Chapter 12: Lapis is Having What!?
"Pregnant!?" Steven said in disbelief. "So that means: Lapis and Jamie are having a baby!"
"And not just any baby." Stevonnie told him. "Lapis is going to have the very first fairy baby in existence!"
"But that can't be true." Peridot denied, shaking her head. "How can Lapis be pregnant?"
"Allow me to answer your question by asking the princess a question of my own." the Ethereal Swan stated before turning to Princess Lapis. "Have you and your human partner done anything intimate recently?"
"Actually, yes we have." the fairy princess answered with Prince Jamie shaking his head in agreement.
"Hold on." Pearl butted in. "When did this happen?"
"About a couple weeks ago when Jamie and I were visiting his parents." the blue princess divulged.
Flashback:
The royal couple were walking through the town square of Delmarva, shopping for supplies. Between here and there, Lapis saw pregnant women, who were excited about the arrival of a new child or mothers cooing to newly born babies. The fairy princess smiled at the sights, but also felt a little sad at the same time.
As they were walking back to his parents castle, Jamie noticed right away how dispirited his wife suddenly looked, which concerned him.
"Is something wrong, dear?" he asked. "You look troubled."
"Well, falling in love with you and getting married were some of the best experiences of my life." the blue fairy told him. "And watching women who have babies or are expecting babies made me realize how much I wish to start a family."
"So you want to make a baby?" the human prince guessed. "I mean I won't make you do anything too passionate if it makes you feel uncomfortable."
"It's not really the discomfort that bothers me." Lapis disclosed. "I don't even know that my body will be capable of reproduction. Remember, I'm a fairy; not a female human. I might not be able to grow a baby in a womb the way a female human can."
"It couldn't hurt to try." Jamie suggested. "But again, I won't make you do it without your consent."
"No, I want to do it." the young princess declared. "After all, it's better to try and fail than not to try at all."
"Okay, then let's do it; tonight." her husband decided, the fairy giving a nod of concurrence.
"So later that night, we went through with the baby making; but we didn't think we'd be able to pull it off." the blue fairy said.
"Well, you did." the Ethereal Swan stated. "You are well into your early stage of pregnancy, my dear."
"Lapis, isn't this exciting?" Jamie asked Lapis as the couple held each other's hands. "We're going to be parents. You're going to be a mother."
"I know." Lapis beamed. "I can't wait for the day our little one is going to be born."
"I think you mean little ones." the celestial bird spoke up.
"What are you saying?" asked Amethyst.
"I meant to tell you that Princess Lapis is pregnant with twins. They are both girls." she answered.
"TWINS!?" everybody repeated in unison, shocked by this new information. This made the expectation ever more exciting.
"When can we accept Lapis to have her fairy babies?" Garnet inquired the Ethereal Swan.
"The gestation should take about four months." she responded.
"Four months!?" said Prince Jamie. "But it usually takes a human baby nine months to grow inside her mother's womb."
"Yes, Lapis is a magical being and these are fairy babies." the magical swan explained to him. "The magic in Lapis' body will accelerate the babies' development."
The human prince wrapped one around his wife's shoulders and the other gently around her belly while the fairy princess lay her head on his shoulder.
"I would also like to point out the symptoms of fairy pregnancy are a little different than those of human pregnancy." the Ethereal Swan also brought up. "During the next four months, Lapis may undergo extreme hunger; maximal thirst, uncontrollable laugh spasms, dust pox, chronic sleepiness, clingly urges, hypersensitive skin, and hallucinogenic dizziness (to name a few symptoms) as the babies grow in her womb."
"So that's why I feel like I could eat a whole feast." Lapis said to herself.
"Four months is a relatively short time to wait for the babies' delivery." Peridot commented.
"Even so, we can't wait four months." Pearl replied. "Jasper and the fairy hunter are probably hot on the trail for the Seven Prism Wand by now."
"Don't forget about Lapis." Jamie pointed out. "With a fairy princess expecting twins, it's all the more reason to protect her from that fairy witch."
"Then let's not wait around for her to find us here." Lapis advocated. "Back to the ship, everyone."
"Wait." Steven stopped her. "Before we go, Miss Ethereal Swan; is there anything we can do for Lapis during her pregnancy?"
"Hmm, I can tell you care about your friend very much." the magical bird said to him. "The only advice I can give you and your other friends is to be to support Lapis during this time. As long as she's well cared for, her babies will healthy."
"Good bye! And thank you so much!" the fairy princess said to the magical bird as she, her husband, and friends left the lagoon.
The group had just returned to the anchored ship and to the sound of Captain Lars shouting, "Incoming enemy ship off the left flank!"
It was true. Through his spyglass, Lars saw a dark ominous ship coming in from the southwest and approaching the fairies' ship.
