Cat-Alin does not gain any profit by writing or publishing this story.
All characters are owned by Naoko Takeuchi and TOEI Animation.
Oh god, I caught my mother's cold ..
My throat .. my ears .. Somebody shove some ice cubes into them!
"For a while, Chibiusa has felt rather weird and falls asleep a lot.
Could it be .. that ..?"
Serenity studied his sleeping profile ..
Helios lay quietly on his bed, his head cocked to the side and
his silver hair delicately framed his face.
Her eyes followed every line in his face, every little detail she could see
and smiled. There was something about his features that reminded her
so much of her father - it was mostly noticeable when Helios held a worried
expression. He looked like a younger version of the King ..
But it didn't matter.
Helios was Helios.
Serenity looked up at the dark sky which was starting to turn a light shade of pink
and sighed heavily. It had finally arrived.
Her little 'vacation' in Elysion was coming to an end and even Helios would return
to his duty as priest. During her stay, the two shrine maidens had taken over
the job so Helios and Serenity could spend time together.
But soon he'd be busy praying and they would only be able to meet in their dreams again.
With a sigh, she turned to her side and lay halfway on top of him.
And she smiled at everything they had done, the wonderful hours spent together
and doing so many things that would last them a long time.
Memories resurfaced in her mind and she blushed at the times where Helios whispered
sweet nothings into her ear, or just lay in each other's arms and listening to the other's
heartbeat.
Serenity looked at his sleeping face again and leaned up a bit, kissing his cheek.
Helios didn't move, but continued to sleep soundly.
Feeling like she was suddenly overcome with her love for him,
she kissed his cheek again, closer to his lips this time. And kissed his forehead,
close to the red gemstone on it, she giggled slightly mischievous.
If he didn't wake up, she wouldn't stop.
"Mhh .." Helios sighed in an aroused fashion whe Serenity kissed his neck,
trailing a line and she stopped, feeling his arm moving, caressing her back.
"You're awake." she muttered, her breath tickling his skin.
"What were you doing?" he asked amused, his eyes still closed but a smile stretching his lips.
"I'm a princess finding the sleeping prince, awakening him with a kiss."
Helios chuckled slightly at that and pulled her up a bit, closer to him.
"I think it only works on the lips." he said and they kissed each other softly at first,
but grew deeper.
Serenity broke the kiss with a slight gasp and sighed heavily, her fingers playing with
a lock of his hair that lay against his cheek.
"Just a little longer .."
Helios wasn't sure if she meant that it would be a little longer and she'd have to leave
or she wished to stay like this a little longer .. no matter what it was, he had to agree.
"Serenity!"
Serenity gasped and held her head, still feeling sleepy.
She was sitting with one of her mother's guardians, and friends, Ami in the carriage
that was taking them to the Crystal Palace. Ami had gotten the short end of the stick
and got stuck with the wonderful duty of picking up the love-sick princess from her vacation
and bringing her home.
"You fell asleep." Ami said. "Again."
"Sorry. Still a bit tired, I guess .." the princess hid a yawn and tried to focus.
The rocking motion of the carriage had a calming effect on her, or her head was still
filled with Helios. Helios and his strong, protective arms.
Helios' husky voice.
Helios' warm breath against her neck.
The feeling of his weight on her when they fell asleep ..
She sat up with a start when she felt someone shaking her by the shoulder
and she realized she must've fallen asleep again. For quite some time, since she saw
that they were already at the Palace and her parents were waiting for her at the gate.
"I'm home!" she said cheerfully, trying to sound more awake than she was.
She dashed into her father's arms and gave him a bear hug, before doing the same with her mother.
"Glad you're back home." her mother said gently and stroked through her daughter's hair
before they made their way through the palace and Serenity excused herself in front of her room.
She sighed after closing the door behind her and looked around the room, like she saw it for the first time.
The double door to the balcony were opened widely to air the place, the pale apricot-colored curtains dances
in a little breeze and the ivory sheets on her bed were made up properly.
She tapped softly across the ivory stones and walked onto the balcony, watching the scenery of the
neatly trimmed rose garden below her and already missed being with Helios.
Both had known that she would need to return - it was like when they met.
Once she had helped Helios save Elysion, he remained there and she returned to her own time.
They were separated and had always known that a relationship would be hard to uphold.
But this little retreat .. spending all her time in Elysion with Helios was like a drug for her,
it made her feel like she was no longer crown princess of Crystal Tokyo, but merely a young woman
in love who was with her beloved. Nothing would change that .. she had wished ..
Serenity sighed deeply and turned when one of her personal guardians, Vesta, walked onto the
balcony.
"Mylady Serenity and the King want to know if you will join the banquet tonight."
The princess pondered for a moment, knowing that such things would take hours and all the
attention would focus on her, something that she wasn't particularely fond of.
"No, tell them I'm too tired." she said and smiled slightly, knowing that she wasn't lying.
She was tired and her body longed for sleep, but ..
"I'll tell them. It was a spontanious idea, anyway. They'll probably postpone it for tomorrow." Vesta grinned
when she saw Serenity's shoulders sag, knowing that she couldn't avoid it all the time.
Vesta left and, when she felt getting cold, Serenity went back into her room and closed the double door.
Although the evening had barely begun, she pulled the curtain and undid her hair, brushing the thin waves
and changed into her nightgown.
Staring at the bed, she couldn't help but feel uneasy and a certain sadness. It would be the first night
for her, without Helios. Just those few nights she had spent lying next to him in his bed, it had become
natural to her. Like it was supposed to be that way.
The covers were pulled back slightly and she slid underneath, the sheet felt cool against
her skin. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to relax and turn her mind off,
making her fall asleep sooner.
Hours, or what seemed to her like hours, passed where she turned this way and that, trying to find
a comfortable position to lie in. But it didn't work. Opening her eyes finally, she stared at the wall
next to the bed, the little whisps of a curtain around her bed not drawn and knew what she had suspected
all along.
She wasn't used to sleeping without Helios anymore.
She missed his body warmth next to her, his arms around her, pulling her closer to himself when he thought
she had already fallen asleep. The sound of his heartbeat in her ears when she used his chest
as a pillow substitute. His weight on her, his hot breath beating against her neck ..
Serenity sighed and wrapped her arms around herself, wondering if this would fool her into thinking
that nothing had changed and that he was still here with her.
Burying her face into her pillow, she tried to rid her mind of any thought ..
Serenity woke up and felt groggy, grunting slightly when the maids entered her room in the morning
to assist her in their usual fashion. The princess yawned and couldn't believe that it was time to get up,
she wasn't really awake yet.
