"Welcome To My Nightmare"

Writers: Heather, Miriah
Date Posted: 15th July 2014

Characters: D'hol, Jeyme, Luthar
Description: D'hol and Jeyme's worst nightmare.
Location: Dolphin Cove Weyr
Date: month 8, day 2 of Turn 7

D'hol

Jeyme

D'hol reclined on the bed, one hand drifting over the swollen stomach
of his weyrmate. There was a sense of satisfaction in the man as he
caressed the taut flesh, but also a feeling of sublime contentment. He
felt at peace as he settled down to prop his head up on one hand. "I
don't think you've ever been more lovely, you know that?"

Jeyme's eyes cut sideways at her weyrmate, "And I think you are not a
good liar." There was the faintest lifting of the corners of her
mouth to soften her words as she placed her hand over his, a fierce
kick greeting them beneath their palms.

"I'm serious." He laughed softly at the kick, his hand tightening only
slightly on her abdomen. "I don't know what it is, but seeing you,
with my child..." He looked up at her with a warmth in his eyes that
he didn't often show as he bent to kiss the warm skin of her stomach.
"It's perfect."

Although she would never admit it outloud, Jeyme was a little afraid
of what their relationship would be like after the baby was born. She
had so enjoyed the way D'hol looked after her as she carried his child
but, what if all of that stopped the moment the baby was born?

She opened her mouth to speak but a gasp came out instead as she
winced. A contracting band of tightness rippled around her abdomen,
settling in her lower back. Out in the weyrcouch Quinneth bugled in
alarm.

D'hol reared back at the bugle. "What is it?" He rose up out of bed
immediately. "Contractions? Is it starting?" The bugle was wrong. They
should have been humming. Both Yumath and Quinneth should have been
humming; there shouldn't be any alarm to the sound. Dragons loved
birth. "We'll get you strapped in and..." He glanced around. "Where
are my straps? They aren't where I put them."

Jeyme exhaled slowly, pressing a hand to her swollen side, "Just calm
down, D'hol," she couldn't believe that she was telling her normally
stoic weyrmate to calm down, "I am sure Quinneth just became alarmed
because of the sudden contraction." The greenrider spoke evenly, even
as she closed her eyes against another strong contraction, "Just send
for the healers."

"Are you sure we don't need to take you there? The equipment is
there." He couldn't believe he was getting so frantic, but everything
had to go right. He exhaled, trying to calm down and moved to stand
near her bed. **Yumath, summon the healers. We need them here _now_.**
The bronze bugled in response, picking up on D'hol's nerves. He sent
his message and then resumed with a deep throated hum.

As the wetness between her legs increased, Jeyme tossed back the furs
and cursed. Was there suppose to be so much blood already? She looked
up at D'hol, her face pale, her eyes the only splashes of color as she
reached a hand out toward him.

"Don't leave me!"

A hoarse curse exploded out of D'hol's mouth and he dove for her hand
to hold it to his face. He stared at the growing pool of blood between
her legs and immediately bent to clutch her to him. "We have to go.
I'll get you to the healers. It'll be fine." He lifted, staggering
slightly under her limp weight. "Yumath! Call for someone! I'll not
leave you, Jeyme. I'm right here."

Jeyme clung to D'hol's neck. Halfway to the infirmary they were met by
healers who had been roused from their beds but Jeyme refused to let
go of her weyrmate. He was her anchor in this, she would drown without
him.

"Put her here." It was Luthar, a familiar face.

Healers moved about them in a whirl and suddenly Jeyme found herself
with her legs spread, her knees trembling as one of the apprentices
propped pillows behind her back. She felt dizzy, but closed her eyes
against it.

"Jeyme? Jeyme, push!"

Her eyes flew back open and she realized that Luthar was talking to
her. She clenched D'hol's hand in her own, drawing strength as she
pushed as Luthar demanded. Only it was like pushing against a wall.

"Shit. The baby's breeched." Luthar's lips pressed together in a thin line.

"Hold on, Jeyme." He whirled on Luthar. "Do something! Help them!" He
moved to sit behind her, propping her up with his own body to help
her. He kissed her cheek and her hair. "We can do this."

Luthar put both his hands together and pushed down on Jeyme's stomach,
his face a mask of concentration as he worked. Tears coursed down
Jeyme's cheeks as she leaned back against D'hol. Breeched! The baby
was breeched! She might lose the baby she had worked so hard to carry
for D'hol.

Another contraction stabbed its way through. It was becoming
increasingly more difficult to breath through the pain and she found
herself gasping for air.

Luthar was now working between her legs again, she could see the blood
on his forearms where he was working diligently to try and turn the
breeched baby. Everything around her seemed to be moving in slow
motion.

"D'hol." She gasped his name as another contraction hit, fingers
tightening around his hand.

His arms were tight around her, watching with growing desperation. He
felt hopeless and powerless and completely out of control. "It'll be
okay. It'll be okay." He repeated it over and over into Jeyme's ear.
"I'm not going anywhere, Jeyme. I'm right here."

Jeyme knew, she could tell by the looking on Luthar's face, and then
she heard the words being whispered by one of the healer's, "We're
losing them."

Tear streaks stained Jeyme's face, sweat had soaked through the white
gown that she wore, now hemmed in red from all of the blood. She felt
lightheaded, and she had to keep blinking rapidly to make her eyes
focus. Dark shadows crept into her vision, making it more and more
difficult as she looked over her shoulder and into her weyrmate's
eyes.

"I'm sorry." Her lips trembled with the effort it took to form the
words. She had tried her best to give him a son. As another
contraction made her body convulse she collapsed against him.

Luthar watched in despair as the greenrider's head lolled on the
bronzerider's shoulder. The healer hung his head in his hands as he
whispered, "The baby's gone."

"And the mother." Outside Quinneth bugled in despair before going /between/.

"No!!! No!!"

*********

Last updated on the July 28th 2014

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

"Welcome To My Nightmare"