Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Hey" Dew interrupted his own train of conversation when he realized that he was practically talking to himself. Rain was very much not listening, as Dew snapped his fingers in his face to try get his attention "my eyes are up here, yeah?"

"Hmm?" Rain hummed, very much not moving his line of sight.

"You can at least pretend to be listening to me, you know?"

"Your tits look fucking fantastic today" Rain finally looked up at Dew with a smirk.

"Oh really?" Dew said dryly "you like this shirt, then?" as he gestured to the tight black shirt he was wearing, assuming that's what had gotten Rain's attention as he looked down and realized that it was so tight that his nipples were definitely on display. Not that he cared.

"I'd like it more on the floor"

Dew chuckled "down boy. My chest feels kind of, sensitive today, I guess you could say?" Dew questioned his own words, not entirely sure himself what he was feeling. 

"Sensitive?" Rain questioned

"Well, you did give it a pounding last night. I think there are at least four bites marks that still haven't healed, all with very distinct Rain fang marks"

"Sorry. Did I go too far?"

Dew scoffed "fuck, no! You know just how I like it" he threw Rain a wink.

"Next time I'll bite my name into them. For everyone to see when they stare at your pretty tits"

"Oh, is that so?" Dew laughed.

"You alright, though? That's a bit weird"

"I don't know, sensitive might not the the right word. Don't know how to explain it, but think they might just need a break from your mouth"

"Aw. Well I can massage them for you if that would help, I'll even just use my hands" Rain offered

"You're so generous. I'll pass for now, we got work to do, remember?"

"You mean I can't just?" Rain waved his hand in a grabbing motion towards Dew's tit, which he slapped away with a laugh.

"I think we better get a bass in those hands, clearly we need something to keep them busy"

Rain laughed as he got up, giving Dew a quick kiss before he followed up with "you sure you're alright, though?"

"Yeah, I'm good" Dew reassured "bit tired" he told him honestly with a shrug. 

"You take it easy today, okay? And let me know if you need anything?"

"You don't got to worry about me, fishboy. I'm good"

"You're literally a walking hazard, Dew. Of course I have to worry about you"

"That's such an exaggeration" Dew insisted

"Okay, maybe. I'm still going to worry though"

Dew put his weird chest sensitivity down to just being a bit tired, as his whole body had been slightly achey lately. A bit of a late winter bug he couldn't seem to shake just making him feel slightly run down. That's what he told Rain when he questioned, who seemed to agree, noticing Dew looked just a little low on energy and wondered if he needed to check his iron levels again which had been a little unstable since his element change to fire. He was getting pretty pissed off when it had been going on for a month though, noticeably more irritable even for him when he was already known for his short fuse. And just like everything else he had been feeling, he put it down to the lingering bug that just wouldn't go away. Not that it was really bothering him too much as he went about each day, it was more just noticeable enough to annoy him. 

It was the third day in a row Dew felt nauseous when he tried to eat breakfast, his face screwed up as he smelt the bacon on his plate in front of him that smelt weirdly strong and off-putting. Usually, he would have devoured it in seconds and been first in line for more but today? He didn't even want to look at it, bile rising in his stomach as he pushed it away. Maybe the bacon Cirrus had used was a bit off he thought, yet questioned that when no one else at the table had any problem with it. 

Phantom was staring at him. He'd been doing that a lot lately, Dew noticed. And even a whole lot more this week. He had no clue why, sending him a questioning look across the table as Phantom's eyes darted away, yet only for a second before they were fixated firmly on Dew once more, an expression on his face that Dew hadn't seen from him before and one he couldn't read.

"Rain, I think your boyfriend's broken" Cirrus said with a laugh "if he's not demolishing my bacon, there's something wrong" she smacked the back of his head, Dew exaggerating falling forward with the force and an "ow", just to mess with her.

And then Phantom snarled, slamming his hands on the table as he jumped up with a snap of his fangs, a low growl rumbling in his throat as the room immediately fell quiet for a moment.

"Woah"

"Hey"

"What the fuck?"

"Phant -"

Everyone started at once as Rain reached out to the ghoul cautiously "it's okay, dude. C'mon" he guided him back down to his seat as Phantom glared in Dew's direction, still growling under his breath as every other ghoul was just frozen in place, confused by what had just happened. Rain shot Dew a questioning look and a shrug, unsure what caused that outburst that was seemingly to do with him. 

Dew, however, sat in silence, probably the most shocked of all by Phantom's actions. He suddenly remembered an offhanded comment from Aether years before and something in his mind clicked with how he had been feeling.

Fuck.

He left breakfast before too long, almost bolting out the room as his mind was racing. Rain easily caught up to him in the hallway, slinging an arm around him and pulling him back into him as he wrapped the tip of his tail around Dew's "I better be careful now. One wrong move and Phantom might rip my head off"

Dew scoffed "I'm sure he'd be thrilled to hear about how just last night you fucked me so hard I think my uterus moved up into my throat"

Rain smirked "you've set me a new challenge. You okay though?" he asked offhandedly, casually.

"Sore. You rearranged my organs last night, again" Dew emphasized jokingly.

"Like that's anything new" Rain said with a shrug "no seriously, though. Are you okay?"

Dew looked up to the taller ghoul who couldn't hide the concern in his eyes as he reached up and scratched the base of his horn, a gentle sign of affection. "Yeah, Raincloud. I'm good. What's got you worried?"

"Nothing" Rain shook his head "you're just quiet this morning. Didn't eat much, again"

Dew smiled at him in an attempt to reassure him "I think I've eaten so much bacon in my life I've become part bacon. That's like, cannibalism if I eat it now"

"The fuck are you on about? Like that would deter you"

"I'm fine, I promise. I think I've gone off it a little bit, I'll go get some fruit soon. I feel like some watermelon more than bacon this morning"

"Promise? Pinky promise?" Dew locked his pinky with Rain's before leaning up to kiss his cheek "pinky swear"

He had to go talk to Aether, he knew Rain wasn't convinced. That damn ghoul knew him better than he knew himself, he wouldn't be able to hold off Rain's growing concern much longer.

"What are you up to today?" he asked Rain casually as they got back to their room, hoping he would say he was super busy and would be out of his way for the next few hours. Just until Dew was sure. 

He was, in fact, in luck "promised Papa, fuck, Copia, I'd help him with some paperwork regarding the handover to the new Papa" he groaned "but I'm regretting it now, Cirrus and I will be stuck there for hours today. It was meant to be just a few pages! But now its more and more and more" Rain rolled his head, exaggerating his movement with a whine.

"Why don't you get some of the others to help you?"

"He needs ghouls that can read, Dew" Rain stated jokingly "so you won't be much help"

Dew scoffed, but he'd readily admit that Rain and Cirrus definitely were the best to help with those boring tasks, probably the only ghouls besides Aether with an attention span long enough to actually be any use. And he needed Aether for other things today.

"Well, you have fun with that. I'm going to break some strings, have some fun figuring out some new songs" Dew said with a wink, turning to get on with his day.

"Hey" Rain stopped him, reaching out and grabbing his hand, turning Dew back to face him "you sure you're okay?"

"Your concern for me is so sweet, sweet cheeks" Dew grabbed Rain's face, pinching his cheeks with his thumbs and forefingers as Rain rolled his eyes "I'm good"

"Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting for you to appreciate my cheekbones?" Rain said sarcastically.

"I was talking about your ass" Dew stated plainly as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "And don't I compliment your beautiful face structure enough?"

Rain just laughed and grabbed Dew and pulled him in to kiss him, to which Dew pushed back "ew. No. You have bacon breath, fishstick. Go brush your teeth"

"That's not a thing" Rain insisted, pulling Dew closer, easily able to overpower the small ghoul especially when he wasn't really fighting him, and planting kisses all over his face.

"Is. So. A. Thing" Dew struggled as he squirmed against Rain "Go!" Rain laughed, releasing Dew and turning towards their bathroom.

"You see, now that is an ass" Dew says with a laugh, moving to slap said ass with a holler "those are some sweet cheeks. Hate to see her go, but satan, I love to watch her leave"

"I'll see you later, dickhead" Rain laughed "I love you"

"Have fun with your paperwork. Text me if you need to be saved, I'll burn the place down or something"

"Threatening to commit arson before 9am?" Rain called out from the bathroom.

"Anything for you, sweet cheeks" Dew called back "I love you, see ya later" he yelled out as he left, closing the door behind him with probably a little too much force.

He took a deep breath, his nerves rising. The nausea hitting him once more. He had to go see Aether, heading to the infirmary where the quintessence ghoul worked.

A sibling of sin was at the desk, working on some admin. She greeted Dew as he came in.

"Can I see Aether?" he asked, probably a bit bluntly but right now he wasn't in the mood for small talk. He was scared shitless, actually.

"Do you have an appointment?" she asked, returning his blunt tone. Dew felt his anger rise, that irritability he had been feeling ever stronger kicking in as he forced himself to hold his tongue. He doesn't need an appointment to see his fucking friend, his packmate. He would have cornered him at breakfast that morning, preferring to meet him outside of this setting but once again, Aether had been at work before the rest of them woke up. He'd been working long hours, lately. 

Thankfully, Aether must have heard him before he had the chance to respond, appearing from a back office "He doesn't need one, Mia. I got time"

Dew was relieved, following Aether as he gestured him towards his office.

This infirmary didn't hold good memories for him. The days spent here recovering after the unexpectedly brutal change. The night spent here after the loss of his son.

It had been well over a year since Dew lost River. Him and Rain had been a lot more careful, fully understanding the risks now. Although, he would be the first to admit that over the past few months that had been.... slacking.

"How can I help, Dew?" Aether asked as Dew sat down with a sigh. He didn't even look at him at first, swinging his leg and fiddling with his fingers absentmindedly.

"I remember you told me once that, uh" Dew started, it all felt too real now. If he finds out for sure, that changes everything. He wondered if it would just be easier to not find out. To not make it real. But then he thought about how hard that was last time when it went wrong and he saw Aether's waiting eyes as he gathered the courage to continue. "That quints can tell. When someone's......" he trailed off, not sure how to even say it.

"When someone's what?" Aether leaned over to put a hand over his, stopping his fingers fiddling.

"Carrying"

Aether looked at him calmly. No judgement or shock or anything like that. He knew all too well about what Dew had been through before.

"You think you could be pregnant?" to which Dew just nodded, not even saying it out loud. 

"Tell me what's been happening"

"Well, it hasn't been too much but lots of little things, you know? I've been kind of tired lately. I thought I was a bit under the weather and just couldn't quite kick it. And my chest has been a bit sensitive and my body a bit sore, I guess" Dew chewed on his lip, trying to find the right words as he continued "but it's only really been this week that I've really noticed it. I've been a bit nauseous this week and it's been getting worse over the past few days. Even bacon - you know how much I love bacon! It's been making me feel sick"

"So you think you're pregnant, because you don't feel like bacon?" Aether asked lightheartedly.

Dew rolled his eyes "well, when you say it like that it sounds.... But no. That's not just it."

Aether nodded at him, an encouragement to continue "It's also Phantom. He's been weird. The way he's been staring at me is unusual even for him, and this week it's been like, intense. And this morning at breakfast, Cirrus slapped me. Not really, just you know, playful banter like we do constantly. Nothing new, but fuck, Phantom snapped. I've never seen him like that, growling, snarling. He doesn't get angry, you know that, but fuck it looked like he would have torn her throat out"

Aether's face was surprised at that, to say the least "yeah, that ghoul doesn't have an angry bone in his body. Let me have a look. Is it okay if I?" he reached out towards Dew's abdomen to which Dew nodded, moving his arms out of the way as Aether placed his hands on him.