And she felt saddened at not having met Helios in her dream. It was understandable, he had given everything
up while she had been there. And while the shrine maidens were almost equal to him in regards to power,
he was the priest of Elysion and had his duties. There might be a lot to catch up on ..
Or perhaps he knew, like she thought, that seeing each other shortly after separating they'd end up staying
in that dream-state and forget everything around them again.
Maybe she would see him tonight .. or the next night.
It was possible.
But it didn't happen.
Almost a week after having returned to the palace, Serenity hadn't seen or met Helios once. When she dreamed
of him, it was merely a projection of her desire to see him, her feelings made her dream of past things,
but it was never real.
She poked at her lunch half-heartedly and ate a few bites, not realizing that her parents were watching her
rather worriedly.
"Serenity, is something wrong?" the Queen asked, putting her cutlery down and looked at her child.
"Ah, it's nothing." she said and ate two fast bites. "Just a bit exhausted, I suppose."
"You haven't been eating very much lately, either."
"I don't really have an appetite .." Serenity picked at her food a bit more, then asked to be excused and
left the dining hall.
The King watched her leave, sipping his wine and was wondering, like his wife, if the princess was still
not quite in her usual routine again. Elysion was, after all, a timeless place and spending a length of time there
and returning to their own place would exhaust anyone. Similar to jetlag, it took them a while to adjust
to the different passings.
However, Serenity had been back for a week and didn't show any improvement.
The princess stood in the hall, leaning against the wall and took steady, deep breaths.
She felt dizzy and her stomach was churning horribly, she clamped her teeth and lips together
and slid slowly down to a kneeling position, resisting the urge to faint into a calming darkness for a while.
"Princess?"
One of the male servants in the palace passed by and saw her, kneeling down beside her.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
"I'm .." Serenity stuttered, talking made her feel queasier than before. "Would .. you escort me to my room, please?"
The servant nodded and helped her stand up, walking slowly alongside her as she held onto his arm for support.
While the dining hall wasn't really far from her room, it took them some time to reach the doors,
as Serenity walked slowly and stopped once and doubled over, almost fainting.
"Princess, shall I ask for a doctor?" the man asked finally at the door, holding onto her but also opening the door.
She shook her head feebly - and slowly - before entering her room. "I will be alright .."
He closed the door after her and left, while Serenity slowly stumbled towards her bed before
collapsing in front of it, laying halways on it.
It felt refreshingly cool against her skin and she closed her eyes, wondering if she had a fever.
She was so hot .. the welcoming darkness fell over her.
As the sky started to turn dark, Serenity woke up with a start and looked around, disorientated.
Slowly getting up, she remembered having passed out shortly after lunch.
The thought of food made her neausious, but also made her stomach growl in a hungry fashion
and she felt a craving inside her. It seemed like she could taste it on her tongue already ..
Shivering slightly, Serenity threw her bathrobe over and looked for a clock,
but a knock on her door startled her.
"Serenity-sama, the Queen sent me." the maid entered the room in her usual humble fashion. "She heard about
your health not being well after lunch and says that, if you wish to, you could eat dinner in here."
The princess nodded slightly at the announcement, hoping that she hadn't worried her mother too much.
"What would the miss like for dinner?" the maid asked, smiling sweetly.
"Eh?" the girl thought for a minute, trying to identify that heavy, intoxicating taste on her tongue,
what she was craving for. "I guess .. just some chocolate cake, maybe .."
The maid nodded and left to tell the cook, Serenity knew that it wasn't much of a dinner - more like she
skipped her meal and went straight for dessert.
But she really felt like eating some right now ..
During her rather unusual dinner, Serenity enjoyed every single bite of the cake,
the rich savory taste coated her tongue beautifully and told the maid to thank the cook afterwards.
However, her pleasure didn't last very long - about forty minutes after eating,
when she was sitting in her armchair and feeling sleepy again, her stomach growled furiously
and the inside of her mouth filled with excessive saliva, she rushed into her bathroom and lost
the remaining bits of dinner inside her stomach into the toilet.
Feeling worn out, she leaned against the wall and felt flushed, wondering if her stomach was settling
down or if it would rebel again. Finally, she got up and rinsed her mouth, brushing her teeth lightly
and figured that, if she could just get to bed, she could sleep and let her body recover from this illness
she must've caught.
Her bed felt cool and she knew she must be running a fever, but too soon the cool sheets
made her shiver and she got up to wrap a small woolen blanket around her shoulders.
In and out of sleep all night, Serenity tried to focus her mind on pleasant things, thinking up
calming images like a beach with wonderful white sand and crystal blue sea or remembering
the time spent with Helios. Just thinking of his name made her remember the things from that week.
The soft way he said her name, called her by his usual nickname for her or just remaining silent
and being happy that they were in the same place at the same time.
Remembering a particularely happy hour spent in his room, where his arms had been around her waist
and he nuzzled her cheek in a playful matter now and then, made Serenity smile.
She blushed slightly, thinking how a stray curl of his hair had tickled her face and he hadn't noticed.
It hadn't bothered her at all, it was a little detail that wasn't important, her mind and body had
focused on Helios' actions.
Somehow, she really wanted to kiss Helios now .. to go back to Elysion, just for one kiss.
Maybe her fever was making her lose it, she sighed and snuggled deeper into the bed,
trying to calm down and, finally, fell asleep.
When she woke up much later, she did seem to be feeling better. She was still terribly exhausted
and sleepy, but otherwise she felt fine.
Looking at the clock, she realized that she slept past her normal time - her maids hadn't woken her,
either, which was unusal. Serenity yawned and thought that, perhaps they had tried, but considering
how badly she had needed sleep, she probably didn't wake up.
She got up slowly and walked towards her closet, when she felt neausious again and rushed for
the bathroom once more to empty her stomach from something that wasn't there anymore.
The maids, having heard rushed footsteps and door banging, entered the princess' room.
"Princess?" they called out, one finally found their mistress, signalling the other to get some help.
Serenity, though, moved before anyone arrived and rinsed her mouth, while the maid kept asking
if she was alright or needed any assistance, to please lie down until someone came for her.
"It's alright." the princess finally said, sighing deeply. "I probably caught a virus, no need to worry."
She dismissed the maid then and sank down in her armchair, feeling shivery again. She hated being sick,
especially in the winter, and she hoped the worst would be over soon.
A clear knock started Serenity and she turned as her visitor entered without waiting for an answer.
