Sorry! I wanted to upload this quicker but my sister got a puppy with absolutely no warning, so of course I've been playing with it haha.
Rhys' eyes had finally begun to droop shortly before dawn. His breathing slowed, and deepened as sleep at last began to overcome him, too exhausted to fight it off any longer.
Until a low curse from Feyre brought him snapping awake out of his dream.
His hands immediately held her tighter as his thoughts struggled to catch up with his surroundings.
"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you." Feyre whispered, twisting slightly so she could nuzzle her nose into his neck. "Just as you finally fell asleep as well." She murmured, her warm breath tickling him.
Rhys did his best to fight a yawn before replying. "I'm not tired. Are you okay?"
"Liar." Feyre said playfully. "It was nothing. Just another sharp contraction, it just caught me by surprise."
"Can I get you anything?"
"Water?"
Rhys rolled over to reach for one of the water flasks they were running more and more low on. Feyre didn't hesitate in guzzling nearly half the bottle.
"Well, looks like that's as much sleep as I'm going to get." Mor grumbled from a distance away.
"It's okay Mor, you can go back to sleep." Feyre insisted.
Mor only waved off her offer, coming closer to check her forehead, her abdomen, and unabashedly asking to check Feyre's dilation status again.
When Mor was done, her face looked grim.
"That good huh?" Feyre asked, trying to conceal her worry. The last thing she needed was to set Rhys off when he was already so on edge.
"No it's nothing bad!" Mor rushed to reassure her. "…It's just I'd hoped you'd be further along by now."
Rhys felt his breath catch as he caught Mor's worried eye. A look passed between them, one that Feyre wasn't able to decode.
Suddenly, Mor clapped her hands together, waking up Cassian who bolted awake from the other side of the fire.
"Let's get you up and moving a bit, get some blood flowing." Mor said eagerly.
"Are you sure?" Feyre asked uneasily. She wasn't entirely sure she would be able to stand up straight without toppling over with how unbalanced she felt.
"Of course. Clara said it was good for you to move around during the early stages. Especially seeing as you won't be able to later on."
Feyre sighed but began shifting so she could use the wall to help herself stand up, but Rhys moved quicker and was already offering her a hand up, his other hand already braced behind her back. She smiled thankfully at him and slowly made her way to her feet.
Taking a few careful steps, Feyre made slow, pacing circles on her side of the cave so she wouldn't disturb the rest of her sleeping friends.
"How does that feel?" Mor asked curiously.
"I feel like a penguin." Feyre said while waddling.
"A very beautiful penguin though." Rhys said grinning at her, keeping close by in case he was needed.
Feyre only rolled her eyes and tried to hide an amused smile.
The shuffling sounds of Feyre's progress slowly began to wake up Nesta as well as Cassian, who had fallen asleep again quickly after being woken the first time.
"What's for breakfast?" He asked, his voice still husky from sleep.
"Whatever's left from yesterday's fruit." Nesta told him, already crawling towards their meager food pile.
Cassian made a face at the fruit. "That's not a breakfast. We need meat. So does Feyre."
"And where are you going to find some meat?" Nesta sneered.
"From the traps I set yesterday while the rest of you were doing nothing." Cassian shot back. "Not you of course Feyre, you're doing a wonderful job." Cassian added quickly when his high lady shot him a glare.
"You can't even walk." Nesta said in disbelief.
"I can, just not very far. That's the beauty of a snare. I don't have to chase down prey myself."
And with that he hobbled outside the cave, using a stick as cane.
"Don't go too far!" Mor called out behind him.
"How long until Azriel comes back with help, preferably in the form of a midwife?" Feyre asked, hands placed against the cave wall while she stretched her legs.
"I was just wondering the same thing…" Rhys said, a hand rubbing along his jaw in thought.
"He might have been held up? Or can't find us because of Amren's spells?" Mor asked gently.
Rhys shook his head. "No, Azriel always has his ways of finding us again, even when we don't want to be found."
"Maybe Tarquin refused to help?" Feyre asked quietly.
"I don't believe that for a second, and I know you don't either." Rhys said gently.
"Either way it doesn't matter, they're not coming in time so we have to do the best with what we have." Mor said shrugging.
