Alanna had her lie down and checked the baby. "Everything seems alright," she said quietly, hand on Daine's belly. "As far as I can tell, at least. I would like a midwife to double check me, though." She looked at Daine apprehensively. "You really can't make it stop?"

Daine shook her head. "The last time I tried not to shift with the baby, it felt like I was being stabbed in the womb."

"Then don't try that again." She toyed with her necklace. "Perhaps we can find a midwife, in the village. I would like you to see one as soon as you can. I will send a runner." She stood up.

"And what do I do?" Daine asked, feeling helpless. She hated feeling helpless.

"Go to bed. Try to sleep, if you can still shift as you are sleeping."

Daine sighed. She didn't think she would be able to, but she would try.

She went back to her rooms, fretting terribly and trying to get comfortable on the bed. Kit lay curled up with her, not sleeping either. Every time the baby went still and she almost drifted off to sleep, there would be a sudden urge to change and she would jerk awake. After a few hours of this, Alanna knocked on her door to check on her. They had just called the midnight hour from the walls around the fort.

"There is a midwife coming in the morning," the Lioness told her, coming to put a hand on her belly once more.

"But it's alright, as far as you can tell?" Daine asked, sitting up on her pillow. Alanna nodded.

"As far as I can tell. But Daine…" she trailed off, looking at her friend earnestly. "We need to contact him and let him know."

"No!" Daine said. "Not yet. Let the midwife come first. Perhaps she can tell us something."

Alanna smiled wryly. "He's the only person who understands Wild Magic as much as you do, Daine. Not only that, but…he needs to know, because it's his baby, and it's you."

Daine rubbed her temple. "He's going to loose his mind if he sees me like this."

Her friend nodded. "Probably so, but you can't keep him in the dark for the next five months."

Daine felt very much like screaming. She was starting to get scared and desperately wanted Numair there; at the same time she didn't want him to see her like this. It would very nearly kill him, and then he would spend every moment fretting about her and the baby. She sighed.

"If the midwife can't do anything, we will call him," Daine decided.

"Can you sleep at all?"

"Not really. Is there something you could give me?"

Alanna winced. "I don't really remember all the things you are supposed to stay away from right now. I don't want to chance it with what I have with me. I'm sorry. The midwife should have something you can take tomorrow."

Daine sighed again. "It's alright. Hopefully this babe will calm down before dawn."

Alanna left her, and Daine managed to get a little rest. The baby was shifting again as soon as sunlight hit her window. She got up and relieved her heavy bladder with her lower half in horse form, something that proved difficult but not impossible.

She tried to look through her reports, but couldn't keep her mind on them for long. Daine was even more tired than she had been these past four months put together - a night of little sleep, overworked nerves, and using her magic was terribly draining. Kitten scratched restlessly at the door, and finally Daine let her out. Most people were used to seeing her around, so she didn't think she would get into much trouble.

Alanna came a few hours later, bringing her breakfast and tea.

"Any luck sleeping?" she asked as Daine gladly sipped the hot tea.

"A bit. I am awfully tired, though. I can't focus on anything."

Alanna was about to say something when a knock came to the door. She opened it, revealing a young woman who looked a few years Daine's junior.

"Someone was needing a midwife?" she asked, nervously shifting her bag.

Alanna snorted. "Are you even old enough to have a baby yourself, youngling?"

"Alanna," Daine chided, and her friend let the young woman in.

"I am our village's midwife apprentice," she said, eyeing Daine on the bed. She noticed Daine's changing feet, uncovered from the blankets, and her eyes widened.

"And the actual midwife?" Alanna asked tersely.

The apprentice shifted. "She…she didn't want to come, milady."

Alanna looked murderous. "Why not?!"

"Alanna," Daine warned again, blushing. She already had several ideas about why.

"She…she didn't want to deal with the unusual case."

"I didn't say anything in my summons about this being an unusual case, apart from it having to do with the Wild Mage."

