Where The Shadow Ends

Chapter Twenty - Devil Doesn't Bargain

A shiver went through her body as she asked, "When is Petrov supposed to come?"

Tom glanced over his shoulder at her as he buttoned up his shirt. "What makes you think I've already sent out a notice for him to come?"

Elayne laughed, running a hand through her wet mess of hair. "You're the dark lord."

Tom fully turned to face her; an eyebrow raised. "And?"

"And I wouldn't expect any less from you. You don't dilly dally. You send notice as soon as your mind is made up." Elayne said, standing up and going to the wardrobe.

Humming, Tom finished buttoning his shirt and ran a hand through his inky curls. "He'll be here at ten this morning."

Biting back a smile, Elayne nodded, picking out a pale blue summer dress and slipping it on her body. She turned her back to him and pulled her hair to one side. "Will you zip me up?"

Gently, Tom took hold of the tiny zipper and slowly pulled it up, causing a shiver to go through Elayne's body again.

Once fully zipped, Elayne turned back to face her husband and smiled at him, standing on her tip toes to press a gentle kiss to his lips.

Clearing his throat, Tom nodded his head and made his way out of the bedroom. He stopped at the door, glancing back at her for a moment. "Do you wish for him to see you here in the bedroom?"

"I suppose that's the best place for him to check on me, don't you?" Elayne asked as she walked back towards the bathroom, intending on fixing her hair.

Tom hummed, nodding his head, before he left the room, pulling the door shut behind him.

~*~

Elayne had been reading by the window in their room, when someone knocked on the door. She glanced at the clock, noting that it was five til ten. She marked her place in her book, set it aside, and stood up. "Come in."

The door opened to reveal Tom as well as an older man, Petrov.

Both entered the room, Tom closing the door behind them.

"I heard you haven't been feeling well, my lady?" Petrov asked, his dark eyes shifting between herself and Tom.

Nodding, Elayne walked around the bed and sat down on the edge. "Yes, that's right. I've been throwing up quite a bit."

Nodding, Petrov waved a hand at the bed. "Lay down for me, please. I'm more than happy to check you over. I'm confident we can figure out what's wrong and come up with treatment, if need be."

Gathering her hair in one hand, so that it would be out of the way, Elayne gently laid back on the bed. She swallowed hard as she watched Petrov pull out his wand, the tip starting to glow almost immediately.

Tom stood at the end of the bed, watching as Petrov moved his wand up and down her body.

The tip of the wand seemed to glow brighter when it hovered over her stomach.

Elayne locked eyes with Tom. She wasn't skilled in any way when it came to healing magic, but she had an inkling that the glowing was a telltale sign that she was pregnant.

After a few more moments, Petrov flicked his wand and tucked it into his robes.

A nervous smile broke out on his face as he glanced between the pair. "It would seem as though my lady is pregnant."

Tom raised a brow. "Already? It hasn't been that long since she miscarried."

Nodding, Petrov gave Tom his full attention. "Indeed, it hasn't been long, but she is indeed pregnant." He turned to look at Elayne. "From what I can tell, she's about ten to eleven weeks along."

Elayne closed her eyes, placing both of her hands on her belly, right below her belly button. A small smile graced her lips.

"And from what you could tell, is this pregnancy going to stick?" Tom asked.

Eyes flying open, Elayne looked from Tom to Petrov.

Chuckling nervously, Petrov nodded. "I saw nothing that might be cause for concern."

Tom hummed, pulling out his wand and flicking it towards the door. The door flew open. "Leave."

Petrov sputtered for a moment before bowing his head and rushing out the door. Another flick of Tom's wand and the door slammed shut behind him.

Elayne sat up ever so slightly, one hand still on her belly. "Are you angry?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

Tom sat on the edge of the bed next to his wife. He brushed a few wild curls away from her face before placing a hand on top of hers on her belly. "I don't know how I feel, if I'm being honest."

Tilting her head, Elayne asked, "What do you mean?"

"I am... Happy that you are with child. I just don't want to see you go through what happened last time." His brows pinched together as his eyes traveled down to her belly and their hands.

"You heard Petrov. He didn't see anything concerning." Elayne said, her voice soft.

There was several minutes of silence between the two, each thinking over the news.

"Go see Harris tomorrow. To confirm." Tom finally spoke. His nose twitched ever so slightly at the mention of the annoying blonde.

Elayne smiled and leaned up to kiss his cheek. "I will."

Humming, Tom moved and kissed his wife on the lips, before standing up. "I have some things that I need to attend to. I shall see you at dinner." He then turned and left the room.

Elayne watched with wide eyes. She hadn't expected him to just get up and leave.

She sighed, getting up and walking back over to the window. She looked out over the grounds, one hand on her hip while the other stroked her belly.

"I pray to Merlin that this all turns out. I hope that I can keep you safe, my little love." she whispered sadly. She felt a wave of different emotions. She felt happy that Tom took the news so well, but another part of her felt devastated. She knew that the fate of the child, whether Tom ended up intercepting the plan or not, was going to break her heart.  

A/N: Hey. Hello. Hi. Fuck. It's been a hot minute. I've been wanting to write for a while, but with life, things have just been really hard. I won't bore you all with my explanations. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Leave me a comment, it makes my day, really. See you in the next one.