Chapter Text
5 weeks
“Love?” Quinn turned their head to Norrix. He was sitting in their kitchen, fiddling with some mechanism that had been giving him some problems before humming back to his partner. “Could you rub my back?” It started as just a way to try and get him to worry less about touching their back and wings, but the both of them had definitely noticed an uptick of frequency.
Norrix brought himself over to the living room, checking the window to be sure Angie hadn't gone too far while playing outside. She acted so independent sometimes, definitely getting more confident with the addition of the house and having both her parents around more often. After being sure she was ok he settled beside Quinn on the couch, their knees pressed against their chest and their back to Norrix. He lightly ran his hands over their shoulders and upper back. “Any particular pain?”
“You know my shoulders, plus I must be having too much time on the ground so the muscles around my wings have been yelling at me whenever I fly.”
They had been resting more lately, between just not being always on alert and Angie being able to play on her own more, they didn't have to chase her around as much. Still, something of it all worried him. “Gotcha, I'll do what I can.” His hands rubbed and pressed over their shoulders and back, taking care to circle the base of their wings and focus on the muscles running down their back. Slowly they unraveled, their legs no longer pulled against their chest and their posture a bit higher.
Quinn leaned their head back, attempting some eye contact with Norrix. “Sorry, I know I've been kind of useless lately.” They smiled through the words, like it was some kind of joke.
Norrix paused before pulling them into a small hug, leaning his head on their shoulder. He pondered a bit before saying his next words. “Do you think it could be anything serious? We could visit a doctor to make sure.” Most human doctors still had feelings against treating a fairy, but they could find a fae doctor.
They leaned back into him, pressing their face to his hair. “I’ve just been tired, I'll be f-” They caught his worried eyes and it ran over them. How many times had he spoken to them about his mother's sickness, wondering if he could've fixed things. He's probably been worried longer than them about this. “We can, if it'll make you feel better.” His smile was all the convincing they needed to press through it.
___
5.5 weeks
After asking around, Norrix found a fae doctor recommended by some close friends, someone they both could trust to figure out what was wrong. They walked hand in hand to the doctor's home office. It was a quaint little place, tucked into a bustling town of mostly fae and elves. Norrix could feel the eyes on him, some curious, some malicious, but he couldn't blame them. As long as Quinn was safe he was fine getting a couple nasty looks.
“You think Angie will do ok with Octavia?” It worried him, she usually had at least one of her parents in the house at any given time, but he had to come with.
Quinn snickered, to anyone else they probably looked like the picture of health. “You think Octavia will survive all of Angie?”
It got a laugh out of him, probably their plan in the first place. He opened the door for them to walk through, waving to the fairy waiting inside. She was shorter than the two of them, her dark hair cut close to the head with a blue bandana pulling any bits from her face. She wore a dress that darkened as the skirt went to the ground, two messily stitched pockets with the prints of flowers on them sat on either side of the skirt. She smiled at the two, her wings slightly splaying out with her smile. “Hello again Norrix, and can I assume this is Quinn?”
“In the flesh.”
“My name is Lydia, welcome to my little practice.” She held her hand out for them to shake before leading them to a couple of chairs next to a desk. She had an impressive shelf of potions and herbs hanging to dry behind her. She picked up a small notebook and a quill. “Now tell me what's been going on.”
The two explained Quinn's recent fatigue, the soreness in their back and wings, the random bouts of nausea. With every new thing they mentioned she wrote more down. After talking back and forth she had an idea of what it could be, but she couldn't be sure quite yet. “Quinn, with your hormone treatment do you still get your monthlies?”
It felt like a stupid question. “Not so much monthly, maybe every other month at most.” It was always an annoyance, never something they could predict, just came when it was most inconvenient.
Lydia hummed. “And when was the last time you had it?”
They thought about it. It wasn't something they really took note of, just let it pass and forgot about it. “Two months ago? Maybe more.” They looked to Norrix for a second opinion.
