~Chapter Twenty Four~
Winds of Change
After her and Emily's phone call, Rose quickly bathed and let herself relax in the warm water. However, the longer she sat down in a relaxed environment and thought about things, the more she worried and fretted about everything. Last night had been the most amazing night of her life with Brooklyn, but it all went downhill when they returned home in the early morning and found that an undead Kevin had entered their home and left a message; which was a threat and promise that he was coming once again to kill them both and probably do worse to her.
Rose shuddered, quickly put that out of her mind and told herself to worry about one thing at a time. Before the sunrise, she and Brooklyn also opened up some very raw wounds from their past which were extremely difficult to see and hear, but in the end, it was very good for them to grow together and heal. From that point forward, they promised each other to be open and honest, and even though she meant it, she truly didn't know how she was going to tell him what she now knew… what no test had to prove to her…
"Pregnant?… I'm… pregnant?! Is this for real?" She whispered out loud to herself, staring at the wall ahead of her as she was chin-deep in her warm bath water. Even the words sounded strange coming from her mouth, but there it was, the strong guess that she was almost positive was what her symptoms were. She glanced over at her stone mate and practiced telling him while he was in his still form.
"I- I think I'm… pregnant, Brooklyn." Her own tone was still full of shock, disbelief and surprise.
Brooklyn's stone form didn't move (nor did she expect him to) but as she looked over his panicked face, she couldn't help but feel panicked as well and was expecting that to be his true reaction when she told him. This blessing… was coming at horrible timing, or so it appeared to be. Not only was Kevin, the Draugr, Hela and the Underworld of Hel conspiring against them to destroy her and her soul, but throw in an inter-species pregnancy into the mix? One she didn't know if she could keep or stay alive to have?
Wasn't the first half of problems hard enough to deal with?
Regardless of all her doubts and as scary as things were right now, she was filled with an unbelievable amount of joy by the very prospect of carrying his child, her child. If it was true (and that she wasn't growing a stomach tumor instead) she would be giving him a biological child. It was a dream come true, because more than anything in this world, she wanted to be a mother. And giving her beautiful mate a baby was the greatest gift she could ever think to give him.
Tears filled her eyes as she thought about it.
She wanted it to be true, and even silently prayed for it… but at the same time, it wasn't a good time to bring an innocent child into this world. Especially into her world.
Death was coming for her, bearing closer and closer and she had to be a bit more realistic with it. Even with Brooklyn or the Clan's protection, her magic, or sheer will-power and faith in their 'happily-ever-after, what if it wasn't enough and she lost? What if the powers of Hel were too strong for her and Brooklyn's love? Could she willingly send her child to its death with her, and force Brooklyn to lose twice as much?
God-forbid.
Her thoughts continued to betray her as she bathed her hair and body and now was sitting in the sudsy water, thinking deeply. If she were pregnant, and didn't die from Hel's wrath, she would have a child that would have to be a half-Gargoyle, half-Human of sorts. And if her pregnancy stuck through to full-term and was healthy, she had to think about the delivery of such a child. Could she physically do it?
Gargoyle females delivered eggs before the hatchlings hatched into Gargoyle children. She couldn't deliver a twenty pound egg that much she was sure of. Holding Angela's egg was proof enough, even though she said the egg is pliable upon delivery, Rose wanted to faint at the very thought of something like that coming out of her. She would have to get a cesarean section for a proper delivery of the baby or egg… but even then, it was slightly terrifying to think about.
With her being a human, or at least one that physically looked like a Human, as her biological parents were full-blooded Third World Fae from Hel, she didn't know how this child would form or how she could successfully carry it to full-term. Would she survive the pregnancy and be able to deliver the child? Would her magic allow her to do it successfully? Would this be the reason she dies? Or would her body treat it like Elisa's did, and flush it out in a miscarriage… taking a part of her soul and heart with it?
Many questions ran through her mind.
Rose hadn't moved her hand from her flat, but slightly rounded stomach since seeing the subtle change in her mirror. With all of the symptoms she was having for over three weeks now, it was obvious to her that she was pregnant. All of the times she and Brooklyn made love, all of the nights they shared together, she had slowly forgotten to take her pill form of birth control. She remembered taking one daily around her honeymoon, but as the months passed by with work picking up, and the Draugr attacks, it slowly was forgotten.
As she sat in the warm water holding her stomach and staring at Brooklyn's stone, she slowly counted approximately how far along she could be. She wasn't obviously showing, so that would place her still in the first trimester of a human pregnancy… as she was a human… but not really a human. Rose narrowed her eyebrows, shook her head in frustration, and had so many more questions- more so, she was already sporting a headache. Disregarding her lineage of being a Third Race member for a moment, she focused on what she did know. Being physically a human, magic or not, it was easier to think about a human pregnancy that consisted of forty weeks until the baby was considered full-term.
Think… she thought to herself, racking her brain on when she could have possibly conceived. February, March, April- she remembered her pills, but then, near the end of April was when her nightmares really started and she began working more. End of April was when she went days and nights without sleep, and even when she did sleep, she was racked with nightmares over what Kevin would do to her. That is when she would have forgotten to take her birth control, she was almost sure of it.
Symptoms for pregnancy from her medical knowledge start near five weeks of gestation… so, taking a shot in the dark, she recalled that her nausea started three weeks ago when everything started to unravel. The Draugr attacks, Hela's magical attack, her realistic nightmares… all around then was when she started to notice her nausea.
So, if I was around five weeks pregnant… three weeks ago… she thought to herself. Then that would mean that I would be sitting around eight or nine weeks pregnant right now.
She paused from her thoughts and felt stunned, but it made sense. If she was eight or nine weeks pregnant, she wouldn't necessarily be showing, but possibly due to the fact that she was losing weight and carrying a half-Gargoyle child, it made sense that she started to see a slight bump in her flat stomach, despite her weight loss.
Rose groaned and didn't know how this could have happened.
There was no evidence that a Human could carry a Gargoyle's child, as they were two completely different species, despite the psychological and emotional differences. But yet, it happened. They made love so often, and each time was so incredibly different, she truly didn't know when she would have conceived. Some nights he would make her orgasm so strongly that magic flowed out of her, but other nights, like last night, there was a bond touched even greater and more pleasurable that there were no words to describe it. It was unearthly and something purely made from magic.
Were those times when her magic got involved, or their bond, that made this pregnancy possible?
By now, her hands and fingers were getting pruney and the water had grown cold. She didn't mean to stay in the bath for so long, but her thoughts took over and time had passed by so quickly. Luckily her body and hair was all clean so she pulled on the drain, grabbed her towel and stepped out, wiping herself down, drying off, and then wrapped the towel around her chest.
She quickly got herself dressed in a pair of jeans, a casual pink tee-shirt, and let her hair dry in a natural wave. She wasn't planning on leaving the house, so she kept the magical shield up in her bathroom and walked out to get some food. Now that it was closer to eight in the morning and she had thrown up all food and water within her system, she was ravenous and needed to eat right away. She didn't care what she ate at this point, as long as it was meat. Lots of it.
The minute she stepped out into the kitchen was when something frenzy-like and out of her control came over her. She had to eat… right then.
Rose ran into the kitchen, grabbed bacon, eggs, and sausage from her refrigerator and began to quickly cook the meats. Her hunger was so intense that she could have begun to eat them raw, but she refused to give into that craving. She wasn't a wild animal, even though she suddenly felt like one. As the meats cooked, she quickly threw down some bread into the toaster, grabbed her peanut butter jar from her pantry and started eating the creamy goodness from a spoon as her food cooked. Anything to keep herself from devouring raw food. But that wasn't enough to stop her monstrous appetite.
Throwing her pantry open, she grabbed down boxes of cereal and began eating them straight out of the box.
Still not enough.