Feyre took up her slow pacing again while Rhys watched her like a hawk, leaning against a wall with his hands in his pockets. Mor sat beside Nesta so they could begin preparing the last of their food. Amren still remained fast asleep, and no one was stupid enough to dare try and wake her.
When Feyre stopped suddenly, clutching her stomach, Rhys darted forward to place a hand on her back.
Feyre immediately turned on him, "Rhys stop your fussing I'm okay! I need some space, go and sit with Mor." She practically yelled.
Rhys withdrew quickly and obediently went and sat between a wide eyed Mor and Nesta. Feyre stalked to the other end of the cave and just rubbed her tummy while doing some deep breathing exercises.
"You okay?" Mor asked Rhys quietly.
Rhys only looked at her confused. "Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"
"Because my sister just snapped at you. You two are always so lovey dovey, I don't think I've ever seen her use that tone with you before." Nesta said in shock.
Mor just laughed. "I wish you could have seen them before Feyre became friendly with Rhys. The first time I ever saw her, she threw a shoe at the back of his head."
Nesta only shook her head trying to imagine it.
"I mean not that I blamed her." Rhys said with a smile. "I was a huge jerk to her in the beginning."
"That was when he still thought Feyre was better off with Tamlin." Mor explained to Nesta, making a face.
Just as Nesta was about to suggest she go look for Cassian, uncomfortable with the sudden topic changes, he reappeared in the cave entrance, brandishing three dead rabbits triumphantly.
"Thank god, I'm starving." Amren said, finally awake and staring greedily at the blood droplets clinging to the rabbit fur.
Cassian's face turned pale as he thrust them towards Amren. "You can have the honor of skinning them I suppose, seeing as you don't want yours cooked anyway."
He was just passing Feyre when she doubled over, a scream erupting from her. By instinct, Cassian dropped the rabbits and reached for Feyre, an arm holding her upright. Feyre was still shaking when a feral growl ripped through the room as Rhys hauled Cassian away from Feyre, practically throwing him into the wall.
Rhys' face was still bared in a growl as Cassian instantly began backing away, his arms raised in apology as Rhys turned to Feyre, trying to find the source of her pain.
"I'm okay. I'm okay." She managed between gasping pants.
When she finally looked up, she saw her friends all on their feet, a safe distance away from her. No, away from Rhys, who was practically rippling with aggression.
"Don't do this." Feyre pleaded with him. "Not now." She pulled away from him, a hand out to tell him to stay where he was.
He didn't look happy about it but he stayed in place. His head hanging low, almost in shame as his anger slowly faded.
Feyre nodded in satisfaction when she saw he had calmed down a bit. "Now, I'm going to lie back down and Mor is going to come help me. You are going to stay there until I can be sure you're not going to attack anyone else, okay?" She told him gently.
Rhys sighed deeply but nodded. Truth be told, his own intensity had frightened him. Cassian was already injured and he could have made things so much worse. He knew Feyre wasn't being cruel, she was just worried about the safety of their friends.
Mor came forward and helped Feyre lie down with an uneasy glance at Rhys, but it wasn't long before another contraction hit Feyre, her face crumpling and her hands reaching out to grip Mor's painfully.
"They're coming quicker now." Mor said.
Feyre couldn't respond, or even nod her head until nearly forty seconds had passed. Finally, she relaxed her grip on Mor and was able to slide to the ground.
"I think you should try and eat now Feyre, it's only going to get worse in the next few hours." Mor said holding out a handful of berries.
Feyre only shook her head. "I don't feel great, I don't think I can stomach it right now."
Mor looked worried but didn't push the issue.
"Can we do anything?" Nesta asked.
"Boil some more rags, and have a large one cleaned, cooled down, and brought to me." Mor gave out orders quickly. "Preferably not by Cassian." She added with a quick look at Rhys.
Rhys looked like he wanted to say something but resisted the urge, instead clenching his fists by his side.
It was less than three minutes later when Feyre again was gripped by a painful contraction. She threw her head back and let out an agonized groan. When she opened her eyes she immediately sought out Rhys'.