The apprentice's face turned as red as Daine's. "She also heard the mother was unwed."

Alanna burned with rage. "She took an oath as a midwife to help any woman—"

"Alanna!" Daine cried, cutting the Lioness off. Both the women turned to face her. She could feel the tears springing to her eyes. "Please, please, it's fine. I am sure this midwife knows exactly what she is doing." She looked to the young woman in question. "I'm Daine. What's your name?"

"Cassa," the young midwife answered, looking relieved at the change in subject.

"I am so thankful you came, Cassa. As you can see, my babe is having a little trouble deciding what to be. Could you just check and make sure everything looks alright?"

Cassa nodded, and went to put her hands on Daine's belly. Alanna crossed her arms and fumed, coming to stand by Daine's head, but held her tongue at Daine's sharp, tearful glare.

The young midwife took her time, slowly roving her hands up and down Daine's belly. Daine awaited with bated breath, her stomach in knots. She had grown quite used to the idea of having this baby, as much as it had rocked her in the beginning. She enjoyed feeling the little bump under her hands, the little flutters of movement when she lay still at night. She realized suddenly she loved this babe, and losing it…

"Everything seems fine, from what I can tell," Cassa said finally, and Daine let out a breath. "I don't know much about baby deers, I'm afraid," she added with a small grin, "but the womb and cord seem intact and the babe is moving with a good heartbeat."

Daine almost corrected her that the baby had chosen the shape of a Carthaki antelope, but decided that sounded too much like something Numair would do and said instead, "That's wonderful news."

"Any ideas on how we could get it to stay a human?" Alanna asked, her voice highly controlled.

Cassa rubbed her hands together nervously. "I'm afraid I don't know much about this kind of magic, milady. I would hate to do something that would hurt the babe. Is there someone who does know more? Perhaps I could consult with them?"

Daine and Alanna exchanged a look, and Daine sighed in defeat. "That would be the baby's father." She nodded to her friend. "Go ahead and call him. Please tell him not to fret."

Alanna snorted. "That's like telling a fish not to swim." She went to the door. "I will let you know what he says. You don't need to hear his rambling."

Once she was gone, Daine looked to the midwife with a fragile grin. "I'm so sorry to get you tangled up in all this."

Cassa shook her head. "Please don't apologize, milady. I am sorry my mentor would not come. She is old, quite honestly, and feels she can pick and choose who she sees now that she has me almost trained."

"I'm no lady; just Daine is fine." She played with the edge of the blanket between her fingers. "We are planning to get married, once we get back to Corus. We have been together for eight years now, and known each other even longer. I love him very much." She dabbed at her suddenly leaky eyes. "Oh, here I go, crying again. You don't want to hear all my problems." Daine laughed bitterly, and Cassa took her hand.

"It's fine, really. I am so glad I can help. And if you love him and he loves you, I don't see any problem."

Daine smiled, feeling better, despite the fact that the baby was still shifting.

"Perhaps you could tell me a bit about what's going on when this happens." The midwife nodded to Daine's lower half, which was obviously changing shape below the blankets. Daine took a hand over her belly.

"What do you know about what I can do? With my magic, I mean."

Cassa shrugged. "Not much, mil—Daine, I mean."

Daine smiled at her effort. "I am a Wild Mage. I can communicate with animals of all kinds, and they can talk to me. I share a bond with them all. I can also shift to be them - my entire body or just parts." She reached out a hand and changed it into a raptor's talons. Cassa stared, her eyes wide, as Daine turned it back to her own familiar palm and fingers. "I have been shifting the whole time I've been with child. I didn't think anything of it, and when I mentioned it to Numair—" she paused. "That's the name of my mate, Numair." She smiled. It would be nice to soon just say husband and not lover or mate or whatever he was to her. It made sense to them, but to two-leggers the idea of a mate seemed odd. "Numair said that since nothing happened to the baby when I shifted, it must have wild magic, too. Last night, I felt like I had to shift. I don't know why; it's never happened before. When I tried to resist it hurt, in my womb. I haven't tried to stop it again."

