AN: I do not own The Slayers, I just play in the sandbox.

"Excuse me," a young woman said, stopping Zelgadis as he walked towards the wagon, arms filled with a box from Lina and Gourry's cottage. "Are you the owner?"

"No," Zel said to the woman, who was standing beside a man who looked old enough to be her grandfather, as he shifted the box in his arms so that he could indicate Lina, who could be seen through the open door of the house packing in the living room. "You would need to talk to her."

"Thank you." The woman said as Zelgadis glanced at the man again, and this time he noticed something about the distinct style of the vest he wore. The only place he'd ever seen it before was in the village he had lived in with his parents when he was a small child. It caused him to give the man a longer glance, and to his astonishment he found that he looked familiar. And judging by the way the man was looking at him, Zel was certain the feeling was mutual.

"You look just like a man I used to know. But he died years ago." The man said.

Zel held out his hand, "Zelgadis Greywards."

The man's jaw dropped, "But that can't be!"

"Why not?" Zel asked.

"Because the fire that claimed your parents' home killed everyone inside. We never found your body or Zolf's but we searched for days and eventually concluded that you two being so young and small that there must have been nothing left."

Suddenly something stirred in Zel's brain. "Zor Benet?" he asked.

"Oh my gosh," Zor said as he clasped Zel's hands, "Did Zolf make it out with you? Is my son still alive?"

Zelgadis shook his head, still reeling from his own sense of shock, "You're Zor Benet? But he told us everyone in Burgrav was dead, killed from the plague!"

From the porch he barely noticed as two of Lina and Gourry's daughters, Attie and Pomona, came out with their arms filled with boxes. Their ears perked as they noticed Zel talking with Zor, "There's never been plague in Burgrav, boy, it was too remote. But how can you be Dorn Greyward's son? You're so young! And what happened to my son?"

"Pomona, go put a kettle on." Attie whispered under her breath as she put the box in the wagon and went to stand beside Zel. Firmly she grabbed his hand.

"My great grandfather found us in the forest. I guess he was just planning to…" Zel stumbled for a moment, but then decided to call it was it was, "kidnap only me, but since I was with Zolf, he took him, too. He told me plague had come to the village and, well, you know how paranoid my father was about the plague. And since my grandfather was a healer I never thought to question him! We stayed in a cabin at the base of the mountains for a few weeks, but when no one came for us Rezo made a show of checking the village and said everyone was dead. Zolf and I thought, well, your wife was doing so poorly after delivering her baby, we thought that she was the first victim."

"She lived. She never believed Zolf was dead, until one day, many years later, she said she couldn't feel him anymore, and she passed shortly thereafter. We all thought it was a mother's hope. But he was alive! Where is he now?"

Zelgadis shook his head, "It was ages ago. Decades. Zolf reached adulthood and he became an accomplished sorcerer. But we fought against a powerful enemy, and Zolf was killed in the battle. I'm so sorry."

Zor blinked rapidly as he shook his head, "Well, at least now I know."

"Why don't you two come inside?" Attie said, "Sit down, have some tea."

"Yes. Mr. Benet, this is my fiancé, Attie the Green. Attie, this is Zor Benet, a friend from the village I once lived in." Zelgadis said, his voice sounding distant in his ears as he wondered how he could never have suspected, all these years, that it was all a ruse. How could he have been so blindly trusting? "What happened to my parents? Were their bodies found?"

"Yes, and buried." Zor replied.

Attie put a hand on his arm as they walked up the steps of the patio, and the knowledge sank in that Rezo had taken more from him than he had ever realized. He'd not just cursed his body, he had killed his parents and taken him from a loving home. Surely if he'd been able to stay with his parents, then none of this would have happened.

Anger tore through him, demolishing the scars that had formed through the years. He stopped by the door to usher Zor through, and then indicated for Attie to go on ahead of him, and the fact that her clothing seemed tight on her stood out disquietingly.

When she was a young girl she had experienced a prophecy that she would give birth to a daughter who had a shard of Shabranigdu in her soul. A daughter who had the same name as Zel's mother, Corentina. Zel wished that Attie had told him before he had slept with her. Sure, she'd taken the usual precautions of having a sterility spell. But there were times when those spells failed. And a niggling feeling grew within him that this was one of those times.

