Hakuno woke up to a dark night. Tears streamed down her face. The remnants of her dream played in her mind. Traveling through the cedar forest, monkeys leading the way, their screech heralding her arrival. The birds flew around her to give messages to the people of the kingdom that smelled of cedar resin.

It was so real it could have been a memory. Not hers of course, but perhaps Huwawa? The cedar forest seemed to suggest so. Was it because the auras connected her to him? That was something to ask Urash, and not within earshot of the others. They tried to hide it, but it was obvious they were worried she was going to fall over or start bleeding from her eyes or something. Perhaps Shub's worry was more justified since she knew about the baby, but Gilgamesh and Enkidu did not have to treat her like she was helpless!

Hakuno put a hand on her belly and hoped Huwawa's auras had not affected the child. Was the child too young to even be affected? She also wondered if her healing ability would protect the child against Lamashtu trying to take them away.

All questions she had to ask Urash but she could not ask him until they were back in the city. And Gilgamesh needed to be the first to know.

"Hakuno?" Enkidu's soft voice came from next to her. They had probably sensed that she was awake.

She turned and squinted in the darkness. The moonlight barely penetrated the black of night. "I'm fine, just a dream," she whispered back.

While Enkidu was able to fall asleep right away, her sleep was fitful and restless.

It took about two days to finally leave the cedar forest behind and Hakuno's odd dreams went away with it. She didn't know how glad she was to sleep under the leaves of a typical forest and not dream of a court for a ruler that was no longer of this world.

It was another six days of travel after that until the trees finally opened up.

They were on top of a hill, their vantage point giving them a perfect view of a long, wide river and a party of soldiers camped on the opposite shore of the group. Based on what Hakuno knew of their travel, the river was probably the Tigris and the soldiers beyond it were ones of Uruk.

"In the name of the Gods, we actually made it," Urash said in disbelief.

"Not yet though." Hakuno glanced at the open grassland that led up to the Tigris. Once the group left these trees there would be no protection, nothing hiding them from view. And she wasn't a fool to think Suse would leave the river unguarded.

How are we going to get across?" whispered Shub.

"We can use the men for cover," said Gilgamesh. "I would hate to cower but…."

Hakuno caught how he looked at her. Of course, on the battlefield she was a liability. She may know how to use a blade, but it was nothing compared to these trained men. "Wouldn't they crossing into Suse territory be a declaration of war?"

"We're already at war," growled Gilgamesh. "Last time I checked, trying to murder a King and hold a prisoner of his Queen is grounds enough." He gestured to the bag holding Shulpae. "The fact we have the boy is proof enough of that."

She sighed. She really should have expected him to respond like that. "Well then our goal is to get the soldiers to us, so we can get home. Urash, do you have any spell that can let them know we are here?"

"If there was a magus in the group then yes. Otherwise…" Urash shook his head.

Alright, plan B then. "Shub, get my queen's amulet out of the bag." She thanked the slave girl and handed the amulet to Enkidu. "I want you to take this and run to the soldiers. Explain to them the plan. Out of all of us, you have the speed to get there on your own." She had seen them move. Faster than even the wolves that raised them.

"But…" Enkidu took the amulet.

"I will keep her safe. All of them safe," added Gilgamesh.

"And I will keep Gil safe," promised Hakuno before Enkidu could argue the point. "The longer we stay in one place, the more danger we are in."

Enkidu nodded. "I will back as soon as I can." He put down the bag holding Shulpae. Hakuno helped them put on her amulet so it would be out of the way.

She did not know how unsettling it was to see Enkidu race away from the group. Sure, they had been separated before but this was the first time since meeting them that she was sending them away from her and Gilgamesh.

"They'll be fine." Shub put her hand in Hakuno's and squeezed.

"I hope so," whispered Hakuno.

Gilgamesh had not taken his eyes off the fleeting green-haired figure. "The men should know who Enkidu is. It should not take long."

True to Gilgamesh's words, it did not take long for the company of soldiers to move into action. Urash had cast a spell on his eyes to give the group updates on what was happening. Under the cover of night, the soldiers crossed the Tigris on wooden rafts. The group moved down the hill and quickly traveled across the open grasslands, meeting the soldiers halfway before they escorted the group back over the river.

"We have a few soldiers prepared to escort you back to the palace my King, my Queen," said one of the soldiers. Based on the red cloth over his shoulder he seemed to be the captain of this group.

"Excellent. I also want patrols set up along the whole border," ordered Gilgamesh. "Do not let any person of Suse step onto Uruk land. I would stay and help but I want to make sure my Queen is safely back to the palace."

Hakuno was too exhausted to even refute that point in the moment. And even though they crossed the border and back into Uruk territory, there was still a lot of traveling left to do before they reached Uruk.

Shulpae opened his eyes and felt like something was wrong. His body felt limp, his muscles not working like they were supposed to. The room he was in too, there was something wrong with it. These were not the lion pelts he usually slept on, these were much coarser.

"Are you sure he's alright? His eyes are unfocused." A woman's voice. Near the foot of the bed.

"He was magically asleep for a few months. It is to be expected." A male voice.

