A/N: Set immediately after Alien v2 Chapter 9.

Mari remained silent as she carefully watched the Thanagarian sitting across from her. Despite wanting to go to the cafeteria for lunch, Mari noticed that Shayera was hardly eating her food. Instead she was idly pushing it around her plate with her fork.

"So," she casually began. "What was it you wanted to talk about? I've never known you to actually ask for advice before."

Shayera adverted her gaze as she spoke, "Yeah I know. I was never one to admit when I need help."

Mari in turn lightly smirked, "So penny for your thoughts then?"

Shayera continued to advert her gaze as she looked down at the pasta on her plate. She proceeded to push the food around with her fork absentmindedly as she bit her bottom lip. She then let out a heavy sigh as she lightly frowned.

Mari raised an eyebrow, "Shayera?"

Shayera seemed to snap out of her thoughts as she lightly shook her head, "Sorry was just thinking."

"About?" Mari gestured for her to continue.

Shayera took a deep breath before sighing, "I um...I kinda asked John if he wanted to get married."

"Wait just a minute," Mari held up a hand. "You asked him if he wanted to get married?"

"Yeah," the Thanagarian sheepishly replied. "I know how unorthodox that is on Earth. I know it's normally the other way around."

"Did you guys even talk about marriage at all? What did he even say?"

"We've never discussed getting married before but I mean...it seemed like the right thing to do. Aren't you supposed to marry the person you truly love? At least that's how it gets portrayed in books and movies. Unless that's one of those Hollywood lies Wally warned me about."

"What did he say?" Mari then paused. "Oh don't tell me he said no. Is that what you need to talk about? Listen if he-"

"No Mari," Shayera cut her off as she shook her head. "He didn't say no. Actually he didn't say anything at first."

Mari let out a sigh of relief, "Oh thank God. I thought he told you no. I was about to say I was going to kick his ass for you if he told you no though I think you would have done that already yourself if that had been the case. So I'm assuming he said yes. Right?"

Shayera lightly smiled as she chuckled, "After he got over his shock of me asking him."

Mari smirked, "Let me guess you need help planning a wedding? Don't worry you came to the right person. I can pull a few favors from some designers I know. That and I know where to get the best jewelry. If it were me I'd get married in Venice, very romantic and all."

"That's not it either," Shayera shook her head. "We already agreed to not to do the whole wedding thing. It's not my kind of thing and John doesn't really want to have to do the whole wedding planning thing either. I didn't tell John the reason why I had asked him to marry me. That's what I need help with."

"I'm sure he knows that you love him. You don't need any other reason than that Shayera."

"True," Shayera slowly replied as she finally took a bite of her food. Within seconds of swallowing the Thanagarian closed her eyes and took in a deep breath through her nose. She then exhaled as she pinched the bridge of her nose as she set her fork down onto her tray.

"You okay Shayera?" Mari asked with a raised eyebrow.

"It would be great if I could eat without nearly puking every time, "she muttered as she took in another deep breath. "This is just straight bullshit at this point. I can't eat anything without getting sick. Well except bagels, I can eat those."

"You can't eat without..." Mari's eyes slowly widened as she covered her mouth with her hand. "Are you?" The heroine quickly looked around before she leaned forward and quietly asked, "You're pregnant aren't you?"

Shayera slowly looked up at her and nodded, "That's the advice I need. I just don't know how to tell him."

"I was not expecting this," Mari said in awe. "I didn't even know this could even be possible. You're not a human. How does that even work, an alien and a human?"

Shayera rolled her eyes, "Trust me it's possible. I constantly get a reminder every time I try to eat."

"I see that. How are you feeling? I mean besides the obvious morning sickness thing of course."

Shayera shrugged as she looked away, "I guess okay. I don't really feel any different honestly. Except for the anxiety of knowing another living being is going to be dependent on me, that in itself is terrifying."

"Is this something you wanted or are even okay with?" Mari sincerely asked her. "Sorry if I'm getting too personal. Just you don't seem like the type of person who'd even want to have kids Shayera. Hell I honestly never even saw you as the type to want to get married."