All she could do was focus on chewing the cereal, and trying not to bite her tongue off. She then broke into a bag of chips, with her cereal, then found the jar of pickles.
What are you doing? You don't even like pickles! Her mind asked her body, but she began eating the salty pickles and wanted to melt on the floor with how good it tasted to her. She grabbed cheese, cut it up and began eating it with the pickles, over and over, until they were gone.
Next.
Rose tipped the box of cereal over her face and dumped as much cheerios into her mouth as she could. Nope, still wasn't enough, so she grabbed another spoon of peanut butter and ate it, hating how tediously slow the bacon and sausage links were cooking. More, more, more, she not only wanted, but needed more food. With how much she was eating all of a sudden, her small jeans she realized would not fit her for very long if she ate like that all the time, but she didn't care. If she was truly pregnant then she wanted to give her child all the nutrients it required.
After fifteen excruciating minutes of waiting impatiently, the bacon strips, sausage links and her scrambled eggs were done and fully cooked. Her toast was buttered with jam, and without bothering to sit down, she tore into her food as if she were a wild animal. But it wasn't enough, she grabbed every item she could quickly find from her pantry- crackers, cookies, apples… anything she could get her hands on that was safe to eat, she ate.
After a half hour of eating her food, plus extras, she was finally stuffed, and when she looked around at the kitchen, she was ashamed and beyond mortified at the mess she created. In complete shock, she didn't recall making the mess or what she did. She started to clean up after herself, but as she stared at the dishes that needed to be done, and a murder scene of food cleaned up; but it all looked so tedious and exhausting. So, for the first time in her life she ignored the mess, walked over to her living room couch and collapsed awkwardly on it, wanting to sleep more than anything.
Thoughts continued to flow through her mind on her symptoms, and they were all there. She had dealt with nausea and vomiting this morning, check. Engorged on an insane amount of food, and even stranger food combinations when nausea passed, check. Now she was onto fatigue, so fierce and intense that it was exhausting for her to just lie there on the couch, check.
Rose closed her eyes, groaned and was amazed by how much she ate, it was truly unbelievable and was the most she'd ever eaten in one sit down. She had just inhaled more calories than she's had sometimes in one week. Six eggs, twelve strips of bacon, four sausage links, four pieces of toast slathered with butter and jam, a full cup of her yogurt, an apple, a couple spoonfuls of peanut butter, a box of cereal, cookies, crackers, a full jar of pickles with half a brick of cheese, three glasses of water, and part of her was still hungry.
Holy crap.
With widening eyes, she ate more than Broadway did on some meals, and had it been an eating competition, she would have won; most likely putting Brooklyn and the clan in shock while doing so. Never in her life had she ever eaten that much food in one sitting and was praying that she didn't throw all of it back up.
What a glorious experience that would be.
She shuddered at her sarcastic thought and couldn't move from her awkward lying pose. Her muscles didn't seem to work, it was almost impossible to raise her hand with how exhausted she was. Her eyes suddenly started to close heavily and exhaustion waved over her. Her mind was begging her to stay awake to protect Brooklyn, but the fatigue was a monster of its own.
Then, without any recollection of doing so, she fell into a deep sleep.
Knock, knock, knock.
Rose jolted awake by the foreign sound, and for a moment was confused. Then, it all hit her. She was still lying down, still in a very strange position on the couch having been too tired to move an inch more, and even found out that she had a small puddle of slobber coming out of her mouth.
"Gross." She moaned to herself, wiped her mouth off, and slowly found she had energy to move again. But didn't she hear the door…why was she awake? When did she even fall asleep? It was all a blur, but then she heard it again.
Knock, knock, knock.
Gasping, she looked over at the clock and realized that it was five minutes past nine. Which meant that it was Doctor Sato coming over for an at-home physical check up. Sitting up and stretching her stiff body out she quickly got up from the couch and made her way to open her door. As she walked past her kitchen, she stopped cold and was horrified by the mess she made. Normally it would have been all cleaned up before any person, or guest for that matter could come visit, but it was too late to clean up now.
Taking a deep breath, she stood on her tiptoes to look through her peep hole, and sure enough, it was him. Rose unlocked and opened the door, smiled and greeted Dr. Sato, a middle-aged Asian man, who smiled back at her.
"Rose, hello!" He greeted back, with a smile. "It's been a long time."
"Yes, it really has." Rose said with a smile, stepped aside to let him in and gestured a hand out, "Please come in."
"Thank you."
He was wearing a suit, holding a large suitcase and with a smile came into the home. Rose shut the door behind him, as he slowly looked around.
"Nice place."
"Thank you. Um… please excuse the kitchen mess. I uh… made myself breakfast and didn't have time to clean it up yet." Rose gestured for him to come and sit down, refusing to look at him as she blushed, and he followed, but he took a look at it anyway and stopped in his tracks.
"Whoa, that is some mess." He looked at it with amazement, and to any normal person, it truly looked like she murdered all of her food or got in a food fight with herself. He glanced from all of the trash on the ground, to the shattered eggs that she broke too roughly on her counter top in her desperate attempt at getting her food made, to the yolks that were slowly dripping off the counter and onto the floor. Everything was still out, jams, butters, and trash flung everywhere; yet the rest of the house was in pristine cleanliness shape. "It looks like my three-year old nephew came over and made himself breakfast." He paused, laughed again, and then pointed at the ceiling. "What happened there?! What the heck is all over your cabinets and ceiling?"
Rose groaned, lifted a hand up to her face and shuffled nervously on her feet.
"Um… eggs, I think. Maybe some jam… I don't know what happened here to be completely honest." She told him, and that was the truth, her ravenous attempt to cook her food as quickly as humanly possible, was a bit of a blur. He continued to laugh, but she was mortified.
"I'm normally a very clean person," she said softly. "I was just um…"
"Having a rough morning?" He guessed lightly, and ignoring more of his joking she shrugged casually and took it.
"Yeah, sure. I guess that's one way of putting it. I wasn't quite… feeling like myself is all."
Again, that was the truth. He shook his head in humor, still chuckling, and then looked around as they walked into the living room, which was clean at least, to her relief.
Before he arrived, she cleaned up all of the broken glass frames of all of hers and Brooklyn's pictures with her magic and displayed them back in their rightful place, once again. The large canvas wedding photo was back on the wall where it belonged in the center of the living room. Dr. Sato knew of hers and Brooklyn's relationship months prior, but probably had no idea that they were married. When he saw the picture on the wall of them, she in a wedding dress and he in his ceremonial armor, he froze.
She sat down on the couch and watched his expression very careful, unsure if she should have kept the pictures out or put them away. After waiting a few seconds for him to stop staring, she cleared her throat and got his attention.
"Please, sit."
Dr. Sato gave one last look at the picture, then did as she asked; sitting on one of the lone armchairs nearest the kitchen. He placed his briefcase on her coffee table, opened it, and pulled out a large laptop, gloves, his medical stethoscope and other tools to get ready, before exhaling and turning to her.
"So…" He said softly. "I see that uh, you and that um… Gargoyle, are just… more than friends now. Am I correct?"
"We are mates." Rose answered him, smiling and not caring to hide it. "And have actually always been mates, but we took our time in getting to know each other better before making it official. Last we talked to you, we were just beginning a relationship with each other, and now we are married and have made our mating bond permanent."
Doctor Sato's eyebrows raised over his large glasses and looked shocked. "Uh-huh…" he said softly. "I see. Well… uh… I guess I am happy for you."
Grateful that he wasn't being difficult like he was last time, she smiled genuinely at him. "Thank you. We are very, very happy."
"And uh…" He paused, cleared his throat and pulled at his tie slightly. "You'll please forgive me as I ask this. I know it's delicate and… personal, but since I've been a doctor and ally to the Gargoyles for some time now, I uh, am very curious from a medical and anatomy side of things. Are you two um… physically compatible? Regardless of your species difference?"