She gasped slightly when her mother passed through the gap between the tied back curtains
and saw a worried expression on her face.
"I received news that you aren't feeling too well." the Queen said, stopping in front of her daughter.
"Mh." Serenity nodded slightly. "Sick to my stomach - I just have the flu or so, nothing serious-"
"I don't quite think so."
The princess stared at her mother in surprise and cocked her head to the side,
wondering if her mother knew more than she thought.
The Queen turned her head slightly to the side, a barely noticeable pink illuminating her cheeks
and she coughed shortly. "I apologize for such a rude question, but .."
Again, she coughed and Serenity realized that she was a bit embarrassed over all of this.
"You have become rather intimate with Helios, haven't you?"
With a tiny, yet high-pitched shriek Serenity stepped back, feeling her face explode in a
crimson color and she turned her back on her mother, unable to look at her.
Was it really that obvious? Why, yes, she and Helios had slept with each other during her stay,
not that either of them had really planned for it, but it had seemed like a good opportunity -
or rather the only opportunity - since they hardly ever met and a long-time wish of hers had
come true, for him as well!
If her mother had figured it out, her father would already know it - or she'd tell him soon - and
she'd have to listen to a sermon of his, it was nice to know that she was so precious to him,
his little girl, but, after all, she had grown up and things would change!
Finally, Serenity felt her mother's hand on her shoulder and she dared to look at her,
realizing that she had said something.
".. Pardon?" she asked, not having heard it, due to her thoughts having just exploded in her head.
"Because I think you're pregnant, that's what I said."
Not really grasping her mother's words, Serenity just stared at her in silence
until she finally said "Pregnant?" in a low voice, like she never heard of that word before.
The Queen nodded.
"I could be wrong, but with your being sick and eating so little lately, it does seem likely."
The princess remained quiet, trying to understand everything, and followed her mother obediently
when she motioned her to come along.
Thirty minutes later, a pregnancy test was lying on the bedside table in her room but neither of them
really waited for the result to show up. Serenity followed her mother again, who seemed rather
amused with the situation or just happy, and entered a small room down a short hallway.
The walls and most of the furniture were white, metal being the only other color in decoration present.
Ami was sitting at a desk and looked up when the two women entered,
wondering if anything was the matter. It wasn't often that she got a visit of the royal family while
in her office which she used in her civilian form as one of Crystal Tokyo's best doctors.
"D-do we really have to tell Ami?" Serenity asked flushed, pulling her mother's dress slightly.
It wasn't that she didn't trust or disliked Ami, but considering how easy it was to get secrets out
of Ami at times, she was sure the news would soon spread throughout the entire city.
"Would you rather hear it from a stranger?"
That return-question shut Serenity up, she blushed even more and turned away, while her mother took
charg once again.
"She needs a sonogram." the Queen said breezily, smiling at the other's embarrassment.
"A sonogram? .. Sure." Ami looked surprised for a second, but then smiled and pulled off the glasses
she tended to wear, but she didn't really need them. "Lie on the gurney and lift your skirt so I can
access your stomach area."
Still embarrassed, Serenity lay down on the gurney and held her skirt to her chest, sighing deeply.
It felt like she had held her breath since her mother had first asked her to follow her.
"Particular suspicion? - A bit cold." Ami asked and put some blueish gel onto Serenity's stomach who
winced at the cold gel touching her skin suddenly.
"Well .." the Queen shrugged her shoulders slightly and watched her friend closely. "The circumstances
would've permitted everything and her behavior mimics the symptoms. We took a test, but those can
always turn out wrong .."
"True, true .. eating so little could've been due to other things, though. But for several weeks .." Ami placed
a little roller on Serenity's stomach and the gel, watching the monitor, moving the roller deftly.
Minutes seemed to pass while Ami was looking and Serenity felt sick again - not the kind of sick
she had felt the past few times, but more of an excitement and nervous sick. She wondered how
much longer she'd have to wait .. why couldn't they have waited for the test's result and then
check with the doctor? It would've taken some of the anxiety away.
Ami smiled suddenly and the princess moved her head automatically, the monitor's light illuminated
the doctor's face a bit.
"Well, there's definitely something. Want to see?" she asked, noticing Serenity's gaze and turned
the monitor to the side so she could see for herself.
How anyone could see anything except black and white spots on the screen, Serenity thought
and try to make out something that looked like it didn't belong. Nothing there seemed out of
the ordinary - if she guessed correctly, the oblong black part was her uterus and the rest
muscles and fat. Everything seemed the way it should be.
"There." Ami hovered her small finger in front of the monitor, pointing to a tiny thing - barely bigger
than a pea - a white spot was in the midst of black. Trying hard to see if it might resemble
anything that would grow into a baby, Serenity failed at that and still couldn't quite see it.
Ami giggled, knowing what the princess might be thinking. "Don't worry, I can say you are most
certainly pregnant." she consulted the calender for a moment. "Pretty much six or eight weeks, since that's
when you were with Helios. You weren't getting your period, right? Didn't that concern you?"
"Eh?" Serenity got out of a slight trance and, taking the tissues Ami offered her, wiped the
gel off her stomach and sat up. "Not really. It was over two months ago .. but it's pretty irregular."
The two women smiled, both feeling a slight sense of pride and amusement.
"We can look at the test result - see if it says the same." the Queen said, opening the door
a bit. Serenity nodded, thanked Ami and walked alongside her mother, losing herself in her
thoughts again.
Pregnant .. it meant that she was going to have a baby.
It still didn't quite register with her - after all, like she said, her period was rather irregular
and her stay in Elysion had mixed up her feeling of time, it seemed hard for her to even believe
that she had already left Helios, at least, six weeks ago. It hadn't seemed that long to her.
After the initial trouble of falling asleep without Helios' body next to her, she was happy to know
that, when she managed to fall asleep after hours of tiresome tossing, she dreamed of things
she had done with him over her stay ..
"Serenity."
The princess stopped and saw that she had walked past her bedroom door, having been completely
lost in her thoughts. She hurried back and entered the chamber with her mother.
The pregnancy test was still sitting undisturbed on the bedside table, neither of approached it
like it would turn any moment into a horribly frightening monster. The Queen, when seeing how her
daughter wasn't about to move, walked towards the table and picked the test up, looking at the result.
Serenity stared at her mother, waiting for the result and yet she didn't want to know.
Despite Ami having shown her something on the sonogram, she still couldn't believe it, and besides,
even the best of doctors could be wrong.
Even the test could be wrong!