Cassa took all that in and nodded slowly. "How do you know what animal to become, then?"

Daine shrugged. "I don't know. It just kind of…pops into my mind, right before I need to shift." The baby suddenly wanted to become a swan, as if to prove the point. Daine shifted under the blanket.

"And your…mate? You think he may know what to do?"

"I have no idea. He's a mage, and knows a lot about wild magic, but even he said he's never seen anything about a wild mage being pregnant." She sighed. "He has a friend in Corus that's looking for texts, but I really doubt there are any out there he hasn't found so far."

"Perhaps he just forgot he read it," Cassa added hopefully. Daine laughed.

"Oh, no. He never forgets anything he reads."

The door opened again, and Alanna reappeared. "He's on the way. He should be here before midnight."

"How did he take it?"

"Exactly how you thought he would. I had to convince him not to…come in a quicker manner than horseback." She glanced at Cassa, and Daine took the meaning. He had wanted to take hawk shape, then. That wasn't a good sign. "I warned him he had better be on his best behavior when he gets here. No need to upset you."

Daine smiled. "Oh, I'm fair used to his foul moods." She looked to Cassa. "Thank you, Cassa, for coming. Even if there wasn't much you could do, I am grateful that you could at least check on the baby."

Cassa smiled back at her. "Of course. If it's alright with you, I will stay until your mage arrives. Just to make sure you are well."

"I would like that very much."

Numair nearly jumped from the moving Spots as soon as he reached the stable yard. His horse threw his head back in agitation and came to a quick halt. "Sorry, boy," Numair whispered, patting the horse on the side and quickly unbuckling his pack. Thankfully, a stable hand had come out into the dark night to take Spots away.

Numair had started taking long strides towards the barracks when suddenly Alanna appeared, grabbing his arm to slow him down.

"Where is she?" he asked, his voice hard and flat.

"She's in a room, Numair, and she's fine. I promise she is. You need to calm down before you see her."

Numair was almost blind with worry. He tried to shake his friend's grip but couldn't. "How on earth can you expect me to be calm right now?"

"Because she needs you to be!" Alanna smacked him on the arm. "Stop acting like a child. She's fine, but she's scared. She's good at hiding it, but I can tell she's scared. She needs you to be calm, for her."

Numair took a shaking breath, raking a hand through his hair. Half of it was out of the tie from his hard ride. Alanna took his saddlebags from him.

"Fix your hair. You look a mess."

He sighed, but obliged. She handed him back the packs once he had smoothed his hair back and retied it. "Better?"

"Yes. Now take a breath. Remember, you're being calm for her."

Daine had managed to doze off by the time the door was gently opened. Numair peeked in and saw her on the bed, Kitten curled up at the bottom of the blankets. Cassa sat in the corner in a chair, peering nervously at the new figure in the door. Alanna was behind him, and she motioned for Cassa to come into the hall.

Numair thanked Cassa quietly and gently set his packs down next to Daine's on the floor. Kitten raised her head and let out a soft cheep; he stroked her head and she curled back up on the blankets. He slid to his knees beside Daine's head and rested his forehead on the thin mattress, sending up a silent thankful prayer to the Goddess for his safe arrival and simply to be in the same room with her again. He heard her breath shift and peered up to see her eyes flutter open. She gave him a gentle smile. "Hullo," she whispered. "You made it."

He reached out and took her hand. "I did. Spots may never forgive me for how hard I rode him."

"Do I need to go check him?"

He shook his head. "He's in good hands." He reached over with his right hand and flicked the blankets from her lower half. Her dress had ridden up in the bed, and he could easily see that she was not human from the waist down. He took a deep breath and rubbed his eyes. "Things can never just be easy, can they, magelet?"

