Chapter 25
Sigurd
Avery has been pregnant for at least four months now.
She’s currently at the doctor’s office. Erik took her.
Ivar and I are at the farm, waiting for them to return.
Every moment that passes fills me with more worry.
Not because there’s any danger, or anything to worry about.
I just hate being away from her. Hate not having her in my arms. Hate not being able to hear our child’s heartbeat.
“I wish they’d hurry up,” Ivar sighs. “Something’s not right.”
“I know, brother,” I says, pacing as I watch the horizon for Erik’s truck.
With our enhanced hearing, we picked up something that concerned us a few days ago. I was returning from a run, and our baby’s heartbeat was unusual. Too fast. Erik said he’d noticed it too, not just the speed, but the way it was more pronounced.
“I keep telling myself it just means the baby is strong,” Ivar says. “But I know that’s not it.”
“She’s certainly showing more than the women from Midgard usually did by this point,” I growl. “But we could have the timeline wrong. She could have been pregnant longer than we think.”
“It’s definitely possible. Hopefully we’ll know more when they get back,” Ivar says.
“I see Erik’s truck,” I announce, stomping to the front door.
Ivar is right behind me. Erik pulls the truck close to the house, but we don’t wait for them to get out. Ivar and I rush down the steps and open the passenger side door so we can help Avery get out.
“What did the doctor say?” Ivar asks before I get a chance.
“Good news… but scary news,” Erik tells us. “The reason the heartbeat is off is because it’s not just one heartbeat. It’s three.”
“What the fuck?” I exclaim. “That’s not possible. Multiple children at the same time? We’re wolves, yes, but our women don’t have litters.”
“That could be my fault,” Avery whimpers, holding her stomach as we help her out of the truck. “Twins and triplets aren’t common on Earth, but they still happen. Some women had even more babies than that… but that usually required some kind of fertility treatment.”
“Our legends mention twins and even triplets, but I thought that was all myth, or something that only occurred when the gods walked amongst us,” Erik says, getting out of the truck and hurrying around to assist. “Another legend that we’re learning is true, I suppose. Hell, maybe they all are.”
“I’m not ready to believe that, but three children? That’s a blessing from the gods if there ever was one,” I say, excitement in my voice. “Come on, mate. If you’re carrying three babies, you need to be pampered even more than normal.”
“I’m not going to argue with you right now.” Avery grimaces as we help her up the steps. “The doctor wasn’t able to tell me how far along I am, but I’m feeling it. At least now I know it’s not just in my head.”
“We made arrangements with the doctor so the babies can be born at New Egypt General Hospital,” Erik says once we’re inside. “I was planning to arrange it, even if there was only one, but now there’s three. This pregnancy will be risky. The delivery will be even riskier.”
Ivar and I get Avery settled on the couch.
Erik pours a glass of water and brings it to her.
She’s parched, because she downs almost the entire glass before she stops drinking.
Ivar moves to rub her feet and legs, so I put a hand on her belly, feeling our future growing just for a moment before I start massaging her shoulders.
“How am I going to be a mom to three babies?” Avery groans, leaning her head against me. “I’ve never taken care of a baby. I’ve never even changed a diaper!”
“We’ll help you, mate. We’re not going to abandon you just because you give birth. You’ll need time to recover, and we’ll care for the children while you do,” I say. “And once we’re back on Midgard, things will be even better. The other royal families will pitch in, even if they aren’t your mates.”
“He’s right,” Ivar adds. “We’ve always taken good care of our children. That won’t change.”
“I don’t feel prepared for this at all,” she moans. “I’ve read every book Erik could find about giving birth and being a mom. Unfortunately, they’re pretty outdated by the standards I’m used to. One of them even said the best way to relax while pregnant is to drink wine!”
“Not on my watch,” I say firmly. “Alcohol is not good for babies. They need to be at least five years old before they start drinking ale. And only with dinner for the first few years.”
“Uh, no,” Avery scoffs. “My kids aren’t going to be drinking when they’re that young. On Earth you had to be twenty-one to buy alcohol.”
“Twenty-one months?” I raise a brow.
“Years,” Avery giggles. “Not that I made it that far, but we have to be reasonable… eighteen, maybe.”
“I think that’s a fair compromise,” Ivar says, and I shoot him a wide-eyed glare.
“Customs change. We’re learning that legends are real.
We have our ways, but we must consider that our ways aren’t necessarily the best. Our ways almost led us to extinction.
If we hadn’t raided that planet, we would have never brought the plague back to Midgard. ”
“Fine, yeah,” I relent, muttering under my breath. “But the Intergalactic Alliance could have helped. We have to make sure future generations never need their help to survive a virus.”