The Queen tore her eyes from the test and looked at her child, a smile stretching her lips and
her eyes crinkled up with a happy expression.
"Positive."
She only said that one word, her voice practically singing with joy over the news and it was obvious
that she was happy about her daughter's blessing and her upcoming status as a grandmother.
Serenity listened and, slowly, walked over to her bed, feeling her legs wobbling underneath her
and finally sank onto her bed, keeping her hands folded on her lap.
"We've heard~!"
With that announcement, the door burst open wide and the three other guardians of the Queen
dashed into the room, almost mowing the princess over. Neither of them noticed how the Queen
and Princess had been in a deep discussion before. Their expressions had been serious, yet the Queen's
had still kept a hint of amusement in it.
"I pretty much screamed when I heard!" Minako said in her typically loud voice.
Makoto grabbed Serenity's hands and looked near tears. "What wonderful news! I am so happy for you!
Ah~aah, if I could only find the right guy for me, I would have the same blessing."
"Makoto, calm yourself." Rei told her, never quite understanding how the brunette wished so much
for a husband and a family while working her own floral-bakery-shop. She, herself, had made a vow
to never marry or to even fall in love due to previous bad experience - and how she knew that her duty
as a soldier would always rank first.
Rei coughed, "I'm happy to hear the news." she said something else, but it was drowned out by Minako
continuing to blab, something along the lines of, "Oh, the opportunity to see each other in such an
isolated place, it just begged to happen! If only my love life wouldn't be so cursed .." and on she went.
Rei sighed and cleared her throat again and spoke louder, trying to be heard over Minako.
"Anyway, if you're anxious about anything and need a talk, don't hesitate, alright?" she asked and
Serenity sighed slightly and knew that Ami had blabbed the secret out.
Or rather, it was likely that Minako had seen Serenity and the Queen going to see Ami or coming out
of her office. And Minako, curious as it was her fashion, had pestered Ami again and again until
it was revealed by complete accident.
"Thank you, Rei, Makoto. Minako, please!" she sighed and smiled. "Thank you, I might have a question or two,
but I will try to not bother you."
"You'd never bother us, Small Lady-" Makoto quickly put a hand over her mouth and laughed embarrassed
about the little faux-pas. "Sorry, you're not Small Lady anymore .."
That tended to still happen at times, but it didn't bother her anymore. "It's fine. Um, just .. please don't
tell my father, okay?"
Makoto and Rei nodded, understanding her concern and sighed since Minako was still gushing around,
babbling things. "Of course she's not the Small Lady anymore, she's a right down woman right now. Ah~ah,
my curiousity is insatiable, Chibiusa-chan, you have to tell me everything! I really want to know how
everything happened and how you feel now, what with the news-"
"Mi-Minako ..!" Serenity gasped, flushing deeply from her words and request, also in an attempt to make her stop.
"Say, Say, when will you tell him? And how? Ah, when you do, tell me how he reacted!"
The princess started slightly when she heard that and her thoughts took a strange and deeper turn.
Yes, Helios was the father. He had to know. It was the normal thing to do and he had every right to know
that he would become a father .. Yet he was in Elysion and she couldn't meet him suddenly, take him away
from his duty for this news - it was sure to make a deep impact on him. And it wasn't something you could
drop on somebody as quick news when seeing them after some time ..
And like a brick, it suddenly hit her that she was pregnant!
And before the sob in her throat burst out of her mouth, her mother was standing in front of her,
her arms embracing her child protectively. Like she knew how her daughter might've felt, she noticed
before anyone - even the princess herself - that the sudden realization of her condition made her
want to cry. Out of relief. Out of shock or being scared. Or the news being so sudden.
Her mother held her, shielded her and her tears from everyone and muffled her sobbings as Serenity
snuggled up to her and let her tears flow.
Serenity's face paled as she sat in the dining hall the next day.
An entourage of encouragement was standing around her, her mother sitting close-by.
She had felt sick again in the evening and had decided to skip dinner, but after a night of sleep - once again
spent with hours of tossing and turning - her mother and her guardians had woken her up,
telling her that it was time for breakfast.
So now, with her hair and teeth brushed, dressed in a cream dress with the hemline on her thighs and
the pleated skirt billowing around her feet, she sat at the dining table and stared at one of the side-dishes
she was told to eat.
Carrot Salad.
She hated carrots! Everybody knew that! Even her mother hated carrots!
Why did she need to eat them?
"Chibiusa-chan, in your current condition, you need all the vitamins and iron you can get!" Ami lectured her,
stepping into the habit of using her old nickname, sounding like a doctor.
"Can't I just eat something else that has the same vitamins?" Serenity asked horrified. "Or .. or eat other
fruit and vegetables, just more of them."
"You'd gain more weight than if you do it this way."
Serenity sighed deeply, still not moving her fork.
"I know how you hate it." her mother tried to console her. "But bear it - I had to eat it while pregnant, too."
Knowing that her mother had suffered through the same thing, the princess put some of the food onto
her fork and left it hovering over the plate. The mere thought of trying to eat it made her squirm.
"I tried to make it taste different." Makoto said. "I didn't let it marinate in it's own juices or so,
and I put some condoments on it."
Serenity knew that she loved everything else Makoto cooked and knew that she had taken the trouble
to make it for her so she would eat it .. taking a deep breath, she put the food into her mouth,
chewed a few times and swallowed it, followed by a big gulp of water.
Continuing in that fashion, she tried to taste and swallow as little as possible and always drank
something after wards to avoid any aftertaste lingering in her mouth.
Getting applause and compliments like a good little kid after she finished, she tried to make sure to
never having to remember this sensation again.
Every day, Serenity was now forced to eat things she generally avoided - while she was still allowed
to eat her beloved pudding in various flavors and cake, ice cream and other sweet treats, she ate
more fruit and vegetables than she was used to. Her meals kept varying from vegetarian, to carnivorous
options and sometimes even something vegan.
Makoto was really showing off her wide repertoire of culinary knowledge - and everything tasted great,
although she was told to not eat too spicy things, her meals had a great balance of spices in it.
And she even was able to eat carrots, despite still preferring days where she didn't have anything
carrot-related on her plate.
But when it became more obvious that Serenity didn't sleep enough, as she tended to fall asleep
during some of her lessons or even at dinnertime, even Endymion started to notice something was afoot.
"Serenity," he said to his wife one night while she was preparing her hair before going to bed. "it seems
like our little princess is still rather exhausted from her trip to Elysion."
