by T. J. Quinn
“Then, you’re probably a month pregnant. We’ll monitor the baby’s growth every fortnight, just in case,” Erin said before she turned to look at Colborn. "You'll have to teach me how to use this device."
“It will be a pleasure.”
“Why do I suddenly feel like a lab rat?” Eleanor grumbled amused.
“That’s because you are, my darling,” Erin replied, laughing. “Now, just do a normal life, no excesses and you should be fine. We’ll see you in fifteen days.”
Eleanor nodded and slid down from the examination table. Brynjar wrapped his arm around her waist and soon they were leaving the hospital.
Chapter 4
“How do you feel about the pregnancy?” He asked her, as they headed back to the palace. “I’m aware we’ve never discussed this…”
“There was no need, sweet heart. This…” she covered her belly with her hands, “was always the goal you and your people were pursuing, so I can’t say I’m surprised.”
“I know… but I have to admit it scares me a bit. There’s so much we don’t know about this whole situation…” he admitted.
“Everything will be alright,” she assured him. “Let’s enjoy this pregnancy as much as we can, please?” she asked him.
He let out a sigh a nodded. She could tell he was still worried, but with luck, he would feel better as the pregnancy progressed.
And it went faster than anyone expected. Probably it was due to the combination of the two species, they couldn’t be sure, but the baby developed far more quickly than a human baby.
By month two, the baby was fully developed and they would have been able to tell its gender if it wasn't for the fact, the baby hid it very well. Eleanor’s belly was now obvious and Brynjar was happy he had scheduled the announcement.
He didn’t want his people to think he was hiding Eleanor.
They had decided to announce with the eight couples mated with the first eight women brought from Earth and Gil Ra had decided the occasion demanded a special outfit and she had worked hard with Olaf to produce eight magnificent white dresses for the women.
The event would take place in the palace’s gardens and it would be broadcasted to the whole planet. There was a lot of excitement and the after party was going to gather quite a crowd, but everybody was looking forward to it.
A few days before the main event, Oydis, Asgar’s mother, called her.
“I know we’ll have the announcement ceremony in just a few days,” she said, “But I would really have that dinner we talked about, tomorrow night. Something small, for you to know the whole family,” she suggested.
“That sounds great. I’m sure Brynjar will agree with me,” Eleanor said, excited. “How can I help?”
“All you have to do is come. I’ll take care of everything and Sasha has already offered to help,” the older woman replied.
“If you need anything, just let me know. I’m not very good in the kitchen, but I’m sure Brynjar can get whatever you need,” she offered, with a smile.
“Yes, I’m sure of that. But don’t worry about anything. Haakon is bringing the meat from his farm and we can find the rest here, easily.”
“Very well, then. We’ll be there.”
They chit chatted a bit more before they ended the call, and Eleanor had to admit she was very excited about the family reunion. Being the only child, with no uncles or aunts had made her life very lonely. If it hadn’t been for Sasha, she would have had a sad childhood.
She went looking for Brynjar to tell him the news and ask him to see what they could bring to contribute to the night’s success.
She found him in his office alone.
"Well… if Haakon is bringing the meat, I'm not sure what we could take,” he said after she had explained things to him.
“How about dessert?” she suggested.
“What’s a dessert? I’m afraid I don’t understand the concept,” he asked her.
“You know… something sweet to eat after the main course,” she explained.
“We don’t usually do that. We do have sweet food, but we usually have it on the morning’s meal.”
“I can still remember my mother’s orange cake recipe. Do you think your cook could try and make it for me?” she asked him, after thinking about it for a while.
“Let’s find out.” He got up and stretched his hand to her.
Minutes later, they were both in the palace’s kitchen, trying to find the best matches for the ingredients on the recipe.
Amazingly, they even had something quite similar to cocoa, the sváss, that they used mostly to prepare mungát. So, working with the cook, they baked the cake and even covered it with a dark cream prepared with the sváss.
The moment to taste it was quite exciting. She had no idea how the cake would come out, after replacing all the ingredients, but with a bit of luck, it would be delicious.
The cook looked as anxious as she was, while cutting a piece of the cake and offering it to her.
She picked a fork and took a deep breath as she prepared herself for that first bite. She wanted this to work so that she could bring the party a small part of her old world.
She took the first bite, not sure what to expect.
It was simply delicious. Not as a cake on earth would be, but it was simply fantastic, smooth, creamy, sweet… divine.
She couldn’t hold back the moan that came out of her lips as she took a second bite of the cake. She was sure she would become an addict to it.
“Do you like it?” Brynjar asked, though his tone made it clear he knew the answer.
“You have to try it. It’s amazing, delicious,” she confirmed, inviting both men to taste the cake.
Of course, they agreed with her and she was extremely pleased. Turning to the cook, she asked him. “Do you think you can make one like this for tomorrow?”
“Yes, certainly, my queen. For how many people?” the man agreed.
