Blowing off some steam... (PRIVATE: Anime)

Salone sat down on the toilet lid seat heavily, staring at the results of her pregnancy test. Positive. So, that’s what had been ailing her. She was pregnant… her hand drifted down to her stomach and her pulse quickened. Oh sweet Hades… She closed her eyes, what if she was going to be like her own mom? There was no lying that Salone was scared of all this. She opened the bathroom door to see Danni helping Riley clean up the remnants of what looked like a soda pop off the wooden floor. 
“Hey, welcome home.” She told Riley looking a little pale. Danni picked up on her reaction almost instantly; after all she had been with Salone when she had bought the test. Her ginger friend stared intently at Salone before sighing. 

“’I’ll talk to you later, alright Salone?” Danni stated before excusing herself out the door. 
Salone waited until Danni was gone on hound before turning back to Riley.

“Uhh, Riley. I have to talk to you about something. You remember when at thanksgiving when your mom said that she was too young to be a grandma? Do you think she is still too young?”  Salone waited for what she had said to register in Riley’s brain. That Salone was indeed pregnant with his child; she bit her lip waiting for his reaction. 

**

Fabian was indeed asleep, shirtless and dressed in gym shorts, freshly damp from his shower. He was exhausted, one of the Hermes kids had let the pegesi out last night and Fabian had been enlisted to help catch them all. He had been woken up at midnight and hadn’t returned to bed until just then. Earlier on he had been spattered head to toe in mud,  tired, and sore.


Abruptly he found himself to be shaken awake. 

“Hmn?” He asked, opening a grey eye to see Alison holding her text book. “Whats up?”

Fabian sat up, showing the hoof shaped bruises on his chest trailing down to the hem of his gym shorts. The son of Bast was well build; his core was exceptionally strong due to his catlike acrobatic stunts he had to pull off occasionally. If Alison noticed this, it would prove rather distracting or not… you could never tell with her.

"Wait- what?" Riley asked, the question striking him as odd. Salone was pale, obviously sick, but there was something else in her face- fear, apprehension, worry. She had exchanged looks with Danielle, who'd left abruptly, and that also struck him. You could never get her to go; she was always sticking her nose up in everything. "My mom- grandmother- I mean- wait..." Riley's eyes flickered with recognition, possibility. He looked to her, and he took a step towards her, his hand moving to brush a sticky strand of hair out of the way of her face; it was clear that she'd been sick earlier. 

Nausea, vomiting, exhaustion, worry, that look, grandmother... 

"Are you- are you pregnant?" he asked, his eyes flickering with fear. 

--

"Calculus," Alison spoke automatically, a smile forming on her lips as he seemed reluctant to get up. But then he was sitting up and he was shirtless and oh mylanta, did this boy ever stop working out? There were strange, hoof-shaped bruises trailing up his torso, though, and Alison's eyebrows knit together in worry. 

"Are you alright?"

Salone closed her eyes and nodded, resting her forehead against Riley’s shoulder.

“Three weeks,” She sighed in answer to how long. Salone was trembling faintly, her forehead sticky with sweat. Riley felt warm and familiar unlike the idea of someone growing inside her.

 “I’m scared,” She said truthfully. Much more terrified than she had been at the Angel Hospital. After several moments, her one hand brushed her lower stomach before she asked, “what now?”  

Salone waited, pressed against Riley as what seemed to be several hours while he made a uniform decision. Her forehead resting comfortably in the curve of his neck and she slid her arms around her husband’s waist, ring glittering on her hand.

**

Fabian smiled crookedly at the eyes bugging out in Alison’s head as she just happened to notice his torso.

“Lemme see,” He turned on the bedside lamp and opened the book to were Alison was. “I was woken up at midnight last night and some Hermes kid thought it would be funny to let some of the pegasi out… as in all not some. Since the children of Bast are generally the only ones who can see in the dark we were enlisted to help-“ Fabian stifled a yawn, covering his mouth. “I may have gotten trampled. I just got back from the infirmary. Nothing too bad, just bruises and tired.”


He looked at the book, he took about fifteen minutes to explain  the one she was stuck on before he yawned again, slumping back onto his pillow. Fabian did look slightly pathetic with big dark circles under his eyes.

Salone pressed herself into him, and he could sense the fear within her, greater than his. She trembled, the skin at the back of her neck hot and slick with sweat, and Riley held onto her tightly as he processed this information, cradling her head against his neck. He knew how scared she'd be, afraid that she'd turn out like her mother, although Riley knew that could never happen. She was so much better than that.

