Copernicus

May 25th

She'd sat in the little washroom for a few good minutes, just thinking and coming to terms with her wild thoughts. It had been a crazy few moments, her mind had literally run away with her, conjuring beautiful mental images and futures that weren't even set in stone. She'd been content to run with her thoughts, but reality had a way of coming back with a hard smack.

Reality decided to come back with a snide little voice whispering in her ear, shattering the beautiful images. You're not even sure if you really are pregnant. You haven't taken any tests.

Murrue had to sigh, her logic was right. She slowly got to her feet and brushed away a tear that was still making its way down her cheek. It made sense, yes, but at the same time... She had no solid proof yet. She got to her feet, relieved that she no longer felt sick to her stomach. She moved slowly though, just in case she would need to turn around, heading towards her room and her still sleeping husband.

She slipped silently into bed, trying her best not to make much movement. She was glad he was such a deep sleeper, a tornado could fly through the room and he'd probably just sleep right through it. Snuggling into his arms, she breathed a deep sigh before letting the exhaustion take a hold and pull her into a deep sleep.

Mu sighed and opened his eyes, having been waiting until he was sure she was fast asleep before pulling off the charade. She seemed entirely content, a small smile gracing her pink lips and body curled intimately to his. He gently reached out to run his fingertips through her messy hair.

Frazzled thoughts and emotions rolled through his head, and he just shook his head while he watched her. He'd woken up each and every time she'd suddenly leave the bed, the emptiness in his arms always woke him up, even if only slightly. He'd watch worriedly until the door would open and then he'd quickly pretend to be asleep.

'Why hasn't she told me that she feels sick?' He brushed his hand over her hair again, smoothing it out and pulling it tenderly away from her face. He knew the answer already besides the worry, she wasn't the type who liked other people worrying over her, even if it was him. She could be sick as a dog and still would try to go to work and convince him that she was perfectly fine.

"Mu, I'm really fine." Murrue told him between her hacking coughs, forcing herself to get out of the bed and walk towards the door to her office. But he wouldn't let her, catching her around the waist just as a dizzy spell hit her head on, making her legs give way.

"Look at you, you can barely walk straight." Mu grumbled with a shake of his head, sweeping her off the ground and into his arms, slightly grateful for the lack of gravity to help with the job. He carried her over to her bed and set her back down, easily able to ward off her feeble shoves as she tried to get out again. "The ship can last a day without you."

"I'm fine." She tried to growl but it came out a weak sigh. The bed really was comfortable, and she was pretty tired... But in the back of her mind she could see the fireball below them back in ORB, the tears in the young blond's eyes and the fear in everyone else's... She tried to get back up again. "I can't afford to take a day."

"Murrue..." Mu sighed and gently pulled her back into the bed, knowing that her stubbornness would probably only make whatever she had worse if she didn't rest. He wondered how long she had been ignoring her sickness, how long she'd forced herself to work. He saw the redness in her face, her glazed over marigold eyes and he sighed loudly. "Look at you... You're a mess... Just sleep, I'll take care of everything for you."

"You're likely to get us all killed." Murrue mumbled under her breath, the sarcasm droned out by her tiredness.

Mu chuckled and ruffled her hair tenderly, "At least you're not sick enough to tease."

"Who was teasing?" Murrue asked through another dry cough, though the way her lips twitched into a near smile, she knew he could see right through her. Just like he always could. "I'm serious."

"Go to sleep." Mu instructed her gently, leaning down to gently brush his lips against her warm cheek, smiling when she tried to turn her head to kiss him back. He brushed his fingers through her hair again, humming quietly. Her eyes closed and she sighed a little, leaning into his touch until she fell asleep, lulled by his voice and the gentle touch.

Watching her sleep now was just like how it had been back then, she was sick and still trying to deny it and it didn't surprise him in the least. He wondered idly when she'd finally come out with it, knowing that she would be unable to walk by the time she confessed to being ill.

'And she calls me the idiot...' Mu shook his head in wry amusement, watching her intently for a few long moments, sleep evading him. He couldn't really find the will to close his eyes and lose sight of her, the worry too much at the moment. It took a good while before sleep finally came, and with a low sigh he finally passed out, welcoming the world of better dreams and no worries.

