Not so many reviews as normal for the last chapter XD but that's okay~ I got a new ps2 but it turns out my disk might be faulty because it's still freezing in the same places, so I need to buy a new KH2 soon lol

on another KH related note, I started playing Birth By Sleep today XD I love me some Ventus!

Kismet

Chapter Thirty-Three: Doubled

Antonio decided to stay at the beach house for the last week of August and return the first of September. The castle rejoiced happily at the safe return of their king and queen. But the happiness did not last long.

Antonio sat beside Lovino on their thrones, their second day back. It was lunch time and they were going to wait until the meeting to reveal Lovino's pregnancy to the court.

Lovino smiled warmly at his belly and ate his lunch. Time slowed down as Antonio looked over happily at Lovino and saw the queen collapse on the ground and begin convulsing. Anger and fear coursed through him as he quickly picked up Lovino and rushed him to the medic's room.

Ray looked up and grabbed a small red vial he'd been looking at before pouring it down Lovino's throat.

The convulsing stopped and Lovino fell limp in Antonio's arms, "What the fuck just happened?"

The medic grabbed a vial of clear yellowish liquid and took a drop of Lovino's blood. The liquid began foaming up a bright blue color.

"Oh my … it seems another attempt on his majesty's life. This poison is impossible to cure because it's a strange mixture of hard to procure items and venom. He's lucky I had some of that healing potion of his."

Antonio shuddered with pure rage and anger, "Only someone who could afford it could get it, right?"

Ray nodded and checked Lovino's vitals.

"One more question … please tell me the baby is okay …" he grabbed Lovino's hand and squeezed. Lovino would be completely destroyed if they lost the baby.

"I don't know …" he whispered, pressing his fingers down on Lovino's abdomen, "The baby is too small to feel it moving, but because it's so small … the poison may have …" he stopped, "Just stay positive and hope you got here in time. I'll run a few tests and determine the child's condition."

Antonio rose from his queen's side and clenched his fist. There were only eight people in the castle with the money to buy such a terrible poison and six of them were enemies of the queen. "Watch him. He is not to eat or drink anything that has not been thoroughly tested, or had left anyone's sights. Keep him here. I have some business to attend to." he stormed from the room and straight to the meeting room.

He slammed open the door and the faces looked at him shocked. Antonio glared, looking around the room.

"Who was it?" he growled, blood lust filling his eyes and venom dripping dangerously from his words.

"What do you mean, your majesty?" a young woman on his court asked. He looked her over and determined it wasn't her. She was one of the two who supported his decision of his nephew taking the throne.

"You don't know?" he growled, gripping the back of his queen's chair tightly, "Today, someone attempted to take my Lovi's life again. Now, that person left a pretty big clue behind. Only someone with money could have gotten the poison and only someone close to the queen could have delivered it. That leaves you eight since this castle's security had been double since the last attempt, and there is no one else staying here with that kind of money."

He paced the room. A guard stepped forward and handed him his axe and his blood lust doubled, "You see. That person also does not know that we have connections with a very powerful potions master up north, and have a steady supply of a very powerful healing remedy and he was cured immediately. This isn't a problem. I could have overlooked things and just got on my way, doubling security again, going on, completely stupid to what was going on."

Looks of fear met his look of anger and rage, "What are you saying? The queen survived such an attack?"

Green eyes met the man's, "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying. But Roma may not have, and you see, that is where I draw the line. No one, but no one hurts my husband and child!" he screamed.

"Roma?"

"Child?"

"You have an heir?"

"What does that have to do with the queen?"

The voices continues speaking as Antonio started laughing darkly, "We were going to share the news with you eight during the meeting, but I guess one of you decided to ruin that. Our potions friend developed an extraordinary mixture which allows a man to bear a child. My Lovi was with child. I had an heir. Had. I don't even know if he's still alive."

The young woman gasped, covering her mouth, tears spilling over. A few other exchanged looks and one man looked simply horrified.