His knees felt weak, and he needed to sit down. He was going to be a father. He was a father. He wasn't even 19 yet. One part of him reprimanded himself for not being more careful; Salone wasn't ready to be a mother, and Riley wasn't sure he was ready to be a father, either. But the other half of him felt a resurgence of pride. Sure, he didn't expect to be a father at such a young age, but this was his son or daughter. Maybe he hadn't planned to bring this child into the world, but it was here now and he would do anything to protect it, and Salone. But then, it was Salone's body. If she didn't want a child yet- Riley didn't want to think about it, but this was what they were faced with at the moment. He disentangled himself from her, taking her hand in his and leading her over to their couch, where he sat, pulling her down with him. He smiled at her gently, lacing her fingers with him and squeezing her hand.

"You're okay with this?" Riley asked seriously, looking to her with questioning eyes. He figured she would come around to the idea eventually, but he had to ask her anyway. After she had responded he kissed her gently, leaning his forehead against hers. "I love you," he whispered. "You don't have to be so scared, you know. I'm here, and we're going to get through this together. If I have to take a semester off of school then so be it." He squeezed her hand again, meeting her eyes and smiling gently. 

"Right baby?" he murmured, his voice rising slightly as his fingers moved to graze against her belly. 

--

"Oh," was all Alison replied to Fabian's explanation. He picked up the calculus book tiredly, beginning to explain the problem to her as if it were the simplest thing in the world, and within a few minutes everything made sense to her. It was as if his mother were the goddess of mathematics, not the goddess of... cats. He yawned again as he handed her back her book, his exhaustion apparent through the dark circles beneath his eyes. 

"I'm sorry," she spoke softly, smiling sympathetically as he fell back against his pillows, his eyes drifting shut. "But thank you," she said, running a hand through his hair playfully and pressing a quick kiss to his cheek. She adjusted her book in her lap, hesitant to leave even though she knew that she should. 

"Do you need anything, before I go? I could bring you dinner, something for you to have when you wake up...?"

Riley pulled her down into his lap, cradling her close for a few seconds before asking her how she felt on this entire matter.
“I don’t know… I feel like I will be okay with it eventually. But this came as a shock and so soon too.” True they will have only been married a month on Friday. Riley kissed her gently and Salone sighed under the kiss, trying to silence the turmoil of emotions inside her. Her fingers entangled with his and she sat there, curled up in his arms like a little kid. Salone mentally winced, bad wording.
Riley’s fingers brushed her lower stomach, causing her muscles there to jump slightly under his finger tips.  “That tickles,” She complained, shifting slightly in his grip, leaning her head against his neck. “Besides infants don’t start responding until six months, that’s when they start moving anyway.” Salone shrugged before tilting her head up to look at Riley.
“When should we start telling people? Danni knows obviously because I went to her first when I suspected, mainly because several of her friend back in Italy have kids...“ Salone chewed her lip, thinking… most people waited until they found out what they were having before telling people in case the mom lost the baby… that was what? Three months?  Salone felt sick at the thought of loosing this unborn child.
**
Fabian closed his eyes lazily and made a faint purring noise at fingers running through his hair. He was indeed a sort of over grown house cat.

“Do I need anything?” He mused, opening his eyes so they were half lidded. Fabian reached out and captured her, wrapping his arms around her middle and pulling her to him. “You smell like citrus fruits,” He stated, pressing his nose to her shoulder. “And now you’re my prisoner.”

"Someone's been doing her research," Riley murmured, laughing as she met his eyes and he kissed her again. "We can tell people whenever you want to tell them," Riley offered. "We should maybe call a doctor, though? I know my mom works in pediatrics, and she does a lot of prenatal care, but there's no rush. Also, nice to know that you trust Danni more than me," Riley spoke, nudging her gently. He lowered his voice, leaning into her.

"I know you well enough to assume that at least half of your fear at this point is because of your mom, and I've told you already but I feel like I need to tell you again that you are nothing like her. You're going to be a better mother because of the way she treated you; we're not going to let our children be treated that way, you especially." Riley met his wife's eyes, adjusting his grip on her hand. "Okay, gorgeous? How are you feeling; do you need anything?" Riley asked, a small smile forming against his lips. 

--

Alison quirked an eyebrow as he- purred?- at her, squealing as he grabbed her lithely, pulling her down against him on the mattress. She allowed herself to lean into him despite her protests; he was so warm and he also smelled really, really ridiculously good, probably as a result of his shower. Part of her realized that he was half-naked, but the other part of her didn't care. 

