Dream Five, Chapter Nineteen

(Anything in asterisks is meant to be italicized.)

A few nights later, I was lying in Barrons's massive bed down in the lair. I love this bed. It's one of the few places I have ever truly felt safe, but usually only when he's in it with me. I otherwise often feel small and alone. He had deposited me down here earlier before disappearing for a while, leaving Korrie to close the bookstore by herself again. It had been thunder storming with terrible wind all day so the cafe had remained closed. I pulled out my cellphone and called her.

"Mac," she said a little tightly when she answered.

"Hey, I wanted to check in," I said, wincing at how falsely cheery I sounded.

"Bookstore's been closed for a couple hours," she informed me. "Everything's fine."

"No, I meant with you," I told her, sighing. I continued when she said nothing. "Look, I'm sorry I haven't been around much. There's just a lot going on. I can't really get into it yet, but one of these days I will fill you in, okay? And we'll spend some real time together."

"Okay," she said, not sounding too convinced. "It's getting late. I'm going to bed."

"Yeah, okay. Goodnight."

I tossed my phone aside after she hung up and audibly groaned, knowing he was standing somewhere in my vicinity. My body comes alive whenever he's near. I'm instantly ready for him.

"You should be asleep," Barrons said.

His shirt was unbuttoned and I knew I wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. He had that air about him he got when he had just eaten. Wild and free. It had been a few days since I had heard his heart beating and knew that's what he was going out to do so I had taken a nap in anticipation.

"What I should be is a better friend."

He didn't argue with me and I wasn't looking for absolution. Instead, he stripped off his shirt and the rest of his clothes before climbing on top of me, bandaging a wound in a way only he ever could.

We didn't speak much until later when he had me pulled tightly against him, his face in my hair and his arms wrapped tightly around me. I had one hand under my head and one resting on the bulge of my stomach.

"Dani and Ryodan are supposed to be back tomorrow," I said.

"Yes."

"We have to tell them, don't we?"

"No."

"But we're going to, aren't we?"

He was quiet for a long while before he said softly, "If that's what you want."

I turned over in his arms and began tracing the features of his face as I smiled sadly and said, "I need answers, Jericho. And they deserve to know. He's your brother and she's practically my sister. It's better they learn now than later."

"Then why haven't you told your parents?"

This was one thing we hadn't discussed yet, but he knew I hadn't told them. I sighed and stopped tracing as I closed my eyes for a moment.

"They're people of a certain faith," I eventually said. "One they raised me in that says not to have sex outside of marriage. They know we have sex and they don't say anything about it but this is something completely different." My hand went back to his face. "We made a vow before I sang the Song, one that's more binding than any ring or piece of paper could ever be. I don't need a proposal or a ceremony to know I'm spending the entirety of my long-lived and hard to end life by your side, or to know that even if I totally lost it and tried to leave, you'd follow me wherever I went and wait until I returned to my senses if you couldn't bring me back to them yourself. They've changed and accepted a lot of things over the past few years and lost Alina twice. Dad almost died. I just don't want to keep having to ask them to deal with something else they never thought would happen."

"You having a baby?"

"Me having a baby and not being married." I leaned forward and kissed him. "I can't keep putting it off, but I'm dreading a disappointed look from Dad. Really, I should be more concerned about how the rest of the Nine are going to react, but I'm more terrified to tell my parents."

"Mac, nothing's touching you or our baby," he said, his hand going to my stomach. "They all do what Ryodan tells them to do because they know they'll have to answer to me if they don't. If I have to start a war among my men to protect us, I bloody fucking will. Ms. Lane, what are you smiling at?"

"That's the first time you've called it 'our' baby," I said as I tried really hard not to tear up.

"Christ," he growled as he pulled me close. "Is that really all you got from what I just said?"

"What I got from it is that you've accepted that it's your baby, too," I said as I sniffed. The constant tears were starting to test his patience. Mine, too.

"Even if it's not mine, it's mine now." That made me cry for a solid ten minutes before we decided to tell my parents right after we told Dani and Ryodan.

&&&

"What exactly did the the former king say to you," Ryodan said. This was the second time he asked and I repeated everything I could remember, word for word.

"I agree, I think it's yours, Barrons," Dani said. Her eyes had been closed and I know she was trying to listen with her *sidhe*-seer senses.

"It's mine no matter what," he stated, crossing his arms. It was really hard not to start crying again.

I was fanning my face and said when I saw Ryodan's look, "The hormones are making me really weepy lately so don't give me that look of exasperation. Only Barrons gets to give me that look because he's the one who's been putting up with it."

