Lina stared at the ceiling as she focused on how awkward it was to get half naked around a former rival and let her examine her. Given that if she didn't focus on the awkwardness then the reality that she could lose her baby came crashing into focus, the awkwardness was decidedly preferable to think about. "Four centimeters." Sylphiel announced. "You are in labor."
"But you said you could stop it!" Lina said.
Sylphiel nodded as she helped to pull the blankets up, "It looks like your waters are intact. That's good. One minute and we'll listen for a heartbeat."
The door opened, and Gourry ran in, followed by Leia and Amelia, "What's wrong?" he asked.
Lina bit her lip. She couldn't bring herself to tell him. She listened as Sylphiel explained, "Lina has gone into labor."
Gourry grabbed her hand as Leia gasped. Lina wondered if it was her hand that was shaking or Gourry's as Sylphiel continued, "Obviously it is too soon for that to happen. I am going to listen for a heartbeat, and I think we have a good chance of hearing it. It will mean that your baby is alive and likely compatible with life. If we hear a heartbeat I believe I can easily stop this until your baby is big enough to come out."
Sylphiel then looked at Amelia, "Princess Amelia, can you please go into my room and grab my bag?"
"Right." Amelia said as she raced out.
Sylphiel put her hand along Lina's stomach for a bit, and gradually she broke into a smile, "That was a kick."
"I didn't feel anything." Lina said.
"Trained hands." Sylphiel explained, and then she cupped those hands and chanted a spell, and the room was filled with the sound of a rapid heartbeat. Sylphiel smiled in relief. "The heart is beating. That means he's alive."
Gourry squeezed her hand, and Lina felt herself blinking fast. Hearing the heartbeat should have been wondrous, but she couldn't keep the fears back. What if she'd waited too long to get help and it would be too late?
"What do we need to do?" Lina asked, resolving not to go down that path.
"First I need to give you a potion to stop the contractions. It will take a bit of time, but once they stop I will put you under a sleep spell and perform a simple procedure to close your womb. You won't even notice anything different and after a few days of bedrest, you'll be up and about and able to continue with your day to day activities. You will even be able to take down a Mazoku should the need arise." Sylphiel explained, and Lina found herself laughing a bit, but it was short lived as the contraction built.
"What's happening to her?" Gourry asked as Leia grabbed her other hand.
"It's just a contraction." She explained. "Nothing to do but wait for it to pass."
Amelia came back in, and Sylphiel rummaged through her bag and started pulling out things she would need, "Princess Amelia, have you ever performed a cervical stitch?"
"No," Amelia said, "But I know the theory behind it."
"Good, I will need your assistance." Sylphiel requested as got the ingredients she needed and started mixing them.
"Of course." Amelia said as Sylphiel quickly made a potion.
"Drink this." Sylphiel said as she gave a spoonful to Lina, "Unfortunately I will need to keep you fully awake and aware for now. I need to know if the contractions are getting further apart and when they stop."
Lina swallowed it, "If it saves my baby I can tough it out."
Sylphiel looked at Gourry and Leia, "You two support her for now. Princess Amelia and I will prepare the supplies and get washed up. Once we start the procedure I will have to ask you to leave the room, though, but stay close by. Waiting for the contractions to end is usually the longer bit."
"We'll just go to my room." Gourry said, indicating the secret hallway that connected their rooms.
Lina, meanwhile, watched and thanked her lucky stars that Sylphiel hadn't left her supplies at home or completely abandoned her practice as she tried not to focus on how terrible she felt for not realizing something was wrong earlier. Gourry, leaned down and gave her a hug. "It's going to be okay, you know." He said.
She nodded, and he gently tilted her face up to look at him. "I mean it, no matter what happens, it will be okay. We love each other enough that we will make it okay."
She started to cry as she wrapped her arms around him to kiss him, "I love you."
"I love you, and Dimmy." He said as he caressed her belly
She laughed a little, marveling at how he could manage such a feat at a time like this, "Dimmy, where did you come up with that stupid name anyway?"
Before he could answer she moaned as the pain started to build again. "Is it getting better or worse?" Gourry asked desperately.
"How am I supposed to know that?!" Lina managed to snap as she leaned back against the pillows.
Sylphiel quietly cautioned, "It will take a few minutes to see results. I would be suggest not asking her if it's getting better or not with each contraction. When she notices a change she'll tell us."
"Right." Gourry said as he squeezed her hand in apology as they settled in to see which way their luck would go.
For the first time ever, their school felt understaffed. Zelgadis rushed to the classroom to resume Lina's class for her, even though there was only about fifteen minutes left, and even though he definitely would not be talking about Black Magic. Still, word of what happened with Ambassador Gelo needed to be spread, and likely the class and ambassadors needed to be calmed after Lina's abrupt exit. Zel had checked in to find that Lina would not be able to return to her duties any time soon, and with Amelia, Gourry and Leia wrapped up with assisting her, the least that he could do was take over her class.