"I should really go-" she breathed. "Work to finish..." she trailed off, meeting his gaze. She should really go, but she really, really didn't want to. Really.

Salone rolled her eyes, “The reason I went to Danni first is because I didn’t want to make you panic… until I knew for sure that I wasn’t mistaken. Then you were allowed to panic.”
Riley was notorious for panicking and getting flustered. The flustering bit was rather adorable; his entire face would turn red and he would occasionally stutter. “For now, I think we are okay on our own. It’s not like I’m dying or anything. Doctors can wait a few weeks… or years… I don’t like hospitals.”

Another issue Salone had just thought of, her hospital problem. As she made eye contact with Riley she knew that the same issue was on his mind. Salone could hear the dead and being in a hospital was practically torture for her not to mention the crazy group that used a hospital as their guise. She shuddered slightly, “I don’t know if I can have this child in a hospital without going insane.” True enough, she avoided walking by the place every day on her way to work.

She sighed and snuggled into Riley’s chest, feeling the strong thrum of his heart beneath his shirt. Then he interrogated her with questions, “I just wanna snuggle… and maybe some ice cream.”
Salone pressed her lips lightly to the underside of his jaw and when he tried to move to get her ice cream she shook her head. “Snuggling is more important at this time.”
**
At her resistance Fabian began to purr again, it was a low rumbling noise. It started low in his stomach and rose to his chest.

“But you are my prisoner,” Fabian complained, teasingly, “I have no intention of letting you go.”

He buried his face in the side of her neck, his nose pressed against her skin being as distracting as possible, adjusting his arms so both of them were around her. “Why do you smell citrusy?” He asked finally, his lips brushing her skin as he talked. Fabian was intentionally trying to drive her up the wall, like a cat played with a mouse.  Pulling his head away he smiled sleepily at her before letting her go and sitting up, running a hand through his tousled hair.  Fabian tilted his head towards hers, conspiratorially.


“You know your brother would kill me for doing this right?” He asked, his voice low and husky. As soon as she asked what on earth for, Fabian kissed her; Unable to help himself any longer. Alison had been taunting him for the last several months, constantly testing his boundaries and self restraint.

Hospitals... Riley hadn't thought about that. While Riley didn't like hospitals either, Salone was extremely averse to them, due in part to the time she'd spent imprisoned within one and her ability to hear the cries of the dead and the dying. He considered her for a moment before kissing her forehead, running his fingers along her shoulders as he held her. 

"We'll probably have to go to one initially, to make sure everything's alright, but there are other options," Riley said, meeting her eyes. They would find a way to make this work. They didn't have a choice. She snuggled into him and he held her with strong arms, content to agree with her, even though they'd have to eat eventually. And eventually Salone got up to go to the bathroom, and Riley decided to pop out for a moment, leaving their apartment and arriving back some twenty minutes later with ice cream sundaes in tow. He let her choose a movie from Netflix and they sat and watched intently, Riley holding Salone close to him. They had ice cream for dinner; probably not the healthiest meal, but at the time neither of them cared much.

--

Alison watched the boy curiously as he purred at her, his whole body vibrating soothingly before he moved impossibly closer to her, trapping her within the cage of his arms. The tip of his nose grazed the sensitive skin at her neck and she shivered; his lips moved against her skin as he spoke to her and she swore she was going to pass out. He pulled away from her and she watched him stupidly as he watched her, a stupid, knowing grin on his face. The color drained from her cheeks, and she almost replied before he spoke, mentioning her brother. A flash of anger and frustration shone in her gaze before suddenly his mouth was on hers and she was like putty in his hands as she leaned in, her arms twining around his neck as she kissed him back. This. This was right. The last guy she'd kissed was Will, and that was months ago, and that wasn't like this. That was fake. It might have been nice, but it was fake. This was right, and it was real. And as much as she longed to kiss him forever, she had to pull away. Fabian was right, Riley would try to kill him for this if he found out, but that was just it: Riley didn't have to know about any of this. Right now it was just her and Fabian and Riley was hundreds of miles away, unimportant. 

"Wow-" Alison breathed, grinning at him. "I should really use this shampoo more often."

Salone sighed, curling up into him until she had to go use the restroom. Upon getting out of the shower and smelling like vanilla, Riley surprised her with ice-cream causing her to smile. Dressed in her usual lazy day outfit of sweats and a t-shirt she sat next to him, taking hers. Turning on Netflix she scrolled through before selecting a movie. It was an old superman movie that apparently amused her greatly. In the middle of the movie Salone threw away her ice-cream containers as well as Riley’s.