He was silent for what felt like forever, focusing. Dew chewed his lip with nerves before Aether sat back. "Yeah, you're right. You're carrying"

"Fuck" Dew immediately whispered, fingers pressed against his eyes, pinching them closed. Trying to will away tears, unsuccessfully. "Fuck!"

"It's okay, Dew. It's early still, very early"

"What if I lose it? Again? I don't think I can go through that again"

Aether rubbed his arm gently, knowing firsthand what Dew was afraid of. It wasn't the pregnancy itself, but losing a child so late as he did last time is traumatic in a way that he could never fully understand "but what if you don't?"

"Fuck!" Dew yelled again.

"You'll be okay, Dew. Everything feels fine at the moment. We'll do regular check ups, keep monitoring. I'll be here the whole time, okay? For anything you need. We can do some tests soon, we have good technology that can tell you a lot about how a pregnancy is progressing, plus with my quint - and clearly Phantom's as well - we'll be able to keep a close eye on everything"

Dew just nodded, silent tears still falling down his face that he wiped shakily with the back of his hand.

"I'll tell you what though, that kid is seriously sensitive. I couldn't tell until I really focused because it really is that early, but clearly he picked it up"

"How early?" Dew questioned

"I'd say a month, six weeks, maybe? For him to already sense it, he's strong" 

Dew thought about how he'd been feeling, how that timing definitely lined up with his so called 'lingering winter bug'. Damn. 

"I don't know if he actually knows" Dew thought about it. "I'm not sure, he hasn't said anything to me that makes me think he has any clue"

"I'd go talk to him. Either he does know, or he's sensing something that he doesn't yet understand. It'll be less confusing for him to know, maybe help stop him from ripping someone's throat out, or at the very least, ease up on the staring" he joked "if you're ready to tell him, of course. Plus, he's clearly already looking out for you both" 

"I'll talk to Rain first" Dew stood up "you mean it though? Everything feels okay?" Aether nodded

"Everything feels good. Obviously that doesn't mean it's not possible that something could go wrong, but it's a good start, okay? Talk to Rain, and we can all come up with a plan. But come in anytime you need, alright?"

Dew nodded, thanking Aether with a hug as he left, heading back to their room. He was scared shitless. He sat on their shared bed, he and Rain had replaced the last one after the loss of their son. The nightmares that followed Dew especially in the months after nearly caused them to move out of their room as much as they didn't want to, until Rain suggested getting a new bed as a last ditch effort. Neither of them expected that to change anything, but to Dew's relief they had began to subside. He knew it was a mental thing, nothing had actually really changed but it was good enough for him.

Dew lay back on said bed, hand on his lower stomach. "Don't you dare" he whispered "don't you dare join your brother. Stay with me, baby. Please. I need you to stay with me, okay? Think you can do that?"

He rubbed his hand across his stomach, talking to the life inside. It didn't matter how small it was at this point.

"I'll protect you, okay? I'll look after you. And your daddy will look after us, yeah? You don't need to worry about a thing. Just stay with us"

Tears slipped down Dew's cheeks, mourning for his son. Desperately wanting for the life inside him. Hopeful, but terrified. He clung onto the words Aether had told him, that everything was okay so far. He couldn't think much further than that just yet. He considered texting Rain, telling him to meet him there, that part of him just wanting to talk to him as soon as possible and have Rain's reassurance that everything would be okay. He was good like that. But Dew couldn't bring himself to just yet, sitting with the news for a bit longer, processing everything. 

He pulled out his phone and opened up google, typing in odds of miscarrying a pregnancy. He wasn't sure he actually wanted to know. 

Chapter Text

Dew's plans for that day disappeared as soon as Aether confirmed he was pregnant. He was almost afraid to move, scared that just one tiny wrong movement would cause something bad to happen. Again. He lay on the bed for the rest of the day, hand not leaving his lower stomach in an effort to convince his baby to hang in there. Not sure it would make any difference, yet not sure what else he could try.

He was about 9 pages deep into google, lying on his side scrolling his phone when Rain came in. Shit, he had been lying there for hours he realized.

"Fuck me, firefly, another minute longer and I would have taken you up on that arson offer. I think my brain's clocked out for the rest of the week" he joked with a groan as he walked in the room, shutting the door behind him before kicking his shoes off and just leaving them where they landed, a clear sign that Rain was fed up when he didn't bother to go and put them away in the wardrobe where they belonged. Something he nagged Dew about constantly who had a bad habit of leaving his shoes lying around (why should he bother putting them away when he was just going to get them out again the next day, he insisted), which Dew would have absolutely jumped at the chance to hand back to him was he in a better state of mind right now. A clear first sign to Rain that something wasn't right as he was waiting for a cheeky comment only to be met with silence. Rain stopped right in his tracks as he looked at Dew on the bed, the fire ghoul curled up on himself, looking even smaller than usual.

"Dew, my little nymph. What's wrong?" he came over in an instant, and Dew couldn't keep himself together anymore. The moment Rain sat on the bed, pulling the smaller ghoul into his lap, Dew just sobbed. "Alright, you're okay, I've got you" Rain reassured, rubbing his back, stroking his hair off his face and holding his mate close.

Rain didn't push sitting there whispering small nothings to his mate as he let Dew cry it out, the ghoul curling up against him and gripping onto Rain like his life depended on it. He eventually pulled him up so Dew was more sitting on his lap, embracing the ghoul as Dew buried his head into his neck, holding onto Rain as tightly as he could manage as his small frame trembled in his arms. Rain ran his hands up and down Dew's back with small promises that it would be okay, he's got him.

He was terrified to tell him. Not because of how he'd react to the news, the promises Rain made to him last time had been on his mind all day. He trusted his mate with his life, one thing he knew for sure amongst all this fear and uncertainty is that Rain will be there. But again, what if he lost it? The loss of his son was something Rain carried with him just as much as Dew every day of his life. He couldn't put him through that again. Maybe it was best if he didn't know, and then if something went wrong, he didn't have to suffer. He could protect Rain from that hurt again. He could make up some stupid excuse and keep playing it off as being under the weather and when something went wrong Rain wouldn't have any idea and therefore he wouldn't feel that same pain as last time. That was for the best, Dew decided.

"Baby" Rain's calming voice brought him back to him and the moment "whatever's going on, you can talk to me. We'll figure it out together, yeah? I've got you. Always"

Dew sighed, silent for a minute. No, he couldn't keep this from him. He needed him there with him through every step of this, finally pulling himself back from Rain's neck to look at him, concern written all over his face as he wiped a tear with his thumb and held his cool hand against Dew's red and slightly puffy cheek. Dew just leaned in to kiss him. Rain didn't protest, kissing his mate back gently but he didn't give Dew the chance to go any further, pulling back and resting his forehead against Dew's.

"You haven't been your usual self this week, Dew. I can see it, tell me what's going on. Let me help you" he pushed gently.

The words sat right on the edge of Dew's tongue. Afraid to say it. Once he told Rain there really was no going back, the ghoul looking up at him with that same concern but a look of love so strong that even Dew, ever the doubter, couldn't deny it was there.

He took a deep breath, willing his voice to sound brave and convincing. It didn't quite work out that way, barely able to manage above a whisper as he told him "I'm pregnant"

Rain was good in a crisis. Whether it be one of the nightmares that Dew was prone to, or Dew spiraling into his anxieties, whatever it was, whenever Dew was falling he never fell far, Rain always secure and calming and making sure Dew stayed afloat. Holding him steady and keeping him grounded in reality when Dew was prone to falling into the worst case scenarios that only his mind could muster.

But here, even he couldn't hide the shock from reaching his face. The fear. "What?"

"I'm pregnant, Rain" Dew whispered again "Aeth confirmed it. It's still early, he said. But he said everything feels okay so far"

Rain visibly reacted at that, his face calming and feeling like he could breathe again, exhaling deeply as he processed what Dew was telling him.

"Fuck" his voice was breathy, clearly in disbelief as he looked down Dew's body almost as if he was trying to understand. Dew chewed his lip waiting for Rain to continue talking, he could see the concern on his face and Dew felt that anxiety rise in his chest once again. What if Rain hadn't meant it? What if now that he was actually facing the reality of having a child with him he didn't want it? Or he didn't want Dew.

Rain didn't say anything for a few moments but the way he pulled Dew into his embrace, holding him in his strong and secure arms, protecting Dew from those worst case scenario thoughts that often sent him spiraling, kept Dew's mind quiet enough as Rain found his voice again "We'll figure this out together, I'll be right with you the whole time. I promise"

Dew breathed a sigh of relief against Rain's embrace, knowing that he meant it. One less worry, yet about about 36 weeks more worth still sitting on his shoulders, but he knew he wouldn't be facing them alone. 

Rain was quiet, deep in thought yet it wasn't a silence that concerned Dew. He'd sat with the news the entire day trying to come to terms with it, he understood Rain needed at least a few minutes to really process everything.

Rain thought about the conversation he had with Aether about year and a half prior. When he saw his son for the first time. "That explains Phantom this morning then" he considered.

Dew nodded with a small laugh "even Aeth was surprised when I explained what happened"

"You're really pregnant?" Rain asked again as he held his mate in his lap. Dew just nodded.

"Are you okay?" Rain followed up, gently running his thumb over Dew's lip where he was chewing it to stop him. Dew's fatal tell when he was nervous.

"I'm so fucking scared Rain" Dew finally admitted out loud "What if I lose it? What if they don't make it and we lose another child. I can't do that. I was just reading online and they said even sleeping on your left side increases the chance of a miscarriage. I sleep on my left side every damn night Rain! What if that's already -"

"Okay" Rain interrupted, seeing his mate was falling. Understanding he was going to have to hold them both above water through this. Not that that was hard, the moment he sees Dew panic he immediately slips into that 'protect his mate at all costs' mindset. "What we are not going to do is consult google. Any concerns and questions we have, we take to Aether, okay? That goes for both of us, yeah?"

Dew began to chew on his lip again "but what if -"

"If it would help we can switch sides?" Rain offered, seeing how he wasn't quite convinced, reaching his hand up once more to stop Dew toying with his lip. 

"Is that okay? I think I'm more likely to sleep on my right if you're on my right"

Rain laughed gently "that's fine. We can do that"

Dew fell silent again, his eyes welling with tears once more before he looked back at Rain "but what if I do lose it?" he whispered.

"I know that given what happened before it's easy for us to both expect the worst" Rain started '"but that doesn't mean it's going to be the worst outcome, yeah? I'll be here with you, the whole time. I know you're scared, fuck, I'm scared too, Dew. But we'll be okay. And baby will be okay"

"But what if they aren't?"

"Then we'll get through that together, too. No matter what. But Aether said it's all looking good so far, right?"

Dew nodded in response "but it's still really early. There's a long way to go"

"Let's just focus on one thing at a time. And right now you're okay, and baby's okay"

"That doesn't mean it will stay that way"

Rain sighed "no. But one day at a time, okay? And today, everything's good. Don't worry about tomorrow until tomorrow"

Rain took Dew's hand, kissing the back of it before placing it over his heart "I've got you. Both of you"

"But right now" Rain continued "it's probably best to try eat something. You haven't had much over the past few days, and would probably be good to have some nutri-"

"Baby wants fries" Dew interrupted, well, demanded.

"Well then baby gets fries. Let's go" Rain lifted Dew off his lap by his waist and placed him on the ground next to the bed with all too much ease before standing up himself and walking to the door, turning back when Dew stayed standing in place with a nod of 'come on'.

"Baby doesn't wanna walk" he demanded. Rain fought back a smile, trying to uphold an annoyed demeanor yet failing miserably.

"Piggy back or bridal style?" he offers, to which Dew just went and stood on their bed, waiting for Rain to stand in front of him before climbing onto his back, feeling Rain pull his legs around his waist as he buried his face into the back of his neck with a gentle love bite to his shoulder, scenting his mate.