"Rhys." She managed to moan, all of her agitation over him gone instantly, but he was already moving towards her, scooping her into his arms so she could lean against his side instead of the hard cave wall.
"I'm here. I've got you." He whispered into her hair, smoothing it down where sleep and sweat had made it unruly.
Feyre sighed contentedly, his touch already relaxing her.
Nearly an hour later, Feyre had begun to rethink this whole pregnancy thing. Her contractions were lasting nearly sixty seconds, and were so painful that she could barely breathe, let alone talk through them anymore.
Rhys kept her as calm as he could, doing her breathing techniques with her to remind her to keep repeating them, and allowing her to hold one of hands within both of hers for squeezing purposes.
Mor kept up a running commentary on her progress. She had informed Feyre a few minutes ago that she was nearly fully dilated, but she shouldn't try pushing yet, even if she felt the urge.
Feyre barely listened, just wanting the whole thing to be over.
"How much longer?" She cried out after a particularly nasty contraction.
"Soon." Mor promised her. "You're doing so well Feyre. Just try and relax in between contractions."
Feyre huffed as tears ran freely down her face. Rhys gently placed a kiss on her cheek, lips tracing over where her tears had spilled.
Cassian, Amren, and Nesta mostly tried to stay out of the way, jumping up to bring anything that Mor called out for. They cooked Cassian's rabbits but none of them had much of an appetite anymore.
"Surely you've got a little bit more magic back in you now Amren." Cassian hissed at her as another one of Feyre's piercing cries echoed around the cave.
Amren shook her head. "Of course I've regained some, but not enough to be useful."
"I'm going to go and see if I can find Az." Cassian said getting up.
"Your leg." Nesta protested.
"I don't need legs if I have wings." Cassian grinned at her.
"Cassian sit back down now. No one's going anywhere." Mor said authoritatively. "I'm not going to deliver this baby while being distracted with thoughts about whether you've gotten yourself killed or not."
Cassian sat down with a thump. "Is it really coming?" He asked hopefully.
Mor nodded. Her face set determinedly, as one of Feyre's contractions began to fade, only to be immediately replaced by a second. When the second one began receding Feyre slumped in Rhys' arms, utterly exhausted.
"Not long now Feyre, hang in there." Mor said encouragingly. But Feyre could only groan in response.
Suddenly, Nesta was on her feet. "Is that blood?" She asked alarmed.
Mor looked down to see the bottom of Feyre's dress stained with an ever growing pool of what was unmistakably blood. Her eyes widened, but her voice was calm as she called out to her friends, "there's probably going to be more blood than this, no need to be alarmed." She then turned to Rhys and nodded.
Rhys turned, still holding Feyre gently, and snapped his wings open before curling them forward around the three of them.
A few minutes passed quietly. Cassian had placed his arms around Nesta as she turned into his chest, fear for her sister overwhelming her. Amren sat by the fire, absently poking at it.
Feyre managed to get a regular breathing pattern again while her contractions gave her a momentary break.
Mor sat back on her heels with a exasperated sigh. "Right. I'm going to get some more rags and stretch my legs while I can. When I come back, I'm going to need you to start pushing Feyre."
Feyre nodded in understanding as Rhys' wings opened a sliver to allow Mor to slip through.
"Rhys?" Feyre asked uncertainly.
"I'm here."
"I've been thinking…" She began, holding her left hand up. The one with an intricate tattoo entwined down it. Rhys' grip on her softened for a moment as he saw the tattoo. "Our bargain… Rhys if something happens to me now, you need to be here for our child."
"Nothing is going to happen to you, so there's no need to think like that." Rhys said resolutely.
But Feyre persevered, her voice cracking as she continued. "Rhys please. I already feel so weak, I need to know that you won't follow me if I can't make it through this. Take back the bargain."
Rhys was already shaking his head. "No way. I'm not giving you an easy way out. Not after all we've been through. This is just an extra incentive for you to hold on longer."
Feyre was about to argue back when Mor reappeared, her smile frozen on her face when she saw theirs, her eyes locking on Feyre's tattooed hand which she held out towards Rhys as if it were diseased. Mor's eyes narrowed as she glanced between the tattoo and the two of them, whether she had figured out what it meant Feyre couldn't tell.