“I suppose we better tell your mom soon… so she doesn’t get the news second hand.” The entire situation had been apparently been weighing on her mind.  Salone’s fingers trailed thoughtfully over Riley’s skin, she rested his head on his shoulder. There was so much to think about, what was Salone going to do, be a stay at home mom? Continue to work? She sighed and looked up at the ceiling and not at Tom Hiddleson playing Loki on screen. “Sorry, I’m just way too distracted by all of-this.”

She motioned down to her lower abdomen before sighing again and gave Riley a smile, dragging the blankets over the lower half of her body.
**

This kiss was hungry and preditorial, making his heart race. Fabian resisted the urge to growl faintly like when wild animals do when calling to their mate. He felt her pull away from him and he groaned, flopping back onto his pillows, letting her go completely.

“Now… your brother will officially murder me or you, Alison, will be the death of me.” He offered a crooked, dimpled grin before yawning again. “As for washing the hair, good idea and then I have a reason to sniff you.”

Fabian ran his fingers over his face and suddenly realized he wasn’t wearing a shirt. ‘Meh, whatever. I’m going back to sleep soon anyway. You should go do your math so I don’t distract you… or you distract me… whichever suits the situation better.”


Indeed his sensitive nose did find Alison distracting, and he wanted nothing better than to pull her to his chest and fall asleep with her in his arms.

Salone was obviously distracted as she tore her attention away from a Marvel movie; he knew how much she loved them, even though he wasn't the biggest fan. Her fingers fluttered to her abdomen and she tucked a blanket around herself, curling up against him. Riley kissed her gently, taking his time and willing her to relax a little bit. "I suppose we should tell my mom- and Alison. You know..."

Riley grabbed the phone off the receiver beside them, dialing in his sister's number. He grinned at Salone, realizing vaguely that she hadn't agreed to this but also knowing that she wouldn't mind too much.

--

"Someone's tired," Alison observed as Fabian yawned for probably the fourth time, and she protested as he pulled away from her, suggesting that she do her homework. Instead of complying she leaned in and kissed him once again, curling up against his side and shutting her eyes. 

"I'm tired, too. I can't look at Calculus anymore," she argued, relaxing against his side. She hadn't planned on staying here with him, but exhaustion drew her in and she found herself dozing off in his arms. Screw plans; she was perfectly content here. She fell asleep quickly, dreamlessly.

A while later a cell phone rang, but Alison just shifted and tightened her grip around Fabian's waist, fast asleep. It rang again, buzzing within her jacket, which she'd unceremoniously discarded on the floor earlier. 

"Call from: Unknown," proclaimed the phone, buzzing insistently.

Salone melted into the kiss, the thing about her is she was rather easily kissed. A thing she had discovered when Riley did display his affection towards her. The Daughter of Anubis’ insides went all funny and her knees got weak… oh well.

She sighed contentedly as he went to call Alison, only to see his facial expression at Fabian picking up.
**

Fabian smiled slightly before curling up comfortably around Alison and pulling her to his chest. In return her arms wrapped around him and her ear was pressed against his chest. He suspected she could hear the steady thump of his heart. Her hair tickled against his bare chest and he ran his fingers over her arms until he drifted off once more as well.

RING! RING!

Fabian’s eyes snapped open and Alison stirred faintly only to snuggle into him. The cellphone in her jacket vibrated. Reaching over with a long arm he answered the pesky little device.

“Hello?” He asked, poking Alison awake. His voice sounded faintly groggy and low as he had just woken up.

Riley instantly knew something was up when- a man's voice answered Alison's phone? 

"...hello?" Riley asked. "I think I have-"

Riley checked his phone's screen. Alison, it read, and he'd used this contact for her before. This had to be the right number. 


Then it clicked. That voice.

"Fabian?" asked Riley incredulously. "Why do you have my sister's phone? And why does it sound like- oh gods, have you been sleeping with her?" Riley's voice rose, a protective edge to his tone. He couldn't believe it. His sister couldn't be sleeping with Fabian... that animal. Even though he'd changed, Riley still didn't trust him. How could he?

Alison stirred at the sound of Riley's voice through the receiver, and as she opened her eyes and processed the situation she snatched the phone away from Fabian, cradling it to her ear. 

