Disclaimer: I own nothing, except my own creations.

Author's Note: This is set in the future, presumably not long after Lady Knight and before Trickster's Choice.

The sentries spotted a lone man on a profusely sweating horse coming into sight in the distance. One blink later, he was visible and then suddenly he was there.

Their call to the stranger went ignored as the tall man disembarked from his horse in a hurry, abandoned the animal and raced for the largest dwelling.

Numair Salmalín threw up the flap of the tent. The people gathered inside looked up in alarm and questions were thrown to the mage at his sudden arrival. 'Why are you...?... Is something wrong at...? ... Numair...?' He ignored them all, eyes only intent on one person. Seeking her out, he stormed over and grabbed the young woman's arm. 'A word?' he managed to grit out as his hand clasped her upper arm, careful not to hurt her, even in his anger.

Without waiting for a response he dragged Veralidaine Sarrasri from the room.

At the last moment, he remembered himself. 'Your Majesty,' he said with a bow before he disappeared from sight, leaving behind the confused king, nobles and assorted knights at the table.

Not resisting the treatment, Daine spoke her first words when she saw the animal outside the tent. 'Numair!' she admonished when she saw its state of the horse breathing heavily before them. 'You didn't tend to Stripes!'

'Well excuse me if I had other things on my mind,' responded the powerful mage snarkily, stubbornly. 'I did loosen the saddle,' he added, softening his face for just a second.

He still hadn't let go of Daine's arm, and so when she made her move to attend to his mount, he held her back. Looking around, he spotted a page. 'Hey you, tend to my horse,' he ordered, throwing a gold coin his way. The young boy obediently scurried forward to snatch up the coin and do the bidding of the mage.

Meanwhile, Numair dragged the protesting Daine over to a tree out of earshot and eyesight. Trapping her between, he planted one hand on the rough bark, eyeing the single thing he cared the most about in the world as his other hand brought forward a piece of parchment. 'Care to explain this?'

Daine didn't need to look at the paper thrust under her nose to know what it said. She'd written it herself and dispatched it via a crow - funnily enough - four days earlier.

'Why?' he asked, all other words deserting him.

'You haven't asked me to marry you in a while,' said Daine, refusing to meet his eyes.

'What?!' cried Numair, confusion reigning supreme.

Daine ignored his outburst as she pressed on, eyes focused on the exceedingly interesting rock on the ground. 'You hadn't said it in a while, so I assumed that you didn't want to marry me. And then when I found out that I was pregnant, I was scared that you wouldn't want me anymore because we never talked about having kids. I really don't want our child born a bastard, but it's not fair to tie you down to something that you never asked for. And so I thought it best to just end us now while it was still...' Her frantic pace slowed and her voice petered off as she realised Numair had yet to say anything, his hands now gripping her arms tightly. Indeed she suspected that it was possible he hadn't breathed in a while either. 'Numair, say something,' she begged, on the verge of tears.

She saw his eyelashes come together as he blinked. He opened his mouth twice, but no words came out. It was only on the third try that he managed to say something. 'You're with child.'

She answered softly, making it very real. 'Yes.'

One hand lessened its grip on her arm and trailed down her body to rest on the tunic that covered where their unborn child lay. Even as the tall man reverently placed his hand on her abdomen, his eyes came flying up.

'You thought I wouldn't want to marry you?' he exclaimed loudly. 'Though why you would think that, I have no idea, seeing as marriage is something that I've always had in mind, but I digress...' Seeing the confused, defeated and hopeful look on his lover's face, he took pity on her. Sliding his other hand to her face, he cupped her cheek, taking courage when her head tilted to rest against his palm and she blinked back tears.

'Listen to me carefully, because I'm only going to say this once.' His tone was all seriousness. 'I love you and am happy - nay, over the moon - at this revelation that I'm going to be a father.' He paused a moment as the realisation fully hit him and she saw the awe on his face. 'And now for the final time, will you marry me?'

She stopped breathing.

Her first reaction was to say no - just like she always had when he asked. She wanted to run from the commitment - the realness - of it. Fears held onto since childhood - feelings of being looked down upon as the bastard child of Sarra Beneskri - flooded her. What had she been thinking? She couldn't marry him! She was surprised to find herself crying - blast these changed emotions - as her eyes met those of those of the man looking at her intently. She only saw love.

Numair Salmalín.

