As Leyla was making her way to her own hut, she felt a hand grab her arm. She jumped and turned around to see her mother.
"Are you going to tell me where you're going every day, or are you just going to keep sneaking around with your new friend every day?" Ruth hissed.
"You're right. I do have to talk to you about something," Leyla said quietly. "But can we please not do it in front of everyone?"
"Fine. Let's go," Ruth said, leading her into their hut.
"Mom, um, you're right that I was sneaking around. Um, you remember Izzy?" Leyla asked quietly.
"The girl you assaulted, yes, I do," Ruth said softly.
"Um, so, we're actually getting along now. We've been hunting, and a few weeks ago, we were talking. Then, um, we kissed. It's been getting more serious since then," Leyla said, staring at the ground. Her hands trembled as she began to speak again. "We were keeping it private because it wasn't that serious."
"Oh, baby," Ruth whispered, sitting next to her daughter. "Why didn't you just tell me?"
"We were scared we were gonna get in trouble. Mom, I think we're in love," Leyla said, tears forming in her eyes as she leaned into Ruth.
"Baby, you are never, ever gonna be in trouble for who you love so long as I'm your mama. Okay?" Ruth murmured. "Is there anything else?"
"No, not that I can think of," Leyla whispered.
"We're having a baby," Ty whispered, trying to wrap his mind around the fact.
"Yeah," Paara whispered, grinning. "Are you… I don't know. Are you excited?"
"Yes," Ty said softly. "You're going to be an amazing mom."
"You're going to be an amazing dad," Paara replied softly.
"I'm so sorry I wasn't here when you found out."
"It's alright. You'll be here when she's born."
"She?" Ty asked. "Do you… Do you already know?"
"No," Paara said softly. "But I can't call my baby 'it'. It doesn't feel right," she whispered.
"Do you hope it's a girl?"
"I don't know. I mean, I'd love to raise a little girl. Teach her all the badass stuff my mom taught me," Paara began, but her voice trailed off.
"Are you okay?" Ty whispered.
"Yes. I just miss my mom, is all. She died when I was a teenager," Paara whispered. Ty sat up and pulled her into his arms.
"I'm sorry, love," he murmured.
"I don't want to want a little girl, but, I mean, I really do," she admitted.
"I do too. But, hey, the best thing we can hope for is a baby that's happy and healthy. No matter what, we have more love than this baby could possibly know what to do with," Ty murmured. He kissed Paara softly, then pulled her into his arms. "I love you."
"I love you too. Hey, I'm really happy you're back home," she whispered. "We should tell the others. Have a party to celebrate." She murmured the last part into his ear, trailing her fingers down his chest.
"That's not necessary, my love, but I'm happy to oblige if it'll make you smile," he whispered. Paara grinned and kissed him sweetly.
"Let's go," she whispered, standing up. They made their way to the center of the fort, where Paara rang a bell and squeezed his hand. Soon, other members of the fort began filling the space. Once there were about 25 people, Paara spoke. "Today marks the return of a valued member of our home. A little over three weeks ago, an unfortunate accident took my husband back to his old world against his will. Today, thanks to that aurora-" Paara pointed at the aurora in the sky- "He is home, with us, where he belongs."
Ty grinned and pulled Paara against him, trying to discreetly whisper into her ear. "Do you want to tell them now?" he whispered. Paara nodded and squeezed his hand.
"We do have another announcement to make," Paara said softly. "I have to admit to you all that I've been hiding this for some time. I wanted Ty to be the first to know, so I hope you all understand and can forgive me for hiding this. Three weeks ago today, I learned that I am with child."
Applause filled the space, along with cheers and laughter. Ty kissed Paara's cheek softly and smiled.
"Can I say something?" he whispered
"Of course," Paara replied softly.
"Before I came to this world, I was sure there was nothing to live for. I was dying from an awful disease, and I even planned to end my own life, Die on my own terms. But, coming to this world, meeting Paara," he began, wrapping his arm around Paara's shoulder, "It gave me something to live for. I fought to live, and I found a cure to my disease that didn't exist in my old time. Paara, you, your people, you've literally saved my life more times than I can even count. Bringing a new life into this beautiful world… I can't wait," Ty said softly. Paara grinned and kissed him softly. The crowd cheered again, this time even louder.
"As is tradition, we will hold a proper welcoming ceremony for the baby two weeks after he or she is born. Thank you guys so much for coming here today," Paara said excitedly.
The fort spent most of the night dancing and playing music, with members coming up to Paara and Ty regularly to congratulate them, as well as to welcome Ty home.
Leyla was sitting by the small buffet, watching the party alone when she saw Izzy dancing with a few others from the clearing. She decided to make her move and stood up, then hurried over to her.
"Hey," Izzy said excitedly. Without returning the verbal greeting, Leyla pulled Izzy against her and kissed her passionately. Izzy kissed her back and spun her around, then pulled apart. "What happened to keeping it a secret?" she whispered.
"I told my mom earlier. We don't have to be a secret anymore," Leyla replied. Izzy smiled and kissed her softly, then pulled her closer for a slow dance.
"I'm really glad we don't have to sneak around anymore," Izzy whispered.
"Me too."
A/N so so sorry I haven't posted anything lately, I've been hella busy and burned out. anyway, hope you enjoyed!