While he would rather assist the Eternal Queen and Han in taking Ambassador Gelo to the basement dungeons, the fact of the matter was that someone needed to keep the school going as usual. He could hear the drone of conversation as he approached, and a hush fell over the classroom as Zelgadis walked in. Then he was suddenly peppered with so many questions he couldn't untangle them. "Quiet!" he yelled, and the room went silent. "As you well know, it was an eventful afternoon. Unfortunately Dame Lina is needed elsewhere and she left me to finish her class."
"Aww!" Peter groaned, "Can't we just take a longer break than usual before your class starts?"
"Would you like to give up your seat in this school to someone who would be more grateful for this opportunity, Peter?" Zelgadis asked icily.
Peter gulped, and shook his head. Zelgadis looked at the rest of the class, "Does anyone else want to goof off?"
Silence greeted him. Zelgadis nodded, and then reached into his pocket and brought out a box. "As you are aware, earlier Nimitz, a cat who resides at this school, cornered Amabassador Gelo in Ambassador Arkowitz's room. We quickly discovered that this box had been placed on his desk. Upon examining the other guest rooms, similar boxes were found in most of them."
Zelgadis quietly opened the box and pulled out the diamond within, "There was a note saying that these are the latest fashion from Zefiel City and inviting the recipient to wear them on their forehead for dinner. I must strongly caution, if you ever come across something like this, do not put it on your forehead. Report it to me immediately. They are a means of enchanting the wearer to take over their mind and force them to do another person's bidding."
A few people started whispering among themselves, and then Bruce raised his hand, "But what if they've sent this to other kingdoms?"
"And that is the reason I urge every ambassador here to send an urgent message to their sovereigns about this, before someone tries to gain power by misusing these. I have seen powerful people made to do the will of another and helpless to fight against it while under its influence." Zelgadis said. "Before I dismiss you to do that, though, who in here knows how to cast a Flow Break spell?"
A few students raised their hands. "Come up to the front of class." Zel instructed, "Now, everyone, ambassadors included, are to break into groups with someone familiar with using the spell and allow that person to teach the spell to you. If you ever suspect someone is under the control of one of these devices, then a Flow Break spell will disrupt it. Some of you may not have the capacity to cast it. We will do the best that we can."
"That's better now," Lina said tiredly, "Instead of spreading to my stomach they're just staying in my back."
"Thank goodness," Leia said as she wiped her forehead with a damp rag.
"They're also getting further apart." Amelia noted as she looked at the clock. "It's working, just keep it up!"
Gourry wished it would stop. He hated seeing Lina in pain, especially when he felt responsible for it. While she'd made the decision to have a child, he also couldn't help thinking about how aware she was of the fact that he had desperately wanted a baby and that it had influenced her to have one sooner than she may have otherwise decided to. That she had to bear all of the pain and inconvenience of bearing a child wasn't fair.
Amazingly though, she settled against the pillows and seemed to doze. At first he was scared that it meant something was wrong, but none of the women seemed alarmed by it. He quietly held her hand as he did his best to ignore his aching stomach as the door opened. "What's happening?" Guloisa asked.
Don't you knock?" Leia yelled as Lina stirred.
"Leave. Now." Lina said as she turned around to face away from Guloisa.
"I have every right to know what is happening." Guloisa maintained indignantly, but Gourry was already up and was at the door in a few strides.
"This is the last time we're asking. Leave." He said, his voice low.
Guloisa folded her arms under her breasts and glared at him, clearly daring him to force her to leave. Gourry grabbed her by the arm and dragged her out the room. "Did you ever tell her?" she yelled loudly, and Gourry realized that if he locked the door she would continue to stand outside and yell. Lina needed peace and quiet, so he continued to drag his mother to the stairs as she screamed, "You pretend to be so noble but you got your hands just as dirty! You can't pretend you're not one of us!"
Gourry braced himself for the barrage of verbal abuse that would follow as he continued walking to the staircase and Guloisa had to race to keep up as he held firmly to her arm. "What, are you going to throw me down? Your own mother!?"
He said nothing as he dragged her down the stairs as she dropped to her feet, "My ankle."
"Knock off the act!" he said as he pulled her up, "Your ankle is fine. You can walk back to the Elmekian Empire just fine on it and give Gregory my regards!"
People started to gather in the foyer as he came down, and Gourry realized that it might have been better to lock her in her room. Still, it was too late to change course now. As they reached the bottom step Guloisa spat. "After all you've done to us you don't deserve to be a father! That's why she's losing the baby!"
Gourry felt something cold run through him as he let her go. She straightened to her full height as his hand curled into a fist and he swung, hitting the wooden support column beside her hard enough to dent it. "I will do whatever it takes to keep you away from my family! So you will leave now or so help me…"
From behind him, someone put a hand on his shoulder. "Baroness Gabriev," The Eternal Queen said, "Walk with me."