"Alright, what do we need to do now?" Rhys started hopefully.
"Feyre needs to be as upright as possible. The contractions are going to slowly start coming back, and then we push." Mor said, kneeling by Feyre's feet.
"Simple." Feyre ground out.
The screaming began anew, but this time they were more out of anger and frustration as Feyre fought to push as quickly as she could before her strength totally gave out.
"It's not a race, take your time." Rhys gently told her an hour later.
Feyre only cried out in frustration.
"You're nearly there Feyre, you're beginning to crown." Mor spoke encouragingly.
"I don't know how much longer I can keep this up." Feyre moaned.
"For as long as it takes." Rhys said strongly. "Don't you dare give up now."
"Come on Feyre, give it one more push and then you can have a break." Mor added.
Feyre renewed her grip on Rhys' hand and bore down with all of her remaining energy, screaming at the intensity of it all.
"I can see the head!" Mor cried out excitedly. "One more big push Feyre."
"You said that last time." Feyre gasped.
"I know, I know, but this time I mean it. Come on, one, two, THREE!" Mor counted for her.
Feyre cried out as she felt the baby move down and she redoubled her efforts.
"You're doing so well, we'll get to see our child so soon Feyre. You'll be able to hold them." Rhys promised her.
"I need a break." Feyre ground out. "I can't." Her voice raw from screaming.
"I know you're in so much pain right now, but I promise you Feyre, one last push and I think you'll be done." Mor said gently.
Feyre shook her head and whimpered. Mor opened her mouth to speak again but Rhys shot her a look. He was watching Feyre's struggling body with great concern. Sweat dripped freely down her face and neck but her body shivered with every breath.
"One minute. Give her one minute to catch her breath, then we'll try again." Rhys told Mor.
Mor threw up her hands but backed away. The cave was suddenly silent with the lack of Feyre's cries. As the silence crept in, it suddenly felt wrong and Rhys had a bad feeling. He gently shook Feyre.
"Okay, time's up. We have to go again Feyre darling."
Feyre whimpered and tried to close her eyes again but Rhys kept shaking her to keep her eyes from closing.
"Feyre, it's now or never." Mor said anxiously.
Heaving herself upright more, Feyre gritted her teeth and finally had enough focus to try and push again. An earsplitting scream burst from her but it was short lived as Mor let out a triumphant whoop.
"I've got them." Mor cried out excitedly, bringing the largest piece of cloth they had forward.
Feyre's eyes fluttered as the unmistakable cry of an infant filled the room.
"I did it?" Feyre asked confusedly, looking up at Rhys.
"You did it. We have a child." Rhys whispered to her, his eyes shining as he took in the small, squirming bundle in Mor's arms.
"You have a son." Mor corrected him.
Rhys made a strange noise in the back of his throat as he hugged Feyre to him, his wings drawing back in so his friends could take in the scene.
Nesta was the first one to appear, keeping back a respectable distance, but with tears running down her face as she looked at the bundle from over Mor's shoulder.
Rhys looked down to Feyre to say something when he noticed how pale she was. Paler than before. There was a fair amount of blood staining her dress, but now it looked fresher, darker. And it wasn't stopping.
"Mor." Rhys said, deadly quiet. Something in his voice holding enough fear to cut over the cries of the baby and get her attention straight away.
Mor noticed where he was staring and immediately passed the baby to Nesta, dropping back down to Feyre.
After a few anguished moments Mor looked back up at Rhys hopelessly. "I can't stop the bleeding." She said horrified.
"Keep trying!" Rhys growled.
Feyre's eyes fluttered shut as she leaned her head back against Rhys wholly, her body going limp.
"Don't you dare." Rhys warned her, one hand reaching down to cup her face. "Stay with me." He pleaded.
Feyre drew in a shaky breath, opening her eyes long enough to find his. She then slowly drew her left hand up to his face, the dark ink of her tattoo in stark contrast to the skin of his smooth and even cheek.
Feyre leaned up, in order to whisper something to him.
"I release you from your bargain." She said weakly, as the ink began to disappear from her own hand and Rhys'.