She'd always assumed that she would never marry - never have a child - never be loved. Well after all, who would love a little thing like her from Snowsdale? The last decade that they had spent together had seen the pair of them face more than most couples would in a lifetime: wars, immortals and a life constantly on the go. But the one thing that had never changed was his love for her, and she knew, her love for him. She wasn't sure that that she could give that up, but...

Opening her mouth to decline, at the last moment she surprised herself as she nodded her consent. She had not time to think about what had happened as her tears were instantly forgotten and she was swept up into her betrothed arms and kissed within an inch of her life.

All the worries, stress and illness of the past week fell away as she wrapped her arms around her lover's neck, pulled herself closer to him and returned his kiss. They were breathless when they finally parted. Beyond happy, Daine opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out as she was pulled into a tight hug.

'You do realise that from now on the odds of me leaving your side are a million to none?' said Numair when they parted once again, his hands remaining on her.

Daine sighed. 'I was wondering when this would come up.'

'After all, someone has to make sure you don't overwork yourself or forget...' He got no further as the fiery woman before him fumed.

'I forget?' she shot back. 'You're the one that gets lost for hours - days even - in a working.' She'd expected a full blown argument - their first as newlyweds-to-be - but Numair had gone deathly still. 'Magic.'

'Numair?' she asked confused.

'Mithros, you're pregnant and you've been shape shifting all this time. What does that mean for...?' Daine bit her bottom lip. 'I was hoping you could tell me.'

'I don't know magelet,' he said honestly as he brushed the bruised lip with his thumb. 'But it will be okay.'

He pulled her in for the second tight hug in as many minutes. 'It will be okay.'

Later on, in a bed only meant to accommodate one, a tall man was wrapped around a shorter woman, no air whatsoever between them.

Neither were clothed, Daine's body was pulled back against Numair's chest as the man held her tight. One hand was resting upon the slight swell of his love's abdomen. Daine's hand covered his, both covering their unborn child.

'What on earth possessed you to write that letter?' asked Numair conversationally after a long period of comfortable silence.

'I wasn't thinking?' Daine ventured lamely. She was unable to see his face, but she felt the responding snort that tickled her hair into her ear. She shifted in his grip as she continued. 'It took me two days to write it.'

'Two days,' mulled Numair thoughtfully as his soon to be (finally!) wife turned in his arms. His body automatically adjusted to the change.

'I worried myself sick,' Daine admitted, running her fingers over his fine chest hair before her eyes finally sought his. 'You weren't supposed to come running after me.' When he opened his mouth to angrily respond as she knew he would, she placed a finger against his lips to silence him. 'But I'm glad you did.'

Sliding her hand to his cheek, she closed the small gap between them and pressed her lips to his. The room was considerably warmer and both were breathing heavily when they parted some minutes later.

'Don't you ever scare me like that again,' Numair whispered, his long fingers brushing an errant curl aside. The fear she saw in his eyes scared her. 'I won't,' she promised.

The heaviness soon gave way to light hearted chatter as Daine grinned wryly. 'Looks like the pregnancy charm failed.'

'Mm,' murmured Numair. 'It's a miracle that we haven't been in this situation before when you think about it. What with the rate that you shape shift and the amount of, how did you put it back then? Ah yes, canoodling, that we do.'

Flushing, the wildmage hit her lover, soon-to-be-husband, as he laughed and pulled her impossibly closer. 'Are you hungry or anything?' he asked suddenly, hands no longer slapping.

She pulled a face at him. 'No thanks,' she said weakly. 'Food and I have a rather shaky relationship at the moment.'

'You've been sick?' he asked in concern. 'Have you been to see a Healer?'

She hadn't seen Numair this over protective in a long time - not since the Ball some seasons ago when a young man had flirted with her. She knew it was only out of concern for her, but she refused to be boxed in. She smoothed her hand over his bare chest as she responded. 'Sickness is to be expected, and yes I've seen a Healer.'

'And...?' prompted Numair exasperatedly.

'And everything is fine - well as much as it can be,' said Daine as she turned her back to him once again. Grasping his hand in hers, she spread their entwined fingers over her stomach, ending the conversation.

Daine was on the edge of sleeping into Gainel's realm, feeling the safest she had in a long time in her lover's arms, when said lover suddenly spoke. 'Mithros, Mynoss and Shakith, ' said Numair flying up in the bed. 'Things are going to be different. '

'Ya think?' laughed Daine with a yawn as she lay on her back looking at the awed man above her.

Taking in the sleepy woman lying before him, Numair trailed his hand down her body, before his eyes met hers. Moving closer, his lips were a hairs breadth from her own when he spoke. 'Goddess bless, I love you.'

Ah.