As soon as Alexander was out of the tub and sleeping peacefully in his bed, Hephaestion went for a walk in the enclosed palace gardens to think. He understood just how much Alexander, how much he himself was risking by bringing this child, their innocent baby boy, into the world.

"Dear Athena, please give me the wisdom and strength to make the right decision," he whispered the prayer as tears began to fall from his sea-blue eyes.

His prayer sent to the goddess, he wiped his eyes and turned to go back inside when Ptolemy barreled into him, nearly knocking them both to the ground.

"Oh, thank the gods I found you, Hephaestion! It's Alexander! He-!" but Hephaestion was already moving back toward the palace at a feverish pace, silently feeling as if Athena had made his decision for him.

"Tell me, Ptolemy!" he barked back to the other man as they came into the corridor.

"He woke up and started screaming and grabbing between his thighs, saying that it burned, although we found no reason why. He's not in a fit, and he did not do anything in his sleep to cause this that we can find. Phillip wants to take the babe now."

"Not while I still have breath in my body!" it secretly surprised Hephaestion how easily those words came from his lips, as he had been prepared to talk to Alexander about letting Little Hektor pass into Elysium.

Hephaestion burst through the door to their chambers so fast and hard that it cracked against the wall, denting the painting of Apollo lining up an arrow to strike Achilles in the heel during the Trojan war.

Alexander had given up screaming now but was still grunting loudly and holding between his thighs. Hephaestion was across the room by the bed in three long strides, and took Alexander's unoccupied hand and tried to calmly sooth his love and ask what was wrong at the same time.

"Feels like... my groin is on fire... and my hips and thighs are being crushed... by a Giant sitting on them..." Alexander struggled to get out, all while trying to hold back another scream.

Hephaestion turned sharply to the other three men in the room who were standing behind him, clearly nervous and unsure of what to do, "You couldn't have just asked him what was wrong? You had to frighten both him and I by being completely stupid and panicking?" he spied Philip's surgery tools laid out on the foot of the bed, "Get those out of here," he growled low in his throat, "I never want to see them again while he is with child." The three men were hesitant to do as he ordered, as they were scared of Hephaestion's now dangerous mood, "I said," he repeated himself while moving down the bed and casting the tools to the floor with a broad sweep of his hand, "Get. Them. OUT!"

It was hastily done, and Ptolemy, Cleitus, and Philip left the room so fast it was as if Ceberus were at their heels.

Alexander watched them go amusedly, "Well, I do believe you caused them to piss themselves with fear, Phai."

"They deserved it. They had no right to frighten you like they did. Now, where does it hurt?"

"Here," Alexander cupped the insides of where his hips joined his groin, "And here," he made a sweep of his hand over his hips and upper thighs.

"Here?" Hephaestion touched the inside of his thigh and saw Alexander wince and hitch in a breath, "That's tender, yes?" Alexander nodded his head, silent for a moment before Hephaestion released him.

"I'm not being vulgar, Phai. It really does hurt."

"Relax, Alexander. I believe you. But how to cure it?"

"When we came back from wrestling or training as boys, Master Aristotle told us to put ice on our sore muscles," Alexander remembered.

"You're right, but do you really want to put ice on that?"

"I had to when I was fifteen, remember?"

"Oh yes. You were a nightmare of a patient. You thought putting ice down there would make you both unfertile and impotent, and since you wanted to have children with me even though I wasn't aware of it at that time, you were completely against it."

"Yes, but it was you who I had in a leg lock when it happened. Damn broad shoulders of yours..." he huffed playfully.

"Yes, but I made it up to you three days later when it was healed, didn't I?" Hephaestion bent over Alexander with a wide, naughty grin on his face.

"Now look who's being vulgar!" Alexander started to laugh loudly, but stopped when he realized the action hurt his hips.

Immediately, Hephaestion reached out to sooth Alexander's pain, massaging the areas where his hips met his groin and just below that on his thighs as well. Alexander melted, bliss showing on his face at Hephaestion's gentle touch. After a few minutes of laying on the bed with Hephaestion easing his pain, Alexander began to pant. As Hephaestion watched, Alexander's eyes darkened to almost black and his manhood began to respond too.

"Uh... X- Xander..."

"Make love to me, Phai... please..."

Hephaestion's own body began to react against his will; it wasn't often that Alexander, as king of the known world, said please for anything, and when he said it just before or during lovemaking, Hephaestion had long ago found that he could not say no. Yet this time was drastically different. Hand on Alexander's baby bump, Hephaestion swallowed thickly as he fought the urge to give in.

Finally, he found his voice, "No."

Alexander's eyes lost their dark lust immediately, and widened innocently, "No? But why, Phai?"

Hephaestion softened, sighing softly before answering, "Love, I want nothing more than to share the delights of Eros with you, but with Little Hektor... I do not want to risk hurting him any more than he possibly is. And I certainly do not want to hurt you."

Alexander's voice had become small, "Oh... Well, will you at least keep massaging, please? Just your warmth helps the pain..."

"Of course I can, Love. There's no reason to feel ashamed. It is only you and I here, and you know you can ask or tell me anything and I will answer as honestly as I can. I love you. Now, rest. I will take care of you, just as I always have," Hephaestion began the massage again as Alexander's eyes began to close as he relaxed into the soft touch of his lover and the father of his unborn child.

AN: I know it's long, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway!