ZEDD - A WEEK LATER

Pina should be here soon. Dar had to stay behind to deal with a few business problems. Hopefully, he can get things wrapped up and come for a bit of a visit before Pina has to go back. A quick glance at the clock has me wondering who will get here first - Pina or the children. Kira stopped by the other day and came to the same conclusion that Thomas had - that his problem is probably morning sickness.

I dearly hope that - if it is - Pina can get it under control. Apparently, it isn't just my cologne/soap mixture that causes it either. Certain foods are having an unpleasant effect on him also, making dinner an adventure. The meals are surprisingly bland or Mara Jane has to take over when Thomas becomes overwhelmed. Additionally, Thomas seems to be tired all the time, which concerns me even more. He didn't have these kind of problems when carrying Jacob. Perhaps I should have insisted on being the one this time.

I leave my office and poke my head in the bedroom to check on Thomas. "Hey mate. I was just thinking about you."

I smile at his sleepy voice. "Oh? Anything interesting?"

"The usual. How sexy you are, how much I love you. You know."

"The children will be home soon and Pina should be arriving shortly as well. You keep resting and I'll send her up here for your check so that it's over with as quickly as possible."

"Okay" he agrees with a yawn and shifts into a more comfortable position. Gently I close the door and leave him to sleep.

Just as I reach the bottom of the stairs, the door opens and the children and Pina all come in laughing. Jacob sees me first. "Hi, Papa!"

I smile at him. "Hello, son. You know the routine." He and Mara Jane head for the kitchen to drop their bags as I look at Pina. "We need to talk."

The children hurry through to do their homework. Mara Jane pauses halfway up the stairs. "Papa, do I need to make dinner?"

"No, honey." Once she's out of earshot, I mutter, "I'll think of something."

Pina raises an eyebrow at this. "Perhaps we should order out?"

"That's tricky at best these days" I inform her. She follows me to the kitchen. Once I have gotten us both some coffee, I fill her in on Thomas' difficulties and the conclusion that Thomas and Kira came to. She looks both concerned and fascinated.

"I'll go up and do a scan" she says. "Don't worry, my friend. If he's asleep, I'll not disturb him."

She pats my arm, pulls her scanner out of her bag and heads up. I barely manage not to pace as I wait for her return. I'm sidetracked fifteen minutes later by the onslaught of emotions coming from Thomas before it suddenly stops. A loud thud has me moving rapidly for the bedroom, taking the stairs two and three at a time.

I shove the door open to find Pina helping Thomas sit on the edge of the bed before shoving his head between his knees. "Just breathe, Tommy. Slowly, in and out."

"What happened?" I demand. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Zedd. Calm down."

"You tell him" comes Thomas' muffled voice from between his knees. "I can't right now."

"Tell me what?" I'm becoming more agitated by the minute.

"Again, nothing's wrong. Just - unexpected." I give her a glare. "Just do me a favor and sit down first. I don't want to have to haul you off the floor too."

I hurry across the room and sit next to Thomas, taking his hand while my other hand goes to his back and rubs it soothingly. "I'm here, love."

He grips my hand tightly and says, "I love you, Zedd. You know that right?"

Oh hells. "Of course I do." I turn my attention to Pina. "Tell me."

"Okay, so you know how you guys said that it didn't matter what you had next - a boy or a girl?" I nod and she continues. "So standard procedure is to implant one of each and see what takes. They both did."

Silence falls and I'm really not grasping what she's telling me. "What?"

"They both are viable. He's carrying twins."

My mouth falls open in shock. "What? How?"

"Humans and Phaedosians are both capable of multiple births, Zedd. Eltarians don't - it's been bred out over time - particularly with male Eltarians unable to handle the extensive changes to the body. That's why the procedure is the way it is. It never occurred to me that it could happen to you guys being that Tommy's male."

"But both his species are prone to such things" I protest. "Pina - what do we do now?"

Thomas sits up suddenly. "What do you mean 'what do we do now'?"

Pina frowns. "Well, I'm not sure what you mean. It's possible - but dangerous - to terminate one of them, leaving you with only one. You could terminate both and start over. Or you just carry on and see what happens."

"Terminate?" What in all the hells is she talking about? "Is Thomas in any danger from this?"

"No, not that I can tell right now. However-"

"What?" Thomas and I ask simultaneously.

"You might not be able to give birth at the castle. I'm going to have to do some serious research on this."

"But Thomas is in no danger."

"No."

"Okay." I take a breath and pull myself together so I can focus. "So what do we do now? Are there changes that have to be made so that he can remain safe?"

"Probably not for some time. I'm kind of out of my element here, Zedd. I'm probably going to have to consult with Alundra on this."

"Do it" Thomas cuts in firmly. "But I'm not letting you kill one or both of my babies."

I exhale in relief, thankful beyond words that Thomas and I are on the same page. "Agreed. As long as it poses no danger to Thomas' life, I see no reason-"

"I don't know if it will later, Zedd. Just that he's fine right now."

I'm shocked when Thomas launches off the bed and pins Pina by her shoulders to the wall. His words come in a low growl. "Figure it out, Scorpina. Figure out how to keep the children safe."

Even as I move to him, she sets her hands lightly on his wrists and looks him square in the eye. "Tommy, I swear to you on my honor as a warrior, I will do everything in my power to make sure that you and the babies are all safe."

Gently, I set my hands on his shoulders and pull him back from her. "Easy, Thomas. Everything is fine right now, love."

He turns to me and holds me tightly as he buries his face in my neck. I return his tight embrace, knowing that he needs the comfort right now and shoving my own concerns aside for the moment. "Zedd - I'm scared. I don't want to - no, I can't just let her-"

"Shh, Thomas. Let her do some checking first. Don't borrow trouble. You are a healthy young man and there's no reason to think that things will go badly. Besides, we have bigger problems."

"Oh god. What now?"

"What in all the hells are we going to do for names? We had a hard enough time naming Mara Jane. Jacob was easier simply because we had a pattern to follow, but now we have to come up with both a boy name AND a girl name?"

Scorpina has left the room - no doubt to call Alundra. Thomas steps back slightly and drops his hands to rest over our children. He looks up at me, smiling slightly. "At least the business pretty much runs itself these days. It's going to be a lot of work with two little ones."

"I have no doubt that their older siblings will want to help."