"Are you going to be like this for the next 9 months?" he questioned.

"Oh yeah" Dew insisted, a smile on his face as he rested against Rain. And for the first time since he found out, Dew didn't feel like he was falling. He let himself enjoy the moment, as Rain carried him down the hall, offering him basically every food under the sun to which Dew shook his head or nodded to what he wanted with his fries. He let himself hope.

Dew sat on the edge of the counter where Rain had put him down, legs swinging just staring at said ghoul as he stirred some honey into some greek yogurt before offering Dew a mouthful with a small 'open up'. Dew sat back with a satisfied sigh "oh yeah, that's it."

Rain grinned at him, wiping a bit of yogurt from the corner of his mouth with his thumb before licking it off. "Hey, that's mine" Dew demanded, grabbing Rain's thumb and shoving it in his mouth. Right as Aurora, Cirrus, Haze and Mountain walked in.

"Fuck me, you two really can't go five minutes without starting something?" Cirrus said with a quizzical look towards the pair and the scene in front of her. Rain pulled his thumb from Dew's mouth with a laugh as Dew just shrugged.

"Hey, you started dinner already? Planning on making some for the rest of us?" Mountain questioned.

"I think I'll pass on the uh - dipping fries in yogurt for dinner. Thanks though" Haze said sarcastically, throwing a disgusted look in Dew's direction.

Dew smirked as he dipped another fry into his yogurt "good. I wasn't offering to share"

"You really didn't wait for us?" Aurora whined, to which Haze just asked her "you'd really wait for that?" 

"Doesn't that just make them go soggy?" Mountain questioned "that defeats the whole purpose of fries" 

"How is this any different to putting ketchup on them?" Dew defended.

"It's completely different. Ketchup is made to go with fries, that definitely isn't" Dew and Mountain began to argue over whether yogurt was the same as ketchup, Dew insisting it was basically ketchup without tomato and Mountain insisting that the tomato was the whole point as Aurora, petty as ever, interrupted with "sorry, you really went and made that just for Dew without thinking about the rest of us?" she demanded "I got my hopes up about not cooking"

"My baby wanted fries" Rain stated simply. Dew's smile dropped as he shot him a warning look, his heart in his throat, his stomach twisting. Rain just winked at him with a little smirk as he finished putting the last dishes away. Dew's panic faded instantly when Aurora followed up with "your baby deserves jail time for whatever the hell he's eating right now"

"You're a big ghoul, Rory. All of you are, yeah?" Rain said mockingly "you'll live if you make your own dinner. I'll have whatever you're having, though. Besides, this hardly counts as cooking dinner so I don't know why you got your hopes so high"

"The audacity of this bitch!" Cirrus exclaimed

"See! Even he thinks it's weird, Dew" Mountain insisted as Rain moved over to where Dew was sitting on the counter, simply picked him up and held him with an arm around his waist and another round his thighs as Dew wrapped his legs around Rain's waist and he held onto his 'dinner' and carried him to the couch, Dew not missing the chance to give the group the finger with a smug smirk.

Before long the rest of the pack filed in, lured by the smell of lasagna that Mountain and Aurora made for everyone, though not without a fair share of whining from the pair about how Rain got them excited at the idea at not having to cook and insisting he wasn't allowed any, to which he helped himself anyway.

Aether joined the pack for dinner for the first time in a few days, finally not caught up with his work. And Phantom. Just as he had the days before sat silently the whole time, his eyes fixated on Dew, unable to pull his gaze away from the fire ghoul, that same expression on his face that Dew still didn't quite understand, but made him think that Phantom didn't actually know himself why he couldn't tear his eyes away from Dew.

Dew nodded over to Aether, a see? look. To which Aether gave him a huh of agreement. It was the usual chaos as to be expected when they had a group meal, Phantom's silence noticeable as he was far too distracted by Dew to contribute to any conversation. The others noticed it as well, trying to snap Phantom out of it as he would join in for a second before firmly fixating on Dew once more. To Dew's relief, they all assumed it was a Phantom thing and not actually anything to do with him, though. 

Dew was glad for the chaos at that point, the pack far too distracted all talking about their day to notice Rain slowly offering Dew bites from his plate with gently encouragement to try eat to which he picked at bits and pieces, his stomach feeling unsettled, to say the least. He wasn't entirely sure at this point if it was nerves or nausea, likely a solid mix of both. Rain didn't miss it for a second, a hand on his thigh the entire meal, holding Dew steady with a silent reminder he was right by his side the whole time.

"You okay?" Rain checked in later that night as he got ready for bed, walking out of the bathroom with just his usual pair of sweatpants on looking at Dew who sat on their bed just waiting for him.

"Yeah" Dew said with a sigh "I think it's a little easier when I'm not, you know, thinking about it. Because then I just start thinking about what could go wrong. But also I can't bring myself to not think about it, you know?"

Rain nodded, taking Dew's face in his hands as he stood at the edge of the bed.

"One day at a time. I'll be right here with you, but right now I think the best thing you can do - for you, and for baby - is get some sleep, okay? We'll figure out tomorrow when it comes"

Rain crawled into their bed next to Dew, lying on his stomach as he looked over at him, holding a hand out to get his mate to join him. "Wait" Dew remembered "can we -"

"Oh shit yeah, of course" Dew stood up and moved to the other side, Rain shuffling awkwardly past to the side where Dew sat, switching as Dew lay down on his right side.

"Sorry" Dew muttered "I know it's stupid, I just wanna, you know, do everything I can"

"Not stupid, Dew. Whatever you need to do" Rain reached out to embrace the smaller ghoul, pulling him against his chest running his hand up down his bare back.

"One more thing" Dew said quickly "if you see me roll onto my left side while I'm asleep can you please roll me back?"

He saw Rain smile, not opening his eyes as he drifted off "of course I can"

"Sorry. It's dumb I know" yet Dew felt slightly more reassured knowing Rain's looking out for him. The water ghoul was a much lighter sleeper than he was, sometimes just Dew rolling over in his sleep was enough to wake him. 

Rain shook his head "It's not dumb"

"Thanks" Dew mumbled, feeling slightly more at ease, even though he knew it was stupid. He was going to make damn well sure he did everything he could to get this baby to term, no matter how small or stupid.

Chapter Text

Dew found Phantom exactly where he expected him to be, restringing his guitar humming to himself quietly under his breath. Dew had waited a week or so since he found out he was pregnant, he and Rain deciding they wanted to wait a little bit longer before they told everyone. Partly the fear of losing their baby again, partly just wanting to make the most of the normality they had before it all changed, should everything go well. A change for the better, they didn't doubt that for a second, but they wanted to sit with it, their secret, for a little bit longer. Dew didn't want to be fused over or endlessly questioned by everyone and the pack - even though they meant well, always coming from a place of so much love - could be a little.... intense. To say the least.

Phantom, though, was acting anything but normal. He'd once again snarled at someone when they swatted Dew playfully - he couldn't even remember who it was at this point - and he was not easing up on the staring. It was intense and most definitely not subtle when Dew was trying to keep things on the surface as normal as possible. He and Rain had spoken and decided that it was for the best to tell him before things got out of hand, and that's why he found himself in one of the lesser used rehearsal rooms this morning. Phantom's safe space when he needed some time out. Dew imagined he must be feeling a little unsure about things at the moment as well.

"Hey Dew" he greeted him cheerfully without looking up. Things did seem to be different with the quintessence ghoul when it was just them, he was a lot more his usual self, hence why Dew came alone. Rain was more than okay with that, one thing he had been consistent with throughout the previous miscarriage and this current pregnancy was decisions about who to tell and when were all up to Dew, when he was ready.

"Hey dude" Dew walked over to him and sat on one of the spare chairs near him, definitely nervous about this conversation. He didn't think Phantom had clicked onto what he was sensing but he wasn't entirely sure what he knew, feeling a bit out of control and he didn't like it. He imagined Phantom felt pretty similar. Right now, he just wanted to get this over with.

"I'm sorry about the other day" Phantom started, finally pulling his gaze up from his guitar in his lap and looking over at him "I don't know what came over me"

"You really don't know?" Dew questioned.

Phantom actually looked guilty for a moment before shaking his head.

"I do. And I know you can sense it too"

"I don't know, but something's.... different with you?" It took Phantom a second to think of the right words. He really had no clue, Dew realized.

Dew took a deep breath with a nod "you'd be right"

Phantom looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

"You.... actually helped me figure it out, in all honesty"

"Figure what out?" Phantom asked slowly.

"What you can sense is, uh, fuck" Dew started, tipping his head back and looking around the room at anywhere but Phantom as he waited patiently for Dew to continue.

"Fuck it! Yeah, I'm pregnant"

"You're what?"

Phantom looked shocked, to say the least.

"Yup. Pregnant. That's what you can sense"

"Fuck, okay" Phantom said slowly "Right. Yeah. I didn't click to what it was, it's different up here I think?"

Dew just nodded. "I thought I'd better tell you before you ripped someone's throat out. Guessing if you understand what you're feeling you might be able to, you know, chill out a little on the staring? And the jumping at people"

"Holy shit, you're pregnant" he exclaimed after a moment with a huff as if it had really just clicked in his mind, to which Dew just nodded again, not even sure Phantom had just heard everything else he said.

"Like, as in having a baby kind of pregnant"

Dew stared at him for a second "what other kind of pregnant is there?" he questioned.

Phantom ignored his comment "but - uh, I mean... how?"

"Well" he started, this wasn't quite the question Dew expected "you see Rain has this thing that he puts inside me -"

"Oh my god!" Phantom cut him off with a fed up tone. 

"Hey, you asked" Dew said with a shrug.

"That's not what I meant and you know it"

"Then what did you mean?"

"I mean how are you - you know"

"What exactly are you getting at here?"

"I've seen your dick, Dew" Phantom says so blatantly that Dew couldn't help but snort a laugh at him.

"So how?"

"Water ghoul thing, idiot. Remember? Intersex"

"Fuck! Yeah, sorry" Phantom admitted with a nod "I kind of forgot that you were..." he trailed off, unsure of himself "I mean I've only known you as fire"

Dew knew exactly what he meant. While at first he fought day and night to hide his water ghoul past after he was turned to fire, wanting to keep that part of him - or rather, what he went though - hidden from everyone who didn't know him before, he now embraced it much more. It wasn't something he had to hide or keep secret from everyone. He was proud of his past and proud of who he is now. Phantom knew pretty early on how he used to be a water ghoul. But he's right, he's only actually ever known him as fire.

"In the pit, water ghouls have both working parts, I mean, we can literally self-fertilize. I don't exactly know how it works up here considering all of us ghouls are much more 'human'" Dew exaggerated his point with air quotes around the word 'human' "but I kept both working parts. I honestly thought... I thought I kind of lost that when I became fire anyway?" Dew continued "I mean I knew I didn't literally lose it. But thought it wasn't... working I guess. You know like a rusty shed that you don't use and it just kind of sits there with no purpose?"

"You're comparing your body to..... a rusty unused shed?" Phantom was confused, to say the least.

Dew immediately regretted his choice of words when Phantom pointed that out "Okay, fuck, well not all of it obviously. And that's probably not a good comparison" he rambled, not entirely sure why he was still going but yet he continued "I mean obviously it had a purpose, and obviously Rain got up in there all the time so clearly it was used I mean I guess I'd compare it more to -"

"You really don't need to compare it to anything, actually, I know what you're saying, dude" Phantom stated plainly "in fact, I'd rather you didn't"

"Okay, yeah. I don't know why I went there. Rain's so much better with words than I am"

"Wait, you didn't self-fertilize, did you?" Phantom asked, just now seeming to process what Dew said before.

"What the fuck, no" Dew huffed.

"Then who's the dad?"

