The New Girl

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Todd had tried to go easy on her, but Serena had bit, clawed and begged for him to give her more. And in all honesty Todd hadn't been one to deny his lover what they wanted, though he was far more attentive, making sure not to push her too far that their child would be in danger. Still when Serena woke up the next day she was soar, sure she liked it and reveled in the knowledge that Todd had given into her desires, but at the same time it was going to make her day difficult. So very carefully she untangled herself from a still sleeping Todd and tip-toed to the bathroom to shower and get ready for the day. The clock told her it was past noon already, and even if Carter had told her to take time off she still wanted to get her old notes copied and sent off before she did anything else.

She was in the middle of rinsing her hair from its second wash when she felt two strong arms encircle her waist. Todd slid in under the hot stream of water pulling Serena flush against him. His mind was open and his body calm as he ran his hands over her belly, feeling their child, its mind and body just as calm as his. It was all Serena could do to keep herself from falling asleep in the shower as her mind followed theirs. Todd's arms held her up until she came back to herself, at which time she cursed him in her mind playfully while she helped him to get clean. Once they were both dressed Serena decided to head to her lab to get her notes. Todd, however, wouldn't have it and instead of walking her to the lab steered her to the mess-hall. Serena grumbled under her breath saying,

"I need to get those notes copied and sent to Colonel Carter."

"But you also need to eat, and rest. Colonel Carter told you the notes could wait, and to take some time for yourself. Besides I can feel how hungry you both are." said Todd, rubbing Serena's belly to emphasize his last point.

Serena sighed, but relented as she smelled bacon, eggs, Belgian waffles and fresh coffee. She filled her plate, then got a glass of milk and was about to get herself a cup of coffee when Todd stopped her, saying,

"Keller said decaf if you still wish to drink coffee." In a huff Serena did as instructed and poured herself a cup of decaf before heading to a nearby sitting area. The chairs were far more comfortable then in the mess-hall, and easier on her back and legs. Todd sat with her in silence watching as she ate thinking of how wonderful it would be to join her. Though he could technically eat like she could, his body took no substance from it, no nourishment. That was what he longed for, to be able to sit and eat with her, to become full and satisfied with her. It may seem strange to any other being, but to him it would draw them even closer then they already were. In his mind he could feel their child getting stronger, growing bigger everyday as she woke, worked, ate and slept. He just hoped to whatever Gods were listening that his child wouldn't inherit his ability to feed on humans, humans like its mother. He shook his head to rid himself of those thoughts before Serena caught on, and just watched her as she finished her eggs and dug into the waffles.

Though Todd had Serena on a tight leash on what she was and was not allowed to do, he did allow her to retrieve her notes from her lab under the condition that she take time to just relax and not worry about getting them copied. This proved to be more difficult then she had anticipated, cause though Serena loved that she had so much time to spend with Todd, she couldn't help that little nagging at the back of her head. Those notes needed to get done, and Serena found she just couldn't ignore them. So with Todd's help they sat on the bed in their room and began the slow and tedious task of copying her note together. Even if it wasn't the kind of time Todd was hoping to spend with Serena, he still found himself relaxing into the motions of copying. Stopping every once in a while to look over at Serena and feel out whether she was getting tired, or hungry yet. After about two hours worth of work, the notes were done and Serena wanted to drop them by Carter's office on the way to the mess-hall. Todd took the notes from her saying,

"You go and eat, I will deliver the notes to Colonel Carter." Serena was about to protest, but the look she got from Todd left no room for argument. So she relented and headed down the hallway to get something to eat knowing Todd would meet up with her at the mess-hall as soon as he was done.

As Serena sat with her lunch just munching rather then really eating it, she thought on this new Queen that they hoped to form an alliance with. Though Carter wanted to cure as many Wraith as possible so as to help the human peoples throughout the Pegasus Galaxy, Serena was very wary of the new Queen. True everyone was suspicious of her true intentions, but that didn't seem to stop them from inviting her to join their cause. Although she and her men were told to remain on a world a ways away from Atlantis, Serena could still feel that prickling at the back of her mind. Like someone was constantly at the back door trying to peek in past the curtains, but never seeming to get a clear view of what was inside. She hated that feeling, and no matter what she did, Serena couldn't seem to get rid of that presence. Serena was so focused on that feeling in her mind that she didn't notice Todd come in and sit next to her at their usual spot in the sitting area.