"One, or more of you, may have committed two acts of treason. You attempted the life of the queen, but also the prince or princess, so you'd better come forward now or Maria and I are going to have a private party."

He grinned, lifting the axe, "Come clean and your punishment will only be a lifetime imprisonment. Otherwise, beheading." Antonio chuckled, licking his lips.

The former queen stood up, "You cannot just come in here and blame us for something like this. You're my son and I know you better than this." she outstretched her hand to him.

Antonio looked at her hand and glared, "You don't know me at all. My husband and child mean the world to me. I will stop at nothing until I know they are safe. Guards, all of them in the dungeon. I'll see how long it takes for them to crack."

He was in a foul mood walking back to the medic's room and if Lovino and the baby were in any less shape than perfect, he would be executing all eight of them. He opened the door and saw Ray standing in the back of the room, writing things down.

Lovino was sitting, with his knees against his chest. He was sobbing. Antonio gripped Maria tightly and knelt beside the bed. Lovino looked at him and tackled him, "There you are! Fucking bastard!"

"Lovi~" the king dropped the axe and held Lovino tightly in his arms, "How is the baby?"

Ray took this as his chance to speak, "I ran several tests and each gave the exact same result, your babies are fine. Both are extremely healthy. The poison didn't touch them."

Antonio stared and Lovino bounced in his lap, "Two! We're having twins, bastard! Fucking twins!"

"H-how do you know?" Antonio asked, placing his hand against Lovino's belly.

The medic looked over his notes, "Well, the tests I ran were to check the baby's condition, as I said they would, but the strangest thing kept happening: I kept getting two separate results. The only thing I can say is there are two babies. Congratulations, your majesties."

"And they're both okay?" Antonio asked.

"Yes. Perfectly healthy." Ray grinned.

"You don't happen to know the gender, yet, right?"

"Of course not! That's impossible! You'll just have to wait like every other parent out there! Silly boy …" the man growled. Antonio picked up Lovino and kissed him deeply.

"Twins … two babies … two!" he looked at Lovino, whom was walking beside him now. Ariana was on his shoulder, ruffling her feathers at anyone who passed by.

"Yeah …" Lovino looked back at him with a dazed expression. He was never one to get excited like that, usually leaving it to his brother or Tessa, but they were going to have two babies!

Antonio laid down with Lovino in their bed and smiled, kissing him, "You are the best husband a man could ask for~" he whispered, kissing Lovino again.

Lovino blushed and held Antonio close, "Stop saying weird things …" he grinned that illusive smile that Antonio loved so much. For the first time in nearly two months, Lovino slept with his husband. Antonio was careful, unsure about doing anything to hurt their children, but he slipped inside his love, eliciting a soft whimper from Lovino.

Antonio moaned softly, holding Lovino close in his arms, running his fingers down his back, their eyes meeting in love filled glances. The queen would let his head roll back and his king would place open-mouthed kisses down his jaw and neck.

The older man steadily thrust into Lovino. Lovino leaned his forehead against Antonio's and let his tongue lick Antonio's lower lip sensually. Antonio moaned softly and captured his lips, quickly invading his mouth.

They both found their release and panted softly, holding each other close, "I love you, Lovino Romano Vargas-Carriedo." the older man purred.

Lovino rested his head on Antonio's shoulder, still seated on him in his lap, "I love you, too, Antonio Fernandez Carriedo …" the king lifted him up and carried him to the bathing room to give him a bath, though, without Lovino actually getting in the water.

The next morning, Lovino wrote to Lukas his good news. He noted that he was about to enter his fourth month. He stared at himself in the mirror. His belly stuck out, not by much, but it was becoming noticeable to those who at least knew.

A knock came from the door behind him.

"Come in." he said turning to the side. He looked through the mirror to see Tessa smiling warmly behind him.

"So it's true, then? I'm going to be a grandmother?" she walked up and placed a hand on her surrogate son's baby bump. Lovino nodded, "Twins."