Dew kicked at the chair Phantom was sitting on with a scowl as the other ghoul just laughed, planting his feet to steady himself again.

"I don't even know if that would work up here" Dew pondered on it for a minute before exclaiming "oh my god, I'm so gonna make Rain try now" he sat up excitedly.

"I really can't tell if you're serious right now" Phantom looked mildly concerned, to say the least, as he shook his head at him.

"You got me curious" Dew shrugged "wait, then I might end up stuck with a Rain clone. I don't know if I can handle two of him. He's enough diva on his own" 

"What's to say you aren't already carrying a mini Rain? I'm sure this one will be just as much of a diva"

"Oh, no no no no. This one's gonna be a mini me, don't you worry about that"

"Ah, of course it will be. So absolutely not a diva at all" Phantom's tone was dripping with sarcasm as Dew shot him a dirty look. 

The conversation faded into a natural lull for a minute, Dew not sure how to proceed before Phantom spoke up again.

"That must have been... a surprise, then? To say the least? Thinking your body was a, quote unquote, rusty shed" Phantom emphasized with air quotes as Dew cringed, remembering his words from earlier, as Phantom continued "to find out you're pregnant?"

"Actually, uh" Dew fiddled with his fingers nervously, not sure if he wanted to continue where he was going. Phantom didn't push, once again sitting back and letting Dew go at his own pace. "It was more of a surprise when I miscarried last year"

"What?" Phantom asked quietly.

"Yeah. Late term. I didn't even know I was pregnant then until it was too late, so when I thought I couldn't" Dew said, his voice hollow "now that, was a damn surprise" he finished, his voice shaking slightly as he looked around the room trying to keep himself under control as he felt himself tearing up.

Phantom was quiet for a moment before just shook his head "I'm so sorry, Dew. I'm so sorry for your loss. I had no idea"

Dew nodded "I know" his voice barely above a whisper. He hadn't expected to get into that in this conversation, that worry for his kit hitting him again like a ton of bricks.

"How come I couldn't tell? When I can now?"

Dew gave him a small shrug "I'm not sure" he answered truthfully "but Aether couldn't either, so, I don't know. Something, uh, wasn't right. From the start I think" Dew leaned forward putting his face in his hands, pressing his fingertips against his closed eyes to try stop the tears as the two of them sat in silence once more.

"What was their name?" Phantom asked out of the blue

"What?" Dew was surprised by the question, probably the last thing he expected him to ask, looking up again at the other ghoul.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry. I don't know, I didn't mean to be offensive. Sorry"

"No, no" he reassured, shaking his head "it's okay, that's not offensive. I just ... didn't expect that really. His name was River"

Phantom gave him a sad smile "that's pretty. I'm sorry"

"It's okay. That's not what I came to talk to you about. But uh, yeah" Dew was pretty ready to change the topic of conversation by this point. He wasn't entirely sure how he was feeling right now, not sure if he was relieved to tell someone about his son or whether he didn't like the thought of someone else knowing, yet another face of sympathy that he didn't want.

"I'm really happy for you now, though. You and Rain. If there's anything I can do for you guys, you can always ask"

"Actually" Dew started "there is something. I don't know exactly how it works, what you can sense, or feel, exactly"

Phantom was staring at Dew's stomach, clearly trying to work it out for himself as well. Dew moved closer to him "if you want to feel.."

"Can I?" Phantom asked, reaching his hands out. Dew nodded, lifting his shirt and Phantom placed his hands on his abdomen, his fingers warm against his midriff as Phantom's face focused. Concentrating in silence for a few seconds as he worked out what he was feeling.

"Oh my god, Dew. Yeah. I can feel her now" he laughed shakily, almost in disbelief at what he was feeling.

Dew didn't move for a minute, processing what Phantom said. "Her?"

"Oh shit!" Phantom's face immediately dropped as he pulled his hands from Dew "I mean - I don't know - it's probably too early to even be sure. I, I don't know why I said that. Forget what I said"

"It's a girl?" Dew whispered.

"Not necessarily! It's probably too early even, I just sort of-"

"It's okay, Phantom" Dew laughed shakily, teary eyed. "I knew I wanted to know as soon as possible"

"You sure? You're not just saying that?"

"I mean it" Dew reassured him.

"Well, I'm not entirely sure. It probably is too early, but I think it's a girl. I don't exactly know how I can tell that, though"

Dew just laughed "a girl" he told himself again.

"And she's gonna be the luckiest girl in the world, having you two for dads. And a pretty cool uncle who's so going to teach her how to shred"

"Think you're getting a bit ahead of yourself there" Dew said with a laugh. "Um, I did want to ask you though" Dew continued "you can feel her. If anything feels weird... or different, off, I don't know. Just if anything changes, can you let me know? I'm just worried... after last time"

"Yeah" Phantom immediately jumped in, nodding. "Yeah of course. I don't exactly know what I can sense but I'll keep an eye on her, okay? I'll let you know what I feel"

Dew nodded in relief "thank you"

It didn't alleviate his worry entirely, he knew it wouldn't guarantee anything but he felt a little more at ease knowing there was another set of eyes, metaphorically, looking out for her.

Her.

The thought of having a daughter excited Dew beyond words and all he could think about now was telling Rain, knowing he would feel exactly the same. However, there was something else he had to clear up before he could go running to Rain yet.

"One more thing, though" Dew continued. "Please don't tell anyone yet. Rain and I are just going to wait a little longer before sharing the news with everyone else"

"Of course, I won't say a word to anyone"

"I'm serious"

"I know!" Phantom insisted "I won't say anything"

"It's just" Dew trailed off "you're not known for your ability to keep a secret"

"Oh, whatever! I can keep a secret" Phantom protested. 

"Remember that time Mountain fell over in the kitchen and you had run off and told everyone before he was even able to get back up?"

"Oh, come on. That's an exaggeration. Also it's not a secret, that was just funny" Phantom shrugged.

"Did you even offer him a hand before you went and told everyone?" Dew countered.

"I was more thinking about how annoyed I was that I wasn't filming"

"Or what about the time literally the other week when you told everyone that our new papa had been saying how he couldn't wait to jump on ghoul dick before we've even met him?"

"Aurora told me she heard it!"

"You know she made that up to prove that you couldn't keep a secret? And every single one of us got told by you"

"Oh" Phantom said with a frown, contemplating for a second "well, I'm still gonna try" his frown turning into a smirk as he looked at Dew.

"You dirty dog" he said with a loud laugh, to which Phantom just giggled in response.

"And literally 5 minutes ago you just told me the gender of my baby"

Phantom looked guilty "yeah I see your point with that one. That was an accident though, promise. But I won't tell anyone, okay?"

Dew just nodded "thank you, Phant"

"By the way, I thought your tits were looking bigger" Phantom's tone changed into something much more playful, a change of tone Dew was definitely grateful for at this point.

"Fuck me, I knew you couldn't stop staring at my tits. You know how observant you gotta be to notice that? They haven't changed that much"

"Oh yeah they have, Dew" Phantom responded, his tone overly serious to the point it boarded on sarcasm "I'm dead serious, you're going to want to invest in a bra soon"

"Oh my god, between Rain and you now apparently, they can't catch a break"

"Hey, if you want a hand with them" Phantom tried "I'm just saying I can help!"

Dew just gave him two fingers as he walked out the room "asshole" he said with a smirk just to get a laugh in response.

He couldn't help but feel a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. One of many, that is. He was far from through the worst of his worries.

Dew made his way down to the lake where he knew Rain was spending some time. He didn't come down here all that often anymore, only when he was looking for his mate. It brought a lot of mixed emotions being there, you could say. He missed the water and the connection he used to have with it. The grief he felt for his son even stronger when he sat by this body of water, knowing he was so close yet so far from him. He never doubted asking Rain to take him there, he was at peace knowing he was with the water where he belonged. It didn't make it easier though.

He sat on the edge of the dock, splashing his bare feet in the water below. A silent signal to Rain that he was there. It wasn't long before he surfaced, beaming up at Dew from the water below. He pulled himself up to join Dew on the dock, lying on his back and looking over at him, reaching out to grab his hand.

"You're dripping all over me, fishy" Dew complained

Rain just laughed, rubbing his wet hand over Dew's face, watching him squirm "so dry me off"

"Not your personal space heater"

"That's exactly what you are" Rain's tone was amused

"That's no way to talk to your baby mama" Dew faked offence at Rain's comment to which Rain gave him the sweetest, most innocent smile that Dew couldn't even pretend to be mad at. He kissed Dew's hand before asking "you talk to Phantom?"

"Yeah. I told him" Rain nodded as he spoke "all of it"

"Including..."

"Yeah. Sorry"

"No, don't be sorry. That's fine. Just making sure we're on the same page"

"He didn't have any clue. But I told him what he was feeling and he was able to understand it which is actually good for us. Promised that he'd keep an eye -or feel? I don't know, whatever. Said he'd let me know if anything he felt changes"

"So we've got regular check ups with Aether, and two quints keeping an eye on everything. It's all going to be okay, yeah?" Rain told Dew, hopeful.

Dew just nodded. They were doing everything they could.

"There's something else. Something he told me"

He saw the brief flash of panic on in Rain's eyes and he immediately continued "no, no, no, nothing bad, I promise"

Dew knew Rain was just as worried. Just as easy to assume the worst after what happened last time, but he relaxed as he waited for Dew to continue.

"Phantom told me, accidentally, at that" he said with a laugh "he thinks she's a girl" he finished with a whisper.

"A girl?" Rain repeated, putting his arm around Dew's waist, teary eyed.

"He thinks so" Rain ran his hand over Dew's stomach. He wasn't even close to showing yet, impossible to tell from just looking at him.

"I didn't know you could tell so early"

Dew placed his hand over Rain's "quint sense, I think"

Rain leaned forward and placed multiple small kisses over his stomach "a girl" he muttered in between kisses "a baby girl. Our baby girl"

"Our baby girl" Dew echoed, running his hands through Rain's wet hair, the feeling of his mate's lips against his stomach was one of the best in the world, he realized in that moment.

Chapter Text

"I'll text Dew, he should be here now" Rain questioned where Dew was as he reached for his phone, having met Aether in the infirmary at the agreed upon time. While Dew might not be quite as time conscious as Rain was, Rain knew he wouldn't be late here. Not for something as important as this.

"Actually, I asked him to come in a little later" Aether reassured "I wanted to talk to you alone for a minute"

"Why?" Rain asked hesitantly, trying to hide how nervous that made him. Feeling a little like a school student getting a talking to by their teacher. This was just his friend, he reminded himself. Not a test he was failing.

"How are you doing, Rain?"

"Good" Rain said with a shrug, not entirely sure why this conversation was needed.

"I mean, how are you holding up with everything?"

"Good?" Rain questioned, his response a bit slow as he was a little less sure of his answer. Feeling once again like he was failing some sort of test that he wasn't even sure he was taking "why?"

"Because you've unexpectedly found out that your mate is pregnant after losing a child together before. That's gotta bring up a lot of worries for you, I'm sure"

Rain chewed on the inside of his lip nervously, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. He didn't respond at first.

"Rain?" Aether gently nudged.

"Um, yeah. Yeah it does" he cleared his throat, desperately willing himself to not cry right now. He hadn't mentally prepared for this conversation when he arrived and suddenly it all hit him like a ton of bricks.

"I'm here for you, just as I am for Dew"

"It's not about me, though. I'm fine. It's Dew I'm worried about"

"Worried that he'll lose the baby again?"