"Hello, Riley," she spoke groggily, groaning slightly. She leaned into Fabian still, her body tensing with nerves. Of all of the times he could have called her...

"Alison, what the hell-?"

"Why are you calling me at 11:30 at night? For the record, I'm not sleeping with him, Riley. I mean, I am but- I fell asleep. He didn't want to move me."

"Well, that's good, at least I don't have to worry about you being pregnant like Salone-"

"Wait, what-?"

"Why are you with him, anyway? Didn't I tell you that he was dangerous? Don't you know what he did to Sa-"

Riley's body tensed as Salone pried the phone from his fingers, handling it carefully as she met his eyes.

"At least I don't have to worry about you being pregnant, like Salone." Oh gods, had he screwed up.

While being yelled at, Fabian’s face had remained neutral. He had learned long ago that letting people yell until they ran out of steam before explaining what had actually happened was a good idea. However, Alison had none of it, snatching the phone out of his hand. Then his sensitive ears picked up every word said, it wasn’t that hard. "At least I don't have to worry about you being pregnant, like Salone." Fabian stiffened in surprise and he exchanged looks with Alison before Riley was abruptly cut off.

Salone stiffened against Riley, the way he had said that. They knew what could have happened but they took the risks. Quickly and calmly she took the phone from Riley, shifting out of his reach and standing.

“Hey Alison, your brother is on time out. Can I talk to Fabian please?”

After being passed the phone Fabian asked tiredly, “What did he mean Salone?”

Salone sighed, “I found out that I am pregnant just this morning. Now tell me what happened.”
Fabian gave the watered down version, how he was exhausted and the prank the Hermes child had played. Alison coming to get help on Calculus and she had fallen asleep on his bed.

“Did anything happen Fabian?” Salone asked calmly, very aware of Riley’s attention on her and the silver phone in her hand.

“… I kissed her.”

Salone’s eyebrows shot up into her hairline but her back was to Riley so he couldn’t see her face. “I see.” Was all she responded. Fabian had gone to her with his frustrations about Alison a few days ago. Salone had simply responded with telling him to do what he felt was right.

“Thanks Fabian,” With that she hung up, before turning to Riley with a stony expression. “The thing about humans is that we have a choice. Even if it’s a stupid choice. Alison already knows, I as well as Fabian talked to her about it. Now, I’m going to bed.”

Salone stalked out of the room and slid into the blankets, her hand resting over her stomach as her mind churned with her thoughts.

**

Fabian sat there stunned for a few moments  before handing Alison back her phone.
“Well,” He said dryly. “Guess you’re going to be an aunt.”

The son of Bast waited a few moments for that to sink in, before wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her in. pressing his forehead to Alison’s shoulder.


“I’m sorry,” He stated. True enough he had nothing to apologies for but he was the cause of the problem and apologizing helped him feel better.

Riley watched anxiously as Salone spoke on the phone, his anger towards Fabian fading as he heard what the boy had to say and his concern towards Salone growing as he saw the expression on her face. No- he hadn't meant- but the intention was there. She hung up, thrusting the phone toward him. He just barely managed to take it before she stalked away. It was clear that she was hurt, but Riley felt helpless. He couldn't say that he hadn't meant what he had said, because he had. But he loved Salone, and he would do anything to protect her and their child. And the reason why he was concerned was because he had no idea how he was going to protect the both of them. They'd been lucky, so far, but if he was to be honest with himself he was scared out of his mind at the idea of being a parent. Salone was too, and the last thing she needed was to see him reduced to a blubbering mess when she already had enough to worry about. She was right about Alison, too. His sister had to make her own decisions, regardless of how intelligent those decisions may be. Sighing, Riley resolved to wait until the morning, when they were both in a better state (hopefully), to explain himself, and he settled for watching TV for a couple hours more until he could tell that Salone had fallen asleep. He made his way to bed, careful not to disrupt her, leaving her be on her side of the mattress.

In the morning, he was on his best I'm-sorry behavior, concocting a fancy breakfast made up of banana-nutella pancakes with mugs of hot chocolate and, of course, a side of bacon. He wasn't sure how much she'd eat, given her stomach discomfort the past few days, but he hoped for the best.

--

Alison pocketed her phone, staring into space as she processed what had just happened.

What had just happened?

She felt a twinge of anger toward Riley at his anger toward Fabian and his protectiveness over her, but honestly, it was granted. She understood why he was the way he was. And the fact that Salone was pregnant, on top of it... he was probably a mess. Alison almost felt bad for Salone. At the thought she laughed, drawn from her reverie and back into Fabian's embrace. He apologized to her, and she kissed his jaw.