Attie hadn't said anything about being pregnant. She also hadn't said that she wasn't. And Attie had a tendency to keep secrets and shut down when she was scared. Was this one of those times when she was shutting down? Had fate snared them in its web?

Attie turned and looked at him questioningly as he stood back by the door. He took a deep breath and followed her in. Whether or not she was pregnant, the damage had been done, and there was no use in obsessing over it. He'd made a commitment, and whichever way things went he was going to see it through. Still, his tongue bled as he bit into it as he did all he could to put the matter from his mind and focus on reminiscing about Zolf with his father, rather than dwelling over his fears about a child he would hopefully never sire.

"Our last night here." Lina said as she watched from the porch as Gourry drilled their youngest child, Luke, in swordplay while Attie stood beside her, looking unusually contemplative. Zel had gone for a walk, but Lina didn't read much into it. Since Zor's visit he had been broody, and for once Lina couldn't fault him. News like that would be a lot to take in. "And then we'll be starting a new chapter in Saillune City."

"Hm." Attie replied.

Lina stared at her for a moment, and then ran her hand through her daughter's short blond curls. "It looks like the shampoo that Pomona gave you to grow your hair out is working."

Attie finally managed to smile. After losing her hair after suffering a serious battle injury while fighting Xellos, she had been in a rush to grow it out before her wedding and, though she was not one for beauty routines and primping, she agreed to try her sister's remedies. "It has. And I actually like that it curls now. Hopefully by next month it will be down to my shoulders. That's how long I want it to be for the wedding."

She choked over the last part of her sentence, and Lina gently she put a hand on her arm. She'd been aware that something had been troubling Attie for some time, but it was one of those things that Attie hadn't wanted to confide no matter how hard Lina had pried. "Whatever it is, you can tell me. I mean, it can't be any worse than Min having to tell me that she'd gotten most of the town, including me, knocked up, can it?"

Attie squeezed her eyes shut, and then turned towards the house and ran in. Alarmed, Lina followed her and sat down beside her on the couch. As soon as the door had shut behind them Attie burst into tears, but didn't say anything. Lina started stroking her hair and resisted the urge to lob a series of questions at her. All the while, something that Dianna, her deceased daughter that Lina had been able to converse with during her own near death experience, had said rose and echoed within her mind. "Atalanta, I have no idea what is bothering you. But when your father and I nearly died during that last battle with Nigel Shabranigdu, Dianna told me something that I couldn't make sense of, but perhaps you can. She told me to tell you not to worry, that she wouldn't let anything bad happen to you."

"She did?" Attie said, lifting her face up, and Lina was surprised to see the relief within her features.

Lina squeezed her hands, "Yes, your big sister is looking out for you from beyond the grave. So whatever it is, everything will be fine. Now, can you tell me what is going on?"

"I'm pregnant." Attie said.

"Oh," Lina said as she wrapped an arm around her. It would make sense why Attie was scared. Lina had nearly died delivering Dianna, and her other daughter, Min's, labors were known for being arduous and dangerous. Dianna had been a midwife, so surely knowing she was looking after her would calm any fears Attie had about dying during the delivery, "Hey, don't worry about it. Especially at your age I don't think anyone will get moralistic."

"It has nothing to do with that!" Attie snapped as Lina's confusion grew.

"What is it then?"

"When I was thirteen I had a prophecy." Attie finally said, stopping Lina in her tracks. A prophecy? Attie had never said anything! "That one day I would have a little girl named Corentina, who is cursed like Dianna."

"Oh." Lina said, too stunned for a moment to think of anything constructive to say. Dianna had been cursed with a shard of Shabranigdu in her soul. That had been the reason that Lina's delivery with her had nearly killed her, as Shabranidu had sensed the perfect opportunity to kill the woman who had destroyed two fifths of him. And then during Dianna's life controlling Shabranigdu's rage had been a constant struggle, as well as battling the depression that put her at risk for going into a state where she would desire the destruction of the world. Until the day she was murdered, Lina had lived with the fear that she would have to kill her own daughter to prevent her from aligning with Shabranigdu. No wonder Attie was petrified!

