The rest of their holiday was spent in a bliss, strolling together through the beach, chatting about their experiences, and often they would talk about names for the baby. The time for relaxing had a positive effect on La Muerte and the baby, she really needed time to clear her mind of everything that had happened those days. Unfortunately, Xibalba had work to do back home, and they would have to return. Five days after their 'second' wedding, they packed everything up, climbed unto the carriage and returned home. Hours later, they had arrived back home. After so many days in the sunlight and tropical climate, La Muerte felt cold at the sudden low temperature, but other than that she felt much better.

As soon as they got off the carriage, Xibalba picked his wife up bridal style, and carried her up to his…. Their room. As soon as they inside, he went to lay La Muerte down on bed. "Ay, mi amor… it's good to be home…" he sighed, stretching out his wings after having them tucked for hours, as he sat down next to her. He smiled at her. "Is there anything you need? A massage, perhaps, or some tea?"

La Muerte smiled, snuggling against him, her head resting against his chest. "I'm okay, Balby…"

"Are you sure? You both fine? It was a long trip."

"We are, mi vida…"

Xibalba smiled as he kissed her forehead, stroking her back gently. "I'm glad…" he leaned in for a small kiss, La Muerte pulled him closer, returning the kiss in a tender way. She no longer minded about the taste of tar on his lips, she didn't think about it most of the time. As he pulled back, he took notice that La Muerte's sugary skin had a slightly, barely noticeable darker shade. "Am I hallucinating or did you get a little bit tanner?"

La Muerte blushed. "Maybe a bit."

"A bit? The day we spend at the beach paid off, my dear. You wanted to stay in the sun so badly, and you dragged me into the water." He chuckled when he remembered how the two of them ended up in the water. "I'll never forget this vacation… or should I say, honeymoon?"

"I think it was a little of both…" La Muerte said, fidgeting with her husband's moustache.

"Just the two of us in peace and harmony…"

"You mean the three of us…"

"Yeah… The three of us, but considering that she wasn't at peace at all… kicking and waking mommy up in the middle of the night…"

La Muerte giggled. "Ay, Balby, you loved it."

"Indeed I did, but you felt most of it. She must be really strong if we can feel her kicking this early."

"It's not that early, I'll be in the second trimester next week."

"Yeah… I hope Zipacna will show his face around soon-"

Xibalba froze in shock. "No…"

"Xibalba?" La Muerte grew worried when she saw his expression. "What's wrong?"

He had completely forgotten! The spell that would keep people out of his realm had worn off when they left, and he hadn't bothered to use any spell to hide their arrival because of this, which could only mean one thing…

A familiar yelling confirmed his worries. "WHERE IS SHE?!"

Xibalba groaned in frustration, smacking his face with his hand. "No…"

"Father is here…" La Muerte said, clutching the bed sheets in worry. He probably would try to take her away… Xibalba stood up.

"La Muerte, I'll handle this. Stay here."

"But Balby…"

"It's okay, I don't want you to stress out so soon." He momentarily sat down to hold her hand. "Trust me in this, my dear…"

Reluctantly, La Muerte nodded. With approval from his wife, Xibalba flew out of the room, eventually turning into a streak of tar as he made his way downstairs, and down the halls, eventually coming to the doors of the throne room, unsurprisingly open. Ponzoña slid out of his armor, hissing.

"Here we go, old friend…" Xibalba whispered, turning him back into a staff.

Taking a deep breath and putting on his more formal expression, Xibalba calmly walked into the throne room, clutching the staff tightly. Like he suspected, Sol and Itzlacol were already there, their auras emanating a great ire. As soon as King Sol saw him, in a burst of yellow fire with scattering petals he stood before Xibalba.

"YOU!" he yelled, glaring at him with hatred, his eyes like a burning sun. "WHERE DO YOU HAVE MY DAUGHTER?! WHERE ARE YOU KEEPING HER?!"

