we had brought up with us, Rhys winnowed the three of us to the outskirts of Velaris.

I had to put a shield around the city to stop anyone from winnowing in. Rhys explained when he noticed my puzzled look as we landed on the soft ground. We're not talking any chances. Cass took off on his own, shooting towards the city. I began to shift out my wings, but I remembered what Madja said about flying and quickly stopped, letting Rhys carry me into the city. A cold shiver went down my spine when we passed through the new barrier arching over the city. Perhaps our 24 hours of ignorance had cost us more than we expected.

The streets below us were oddly crowded for mid-morning. The population had grown significantly in the past few days, and although we weren't sure of the exact numbers, it was a large enough change that we would have to budget for it soon. Now, however, there are much more pressing matters at hand than the city budget.

A few former members of the Spring court were walking in front of the river home when we landed. They tried to hide their amazement, but their jaws snapped shut a moment too late. They would have to get used to Illyrian warriors flying through the skies eventually. I gave them a little wave before Cassian moved to hurry us inside.

"Everyone's already in the meeting room," Cass said to us as we approached the front doors. There were two members of the city guard on either side, a new precaution, just in case anyone tried anything sneaky while our guards were down, feeling safe in our own home. We hurried through the foyer and through a side corridor to the meeting room. We typically gathered there once a month to touch base with our circle at the same time. It usually ended with a bottle of wine and recountings of the old stories I'm still learning, but not today.

Today, there would be no wine, no roaring laughter, no sparring on the roof after. Today, we would prepare to go to war.