I looked in on Lorna, up to her eyebrows in food preparation, who assured me she needed no help and everything was going smoothly. There was a detail setting up chairs and benches on the battlefield for the guests to sit, and a sort of alter on a raised platform where the ceremony would take place. Even with the Phoenix parked at the far end of the large field, there was plenty of room for everyone. I couldn't think of anything to do, and sat on a stray chair, restless and wishing the hours would hurry up and pass.
Visas glided up, and sat next to me, looking cool and calm as ever. I was considering going into the Phoenix before my face melted off. The environmental controls kept things nice and cool. She turned to me and smiled.
"You should," she said in her low almost throaty voice. "It's cooler there, and there will be less for Mira to touch up before your wedding."
I'd gotten used to Canderous answering my unspoken thoughts, and knew Visas was a Seer, so I wasn't as surprised at her comment as I might have been.
"What's on your mind?" I asked curiously.
"Nothing at all, I'm happy to say," the Miraluka said with a touch of laughter. "I just wanted you to know that. I foresee no more surprises for you today, at least none that will do any harm."
A tension I'd been trying to hide relaxed, and my neck instantly felt looser. "Oh, thank the Gods," I said sincerely. "Thank you."
"It is no trouble," Visas said, smiling at me. "I thought you would like to know."
"Are you ever wrong?" I asked curiously.
"Rarely," she said simply, shrugging. "It is an art, the Seeing. I am more skilled than most. The important visions often come unbidden. But like any Seer, I am most often clouded when I try to See for myself."
"How frustrating," I said sympathetically.
"It can be," she said softly. "But I understand the wisdom of it. One cannot make choices or improve if you know your destiny beforehand."
"Doesn't that apply to those you See for?" I asked, puzzled.
"I could tell you what is in your future," Visas said quietly. "But I am only compelled to speak when it is a crossroads, where the outcome is important. Do you want to know what else I See?"
"No," I said thoughtfully. "I don't."
"Then you are wiser than most." She patted my shoulder, and smiled. "Go get out of the sun, and eat. It will help you, and the child."
"The what?!" I yelped, standing up so quickly I knocked my chair over.
"I thought you knew," Visas said, puzzled and suddenly agitated. "It's all over your aura that you did….Ah," she said, understanding curving her mouth. "You kept it from yourself. And Canderous doesn't know yet."
"I can't be pregnant," I said firmly. "I'd know. And Canderous is sterile, you know that. He hasn't reversed it yet. Impossible."
"Not for you," she said serenely. "You healed him when his throat was cut, yes? It was uncontrolled, and powerful. It mended many things in him, conditions he was unaware of."
"What do you mean?" I asked suspiciously.
"His heart, his brain. Years of battle had taken a toll on him; your healing mended them, and his sterility. I am sorry, I didn't mean to spring it on you like this," she said, distressed. "I thought you knew."
"So you're not always right," I said a little sharply. "I'm sorry," I apologized immediately. "That wasn't fair of me."
"It's all right," Visas said, her voice calm again.
"This is the last thing I need right now," I said a little bitterly. "He won't let me go with him when he joins the Republic now."
"He will," Visas said with certainty. "Mandalorians take their families along all the time."
"Not Canderous," I said. "He didn't let his first wife go."
"She was not a warrior, or as necessary to him and his people," Visas pointed out. "The child will be born by then, and your healing will speed your recovery. There will be many who will be willing to travel with you, to protect your daughter while you fight. And you will both come home to finish rebuilding your people."
"We will?" I whispered.
"Oh yes," Visas said. "How you get there is up to you."
"A daughter?" I said, wonder in my voice as what she said hit me. "It's a girl?"
"This one," Visas said, smiling. "She'll look like you, but with her father's eyes. And temper," she added with a laugh.
"This one?" I repeated, eyebrows raised.
"I've said enough," Visas said sternly. "Suffice to say you'll have many children. How fortunate Canderous is building a large house. Perhaps he's a bit of a Seer too."
"Or just optimistic," I said, smiling.
"A dreamer," Visas said serenely. "The universe needs them. He dreams large; it's a good thing."