"Did you see him threaten me?" Guloisa asked, a hint of smugness in her voice as people whispered around them.
"I saw some remarkable restraint. I believe if you had said that within Dame Inverse's earshot you would be lucky to be standing."
Zelgadis and Han made their way to the front of the crowd and walked towards him as the students and other ambassadors whispered among themselves. The queen continued, "It's been a long day. Come on, let's take a walk and let tempers cool."
"I want to know what is happening with my grandchild!" Guloisa said.
"So do I." Han said, his voice low as he moved to stand beside Gourry, "You don't see me demanding to enter her room and spilling news of her condition in front of everyone. This is happening to her, not you. And if you can't respect that then I will help Gourry drag you out of here."
"Fine," Guloisa said as she moved towards the Eternal Queen, "Let's walk then."
"Don't you ever come back, or you will regret it." Gourry spat, his voice uncommonly cold.
"Then make me regret it." Guloisa replied, and then finally she left with the Eternal Queen.
As soon as she had, Gourry found himself surrounded by students. "Is Dame Lina okay?" "Is she really pregnant?" "Is she dead?"
Gourry felt his head swarm as Pippi came up and grabbed his hand, "Here. Recovery."
Did his hand need a recovery spell? He could barely feel it. And what about all of the questions they were asking? He was too overwhelmed to know what to say, especially as Lina had been so private about her condition. Finally he settled with, "Lina's alive, but she's very sick right now. Sylphiel is attending her, I will let you know more when I can."
"But she's pregnant?" Ripley asked, her eyes wide.
"I thought she was dressing like she was hiding a bump." Maeve said knowingly.
"I need to get back to her." Gourry said, "Excuse me."
"The spell's not done yet!" Pippi protested.
"I'm fine. Thank you, though." Gourry said, desperate to get away from the crowd before he broke down.
"Tell her we're rooting for her!" Ace said.
Gourry tried to smile, but he was too shaken. He had thought his mother had exhausted her means of hurting him, but somehow she had found a new way to make a cut. Han and Zelgadis followed him up the stairs as Zelgadis said, "I'm sorry. I thought it would be best if I continued Lina's class but I guess it got your mother suspicious when Lina didn't show up again. Some of the students said she didn't seem well before she left."
"Mother would have found out one way or another." Gourry said as he started to wipe his eyes, and that was when he noticed his hand was bloodied.
"I need to reign everyone in." Zelgadis said, "I'll check in after class."
"Thanks." Gourry said. "Damn, I need to pull it together before I go back in."
"How is Lina doing?" Han asked. "I mean, what is happening? Did she lose the baby?"
"No. She came close, but Sylphiel thinks she can save it. Damn, Lina's been so brave facing this and I'm just a mess…"
"Hey." Han said bracingly. "You dealt with your mother rather than letting run all over you and you took care of your family."
Gourry exhaled and nodded, "Come on, let's see how she's doing."
"Just take a moment to wash your face and get that blood off your hands." Han said, "Lina will know something is up if she sees you now."
"Thanks." Gourry said as he headed off to the bathroom.
It had been an eventful day. A game changing one, Xellos reflected as he watched from the astral plane. No, things weren't completely looking up. Unfortunately it seemed as though the Shrine Maiden would be competent enough to save Lina's pregnancy. But if she wasn't, how wonderful would it be to go back to his usual mission rather than his current one of figuring out how to rear a human child!
Still, he had a feeling Lina's pregnancy would survive. But the complication had presented him with a golden opportunity to implement his new strategy. Would this be the turning point for the Mazoku race? Could their luck finally be turning? Quietly he moved to follow Guloisa and the Eternal Queen, and he prayed that Guloisa would spend one final night at Maninstit.
Lina smiled in relief as Gourry came in. "You're just in time." She said.
"What?" he asked as he quickly made it to the bed.
"I guess your mother was good for something. I've not had one contraction since she burst in!"
"The stress likely helped to stop them." Amelia explained.
"Sylphiel was about to put me under, she didn't want to waste too much time waiting for you to come back." Lina continued.
He stroked her hair as Sylphiel added, "Sometimes a shock can be a good thing."
"I met your dad while I was escorting Mother out. She's with the Eternal Queen now, and she'll keep her away from us. Your dad is right next door and he'll be waiting with us. So you just focus on you and little Dimmy."
Lina playfully punched him on the shoulder, "He can be Dimmy for now. But when it's time for him to come out in a few months, we're finding a different name."
He kissed her, "I'll be right next door, love."
She squeezed his hand, "I know."
Once he had left with Leia, Lina leaned back on the pillows, and caught the look on Sylphiel's face. Though the other woman quickly composed it, Lina suddenly felt a surge of guilt for how openly affectionate they had been. She worked to put it out of her mind as Sylphiel instructed. "Just relax, and let the sleep spell do its work."
"Right," Lina said as she closed her eyes. And hoped that she would still be pregnant when she woke.