"Physically he's a Gargoyle and I'm a half- Human. We are extremely attracted to each other… but I wonder… did you mean to ask if we are sexually compatible?" She pushed back at him, grinning wider and having a blast teasing him as he blushed. He blustered uncomfortably for a few seconds, but then something in her answer stunned him, and he suddenly looked up at her.
"Half- Human?"
"Yeah…" She said softly, crossing her legs and resting her arms down upon them. "It's a long story. But… I found out who my biological parents are… and essentially they are fairies from another realm. That's the really watered down version, but yet, I am physically a Human, but have powers of a fairy."
"Powers?" He asked, looking faint.
"Magic." She answered bluntly, giving him a quick show of her red wispy magic near her finger tips. When the blood drained from his face completely, she gently rolled her wrist and willed the magic back inside of her; hoping not to scare him off.
"Oh." Was all he could say, his hands frozen on his laptop and looked insanely confused. After a few seconds of silence, he cleared his throat again, went to open his laptop to pull up her file but then decided against it and shut it.
"Well… I'll tell you, the more I see mythological creatures of legend the more I'm unsure of what's real or not in this world. And you're now telling me that you're one of them in a sense and only physically look like a human…"
"I know…" she said with a smile. "Weird, right? My magic has always been with me but I never knew about it until I met Brooklyn. When I did, everything changed for good and I'm now who I'm meant to be." She paused, blinked and moved her hair behind her ear, suddenly a bit sheepish and added in a mumble, "Whoever… that's supposed to be."
"Hmm." He answered, staring back at her with his hands intertwined, looking thoughtful. "Well, I'm happy for you, Rose. As… strange as I've thought your relationship was, at first, with… um… Brooklyn, I can see that there is more to you that meets the eye."
"Thank you." She replied with a smile, glad to have broken that ice, then teased, "You're just glad that I'm not a full Human, right? It makes my mating with Brooklyn a little bit less strange for you, doesn't it?"
Doctor Sato laughed, his body language relaxing and she knew why he closed his laptop. She wasn't a full-Human in his eyes and therefore, the less people knew about her, the better. Her heart melted slightly at his sacrifice for helping her and the Clan, for breaking some rules of his medical license to further protect them and giving medical care when need be, even under the radar.
"Honestly, it does actually." He laughed. "Though you do physically appear to be Human, to see you as something more like their kind… makes this new truth about you easier to swallow, for sure."
Their kind? She blinked a few times and caught his tone, it was subtle, but it was there.
"Uh… thank you? I guess."
"It was a compliment." He said, clapped his hands and then took a deep breath, getting straight to the point of his visit. "So you've called me here for a reason… and we'll get to that, but first, I have to tell you what I am seeing while observing you, and I'm suspecting that it's the reason why you've called me in to see you."
Rose straightened up, uncrossed her legs and looked at him with surprise. "Oh?"
"You've lost a great deal of weight since I've last seen you, Rose, weight that wasn't there to lose in the first place. Your face is sunken in, your skin is pale, and your collar bone is sticking out. You're ill."
It wasn't a question.
His face was looking at her with concern now, and she hoped that he wouldn't find anything that she didn't want to see or know. She hoped that it wasn't a true illness that was ailing her, like Brooklyn was originally terrified of.
"Uh…" She began to say, paused, and then nodded. "Yes. I am, and I… don't really know why. I have my own… um… guesses, but none that are sure until tests are done to confirm a diagnosis."
Doctor Sato nodded seriously, jumping into his duties and began taking notes. "What are your symptoms?"
" I've been… nauseated and vomiting every day, multiple times a day for three weeks now. Trying to keep food in me has been… a challenge to say the least. At first I thought it was food poisoning or a stomach flu virus, but since it hasn't gone away… I then suspected an ulcer since I've been under a great deal of stress with my two jobs and balancing my life… but recently other symptoms have shown up and I'm now thinking that it's something else completely."
Doctor Sato nodded again and kept copying her words down.
"You said… three weeks this has been going on?"
"Yes." She answered softly.
"What are the other symptoms other than nausea and vomiting?"
"Food aversions, then overindulgence at different times of the day, mood swings, fatigue, sore… tender breasts…"
Doctor Sato clicked his tongue, lowered the notepad down and stared up at her, his eyes boring into hers. A few seconds passed and she couldn't help but feel nervous under his gaze. He was no fool.
"What?" She laughed weakly.
"Rose…" He began, paused, and then took another deep breath. "Did it ever occur to you that you could be pregnant?"
She stared back at him for a few seconds, sucked her lips in, and then slowly nodded.
"Yes. That is my guess now… and I was hoping that you could take a sample of urine and blood back to the labs with you and verify for me. If not, then there's something else going on."
"It's possible…" he said softly. "When was your last menstrual cycle?"
"Um…" She said and with her pause, just like with Emily, he seemed to know the answer by her lack of answer.
"You don't know, do you?"
"No." She sighed heavily. "I was on birth control for some time after he and I got married, but with work and life and such… I've slowly gone off of it and have forgotten to take it."
"Were you two using… protection?"
Rose nearly laughed at him, thinking about how the condoms didn't last near as long as they should have and with their belief that she couldn't get pregnant, they stopped using protection.
Not wanting to dive into those details, however, she carefully said, "Nope."
"Noted." He said with a slight laugh. "Okay…well, with your symptoms being what they are, you being a young lady and not on a form of birth control or prevention for pregnancy, I'm going to go ahead and test you for it. So, since you don't know when your last cycle was, you probably don't know when you would have conceived either?"
"Uh… yeah, sorry no. I am guessing that I'm about nine weeks along if I am pregnant because three weeks ago is when my symptoms first showed." She said. "But that's just a shot-in the dark guess."
"Have you taken an at-home pregnancy test yet?" He asked.
"No, I was going to do that today." She answered, and again he looked up from his notes.
"So what makes you so sure that you're pregnant, other than the symptoms? To say that a human, even a half-human, was able to conceive from the sperm of a Gargoyle is nothing short of incredible and unheard of. This is completely… foreign ground for me Rose. I'll have you know this."
"I know." She nodded. "Well, as you can tell… I have lost weight because of how sick I've been, but today, I noticed a small and very subtle change in my stomach. It's still flat but firm and rounding slightly around my hips. Unless I'm growing a stomach tumor, I would say I am pregnant. I just wanted to be sure that it's that and nothing else."
"I see." He said, standing up. "Alright, well, let me check your heart, vitals and a quick palpation and we'll see what's going on. I can't do an ultrasound here, you'd have to come in for that."
Rose nodded. "Understood."
Minutes passed as she sat silently in her chair letting him take her vitals, check her heart and lungs. Then she laid down on her back and let him gently palpated her stomach, while listening to it through the stethoscope. When he palpated her upper stomach, she was sure she was going to vomit the hordes of food she ate before his arrival, but as he pushed down on her lower abdomen near her hips and pelvic region, he was met with hardness. He could barely push down on it, which made his eyebrow raise in shock and great concern. Rose watched him as he palpated over and over again, trying to see if it was a tumor or something else, but when he looked stumped, he shook his head, stood up and placed his hand on his chin.
"Hmm." He said, helping her sit back up. "Well your vitals are near perfect, your heart and lungs sound good, but your stomach, as you can tell, in your pelvis area is very hard- almost like you do have something there. I can't hear anything through my stethoscope… but I am concerned. There shouldn't be anything that hard down there. So here's what we'll do to rule everything out.
