The Most Precious Gift (Part 2)

Writers: Clancey, Emma
Date Posted: 7th February 2008

Characters: Mai, K'reyel
Description: Mai goes for a checkup a sevenday after her fall and gets unwelcome news.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 8, day 6 of Turn 4

K'reyel

Waddling about their weyr made her feel calm and normal, and if she moved slowly enough, she could manage to stay on her feet for a few candlemarks at a time. She thought that might be alright... she hoped. She wasn't ready to just lie back in bed and let K'reyel take care of everything; Faranth knew what would happen then! She smiled to herself, though, and knew that even if she had to take to her bed, her weyrmate would manage just fine.

Tero bustled around her, scolding her in his cheeps and chirps. He plainly thought that egg-heavy females should be still.

She laid out their dinner in the midst of this very comforting feeling of 'home', and smiled as she heard Erdenth landing outside, bugling a greeting on the tails of K'reyel's. He would know she had been to the Healers today for a sevenday checkup after her fall, and would certainly want to know what they had said.

It wasn't the best news; but it wasn't the worst either. She sighed, the smiled fading. No, not the best news.

"I'm here now." K'reyel walked into their weyr, his heavy riding jacket and gloves in his hands. A smile crossed his face, the special one for his weyrmate only. "You should rest," he said. "Sit down, I'll only be a moment hanging these up and cleaning up. Dinner won't get cold that quickly."

Her cheeks warmed at his smile, that special smile. Her heart always went an extra thump and she lit up like flame from a flamethrower when she spied that smile. "Hello, my love... and father to be..." Her own smile answered his and she went to him and kissed his cheek while he put up his jacket and gloves.

She made a face at him, but she did sit down on the couch. "I went for my checkup today..." She began, then faltered, her hands clasping and unclasping in her lap.

"And," he said. The question unspoken seemed to hang in the air. "The baby, everything is okay isn't it?"

She bit her lip briefly, then just dived right in to the explanation.
"Well, it could be better, they say. My body is.. " She reached for words, her agile Harper's tongue deserting her as she tried to explain the danger to her, and more importantly, to her baby. "..well, its not handling being pregnant very well. I am sick, they say, but that if I rest for the remainder of my time, that I might be alright. And the baby .. might.. be alright. He's small, you see, or so they think... " She gave up for a moment and looked down at her very rounded belly, though it looked as if she were only 5 to 6 months, not growing close to 8 months.

K'reyel studied her for a moment, "Are they sure, that you and the baby will be okay?"

She met his eyes bravely; he needed to know. "They're not sure, no. They say it might be Toxemia, though I don't have the swelling or weight gain.
They're wanting me to take extra precautions. That means no more teaching and as much bedrest as I can stand." She paused. "They aren't sure, of course, and until they are, they're treating me as if it was Toxemia."

"Toxemia?" He walked over to her, and sat next to her on the couch. His arm went around her, feeling that she needed to draw strength from him. "What exactly does that mean?"

She sank into his embrace gladly, breathing in the scent of him, and his strength. He was so strong, was her weyrmate. Finally, she leaned back a bit, and looked up at him. "They don't really know, exactly. They don't know what causes it - all they know are the symptoms, and that if its untreated, it can lead to convulsions. I'm no Healer, but I think if that happens either me or the baby could ...die." She choked on the last word.
She shook off her dark thoughts, and frowned a bit, then said logically, "I think its just general botherness about being pregnant and they don't know what else to call it."

The thought that he could lose either one of them was very sobering. "It won't happen. We'll do exactly as the healers tell us, and you, both of you will be fine." All he could do was hope that his words were reassuring to her. "I won't let it happen. I'm going to be there for both of you, and when our child arrives, I'll be the best father on Pern."

She lay both hands on his cheeks and looked at him for a long moment. "Oh, my love... you already are the best father on Pern." She kissed him gently, breathing in more of his sweet, simple strength. "K'reyel, listen to me... if anything happens, you must save the baby. Save the baby, alright?" Mai wasn't even sure things would ever progress that far into danger, but the Healers had said she should think about it.

He nodded, but he knew deep down that if it came to it he'd be telling the healers to do all they could for both of them. Both Mai and the child were too precious to him, he couldn't lose them. "It won't come to that, in a few sevendays time we'll be sat here laughing at the though as our child sleeps next to us."

"I hope you're right, love. I really do." She sighed deeply and leaned back against the couch. "We had better eat our dinner, hmm?" She had another thought as she started to get up. "Is one of the children's birthingdays coming up? I seem to think it is... "

"Reyela, she'll be twelve next month."

Mai nodded distractedly; her attempt at changing the subject hadn't helped much. Would their little weyrbrat make it to 12 turns? Would he make it to
1? She reached out a hand to him and smiled. "Will we be alright, K'reyel?
If you say it, I'll believe it."

"We'll be alright," he repeated like a mantra, "We'll be alright."

Last updated on the February 9th 2008

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The Most Precious Gift (Part 2)