Moving his eyes away from the stone ceiling took more effort than he thought possible. It took him a few moments to place how he knew them. One was the Queen of Uruk, the other the slave boy that he knew was from Nippur.

What were they doing?

The Queen seemed to notice his attention and she smiled at him, but it did not have any warmth. "Hello Shulpae. It's been a while."

"What's going on?" His words were slurred. Why weren't his words coming out like he wanted them to?

The Queen winced. "Shulpae, I'm sorry but you are going to be living in Uruk for a while."

"What?" Fear rose in the boy. What happened to King Ditanu and Queen Ninki? What about his parents? Why was he here in Uruk?

"It might be better to not shock him too much at once with the magic still leaving his body," said the slave boy.

The Queen nodded. "I will come back later then." She gestured next to her. A slave woman stood there. "This is Aruru. She will be taking care of you from now on. Please, do everything you can to make his stay comfortable here."

The woman nodded. "Of course my Queen."

Shulpae wished he could move but his body still refused to let him do what he wished. However, despite his young age, he had already seen so much. He knew something was dreadfully wrong and he wished he knew what was going on.

Gilgamesh sighed as he left the audience chamber, his ears still ringing from Ekur's lecture. Seriously, how he could have predicted what would happen? At least they were already putting a plan in place in case Suse decided to go on the offensive. For now, it seemed like they were content to wait. He broke out of his thoughts as he noticed his Queen sitting on a bench in one of the gardens. She had something bundled in cloth in her lap.

"What is that?"

She looked up and Gilgamesh noticed her eyes looked haggard. Before he could ask, she spoke, "I was with Urash when we woke up Shulpae. I was thinking about how much that boy will suffer while he is here. A prisoner in his own right. I did take every step I could to make his stay pleasant but…" She shook her head. "It still does not change the fact that he will not be allowed to stray far."

"Why should you care about that boy?" He sat next to his Queen.

"He is only a child. He's probably innocent to everything going on and we are using him for our own gain too. If…" She trailed off and grimanced.

"If?" prompted Gilgamesh. Perhaps this was not the best time to mention that he had already had word sent out that the son of Nippur royalty was currently a "guest" of Uruk. His Queen was a strong person, but she seemed to have a soft spot for the boy prince. For some reason.

"What's that?" He pointed to the wrapped cloth in her lap. "Also, where is Enkidu? Based on the ride back, I thought they would be sticking to your side."

"They're enjoying some time in one of the other gardens. I asked them too. I wanted us to have some time to talk alone."

"About what?" He frowned.

"It isn't anything bad. Well, some people might consider it bad but thinking of our position, it is probably a good omen," she said slowly.

Gilgamesh blinked slowly. He knew his Queen was brilliant and he struggled to figure out what she was talking about. It was about a liver reading wasn't it? She did mention 'omen'.

"I see I am not making myself clear." Hakuno began unwrapping the cloth parcel. "As soon as we returned, Shub ran to get me one of these. I did not want to wait too long in wearing it, I have already waited long enough."

Now he was even more confused. When she had unwrapped the bundle, it was a necklace with a few amulets hanging off the cord. Looking closely, they seemed to all bronze carved heads of a demon. Which one was this again? Something with a "P" if he recalled correctly.

"Should not have been surprised you would not recognize protection of Pazuzu amulets."

Who was Pazuzu again?

Hakuno sighed, grabbed Gilgamesh's hand and rested it on her stomach. Odd, it was harder than it should be. And, since she usually wore loose-fitting clothes, he noticed her stomach was bigger.

And suddenly he remembered what protection of Pazuzu necklaces were for. He looked at her in shock. "You're…"

She nodded slowly and smiled tentatively at him.

Oh Gods. He was… Gods, it was weird to think about. It was something he thought he would never have to think about really.

"Gil, are you happy?" she asked slowly.

He looked back and at her and nodded. "Of course! Yes, I'm happy. It's just, wow, I was not expecting that. You think you would tell me sooner! How long have you known?"

"Since we were in Suse. I had a test done there. I didn't let you know because there did not seem to be the right time and then we were on the run and things have been crazy and all."

He nodded slowly, still trying to wrap his mind around it. He was going to have a child! An heir to his throne! "Here, I'll help you get the amulets on."

She blinked in surprise before pulling her hair out of the way, so he could tie the cord around her neck. He mentally growled at Lamashtu. Let her try to take his child! "How many months?"

"I still need to see a midwife, but I would guess there is still six to seven months to go?"

Six to seven months. He nodded and got up.

"Gil?"

"I have six to seven months to resolve the matters with Suse and Nippur. I do not want our child born with that lingering over us."

She broke into a wide smile. "I know you can do it. And I will help too."

"No, you rest." What were pregnant women allowed and not allowed to do? Gods, she was trampling through a forest while pregnant!

Hakuno rolled her eyes and stood. "I can rest closer to when they are ready to be born. According to the caravan women I know, I need to enjoy being able to move while I still can."

"If you say so but don't push yourself."

"I know, I'll be careful. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have other business to take care of."

"We just got back, you should rest-and I am not saying that because you are pregnant."

Hakuno looked back at him and chuckled. "I am going to let Enkidu know that I am with child. I assume they will have a lot of questions that need answering."