The Queen winced slightly, pretending that it was from the slight pull of taking her earrings out
and not from her husband's words. "Well, Elysion is timeless, after all .." She tried hard to dodge
answering in a direct way, not quite sure how to tell her husband the truth.
"Yes, but it's been over two months already." he retorted quickly. "Perhaps she is sick, she should
see Mercury and have herself checked."
"Mh .." the Queen got up from her dresser and sat down on the bed, looking at Endymion.
He returned her gaze, noticing her slightly discomforted expression. "What?"
"Well .. she has visited Ami-chan a while ago .."
"And?" Endymion lifted an eyebrow in a curious fashion.
The Queen turned her head, feeling nervous like she was the one who was pregnant and had to tell him.
But that thought made her laugh a bit and she shook her head and looked at her beloved again.
"It's nothing. Maybe Rei-chan can help .. somehow."
The King seemed satisfied with that idea and they went to bed, sleeping soundly, but the Queen took
a bit longer to fall asleep. She didn't feel all too comfortable about having to lie to him.
In another one of the royal chambers, Serenity was lying in bed on her side and couldn't sleep again.
According to Ami, she was about in her ninth or eleventh week of pregnancy .. the thought of her
being pregnant always made her blush, but it still seemed surreal to her. After all, she lifted the blanket
and peeked underneath, her hand on her stomach .. she didn't look pregnant.
Which sort of suited her fine, as she had asked her mother recently and she had said that she still
hadn't told her father about it. Not that she was going to burst the bubble of his impression that his
sweet little girl was still a sweet little innocence! But, if Ami was right - and she should be,
having studied medicine in college and being a doctor and all - she was supposed to start to 'show'
soon .. within a week or two, probably.
Serenity stretched and winced when her back protested, turned over onto her other side and closed
her eyes, trying to go to sleep again. Lately, she hadn't dreamt of Elysion or visited it in her dreams.
She had slowly accepted the latter, as her mind was keeping her from taking Helios away from his duty
after having stayed so long with him. But now, she felt almost .. glad .. to not meet him in her dreams.
She wasn't sure how to tell him that he was going to be a father, nor if she should tell him now ..
And even if she told him .. with a sudden sense of panic, Serenity grabbed her pillow and clawed her
fingernails into it .. what if .. what if Helios .. didn't want .. it?
What if he'd be shocked and left her alone suddenly or .. even worse .. if he said something like "Please, No!"
or so, if he rejected the baby .. or her ..
Serenity moaned frustrated and rolled onto her back, burying her face into the pillow and shutting her eyes
all the more and forcing herself to sleep now. He would never say that! Helios wasn't that sort of guy!
He would be happy about it .. maybe.
She hoped he would be.
"Serenity?" Rei-chan entered the princess' room and looked around for her.
She noticed the balcony doors being wide open and saw the young woman standing outside,
wearing a terry cloth robe over her dress and leaning against the banister.
"Chi- .. Serenity."
The princess turned around and greeted Rei with a smile.
Rei stood next to her and put a hand onto her shoulder. "You shouldn't be outside so long,
it's freezing! You don't want to catch a cold .."
Serenity looked at Rei, who was already shivering in her clothes. "But, I'm quite warm - I mean,
the robe really helps."
"That might be .." Rei stuttered and tried to control her speech better. "But come inside, anyway,
I have something to show you."
Serenity nodded and followed Rei inside, closing the doors behind her, and then along the corridor
into one of the rooms that weren't used very often. The room was small, at least small for
being inside a castle, the apricot wallpaper had a swirly white pattern on it and the furniture
was made up of big comfortable cream colored armchairs and a round table out of light wood.
Rei closed the door behind the princess, "You're not sleeping well."
She said it like it was a question, yet it also had the statement of a fact in it.
Serenity nodded slightly and listened, "Ami-chan told me that it's most likely due to hormonal
imbalance or so .. anyway, she said that it should stop once you've reached your second
trimester."
The princess made a funny face at that word, knowing what it meant but still feeling the way
she had felt about it in the first place. Rei sat in one of the armchairs at the table and Serenity
sat across from her, seeing several bottles in various colors and sizes on the table.
In the middle of the table was a small cylindric pot, a square was cut out in the walls and the top
of the base looked pretty thin.
"What is that?" she asked, having never seen such a thing before.
Rei pointed at the base and then the square hole where, as the princess saw it now, was another
small hole, this one in a small circular fashion and not very deep. "It's an aromapot. You light
a candle on the bottom and put oil onto the top and the heat of the flame will activate the fragrance
of the oil."
Serenity nodded, as it made sense. "So .. this is aromatherapy?"
Rei nodded and pointed to the bottles. "Depending on what oil you use, you can get various effects.
For example, ginger" she picked up a tiny brown bottle with a yellow label. "can relieve headaches
and the aroma can even stimulate appetite. Or cinnamon" this bottle had a white label. "is often used
to reduce drowsiness or irritability."
Serenity grinned ironically. "Cinnamon is definitely one that I don't need."
Rei giggled, agreeing to that. "Well, most of these oils can be used to treat various illnesses and pains,
mostly the ones made out of herbs or fruits. But since you aren't really suffering from an illness,
you don't need them."
The princess nodded, the morning sickness - despite it having occured at various times of the day - had
become less over the time, there were even several days where she didn't need to rush to the bathroom
after eating - or just smelling - food. And, according to Ami, in a week or two it should stop entirely.
She watched interested as Rei produced a small tea candle from her pocket and put it into the small
dent at the bottom and lit it. Her fingers hovered over the bottles for a few seconds until she picked
up one that had a pale orange label and white writing, unscrewed the top and put a few drops of
it's contents into the little base at the top.
After a minute or two, they could already smell the sweet exotic aroma and warm fragrance filling the room,
Serenity noticed how her eyes were already starting to shut themselves.
"It smells nice .." she mumbled and tried to recognize it. ".. jasmine?"
"Yep." Rei nodded approvingly. "It has many uses, it's almost everywhere - it sedates your entire system,
so it can be used to cure headaches, tension and insomnia. Then again, it also can be used as a brain stimulant
and increase your alertness. And it's also known as an aphrodisiac."
".. what?"
"Don't worry, it mostly relaxes. I'm going to give this to you, so if you have another night where you can't sleep
you don't need to wait until the early morning hours until you finally do get sleep. Just remember - don't use
too much of the oil. The key to aromatherapy is subtleness and using a lot has the opposite effect."
Serenity nodded, still feeling sleepy from the fragrance. She tried to stay awake and shook her head, getting up
and stifled a yawn. Rei blew the candle out, wiped most of the oil off and gave it to her.
