I own NOTHING besides Danica and Kelob.
"Wow! What a night! Its so clear and perfect! It feels good to be home!", Wildwing yelled into the night as he and Duke walked down the sidewalk towards Duke's apartment.
"Wing, we have been home for almost a year! Get over it!", Duke laughed as they entered his building and walked up the stairs. When they entered the apartment, Wing collapsed onto the couch. Duke shook his head as he took off his coat and placed it into the closet.
"So did Tanya and Grin decide when they are having the wedding?", Duke asked, taking a seat on the recliner.
"Nope. It's still in the air. I am happy for them. Nosedive is in the process of getting a girlfriend. So we are the single birds!", Wilding replied.
"Wing, no more happy hour at the bar for you!.", Duke laughed, dodging the pillow thrown his way.
"So what ever happened to Mallory?", Wing asked, thinking aloud.
"I haven't heard anything from her in almost a year.", Duke shrugged sadly.
"Do you think that she is in some kind of trouble?", Wing asked seriously. Duke was about to reply when a sharp banging came to his door. Duke stood up to get it when he heard a baby crying. He moved to the door faster and looked through the peep hole. There stood Mallory, a look of terror on her face. Duke turned back to Wing.
"Thank you Madam Cleo!", Duke excalimed, throwing the door open.
"Oh Duke! I didn't know where else to go!", Mallory cried, rushing into the room. Duke shut the door and turned to face her. He saw the baby in her arms, it looked only a few weeks old. Wing sat in silence on the couch, not sure of what to say.
"Mallory! What's wrong?", Duke asked worried.
"My Ex found me! He tried to kill me and the baby! I ran as fast as I could and you were the only person I could think of at the time!", she sobbed, holding the baby closer to her. Duke noticed that she and the baby were soaked. Taking a quick glance out the window, he saw that it was raining.
"It's ok Mal. Your safe now.", he soothed, taking her into his arms, careful of the baby she held.
Wing ran out of the room and returned with a handful of towels. Duke grabed one and wraped it around Mallory's shoulders. He then carefully took the baby from her and wraped a towel around it. He handed the baby to Wildwing so that he could tend to Mallory. She was shaking. Not from the cold, but from fear. He hugged her once more while trying to dry her off. Wildwing dried the baby off carefully. He was surprised that it wasn't crying anymore.
"What's her name?", Wing asked softly, giving Mal a smile.
"Danica.", Mallory replied, returning Wing's smile. Duke smiled also pulling Mallory closer to him.
"Let me go get some clothes for you.", Duke said, letting go of Mallory long enough to run into his bedroom to grab some clothes. When he returned, he handed Mal a t-shirt. She knelt down beside the couch where Danica was lying. She took off the baby's wet clothing and wraped the t-shirt around her. Duke then led Mallory to the bathroom so that she could change.
"What are we gonna do?", Wing whispered to Duke, holding Danica close to him so that she could get warm.
"I'm gonna let Mallory stay here for the night. You and me can go to her place tomorrow and get her things.", Duke replied. Mallory then came back into the room, and took Danica back into her arms.
"Mallory, you are gonna stay here for awhile, ok. Wildwing and me are gonna go to your place tomorrow to get some stuff for you.", Duke explained to Mallory. She nodded and looked down at Danica. Wing saw that the baby had fallen asleep in her mother's arms. Duke took a deep breath and sat down next to Mallory. He watched the small baby sleep. He smiled to himself. She looked so much like Mallory. Danica had light tan feathers, but pitch black hair. Duke was sure that Danica's eyes were green like Mal's.
"How old is she?", Duke asked. Mallory looked up from her sleeping daughter and replied.
"Only three weeks old."
"Ok, I'm gonna head home. I'll be back tomorrow bright and early. Try to get some sleep Mallory. Call if you need anyhthing.", Wing said, standing. He gave Mal a quick hug and nodded towards Duke. When he left, Duke looked at Mal.
"Here let me show you were you can sleep. I bet your're tired.", Duke said, standing. Mallory followed him to his bedroom.
"Here you can have my bed. I'll be on the couch if you need me.", Duke said, hugging Mallory.
"Thank you so much, Duke. I'm really scared rgiht now.", Mallory said, laying Danica on the bed.
"It's no problem sweetheart. I'll be in the next room if you need me. Try to get some sleep.", he said to her softly. He hugged her one last time before leaving the room. As he placed a pillow on the couch, he thought to himself, 'Wow. I just became a husband and father in less than 20 minutes'. He chuckled to himself and soon fell asleep on the couch.