“Agreed,” Erik says, kissing our mate’s toes as he massages her feet. “I have some news to share. I got the communication system back online last night. I should be able to contact Midgard.”
“And you’re just now telling us?” Ivar’s jaw drops.
“Well, our mate.” Erik gestures to Avery. “I’ve been worried about her, and I wanted to tell everyone at the same time.”
“But even if you can contact them, they can’t send help, right?” Avery asks.
“No,” Erik sighs. “The one ship we left wouldn’t get this far. It would be too risky, even if it could, because it doesn’t have any defense systems. It’s a transport I rigged to get us between planets in our solar system.”
“But we can share the good news!” I roar, squeezing Avery’s shoulders. “We’re alive. We’ve found our mate. We’re bringing three babies back to Midgard with us.”
“If everyone is in agreement, I’ll send the message,” Erik says, standing up. Ivar takes his place, but sits on the arm of the couch, facing our mate.
“I am,” Ivar says.
“Me too,” I confirm.
“Avery?” Erik asks, looking at her.
“Oh, I get a say?” Her eyes widen and she swallows hard. “Yeah, I mean, if you guys think that’s the best message to send. Sure.”
“I’ll return shortly.” Erik opens the door and steps outside.
“This calls for a celebration. I think I’ll prepare a feast,” I say, kissing Avery’s neck before standing up and walking toward the kitchen.
“You’re going to cook?” Ivar questions dryly.
“I know how, brother,” I reply. “It’s been a while, but I won’t burn the steaks.”
“Do I get to spank you if you do?” Avery asks teasingly, then she whimpers and holds her stomach.
“The babies said no,” I growl, winking at her before stepping into the kitchen.
I guess now wouldn’t be a good time to tell her about the Celebration Spankings some women on Midgard used to get. Usually when we had a feast. If there were no volunteers, a woman would be chosen. Sometimes, we had more than one volunteer.
Avery will be spared this time, of course, but a woman normally gets her ass spanked nice and red in honor of Fenrir disciplining his giantess bride. If all the other legends are true, that one might be, too.
Once I’m in the kitchen, I pour myself a nice big mug of ale from the batch Ivar brewed.
It’s not quite like home, but close enough.
After I down nearly half of it, I pull out the meat and start preparing it for the feast. We’ll eat well tonight.
Celebrating triplets. Celebrating getting the communication system back online.
Yes, we’ve got much to thank the gods for, and a feast is how we do it.
“Me, a father. I guess that’s sinking in now,” I mutter to myself while I work. “Three babies means we’ll all be busy taking care of them. There won’t be as many hunts. Less time to let our wolves run free.”
But I wouldn’t trade it for anything else.
This feeling in my chest, like a warmth.
I’ve never felt more connected to my wolf.
Never felt more connected to a woman. I love her.
She means everything to me. I should probably tell her that more than I do.
Maybe the next time I’m alleviating those pregnancy hormones by pounding her into the mattress.
Erik returns, and I pause what I’m doing to walk to the doorway of the living room.
“Was the message sent? Did you get a response?” I ask.
“Yes, to both,” Erik says, excitement in his eyes. “They thought the mission failed and we were dead. They were almost ready to give up entirely. We gave them hope.”
“More than hope,” Ivar says, gesturing to Avery. “A future.”
“We have to get home first,” Erik sighs. “Some of the other royal brats have been tinkering with what we left behind, but they haven’t even built another ship. Joar and Gjermund are trying. The one we left is damaged and now needs repairs.”
“Fuck,” Ivar mutters. “Joar’s capable. Not sure about Gjermund. Well, we’ll get home. One day. At least now they know we’re doing everything we can and we’ll be bringing something precious back with us.”
“They are a little disappointed we didn’t find mates for all of the royal families,” Erik says. “I explained what happened, but… yeah.”
“We can’t solve that problem today,” I rumble. “I’m preparing a feast. We should have had one to honor the pregnancy, but we’re going to let this opportunity pass us by.”
“Been a while since you’ve prepared a feast,” Erik chuckles. “Last one I remember was before the plague.”
“Hasn’t been much to celebrate since then,” I grunt, turning away. “But that’s changing every single day. We’ll thank the gods for their blessings, like we were raised to do. Somebody go round up some chickens, would you?”
“Not Benny!” Avery says. “The one with the lopsided toe. He’s my favorite.”
“Benny will be spared,” I laugh under my breath.
I return to the kitchen and continue preparing the meat on the counter. It will be a grand feast. There won’t be a Celebration Spanking, but there’s plenty of other traditions we can uphold. She’s pregnant, not dead.
And I’ll be tasting her sweet honey for dessert, just as soon as the feast is over.