Tessa smiled, rubbing his belly, "This is simply amazing! I'm so glad for you and Antonio." she kissed his cheek, "You're in for a bumpy ride, Lovino. I'm not sure if this will be the same for you as it was for me, but I'm always here to help you through this. I just wish you would have told me that's why you left."

Lovino looked at her with guilt, "Sorry, mama, I was afraid of losing my babies."

She laughed, "The hormones must be messing with you. I've never seen you so soft and worried. Done hiding behind your rough shell?"

He glared, "Not at all, but I have been feeling weird … and girly …" Tessa nodded, "You're carrying babies, what did you expect to feel like?" he pulled the shirt down and turned to her, "Is this normal for twins? This size?" he pressed the shirt against his baby bump, which wasn't too big.

"Well, I began showing with Femke at this time, but I was smaller than that. It's because there are two in there. So it's completely normal for you, Lovino." she squeezed his shoulder reassuringly.

Lovino looked down at his belly again and let go, "What's it like being a mother?"

Tessa sat down on the bed and patted the space beside her, "It's a challenge. It will be trial and error. You'll mess up and wonder if any of it's worth it." he began to look worried, "but it's fulfilling. I would not trade those years of late nights and skinned knees for anything. I was worried about having children, but when I first saw them walking, talking, growing up … I knew I'd done things right. I'm not going to lie to you. It will be extremely difficult, sometimes impossible, but you'll never be happier than when your babies are crying and calm down when you hold them. When they call you mama. When they grow up and start families of their own."

Lovino threw his arms around her, "Thank you, mama."

She hugged him back gingerly, "Always, Lovino, you're my son, too. Even if I didn't give birth to you, you'll always be my little boy."

He nodded, a blush staining his cheeks.

His urination increased tenfold (or so it seemed to him) and he began craving weird things that made Antonio cringe. Particularly his new personal favorite, mashed potatoes, tomato slices, orange slices and Femke's chocolates … together.

"Try it, damn it! It's good!" Lovino shoveled another bit into his mouth and Antonio shook his head, "I'll take your word for it, my love."

Lovino shrugged and finished, getting irritated that Antonio was always giving his favorite foods disgusted looks.

October, month four, came and went, and Lovino was showing a lot now. According to Tessa, he was still no where near as big as he was going to get, but it was easy to tell he was pregnant now.

He sat down on his chair and wrote to Lukas. Antonio was walking around behind him, grabbing their night clothes. Lovino yawned. It was the start of his fifth month and he was excited that he was about half way there.

Lovino yawned again and set down his quill, standing up. He felt fluttering in his belly and he stopped moving and his hands pressed against the bump.

"Lovi? Are you okay? What's wrong? Are you hurting?" Antonio rushed to his side.

"I … I think I felt them move." he closed his eyes and concentrated. His patience was rewarded with another flutter. "They moved! I felt them move!"

"Really?" Antonio pressed his hand to the bump.

"There! Did you feel it, too?" Lovino moved Antonio's hand to a spot he had felt the movement, but Antonio shook his head, "I can't feel anything …"

Lovino frowned, "Oh …" Antonio kissed him, "I'm sure I'll feel them soon enough~" Lovino nodded and retired to bed.

He spent the entire next day sitting in front of the mirror staring at his swelling belly. Femke laughed lightly, walking in, "You look like a lady when you do things like that." she set his lunch tray down.

Lovino glared and pulled his shirt down, "I can't help it. I'm fucking pregnant! It's impossible! But here I am, having twins!"

Femke leaned on his chair, "Yup, and aunt Femke is going to spoil them rotten."

"If Antonio doesn't first." Lovino remarked, picking up a slice of orange and eating it, "Oh, I felt them move last night."

"Seriously? Amazing! Feels more real, doesn't it?" he nodded and ate another orange slice, "It does …"

TBC

~Lady Pyrien