Take an at-home pregnancy test today, and I'll take some urine and blood samples of yours with me back to the lab to test for pregnancy or any other issue I may find." He walked away from her, put his things away in his briefcase, and pulled out a urine cup, handing it to her. "You know the drill, fill it as much as you can and I'll have those results back to you as early as tomorrow. The blood might take a bit longer, but that's what we can do for right now. If it's positive, then we can have you come in for an ultrasound, or I come to Mr. Xanatos' infirmary and we do it there to see what's going on. If the test comes back as negative, I want to do a CT scan of your pelvis to see what's going on. It's best if we make sure that all is going well with your body if you have been successful in conceiving another species's offspring. Sound like a plan?"
Rose stood, took the cup from him and smiled, feeling extremely nervous to get those results back. To be pregnant with Brooklyn's child was everything amazingly… incredibly… terrifying. A mix of a dream coming true only to be on the verge of having a nightmare. So many things could go wrong… but she had to be positive and believe in the best outcome, and try to believe in their future and their mating bond. Like she and Brooklyn agreed, they met for a reason, that much was very clear.
Like an invisible friend, one that had the power of the universe- unable to be broken- their bond was true and sent to them as a gift of their love. Was this a product of that gift, to produce children together? If so, then the possibilities of their future together was astronomical and endless.
She smiled at him. "Yes, sounds like a plan. Thank you so much for coming over and helping me."
"I'm happy to help." He said gently. "I'm also going to prescribe you an anti-nausea medication that'll help those symptoms."
Rose breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, doc… that would be fabulous. Thank you so much."
"They are safe just in case you are pregnant, and for the time being, take over-the-counter prenatal vitamins if you aren't doing so already and you should start getting the nutrients you are missing."
"Sounds good." Rose said with a smile as he wrote her out a prescription, signed it, and then handed it to her. "You know, I… I can't really adequately describe how terrible I felt after how our last conversation ended, and I would like to start over with you and the Clan. To be friends and allies, if that's alright. I know that your life is not a normal one, by any means, but I must say that I am intrigued by what your story is being written out as and what your future holds. You are a wonderful girl, and the Gargoyles have my full support, so I will happily and loyally be yours and the Clan's medical doctor from this moment forward. That way, you and them, will never have to worry about having medical care if it's needed; never have to worry about if there's someone you can trust to help you all live long and healthy lives. I just wanted you to know that I'm here and will always be an ally."
At this, Rose smiled even brighter at him."I know that the Clan would agree with me, but that would mean a great deal to us. Thank you."
"You're very welcome." He said, nodding. "Besides, it's always nice to have a challenge in medicine, different patients, different bodies… it's all very interesting to me."
Agreeing with him, Rose laughed, then stood up and walked into her hallway bathroom.
"Be careful what you wish for, just look around. With me as your patient, I guarantee you'll never have a dull moment anymore."
Before she shut the door, he barked out a laugh that made her smile.
An hour passed after his visit, which was quick, simple, clean and how every doctor appointment should be, in her opinion. Rose gave Doctor Sato the sample of her urine, then sat down, and within one quick and painless poke, he took some samples of her blood, packed them all up, and was on his way. Rose paced around nervously in her living room, already wanting the results of what she had given him; but it was closing into eleven, and was expecting Emily and Katie anytime now.
She checked on Brooklyn a few times and saw that her magical shield had stayed active. Amazed and a bit relieved that it stayed up, she realized that she could walk away and it would still be working. Brooklyn was shielded as he slept, and she prayed that he slept well and wasn't plagued with the same nightmares he had been having about her dying.
Rose was quickly trying to clean up her kitchen, but was being drained of energy quicker than the work was getting done when another knock was heard on her door. Sighing, she quickly made her way over to open the door and standing there, was some of her favorite people in this entire world- Emily and Katie.
"Hi!" Rose cried out excitedly as Katie jumped into her arms. "Hi bug!"
She kissed the little girl on the head, stepped aside and let Emily come in. It was incredible, she saw her yesterday, but Emily already looked a lot bigger and ready to deliver her baby boy, who's due date was coming up in a few more weeks. Emily was smiling brightly at her, walked through the door, and then shut it behind her. However, when she walked past the kitchen, she dropped her purse and shrieked.
Rose turned around quickly to face her with Katie in her arms, but seeing her shocked face frozen at the mess, she quickly turned back around and ignored her out of embarrassment.
"Rose… wha- what the hell happened in here?!"
"Um…" She began to say, and when Katie saw the kitchen, she giggled and said, "Auntie Wose made a big mess!"
Rose couldn't help but smile down at the three-year old and laugh.
"Yeah… auntie Wose kind of uhh… had an out of body experience when making her breakfast."
Katie giggled again at her childish answer, but Emily took it as her answer and her eyes rose high into her hairline. "An out of body experience? Well, holy crap, I'd say. What in the world were you doing?" She walked further into her house, walked into the kitchen and then laughed, "How did egg yolks get on the ceiling?!"
Laughing it off again, Rose felt way more relaxed with Emily than with Doctor Sato, and even though she was way more judgmental, she felt like she could tease her with it.
"That's a secret… if I told you, I'd have to kill you."
Emily turned with a hand on her hip, as Rose took Katie and the Aurora doll she and Brooklyn got her for her early-birthday present and sat her down on the couch, flipping on 'Sesame Street,' for her to watch.
"Ha-ha." Emily said dryly, then looked around some more. "Were you and Red doing some nasty things in here that I don't wanna know about?"
Rose grinned at hers and Emily's code-name for Brooklyn when other people were around or with Katie within ear shot. For all she knew, Red was the color and nothing more.
"Em… Red is currently asleep in my bathroom and is unavailable during the day. Remember?" Rose told her with a cheeky smile. "Besides, that mess was um… because I got super hungry. I am being serious when I say that I don't remember how it happened. I vomited all this morning, so then when I came in here I became ravenous and had to eat everything in sight."
"Cooked I hope!" Emily laughed, looking amazed. "Jeez… it looks like a wild animal came in here and ripped into your pantry, you marry Red and your humanity slips up. Maybe you really are pregnant."
"That's what Doctor Sato thinks." Rose said quietly, and with that, Emily gasped and whipped around to face her.
"What?"
"Doctor Sato is a general surgeon that works for Xanatos on the side. He knows about the Clan, so he has become my personal doctor as well as the Clans."
"He knows about Gar-" Emily paused, glanced over at Katie, who was enthralled with Big Bird. She motioned Rose over, and together they sat at the kitchen bar.
"He knows about them?" Emily continued asking quietly. "For how long?"
"Long enough." Rose answered, drinking some of her water and feeling slightly nauseous, silently hating herself for eating that much food. "I had him come over this morning, right before you, and he gave me a physical check up. Took my blood and urine and will give me the results soon."
"And… he- he thinks that you're pregnant too?" Emily asked in an excited whisper, and Rose couldn't help but smile and nod.
"He does."
Emily clasped her hands over her mouth and suddenly her eyes glistened in tears.
"What do you think?" She asked, and Rose couldn't help but tear up as well.
"You tell me… I tore apart my kitchen to eat my entire pantry. I've eaten more calories now than I have in the past week. Literally, I have no more food now, I've been nauseous, exhausted, moody…" Rose paused, then stood up and turned to the side. "I've lost weight… but… how do you explain this?"
She then lifted up her tee shirt to her bra line and showed Emily the side of her stomach. While skinny and her stomach flat, there was a prevalent bump there. Tiny, but it was there. Emily's eyes went huge, and when Rose reached to grab her hand to place on her hard stomach, Emily's mouth was frozen open.
"Oh my goodness!" Emily gasped in awe. "It's so small, but from that angle I can definitely see it!" She pulled her hand away and stared at her with wide eyes. "Ohhh Rose…"
"I know." Rose said, sniffling down her own tears, lowering her shirt. "I'm pretty sure that it's real but I just gotta wait for the tests to come back from Doctor Sato."