Shayera shook her head as she glanced back at the supermodel and lightly smiled, "Don't worry it's fine. Anxiety aside I...let's just say I've waited a very long time for this. I can't even say in words how happy I am right now. I don't think even the word ecstatic is strong enough to describe what I feel."

Mari smirked, "Surprising to hear that from you of all people. I knew deep down you could be a softy."

Shayera rolled her eyes with a small smirk, "Smartass."

"I don't get why you're so nervous to tell him. I mean you guys are already going to get married."

"Hopefully," Shayera retorted. "I have to get citizenship first. A minor detail that's delaying things. Otherwise we would have gotten married last week."

Mari waved her off, "Minor setback Shayera, you two will be married before you know it. Now for the advice. Just do what you do best, be blunt and straightforward."

Shayera let out a small sigh as she folded her hands together and rested her chin on top of them, "If only it was that easy."

"Of course it's that easy. Just go up to him and tell him. Don't beat around the bush."

Shayera paused for a moment before she spoke again, "John never told you about the time he and Batman went to the future, did he?"

Mari slightly tilted her head, "First time I'm hearing about this. Was this recently?"

"No, this was not too long after the whole Grundy incident," the Thanagarian replied.

Mari frowned, "What happened or should I instead ask what did he see?"

"His son," Shayera swallowed before she continued, "Or I should say our son."

"When did he tell you? How long did he know and not say anything?" Shayera could hear the agitation growing in Mari's tone. That and the growing scowl on her face.

"After that time we dealt with Shadow Thief. He told me after that."

"He knew for that long and didn't tell either of us that whole time?"

Shayera shook her head, "He was confused and felt conflicted. As much as he loved me, he also cared about you. He didn't want to hurt you either."

"But he knew he wasn't going to stay with me. He knew he was going to end up back with you. Why put us both through that? Why string us both along?"

Shayera frowned, "Because he's stubborn and spiteful. You know how well he can hold a grudge."

Mari leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms over her chest, "Yeah I recall. One of his personality traits that always drove me up a wall honestly. That man could hold a grudge and not let go of it."

Shayera let out a sigh, "When John initially told me that he had saw our son he also told me that he didn't want to be destiny's puppet."

"But that was a while ago Shayera," Mari stated. "Things have obviously changed since then. You're back together now."

Shayera shook her head, "No they haven't. I know that John had told me about Rex because he wanted to get even with me finally. He wanted to break my heart like I did his. At that point in time John was the only person on Earth who knew that I wanted a child. He purposely flaunted that right in front of me."

"Again Shayera," Mari began. "That's in the past. Though I have to say that is a rather low blow even for him. I can see why you were so angry at him afterwards and didn't immediately get back together with him once we had split up."

Shayera looked away as she spoke, "When we had gotten back together, John had us both agree that it wasn't because of destiny but because we both wanted to. Which is true, we both wanted to be together because we never stopped loving each other. That had never changed but John said it again that he didn't want to have Rex because of some foretold destiny." The Thanagarian then blinked hard as she shakingly exhaled, "I know that this isn't the future he wanted but it's the future that I want. How am I supposed to tell someone who doesn't want a child with me that I'm pregnant?"

Mari didn't immediately respond. She honestly didn't know how to. To make matters worse, she noticed that Shayera was beginning to cry. That was enough to unnerve Vixen. In the five years she had known her, Mari had never once seen Shayera get emotional like this. The Thanagarian was seen by many as one of the strongest members of the Justice League due to her stoicism.

"Shit," the supermodel cursed under her breath as she looked over her shoulder. Thankfully the cafeteria wasn't too busy at that time and no one had yet to notice that the normally resilient Thanagarian was completely breaking down. Mari moved from her seat across from her and sat right next to Shayera. Mari then placed her hand on the Thanagarian's shoulder.

"Listen to me Shayera, "Mari quietly said to her. "You need to calm down. You're going to draw attention to yourself and I'm sure you don't want that."

Shayera rubbed the back of her hand across her eyes as she slowly took in a deep breath. "Sorry," she murmured out.

Mari offered her a sympathetic smile, "Don't be sorry it's fine. You got a lot going on and I'm sure the hormones aren't helping things."

Shayera snorted back a laugh as she wiped her eyes again, "Not in the least."