"Canderous, a dreamer?" I said with no little surprise. "He's the most terrifyingly practical person I know."
"That is the best sort of dreamer," Visas veiled eyes seemed to penetrate through to my very soul. "It is the kind that makes them come true. You should know that."
"Yes," I said simply. "I guess I do. Can I ask one more thing?"
"I cannot promise to answer," she said.
"Will any of my children be Jedi?" I held my breath, not sure what I wanted the answer to be.
She looked at me consideringly for a long moment. "At least one will be as powerful as you and Canderous," she said after a moment. "More than that I cannot say."
"Canderous is not Jedi," I said a little uncertainly.
"No," she answered. "He isn't, nor will ever be. But his is a unique soul, and he has the heart of what a true Jedi should be. He cares more than he knows, and risks all he is."
"Yes," I said, smiling. "He does." I leaned over and kissed Visas' cheek. "Thank you."
She nodded, and I made my way to the Phoenix, wondering how in the galaxy I was going to tell Canderous he was a father again.
I had tuned in enough to know he was already there, cleaning his armor and preparing to shower and dress. He'd been in his oldest work clothes earlier, unlike myself in my silk tunic; comfortable and scruffy, the way I love him best. I found him in the garage, mending an arm piece at the workbench. His beautifully crafted and polished armor looked a little odd next to the battered and scarred Helm, but it suited him.
"You have news," He said after kissing me briefly. "It's all over your face."
I'd been blocking him, not wanting to give anything away. I smiled. "Yes."
"Jarxel and Visas announce their engagement?" He asked, turning to the bench and making a final adjustment. "Mira and Dax run off to Tatooine? Lorna beat up any more of my warriors?" he tossed the possibilities casually over his shoulder, puzzled why I was blocking him.
"No," I said, and came up behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist and leaning my head against his back. He turned, and held me tight, letting me listen to his heartbeat.
"Well something's got you glowing like a lightsaber," he said gruffly.
"I'm pregnant," I said, and felt him go very still.
"You can't be," he said after a moment. "I haven't had my sterility reversed."
"Apparently, I healed you," I said, and told him what Visas had seen.
"And your ability to keep yourself from conceiving?" he asked quietly.
"I guess I wanted this," I said, not looking at him. "I didn't mean to consciously."
He slipped his hand under my chin and tilted my face up to look at him. "I knew about my heart," he said very softly. "I was going to have something done about it once things were more settled. But when the Elders gave me the physical, nothing showed up, and I wondered about it. Didn't bother to tell you as the point seemed moot. I made Disciple give me a good look-over, and he didn't find anything either. Chalked it up to luck and your healing, and forgot about it. It never occurred to me to check anything else."
"Are you sorry?" I asked in a whisper.
"Never," he said with utter conviction, his blue eyes alight with wonder. "This is the best wedding present you could ever give me."
"Will you make me stay behind when you go to fight?" I asked, putting a hand on his chest as he bent to kiss me.
He stopped, and looked at me, his eyes narrowing. "I want to," he admitted. "But I don't see how I'd manage it. And we need you there."
"I won't leave our family alone when we go," I said. "I won't be separated from our child."
"Lorna would come," Canderous said with a grin. "Just give her a big spoon, and she'd fight off a ship full of Sith."
"That's an idea," I said thoughtfully, and then remembered something she'd said this morning. "I think she knows already," I said slowly. "She said something about me needing to keep my strength up."
"Wouldn't surprise me," he said with a snort. "Elder Evana too. Hell, half the women in the camp probably knew it before you did."
"I don't think so," I said, shrugging. "Just Visas, Elder Evana and Lorna. But then, one is a Seer, and the other two have had children, I think. Megari might suspect."
"A father," Canderous said very softly. "I hope I do better this time."
"You'll be fine," I said, smiling. "Just love her."
"It's a girl?" he said, surprised. "How do you know?"
"Visas told me. I asked. Do you mind knowing?" I asked with concern.
"No," he said, and set be back a little, one hand on my still flat stomach. "Saves time thinking of names."
"I was thinking Helen," I said softly. "Helen Miranne, for her grandmothers."
"That's perfect," he said, and kissed me.