Yet as difficult and agonizing as raising Dianna had been, it had paid off, especially after her death. Dianna had found she could exert some control over the other people who held Shabranigdu within their souls and prevent them from destroying the world. Dianna's intervention had played a pivotal role in the defeat of Nigel Shabranigdu. And it gave Lina comfort to know that Dianna was still around in some form, even if she rarely got to see her.

After Dianna had died, Lina had struggled with overcoming a grief so deep it threatened to overwhelm her and the awkward truth that her life was a lot easier and carefree with Dianna gone. She felt guilty about feeling relief over being free of the burdens of loving someone who was cursed with something so evil in their soul. And she had wondered, if given the choice, if she would have traded that relief to have those burdens to be with her daughter again.

A strange sense of calmness filled Lina. If Dianna could exert influence over her hosts, then perhaps she could reach Dianna through her grandchild. And suddenly the burdens didn't seem overbearing. It would all work out. Attie, meanwhile, continued to cry, "I was always just so terrified of going through what you went through. I don't know how you went on to have the rest of us after it. It haunted my nightmares for so long."

Suddenly, Attie's lack of interest in settling down and having children made sense. Lina closed her eyes and held her close, "How far along are you?"

"Five months. I've been feeling good, I kept thinking there was no way because of the sterility spell, and you and Di and Min were all so sick whenever you were pregnant that I kept thinking that there was no way I could be, because I'd be puking constantly if I were. But then my clothes started getting tighter and the midwife I visited said that Xellos' attack must have sent my body into shock and made the sterility spell ineffective. I think I was in some heavy denial and feel so stupid now."

"Denial and stupidity run in the family." Lina said chidingly, "And it looks like Di is already coming through. By the time I was five months with her my stomach already felt like a giant bruise. Stay close to Saillune, though. We'll hire the best midwife the kingdom has to offer. This is the safest place for you to be right now."

Attie nodded in agreement before she said quietly. "Knowing that Di will protect me, well, I'm not so scared about dying anymore. But I'm scared of what Zel will do."

"Yeah." Lina mused contemplatively. The timing couldn't have been worse, especially with this fresh wound opened.

"I told him about the prophecy, and at first he freaked out, like he had when he learned what Dianna was." Attie explained, "But then he came around and said he wanted to make it work with me, even if it does mean having a child cursed with Shabranigdu."

"But…" Lina said once Attie stopped talking.

"But he's been having nightmares. I'm scared about what he'll do if he learns this is really happening."

Lina exhaled, "Look, I've known Zel for a lot longer than you have. He'll do the right thing. And even if he doesn't your father and I will take care of you, but I don't think it will come to that."

"I think he'll do the right thing, but would he be able to love her?" Attie asked. "That's what is scaring me. No matter what Di did, you and Dad loved her and were there for her, and she needed that."

Lina patted her knee, "You remember how I reacted when I learned I was pregnant with Pomona?"

"Yeah," Attie said, smiling a little as she remembered the incident where Min had uncovered a fertility statue and gotten most of Zefiel City pregnant.

"Min and I were both so mad to be pregnant again. Yet when those babies are placed in your arms it all melts away. It's a powerful magic all its own." Lina explained.

"It's a bit different when your child contains that soul of someone who tormented you." Attie said.

"You'll understand in time. So will Zel." Lina said, "And if he doesn't, I'll beat it into him."

Attie laughed a little and then leaned her head on Lina's shoulder. "Do you think it's Rubia or Vincent's shard?" Lina asked.

"The timing works a bit better for Vincent's. I'd feel better if it was Rubia's." Attie explained.

"Me too." Lina said, as the host's ability to control Shabranigdu was greatly influenced by factors in his previous host's life. "All the same, we know better what to do now than we did when we had Dianna. There was so much trial and error, especially when we didn't know why she would lash out like she did. It will work out. Especially if Di is able to exert any control over the host." Lina considered for a minute, "Do you need me to be there when you tell Zel?"