Despite the situation, Xibalba never lost his sense of sarcasm. "Why, it's good to see you too, Sol…"

And of course, Itzlacol had to come and peek his nose into other people's business. "Where is La Muerte?!"

"She is here, but you don't need to worry. Both she and the baby are safe."

"As if! She's not safe as long as you're around!"

"Really? Like she would be safer in Itzlacol's presence. He tried to kill me, she is not safe anywhere close to that man!"

"How dare you accuse me of such a thing?!" Itzlacol snapped.

"I'd like to ask the same thing. How did you dare to try and drown me?"

Sol lost his patience. "Where is my daughter?! I want to see her!"

"Can you be certain she wants to see you?"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"What you just heard. La Muerte was in a delicate condition not too long ago, I fear if she stresses out too much again it might affect her and the baby."

"You dare to use my grandchild as an excuse to keep me from taking my daughter back!"

Xibalba groaned in frustration, stamping his staff on the floor. "No! I just prevent any harm that might come on my child!"

"Please! You have never cared for her!"

"And you did?!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"All you want is the Land of the Remembered! You never cared about La Muerte or the baby, all you want is to get the realm through her!"

"Why should I believe any of what you're saying when you're a master of deceit?!" Sol snapped.

"Was. I still am as you said, but I don't want to deceive anyone anymore…"

Footsteps sounded behind them. The three turned towards the doorway, and spotted La Muerte standing there, leaning on the door. Xibalba wanted to rush to her, but he remained in place, the last thing he wanted was to make Sol think he was going to do something to her.

"LA MUERTE!" Immediately, King Sol teleported in front of his daughter, pulling her into a hug. She didn't have the heart to push him away, at least not right then.

Xibalba stared at his wife cautiously in case Sol tried to teleport her away; when he heard footsteps from behind, he turned around an glared at Itzlacol, warning him to stay away from his wife. As much as Itzlacol wanted to go to La Muerte and try to win her over, he was in Xibalba's realm, and he had more freedom down there.

"Mija, are you okay?!" Sol started to check on his daughter for injuries. "Did he hurt you or the baby?!"

Then she pulled away, annoyed. "Me and the baby are both okay, father… We're both perfectly fine." Xibalba smiled gently at his wife to show her she could count on him. She returned the smile, much to King Sol's confusion.

"I don't understand." Itzlacol said.

Xibalba glanced back at him. "You don't understand lots of things, Itzlacol." He glanced back at La Muerte, wishing her to come next to him so he could protect her in case her father thought of something.

Just as he feared, Sol grabbed La Muerte's hand. "La Muerte, we're leaving!" But as he tried to drag her away, Xibalba stamped his staff on the ground and the doors slammed shut.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Itzlacol at Xibalba in disbelief.

"La Muerte is not an object you can drag after you whenever you want. She can make her own choices." He glanced at La Muerte in worry, teleporting next to her.

La Muerte released her hand off her father's grip, and went to Xibalba's side, grabbing unto his arm.

"La Muerte, what is the meaning of this?" King Sol couldn't believe his eyes.

La Muerte was reluctant to speak, she was afraid of her father's reaction. Xibalba noticed, and wrapped a wing around her reassuringly. Finally, she gathered the courage to speak. "Father… I'm not leaving."

Xibalba had the feeling she would faint at any moment, and so he pulled her closer with his wing just in case. He kept his gaze on Itzlacol and Sol, giving them warning glares. "Are you alright?" he asked his wife in a whisper.

La Muerte nodded. "I think so…"

Xibalba shifted his gaze to Sol again. "You heard what La Muerte said, Sol…"

"What?" Sol stared at his daughter in utter disbelief.

"What she just said. She wants to stay, and you cannot force her to do something against her will."

"How do we know she is not under you control?" Itzlacol inquired, narrowing his eyes.

Seeing they would not give up, Xibalba glanced at his wife. "La Muerte, did I lay a single finger on you ever since you came here? Did I hurt you in any way?"

