I know a lot of people probably wanted to see what it was like for Rose to be pregnant, but honestly nothing of consequence would be happening that would really be story worthy (besides Dimitri and Rose fluff). Quite a bit of the Strigoi population was decimated during the attack on the academy, so there would only be the occasional small attack. Rose would also be taking it easy during her pregnancy, so there wouldn't be much action. While this is true, there will be moments of flashback occurring throughout this story so hopefully that will appease the readers who wanted to see more of that. And who knows? Maybe I'll eventually do a collection of one-shots that take place during that time as well. But this story picks up about a year and half after the birth of Dimitri & Rose's child and about two years after the attack on the academy. I'm sorry for any mistakes concerning pregnancy and labor, but I've never been either of them myself.

As always, enjoy and let me know what you think.

Disclaimer: The plot belongs to me. Anything you recognize, including characters and dialogue, belongs to Richelle Mead.

Prologue

You'd think after being nearly staked to death almost nine months ago, I'd have experienced the worst pain of my life. That was before I'd taken into account just how agonizing going through labor could be. As another contraction hit, I focused my attention on the bright hospital lights hanging on the ceiling of my room in the maternity ward. Moaning through the pain, I felt more sweat break out across my brow. I'd been living through this hell for about six hours now and I really hoped the baby decided to get out of me soon. Falling against the pillows stacked behind me, I was suddenly so exhausted. And I hadn't even started pushing yet. Looking over at the man beside me, I was amazed to see that he wasn't grimacing in pain. I'd been holding his hand in a death grip ever since labor had started, bringing with it a surprising amount of pain. Don't get me wrong; the look in his eyes clearly spoke of legions of anguish, but I knew that it was because he had to watch me struggle through such misery. He was always trying to make life easier for me, trying to take care of me. And now all he could do was hold my hand, try to comfort me as best he could, and watch me suffer.

Using his free hand, Dimitri gently laid a cool, damp cloth on my forehead. His beautiful brown eyes met my own, saying so much. His guardian mask was nowhere to be found as he gazed at me. Come to think of it, it hadn't really been present much at all since we had found each other again. Smoothing my hair back away from my face, he pressed a gentle kiss to my cheek. Panting, I could only squeeze his hand lightly in reply.

"I'm so sorry," he whispered against my skin.

"Don't…apologize," I wheezed. "No matter what…it will be worth it." I knew he felt the same way, that our ability to procreate was a miracle that most Dhampirs were unable to experience. But in the face of watching me in labor, I could also tell that he wished he could take away all of my pain and go through it himself.

He nodded before turning slightly away from me. Reaching inside a bucket that sat on the bedside table, he pulled out a couple ice chips. He placed them in my mouth, trying to do anything he could to help. Closing my mouth, I sucked on the cool pieces of frozen water. They were about the only form of comfort that really seemed to help, besides Dimitri of course. Although he was, what most people would consider, hovering, I simply couldn't be impatient or annoyed with him. Not tonight. As another contraction seized me, I tried to concentrate on the events that occurred a few hours previously.

Dimitri and I had just gotten back from a baby shower that Lissa had thrown us. Christian, Denis, Lev, and Artur had, of course, been present, as well as Adrian, Eddie, Mia, and my parents. While there had only been a small amount of people, this hadn't persuaded Liss to do anything halfway. She'd gone all out, stringing balloons on nearly every surface she could find and making us all play games. Christian had presented me with a cake, rolling his eyes at the sickeningly sweet pictures of baby shoes, one pink and one blue since we had yet to find out our child's gender, that were frosted onto the surface before lightly kissing my cheek. Lissa and Christian's present was only supposed to be the party itself, but Lissa had brought out bag after bag of clothing and toys. Knowing Liss, I probably shouldn't have been surprised.