"You're funny. None of this is your fault," she whispered, prodding his ribs gently and smiling. "Riley is just concerned, but you know how he is. He's scared. He doesn't have that much family, and he doesn't trust you. But I trust you, and so does Salone, which says a lot. And that's all that really matters," she spoke softly meeting his eyes.

"Poor Riley. The guy's all over the place."

Salone woke up the next morning and rolled over, seeing Riley was gone. A pang hit her in the stomach. Had he left her? Again? Like everyone she had trusted? But then she smelled cooking food, her brain aligning to the idea Riley was making food. Then Salone promptly felt queasy, she bolted out of bed and into the bathroom. Turning on the faucet as she went and became friends with the toilet, and from then on this is how her mornings began, Being one with toilet and then going to work, after eating a bit. Luckily for her it was only in the morning and not all day like most people. Riley just stood there helpless or rubbing her back; looking slightly green himself.  He was forgiven soon after as soon as Salone saw the bacon.

That was how the next few weeks were, a whirl of power naps, nuttella and homemade French fries. Salone found herself standing in front of the mirror, staring hard at a bump in her belly. It seemed rather larger that it should have been… Danni noticed it as well when she was over.

“Well… either you’re gaining a lot of weight or there is more than one kid in there,” She stated one day, eating a nuttella shake.

Salone had shaken it off but the thought kept popping back into her head. Finally she sighed and dropped her shirt, looking for Riley.


“Hey, you ready to go?” She called. They were going to go visit his mom and spill the news. Riley and Salone had decided to wait before telling Sophie Peterson in case something happened. But now… it was getting harder and harder to hide.

(I edited up there^^ and tell me when you edit this one so I'll edit again. but idk if we have to, we can maybe curtail the ali/fabian posting for now since we're skipping around in time)

"As I'll ever be," replied Riley. He was completely oblivious, as per usual, to the fact that Salone's maternal bulge, at this point in her pregnancy, was unnaturally large. He just assumed that it was completely normal. Salone didn't mention it to him, and the thought never crossed his mind. 

"We should probably make a doctor's appointment soon, shouldn't we?" asked Riley as they exited their driveway, watching carefully for stray children. Their apartment complex had quite a few; young couples tended to inhabit their apartments for a bit before they found the funds to upgrade to a larger home. He was careful in bringing up the subject; he knew how much Salone hated hospitals. "I was talking to my mom the other day- I didn't tell her anything, I swear- and she was telling me how the maternity ward was pretty detached from the rest of the hospital. They don't need the babies- or the mothers, on that hand- getting sick, and it's just more peaceful," he explained, trying to sound vaguely optimistic. Deep down, he doubted it would be much better; spirits seemed to be able to get to Salone pretty easily, but he hoped that maybe it would be helpful. 

They made their way to his mom's house with little trouble; she hadn't seen them in a good three weeks, before she would have even been able to tell that Salone was pregnant. Today they were eating breakfast over; Salone didn't seem thrilled, being that she had been sicker than usual that morning, but such was life. She had seemed preoccupied on the ride there, and Riley glanced at her every couple minutes, concerned. "Well, let's get this over with," he joked, stepping out of the car and allowing her to get her own door, lest she get angry with him for trying to do it for her. 

Within nearly the first second Mrs. Peterson opened the door, she knew.

"Hi, kids-!" she spoke happily, but her eyes drifted knowingly to Salone's abdomen. She'd worn a rather form-fitting shirt, which wasn't helping, but it wasn't like they were keeping it a secret for so long. Her eyes widened, but she gestured for them to come inside anyway. Riley looked to Salone, who shot him a look as if to say "You're on your own, sucker." He couldn't help but shake his head, laughing slightly despite his nervousness. 

"So Mom, about you being too young to be a grandmother..."

Salone stiffened at the mention of the hospital, “Riley… people still die in that area. Children, mothers… and then it gets worse the more that die. I don’t think that will work... unless we find a freakishly brand new one. “She had been examining the issue as well. At this point it wasn’t looking good for the hospital idea with all the medications and pain relievers… The woman sighed and rested her head against the back of the seat.

“Soon I’m not going to be able to sit in the car,” Salone grumbled faintly as she slid out of her seat into the grass of Mrs. Peterson’s home. Within a few minutes the woman knew and Riley was still trying to spill the beans. She couldn’t help but snort and look at the ceiling.