Mari then nudged her as she smirked, "I think this is the first time I've ever seen you cry before."

Shayera as well smirked as she rolled her eyes, "Don't get used to it."

"On a serious note though," Mari once more placed her hand on Shayera's shoulder. "My advice at this point would be to just tell him. The longer you wait the worse it'll be."

"What do I do if he doesn't take it well? How am I supposed to get past that?"

"Worry about one thing at a time Shayera," Mari replied. "Don't get caught up in what might happen. That'll only stop you."

Shayera let out a sigh, "It's sorta hard not to though."

"I know but you need to try to think positively. Think about the best case scenario."

The Thanagarian slowly nodded, "I guess you're right. Thinking of the worst outcome will only make it harder. So how or even when should I tell him?"

"There's really no set time or way you tell someone something like this. You have to be confident you want to tell him and just go for it."

"Right, "Shayera quietly agreed. "I just have to work up the nerve and just tell him."

Mari then lightly chuckled, "I never thought I'd actually ever see you this nervous about something, Miss Nerves of Steel."

"Smartass," she quipped.

"Don't worry," Mari patted her on the back of her shoulder. "Everything will be just fine. You'll see."

Shayera let out a small sigh, "I hope you're right about that."

"Trust me it'll work out," Mari confidently responded before pausing for a moment. "Wait you said that you talked to Batman about this? Why in the hell would you ask him for advice about something like this?"

"He wasn't exactly my first choice either, trust me," Shayera replied. "He's the one who did that damn blood test on me. He found out when I found out. Needless to say I ended up talking to him about a week later about things."

"How long have you known?" Mari asked before she then frowned. "Hold up, you just got injured on a mission earlier. Are you out of your mind fighting out there? What if something happens to you? You got yourself stabbed in the leg. What if next time it isn't your leg but worse?"

Shayera let out an exasperated sigh as she rolled her eyes, "I am more durable than a human and I'm not concerned Mari. And I wasn't stabbed in the leg for the record. A piece of metal from one of those robots managed to lodge itself into my thigh. Nothing a couple of stitches and a day of rest won't heal."

Mari shook her head as she pinched the bridge of her nose, "This isn't something to be stubborn over Shayera. You can easily get yourself injured or worse out there. You aren't invulnerable. Are you actually insane?"

"I know that and I know the extent of my durability. I'm not going to try any crazy heroics or anything. Hell if I was back on Thanagar I'd be fighting in the middle of a war right now. Fighting some bad guys will be a piece of cake compared to that."

"That's great and all hon but this isn't Thanagar. You're on Earth," Mari stated with an unamused look.

Shayera narrowed her eyes as she glanced over at the supermodel, "I am well aware of that Mari."

"I don't know how they treat pregnant women on Thanagar but you'll have to get used to how you'll be treated on Earth," Mari stated. "You're going to be treated like royalty. People are going to treat you like you're a delicate piece of glass. Even people who don't like you are going to be noticeably nicer to you."

Shayera paused for a moment before lightly frowning, "I somehow doubt that. I don't foresee Captain Atom, Commander Steel, and a few others suddenly not openly scorning me."

"I said nicer Shayera, that doesn't mean they'll like you at all. Just they'll lay off a bit. Anyway you didn't answer my question earlier. How long have you known?"

Shayera thought for a few seconds before replying, "Ten days I think it's been or maybe eleven, something around that."

"So it hasn't been that long," Mari then smirked as she stood and gestured for Shayera to stand. "Look you need to majorly decompress. How about this? We go to my place and watch a movie or two and continue our little chat where no one might overhear anything."

Shayera as well stood, "I'm really not in the mood to watch some romantic movie, no offense Mari. Besides when John gets back from his mission we were going to have dinner together. Although it would be nice to get more off of my chest."

"You don't know when he's getting back so in the meantime you can spend a few hours venting to your dear old friend here. Plus I got plenty of ice cream in my freezer."

Shayera then tilted her head in confusion, "What does ice cream have to do with anything?"

Mari put her arm over Shayera' shoulder, "Hon you're pregnant so it has everything to do with this. You and ice cream are going to become best friends, trust me."