"Why wait?" Emily asked with a grin. She quickly moved away from her chair, picked up her purse from the ground, dug through it and then handed Rose an unopened pregnancy test box. "These babies are ninety-nine point nine percent accurate. The first pee is the most telling but you're probably far enough along it'll catch the hormone still that it won't matter what time it is. Take one now and let's see the results!"
Rose stared at the box that she was holding out and very slowly took it from her, sighing. As she held it in her hands, the answer was so close, and yet, she didn't know if she could do it right now.
"What's wrong?" Emily asked quietly, gauging her reaction.
"I… I uh…" Rose stammered and then sighed. "I'm so nervous for it to be positive because it'll be all unknown territory… but then will be devastated if it shows negative."
Emily's facial expression softened as she reached out and touched her arm.
"All the more reason for you to do it now because I'm here for you. If it shows positive, then you and I will cry happy tears together and come up with a game plan to make sure it's a healthy pregnancy. Or if it's negative, then we will still cry, and I will help you through it." She paused, raised an eyebrow up and squeezed her arm more tightly. "Deal?"
Normally that would have been enough for her to crack, but Rose kept staring down at the box, unsure how to move… until she thought of Kevin returning. Something deep inside of her came to life just then, her past life of doing what needed to be done to survive, and slowly her hands closed around the test. She had to be prepared for whatever dangers were coming her way, and with that including knowing if she was pregnant or not. And Emily was right, what better time to find out than with her best friend by her side to help her through it all.
Finally glancing up at her, she smiled and nodded. "Alright, deal."
"Okay then." Emily said with a smile. "I'll be right here when you're done."
Nodding, Rose turned away and went back inside her half-bathroom in the hallway. She did her business, remembering the last time she took a pregnancy test was back when she was married to Kevin. She was very active in taking her birth control back then because she could never bring a child into that relationship and expose them to the dangers and abuse that she faced every day. Rose remembered her plan that if she ever did get pregnant while married to Kevin, she would have run for her life. As fast and as far away as she possibly could; but it was interesting to her. Why didn't she do that anyway? She would do anything to protect others, but apparently wouldn't give herself the same respect. Perhaps that's why Brooklyn was always so overprotective at times, because she wouldn't think of herself… but now she was. She was wanting to live; to be safe and happy… she would fight until the death for her life and others she loved.
It was a deep thought she had as she finished up. Rose's hand trembled slightly as she set the test carefully on the side of her trash can, flushed the toilet and then slowly washed her hands. It took three minutes for the test to fully give an answer, and she would give it more than that out of nerves. Rose stared at herself in the mirror, running the suds of soap all over her hands, over-cleaning them. Finally, she rinsed them, shut the water off and then dried them on her hand towel.
Exhaling deeply, she rested her hands on the counter and closed her eyes. She was nervous… the test result would be over there and would be accurate.
One line means it's negative. Rose thought to herself, feeling extremely anxious. Cross means that it's positive.
She bit her lip, took another deep breath and then forced herself to open her eyes and do it. To look at the test.
Don't be a coward! She snarled to herself. Look at the test… one line is negative. Cross is positive. She quickly turned around and grabbed the test from the top of her garbage can, held it up and forced her eyes to look down into the test box. When she saw the results her eyes widened in shock and she stared… and stared… and stared…
Minutes went by as she stared at the results, her heart was pounding, nausea was building up again, and it was taking everything she had to not pass out on the floor. She must have been in there a long time because Emily suddenly knocked on the door.
"Rose? You okay? You've been in there a long time. Did the test work?"
Her mind was going a million miles per hour, tears welled up in her eyes and she was sure that she was going to pass out. Rose wet her lips as tears fell down her face and it took her a moment to find her voice. "Yes… the test worked."
"Open up." Emily suddenly said after hearing her tone. "Please, Rose, let me in."
Unable to tear her eyes away, she reached out a hand and unlocked the bathroom door. Emily quickly opened it and stepped into the small powder room with her with wide eyes after seeing how pale Rose was.
"Well?" She asked quietly, barely fitting in the small bathroom with her large pregnant belly and Rose's body. "What does it say?"
Still unable to speak, Rose looked up with her tear-filled eyes and showed Emily the test, who took it and looked down. There, in the small test box was a clear pink cross. Emily gasped and looked up at her with wide eyes.
"Oh... my... God! Rose... it's positive!… You're pregnant!" The words slowly crawled across to Rose's mind and Emily looked ecstatic. "Rose, honey, you're pregnant!"
It took a minute for the excitement to hit Rose, and when it did, she suddenly smiled brightly.
"I'm pregnant…" She whispered again.
"Yes! You're going to have a baby!"
"I'm…" Rose started to say, but then lost it. Happiness filled her entire being as she sobbed. Emily was crying now as well, stepped forward and hugged her tightly, keeping her held together as they both cried. Emily kissed the side of her head, as Rose sobbed, having never felt more happy in her entire life.
"Congratulations!" Emily gasped in her ear, holding onto her tightly. "I'm… I'm…" She sniffed away her own tears. "I am so happy for you and Brooklyn. You two love each other so much… and will be the best parents. After all you've been through with Kevin, I know you've wanted this for so long, I'm so happy for you!"
Rose continued to cry and hold Emily tightly, her happiness was filling every part of her being to the point where her connection came to life, as if Brooklyn were around, and she wondered if he could feel her absolute joy. The connection jolted from her stomach a few times and internally she swore she could almost hear someone say, I told you I was here…
The dry humor was the same as Brooklyn's, the sweet soul she could feel was the same as hers… it was true, this was real, she was going to have a baby with Brooklyn and whether it be human born or Gargoyle, she didn't care. As long as it was healthy, she was going to give it everything to live and exist. She was going to fight Kevin… he wasn't going to take this away from her.
Emily seemed to feel a certain resolve come over Rose or felt some of her magic, as she slowly pulled away and looked nervously at her.
"You okay?" She asked, wiping Rose's tears away. "You haven't said a word… are… are you happy? Is this what you want?"
Rose cleared her voice and shakily took a breath.
"Yes… yes this is what I've always wanted." She said in a whisper, tears still coming down her face. "I… I am so happy that this has happened…"
"I hear a 'but' in there somewhere." Emily said, knowing better, and Rose nodded.
"There is."
"What's going on?" Emily asked, looking concerned… as she should be. Rose slowly looked up into her face, held onto her small stomach gently and said, still shaking, "While he's, this is one of the happiest moments of my life, the timing is… dangerous."
Emily continued to stare at her with wide, concerned eyes and looked horrified. "Is it those… death creatures again?"
Rose nodded, took her by the hands and said, "I have much to tell you… it's best if you sit down."
"Why do I have a horrible feeling about what you're about to tell me?"
"Because it involves my biological parents."
Emily gasped and grabbed onto her. "You found them?"
"Not quite. I know who they are… but haven't met them yet. But I'll tell you the full story because it's not what you think. They are not… good. And unfortunately, that's not what all of this terrible news is about."
Hearing that finding her parents was terrible, Emily's face fell slightly. "What else is it about?"
Rose took a deep breath and pulled her from the bathroom, towards the bar to sit, her hands shaking. "Kevin." Was all she said, not daring to look at her. "Kevin is back… he's alive and is coming back to try to kill my self and Brooklyn… and my parents… are behind it all."
"What?" Emily gasped out, unable to wrap her head around what Rose was telling her.
"My parents are not from this world, Emily, they aren't even Human. Their kind lives in Brooklyn's world, and are creatures of magic and shape-shifting. My mother is a dark fairy and goddess of Death, while my father is essentially the Lord of their Underworld… and they brought a Kevin back to life to destroy my soul."
She paused as Emily remained silent.
"That's why this pregnancy is so dangerous…" Rose whispered. "I have every death demon on my tail but now… I have Kevin back to life… coming back for me."
