I wasn't going to write any more until after my little boy had his tonsils out tomorrow, but you know how it is, the muse goes where the muse goes and this is where she went. Would love to hear what you think of it.

Helen exited the bathroom to see her husband already in bed with a predatory gleam in his eye, a gleam Helen felt her body respond to immediately.

"I have a headache." She said in the most serious tone she could muster.

Nikola laughed. "Do not, you liar."

Helen climbed into bed and immediately moved into Nikola's comforting embrace. Sometimes she wondered how she had lived so long without his constant presence in her life. They had been together for two and a half years and in some ways their relationship was still so new and exciting and in other ways they were so comfortable with each other it was like they had been together forever.

"So I've been thinking."

"Always a dangerous pastime for you my dear." Helen playfully slapped him. "Ohhh spousal abuse, how very kinky."

"Nikola! I'm serious!"

"Oh okay." Nikola said dramatically. "We aren't going to get to the fun stuff until you tell me what you've been thinking, are we?"

"Not a chance." Helen smiled at him and angled herself so she could see his face. She needed to be able to see his immediate reaction.

"Fine. What have you been conjuring up in that stimulating mind of yours?"

"I think we should have another baby." And there it was. The look of sheer terror she had been anticipating. "Before you say no, just hear me out." She begged before he shut the idea down completely.

"Okay". He said begrudgingly, knowing there was very little she could say that would change his mind from a resounding 'no way'. It wasn't that he didn't adore Ruby, because he did, far more than he ever dreamed possible but he never imagined how time consuming and exhausting a small child could be. And he wasn't going to even entertain the thought of having another little person running around who could get into as much mischief as his daughter. No. There was no way they were having another child and Helen could make all the arguments she wanted but he wouldn't be backing down, he would almost do anything for her, but on this issue, he was going to stand firm.

"Remember back to how you felt when Ruby was first born? She wasn't even a week old and you lay in bed with me and wanted to make another one just like her?"

Nikola nodded and couldn't help the grin on his face, Helen had been right he had fallen in love at first sight. "Yes, and you informed me that it would be at least six week before we could resume any baby making activities, by which time I had come to my senses and seen how much time that adorable little person took up. I am a selfish man Helen, I like having your undivided attention at times".

"She needs a sibling Nikola." Helen said simply.

"And this has nothing to do with your centuries old desire to have a big family?" Nikola asked knowingly.

"I won't deny the fact that I love being a mother. I adored being a mother to Ashley but with Ruby it is so different. I have more time to be with her and I have you to share all her wonderful moments with, with Ashley I was still growing the network and raising her by myself, I had to do everything. As scary as it sounds, I feel like I actually can have it all and have found the perfect balance."

"It's a lovely sentiment Helen but you forget I came from a big family – I remember how little time our parents had for us. I want Ruby to have everything we can give her and still have time and energy left for us".

"Nikola, this is completely different. You grew up in a tiny Serbian village and your parents lost one of their children at a very young age, which is a tragedy they probably never recovered from."

"Helen," Nikola sighed. "We are fine, great even, why rock the boat?"

"In the Sanctuary, the world revolves around Ruby. All she has to do is pout and five people come running to see what's wrong. There isn't one person, or abnormal, who lives here that she hasn't got wrapped around her little finger. She needs to learn that the world doesn't revolve around her." Helen tried to explain.

"She's adorable and she's two – I can't see how being the centre of attention is such a bad thing, after all she is a Tesla and we like to be the centre of attention and have people fawning over us." Nikola grinned.

Helen knew she was fighting a losing battle. Perhaps she had to approach this from a different direction. She leaned in and kissed her husband passionately. Nikola responded, thinking the discussion had ended and was more than happy a few minutes later, when a delightfully naked Helen, rolled them so she was straddling him and moaning with pleasure.

Just as Nikola sat up slightly so he could take a favourite part of his wife's anatomy in his mouth he heard a small sound. Helen must have heard it to because they both turned at the same time and bumped their heads.

"Mummy why you sitting on daddy, you is hurting him – I heared him."

Helen very nearly burst out laughing until she saw the blush of utter embarrassment on Nikolas face. She moved off her blushing husband and retrieved her satin negligee and put it back on. Meanwhile Nikola was fumbling with his discarded boxers.

"Ummmm Ruby sweetheart – come here." Ruby climbed up into her parents' bed, one of her favourite places to be. "That was just Mummy and daddy's special way of showing each other how much we love one another."

Ruby looked confused. "But you were sitting on daddy."

It was Nikolas turn to laugh. "Yes mummy you were sitting on me, why exactly were you doing that?"

Helen shot Nikola a look that told him she would get revenge. "Well for some reason daddy really likes it when I do that and I was trying to convince him that you needed a little brother or a sister." Helen smirked at him.

Ruby didn't understand most of what her mother had just said and she was smiling kind of funny at daddy but she had said two of the most wonderful words in Ruby's ever expanding vocabulary, 'brother' and 'sister'.

"When? When? When? When can I have a baby brother or sister?"

"You play dirty Mrs Tesla". Nikola growled. Helen smiled at her daughter and ignored the fact that Nikola had called her Mrs Tesla something her only did when he wanted to rile her.

"How about you go back to bed and daddy and I will talk about it some more."

As much as Ruby hated getting out of her parents bed, she really, really wanted a brother or sister and would do just about anything to have one, so she kissed her parents and obediently went back to her own room next door.

As Ruby toddled out the door, it suddenly struck Nikola that Helen had raised the discussion of a sibling in front of their daughter and all the pieces fell into place. He turned to her accusingly. "You're pregnant aren't you?"

Helen did have the good grace to look a bit sheepish. "Yes". She really didn't know what his reaction would be.

"And tonight was….?"

"A way to get you on board with the idea." She said quietly.

"And Ruby?" He asked not sure he was comfortable with the idea of Helen manipulating their daughter like this.

"Completely unplanned, I promise." She said sincerely.

Nikola sighed. "So a sibling….a done deal then?"

"I'm afraid so. Vampiric super sperm, remember?" Nikola smiled and Helen started to relax.

"Just promise me that if you get it into your head that you want to add to our family again you will at least try and convince me before you get pregnant?"

"I promise, when I am ready to have another one you will be the first to know."