"I mean, yeah. Or that something will happen to him"

"That's incredibly unlikely, Rain"

"So is a miscarriage at 23 weeks. I know, I researched it a lot after last time. Do you know how rare that is? If that can happen then, uh. Mm. Anything can happen"

"Anything can happen, yeah. But you must have seen while researching that means there's a much, much higher chance that that means what will happen is Dew has a healthy, successful pregnancy. And that's why we do things like what we're doing today. We check on baby but also on mom, yeah? If there's anything to be worried about, we'll pick it up early and then we can plan for it. But what's more likely is we'll find that the both of them are perfectly healthy"

"What if they're not though? What if it goes wrong and the baby isn't okay? Or if Dew isn't okay? Fuck I - I don't know what I'd do" Rain's voice was panicked. "Promise me you'd do anything to save Dew if something happened"

"Rain" Aether put a hand on his suddenly out of control bouncing thigh to steady him and stop him spiraling further, clearly he's opened a can of worms, Aether realized. Not that he expected any different, that's the whole reason he wanted to talk to Rain alone in the first place. 

"Nothing like that is going to happen. Dew will be fine"

"I'm just saying, I've seen it in those TV shows where it all goes wrong during labor and you can only save either the mom or the baby-"

"One thing I can promise you, it does not happen like that in real life. I - or any other medical professional, for that matter - will never, ever, ever ask you to chose between Dew or your baby. In fact, if anyone ever did they sure as shit should not set foot within a hundred feet of a patient again in their life"

Rain was quiet for a moment, pausing. "Really?"

Aether nodded reassuringly "I swear. That's all made for TV drama bullshit. Maybe avoid the medical progammes for a bit, I think. They're going to fill your head with more anxieties that aren't even real. They exaggerate everything and that is the absolute last thing you or Dew need"

"M'kay" Rain agreed "probably a good idea. Sorry"

"Don't be sorry, Rain. This is exactly why I'm checking in. Dew is going to be just fine. And we'll be keeping a close eye on baby to make sure everything's alright there as well"

Rain nodded slowly. He wasn't entirely convinced, those nagging worries still eating away at him. "Is there anything that I can do to help him, though?"

"Not particularly. Just be the good partner you always are, try to keep him as stress free as possible. Make sure he's eating and sleeping and keeping hydrated, yeah?"

"Okay" Rain was slightly unsatisfied, to say the least. He felt helpless, Dew was doing all the important work and all he could do was sit back and watch. There had to be more he could do.

"Rain" Aether interrupted his thoughts "I know you're nervous. I know you both are, and I don't blame you guys. The best thing you can do for Dew is just be there with him through this. I'm here for you both of course but Dew needs you. You're the one he's going to lean on, and sometimes it might feel like it's all on you to keep the both of you afloat when you feel like you're drowning. Use me, use the pack. Everyone's here to support you guys, but Dew just needs you by his side, more than anyone. More than ever, okay? And I know that you will be there for him as he needs. Trust yourself, you know him better than anyone"

Rain just nodded again, thinking about what Aether told him and about how he could be there for Dew. Desperately hoping that just being there would be enough.

"You've got this, okay? I know you. And I know him. And I know how god damn much you both love each other. You guys look out for each other constantly. Just keep doing what you're doing, and we will all looking out for you both as well"

Rain smiled in agreement, a small smile but feeling reassured none the less.

"I just have to ask" Rain started "sorry, I know it's stupid but..."

"Yeah?"

"Look, Dew read something about how sleeping on your left is more likely to cause a miscarriage and he's been sleeping on his le-"

"Rain" Aether interrupted with a sigh, yet his tone was more amused than anything. 

"Okay, yup, sorry" Aether's reaction was more than enough to assure Rain to trust his gut. To trust himself, as he had told him to earlier on.

"Reading internet bullshit is not going to help you guys here alright? Don't stress yourself out even more. The pair of you do that well enough on your own, you seriously don't need any added external worries"

Rain couldn't help but agree.

Dew arrived a few minutes later, ushered into the room by the sibling attending the desk.

"What, you start without me?" he asked with a slightly too forced laugh. He was nervous, well, terrified for this Rain could tell immediately.

"Hi Dew" Aether greeted him as Rain stood up and walked to his mate, rubbing his arm gently and tilting his chin up to meet his eyes, pulling his gaze from where it was fixated on the floor in front of him.

"It's gonna be okay, yeah?" he reassured him. Dew nodded at him before he looked over at Aether, waiting for him to tell him what to do next.

"Lie down for me, and lift your shirt up okay?"

Dew just nodded, doing as he was told. He lay on the bed in the infirmary, his stomach exposed and his hand gripping Rain's for dear life as Aether prepared.

"Why do you have all this stuff for pregnancies? And how do you know so much about them? I thought you said ghoul pregnancies weren't all that common up here"

Aether looked amused "we don't see a lot of ghoul pregnancies up here because we don't have a lot of ghouls compared to the amount of humans we have here. It's a big ministry, Rain. It's run by humans, and full of siblings you will have never met before. And let me tell you, they have their fair share of pregnancies. I know the ghoul wings are kept separate from a lot of all the other stuff" Aether waved his hand vaguely in the direction of the siblings wings, which Rain had hardly ever been to in his time in this ministry, "but this infirmary supports both sides"

"Ah" Rain felt slightly silly at his question "but wouldn't a ghoul pregnancy be different to a human?"

"Honestly, up here? Not as different as you'd expect. In the pit most definitely, but we're much similar to regular people than you might think up here"

"Clearly pretty different, or different enough, considering I'm pregnant at all" Dew chimed in to which Aether gave him a small nod of agreement. Yet both of them felt reassured at that, Aether had been working part time in the infirmary since he was summoned and had taken over full time in the past couple years, so they knew he must have seen his fair share.

Aether applied the gel to Dew's abdomen, Dew he flinching in shock as he set up.

"Cold?" Rain asked, noticing his reaction.

"Almost as cold as your hands, fish" Dew retorted. Rain breathed a small sigh of relief at Dew being comfortable enough to joke in this moment.

"Well, you're used to it then" Rain said with an amused tone. Doing everything he could to be as calm and collected when he knew as well that he was just as nervous as Dew.

"Ready?" Aether asked, holding the probe hovering above Dew's abdomen. Dew took Rain's hand that he was holding and moved it to his chest, clasping it in between both of his hands, holding it like his life depended on it as he nodded, staring at the ceiling above.

"It's gonna be alright" Rain reassured, thinking about what Aether told him before and hoping his face was behaving in his attempt to be comforting and not portraying the fact that he was shit scared as well.

Aether moved the probe against his abdomen, his face calm yet almost immediately Dew's was very much not.

"Why - why isn't there a heartbeat?" he panicked "there's no heartbeat, why isn't there a heartbeat?" his voice was frantic as he sat back up, tears welling in his eyes as Rain felt his body begin to shake under his hand as he pushed himself up, causing Aether to have to pull back as Dew panicked, his breath quickening, hyperventilating.

"Dew, don't worry" Rain started as Aether gestured to him "Rain, can you get him?"

"There's no heartbeat!" Dew continued, his voice breaking as Rain gently tried to push him back down onto the bed, his heart breaking at the sight of his distressed mate.

"Give it a minute. He's got to find it, okay? And you need to lie down so he can do that" Rain willed his voice to be strong, needing to calm the panicked ghoul.

"He'll find it, it just takes a second. Lie still, help him out here. Trust me" he continued, as Dew lay back down under Rain's guidance, staring at Rain teary eyed, his breathing still shallow and panicked as he couldn't tear his eyes away from his mate. His rock. "It'll be there. Deep breath, you've got this. I've got you" Rain looked back at Dew the whole time, not breaking their gaze.

Dew took his hand again, not taking his eyes off Rain as the seconds passed, feeling like a lifetime as Dew suddenly felt his world crumbling beneath him like he was freefalling all over again and Rain's hand was the only thing stopping him going under completely until there was a soft thump on the machine.

"There it is" Aether whispered, Dew unsuccessfully trying to hold back a sob in his throat as he closed his eyes and listened to the soft rhythmic sound.

Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump.

Strong and steady.

He look backed at Rain again, seeing his face fixated on the machine in front of him in awe, silent tears now falling down his cheeks as well.

"There they are, Dew. Look" Aether gently encouraged as Dew turned to look at what Rain was so fixated on. He didn't fully understand what he was looking at as he looked over at the machine, just seeing a grey shape against a darker background. But he didn't need to understand to feel what he was looking at. His baby.

"Looks like a bean" he joked with a wet laugh and half choked sob.

"About the size of a bean, too"

"Is that normal?" Dew questioned.

"It absolutely is. You're about 7 weeks, and everything's looking perfect" Dew breathed a sigh of relief as he closed his eyes, tears slipping down his cheeks as he listened to the most beautiful sound he's ever heard, his baby's heartbeat.

"I know what you guys have been though" Aether was more serious as he continued talking "and I don't want to add to any fear I know you're both feeling right now"

Dew opened his eyes to look at him. Rain's hand tightened around his.

"But just to be completely transparent, the first trimester is the riskiest. Once you hit 12 weeks, the chance of a miscarriage decreases massively"

"River was more than 12 weeks"

Aether nodded at the pair "yeah. So as you both know, it's not impossible. But it's rare"

"So 12 weeks" Dew repeated "12 weeks, and then 24 weeks"

"24 weeks?" Aether questioned

Dew nodded. "River was in his 23rd week. So once we get to 24 weeks, that's...." he trailed off, unsure of how to continue yet Aether and Rain knew exactly what he meant. 

He didn't want to say that's when they were safe, knowing that it didn't guarantee it. But it was a milestone that would make a difference, he felt.

"You're a way off that yet. Take it a week at a time" Aether assured "12 weeks will come before you know it. You're already over halfway there. Actually, I'm sure you'll find the entire pregnancy flies by faster than you expect"

"Can I come and see you each week? Just to check?"

"You can come see me whenever you'd like, Dew. And remember I'll be looking out for you both even when I'm not in this office. And so will Phantom. We'll be doing what we can. And if you have any questions, always come ask"

"Yeah, I have one" Dew started "what can I still do?"

"What do you mean, exactly?"

"I mean like, can I still play guitar while pregnant?"

"Yeah, of course you can"

"Can I still run? Or go into town? Or-"

"You don't stop living your life because you're pregnant, Dew. You can still do everything you want to do. Just listen to your body. It'll tell you what you're up for"

"There's nothing that like... will make me more at risk?"

"I mean, don't do the obviously stupid things. No drinking, no smoking, you know. But your day to day activities? That won't cause you or baby any harm"

"What about sex?" Dew asked.

"What about it?"

"I mean, can we still have sex?"

"Of course you can" Aether reassured.

"We're not gonna be doing anything you don't want to do" Rain chimed in, to which Dew tsked with a gentle whack to his arm.

"I can't like... get double pregnant, right?"

Aether stared at him blankly as Rain unsuccessfully held back a smile, fighting off a laugh "you can't get pregnant again while you're already pregnant, Dew" Aether was reassuring as he explained, always the professional.

"I was just checking. I read this story about this chick who was pregnant and kept having sex, and she got pregnant four different times but all at once. I'm just saying, I'd prefer to stick to the one" he insisted, holding up four fingers for emphasis.

"That never happened, Dew" Aether wasn't entertaining his ideas for a second as Rain also chimed in. "Where the hell do you read this bullshit?"

"Google" Dew stated obviously.

"I don't know what side of google you're on but man, you find some weird shit"

"You're just not looking hard enough"

"Clearly not" Rain said sarcastically.

Dew just rolled his eyes, a lot more relaxed now than he was when he arrived.

"Okay, you guys are good to go. Come see me if you have any concerns" Aether started "and uh, stay off consulting the internet. Both of you" Aether shot Rain a look that Dew did not miss.

"And stay away from the medical dramas!" Aether called out as the pair walked out. Rain just shot him a seriously? look.

Dew and Rain left the infirmary, hand in hand and both much more at ease than when they arrived. They didn't get far before Dew shot Rain a smirk.