Emily continued to stare at her, blinked a few times and then gently put her hand on Rose's; looking as though she was trying not to faint. "Okay… this sounds insane to me, hon, so I need you to go back to the very beginning and tell me everything."
So, with a deep breath, hoping and praying that Emily would stay her friend; she told her everything.
Two hours passed by, she and Emily talked- well, more Rose talked and Emily listened. They cleaned the kitchen up, fed Katie lunch and continued to talk.
Rose told her about her biological parents, Avalon, the Third Race, Puck as Owen, her magic growth, the Draugr attack and her finding Kevin's grave empty; while having nightmares and visions that he was brought back to life… but not only that, she told her the good stuff as well. Brooklyn's surprise last night, him naming a star after her, making love under the heavens all night long to have a message from Kevin when they returned- and then with their new inter-species pregnancy thrown on top of it all, it was like a cherry on top.
Emily listened with her jaw open the entire time and didn't ask any questions until Rose was done talking. When Rose finished telling her everything, Emily continued to stare at her as if she didn't know who she was anymore, the fact of the matter is, she probably didn't. The girl from Bar Harbor wasn't who she was now. Emily glanced over at Katie, who was still snuggling her Aurora doll and watching television with great uncertainty, then looked back at Rose.
"I… I don't believe this."
"I know it's a lot to swallow… " Rose began to say, but Emily held up a hand, stopping her. "I believe you, I do. Having seen the Gargoyles for myself, I believe that there are beings out there that we've always thought weren't real, are in fact real." Emily continued. "It's just a lot to process. It's almost like…"
"I'm a different person?" Rose added, not looking at her.
"Well… yes… actually… yeah." Emily finally said, sighing in defeat. "Yeah, it really does feel like you are a completely new person. Someone very different from our college days." She paused, then reached over and grasped her hand. "But that's not entirely a bad thing. Everyone changes as life changes… so it's a good thing. You are still you… even though your life has just taken a huge U-turn of sorts. That's all, and I would say it's taken a turn for the better. You no longer are married to an abusive spouse, and are now married again to the love of your life. Sure, he's not the traditional husband, but he's the greatest thing in your life, and now your guy's family is growing! It's so exciting, Rose! And true, there is a portion of your life that is very dark and dark, I mean, finding out that you're not really a Human, but the daughter of two Gods of Death is… yeah… I don't even know what to say to that, but…" She paused again and squeezed Rose's hand.
"But I do know you, Rose. You are a good person, one who has always had a heart of gold, and so, I always say you are the product of your upbringing, not by who conceived you. Your real parents are Rob and Evie because they are the ones that raised you, not this… Hela woman. So, I wouldn't worry about it too much. You aren't like them… you have so much heart and love to give, and you give that love out freely, selflessly… true, there may be darkness within your soul… but hell… who doesn't, honestly? We are all imperfect and sometimes screw up. You're no different. Even with your lineage… it doesn't mean a damn thing. If you don't want to be a Daughter of Death… then don't be that person. It's a choice, Rose. I know that's what Puck said to you, but he's right. There's nothing that you don't have control over, unless you give that control away to them. You're not bad and will never be… not with so many people around you who freaking love you to pieces."
Rose couldn't help but smile at Emily as she gave her advice, and instantly she squeezed her hand even tighter.
"Thank you." She whispered.
"You're welcome." Emily said softly. "And it uh… it makes sense actually now that we've talked through this. Your magic has seemed to grow a great deal since I've first seen it, and all around, you've matured into your own. And for you to hold off those awful creatures during that chemical explosion?! I mean… wow, that's really amazing that you were able to protect yourself and Brooklyn, despite all of your injuries. It seems like it was really scary to deal with, but I'm glad that those terrible things have left you alone for a few weeks, at least."
"Yeah…" Rose said softly. "We'll see how long they stay away… since I've got a new monster on my tail, I would say that this was just the beginning."
Emily's face fell slightly and knew who she was talking about. "Kevin."
Rose nodded, closed her eyes and sighed heavily, not saying anything has tense silence passed between them
"He's really back?" Was all Emily could ask in a voice barely above a whisper, and again, she nodded.
"Yes." She breathed, tears filling her eyes. "He's back. I saw his body being taken on the security camera with my own eyes… and his casket… was empty when they dug it back up. And… no one would leave me a single red rose for me. Especially a dead one. He is coming back for me, for Brooklyn, and I don't know how my story will end." At this, she gently touched her stomach and rubbed her hand over it, sniffling.
"Oh Rose…" Emily whispered in distress, then begged, "What are you going to do?"
Rose stayed silent for another few seconds, unsure what to say, unsure how to answer her question. She slowly looked up at her best friend and shook her head with a small laugh.
"I honestly don't know." She said softly. "There's… so many things at risk now with Kevin back. I don't know what he'll be capable of, but I have a feeling that if I'm different then he'll be different too. Stronger… but his mind will be just as vicious as before. But like before he'll never stop coming until he gets what he wants." She paused, took a deep breath and gathered up her long hair in her hands.
"Are you afraid?" Emily asked, and Rose stopped, and slowly released her hair.
"No." She said honestly, with more truth and resolve than ever before. "I told Brooklyn that this morning. I'm no longer going to give Kevin the pleasure of watching me writhe under his control, under the fear that he instills in me. I'm afraid… but not of him. What he can do… yes, but not him. Not anymore. He should be afraid of me and how strong I've grown. I have you, your family, Brooklyn and the Clan… and now my unborn child to protect." She paused, placed a hand over her stomach again and couldn't seem to stop. "With all the changes happening in my life… I refuse to let Kevin take my happiness away, to take away the ones that I love. He lost once… and he'll lose again, this time for good. I'll make sure of it."
Rose swallowed, and closed her hands into fists as power surged through her as she said those words, and for one moment, red-magic came out of her fingertips, making Emily's eyes widen even more in shock and amazement.
"Good for you, Rose." Emily said with a proud smile. "I'm so damn proud of you! You show that stupid bastard just how incredibly strong you are, and that you won't put up with his bullshit." She paused, grinned at her magic and gasped, "Wow… I can almost feel your power. It's radiating off of you. Like… holy crap, Rose, how cool is that?!"
Rose couldn't help but smile at Emily, but slowly calmed down and forced her magic back inside of herself.
"Yeah, it's useful, I'll give it that." Rose said. "I resented it at first because I didn't want to deal with it or deal with all the change that came with it, but had I not had it during all those Draugr attacks, I would have been dead months ago. It has given me an edge that I don't think the demonic leaders of Hel have planned on."
"Well that's good then." Emily empathized. "You've been given a chance to fight against them, so I'd say it's been a blessing in disguise."
Rose mused over her words for a moment and then slowly nodded in agreement.
"Yeah," she huffed out a small, dry laugh. "I guess it has been. All I know is my life has been full of change after change, and somehow I've managed to keep up with it."
"Well even more change is coming." Emily hinted with a smile. "You best get used to it."
"Oh I know…" Rose said with another laugh, rubbing her stomach. "I am still in disbelief that this has happened. I can't believe that we are going to have a child. I'm gonna be a mom..."
"I'm so freaking happy and excited for you guys." Emily said with a smile. "So, how do you think Brooklyn will handle the news? Are you going to tell him first thing tonight?"
"That's the plan. I think he'll be happy, really, really happy…" Rose started to say. "... after he passes out from panic, has a heart attack, or has a major mental breakdown. He might throw up, throw a tantrum, or go into shock all together." She paused to think. "It's going to be very interesting and so I'm planning to handle all of the above."
"You really think he'll react that way?" Emily asked her with raised eyebrows. "Every husband is different and sure, some are happy about it, some are giant babies; but overall, they all become a melting pile of goo when you tell them they are going to be a father. Brooklyn is so tender-hearted, but he's also tough. I mean, he would have to be in order to put up with your life…" Rose swatted her gently on the arm at her jab, but she laughed and then put her hands up. "Kidding... kind of... but seriously, you two are strong. You'd have to be in order to deal with all that you have dealt with, but together I know you two can do it. He'll be so happy knowing that he's going to have a child with the love of his life."