"No, but I may need to talk to you after words."

"I'll stay up." Lina said. "Do you want me to tell your father?"

"What will he think?" Attie asked.

Lina smiled, "Honestly, he's just going to be overwhelmingly happy to hear another grandchild is on the way. It's been awhile since Luke was a baby, and the best thing about having a grandchild is you get to cuddle a baby and sleep through the night! And a girl this time! After three grandsons we've been wanting a granddaughter. He'll be thrilled."

Attie smiled, "Go ahead and tell him then."

"You're drunk." Attie said to Zelgadis as he walked into their room.

"Only a little," Zelgadis said as he sat on the bed and took off his shoes, "And you never came to the pub to find me."

"I have to be careful now. I can't go to the pubs anymore." She said quietly, and then she started speaking rapidly, "I don't know how it happened, but Corentina is on her way. The midwife said that the shock of Xellos' attack messed with my biology…"

"It's done." He cut her off as he closed his eyes. So he was doomed to raise a child like Rezo. And his brief optimism that he could put his rage and grief aside and forgive and love his daughter would be sorely tested now that he had good reason to believe that Rezo had murdered his parents and kidnapped him and Zolf.

Attie put a hand on his shoulder, "Is that all you're going to say?"

"I'm going to get you some tea." He said as he stood up and tried to stay steady.

"Zel!" she said as she got up, "It's going to be okay. Tell me it's going to be okay!"

He grasped her by the shoulders, "It's going to be okay."

He's better start going through the motions until it sank in. Fake it till you make it. "We'll be okay. And you need rest and sustenance. I'll be back with the tea."

He exited the room and closed the door behind him as memories swarmed around him. Of Rezo, coming to get him to tell him his parents had died when he was just a small child and that Zel was to live with him now. Of how Rezo had no intentions of coddling a boy who had suffered a horrendous loss and instead put high expectations upon him, expectations that looking back Zelgadis realized weren't realistic. And how now, knowing Rezo's true nature, he wondered if Rezo fed off his distress as he jumped through hoops to try to impress him while Rezo would smack him down.

"If you were my son I would have died from the shame." All these years later, Rezo's words still burned within him.

Zel's hands clenched into fists. Especially as, try as he did, he only had a few memories of his parents. He remembered that he had loved them. So they must have loved him in turn. But he couldn't remember what they did to create that love. And he had millions of memories of Rezo dressing him down and tearing him apart. It wasn't fair.

While he had wanted marriage and children for so long, and been horrible to Attie over the issue, he was coming face to face with the fact that it would be a struggle for him to be a loving father even to a normal child. But to a tainted one? What had he been thinking?

"You okay?" Gourry asked, causing Zel to jump.

"Fine," he said, "Just making Attie some tea."

"And so the night raids to the kitchen begin."

"She told you?" Zel asked incredulously as, for a brief moment, he feared what the swordsman would think about him getting his daughter pregnant out of wedlock.

"No." Gourry said as he started to pull some bread and sandwich fixings from the cupboards. "But she's getting to the point where it's starting to be noticeable."

"She says she just found out a few days ago."

Gourry shrugged as he smiled. "It will be fine. These things happen."

Well, at least Gourry was as easygoing as always. But that really was the least of his problems. "It has a shard of Shabranigdu in it."

Gourry's face registered no surprise, he simply asked. "How do you know that?"

Zelgadis explained about Attie's prophecy as he fixed the tea. When he finished, Gourry looked strangely contemplative. "It may seem overwhelming now, but once you see her, you'll fall in love with her."

Zelgadis bristled, "But after all that Rezo did…"

"Your daughter won't be Rezo!" Gourry cut in. "How many people have you met with shards of Shabranigdu in them now? And how many of them were like Rezo?"

Zelgadis sighed, "They were all different in their ways. But they were all sadists."

"I'm not sure Rubia was."

"Or we just didn't know her enough."

Gourry sighed, "Keep up that attitude and all you will see in Corentina is what you despise. That won't save her. Or you."

Zelgadis felt sick, "So I should just ignore the evil that is in her?"

