Chapter 21.
Months later, while they're having breakfast, she feels a sudden rush of heat in her stomach and rushes into the bathroom to vomit. She thinks about her symptoms for a second and then the thought hits.
While Jonah is out training, she purchases a pregnancy test and waits patiently for the results. Seconds later, two lines appear. From her diaphragm, she releases the loudest howl she can muster.
Minutes later, she's pacing back and forth in Queen Desmonda's chambers.
"What if I'm not fit to be a mother? I've always been a fighter. That's what I do...."
"Elodie."
"But this is a different kind of fight. I have to surrender in order to win, right?"
"Elodie."
"A baby is a huge step. My mother died when I was young. I've never actually seen...."
"Elodie!" She stops pacing and looks at her mother-in-law. "You're going to be a great mother. No need to panic."
"But what if Jonah doesn't want a baby?"
"Oh, he does. Trust me. Besides, the minute you took the throne, you became a mother."
"How so?" She quirks a brow.
"As a queen, we're mothers to the whole clan. The Aelons and Jebels look to you for guidance. You nurture them. You provide for them. These are all motherly duties." Desmonda takes her hands with a smile. "You are fit to be a mother."
"Elodie!" She hears Jonah coming through the entrance, searching for her. "Elodie, where are you?"
"Now, my question for you is, are you ready to tell Jonah he's going to be a father?"
Jonah walks into Desmonda's chambers, his body glistening with sweat. "What are you two up to?"
"I think Elodie has something to share with you."
"Oh, yeah? What's that?" Jonah takes her hand.
"There is something I want to share with you."
He leans in, his eyes widening with curiosity. "You're got a kind of... glow about you. What's going on?"
"Well, I have more of a glow growing inside of me."
"Wait....." he looks at her belly, then Desmonda, grinning from ear to ear. "Are you serious? We're having a baby?"
"We are, we are!" Jonah lifts her up, spinning her around. "I can tell just by the size of the baby, we're going to have a boy."
"And if it is a boy, what would you name him?"
"That's a good question. I think I have the exact name in mind."
~W~
Five Years Later
Her son hits the ground running, maneuvering in and out of trees away from her and Jonah.
"Slow down, Jebeem!" Jonah calls.
"You'll never get me!"
"This is definitely your son. Nobody in my family could move like this."
"Ah, don't tell me you can't handle a little chase." She teases.
"My knees don't move like they used to." When she reaches a clearing, they lose sight of little Jebeem. "Which way did that little dragon go?" She shifts, trying to sniff him out.
"This way." She leads Jonah through a familiar path in the forest, then hears a mechanical latch.
"What is-" before Jonah knows it, he's latched up, hanging upside down from a tree.
"Well, look at the little rabbit we've caught in our trap."
Little Jebeem walks out, laughing in glee. "Ha! We got him, Mom!"
"This is where your father and I met."
"Very funny, Jebeem. You can let me down now."
"I don't think so, Dad. Not until Mom tells me about how you met."
"Well, it all started with an evil black dragon who had silver eyes...." she tells her son, little Jebeem, the Aelon-Jebel origin story and how it led to her being a queen, leading over a united clan in eternal peace.
The End.