"What?" Rain asked bluntly, knowing exactly where he was going with this. 

"You so asked him about the left side thing, didn't you?" Dew couldn't help but laugh.

"No" Rain lied.

"Yes you did! You so did!" Dew insisted with a shove to his arm.

"Fine!" Rain admitted with a shrug. "Just to be sure. You got me worried, okay?"

"Sorry" Dew said with a laugh, Rain knowing damn well he didn't mean it.

"We're taking Aether's advice, alright? No doom scrolling. Both of us"

"That's for the best" Dew agreed.

"Yeah, we don't want anyone getting double pregnant" Rain's tone was overly serious but Dew knew damn well what he was getting at as he rolled his eyes with a click of his tongue.

"Watch it, fish. You're not allowed to be mean to me while I'm carrying your baby"

"I'm not being mean" Rain insisted "I really think we need to be careful about this, knowing the risks of double pregnancy"

"You're a dick"

"I'm serious though. How deep into google do you have to go to find this shit? It's almost impressive the outrageous bullshit you find"

"My google abilities out skill yours any day, Rainbow. You wish you could find what I can find"

"Your google abilities are on lockdown for the next 7 months. In fact, for the foreseeable future"

"But what if I have a genuine question?" Dew insisted.

"Then you ask Aether. Or we go to the library, the old fashioned way" to which Dew groaned.

"Don't worry Dew, at least one of us can read. I'll find you a picture book"

Dew slapped his arm lightly with an "asshole", but the smile on his face was undeniable as he leaned into Rain as they walked, who put his arm around his shoulder and pulled him closer with a kiss to his temple.

The pair stopped back in their room before heading to join the pack for the rest of the day, Dew immediately heading to the wall calendar Rain had brought at the beginning of the year and marking a few dates.

"12 weeks" Dew repeated what Aether told him earlier as he looked up at Rain "12 weeks, and 24 weeks" he gestured at the two dates. "Safe points"

Rain nodded at him "safe points" he echoed.

"I don't think this fear I have is just going to.... go away. But, maybe, reaching those points, I think I'll be able to breathe a little easier"

Rain nodded, understanding what Dew meant. He kissed his forehead "5 weeks to go. You're over halfway to that first safe point, yeah?"

"A lot can happen in 5 weeks" Dew whispered.

"A lot of good" Rain reassured.

Chapter Text

The whole pack had gathered for the evening, enjoying being able to spend that time together after dinner. Dew, Storm, Phantom and Haze sat playing a game of uno as Rain chatted with Cirrus about nothing of any importance. He could hear Aether playing his acoustic guitar in the background, grateful that the always hard working quintessence ghoul was able to get his hands out of the infirmary and back on the instrument he loves.

"Oh, fuck, nope" Dew groaned suddenly, cutting off Phantom mid turn, gagging as the room fell quiet around him "I'm gonna fuckin-" his hand went to his mouth as he got up and bolted. 

"Ew, gross"

"You good?"

"Dew, shit-"

Rain's voice cut through the commotion, instantly on his feet following Dew "I got him, don't worry" he turned back to the room to the sea of confused and surprised faces.

Well, mostly. Phantom looked sympathetic, Aether understanding. And even though he only looked at him for a split second, Rain was sure he saw knowing in Mountain's eyes as he looked up at Rain from where he was sat reading. He didn't have time to dwell on it, chasing down his mate who had thankfully made it to the nearest bathroom before he puked.

Rain was by his side in an instant, pulling his hair from his face and rubbing his back as Dew kept dry heaving. He grabbed some toilet paper, wiping the corners of his mouth before Dew slumped into his side like a sack of potatoes with a groan. His nausea had been getting noticeably worse this week, almost constant.

"I've been lied to, Rain" he complained after a few moments, feeling more settled, or rather less like he was about to be sick again. 

"About what, my love?" Rain's tone was amused. He was no stranger to Dew being sick at this point and the pair had figured out their unspoken rhythm. Dew hated it when Rain overly fussed or worried, so Rain knew to back off and follow his lead. Which right now was just to sit on the bathroom floor.

"Morning sickness. It's fucking 8pm and I'm throwing up. The fuck do they call it 'morning sickness' for?" he whined.

"That's a good point" Rain considered. "It definitely hasn't been morning for you, well, just the morning"

"Thanks for reminding me" Dew cried.

"Come on, little nymph. Why don't we call it a night? I'll go run the shower for you, then go tell the others we're turning in, okay?"

Dew didn't say anything but Rain felt him nod against him after a few moments. 

"Alright, you good to go?" Rain stood up after Dew nodded again before carefully lifting Dew up and carrying him in his arms. He hesitated as he saw Dew's face grimace, pausing briefly to let him settle.

"Still queasy" he warned "go slow, or I'll puke on you"

"Then I'm taking that shower first"

"You'd really make a pregnant lady wait. That's fucked up, Rain. Real fucked up" Dew warned teasingly.

"I'll wait on you day and night firefly, don't you worry"

"My hero" Dew said sarcastically as Rain carried him slowly and carefully down to their bedroom and into their bathroom, placing him down on the edge of the bathtub before turning the shower on for him. He adjusted it straight to as hot as humanly possible, just as Dew liked it as he leaned against the wall, eyes closed, hand over his stomach, trying to steady his breathing.

"You gonna be sick again?" Rain questioned, seeing the unsettled look on his face and placing a cool hand over his forehead. He placed his other hand against Dew's cheek as he felt him lean into his touch, the coldness of his palm a small relief. 

Dew thought about it for a minute before he responded "maybe. Hopefully not"

"You look pale, you want me to stay with you?" Dew shook his head "go say goodnight to the others, I'll shower it off"

"You sure?" when Dew nodded in agreement Rain continued "I'll go make some peppermint tea, hopefully it will help with the nausea"

"Yes please. Do we have any watermelon? She wants watermelon"

"I will go and find you some watermelon" Rain promised, one of the few things that Dew had seemingly been able to keep down this week.

"My. Hero" Rain kissed his cheek with a 'be back soon' before heading off.

He had his worries about leaving Dew alone, he always did. But especially now. He knew though that he would never be far away, never be gone for long. He also knew that at times Dew just needed a minute to himself, even when he wasn't feeling great. He was always still eager to get back to him, though, as he made his way back to the common room where the group was still playing their card game.

"We skipped Dew's turn, sorry" Storm called out when he saw Rain enter "Dew feeling okay, though?"

"That's fine, think you guys are going to have to finish up without him. Sorry" Rain sent the group an apologetic look "but I think he's got about ten cards shoved in his pocket" he said with a laugh as the others groaned and Haze whacked Storm on the arm with a "I fucking knew it! Told you!"

"He's fine, though" Rain continued, offering no further explanation as he met Aether's eyes who gave him a small everything okay? nod, to which Rain nodded quietly back in return. "We're gonna call it a night, though. I think he needs some rest tonight"

There were echoing goodnights as Rain headed to the kitchen, boiling water to make tea for Dew and scouring for some watermelon. Rain was particularly worried this week as the nausea worsened, Dew looked like he was actually losing weight with how little he had able to keep down. The pair had kept to themselves a bit more than usual the past week or so, Dew not wanting to arise suspicions as they still hadn't told the group. He also didn't want the extra attention or worry from them, not liking to be perceived as so vulnerable, you could say. So far it seemed the pack just thought Dew was under the weather, checking in if he was feeling better when they saw him.

It wasn't long before Mountain joined Rain in the kitchen, Rain briefly looking over at the tall ghoul but looking away quickly, not meeting his gaze as he entered with a "need a hand?"

"Yes, please" Rain accepted. He could see from the look on his face. He knew.

"Peppermint tea" Mountain looked at what he was making "good for nausea"

"Yup" Rain agreed, not elaborating, cutting some slices of watermelon to take back to Dew. Not the place for the conversation, far too close to any prying ears. Mountain must have understood, not questioning further. Rain could feel his eyes on him, watching his every move, feeling like he was burning up under his gaze. 

"I'll take this for you" Mountain offered as him and Rain walked down the hall.

Rain walked in silence for a minute, not exactly sure how to start this conversation. Mountain didn't bring it up either, standing back and letting Rain take his time.

"Fuck - you know, don't you?" Rain broke the silence, just ready to get it over with at this point. 

"Just a hunch" Mountain replied. "I've noticed the way Dew's been..." trailing off with a vague nod. Rain knew exactly what he meant. 

"Yeah, Dew's pregnant"

"Congratulations, Rain" Mountain said with a satisfied smile as Rain was able to finally tell him, calm and collected and supportive as ever as he looked at the ghoul, but he knew how the pair must be feeling. "If you need anything" he offered "come ask. Anytime, okay?"

"Do you know any tricks for the nausea?" Rain tried "he's been having peppermint tea every night but it's not enough. It's just been constant lately" Rain looked slightly defeated, clearly out of ideas for how to help his mate. "He's struggling to keep any food down and it's gotten worse this week and honestly that has me a bit worried, you know? He needs to be eating, especially at the moment"

Mountain nodded sympathetically "first trimester is the worst for the nausea. I'll go have a look through some books I have, there might be some advice. Keep up the peppermint though, that helps settle the stomach. At the very least it can't do any harm" 

Rain nodded as Mountain got the doorhandle for him. He could hear the shower still running from the bathroom, slightly relieved as he assumed Dew must still be in there.

"Do you know how far along he is?" Mountain asked curiously.

"8 weeks a couple of days ago"

Mountain just nodded with an understanding smile "right in the thick of it. I can only imagine how scary this must be for you both. But it's also so exciting, Rain. Let yourselves enjoy it. We're all looking out for you"

"Thanks, Mount. Means a lot"

"You're taking good care of him?"

Rain smiled "always" he assured.

"I never doubted it. We're all here to help, whatever the both of you need" 

Rain just nodded, said his goodnights before heading into the room. It wasn't long before Dew emerged from the bathroom in just Rain's oversized shirt, hair still wet from the shower.

"Feeling better?" Rain smiled warmly at him as Dew made his way over to him. 

Dew just nodded, immediately picking up a piece of watermelon that Rain offered, nibbling at it slowly as he sat down on the bed with a satisfied sigh "she loves watermelon"

"Just like her mama"

"Too right" Dew agreed.

"Dry your hair for me. I'll braid it" Dew obliged, sitting back down on the edge of the bed as Rain moved to sit cross legged behind him as he ran Dew's brush through his freshly washed hair, a feeling Dew always loved. 

He'd cut his long hair off after they lost their son. A fire ghoul tradition, a ritual of letting go. Dew had just said he felt like a change when the others commented in surprise, the ghoul had always been known for his long hair so they couldn't quite believe it but Dew refused to elaborate further, insisting there was nothing more to it. He still hadn't told them, and Rain, who had promised Dew it would be his decision if and when they would be told, hadn't said a word either. It really was only Phantom outside of the four of them part of that night who knew. Dew hadn't cut his hair since then, and it was growing back out past his shoulders now. A passing of time.

"Before you know it you might be doing this for our daughter" Dew spoke up as Rain braided for him.

Rain's heart swelled at the comment, his fingers slowing slightly in Dew's hair as he thought about the possibilities. He hadn't even begun thinking about what they'd do once she arrived, all he - well, the both of them - could think about at the moment was getting her there.

He hesitated for a moment before sighing. He had to tell him. "Mountain knows" he explained Dew. 

"What? How? Fuck, I bet Phantom let it slip" he said with a groan.

"I don't think so, actually" Rain considered "if it was Phantom, the whole pack would know by now and from what I just saw I really don't think they do. Well, Aurora definitely doesn't. You know how she can't hide that look on her face when she knows something she shouldn't?" Rain told Dew with a chuckle as Dew huffed in agreement, knowing exactly the look Rain was talking about "I think he's just observant. Put two and two together, and considering he already knows that you can... you know" he continued.