"Mac, all I'm getting is that he meant exactly what he said and not to worry."

"Really? That's all you've got?" Dani said, her eyes narrowing at her lover. He shrugged before he turned to Barrons.

"They're not going to take this well," he said softly. "You break all the bloody rules for her."

"Rules. Malleable," I said, wiping away at my tears with my fingers. "The King said exactly that to Cruce and I before he locked Cruce up."

"Ours aren't," he replied coolly. "At least they didn't used to be."

"They can all get the bloody fuck over it," Barrons growled. "Besides, I'm not the only rule breaker in this room, or have you forgotten what you did to Dageus? Not to mention keeping Dani alive with what she knows."

"Couldn't this be considered an extraneous circumstance?" I argued.

"You can tell those feckers that if they go after Mac or her kid, they're going to have to answer to me," Dani said to Ryodan as she moved to stand next to my chair, her arms defiantly crossed. "Not to mention Barrons." She nodded at him and he inclined his head gratefully. "I don't care how many times I have to kill them to get the message across."

"You once told me you're anathema to nature," I said to Ryodan. "As the possessor of the True Magic, my connection is to nature itself. Maybe that's strong enough to overrule whatever you are. There are a lot of unknowns about this situation, with no way to get most of the answers. I know there's nothing you care about more than family, second only to Dani. This is not something I ever planned on telling you, certainly not to your face," I paused only to quickly take a deep breath, "but despite how much you annoy me, I long ago came to see you as an irritating older brother of sorts and I think you've come to see me as an annoying little sister. That was also before I knew the two of you are brothers. If not for me, help us for the sake of your future niece or nephew."

He regarded me with that cool, unfathomable silver gaze before he stood and said, "The three of us and the Keltar half-breed swore a vow to always protect each other and you are carrying my future niece or nephew, but it's nice to know how you truly feel." Mockery and something close to affection glittered in his eyes. "Of course I'm helping you."

"How could I possibly have forgotten about that vow?"

"Probably all that crying."

There was an atavistic rattling in Barrons's chest and a muscle under Ryodan's eye twitched.

"Mac can cry wherever, whenever, and for however long she wants." I had to start fanning my face due to tears again.

&&&

My parents didn't live too far from Chester's, it had just stopped raining, and I needed the exercise so we had decided to walk there, although we were due back in a couple of hours. Barrons and Ryodan had decided it would be better to tell the rest of the Nine sooner rather than later and Ryodan was assembling them. He had wanted to do it right away, but we had already made plans to see my parents.

Both were happy to see us. I exchanged hugs with both of my parents while Barrons exchanged a handshake with my dad and a kiss on the cheek with my mom.

"So what's new with you, baby?" my dad asked once we had all sat down. They sat on a couch across from us and the space between us suddenly loomed.

"That's actually why we're here," I said nervously and I reached for Barrons's hand. I was wearing the Amulet so they couldn't tell I was showing. He gave my hand a squeeze and I told the Amulet to disperse the illusion. "Mom, Daddy," I said after taking a very deep breath, "I'm pregnant."

Baby, that's wonderful!" Mom said as she swept me up into another hug.

"It is?" I said, looking between her and my father.

"Of course!" Daddy told me as he also hugged me again. "Your mother and I were afraid we were never going to have any grandchildren."

"Look at you, you're already showing!" Mom gushed. "That's fine, you'll just need an empire waist on your dress."

"My dress?" I said, getting nervous again.

"For your wedding!" When neither of us responded, she said, "You are getting married, aren't you? Young lady, do not tell me you're planning on having this child out of wedlock."

"Jack, would you mind if the two of us went somewhere and talked alone?" Barrons said as he stood. We had come up with a strategy on the way there.

He regarded Barrons coolly before he said, "I think I'd prefer to stay right here." His tone and the look on his face gave me the impression he thought Barrons had refused to marry me. I loved that my parents got along well with Barrons and I really didn't want that to change.

"Daddy, please?" I said. His gaze softened; Jack Lane couldn't say no to his little girl. Once he and Barrons had left, I sat Mom back down.

"Mac, I don't like this," she told me. "I don't like the idea of my only daughter being a single mom or my only grandchild growing up without their father."

"I'm not going to be a single mom," I told her calmly. "Barrons isn't going anywhere and I don't need a wedding to know I'm spending the rest of my life with that man." She and I went in circles for about about forty-five minutes. We only stopped when Barrons and Dad came back in.

"Mac," Barrons said softly, interrupting me mid sentence. He was telling me it was time to leave.

I looked up at Dad and he nodded, telling me he understood and he'd help Mom get there, too.