"No, you didn't." La Muerte replied firmly, staring intensely at her father and Itzlacol, her pupils burning.

"La Muerte came here on her own accord. I didn't kidnap or force her to do anything she didn't want to do. She was never a prisoner in my castle. This castle, as well as everything mine, belongs to her."

Sol's resolve started to crumble. "But…" La Muerte did not seem to be traumatized or anything, and there were no bruises or any other indicators that she had been mistreated. Had he really misjudged Xibalba…? Itzlacol realized what was going on, and tried to think of something to keep Sol on his side. Meanwhile, La Muerte started to feel dizzy and struggled to keep herself on her feet. Xibalba gently placed his hand on her waist to keep her up should she faint or have any dizzy spells.

"La Muerte, are you okay?" he whispered to her, worried.

"I-I'm okay…"

"She's trembling!" Itzlacol cried out, taking advantage of the situation.

Xibalba panicked when he realized Itzlacol was right, La Muerte had started to tremble slightly. "Mi amor, what's wrong?!" he asked her as his hand came to rest on top of her abdomen. He panicked when out of sudden, La Muerte's eyes rolled back and she fell into his arms. "La Muerte! Mi amor!"

"La Muerte!" Both Sol and Itzlacol tried to go closer, but in a fit of anger, Xibalba spread out his wings, casting a protective barrier that surrounded him and La Muerte, covering her with his wings in a protective way.

"Váyanse." He hissed, his teeth turning into fangs, though curiously his eyes were set on Itzlacol. "I want you out of my realm right now."

Sol didn't say anything. He was staring at the way Xibalba held his daughter, the way he protected her as if she was his most cherished treasure…

Itzlacol tried to step forward. "B-But…!"

"LEAVE BEFORE I UNLEASH MY HOUNDS ON YOU!" Xibalba roared at them.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Wouldn't I?"

Xibalba took two fingers to his mouth and gave a long whistle, different from the one he used to call Medianoche. A few moments later, the doors slammed open and a pack of skeletal black hounds ran in, stopping just next to their master, baring their teeth menacingly. King Sol and Itzlacol had to step back, though the hounds' aggression seemed to be directed mostly at Itzlacol. Xibalba stood up, gently holding his wife bridal style, as he glared at the two other Gods.

"I suppose you know where the door is, otherwise…." He glanced at his hounds. "You know what to do."

Itzlacol glared at Xibalba with immense hatred. He had never been treated with such… disrespect, and the worst thing of all was that Xibalba was getting away with keeping La Muerte away from him, and those goddamn blue roses were still in his possession… King Sol stepped forward tentatively, however he merely wanted to speak. "I understand. There's no need for violence, Lord Xibalba. Lord Itzlacol and I shall take our leave for the time being, but there's something I'd like to ask you."

Xibalba narrowed his eyes. "What is it?"

"Let me know of La Muerte's state whenever you can, and at least allow me to see her another time…. Let her know that I love her…"

Xibalba's glare softened slightly. "I will inform you of La Muerte's state, but I'm afraid that I can only allow you to see her if she wishes to. I will not force her."

"I understand."

With those parting words, King Sol disappeared in a swirl of marigold petals. As soon as they were alone, Itzlacol spat. "This will not stay like this, Xibalba!"

"Why not?!" Xibalba retorted coldly. "Will you try to kill me again?"

Fuming and threatened by the dozen of hounds growling menacingly, Itzlacol disappeared in a burst of flames. Once she was certain Itzlacol was gone, La Muerte opened her eyelid slightly to make sure he was really gone. Xibalba noticed it.

"La Muerte! Are you alright?" he asked her gently.

"Are they gone?" she asked him in a whisper.

"What? Well, yes, they are, but…." Realization came over him as he figured out what had happened. "Hold on, did you just…?"

La Muerte nodded sadly. "You would have argued again if I hadn't done something…"

"They know we're back, which means it won't be long before the Kings come and get me for breaking my Blood Oath."