“I believe that is what I told Riley when I tried to tell him.  Do you think your mom is still to young to be a grandma… Love him to death but sometimes he can be a little oblivious. Took him a couple of tries to realize what I was talking about. “ She reached over and took Riley’s hand to show she didn’t mean it in a harsh way, more of an affectionate form of teasing.

"Stooop," Riley spoke, embarrassed. He moved to swat at Salone but thought better of it, snagging her around the waist instead. In a moment; however, they were both overtaken by one Mrs. Peterson, who, having recovered from her shock, was overly excited about all of this. Sure, she thought they were a bit young, but there had been a time when she had doubted her son would live to see the age of 18. Now, he was married with a grandchild on the way, and he could handle himself. She was confident of that as she ushered the couple inside, towards the kitchen where she'd prepared her usual smorgasbord of food. As she released them she took in Salone's belly. It was strange, she looked as if she was maybe four, four and a half months pregnant- she hadn't seen them that long ago, had she? No, and even a few weeks ago she would have been showing. She could have gained weight, but it wouldn't all have centered there in her core as it did so perfectly at the moment. Twins. It had to be twins. As Mrs. Peterson's eyes met Salone's, she knew that there was something she wasn't sure about, but Riley showed no evidence of concern. She wasn't going to bring this up now. They ate, chatting optimistically, with Riley only claiming to have found out a few weeks before. It had to be.

At last, when she sent her son out on an errand to get ice cream, she turned to her daughter-in-law. "I couldn't bear to mention it in front of him, but this isn't just one child, is it?" the woman asked knowingly. "Have you seen anyone about this yet?"

Salone grinned at the red faced Riley, allowing him to reel her in and sliding her arms around his waist. However, it was easier said than done with the renter who had taken up in current position behind her navel. Then Sophie Peterson descended upon to two and began jabbering excitedly.  She asked about names, cute outfits, and having a boy vs a girl. But then Salone caught the question in her eyes and her fingers went to her stomach, a small little habit she had developed. The fabric was smooth but firm under her fingertips.

Several hours later after Sophie had set Riley on an ice cream run she turned to Salone… who knew the real questioning was about to begin.


“I honestly have no idea, I’ve never done this before or have dealt with pregnant women at all.” She was hesitant before spilling her hesitancy on going to find out officially. “I haven’t talked to anyone since well… hospitals and I don’t get along. You know how Riley turns old due to his father’s immortal behaviors? My father is Anubis and as a result I hear the dead making it very hard for me to go to a hospital or anything of that sort.” Salone sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “How big did you get with Riley ?”

She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully as she watched her mother in law.

((where is the step dad in all of this?))

Mrs. Peterson considered this thought. 

"I didn't get that big with Riley; actually, he was born a little bit early, at 6 pounds. God only knows how he got to be so large now," she said, smiling crookedly in the way a way similar to the way her son tended to. She considered Salone's plight before responding, meeting the girl's gaze.

"I know it's going to be hard for you, but you have to see someone. There are doctors who work outside of the hospital until birth, and you have options. If you're having twins you have to be careful, though. You could attempt a home birth or birth at a birthing center, but... just go to a doctor first. See what they say. It may be a single birth," said Mrs. Peterson, giving Salone an apologetic look. "I'll refer you to a doctor I know. He works in a separate office, and he's great," she promised.

At that moment, Riley came busting through the door, bags of ice cream in his arms. Upon finding his wife and mother deep in conversation, he raised an eyebrow. "Did I miss something?" Mrs. Peterson laughed.

"Don't worry, Riley, I was just telling Salone that I know an obstetrician in the area who works out of the hospital."

"An obst-what?"

"A baby doctor, Riley," his mother spoke, shaking her head and trying not to laugh.

Salone laughed with Sophie Peterson, what she had just said rattling around in her brain.

“Yeah, I think that would be a good option.” She agreed with her mother-in-law before arching an eyebrow at her husband. “Riley it’s a baby doctor; he deals with emotionally hormonal woman every day of the week and drama… most likely lots of it.” Salone smiled brightly before noticing the containers of ice cream. “Hand over the chocolate chip mint and I won’t dye the dog funny colors with kool-aid.”


Holding out her hands expectantly she confiscated the entire carton, kissed Riley on the cheek, and hunted around in the kitchen for a spoon. Upon returning she plopped herself down in her chair she had previously vacated and she offered a spoon to Sophie and Riley. Opening the ice cream and beginning the pregnant woman desert feast she casually told Riley that his socks were miss matched before rubbing her belly in small circles.