"There's evil in all of us." Gourry countered. "We don't need it shoved in our faces."

"This is different. Shabranigdu will be in her soul!"

"And your daughter will be a separate person from that. He can influence her, but if you give her reasons to resist him, she will. You have to see her humanity. It's how we were successful with Dianna."

Zelgadis swallowed his retort that by some measures they weren't successful with Dianna. She'd had several collapses where she'd nearly aligned herself with Shabranigdu. And she had hurt many people during her rages. They'd never been able to trust her to be alone with children, and all of her numerous pregnancies had ended in miscarriages. But at the end of the day, he couldn't argue with the fact that despite the failures of Dianna's life, she'd also been an accomplished and sought after midwife and had saved the lives of numerous women and babies under her care, and that Dianna had also died while casting a Resurrection spell to save his life. The edge to his anger abated at the thought. Especially when he considered that without Dianna's intervention from beyond the grave, Nigel Shabranigdu would likely have killed them all and destroyed the world.

"You're right. And I hate that you're right. Because if I'm going to be honest with myself, I want revenge. But Rezo can never be brought to justice for what he did."

"Then don't make things worse by making your daughter suffer for his crimes!"

Zelgadis straightened as if slapped. "No, I would never…"

"Isn't that what you're already doing? She hasn't even taken a breath yet, and you're expecting and looking for evil in her."

Zelgadis grabbed some cookies and put them on a plate. "Perhaps it will get easier, when she's born, and I can see what she is rather than what I fear she will be. Dianna knew what buttons to press, how to make me feel like I was in Rezo's clutches again, and she enjoyed twisting that knife! I just don't know how I can live with that thrown in my face day in and day out, and by my own child! If Dianna had been…"

Something about Gourry's demeanor changed, and it was not a comfortable one. "I suggest you man up and find a way to live with it. Or if you're not strong enough to put this behind you, then you'd better just leave now before she's born."

Zelgadis' eyes widened in surprise as Gourry continued steadily, "Lina and I will take care of Attie and the baby and love them no matter what happens. And if all you can see is your pain and hatred, then they deserve better."

Zelgadis fumbled for a moment as he berated himself for stupidly venting about Dianna, especially after her sacrifice. Shame coursed through him as he stammered, "I promised Attie I'd make it work. And I meant it. And that's what I intend to do."

Gourry stood before him, displaying his full and impressive height. Even though he was aging rapidly and his health was starting to fail, he proved that he could still be intimidating if he needed to be. "Get it together, Zel. Move past this. You have a few months. And you need to put all of your energies to building the future rather than wallowing in what you lost."

Zelgadis nodded, "I will." He grabbed the cookies and tea and went back to this room, red faced and desperate for sleep. Attie was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking thunderous. He handed her the tea and cookies.

"I didn't say I was hungry!" she stated.

"What do you need, then?" he asked.

"To know that you will be here!" she said.

He gently wrapped an arm around her. "I'm here."

Zelgadis and Attie were married the week they returned to Saillune City. Zelgadis looked resplendent in his grey guild robes, and Attie glowed in her pale green ones. It was a small, intimate wedding, and Min and Pomona had even managed to put a bit of make up on Attie. And for once, the sense of dread that Zelgadis had been feeling abated. Everything seemed right. At long last he would have a normal life, or as close to one as someone like him could get.

Lina and Gourry bought a cottage on the outskirts of town, and Lina took in assignments from the guild while Gourry, whose health was declining, focused on raising Luke. Pomona went back to the apothecary she was apprenticed to while Min and her husband, Drake, resumed their lives at the royal court. Zelgadis stayed away from the palace. Attie tried not to be jealous, but whenever he mentioned seeing Queen Amelia it left her so unsettled that Zelgadis decided it was for the best to let his first love go and focus on his current one. A note Amelia sent him before his wedding that she understood and was happy for him and would always have a place for him in her heart would be their last bit of correspondence.