She paused, smiled happily at her and leaned in. "But being a protective Gargoyle male, he does have every right to feel protective of his mate and now over his unborn child. Especially since this child will be rare, if not, the first of its kind. You two do have a lot at stake here, but I know you two will be okay. You're stronger than that piece of abusive shit anyway, you always have been."
"Thank you Em." Rose said with a small laugh. "I appreciate that… and for you talking to me and listening to my insane life."
"Anytime." She said with a smile. "I love you and will always be here for you, you know that."
"I do."
"Good." Emily said, her smiling fading slightly; then suddenly she looked away from Rose and didn't meet her gaze.
"Em?" Rose inquired, shocked by her sudden change in behavior. "What's up?"
"I actually… uh… have something to run by you as well." Emily finally said, looking up at her. "You've told me all that's going on in your life, but we actually have a bit of news ourselves. A bit of change possibly coming to the Hansen family."
Rose raised her eyebrows and looked surprised. "Oh yeah? What's going on? Tell me."
"Chris got the phone call before our beach trip, and we were wanting to talk about it with you, but he and I still haven't had the chance to discuss it with each other yet, so we didn't mention anything."
"Okay." Rose said, narrowing her eyes at Emily.
"Well, you know that Chris' family is all in Oregon, mine's scattered all over the country but um… his father's construction job is wanting to recruit Chris as a manager. It would be more pay, less stress on his body, the housing is way less down there compared to here, and we would be close to his family when our baby is born. Amelia, Chris's mom, wants to see her grand-kids more, so they are really wanting us to move there… and well… since work has kind of slowed down here, and rent is so astronomical… we are… considering it. Especially with our baby due here in a few weeks."
Whoa. Rose thought to herself, the news hitting her gut with worse nausea than she was feeling moments ago. She was not expecting Emily to ever move away, but the decision seemed like a logical one. One they should take for the good of their family… but then that would mean that she would be losing the very first and last friend she had left from her 'old Human life'.
"Rose?" Emily asked gently, seeing her face and all of the transparent thoughts and emotions flying past it. "Talk to me… what are you thinking? I mean, nothing is set in stone yet. Chris and I are actually wanting to go out to dinner tomorrow night to better discuss it, but I wanted to run it by you first. Gather my thoughts with yours included."
"You don't have to include my opinions in this." Rose said softly, finally getting her voice back. "This is ultimately your guys' decision and shouldn't be swayed one way or the other by my thoughts."
"I know that." Emily replied. "But you're just as much a part of our family, and so I want you to not feel like we are pulling a rug from underneath you, especially when your own life is throwing you punches left and right."
"I know." Rose said, nodding. "I appreciate that so much."
"So, what are your thoughts?"
"Well, to be completely honest… it is a huge decision and change, for sure. I mean, you'll be moving clear across the country! That's… crazy to think about since we've been so close for so many years, but… this isn't about me, nor should it be." Rose said, trying to keep her emotions under control. "You guys should take the opportunity if it feels right for your family. I mean, I would miss you all with my entire heart and soul, but I think it would be a good choice to be around family, have more support, less of a mortgage or rent, Oregon is… beautiful. There's a lot more parks and open spaces, the houses are more suburban which is great for growing families. I mean… it logically is just a lot more positives than negatives. But that's my opinion, I just…I don't know. I don't want to lose you, but at this point with all that's going on with me, focusing on your family and staying far away from me as possibly might be the best thing."
"That's not why we would be leaving." Emily said with narrowing eyes. "And even if we left, I would continue to always have your back, and we would talk every day if you needed. You would still be my best friend."
"I know, thank you." Rose said, trying not to feel too emotional over the idea of losing her best friend or making it about her. "You are mine as well, it's just… hard."
"I know." Emily said, her eyes welling up. "Chris and I want to talk about it more but… with everything now going on with you… I … I'm not so sure I should go and leave you here to deal with it all by yourself."
"I'm not alone. I have Brooklyn and the Clan…"
"Yeah, but I'm your only normal friend." Emily said, cutting to the chase. "I mean, sure you have Elisa, but I'd like to think that my friendship is a good change of pace and is important for you."
"It really is." Rose said. "But… don't not go because of me or what I'm going through. If you and Chris think it's best for your family, then that's what you do."
Emily sighed heavily and nodded.
"Yeah… well… Chris and I were hoping to find a sitter for Katie so he and I could finally have a chance to talk it over. And well… I originally thought of you to watch her for us, but with everything going on in your life, I don't want to add to your chaos."
"You're wanting me to babysit Katie?" Rose asked. "Tomorrow night?"
"Yeah, but you don't have to if you don't want to. Chris and I were hoping to go to dinner alone, and it would only be that… so… no more than two hours or so. She would be probably in bed the entire time, or close to it… but…"
"I'll do it." Rose said, cutting in and Emily stopped talking.
"Really? You will?"
"Of course I will." Rose said with a smile. "I love baby girl… but I'm just nervous to be around anyone that I love, especially now that Kevin is back. I don't know when he'll show his face or where he'll strike… but I couldn't stomach it if bad happened to you, her or Chris, because of me. I'm happy to babysit, I just hope that I'm not putting her at risk..."
"If Kevin does pull some shit with you when we are around… will you protect my family?" Emily suddenly asked seriously, and it stopped Rose in her thoughts.
She stared at Emily with wide eyes and instantly said, "Of course I will protect you guys. Will every strength and power I have in me…I would never let anything bad happen to you or your family."
"Then I'm not worried." Emily said firmly. "I trust and believe in you, Rose. I know you love us and Katie bug and won't let anything bad happen to her. So, I have no doubts in letting you babysit her unless you have doubts, then I won't force you, but if you want to; we would really appreciate the break for a few hours."
"Sure." Rose said with a smile. "I would be happy to babysit her. You know that I love Katie bug with all of my- "
She suddenly stopped as a strong pulse of her magic was tugged and instantly her mind went to the shield where Brooklyn was. Someone was in there with him and pushed past her shield.
"What's wrong?" Emily suddenly asked, as Rose whipped her attention to see where Katie was, before bolting into the bathroom to fight off the intruder. However, when she looked over at the couch, she was gone.
"Where is Katie?" Rose suddenly asked her with wide eyes and panic in her voice.
At this, Emily turned around, seeing that her three-year-old was gone, but Rose already was in action. Running towards her bathroom with Emily on her heels calling for her, she burst into her bedroom, into her bathroom, and froze with a gasp with Emily running into her.
There, standing in front of Brooklyn's frozen statue was Katie, and to Rose's relief, there was no danger that she could sense anywhere. It was the little fingers pressing into the shield that alerted her; which again, she was relieved to know that she could still be connected to it while in a different place. Emily sighed out in relief as well, gently pushed past Rose and walked into the bathroom.
"Katie… baby… what are you doing in here?"
"I had to go potty." Katie replied in her small voice, turning to smile at her mom with a proud toothy grin. "See?" She pointed and showed her mom the toilet that hadn't yet been flushed, but since she was recently potty-trained, she was very happy with herself. Emily smiled at her, sensing her daughter's proud moment and gave her a quick hug.
"Very good job!" Emily complimented while flushing the toilet with her foot. "Next time, just tell either myself or Auntie Rose if you need to go, okay?"
"Yes, mommy." Katie said as Emily lifted her up to the sink and helped her wash her hands.
Rose watched with a small smile, but Emily looked frazzled and nervous. Katie had already seen the 'Gargoyle in the room' and would surely be asking questions, but to Rose's interest, she didn't appear afraid. When Katie's hands were washed and dried, Emily turned to Rose, stood in front of Katie's wandering eyes, and mouthed, "I'm sorry."