Daine blushed. "That's what the gods promised me, when I had to choose if I wanted to stay in the Divine Realms or come back here. They said trouble always follows the godborn."

Numair looked at her. "You never mentioned that."

She smiled. "I've just recently remembered it, for obvious reasons. There's still time for you to jilt me, if you want to."

His eyebrows came together in a frown. "Never, in a thousand bizarre circumstances, would I ever jilt you, my sweet."

She smiled and took her fingers down his cheek. He leaned in and kissed her gently. Pulling away, he said, "I've been worried sick since Alanna contacted me."

"I know. I'm sorry. I really didn't want you to worry."

"The baby?"

"Is alright, as far as the midwife can tell."

"That young lady…she was the midwife? She looked no more than a girl herself."

Daine's cheeks turned red. "She is the apprentice."

He gave her a puzzled look.

"Apparently…" She bit her lip. "Apparently, the head midwife didn't want to treat me."

"Because of the shifting?" Daine bit her lip harder, and Numair understood. "Because we aren't married."

His mate nodded, and he clutched his hand into a fist. He felt his power surging with his anger, and he knew she did too.

"Cassa is sweet, though, and she seems to know what she is doing. She's willing to help the best she can. I told her to come back in the morning, after you got here, so she can get some rest." She tried to smile, but it was shaky. "Really, Numair. My Ma will handle the other one, I'm sure."

That was very true. Surely the head midwife didn't know she had refused to care for the demi-goddess daughter of a goddess of childbearing. He almost laughed at the irony.

"Also, that 'girl' is only two years younger than me, I will have you know." Daine titled her stubborn chin up just a bit and Numair smiled.

"Then she is much too young to be doing this." Daine pinched him on the arm, and he chuckled and kissed her forehead. "I didn't mean to wake you, magelet. Go back to sleep."

She sighed. "I'll try. The babe doesn't let me get much rest."

He nodded sympathetically. "I'll sleep on the floor. As much as I would like to squeeze next to you, I am afraid what would happen if our child chooses to be an elephant."

She giggled. "It's happened, a few times. Thankfully we haven't broken the bed yet."

He pulled out his bed roll and unfurled it beside her small bed. Kissing her forehead again, he whispered, "I love you. We will figure this out."

She nodded sleepily. "We always do."

The next morning the small bedroom was crowded with Numair, Alanna, and Cassa all staring down at Daine in the small bed, Kitten at her feet. The blankets were pulled away and she had pulled her dress up to above her knees, and they all watched with varying degrees of discomfort as her lower half shifted constantly.

"How do you know which animal to choose?" Numair asked, toying with his opal pendent. He had been shooting her questions since the moment she woke up.

"Mother's intuition, I think." She grinned at him. "It just kind of comes to me, right before it needs to happen."

"Hmm," he answered, slipping back into his brown study.

"Perhaps you could set up some kind of spell to contain the baby's magic to her womb only?" Alanna suggested.

"I'm not going to put any kind of physical spells on her," he answered coarsely.

"I know that, idiot. You can guide me to do it."

"And if the baby decides to be something that's too large for her womb?"

Daine shuttered with what would happen.

"Perhaps we could use a sleeping spell, like what is used for surgery," Numair suggested instead. "Only just on the baby."

Alanna shrugged. "It could work." She looked to the midwife. "Do you see any issues with that?"

Cassa hesitated, obviously feeling out of her depth around more experienced mages. "It's important that the babe moves and kicks as it grows. If not, it could be born with poor reflexes and could possibly be lame as it grows older."

Numair sighed. "Not that, then." He pulled on his nose. "What about if she shifts only her womb with the baby, nothing else?"

"Then her stomach would rupture when the child decides it wants to be a giraffe."

Daine winced with the picture that gave her in her mind. "I'm still here, you two!"