"You don't have to worry too much about falling asleep with the candle still lit - generally it goes out by itself,
but you can never be too careful. If you notice you're starting to fall asleep, try to blow it out beforehand."
Serenity nodded again.
"Here. I'll give you some Ylang Ylang and Chamomile oil, too - use the chamomile if you're having morning sickness again.
The Ylang Ylang helps you relax." the woman told her, giving her a little bag to carry the oils in.
"Thank you, Rei." she headed towards the door and stopped. "Say, do you have anything against muscle pain?"
Rei blinked surprised at the princess. "What sort of muscle pain - depends because geranium helps again
certain pains, but .." she stopped and looked worried. "Are you having menstruation pain?"
"No, no." Serenity shook her head. "More, like, for my back. It's tense and hurts all the time, it's really annoying me."
"Ah .. if I remember correclty, Ami said it was due to your uterus expanding and pressing against your spine more,
let's see .. you could use a little bit of orange oil, it should relieve some pain and it sedates as well.
Or use Marojram and Peppermint."
After adding those oils to the bag, Serenity thanked her again and left the room.
Walking along the corridor, she almost wanted to dash to her room to try it out herself.
"Small Lady."
She stopped and turned, seeing the King approach her, coughing slightly over using her old name.
"Father, what is it?" she asked, wondering if he needed her for anything.
One part of her saw his worried and yet slightly annoyed expression and she wondered wether he knew about
her condition and would yell at her. Or at Helios, if he were to travel to Elysion right away.
"How are you feeling?" he asked softly, not realizing how much he made Serenity panic.
"Oh, um, fine, I guess." she stuttered. "Just .. just a bit sleepy-"
"I thought so .. what is that?" his eyes fell onto the bag and small object in his daughter's arms.
"Ah, Rei just gave me some oil to use against .. against my, um, drowsiness and .. and such."
Endymion's face softened and a smile spread over his face.
"Aromatherapy, then. I've heard much about it and I hope it helps." he said and patted her head before
leaving, thinking to himself how his wife had asked her friend for help. And he trusted Rei,
he knew that she knew much about this stuff and was sure it would help.
In her room, Serenity sighed deeply and realized how nervous she had been.
Keeping her pregnancy a secret from her father didn't feel right and she hated sneaking around him,
but she didn't think she could deal with his emotions once he found out. And she especially didn't
want him to blame Helios or hurt him, thinking it was all his fault.
She had wanted Helios as much as he had wanted her .. and it had felt good to cave into their
wants and needs, knowing that this was something that they wouldn't do with anyone else.
Like a private ceremony between them ..
Serenity blushed furiously to the tips of her roots and pulled her thoughts away from those times,
sitting onto the edge of her bed and the bag of oils next to her. She used a tissue to wipe any sort
of residue of the jasmine oil off and put the pot onto her table.
Skimming through the bag, she wondered which oil she should use first - while her body was longing for
a long, good night's sleep, she also knew that any kind of pain would keep waking her up.
Remembering what Rei had said, she let about two drops of orange oil tip into the base and lit the candle,
waiting for it to heat up and take it's effect.
Soon enough the tangy and yet sweet fragrance filled her room and she automatically stretched,
feeling her muscles move and crack a bit before she fell against the covers and closed her eyes.
It didn't have the immediate effect the jasmine had given her in the other room, but it calmed her
enough and relived her pain so that she had time to slip underneath the blanket before falling asleep.
At some point, the Queen knocked and entered the room to remind her of the formal dinner that
was taking place in a few hours. But once she saw her child - despite her now being a young woman,
carrying a child herself - sleeping deeply, she took the few seconds to blow the candle out
and left again, already making up excuses for the crownprincess' absence.
With a big yawn, Serenity slowly opened her eyes and felt groggy, like she was still half-asleep
and yet she felt much better than the previous times she woke up. Looking at the clock,
she realized it was 5:30 AM and she also noticed - she was ravenously hungry.
Skipping dinner hadn't really been planned, but the oil seemed to have done such a good job that
she slept almost fifteen hours straight!
Not really wanting to wake up any maids or the cook, Serenity wondered if she could just go back to
sleep a bit or occupy her mind otherwise until the staff usually got up. But a growl told her she couldn't
and, knowing that any sickness wouldn't be less horrible if she didn't eat, she sighed and finally
rang for an attendant.
It took some time until a knock on her door informed her of the appearance and she opened the door,
seeing a sleepy looking maid who had buttoned her dress a bit wrong - it was obvious she had been
woken up and hastily put on her uniform. Serenity felt bad.
"I'm really very sorry for waking you .."
"Oh, it's .. it's quite alright, princess." she answered, trying to stifle a yawn and smiled. "What can I do for you?"
"Um .. if it isn't too much trouble, would you make me something to eat?" the princess tried to think of
something fast and nothing too big where the tired maid would need to put much attention onto,
which she didn't seem to have at the moment. "M-maybe a small bowl of soup .."
The maid smiled again and nodded, bowing before she left for the kitchen and Serenity looked after her worried
as she stumbled slightly when turning a corner.
After about twenty to thirty minutes, another knock came and the maid entered, holding a tray on which a
blue patterned bowl was sitting with steam rising from it and a few slices of bread next to it.
The maid placed the tray onto the small table and bowed before heading for the door again.
"Thank you very much." Serenity said who had tried to ignore her grumbling stomach by reading. "And, again,
very sorry for waking you .."
The maid left and the princess sat at the table and saw thick tomato soup, fresh basil leaves floating on top
and several small green specks of herbs in the soup itself. The bread was soft and the kind that would
soak up any remaining liquid, so Serenity began to eat slowly and enjoyed every spoonful, hoping that it
would settle her stomach.
After finishing, Serenity settled back and felt like sleeping a bit more, but decided not to - having learned
that it wasn't a good idea to eat just before going to bed. So she picked up the book she had been
reading before and continued it, but her eyes felt heavy.
"Good Morning~!"
With a crash, Minako burst into the room and startled Serenity, who had fallen asleep with the book in
her lap. Minako was dressed in her usual yellow dress trailing the floor, but her grin looked very different
from the elegant cut of the dress. It looked curious and mischievous.
"What are you doing in the chair? Well, doesn't matter - come on, up with you!" she said fast and
pulled the princess up suddenly. "Time for another exam with Dr. Ami!"
"M-mh .." Serenity tried to keep the room from spinning and realized that she felt cold.