But then, Katie pushed past her mom, who was blocking her view from Brooklyn, carefully walked forward and placed her hand on his stone thigh.
"Who is this?" Katie asked in her small voice.
"Uhhh…" Rose began to say, racking her brain over what to say to a three-year-old, so she stuck with simple. "He's uh… he's my friend."
"He's you fwend?" Katie repeated, her large blue eyes piercing into Rose's.
"That's right." Rose said softly, coming forward and crouching in front of her.
"Is he an angel?" Katie asked in an awed voice, looking up at him as if she were the one in love, which made Rose's insides melt.
"No honey, but very, very close." Rose said, stopping to look over at Emily, who took over the conversation- but Katie suddenly interrupted them all, as she ran her hands over his stone form, touching his wings, and kicking his clawed feet. Rose had to bite her lip from laughing, and if only Brooklyn was here to see, he probably would have been laughing as well.
"But he has wings… like an angel."
"Yes, he does." Rose said softly, taking Katie's hands from exploring or pushing too hard. Brooklyn was heavy as a normal statue, but he could still tip over if pushed hard enough and would break… killing him. "He's… my guardian angel."
"What's that?" Katie asked her.
"Well… he... " Rose whispered, looking at Emily, who slowly nodded but gave her a look of concern as if saying, "be careful, but... go ahead. I trust you.'
Nodding in understanding, Rose peeled her eyes over to Katie's and continued to tell her a watered truth, one that young children would understand. Unconditional love.
"It means that he watches over and protects me. He's my friend and someone I love very much."
"Is he the wed angel in your pictuwes?" She suddenly asked, making Rose's heart jump. She had seen the pictures and thought Brooklyn was an angel, not a monster! It was enough to make her heart sing, and eyes filled with tears.
"Y-yes, he is."
"Why is he stone?"
"Because… he's sleeping." Rose said gently. "He is a stone statue when he sleeps, and when he wakes up at nighttime, he has red skin. He protects me and watches over me through the night."
"Does he take away your bad dweams?" Katie asked still in a dreamy and awed-filled voice, making Rose's heart jolt more in love for her and for him. This was a treasure sharing him with this sweet little child.
"He does." Rose replied softly, her eyes welling up in tears. "He is my very best friend, other than your mommy, and protects me from danger. I love with all of my heart."
"love?" Katie asked, with a giggle through her small hands, and Rose calmly nodded.
"Yes... love."
"Does he love you?"
Rose's heart melted even more. "He does."
"Wed." She suddenly said pointing to him, and both Emily and Rose jumped at her observation. Was she truly perceptive enough to catch onto their conversations talking about Brooklyn?
"What?" Rose asked, blinking in shock as Katie pointed to Brooklyn and then said, "Wed." But then pointed past him and was looking at her magical shield all around the bathroom, twirled around like a princess and cooed, "Pretty wed sparkles!"
Then it suddenly dawned on Rose what she was trying to say. Katie had a slight speech impediment over the letter 'r' and couldn't say them very well. But as she pointed to Brooklyn and then the walls and ceiling around them, Rose's red wispy magical shield was all around them, and was what Katie was also referring to.
"What is she talking about?" Emily suddenly asked, with a small laugh.
"Are you trying to say 'Red?" Rose asked her and Katie nodded, still unable to properly say her 'r's. "Yes, w'ed."
"Oh, red." Emily said, also catching on. "I'm surprised she has pieced together Red being him by your pictures, but what is she talking about 'red glitter?'"
Rose watched Katie very carefully and again, she was in awe and mesmerized by her magic all over the walls and ceiling. Then, she turned to Emily. "Do you not see my magical shield that I've put up?"
"No. You told me that you did, but you must have made it invisible because I can't see a thing."
"I didn't make it invisible by choice… but if you can't see it... I think Katie can…" Rose whispered in awe, more at herself and again what she was able to achieve, but also at the young minds of children. They could see everything, invisible friends, magic, and love; she was sure of it. There was nothing pure that a young child couldn't see or feel.
Taking a deep breath, she had to be sure of herself. "Katie… can you see red all over the walls and ceiling?"
"Yes." Katie said with a big smile. "It's sooo pwetty!"
"And… my friend. You think he's an angel? Not a monster?"
"Nope, not monster." Katie said again, turning her attention over to Brooklyn's statue and looked at him in awe. "He's a pretty angel, the nicest I ever saw."
Oh Brooklyn… I wish you could see this… Rose whispered in her mind, as tears fell down her face. She clutched her chest and felt overwhelmed with love for her, and hope for the future between Gargoyles and Humans. It was these positive interactions each person needed to have with them in order to see what someone as young as Katie could see. Emily threw her hands over her mouth as well, looking emotional, pleased and happy that Katie wasn't afraid. Katie stepped forward and wrapped her little arms around his leg, smiling brightly.
"Will he be my angel too? My fwend?"
Rose wrapped her arms around her favorite little girl and held her tightly to her, sniffling. "Oh yes, Katie bug. He'll be your friend and angel. He'll protect you with all of his heart; he already knows about you and loves you dearly."
"Good." Katie said with a giggle. "I love him too. Can I meet him?"
Rose glanced up at Emily, who slowly nodded and reached her hand out to Katie's. "Auntie Rose is going to baby sit you tomorrow night… maybe she can invite her friend over and you all can play with your princess dollies."
Katie gasped in joy, then screamed out happily.
Laughing, Emily pulled her into her arms and said, "I'll take that as a yes. Okay... well let's leave Rose's friend to sleep then. Come on bug." She then glanced back at Rose over her shoulder with tearful eyes and winked. "If only all of Humanity had the eyes and heart of a child, right?"
"Right." Was all Rose could say, still in awe as she stayed crouched on the ground. "Are you sure about him coming to meet her?"
"I see no reason why not, she seems more than okay with it, and it's bound to happen sometime." Emily said with a casual shrug. "Maybe Chris will meet him too… who knows. She's been begging for someone to play 'Aurora' with her… and what better person to do so than the Gargoyle that picked the doll out for her. Plus, he's gonna need to practice being a dad, so if he's willing to sit down and play princesses with a sassy princess, that'll be the test right there if you guys have a girl."
Rose laughed, placed her arm around his thigh and rested her face against his cold skin.
"True… okay, sounds like a date."
Emily winked again as Katie smiled at her and Brooklyn over her shoulder. "Bye bye Wed." Then as they left the room, Rose could hear her babbling about showing Red her princess dolls, her castle... her pictures she's drawn...
Rose closed her eyes, draining those tears from them, and was stuck in a moment of pure bliss, one she wanted desperately to share with her mate. She slowly stood up, turned to face Brooklyn's panicked face and ran her hands along his stone face.
"I wish you were here to see that." She whispered as tears ran down her face. "The love on Katie's face tells me that we can do this. The world isn't all against us, or against Gargoyles… against you. You are loved, Brooklyn, and there are people out there who'll accept you and accept us. You are my angel too. I love you so much." She closed her eyes and didn't know if he could hear her or not. With tears rolling down her face she whispered against his beak, "I can't wait to see you tonight, my love. And…" she paused, kissed his stone beak again and ran her fingers along his face, smiling. "You're going to be a daddy."
She kissed him again, walked away but threw one last look at him over her shoulder. Rose didn't know if he heard, felt, or even knew that she was there… but all of their troubles were momentarily forgotten and she wanted him to live in this bliss with her.
Kevin, Hela, Hel, the Draugr… none of it mattered right now. All that mattered was the change that brought beauty and more color into their lives, the addition to their Clan and growing family. She couldn't' wait to see his reaction when she told him tonight, and prayed that he would feel the same way she did right now and not be afraid of the future, but be completely and irrevocably happy.