“You’ll have to ask Víf Oydis that. She didn’t tell me.”
“I’ll take care of it.” He nodded and walked away, leaving them alone.
She picked a small portion of the cake and offered it to him. “Do you really like it?” she asked him, smiling.
“Yes, it’s delicious and I’m sure everybody will love it,” he assured her.
“I just didn’t want to arrive empty handed.”
Chapter 5
The dinner was a huge success. Oydis had gathered all of her children, along with their wives and children, and Eleanor was more than happy to meet other Zuvrakian women. Sasha and Rosalind agreed with her on that matter and the six women had spent the whole night chatting and exchanging experiences, especially about pregnancies and babies.
Everybody was excited with Eleanor’s pregnancy and with the possible result.
“Do you think it will be a girl?” Oydis asked her at some point.
“I have no idea. All I want is for the baby to be healthy and perfect. There’s no greater blessing than that,” she assured them.
"In all my pregnancies I knew it was a boy, even before I was scanned," Oydis said with a teasing scowl. "I just felt it in my bones. But you're right. The important thing is for them to be born healthy."
“I never thought this day would come for me, so whatever it is, I’ll love it with all my heart,” sheEleanor vowed.
“I’m sure of that,” Sasha said, squeezing her friend’s hand.
“So… are you ready for the big announcement?” one of Asgar’s sisters in law asked them.
“Yes… We sure are, and we’re anxious to see what the magic hands of Gil Ra are preparing for us,” Rosalind replied.
“I’m sure it will be something worth remembering,” Oydis said.
“It surely has never been seen before,” the other sister in law said and the whole group agreed.
They discussed the details of the ceremony with the other women that had been through it, and when the night was finally over, Eleanor had had a great time.
> As Brynjar had predicted, everyone had loved her cake, especially Sasha and Rosalind, who hadn’t had cake in quite some time and missed it very much.
The Announcement day finally arrived and the girls finally walked down the aisle to meet their soulmates: Eleanor, Rosalind, Sasha, Erin, Gil Ra, Anya, Patricia and Miranda. One by one, the men introduced their válkana to the whole world to know and soon they were celebrating.
Eleanor had to admit Sasha had excelled on the organization of the whole event. Everything had been simply perfect. There was more food than she thought possible and the music was fun, though people didn’t dance.
When she asked, Brynjar explained it wasn’t something well seen in public. Too erotic.
She chuckled but had to agree with him. The drogons were very sexual beings. Dancing together was asking for trouble.
The whole celebration was amazing, but at some point, she started to feel a bit too tired. She didn’t want to ruin things for Brynjar, but she knew he would be upset if she hid it from him.
“Do you think people would mind if I leave now?” she whispered in his ear.
He tensed up immediately. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong,” she replied, patiently. “I’m just feeling tired and wouldn’t like to overexert,” she explained.
He nodded. “Very well, I’ll leave with you,” he said, about to get up, but she stopped him.
“You’re the host. If you leave, people will think the party is over and I don’t want that,” she told him. “Everybody knows I’m pregnant, so nobody will be really surprised if I leave earlier.”
He wasn’t pleased, she could tell, but he finally agreed and kissed her goodnight.
Erin saw her leave and quickly followed her.
“Hey, sweetie, are you feeling alright?” she asked her when she met her on one of the hallways.
“Erin… Yes, I’m alright, just a bit tired. Thought I’d better get some rest,” she replied, with a smile.
“Yes, it’s better. I’m sure this pregnancy is doing strange things to your body.”
“It is… I wasn’t expecting it to progress so fast. I have to admit it’s a bit scary,” she said.
“Yes, I know exactly how you feel,” the other woman said, nodding.
Eleanor looked at her puzzled, and the look on her face told her everything. “You’re pregnant too.” It wasn’t a question.
“Not sure yet, but almost. It’s too soon to know for sure,” she confessed.
“Why haven’t you asked Colborn to scan you?”
“I guess I’m still a bit surprised. Fritjof wanted to wait,” she said in a shaky tone.
"He'll be delighted; you know that."
Erin sighed. “Yes, I guess this much happiness scares the hell out of me.”
“I know exactly what you mean. We need to learn to forget those fears and move forward.”
Erin nodded and hugged Eleanor. “Get to bed and rest. I’ll see you in a few days for your next pregnancy control.”
“Sure thing.”
The following weeks were overwhelming.
The baby was growing very fast and had them all surprised. Fortunately, all scans showed an absolutely healthy child, though they still hadn’t been able to determine its gender.
By the fourth month, it looked and weighed as much as seven-month baby, so Erin was sure it wouldn’t go far beyond the sixth month.
And it didn’t.
Eleanor calculated she was like six and a half months pregnant when it happened.
Though she was big and heavy, she still loved to walk around the gardens and that morning she was doing exactly that.
The first pain paralyzed her. She hadn’t thought about the delivery part, so it caught her a bit by surprise.