Adrian had gifted me with a thick book of bedtime stories, including plenty of pictures, and Eddie and Mia, who had been married for nearly four months and had just announced they were expecting a child of their own, had chipped in for a changing station. Abe and Mom had given me a set of drawers for clothing as well as a wooden toy box. As I had begun to thank them profusely, Mom had cut me off, saying that she had something else for me.

Going into an adjoining room in Lissa and Christian's apartment, she had drug out an old wooden rocking chair. It was slightly worn, the entire surface gleaming and coated in an oak finish. Slightly teary-eyed, Mom had explained that this was the chair she herself had used when I had been born. I was surprised that she had kept it after so many years, but looking into her eyes I could tell that it meant a lot to her. She had only been able to spend four or five years with me before going back to her guardian duties and turning me over to St. Vladimir's Academy. I knew how much the decision to continue her career and sacrifice her relationship with me grated on her even though I no longer resented her for it. Because of this, I knew how important this hand-me-down rocking chair was to her.

Denis, Lev, and Artur had kept suspiciously silent through the gift-giving and when I turned to them they looked like children who had been caught with their hands in the cookie jar. At first I didn't know why, but then I noticed Lev attempt to slip his cell phone into his pocket, probably hoping that I wouldn't see him doing so. They seemed to think that my pregnancy had slowed down my reflexes, which I guess in a way, physically, it had a bit. But it wasn't like I didn't notice things.

"What's going on?" I questioned.

"It's a surprise!" Artur immediately said. He was always the first one to cave whenever they were trying to keep a secret from me. Knowing this, I honed in on him.

"What's a surprise?" I asked sweetly. Artur glanced over at Denis, who had an unreadable expression, and Lev, who shook his head at him.

"I can't tell you," Artur said finally.

"But why not?" I could tell by the way his hands started shaking and how sweat began to bead upon his brow that he was close to giving in. He could keep things to himself like no one's business when he was up against anyone else, but when it came to me he couldn't remain silent for long.

"Now Rose, are you really going to torture Artur into telling you that we're the surprise?" Spinning around swiftly, I saw Ion and Viktoria framed in the doorway. They were both smiling brightly, holding hands. Letting out a shriek that I vaguely admitted sounded like something a banshee would yell, I ran over and hugged them both tightly.

When I finally let go, Ion said, "And we come bearing gifts."

"You guys didn't have to get us anything. You being here is present enough."

"Well that's good, because we didn't get you anything," Viktoria said, laughing. "But Mama sent something with us." Ion turned back out into the hallway and lugged in a large rectangular cardboard box. Russian Cyrillic was handwritten faintly on one side, apparently denoting what the box contained. I heard Dimitri suck in a breath behind me and I turned to look at him.

"Is that what I think it is?" he asked. I could tell he was trying his hardest to keep his emotions at bay, but he wasn't succeeding.

"What? What is it?" I asked, glancing back and forth between Vika and Dimitri.

"It's the crib that Babushka used when she had Mama," Viktoria explained. "And Mama used it for all of us before passing it down to Sonya and Karolina. They both talked it over and decided that you and Dimitri deserved to have the chance to use it as well. So it's yours."

Dimitri came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, resting his hands over my slightly protruding stomach and burying his face in my hair. I knew he was probably trying his best to collect himself, so I placed my hands gently over his.

"I'll have to call and thank them all," I said. "And thank you both for bringing it. And for coming all this way." I still had a couple weeks to go in my pregnancy, but I figured they'd be staying until the baby was born. I'd thought that we would have plenty of time to catch up and prepare for the child before it was delivered. How wrong I was.

I was brought back to the present when the contraction finally let up. A maternity nurse and my OB-GYN, Dr. Mandi Moretti, had entered the room while I'd been lost in memories of my friends and family. Dr. Olendzski had also flown as quickly as she could to join us, arriving about an hour ago, and was now standing near my head as well. She had been involved with every stage of my pregnancy, helping me as best she could through the first documented case of Dhampirs being able to conceive.

"We're ready for you to begin pushing, Rose," Dr. Olendzski said calmly. "Just wait for Dr. Moretti's go ahead."