"Fuck" Dew said with a sigh "I think we should tell the others, then. I don't like the idea of some of them knowing and some kept in the dark. It's a pretty big secret for so many people to keep"

"I'm happy with that, if that's what you feel is right" Rain assured him, tying off the braid and kissing his neck and shoulders "they're worried about you as well. Cirrus keeps telling me she misses your arguments" the pair were definitely known for getting into it a bit. Never serious, they both just got a bit of a kick out of winding each other up and they knew it, much to the rest of the packs grievance.

Dew leaned back into Rain after he finished his hair with a soft laugh as Rain wrapped his arms around him in his embrace. Dew grabbed onto Rain's arms, holding him there as he looked back up at him. 

"And I'd rather it come from us, before any rumours get out of hand. Because you know, running out of a room dry heaving isn't exactly subtle"

"You could just pass it off as being under the weather, I'm sure"

"Maybe if it was a one off, yeah. This was far from it. It's still early, I know, but I think I'm ready to tell them. I want to tell them" Dew said convincingly, nodding for emphasis. Perhaps trying to convince himself as well as Rain. 

"Then we tell them" Rain agreed.

The group reconvened the next morning for the usual weekly plan. Things like rehearsal times - even though they were much fewer at the moment, with the new Papa not in charge yet. They still met up one or twice a week though, just to keep on point as a group and help Storm and Haze learn the ropes. Plus, they just loved it and enjoyed the time together - as well as chore divey ups, meal plans, town trips, any messages to be passed on, that kind of thing. It felt like the right time.

"Feeling better, Dew?" Aurora asked him as she walked in and saw the fire ghoul there. 

"Yeah, getting there" he said with an overly forced smile. In fact, right now he felt like he was going to throw up again, the nerves hitting him as he prepared himself. He wasn't nervous for the how the group would react, knowing more than anything that they would all just adore a kit around the place. Dew almost began tearing up thinking about how loved their girl would be, but the more people that knew, the more real it was. And the more it reminded him that there was a long way to go and a lot could go wrong.

"Okay, good, but don't be passing on your bugs to the rest of us" she warned.

"Not a bug" Dew said with a shaky laugh. "Aw, well, I guess kind of?"

The room had fallen silent as they looked at Dew, his tone obliviously implying he had something to tell them. Dew, who suddenly felt like he was on fire, the room burning up around him under the pressure of all the pairs of eyes. He couldn't do this, that burning building and building and build- until Rain's cool hand on his back stopped from falling. Grounding, soothing, as he looked up at the taller ghoul who gave him a small nod of encouragement. He looked back over to the group and caught Phantom's eyes, who gave him a cheeky wink and smile, the final push of encouragement that he needed.

"Yeah, um" Dew cleared his throat before continuing "It's not bugs actually. I - uh, I'm pregnant"

Dew wasn't even sure which noises came from which ghoul as the whole room erupted in commotion, only picking up a "what?", "holy shit!", "Heeeey!", someone's shocked gasp and most definitely a squeal.

"It's uh-" he raised his voice slightly, the room quietening down again "It's still early. Very early, but you guys are our family, and we wanted you to know"

Rain smiled at him again before he continued "and also, Phantom's known for a couple weeks and I figured it probably wouldn't be much longer that he could keep that secret, so" he clicked his tongue with a nod towards the quintessence ghoul. 

"Hey!" Phantom protested in response as Cirrus pushed him lightly "I told you I could keep a secret!"

"Good work, bug" she said with a laugh "and good work dad!" she exclaimed before giving Rain a hug and a kiss on the cheek before embracing Dew "I'm so, so happy for you both. Cumulus is just going to die with excitement when she hears"

Dew hugged her back tightly "thanks, Cir" he knew it had been hard for her lately, her mate had been away for a while, chosen to accompany their new Papa at a different ministry as he learnt what he needed to before he took over as front man. 

"She'll be back before the baby's here, right?" Dew asked, to which Cirrus nodded excitedly.

"I just knew we should have placed bets on who around here got knocked up first!" Aurora exclaimed "although, it was probably pointless anyway. I think everyone here knew damn well it was going to be you two" she said with a laugh. "In fact, it's probably more of a surprise that it took so long"

Dew felt his blood run cold, the smile very quickly falling from his face. He felt Rain's hand on his back stiffen as he looked back up at the taller ghoul, unsure. He knew what Rain would say to him right now, that it was his call. Rain just gave him a look that told him to trust his gut, go with whatever felt right. He was with him every step of the way no matter what choice he made right now.

He cleared his throat and exhaled before he spoke up again "actually, uh-"

The room fell quiet again. A different silence to what it was moments earlier. Aether gave him a small, but sad, smile of encouragement as Dew found the courage to speak up once again "we have a son. We lost - we lost a son"

You could have heard a pin drop in that moment, everyone in the room afraid to move or even breathe too loud. He saw Aurora begin to chew on her lip, holding back tears. It was only Rain who moved, placing his hand from his back to around his shoulder, moving Dew into him slightly for support. Dew's hand found Rain's, securing him and stopping him from falling once more as he continued. "About a year and a half ago, he didn't make it. But, uh - this isn't meant to be sad. This moment isn't meant to be sad. We're excited. Scared, shit yeah, but excited. And you're all a part of this with us, we hope"

There was life breathed back into the room as everyone made their way up to Dew and Rain, offering various forms of congratulations and apologies. Aurora especially, apologizing for what she said to which Dew insisted it wasn't her fault, she couldn't have known.

Dew returned back to their room exhausted, the morning and the amount of attention taking an emotional and physical toll on him as he curled up on their bed.

"Right side" Rain reminded as he sat down beside Dew.

"Fuck, right side!" Dew exclaimed as he turned over to face Rain. It was dumb, they knew it, but it gave them a weird sense of control in an otherwise completely out of control situation. A feeling they were doing everything they possibly could for their baby, no matter how small.

"I'm really proud of you" Rain said, reaching out to stroke his face from where he sat next to him "I know that wasn't easy, but you did so well"

Dew just nodded, his expression somewhat vacant "thanks to your support"

"That was all you, firefly"

Dew lay looking up at Rain sat bed next to him as he kept stroking the side of his face gently, helping Dew relax as he looked down at his mate lovingly.

"You've been wanting to tell them about him, haven't you?" he muttered, feeling slightly guilty for making the water ghoul keep that secret for so long. He should have known. Water ghouls by nature are much more open, they don't hide things from pack. Fire ghouls tend to be much more reclusive, secretive, even with their closest loved ones. Yet another thing about the elements that made them complete opposites. 

"All I wanted was for you to do what felt right for you. As long as you were doing that, I was okay with whatever it was" he promised. Always the reassurer, always putting his own wants aside for Dew. Rain had definitely done it before and he would do it again without hesitation, the devotion for his mate coming before anything else. 

Dew was sure he did it a lot with the grief he was carrying. He wishes he would let himself feel it, though. That he didn't feel it had to be an either or situation. He could grieve and be there for him. 

But right now he was just exhausted as he lay in bed again. He'd been so tired the past couple months as he sighed deeply.

"I think I might just... nap a little bit, if that's okay?"

"You don't need to ask for permission, Dew. You're growing a whole ghoul, remember?"

"Yeah" Dew smiled, hand going back to his stomach once more "I am"

"Do you want to try some breakfast first?" Dew shook his head.

"Stomach's okay right now. Don't want to change that. Maybe I'll try something when I wake"

Rain nodded "okay. Whatever you need. Do you want me to stay?"

"Just til I fall asleep, is that okay? Won't take long" Dew mumbled, already half asleep at this point.

"Of course" Rain moved into the bed beside him as Dew settled into his side.

"How about we go talk to Copia this afternoon?" Dew suggested, a little mumbled in his tired state.

"Good idea Droplet, I can already see just how excited he's going to be"

Dew just nodded with a small smile, eyes already closed. They didn't see him as much anymore as their former front man had taken over as head of the clergy and was settling into his new role but he was still such a huge part of their life, and knew he would do everything in his power to help the pair through this. In fact, they were probably in a much better position going through this now with him in charge.

"Sleep well, my little nymph. Both of you"

Chapter Text

"9 weeks" Rain read out loud, going through one of the many books he'd got from the library as he sat on the edge of the bed. He'd been reading a lot lately. "Your baby is now the size of an olive" he hummed looking over at Dew.

Dew just moaned from where he was lying on the bed next to him, screwing up his face.

"Only the size of an olive and causing me this much agony" he whined.

"The nausea eases at around 12 weeks, remember? Less than a month to go" Rain reassured as he reached over to rub Dew's back.

"That's still basically a month! Easy for you to say. Besides, it tends to ease at 12 weeks. That doesn't necessarily mean it will. Sometimes it doesn't even ease until around 16 weeks, you even told me that! And that's a whole extra month" Dew complained.

"Mountain's got some herbs for you to try, hopefully those will help, right? Thinking positive, that's what were doing"

"It's easy for you to be positive when you're not doing the work"

"That's very true, my love. But that's why I have to be double positive for you"

"It feels like it's just getting worse" Dew moaned.

"Aether said it would probably be at it's worst between 8 to 10 weeks, that's apparently the peak of it"

Dew whined in response, curling in on himself.

"Nauseous? Or cramping?" Rain asked as he shuffled his way over to the pile of ghoul curled up on the bed.

"Cramp" his voice was muffled, pressed up against himself.

"Completely normal, remember? It's going to happen"

"Cramping was how it started last time" he said quietly, looking up at Rain.

"It's not going to happen again" Rain assured.

"You don't know that"

And what Rain wouldn't have given in that moment to be able to promise him that he did. Not a thing in the world that he wouldn't sacrifice to be able to say with complete certainty to his mate that he and their baby would be okay. It was killing him that no matter how desperately he wanted to, he couldn't promise him that it would be okay. That there wasn't a way for him to guarantee with no doubt that things would work out, as much as he wished he could.

"I know that cramping at this stage is normal, though. Expected, actually" that he could promise him, at least. "In fact, it's probably a good sign. She's doing everything right, everything she needs to do" that he wasn't so sure about, not sure if he was telling Dew what he needed to hear at this point. 

It seemed to work well enough as Dew just nodded, leaning into Rain's lap. He knew that more symptoms didn't automatically mean a higher chance he wouldn't lose the baby again, but as much as he was struggling this week it was reassuring to him in a way, given how he had next to no symptoms the entire 23 weeks last time.

"Can't I just like.... give her to you for a bit? Like those frogs that carry their eggs on their back. Can't you take her for a while?"

Rain raised his eyebrows at the ghoul, an amused smile on his face "I think it's toads that do that. And I don't think they pass them back and forward between parents"

"Why do you care what the frogs do so much? That's not what's important here. Can't I just let you look after her for a while?"

"Oh my little nymph, I wish I could help with that" Rain moved to lie his hands on Dew's abdomen "but we both know the safest place for her is right where she is in there. With you. You're doing great"

"I don't feel great"

"I know. I'm sorry" Rain hummed, sympathetic as he grabbed Dew's hand with a gentle kiss. Before, Dew would have hated that sympathetic tone. But right now, a little understanding and a little acknowledgment of his discomfort fell on much more accepting ears.

"Next time, I'm getting you pregnant though" Dew warned out of the blue.

"Next time? How about we just focus on the one we're having for now" Rain mused.

"Way ahead of you there Raincloud. I've got grand plans on my mind, you and I are going to have enough kits running around this place that we can start our own hockey team"

"How many players are there even on a hockey team?" Rain questioned.

"I don't know" Dew shrugged "That's not important"

"Why'd you chose a team that you don't even know how many players there are?" Rain teased.