She was pacing, as she had been for the last few minutes, not even looking into the washroom where the little instrument sat, almost balancing her future precariously on the edge of the sink. She sighed wearily and just continued to walk the length of the room, glad for her privacy for the moment.

She'd bought the test when she'd went shopping with Mu, having easily been able to get it without him knowing, not wanting to let on about anything until she was fairly certain of what was happening to her. It'd been easy to get him out of the hotel room for an hour or so too, though she couldn't shake the feeling that he knew something was going on.

She kept pacing.

It was strangely exhilarating and terrifying at the same time, being so uncertain about something so important and life-changing. She kept glancing at the clock, wondering with annoyance why it was going so slow. Her hand drifted down to her stomach, touching the soft skin there almost hesitantly, her mind reeling. 'I... I don't want to believe it's true until it's proven... But... I can't stop feeling that it is...'

She glanced at the almost identical piece of plastic and metal on the opposite side of the sink, and smiled wryly. It had been why she'd bought two of the home-tests, each from a different brand, just in case. Her mother had once told her about how she'd had negative results when she had been pregnant, and it was never a bad idea to be careful.

It felt better to keep on walking across the floor, it made her think of something besides the nervousness that kept on growing in her stomach. One foot in front of the other for another seven minutes and then she would know what was really happening inside of her...

She glanced up at the clock, and bit her lip. Now. She looked worriedly towards the washroom, feeling the urge to bounce up and down and just race around the room like a madwoman. Another urge, much more worrisome, wanted her to just collapse on the bed and pretend it was all just a very vivid dream.

'Five more minutes won't hurt...'

She continued to pace, the knot of unease growing and tightening in her mid-section with each step she took. She could ignore it no longer. She hesitantly wandered inside the bathroom, and made to glance down at the instrument but her hands flew up and covered her eyes, too scared to read the results. She scolded herself harshly for the unnatural show of fear, wondering just what was going on with her. 'What's wrong with you? You're a captain for god's sake! You've faced death, pain, and everything else under the damn sun! A little machine shouldn't scare the wits out of you!'

Chagrined and making a mental note to arrange a visit with a therapist, she peeked through her fingers. Her stomach dropped between her feet and it felt like she'd been rooted to the spot while her hands fell limply to her sides. She stared at it, before looking towards the next one, then back and forth three times. The results were the same, even after she pinched herself, hard.

Positive.

It was like something had exploded inside of her, colouring the world in a bright array of colours that seemed too wild to ever exist in reality. At first she could barely believe it, she didn't want to believe it. Being hurt before, losing what was so important to you, it made a person cautious. It seemed different though now. She stared for a long moment, letting the information sink in. Then, though she would never know if it had really happened or her imagination was playing tricks on her, the tiniest flutter in her stomach snapped her back to reality.

The tears started again, trickling down her cheeks and falling unheeded to the floor, her hands now both resting on the flat of her belly, unable to tear her gaze away from it. The shock slowly began to subside, giving way to a wild and uncontrollable surge of delight that spread a huge smile across her face, despite the tears that were continuing to flow.

As if on cue the door opened with a soft swish, and she could hear her husband calling for her cheerfully, "I'm back!"

Without really even thinking she sprinted from the washroom and tackled him, sending them both staggering back against the closed door, him with a muffled thud and gasp of surprise. She quickly smothered that with a passionate kiss that left him reeling, basically jumping out of his arms and bouncing up and down on the spot, too excited for words.

"Wh-What the hell?" Mu managed to gasp after getting his breath back, totally confused for the wild change in his wife's attitude. He shook his head, trying to clear it, watching her bounce so high she actually looked like she was hovering. "What's going on? What's with you?"

"I'm pregnant!" Murrue burst out delightedly, bouncing up and down, her entire body shivering with glee. She couldn't contain it, feeling as though she was pretty certain she'd explode with happiness. Part of her told her that the hormones were probably going wildly out of control, but she had a hard time caring.

Mu felt like he'd been rooted to the floor, the bags of groceries he'd brought back with him sliding from his hands and falling to the floor with a muffled thump. His throat felt tight and he tried to talk, but nothing came out. Coughing once and clearing his throat, he managed a weak, "Y-You're what?"

"I'm pregnant, Mu! We're having a baby!" Murrue repeated with a bright smile, still bouncing. The delight faded after really taking in his shocked expression, and she stopped bouncing, now hesitant and concerned over the way his eyes seemed entirely still, void of the twinkle she was so used to seeing. Her smile disappeared, and she asked hesitantly, for the first time worry beginning to blossom in her chest, eclipsing her happiness, "M-Mu...?"