Like everything about the pregnancy, the contractions escalated at high speed. She tried to walk back to the palace, but five minutes later, she wasn’t able to take another step.
She reached her communication device and called Brynjar, though she knew he was at a council meeting.
“Eleanor, what’s wrong?” he asked the minute he answered the call.
“The baby… it’s coming,” she managed to utter.
She heard furniture falling to the floor. “Where are you?”
“In the garden. I can’t move…” she said through ragged gasps.
“On my way.”
It only took him a few seconds to get to where she was. “Come, I’ll take you to the hospital.”
“There’s no time,” she warned him, bending under pain of the contraction. “It’s almost out.”
“Please, tell me you’re joking,” he begged.
She fell on her knees letting out a loud shout. “Brynjar, do I … look like… someone able to… joke?” she snarled at him, lying on the ground.
He picked his device and called Colborn. “Meet us at the palace gardens, now.”
He kneeled next to her. “I have no idea what to do,” he confessed.
“This is my first time too… but babies usually do this on their own… with a little help from the mother,” she explained, spreading her legs and pulling her dress up. “Please, take my panties off and tell me what you see,” she asked, breathing hard.
He did as she told him. “Something is coming out your vagina,” he informed her, in a shaky tone.
“Is it hairy?” she asked, shuddering as another contraction ripped through her body.
“Yes…” he yelled.
“Good… because I need to push.”
And she did and in a matter of seconds, Brynjar was holding his newborn daughter in his arms. She was crying so hard; he didn't notice the arrival of Colborn, Erin and Susan, the other human doctor.
The future queen of Zuvrak was born.
Haakon & Rosalind
Chapter 1
Haakon and Rosalind returned to capital soon after their reconciliation, right after they heard Eleanor wasn’t as well as they had assumed.
Knowing his brother was going to try to convert his soulmate really scared Haakon. He was aware of the danger it entailed and he wasn’t sure he would be able to put Rosalind through it. Because he still didn’t have all the details, he planned to ask Colborn to provide them as soon as possible.
When they finally reached the palace, they were received with good news. Eleanor had been converted successfully.
Despite the news, Haakon wanted more details, and unwilling to go bother his brother, he went looking for Colborn, just to find him on his way out of the planet.
“Can you give me a few minutes to explain the whole process?” he asked his friend.
“I’ve written a fully detailed report on the subject. Read it and if you have any doubts, you can ask your brother,” the doctor replied, pulling out his communication device and touching a few keys. “There… I’ve sent it to you. Read it and you’ll see.”
“Do you think it’s safe, then?”
“I wouldn’t say that. It has a high degree of danger, but if done properly, it’s a success, like it happened with Eleanor,” he replied, cautious. “We’re still learning how to do this and the consequences. It will take some time to have it all figured out.”
“Yes… I understand. Thank you for seeing me. I’ll see you when you get back.”
“I’m here to help, as much as I can.”
He said goodbye to his friend and went back to the palace. His father was still around and he was sure he would have more details for him. But first, he needed to read the doctor's report.
At the palace, Haakon went straight to his brother’s office. He knew he wouldn’t be there and needed some privacy to read the report with no interruptions.
So, as they already knew, the process started with the exchange of blood right after making love in the drogon form. This would have to happen three times. Right after the third time, she would virtually die. Her whole body would shut down and it was then when the male needed to give her the breath of fire.
This start
led him a lot. As a warrior, he had done that a few times, to save one of his men’s lives, but they had been drogons, the fire was their very essence. How could he breathe fire into her and not turn her into a human torch?
According to the report, after that, they would feel an explosion of energy and she would start converting.
Haakon closed the file and leaned back in the chair. Could he take the risk of turning Rosalind? What if it failed? What if he ruined the process and killed her?
He had needed more information on the subject before he made that decision, but he wouldn’t be able to discuss it with his brother. According to the palace’s staff, he was going away for a few days with Eleanor.
“There you are,” Rosalind’s voice startled him. “I’ve been looking for you.” She took a seat on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. “What’s going on?”
“Nothing…”
“I thought we weren’t doing this again,” she scolded him. “I can tell you’re worried, so why don’t you tell me about it?” she said, furrowing her brows.
“Won’t I be able to hide anything from you?” he asked, trying to sound disheartened, but she knew those weren’t his true feelings. He loved the bond they shared.
“No… you should know that by now.” She kissed him gently on his lips. “Tell me about it.”
He let out a deep sigh. “I was learning a bit more about the conversion.”
“It seems to work. According to Erin, Eleanor was converted successfully,” she said, caressing his cheek. She knew how much that worried him.
“It still entails a huge risk,” he said, in a concerned tone.
“It worked for them, why wouldn’t it work for us?” she asked him, frowning.
He buried his face in her chest. “The simple idea of losing you freezes me. I wouldn’t be able to live without you,” he confessed.
“Hey… you won’t get rid of me that easily, believe me,” she said cradling his face and making him look at her. “We can do this, I’m sure.”