Like Lina, Zelgadis also ended up doing research with the guild. With his credentials he was given a generous stipend. It was enough to buy a good house close to Lina and Gourry's, and Attie liked that, especially as she was having to give up her beloved life on the road. Thankfully she wasn't breaking ribs or in pain. Her pregnancy was as easy as one could hope for. And given how lethal Lina's with Dianna had been, they all breathed a collective sigh of relief and hoped that it meant that Corentina would have more control over Shabranigdu than Dianna had.

It created a lot of relief for the Inverse-Gabriev's, who were worried about losing Attie during labor like they had nearly lost Lina. But for Zelgadis it wasn't enough relief. To his dismay he found that he could barely tolerate the sight of Attie's growing stomach. The one time he tried to feel it move he became so agitated that Attie never asked him again. They all kept hoping that once she was born and Zelgadis could see it was an innocent baby and not his great-grandfather that he would be able to move forward. Zelgadis prayed that they were right.

Even though things were going well, Lina had asked Amelia for the most skilled midwife in the realm to tend to Attie, and had been gifted with the services of the Royal Midwife. All too soon, Zelgadis was woken in the middle of the night by Attie telling him to get her mother and to summon the midwife.

Several hours later, Gourry paced nervously in the living room as, from the bedroom, Attie screamed. Zelgadis leaned forward and cradled his head with his hands, trying to block it all out. "I was with Lina during all of her labors." Gourry said, yet strangely it didn't sound like a rebuke. "I couldn't bear not knowing what was going on."

Zelgadis wringed his hands together. Not knowing was hard, but actually going in there during such a sacred time for women was unthinkable. Gourry continued to blather, and with a jolt Zelgadis realized he'd rarely seen the other man so anxious. "I was even with Di, every time she miscarried. She was a midwife, so it never seemed awkward to her, and she always felt so safe with me. The first time it was weird, but after that I got used to it. Even Min would let me sit with her if she wasn't being examined and when she wasn't pushing with her first two. Of course, things were so chaotic when Wally was born…I've never just sat outside and waited."

"Lina, Min, and the Royal Midwife for the Saillune Family is with her." Zelgadis pointed out. "It's going to be fine."

Attie screamed again, and Zelgadis felt as though a knife was being twisted within him. And to his horror he was hoping that there was a way out of this. That they would come out and tell him he had a son, not a daughter. Or that the baby was dead, but Attie made it alive. Or that…

Gourry suddenly broke down into tears, "I killed her."

"What?" Zelgadis asked.

"I couldn't protect Lina from this. I didn't know what to do. And now she's dying…"

With a jolt Zelgadis realized the dementia that occasionally afflicted the swordsman was acting up, and he was remembering when Dianna had been born and Lina had nearly died. While it made sense that the stress of Attie delivering a child like Dianna would trigger those memories, it left Zelgadis flummoxed as to what to do about it. Fortunately Pomona came into the house then, "Luke is happily settled with Drake." She announced, her voice fading away as she saw Gourry. "Oh no, what happened?"

"Nothing." Zelgadis said, "He's reliving what happened with Dianna."

Pomona took a deep breath, walked up to her father and grabbed his hands, "Hi Daddy, it's me."

Gourry looked at her for a moment, and then asked, "Pomona?"

"Right!" she said, "And Mom is alive and spry as ever."

He pulled her into a hug, "I love you all."

"I love you." She said. "How's it going in there?"

"Fine as far as I can tell. I think she's transitioning." Gourry said. "But she's not asked for me so it must be going better than Min's labors."

"It never ceases to amaze me that all of your other daughters rely on you so much for support, but Attie clings to Lina. I guess Luke does, too." Zelgadis observed.

"Is it that amazing?" Gourry asked, "Remember, until Pomona was born, Attie had been our youngest for longer than Pomona and Luke have been alive, combined! Lina still thinks of Attie as the baby of the family. Only now that baby of the family has company."

Attie screamed again, and the room went quiet. "Do you want to see what is happening?" Gourry asked Pomona.

"I don't want to see anything that will put me off having kids of my own one day." Pomona said, "Besides, the midwife would chase me out. I'm too young to know the horrors or whatever."

"I still can't believe you sat in there with Lina." Zelgadis said.