He moved too quickly for her, and before she could speak again his arms were around her waist and she was spinning in the air, her shocked gasp mixing in with his loud chuckles and whoops of joy. "I can't believe it!" She laughed too, delighted to see the change in his face, the joy shining in his eyes, making his face seem much more boyish.

He spun her around a few more times, before his legs gave out and they collapsed onto the bed, laughing breathlessly. He kissed her soundly on each cheek, his hands tangling in her hair when his lips found hers after an instant. Too soon the kiss ended, but he had a different target in mind, hands moving gently down her sides to rest on her stomach, and he eased her thin white shirt up before gently kissing her bare stomach.

Murrue said nothing, gazing down at him to see the paternal gleam in his eyes, the tears of happiness starting to shine in the brilliant azure eyes she'd come to love. He gently nuzzled her stomach, whispering so quietly she couldn't make out the words. He kissed her stomach again, feeling her hands tenderly running through his messy hair.

"You're really pregnant." Mu whispered after a long moment, the awe in his voice matching the awe in her eyes. He gently rested his hands there, imagining the way her stomach would grow and round out, shaped with their child. The thought made his throat tight, made the happiness explode in his chest, bringing more tears to his eyes.

"Yeah..." She whispered back, twining her fingers in his golden blond hair, wondering why it made her chest tight to see him marvelling over the still unborn child in her womb. She'd never seen him look like that before, and it sent a thrill through her to see the dreaming expression on his face, without a hint of worry.

Mu sighed softly against her stomach, watching as goosebumps erupted over her sensitive skin, causing him to smile. He gently kissed her again, unable to tear his gaze away from where their child was growing. He felt a tiny kernel of worry beginning to root at the back of his mind, but the sheer wonder of what was happening drowned it out. Upon closer inspection now, he ran his hands tenderly over the planes of her waist, feeling the subtle difference there now, the slightly hint of the bulge that would grow and round out over time. "It's already happening..."

"I'll be looking like Kira did when he dressed up as Santa in seven months." Murrue laughed weakly at the memory, her ons hands leaving his hair to feel the change that Mu had noticed. She smiled a little, understanding what he'd seen and what she'd passed off, the slightest change with the bump that was showing now. Of course he knew her body well enough to see what she would have missed.

"But more sexy." Mu argued gently, kissing a path back up to her neck, nibbling gently on her ear, hearing her soft sigh of pleasure as he did so. He was careful, extremely careful of not resting any of his weight on her, winding his arms around her waist as he whispered into her ear, "I love you."

"We'll need to think of names." She murmured against his jaw as his kisses moved tenderly down from her ear against her cheek, arms loosely winding around his shoulders to pull him closer now that his knuckles brushed against her sides.

"And buy some baby stuff..." Mu added in a low mutter, now kissing her neck and collarbone, making quick work of her shirt but achingly slowly kissing a path down to her jeans. He made sure to spare a few of the gentle caresses on her stomach, touching the unborn child through her soft skin before moving even lower and undoing her jeans. "Get a crib... Some clothes..."

"Ahh..." Murrue sighed loudly in pleasure, eyes closing as his hands gently removed the rest of her clothing, and his own. He kissed her again, curving her body gently against his own, moving so tenderly she had a hard time remembering to breathe against the gentle caresses. Then it didn't matter.

Her legs wound around his waist and she groaned as he kissed her again, anchoring herself to the beat. The slow and steady rhythm quickly escalated, winding higher with the pleasure that grew into ecstasy, carrying the lovers away into their own little Eden.

Well I don't know,

if I'm ready to be the man I have to be,

I take a breath, I'll take her by my side,

we stand in awe, we've created life.

AN

She's having a baby! (Dances around and cheers) Why am I so happy with that fact considering I wrote it? (Evie: -laughs at me-) I'm bad XD. But yeah, they're having a baby! They'll talk next chapter because I felt it was getting long and I had so much fun I didn't think I'd stop until the lil one was actually born. That's what happens when I get so hyper XD. Anywhosit, the song was "With Arms Wide Open" by Creed, and I chose it cause it reminds me so much of Mu. Woot, review please!

Sky