"Looks like they found you." he said to the fairies.
"Jasper!" Lapis exclaimed in fear, quivering in her husband's arms.
"What do we do?" Pearl asked, getting panicky.
"Secure the mizzen!" the young pirate captain commanded. "Get below deck! Everybody, prepare to be boarded!"
Jamie and all the fairies filed down the trapdoor that led to the secret room under the ship's deck.
Lapis was the last fairy to go under, but just before she joined her friends, Captain Lars told her; "Now remember, do not come out until I say it's all clear; got it?"
"Got it." the fairy princess nodded as he closed the trapdoor above her.
Above deck, Jasper's ship had closed in on the fairies. She had dropped a plank down so that she and the fairy hunter could walk across from their ship to Lars'.
"Good day, human." the evil witch greeted the lone human "We're looking for the blue fairy princess. Her name is Lapis Lazuli. I don't suppose you've seen her, have you?"
"Fairy princess?" Lars said, pretending to be clueless in an attempt to stall the evil fairy. "I can't say that I have."
Jasper and the fairy walked around on the deck of the fairies' ship. And then, the wingless fairy stomped her foot on the wood, hearing that it was hollow. Most of the fairies below the deck were shaking with fear.
"Hmm, I don't want to point fingers or anything; but I dare say that you're harboring the fairy princess below the deck of this ship." Jasper said to Lars. The fairies did not like hearing the sound of that.
"I'll investigate it myself." the fairy hunter proclaimed, preparing to open the trapdoor. That was even worse.
"Oh no, they're going to find us." Rhodonite whisper shouted. "What should we do?"
"The only thing we can do: fight back." Lapis answered. "I don't care if I'm seen by Jasper and the fairy hunter or not. I am not going to be some helpless little princess. There's more to being a fairy than just looking pretty, so let's show those two what we're really capable of." The other fairies have nods of approval.
"Just be careful, okay?" Jamie advised her. "Remember, you're pregnant with twins."
"Jamie, I'm not that pregnant; you know." the fairy princess said to him.
Suddenly, everyone heard the trapdoor open and the fairy hunter peeked inside the room. However, he wasn't expecting the fairies to start blasting their magic at him.
"What's going on over there?" Jasper asked in a demanding tone.
"The fairies are here and they're retaliating!" the fairy hunter exclaimed. The wingless fairy rushed to accompy him.
"Time to throw you two overboard!" Bismuth declared as Jamie joined Captain Lars to stay out of the way of the magical brawl.
"You take care of the other fairies." the fairy witch told her partner. "Lapis is mine."
She started closing in on the young princess, separating her from the safety of her friends and leaving them for the fairy hunter to pick off.
"You've gotten pretty far for a young fairy, I'll give you that." the corrupt fairy commented as her quarry backed up against a wall. "But I'm sorry to say that this is the end of your adventure and your freedom, little princess."
That was when Jasper sensed an odd force coming from Lapis and said, "That can't be right. It's like there's something growing inside of you."
"It's the fairy babies that are developing inside my womb." the blue fairy told her. "I'm pregnant with twins."
"It's because of that human prince, isn't it?" the evil wingless fairy asked, her eyes widening. "So that means you're the first fairy to grow babies inside of you. You're becoming more special everyday. Malachite will be very interested in you."
Just then, Amethyst noticed that Lapis was alone and cornered by Jasper. Throwing the concern about the fairy hunter to the wind, she swooped in and rescued the fairy princess just before the witch blast her with her dark magic.
"Amethyst, you saved me; but you know you could've handled the fairy hunter." Lapis said to her friend.
"And leave you to that witch?" the purple fairy said. "I don't think so. Besides, that's what friends are for."
Out of the corner of her eye, Lapis saw something sparkle next to a barrel. She realized that it was a small purple crystal. The young fairy wondered how in the world she was able to overlook that.
"That wasn't here before." she muttered to herself as she put the crystal in her small bag, along with the other crystal she collected on the dryder's island.
"I'm getting really sick of these hitchhikers." said Stevonnie as she used her magic to send Jasper and the fairy hunter back to their own ship.
"I'll create a gust of wind to give us some extra speed." Pearl proclaimed as she summoned her power and made the wind pick up.
Soon, the fairies' ship was sailing across the water as fast as a horse gallops on land. And the best part was that it was going to take a long time for the nefarious duo to catch up now. Once they were out of Jasper's sight, the ship slowed down.
"Time to get back on course for Crystal Lattice Island!" Lapis declared in a hearty tone add she held her husband's hand. "Let's go get that Seven Prism Wand!"
The other fairies cheered as their ship cruised along the crystal blue waters. The fairy princess looked down at her belly and rubbed it with one of her hands. With the sight of happy fairy babies in her mind, she realized that getting that magical wand was now more important than ever.