Finally Found

Chapter 29 - Kor

"We've got another letter." Bel informs me practically buzzing with excitement as he enter our tent waving the letter around. Not wasting anymore time he sits himself down in my lap and opens the letter so that we can both see it, chances are he'll read it aloud anyway but it's comforting seeing Lilas's handwriting.

I'd hoped that since we'd stopped near a town so that we could send our latest report back to Hadlau that there'd be a letter waiting for us. We've steadily been writing a letter but won't send it until we've read this letter and added to our own. I close my eyes listening to Bel read the letter imagining Lilas and Emmy here with us telling us about their day. Then Bel stutters and goes silent.

"Bel?" I question opening my eyes trying to find out what's wrong with him. Nothing seems wrong so I start reading the letter maybe something's happened to Lilas or Emmy. Just like Bel did I freeze staring at the word that's changed everything.

"Pregnant. Emmy's pregnant." Bel breathes out just as shocked as I am. We've all thought about this happening but imagined it being many years into the future, not so soon after we've started having sex. And certainly not when we aren't even there and might not be for months maybe even a few years depending on how things turn out. "Gods, we won't be there."

The knowledge that we're not going to be there for the pregnancy weighs heavily on both me and Bel as we sit there absorbing the news. Biologically this baby could only be mine or Lilas, with the odds slightly more in my favour, but we'll all love the child equally and all be counted as parents. It will give me and Bel something more to fight for so that our baby can be born in a safe world.

"Fight. Win. Home, to Emmy, Lilas and the baby." I grunt out drawing Bel out of his own thoughts as he nods in agreement. Turning slightly Bel grins at me before leaning closer giving me a deep kiss which progress quickly after Bel pulls away briefly to re-arrange himself so that he can move closer to me. When we finally run out of breath and break apart we're both grinning and full of joy, this is the best news we've had in ages.

"We're going to be dads." Bel says amazed as though it's only just occurred to him. I nod in confirmation watching the happiness shining in his eyes which he can no doubt see in mine as well. Getting up we go and finish off our letter detailing our response to the news although it could be a few weeks before they get the letter so who knows what changes might have happened by the time they get it.

"Come on, time for bed." I tell Bel as we finish off the letter and seal it. In the morning one of us will ride back to the town to send it, a messenger will be going there with the latest report but we prefer to send it ourselves rather than trusting it to a messenger even though they're going to the same place.

Changing quickly we climb into bed holding each other close. In my arms Bel keeps talking quietly about the baby, will it be a boy or girl, who will they look like, what will they be like. On and on he poses endless possibilities as he drifts off to sleep. I follow soon after my own mind filled with the images Bel's painted of our future child. Personally I hope that the baby gets Emmy's hair colour although maybe not her hairs tendency to go everywhere and tangle in ways I didn't know were possible.

"- doing here?" I hear Bel ask as I find myself in a place that neither Lilas nor I have been in a few thousand years. "Actually where is here?"

"The Gods palace. Where they created the Stones." I inform him drawing their attention to me. This shouldn't be possible; I remember falling asleep with Bel and I have no idea how this is even happening. Dream-sharing is incredibly rare magic that I haven't experienced since the Gods left so how is this happening and why.

"Kor? Bel?" Kitten says just as confused as the rest of us but happy at the same time. Running over Bel pulls her into a hug glad to see her even if it is only in a dream.