I was suddenly gripped by an uncontrollable fear. I was afraid of the pain, the idea of becoming a mother, and especially everything that could go wrong during the delivery. I'd heard so many horror stories and read enough about the possible complications that I couldn't help but be worried. I turned my wide eyes towards Dimitri, who was gazing intently at me.

"You can do this," he said encouragingly before pressing a kiss to the back of my hand, which he still held. And then the fears flew out of my mind as another contraction ripped through me.

"Push Rose," Dr. Moretti said. As I did as she asked and the pain increased tremendously, I tried to focus on anything else.

Only six hours ago, Dimitri and I had been returning to our apartment. The boys had helped carry the load of presents into the baby's room, but had soon cleared out. I had been practically silent for the last hour of the party, but I had felt so strange. A weird tingling sensation had been running through my lower stomach. It had slowly become a source of discomfort as more time had passed, almost feeling like menstrual cramps or a need to use the bathroom. Taken off guard, I'd been trying to figure out what it could possibly be.

"Are you alright?" Dimitri asked once we entered the bedroom. Turning to him, I could see how worried he was. Immediately I felt guilty for scaring him. Reaching up, I placed my hand against my cheek. He entangled his fingers with mine, lowering my hand to his mouth and kissing my palm.

"I'm fine, I just feel a little strange."

"Strange like…?"

"I don't know. I've just never felt like this before. Of course, I've never been pregnant before either." I smiled up at him, trying to reassure him. "I'm just going to go to the bathroom and then I'll be in," I added before entering the adjoining restroom and closing the door. Looking in the mirror, I could definitely see what they meant about pregnant women glowing. My skin was pure and unblemished, my cheeks rosy with life. Until they turned pale as a pain ripped through me. Clutching the sink, I felt something wet between my legs. Scared, I glanced down and saw a small puddle of water on the floor…meaning my water had broken?

"D-Dimitri?" I called through the door.

"Rose? Are you alright?"

"I think…I think my water just broke." I'd known before that he was fast, but he had whipped the door open and rushed up to me so quickly that it startled me. If he noticed the water on the floor, it didn't show. He was cradling my face between his hands and gazing intently into my eyes.

"It's going to be okay," he said, obviously picking up on my alarm. "I'm going to take care of you." And he'd calmly led me into the bedroom, helping me change into a pair of sweats before leading me out to the car, grabbing the overnight bag on the way. The hospital was on the opposite side of court and he'd held his composure until we'd arrived, checked in, and got me settled into a bed. Then he'd shown his worry the only way he could, by watching me carefully and showing his emotions through his facial expression. He never spoke of his anxiety, but I could tell he was just as worried as I was, even if he was excited as well.

As the baby finally slid from my body, the pain and anguish of the last six hours seemed to drift away. I was so exhausted, but as I heard my baby's first cry that seemed to slip away as well, at least for the present moment. I turned my head slightly to look at Dimitri, whose eyes were slightly red and teary, revealing just how happy he was. He brought his face close to mine, relishing the nearness before kissing me lovingly.

"I'm so proud of you," he whispered. I smiled weakly, placing a hand on his cheek.

"Congratulations," Dr. Olendzski said from her position near Dr. Moretti. "You have a daughter." Dimitri and I smiled widely at each other before our baby girl was brought over to us. Scooting his chair closer, Dimitri leaned in to get a better look at her. Wrapped in a warm pink blanket and wearing a head cap, Dr. Olendzski laid her gently in my arms before exiting the room with the nurse and Dr. Moretti. My little girl's eyes were closed and her skin was a lovely rosy shade.

"She's beautiful," I whispered. Her eyes, deep brown eyes that she'd inherited from her father, opened and she looked at me. Dark brown hair, nearly black in its shade, sparsely covered the top of her head. A tiny hand reached out and grabbed onto a finger that Dimitri had extended towards her and I knew we are both goners, loving this little girl with everything we had in us.