She took off her nightgown, feeling barely any shame in front of Minako, and put her arms through
the long sleeves of a long dress with a square neckline and tighter around the chest than the stomach.
"Ah! Aah~hah!"
"Wh-what?" Serenity asked, wondering why Minako had suddenly made and saw that the blonde was
pointing at her stomach. Confused, she looked down and gasped when she saw a small bump
bulging a little bit under the top of her panties.
Wondering for a second if it was still her early breakfast or really a .. a baby bump, she pulled the dress
over her head and quickly brushed her hair and put it up into it's usual style.
Minako grinned widely and stood giggling at the door, being quite obvious that she was going to escort,
and probably attend, her to the exam. Knowing that Minako would only get more annoying the longer
she had to wait, Serenity quickly checked if she was ready and then followed the blonde woman out.
They walked along the corridor, Minako having a slight skip in her step - it was like she was much more
excited about the situation than Serenity. She sighed slightly, wondering if she really had a baby bump now
how long it would take to really show.
"Morning, you two." Endymion said, passing the two in the hall. "You're up rather early."
"Good Morning." Serenity nodded. "Well, Ami has me down for another exam-"
"Another exam?"
Too late, Serenity realized that she had let something slip and quickly tried to think up an excuse
why the doctor wanted to see her again. "To .. you know, check on my status - what with my chronic
tiredness. But I think things are well. I slept like a baby last night!"
"Speaking of babies-"
Minako tried to wince as little as possible when the princess interrupted her by kicking the instep
of her foot.
"Pardon?"
"I-isn't that a horrible disease leading to imminent death, if not treated within 24 hours of infection?"
"That's rabies." Endymion told his daughter and sighed slightly. "Glad to hear you're sleeping better,
but your mind doesn't seem awake yet. I hope Mercury will find nothing wrong."
He left then, leaving the two ladies on their way to the doctor again.
"He still doesn't know?" Minako asked quite bluntly.
"No. Mother hasn't told him yet - and I don't want to be the one to do it." Serenity said,
turning the corner to Ami's office. "Remember in the 20th Century? When you all tried to get
information out of me because I was acting lovesick? Remember his reaction?"
The blonde sighed sympathetically and remembered how she had actually been the one to
start the whole thing by saying how Chibiusa had shown all the symptoms of having a secret boyfriend.
After a quick knock, they opened the door and entered Ami's office who had turned in her chair.
Before she could greet them, Minako lifted Serenity's skirt high up, over her stomach and said "Peek-A-Boo!"
meaning the little bump that had appeared.
"Minako ..!"
Ami giggled slightly and motioned for the princess to lie down. "Well, you're showing now - not much, of course,
but you'll notice a change every day now." while she talked, she put the blue gel onto the girl's stomach again
and used the roller to check her up.
Minako stood behind Ami, watching the black-white squiggles on the monitor and listening to Ami
saying "Hmm" or "Aha" every now and then. Serenity sat as quietly as possible on the gurney,
ignoring the cold gel.
"Something wrong?" she finally asked, feeling nervous.
"No." Ami answered quickly. "Your uterus is just bigger than it should be at your current time."
"Wait, doesn't that mean she's having twins?" Minako interrupted and the princess sat up on her elbow
quickly, gasping.
"Twins?" Ami pushed her back down a bit.
"Don't worry." she just said and sat back down, resuming the rolling motion. "From what I can see here
you are not having twins. There's only one heartbeat."
Not sure if she was disappointed or glad about the prospect of having one child,
she turned to her side when instructed to do so.
"But if it's bigger than it should be now .."
"It's most likely that you're a bit further along than we thought." Ami quickly lifted her free hand to
stop Serenity from sitting up again. "Relax, it might be just a few days."
They were all quiet, Ami's eyes focusing on the monitor and pressing a key now and then. A few times
she broke the silence, asking how Serenity was feeling now - if she was sleeping better,
if she had any pain or problems.
Minako started to walk around, impatient about it taking so long and something nagging at her for
some time now. "Ami-chan, tell me .." she said slightly whining. "Can we tell what it is yet?"
"What?"
"Is it a boy or a girl?" the blonde said bluntly, bouncing on her feet slightly.
"The gender is set pretty early - so, yes, we can see what gender is." the doctor's eyes strayed from
Minako over to Serenity. "Do you want to know?"
Serenity blinked surprised and thought for a moment.
She hadn't thought about it yet - would it make any difference to her wether she was going to give
birth to a boy or girl? Whatever gender it was going to be, it would become her successor and
at least there it made no difference. And she thought of Helios - she hadn't told him yet, as she hadn't
seen him in her dreams yet. And she was sure they wouldn't let her travel the long way to Elysion,
especially since she was told that things could go very wrong in her first trimester.
A blush came over her cheeks as she wondered, if Helios was to know about the child, wether he would
prefer to have a son or daughter.
"Um .." she thought for a second more. "No. No, I guess I want to be surprised. But you can tell
Minako, she doesn't want a surprise."
She had seen the disappointed look on the blonde and how it lit up like a signpost when offered the
possibility of the knowledge. "Yeah, sure, yes, I want to know! Tell me!"
Ami and the princess giggled and Ami motioned her over to the monitor again.
"But you have to promise not to tell anyone!" she warned her and then moved the roller, stopped the
sonogram's constant moving and pointed at something.
The princess kept her head turned and tried to not give in to a slight impulse of curiosity to sit up
and look for herself. She felt the roller taken off her stomach and saw Ami handing her tissues,
so she wiped everything off and got up slowly, wincing slightly.
"You promised, okay? Something wrong?" Ami told a giddy Minako, who was already standing at the door,
and then turned her head to Serenity.
"Ah, my stomach just hurt. Kinda stabbing." she told her.
The doctor frowned a second, then told her to move her body one way, the head the other, to sit down
and get up again - and she always felt the same stabbing motion.
"I don't think it's anything serious - everything's making room right now, so make sure to not move too fast."
Serenity nodded and left the office with Minako.
"You look like the cat who swallowed the canary."
Minako giggled, eyeing Serenity. "Just happy. You sure you don't want to know?"
Hesitating for a moment, Serenity nodded.
The next few weeks were filled with regular checks with Ami, but mostly Serenity went to
the library and, in sudden panic, read everything she could find about pregnancy, deliveries and parenting.
But once her mother told her sternly to take things easy and pretty much condemned her to staying
in her room or close by, Serenity tried to relax.
Late spring, the weather warmed up significantly and barely a breeze blew. The sunlight shone bright
over Crystal Tokyo, drenching the palace in a soft golden color. The doors of Serenity's chamber were
open, as well as the balcony door - letting a draft of pure warmness waft through the palace.