He thought for a moment then remembered. “Lucia and Modeus were over last time right? Gods that must've been at least three then.” The couple couldn't visit them too often but they made sure to make time when they could.
“Yeah I was basically glued to bed, couldn't help you with cooking or cleaning.” They laughed, it was a fun night despite it all. The whole crew brought dinner into their bedroom to eat together, Angie basically passed out after they finished eating, leaving a small stain on their blanket that was still there now.
The doctor looked between the two, considering her next words carefully before speaking. “Is there a chance you could be pregnant?” That caught their attention, the couple freezing a moment before trying to gain their composure.
Norrix was the first to speak, eyeing Quinn with raised eyebrows. “It couldn't be, you have that tea right?” He had gotten lax on making sure they drank it. And they had just recently restocked after running out a couple months ago. A couple months ago…
Quinn was deathly still, like a deer before it's noticed a predator has come too close. “Fuck…” They whispered, barely audible to Norrix. “I meant to make a cup after we got more.” In reality it was more than one missed dose, they knew they were forgetful, just thought that since nothing had happened yet that nothing would happen.
The doctor stood up. “I can give you two a moment to talk alone if you'd like.”
Norrix looked between his partner and her. “Please.” And without another word she left the room, allowing the two to sit together in silence until one of them could speak. He grabbed their hand, rubbing his thumb over the back of it. Their head was turned downwards, their hair partially blocking their face. “She could be wrong, we could see someone else for a second opinion.”
It wasn't what Quinn needed to hear right now. “Octavia is going to kill us.” They curled into themself, allowing Norrix to pull their body to his. Small tears fell down their cheeks. It was terrifying, they should be fully panicking. Norrix held them, rubbing his knuckles over the small of their back as they calmed down. As they got the courage to say what's been running through their mind. They sighed, “Would it be crazy of me to say I'd want to keep it?”
“It's your choice, whatever you want.” It shocked him, but it was their choice to make. “Octavia is really going to kill us isn't she?” He laughed, pulling Quinn's face up to see them. Their eyes were puffy and cheeks flushed and they looked more handsome than ever.
Lydia knocked from the other side of the door, waiting until one of them called her in. The two looked worse than when she left them in some ways. Their eyes though, determined, steady, ready despite any anxiety weighing their brows.
“Just know you don't need to come to any final decision today.” She kneeled in front of the fairy. “But I do need to say a few things before you two can leave, just to make sure you both know what you'd be getting yourselves into.” It was a speech she had practiced time and time again. More fairy/human couples had been coming about this past year. It used to be a stressful subject, taboo even, but with time it becomes more normal. Just another factor that could cause defects. A rehearsed spiel she was telling more and more couples.
___
They weren't avoiding going home, just taking in the time to relax together. And give them both time to figure out what to tell Octavia.
“So you want to hide it from her?” They sat under a tree in a lightly wooded area. There still were other people around, someone walking their dog, a couple runners, but it was private enough that they felt comfortable talking about it all.
“Until my next appointment at least.” Quinn held their hands up. “I mean, we don't know for sure yet. She'll be on both of our asses the moment she learns so it's better to wait until we actually know that's what's going on.”
“And you're sure about this? I mean your mom-”
Quinn cut him off. “I'm not gonna think about that. Stress will only make things worse.” They sighed. “Not to mention we have a proper doctor, we'll be fine.”
It did comfort him. A proper doctor. That was hard to come by, hard to imagine someone could be calm about the situation, and know what to do if anything went wrong.
“But we will tell her first, right? I think the longer we put it off the more stress it'll be on everyone.”
Quinn snorted. “I have half a mind to find Lettie, maybe Peres, talk to someone who knows the situation better before we fully decide.” Norrix eyed them cautiously at the words. “But yes I think we should tell Octavia first, despite her likely chewing us out for it all.”
The two sat, relishing in each other's silence. Calm waters within the rushing waves of the day.
“We better get back home, she'll get in her head if we're out for too long.”