"They will come here…?"

"If only. I will receive a notification that requires me to attend to Aztlan for a trial-"

Her heart skipped a beat. "Trial?!" Trials were not held unless the accused committed a very serious crime. Usually it ended up in an execution. "But what if…?!"

"There is no reason to be afraid, my love. I'm here, and like I promised you, no harm will come to you or my child as long as you live!" Xibalba pulled her closer, wrapping his wings around her as she buried her face on his neck. "Shhh…"

"It wouldn't have happened if father just respected my decisions…." La Muerte whispered.

"You'll see, it will be okay. I think he's starting to realize his mistakes."

"How could…?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's finally realizing how happy you are here, and that I have not harmed you in any way."

"What are we going to do if the Kings come down for you?"

"I doubt they will have to get to that extreme if I present myself. Anyway, we should get you to bed before you actually faint for real…" Xibalba accommodated his wife in his arms as he walked out of the throne room and into the hall.

However, as he was about to enter his bedroom a while later, footsteps echoed behind him, and turned around in time just to see Emilio running to him, with a mixture of relief and worry in his expression. Both Gods noticed he was holding a pure white envelope with a black wax seal.

"M-My Lord…!" Emilio panted. "I'm happy to see you, but… You g-got a letter that looks pretty important…"

Xibalba sighed in dismay. However, since his arms were occupied for the time being, La Muerte reached out and grabbed the envelope delicately. "Gracias, Emilio."

"Is there anything you need?"

"Bring some cream tea for the Mistress." Xibalba said.

"Yes, My Lord."

As Emilio walked away, panting, Xibalba walked into his chambers, closing the door, walking towards his bed to gently place La Muerte on top of it. La Muerte examined the white envelope, and recognized the black wax seal in the shape of a growling jaguar.

"Lord Tezcatlipoca…" her voice was trembling.

"Let me see that." Xibalba gently grabbed the envelope and opened it, sliding out a white folded paper. Unfolding it, he saw impeccable black writing, it was written by Tezcatlipoca himself.

Lord Xibalba

You have broken a Blood Oath.

Because of this event, I hereby summon you to Aztlan tomorrow when the sun its in its cennit. You will be tried for breaking an Ancient Rule, abuse of power and casting a Forbidden Spell from the Book of Death. If you do not present yourself at the time accorded, you shall be brought by force if necessary.

Lord Tezcatlipoca.

"Great…" he placed the paper aside, frowning. "I will have to present myself for trial tomorrow at midday."

"What will they do?"

"They will decide how to punish me for breaking the Blood Oath. I'll be lucky if Tezcatlipoca doesn't vaporize me on spot."

"They can't… I'm going to have a baby, you're going to have a child…!"

"I'm afraid that when it comes to breaking Ancient Rules, they don't care about those little factors. Lord Tezcatlipoca isn't precisely very merciful..." Xibalba thought for a moment. "La Muerte… I think it's best you don't attend-"

"What?!" La Muerte sat up in alarm. "You cannot ask me that!"

"La Muerte, you're still delicate-"

"You think I'll feel better by staying here without knowing if you'll be coming back home or not?!"

"Itzlacol might be there!"

Suddenly, La Muerte winced when she felt a cramp in her abdomen. When she took a hand to it instinctively, Xibalba instantly knew something had happened, and he carefully helped her lay down in bed again.

"Are you okay?" he asked in worry.

"I'm fine…" La Muerte replied, gently rubbing her abdomen as the pain from the cramp started to diminish and eventually disappeared.

"That's what I'm talking about, La Muerte. What if something like that happens in the trial? What if something happens to the baby? I wouldn't forgive myself if something happened…"

"But-"

"La Muerte, you're staying here, end of discussion." Xibalba spoke firmly but gently. "I'm not taking any chances." Seeing how upset she was, he sighed, stroking her cheek with his thumb tenderly. "It'll be fine, La Muerte… I'll figure something out, I always do, don't I?"