The princess herself was on the balcony, sitting in an ivory armchair with peach colored cushions.
She was wearing a long white dress - it was more like a big piece of silky cloth that got wrapped around her
body and held in place by two ornamental belts, one around her shoulders and the other tucked in just
under her breasts. They were golden with a simple, yet also intricate design with red and blue stones.
Her head was leaning against the back of the chair, a smile hovering on her lips and she hummed to herself,
folding her arms over her bulging stomach.
She was in her sixth month now, loving the past months where she saw her body changing every morning
and wondering what new thing she'd find the next day. Her mother's guardians and the Queen had given
her more tips than she could handle over the time - Makoto had shown her some easy exercises she could
do to keep in shape and stay healthy, while Ami had continued to take care of her check-ups.
Rei and Minako were in charge of making sure she continued to eat well, while her mother tended to
be more there to talk to. Telling her how she felt, emotionally, about how she felt a bit scared when her
happiness subsided for a while.
And every so often, one of them would say things like "the sweety pie is doing well" or "no worries,
lil' rascal will be just fine", those little hints. She still wanted to be surprised and she knew they weren't
trying to drive her curiosity up the wall and make her ask about the gender. It was more of a little game
between them all, trying to see if they could make her guess the gender.
But they kept using different terms, each girl alternating between girl- or boy-hints, so as to not give it away.
She was grateful for all those tips and games, yet there were times where she wanted to be left alone - to just
be herself and have her own private memories of her pregnancy. And, like this being such a moment,
she enjoyed them.
Serenity opened her eyes and was momentarily blinded by the sun starting to set, changing the golden
hue of the palace to a beautiful mixture of pink and orange, the night sky slowly approaching from
the other side. A giggle escaped from her throat and she looked down at her stomach,
remembering for a few minutes how her father had reacted when her mother had finally spilled the beans.
From afar she had already heard fast, angry steps approaching her room back then - but a second set
of footsteps had stopped him in front of her door. While she had sat worried on her bed, her personal
guardians around her, listening what was going on - she heard her mother talking in a calm, soothing and yet
stern voice how she would not let him move another inch until he calmed down a bit.
And finally, he had been allowed to enter and - despite it being obvious that he was very concerned and
still in emotional turmoil - had said that he was happy to hear the news, although he had mentioned that he
was a bit peeved over being kept out of the loop for four months.
Serenity laughed a bit at the memory and patted her stomach a bit more.
While she still felt curious as to wether she'll be giving birth to a boy or a girl, she thought, for now,
it didn't matter. It would turn out alright, not just for the kingdom but for herself ..
And the last warm rays of the sunlight shining on her made her fall asleep.
"Maiden!"
A pair of strong, warm arms wrapped around her chest and pulled her against someone.
The princess opened her eyes and found herself in a familiar place, the surroundings shimmering like
they were inside a sunset and a continuous breeze flew through the sky.
"I've missed you .." Helios muttered softly into her ear, tickling her cheek with the tip of his nose
and kissed her cheek.
Putting her hands over his arms, she snuggled up to him. "I missed you, too."
She wasn't lying about it, not only had she missed the feeling of his body against hers
or hearing his gentle voice speak to her. She missed just the way he made her feel when she was in
his present - like nothing existed in their own little universe except the two of them.
Helios' hands caressed along her arms, feeling at peace to know that she was in his arms again,
but stopped when his arm felt a bump under her chest. Slowly, he moved his hand and placed it
onto her stomach,feeling it's roundness already, but - as if he were to make sure - ran his fingers
over the bulge.
"Maiden ..?"
The crack in his voice disturbed Serenity who had stood stiffly once he moved his hand,
her heart beat faster and she felt neausious with her anxiety. Loosening his grip on her,
Helios didn't move his gaze from her as she slowly turned around to face him.
"Is that .. why for all these months .." he muttered so softly that, if she hadn't seen his lips move,
she never had guessed he had asked.
"I'm sorry .." she felt horrible, like she really needed to apologize for distancing herself for
six months from him because of her condition. "I was just .. I wasn't sure how to tell you .."
It sounded like a feeble excuse to her, but she had been too nervous and scared and a whole lot
of other emotions to think up a good and easy way to tell him about their upcoming child.
Helios didn't move, nor said anything, with his eyes transfixed onto her stomach and the longer
he was quiet, the worse Serenity felt.
"It's just .. I mean, when I was here .." she stuttered and played with one of the tassels on
his clothes nervously. "I didn't know for a while myself and .. things have been weird, I mean ..
actually, I don't know about the gender and .. um .."
When he still didn't react, she felt like this was the reaction she had feared the most - rejection.
Helios didn't say anything, but it seemed to her like he didn't want the child - and there were times
where she had thought of not wanting it, either. But the thought of ridding herself of that one
strong bond she had with Helios through the child - and it being Helios' baby after all - she had
decided against it. She wanted it, to give birth to it and raise it, love it with the same amount of love
she felt for Helios.
Letting go of the tassel, Serenity felt like his decision was made and turned her head, ready to leave,
when she felt his arms circling her again and held her firmly, almost too tight, to his body. Although
the baby stomach was in the way, Helios held her close and nuzzled her neck with his voice.
"Thank you."
I'm really sorry about the long wait.
As you can tell, I was having a bad cold when I started this and that stopped me from writing,
constant nose-blowing and aching ears aren't the best conditions to write something.
Um, this chapter has actually turned out much, much longer than I thought it would!
And the mood changed from sweet, to depressive, to humorous and then back to sweet ..
I'm thinking of making a sequel chapter to this, which contains the delivery.
As for the tips and information here, I looked everything up about the aromatherapy - I wanted
something that would calm nerves so Chibiusa could sleep and immediately thought of jasmine.
And when I looked up the use of jasmine in aromatherapy, it helped cure insomnia!
Logic is really awesome .. However, some of the things that I read - like clove for example - shouldn't
be used during pregnancy, as the oil - when used for massages - goes into the skin and to the baby
and can be harmful.
As for the Ylang Ylang Flower, it originates in the phillipines and means "flowers of flowers"
and is mostly used as a condement for cosmetics mixed with coconut oil.
Also, Endymion seemed to play a big role in this - also rather the one of the dumbbell .. as for
Helios looking like a young Endymion - one of Naoko's notes from the artbook says that's the way she
had designed him, so he looks like a younger Endymion on purpose.
Gotta say, though, I think he looks hotter!