Gourry stared at the door as he said quietly, "When I was a boy, I was badly injured after one of my father's beatings, and my mother went into labor, but I couldn't be moved. I have many siblings, but that one was special, because I saw her born. And I knew that there was nothing so bad that happened during the birthing process that I couldn't stomach."

Pomona held her father's hand as silence settled in once again. It was jarring whenever Gourry alluded to the fact that he had had such an unhappy childhood. It didn't seem congruent with the gentle, happy man. But then if Gourry could overcome all of that and be a loving father to his children, then surely there was hope that Zelgadis could overcome his hatred of Rezo and be a loving father to this one. And perhaps, if being in the room when they're born creates such a bond, then he needed to do everything he could to stack the deck in his favor and go in.

Zel stood up and adjusted his shirt. "I'm going in."

"Good for you." Gourry said.

Zelgadis nearly turned back around when Attie screamed again. But he held firm and opened the door and quickly went in. Attie was relaxing against Min, who was supporting her in a kneeling position, while Lina sat beside her and held her hand. The midwife was washing her hands, and she looked at him warily. Attie, meanwhile, smiled, and reached her other hand out for him. "I'm glad you're here."

Zelgadis mechanically walked up to her, and the midwife drew close to him and whispered, "Stay by the head, and don't faint!"

"Right." Zelgadis said as he reached Attie's side. "Sorry it took me so long."

"You made it." She said as she squeezed his hand and her face scrunched up.

"You should be feeling the urge to push soon." The midwife said.

Attie nodded, and from the other side Zelgadis saw Lina smiling at him approvingly, and he realized he'd just scored some points with his mother-in-law. Soon his attention was drawn back to Attie, and the fact that he had no idea what to do. Fortunately the women did.

Considering he had seen horrendous injuries on the battlefield and the sickening results of chimera experiments gone wrong, seeing a baby being born wasn't much worse, and there was a beauty about it that was absent with the first two. And as Corentina came into the world, hands clenched and screaming. Zelgadis felt the breath leave his body as his heart lurched.

Min hugged Attie and kissed her head as she laughed, "You have a beautiful little girl! Just in time for me to start bouncing grandchildren on my knee in a few years!"

"You still have time to have a fourth." Attie said as tears of happiness streamed down her face as the midwife put the baby on her chest. Attie closed her eyes and held on.

"I'm done." Min said. "You okay, Mom?"

Lina was trembling slightly with what appeared to be relief. "Attie's okay, so I'm okay."

Zelgadis stared, transfixed, at the tiny baby. Surely there must be a mistake. There was no way she could be afflicted! It would still be awhile before dawn and they would know for sure, but for the moment, Zelgadis was prepared to bet odds on the fact that they had been worried for nothing. "She's beautiful, Attie." He said as he wrapped and arm around her and squeezed, and Attie burst into a fresh round of happy tears.

The midwife put a towel over the baby and started cleaning her up. "Attie, I'm going to have a look at baby. Just a minute."

"Let's get you to the bed." Min said as she helped Attie to stand up, and Zelgadis watched in amazement over the fact that Attie was actually able to walk so soon after delivering.

Once Attie was settled in, the midwife came over, looking a little too neutral. "Attie, I'm concerned. Your daughter's eyes aren't opening."

"What?" Attie asked.

The midwife put a hand on her arm, "We're in Saillune, and with all of the knowledge that Rezo the Red Priest amassed on blindness I'm sure that there's something that can be done. I'll send for a specialist immediately. We have a lot of his library here. But as you can see, her eyes won't open."

Zelgadis stared in disbelief as he looked at Corentina and noticed how she moved her head from side to side, obviously awake, but with her eyes closed as if asleep, and he felt disgust rise within him. Meanwhile, the midwife continued, "Worst case, there's many things we can teach her to help her live a full life, even without her sight. She's in the best possible place she can be. For now, just try to feed her and…"

But Zelgadis felt the bile rise within him, and then he found himself dashing to the bathroom to vomit.

AN: OK, I lied. I have two more fics in this continuity planned. This came to me while writing The Storm and I eventually couldn't ignore it any longer.