"What if you're sentenced to-"

"I won't. I promise." He smiled. "Come on, mi amor. Confía en mí."

It wasn't that she didn't trust him. Of course she trusted him, she was afraid of what could happen in his trial, if he was sentenced to death, or banishment, she didn't know much about how trials worked. She had never been present in one, not even her father had attended. These days they were very rare. Sighing, she looked into her husband's eyes, smiling reassuringly.

"Confío en ti."


Zipacna knew something was wrong when he received a white envelope with a black wax seal in the shape of a jaguar. His suspicions were confirmed when he opened the envelope, and read the contents of the letter. It was a notification that required him to go to Aztlan for his brother's trial, but what worried him the most was the thing he was accused of: breaking a Blood Oath.

Wonderful, Xibalba had gotten himself into hot water. He knew he was willing to do anything for La Muerte, but he never thought he'd got that far. He sat in his throne, rereading the letter over and over again, as if though he'd find any sign that it was a prank letter from someone, but he recognized the impeccable writing.

There was a knock on the door, and an imp peeked his head inside. "My Lord, there's a red-haired lady who wishes to see you-"

"Let her in." Zipacna sighed in dismay. "And for the thousandth time, if that red-haired lady comes, she can come if she wishes so! You don't have to ask her any questions!"

The imp gulped. "Y-Yes, My Lord…" he left the room momentarily, and a few moments later, Epona walked in, glancing back at the imp scurrying away.

"You know, you should be kinder to those imps. They already work very hard." She said gently.

"I know, but unfortunately, they are not very smart! Ten times I told them that you can come in whenever you want, but it simply won't stick in their heads!"

"Is something wrong? I can tell you're tense…" Epona swayed her hips as she made her way towards the throne and sat down on one of arms, leaning against Zipacna's body. "You know you can tell me…"

"A summoning for Xibalba's trial."

The smile on her face disappeared. "Trial? Why? What happened?" She recalled Zipacna had mentioned something about a Blood Oath. "Is this because of the spell he used…?

"Yes. It was bound to happen when they returned. Xibalba must present himself, it'll be worse if he tries to avoid it."

"You think he would try to run away?"

"No. He's going to give face for his action, but I' still worried of the sentence. These kind of things are taken very seriously, it could go as far as to death sentence-"

"Death? Is it that grave?!"

"We're talking about breaking an Ancient Rule. Like I said, Tezcatlipoca is capable of carrying out the execution personally."

"We can't allow it, what about La Muerte and the baby?!"

Zipacna sighed. "I don't think Xibalba will let her go to the trial. It would stress her too much, and she just recovered."

"Do you think we could do something to help?"

"I could try to defend him, but he cannot deny he did cast the spell. Everyone felt it."

"He did it for a good reason-"

"It doesn't matter. Whatever the reason, he still cast a forbidden spell."

Epona sighed in dismay, standing up from the throne and walking towards the window. "I hope everything will turn out okay."

Suddenly, there was an inhuman scream coming from the outside. Epona jumped, and ran towards Zipacna, jumping unto his lap and wrapping her arms around his neck fearfully. Zipacna's face turned red, and his heart skipped a beat as he glanced down at Epona.

"S-Sorry about that…" he stuttered, snapping his fingers and closing the windows shut. "You know, d-doomed souls… t-torture…"

Epona realized the position she was in, and her own face turned red as she hastily stood up again, rubbing her forearms. "I'm sorry! I was just…!"

"No, no, I wouldn't blame you. Those guys have the habit to scream when you least expect it." Zipacna stood up from his throne, stretching out his wings. "So, how about we go have some chocolate spread?"

"Chocolate spread? Down here?"

"The good thing is that the temperature is enough to keep it semi-condensed and warm. It tastes even better with banana, wanna give it a taste?"

Epona smiled. "I'd love to."