When Todd sat down he noted how distracted she was and gently touched her arm to let Serena know he was there. This startled her slightly, but once she looked up into his eyes she smiled saying,

"Hey, how'd it go with Colonel Carter?" Todd tilted his head slightly at her question. She knew he had only been delivering her notes, why would it have gone badly? Then he gently probed her mind, glancing over her feelings of worry and that nagging at the back of her brain. It was at this point that he became concerned, and said,

"How long have been able to feel her from this distance?" At first Serena looked confused, but after a moment she hung her head as if she were a child telling its parent an embarrassing secret, saying,

"Since yesterday afternoon. It's just a constant feeling of eyes on me, though they can't seem to see much. God! it's so hard to describe." Todd smiled slightly saying,

"You don't need to, I can feel it too, though I'm surprised she has focused in on you too."

Serena stood up and walked over to Todd, who opened his arms for her to sit on his lap. She leaned completely against him, letting her body sink into his along with her mind. Though Todd knew she liked to have her thoughts to herself, Serena couldn't deny that being able to share one's feelings and thoughts in the way they could was refreshing. Not only did they understand each other on a deeper level, but it made it so much easier to handle their relationship knowing what the other was thinking and feeling. However, now they had another mind in on their privet little conference, and Serena smiled as she felt the small and slightly timid poke of their child's mind. Todd could feel Serena's smile and their child's subtle prodding and gently, but firmly pushed it back so as not to let on the seriousness of the situation and cause the fetus any undo stress. Serena looked up at him confused at first, but as he spoke in her mind, Todd's concerns became quite clear.

'This Queen is searching for something other then the cure, though for what I am not sure. Until I know what it is she seeks I want you to practice closing off your mind, even from me.' He quieted her before she could protest saying aloud,

"Just until I know what's going on. It would be best that we keep her as in the dark as possible until we are certain she can be trusted."

That statement had Serena wrinkling her nose saying,

"I don't trust her period. What are we even doing letting her in on the cure, if and when we find it? For all we know she could just waiting for the right moment to destroy Atlantis so she can make a name for herself. Plus if she has the cure, her soldiers won't need to fight the other alliances for food, they could just annihilate them until hers is the only faction left. Then what?! An age of being ruled by a race of Wraith who no longer need to feed, but need our resources to keep them strong. Oh yes that sounds a heap of a lot better!" Todd couldn't help the smile on his face as she went on and on, but finally he pulled her to him tight, letting his calm mind flow over hers saying,

"I am well aware of the dangers that could be had from letting her become our ally, my Serena. But, if you remember, we had little choice in the matter. The only thing that remains now is finding out how she came to know of our location and what her true motives are." Serena huffed in slight irritation as Todd went on,

"In any case, let's not worry about such things now. Let us enjoy the time we have together before I must return to my men." The last bit was said as he rubbed his hand along her slightly swollen belly. Serena giggle saying,

"And how do you know it'll be a boy, for all you know it could just as easily be a girl." Todd smiled and place both of his palms on her womb saying,

"Whether male or female, this child is a part of both of us, and therefor will be my pride and joy." With those words the two of them sat in complete silence, not a word needed to be spoken mentally or otherwise. It was just the three of them in that sitting area. The cares and worries of their everyday lives could wait, so long as they stayed in each other's arms.

The rest of the day pasted by lazily, yet both Todd and Serena felt it was over too soon. Though they knew they had an other day or two before Todd needed to head back to his men, and Serena back to her lab. They felt that it just wasn't enough time, and Serena was beginning to feeling like they would never have enough time to spend together. Even if they had their disagreements and trials along the way, Serena still felt she would never get enough of Todd. She's miss him when he was gone, love him while he was close, laugh when he failed to understand human nuance, and get pissed at him when he got overly protective. Yep, it was official. They were in this for the long haul, and there was on one and nothing that could tear them apart, at least none that Serena could see.