Riley sighed, settling down on the couch and pulling his wife in close to him, rolling his eyes as she teased him about his socks. Lately, she'd been on his case about pretty much everything, whether it be the fact that he'd changed his shampoo, to the fact that he'd worn a shirt she didn't like, to the fact that he didn't bring home her favorite cookies from the supermarket, even though they had only just become her favorites last week and she hadn't even told him about them. It was a little bit insane, but Riley had learned to tolerate her madness; after all, if he had another person growing inside of him he might be going a bit bonkers, too. He scooped out some ice cream for himself: cookies and cream, and made himself comfortable as they spent the rest of the day with his mother. 


The next few days took an unbearably long time, with Salone's morning sickness intensifying and Riley having to actually run out in the middle of the night to get her food that she was craving just so she could eat, because during the day she would forget about that in the midst of her illness. Riley managed to convince her to schedule a doctor's appointment, and by the time that day got there he was as jittery as a bunny rabbit on crack. They were going to see their baby today; they would know if it was a boy or a girl or an alien or if it was healthy- gods, Riley hoped it was healthy. He must have been driving Salone crazy with all the running around that morning; he'd done a bit of research and he was going on, lecturing her about how she had to be healthy for the baby and whatnot. 


"Did you know that if you eat citrus fruits your kids are supposed to be smarter?" he asked her as he cleaned up breakfast that morning, ready to hop right into the car and take off. In all truthfulness, he was nervous, but he would never tell Salone that. He shouldn't be nervous, it wasn't like he was the one carrying the baby, but he was. And it was a little bit ridiculous. 


(my post is a bit manic and it amuses me LOL)

Salone watched as Riley ran around like a mother hen trying to find car keys, while munching toast. This was one of the few days she wasn’t feeling like she was about to display her guts to the world.
“I happen to be addicted to oranges Riley, you know that.” She stated, looking amused. It was like they took turns being the pregnant woman. Generally it was Salone but today it was Riley, who was fussing over everything.

“Come here you,” Salone slid off the chair she had been sitting on and she took Riley’s hands, rubbed her fingers over his knuckles before moving his hands lower to rest on her stomach. The belly was smooth and round, firm underneath his fingers. 

“Riley, you are acting like a chicken, just a little bit. No need to be nervous. Just a routine checkup, at three months they won’t be able to tell if it’s a girl or a boy. Just making sure they are healthy.  No need to be nervous.”


Setting her hands on either side of his face, Salone stood on her toes and kissed him gently. A good Riley distraction she had discovered some time ago and she figured he could use a distraction right about now.  In the end she sat there, hugging Riley close with her head resting under her chin.

Riley hesitate but allowed Salone to take his hands. She met his eyes and his mind cleared, because it was just him and her in this together right now, with the baby between them, and there was nothing to worry about, really. His hands came to settle on her belly, and as she kissed him they slid around her torso, pressing a hand to the small of her back as she kissed him slowly and gently. After a few seconds he couldn't even think of a good reason why he'd been so worried, and he smiled like an idiot as they pulled apart and he held her to him, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. 

"Soon this kid's going to get in the way even more," Riley teased, tracing the curve of her baby bump with his fingers against the whim of a ticklish Salone. He kissed her again, but they both knew they had an appointment to be getting to and so they set off in the car towards the doctor's office.

“Our child,” Salone corrected gently, squirming slightly as Riley’s fingers traced the curve. The longer this pregnancy had gone on the more ticklish she had become, she wasn’t quite sure how that had happened. But occasionally, when they were sitting on the couch, Riley would trace the back of her neck and it would tickle horribly. Riley swore up and down that he didn’t find it funny but Salone totally could tell her was lying.

The car ride to the appointment was rather uneventful; Salone and Riley changed radio frequently and bickered over baby names. But as soon as they pulled up in front of the office Salone’s fingers started trembling in spite of her. Old memories resurfaced and she looked at Riley, feeling slightly anxious before she got out of the car, waiting for him before entering the building.

Quickly the woman running the front desk and the doctor had Salone situated in a room with an ultra sound machine. Pulling her shirt up to expose her belly; they smeared some gunk onto the round stomach and Salone bit her lip in anxiety and trying not to squirm.

Then the ultrasound began and before long the nurse had found a baby, curled up and with a fluttering heart. Then suddenly there were two more heartbeats, triplets.


Salone felt her jaw drop, they were having triplets. She looked up at Riley who was holding her hand throughout this entire experience.