"Whatever. That's not the point, forget about the hockey team. My point is, we're gonna have heaps of our kits causing endless chaos around here, trust me"

"What happened to one day at a time? And I think you bring more than enough chaos to this place all on your own. You're good like that"

"Are you saying you don't want to have heaps of babies with me?" Dew asked, offended.

"What I want" Rain started, matching his tone, knowing this was getting silly. He loved it though, a bit of his mate's humor coming back where it had been missing the past few weeks in amongst the constant morning sickness and overall anxiety he was carrying for their kit's welfare "is to focus on getting this girl to us before we start worrying about having, as you said before, an entire hockey team of kits"

"Mm" Dew hummed "you're just scared. But it's coming, fishboy. You're having the next one"

"What, you think I couldn't handle it?" Rain joked.

"You're just scared you won't look this good pregnant"

Rain just smiled at him like his entire world was right in front of him. And it damn well was.

"No, I don't think I would. You're so damn sexy right now"

"Really?" Dew said, a bit too sarcastic for Rain's liking.

"Oh yeah. You're so fucking beautiful all the time anyway, but you're literally growing our daughter right now. You're fucking irresistible"

Dew began to tear up as he looked at Rain, who immediately worried he'd said the wrong thing.

"Wait. Shit. Sorry, I didn't mean - I don't want to make you. Sorry" Rain rushed as Dew giggled, yet wasn't able to stop the tears falling down his cheeks, which Rain immediately wiped away before they could fall too far as he rested a palm against Dew's cheek. 

"No, no. Not what you said. Or not really. Fuck, I don't even know" he cried "I feel all over the fucking place"

"Happy or sad tears?"

"I don't even know" he whined "I'm sorry. There's nothing even wrong but I'm just so tired and you're being so nice and that just makes me feel -" Dew cut himself off as his lip quivered, not wanting to full on sob for no reason.

"Oh, Dew, baby" Rain cooed gently "c'mon, don't apologize. You're allowed to cry. Even if there feels like no reason. You're growing a whole ghoul, that's more than a good enough reason"

Dew nodded with a half choked sob. "Feels dumb" he joked, wiping his face with the corner of his sleeve.

"So fucking what? Even if it was dumb, which it's not, who cares?" Rain said with a shrug "you can cry all you need"

Dew giggled again "why are you so nice to me?" he teased, to Rain's relief knowing nothing was actually wrong and it was just Dew's hormones all over the place. Which they had been constantly the past 9 weeks, but Rain still worried every time.

"Because I'm in love with you"

"Whaaaaaaat? Since when?" Dew spoke in a high pitched mocking tone. Random tears were anything new at this point and Rain often knew that most the time Dew wasn't even really upset, but he much preferred to see him smile.

"What, you couldn't tell? I'm pretty nonchalant about it" Rain said with a wink.

"Oh, yeah" Dew said sarcastically "I absolutely haven't noticed your big, longing puppy dog eyes at me all day"

"Don't know what you're talking about" Rain insisted, leaning in to kiss Dew gently.

"Cramp passed?"

Dew nodded "should try eat something, I think. Even though I know she'll send it right back up"

Rain smiled, sympathetic. "What do you feel like?"

Dew considered this for a second "I want like, chocolate ice cream. But with salt on it, like, heaps of salt. And maybe those real spicy chips to dip in it. Do we have those?"

Rain was completely unphased by Dew's weird cravings at this point "of course we do. Lead the way"

"Carry us" Dew demanded, to which Rain just stood in front of the bed, knowing Dew preferred to be piggy backed still at this point.

"You know, I'm liking this arrangement. I say something and you just do it"

Rain stared at him slowly as Dew climbed onto his back "as if I didn't do that before you were pregnant?"

"I seem to remember it being the other way around"

"Don't know what you're on about" Rain defended as he took Dew to the kitchen.

"Whatever, princess"

"Is that enough salt?" Rain questioned, showing Dew. He just held his fingers up "little pinch more?"

Rain obliged, offering Dew his snack.

He sighed happily, crunching down on a chip before offering one to Rain "try it. It's good" he insisted.

Rain narrowed his eyes at him before grabbing one of the chips he liked, non-spicy, of course, and dipping it in Dew's ice cream. Something Dew had been making him do now, try a bite of whatever he was craving, to which Rain would every time. Often ending up in Rain spluttering and coughing and screwing his face up in disgust, which if nothing else entertained Dew.

"That's probably one of the better ones" he said after a moment, a contemplating look on his face.

"I knew you'd like it. I'm eating as much salt as you put on everything normally anyway. No more though, it's mine"

"It's not that good" Rain deadpanned "It's just not as bad as the others"

"Then why do you try them if you hate them so much?" Dew asked innocently.

"Because I love you, you dork" Rain said with a laugh.

"Promise?"

"With all my heart" Rain promised.

Rain was right, to Dew's relief. The nausea had begun to ease up, just slightly, after a couple weeks. Small wins, at this point. He was taking anything he could.

Dew lay on his bed, feeling around his abdomen while he waited for Rain, who was finishing up helping Mountain in the garden. Dew had joined for a little bit, but quickly got fed up of planting seeds and retreated back inside to nap, from which he had woken up from about ten minutes ago and started feeling around, curious as to what was happening inside him.

"Rain!" Dew jumped up as he saw his mate walk into their room, immediately running over to him "take your shirt off"

"Hello to you too, light of my life. Good nap?" Rain said with a surprised smile at Dew's greeting. Dew already had his shirt off as he hurried Rain along, basically forcing his shirt over his head as Rain caught up.

"Lie down on your back for me"

"Why?"

"I'm carrying your daughter, you'll do what I want" Dew demanded, yet his tone lacked any force behind it "please?" he whined.

Rain obliged, climbing on their bed shirtless and lying on his back to which Dew shuffled in beside him, pressing his fingers across Rain's abdomen with purpose, clearly feeling for something. Rain looked at him quizzically, feeling a little like he was being studied. Dew didn't say anything as he lay down on his back, gently pressing his fingers across the same area down his abdomen.

He exhaled with a smile as he looked over to Rain "okay, feel that area?" pointing to where he was poking at him just before. Rain did as Dew asked, not entirely sure what he was feeling for. "Now, come here. Gently" he pulled Rain's hand over to him.

Rain rolled his fingertips across the area Dew moved his hand to.

"You can feel that, right? That weird edge thing there? Feels a bit like a rubber ball"

Rain moved his hand back to his abdomen, and then back to Dew's "yeah, I can feel that. It definitely feels different between us"

"Weird, right? It never used to. I can only feel it when I lie like this. I just had to check"

"Do you think it's her?"

Dew shook his head "I don't think so. I'm not even showing yet. I think it's the uterus? I just noticed it today"

"In the 11th week. The size of a fig. Nearly at that first safe point" Rain reminded "and hopefully, through the worst of the nausea"

"It's been a little better this week, I think. Not feeling like I'm going to throw up at the sight of any food"

"Hey, that's improvement" Rain encouraged.

"Only like, two thirds of them"

"Getting there, then" Rain leaned over to kiss Dew's check as his fingertips moved to the area he had been feeling before, feeling the space in Dew's abdomen that wasn't even showing on the surface, but it was definitely there. He was interrupted by a knock on their door, both ghouls moving to put their shirts back on as Rain opened the door while Dew sat on their bed.

"Copia!" he sounded excited to see him, he always was.

"Hello, my ghouls" Rain invited their former Papa inside as he came to greet Dew as well.

"You look well. How is everything?"

Dew smiled at him excitedly "really good. The nausea's starting to ease up and we're nearly at 12 weeks now"

Copia looked thrilled to say the least, Rain moving back to Dew as he waited.

"I've never seen a baby ghoul before" he gestured his hand vaguely to Dew who raised his eyebrows in amusement "so it will be, very exciting, to have a little one around"

"Technically, they're called kits" Dew explained to him "but ours? They're baby, they're kit, it doesn't matter"

"You will be great parents. I am sure" he smiled warmly at the pair who thanked him for his support.

"Anything we can help with?" Rain asked

"I ah, I wanted to give you two a heads up that the new Papa will be here in a few weeks" Copia's smile turned into something else. Something sour, Rain assumed by the unusually harsh expression on their old Papa's face "I can explain to him your situation, or, I will not mention it. And let you two tell him, when you decide to"

Rain didn't respond at first, Dew looking over at him to see a similar sour expression on his face.

"We'll tell him when he's here. Thank you for giving us the choice" Dew jumped in.

Copia nodded "right! That's settled. And uh, should you need anything, you can always come to me. Always" he insisted, something in his tone on that last word. Jealousy, maybe? Fear that once the new Papa came along, he'd be forgotten about?

Dew wasn't sure.

"We'll always come to you" Dew reassured "besides, you have more power than the new guy anyway. You're the one that can actually help us"

Copia's face looked smug at that. He was struggling with having to step back, feeling like he lost power instead of gained it. The ghouls weren't entirely sure how to feel, either. Especially Rain. Dew understood where he was coming from, he felt exactly the same towards Copia when he had taken over from Terzo. Now though, he knew how things worked and what to expect and was dealing with the transition much more smoothly. And he'd been a bit preoccupied to even worry about the new Papa lately, to say the least.

"Exactly!" Copia agreed "anything you two need, I will make it happen. You're still my ghouls"

That meant something to Rain, who finally eased up and smiled back at Copia with a thank you.

"When can you tell if it's a boy or girl?" he asked "is it different to human pregnancies?"

"Around the same time, I think" Dew spoke up before Rain had the chance to say anything "not quite yet"

Rain just looked at Dew and nodded in agreement.

"So exciting" Copia repeated. "I just wanted to check in with you both, and pass that on to you"

"Thank you" they both echoed as they said their goodbyes.

"You don't want to tell him she's a girl?" Rain asked as he closed the door behind him.

"I want to keep that for us. Is that okay? I'll just tell the others we don't know when they ask" Dew checked with him.

"Of course it is. They're going to be begging you day and night to find out though, you know?"

"I know. Besides, Phantom said he thought she was a girl. He might be wrong yet" Dew shrugged

"I suppose we've just kind of rolled with it" Rain agreed.

"Do you hope it's a girl?" Dew wondered.

"I really don't mind either way" Rain assured him.

"Hmmmm. You so hope it's a girl" Dew told him with a sly smile.

Rain ignored his comment "we can find out officially at the 20 week scan. But I've definitely just gone with what Phantom said"

"Yeah, so have I" Dew agreed "the way he let it slip was pretty convincing that he was sure of what he felt, even though he tried to backtrack immediately" he said with a laugh.

"Well, I suppose we can keep it a secret until she's here. No guarantees Phantom can, though"

"You think he's already told them?" Dew wondered.

"Nope. I've got a man on the inside" Rain said smugly. 

"What?" Dew said with a laugh.

"Oh yeah, if he's going to let it slip to anyone it will be Mountain. And anything he tells Mountain, he'll bring it back to me"

Dew laughed in almost disbelief, putting his arms around Rain's neck "about the gender of our baby specifically or just anything?"

"Just anything. I haven't told Mountain that we know, or think we know. But if Phantom tells him anything, I'll know before long. So you can go smack him on the back of the head as appropriate"

"Always looking out for me" Dew hummed. "I shouldn't have put it past you, you're a sneaky little shit when you want to be"

"I don't have a clue what you're on about" Rain said with a wink. "They could put bets on it though. Use those old wives tales to guess"

"Something tells me they've already got bets on it"

"More than likely" Rain said with a laugh "I just know Aurora's dying for a girl. She'll be thrilled"

"Something tells me that Aunty Aurora will teach her more trouble than the rest of them combined" Dew said, shaking his head.

"Probably" Rain agreed quickly "yet not nearly as much as you'll teach her" he said with a smile.

"You have no idea, Rainy" Dew's voice was teasing.

"I know better than anyone, my little nymph" Rain said with a smirk.