Numair looked down at her, knocked out of his thoughts. "I'm sorry, dearest." He sat beside her on the bed, taking her hand. "I'll admit that I just don't know an answer to this, currently."

Cassa shifted a bit. "I'm sorry, too. I'm no help. Perhaps if I knew more…"

Daine shook her head. "You are helping plenty, I promise. Just knowing the baby is well is enough for me."

Numair nodded his agreement. "Honestly, I don't know a midwife who would know what to do in these circumstances." His eyes lit with an idea, and he looked to his mate. "Daine, what about your mother?"

"Oh!" she said, pressing a hand to her changing belly. "That's an idea. In fact, I wonder why she hasn't reached out yet. You know she spies on me constantly."

"Perhaps you could summon the badger and send a message?" Numair suggested, sounding more hopeful.

"I can try," Daine said, pulling at her badger's claw. "You know how he is, though."

Numair rubbed his thumb on the back of her hand. "Surely he will come at your bidding for this. I need to contact Lindhall again to see if he has found anything."

Daine's stomach rumbled loudly. "Could you get me some breakfast first? I'm half starved."

He grinned. "Of course, dear."

Alanna sighed. "I need to be off as well. I will come check on you all later."

The two mages left, leaving Daine alone with Cassa once more. The young midwife started to apologize again, but Daine held up her hand. "Really, don't feel bad. It's like Numair said - I don't think anyone would know what to do."

"Your mother is a midwife?" Cassa asked, coming to sit in the chair by the bed again. Daine felt herself flush as Kitten climbed across her changing middle to sit closer to her. Cassa gave the young dragon an unsettled glance, a bit wary of the immortal.

"She was. She died when I was a girl. She…well, it's a fair odd story."

Cassa looked to Daine's shifting middle. "I think I am growing use to odd things today."

Daine laughed outright, the first time she had all day. "If you hang around me, you will see all sorts of odd things." She sighed, settling back against the pillows. "My Da is a god, but I didn't know it until I was older. My Ma never told me who he was. When she died she was able to go be with him in the Divine Realms, because there was a need for a goddess of childbearing over the part of Galla we are from."

Cassa sat up straighter. "Galla? Surely…surely you're not speaking of the Green Lady?"

Daine sighed and smiled wistfully. "That would be her."

Cassa covered her mouth in shock. "But I…I sacrifice to the Green Lady! My sister moved to Galla a few years back to marry her husband, and she told me of her!"

"You sacrifice to my Ma?" Daine was astounded. "What on earth do you offer her?"

"Sweets, mostly, and perfumes. Occasionally some lavender springs, if I can't get anything else. Once I left her a pie of sweet potatoes, but it was left untouched for more than a week, so I threw it out."

Daine rolled her eyes. "Sounds like Ma. She hated sweet potatoes."

Cassa laughed nervously. "So you're…you're a…"

"Only half," Daine said, sensing her question. "My Ma was mortal when she had me. And I don't tell many people, so please keep it to yourself, if you don't mind."

Cassa nodded enthusiastically. "Of course."

"If you sacrifice to her, perhaps you could call on her? She might hear you before she hears me."

Cassa looked puzzled. "Wouldn't she hear her own daughter first?"

"I'm not sure. She spies on me from the Divine Realms, but of course she is busy and can't manage it all the time. I can't really call on her or summon her like her supplicants can. I don't know why." Daine shrugged. "Or she could just be ignoring me, or distracted with other things. She can be fair absent minded."

Cassa obviously struggled to wrap her mind around a god being absent minded. "I can call on her, if you would like me to. There's a small alter I built for her, behind my house."

Daine almost laughed at the thought of an alter built to her Ma. "Try to leave her some blueberry bread. She loves that most of all."

Cassa stood quickly. "I will come back if I hear of anything."

Daine reached out and squeezed her hand. "Thank you. I know that my Ma will be very thankful you're treating me so kind."

Cassa gave her a smile and departed.