fic: Impossible
Fandom: The Heir Trilogy
Title: Impossible
Pairing: Linda/Hastings
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1170
Setting: Pre-series, but spoilers for the ending of The Wizard Heir
Disclaimer: The Heir Trilogy is the brilliant creation of Cinda Williams Chima and belongs to her and Hyperion Books. This fic is written only out of love for her characters and with no prospect or desire for monetary gain.
The first twinge of sickness gripped her in mid-morning. They'd been awake for hours, rising before dawn to catch an early train away. The train lurched as she walked down the aisle to get a cup of coffee, and Linda found herself running for the bathroom instead. It made no sense; she'd never been motion-sick, but there she was, huddled miserably in the tiny compartment.
Ten minutes later, her stomach empty and her throat raw, Linda finally made her way to the train's meager snack bar and opted for tea instead of coffee. Her mother had always made tea when she or Becka had been sick, and she thought its warmth would comfort her. But as she drank it, back in her seat, she felt worse.
"You look terrible. What's wrong?" Lee asked with his usual bluntness.
"I don't know. I must have eaten something odd or caught a bug."
"I'm sorry, love." His hand rested on her knee.
"It'll pass," she replied with more confidence than she felt.
And it did. As soon as they got off the train and into the fresh air, Linda felt like herself again. But a few days later, it happened again, and then again the following day. At some point during each morning, she was gripped by unbearable nausea. She'd been alone both times, which was for the best; she didn't want Leander to worry. Their work, their mission, was far too important to be side-tracked by a stomach bug.
***
Linda awoke in the pitch-dark with her heart racing. She'd been dreaming of a child with Lee's green eyes and dark curls. And she realized immediately that she was late. She'd been distracted by the stomach bug, but her period should have come nearly a week ago. What if it had all been morning sickness? She tried to think rationally; the constant stress and travel of their lives could be responsible for her lateness, but she couldn't fight a growing certainty that she was pregnant.
Linda thought of the child in her dream, trying to hold onto the image that was already fading, as dreams do. The idea of being pregnant was terrifying, but when she thought of the child, a flicker of warmth dispelled the terror's chill. Their own child! Lee, who had lost his entire family, would be so happy.
As quickly as she began to imagine a child in their life, the chill crept back into her heart. What they did was dangerous, and after more than a hundred years, Leander Hastings still had far more enemies than allies. He'd gone farther than anyone she'd ever heard of toward changing the way things were, but as powerful as she knew he was, Linda also knew that his success was due in part to his recklessness, the feeling that he had nothing to lose. He had her, now, but very few of the Weir knew of their relationship, and anyway, Linda had learned the hard way how to take care of herself. A child would be essentially helpless and could be used as a powerful weapon against someone as relentless as Leander had always been. If their enemies learned of the child's existence...well, she simply couldn't let that happen, no matter what.
Disturbed by the prospects she found herself considering, Linda told herself that there was no point in speculating, no purpose in fearing the outcome of a situation that might not be at hand. She would first have to find out whether or not she even was pregnant. Decisions, if any, could be made at that point.
Sinking back onto her pillow, she closed her eyes, listening to Lee's soft breathing and hoping it would lull her to sleep, but she lay awake for hours.
***
After breakfast in their room, Leander went out to meet a contact who'd hinted that he might have information about a Trade sale. They often went to meetings alone; it wasn't wise for too many people to connect them, given his notoriety. Linda had work to do as well, but she walked several blocks from their hotel and went into a nondescript pharmacy. She searched the aisles quickly, not wanting to attract offers of help. The pregnancy tests, along with the condoms, hung on a rack below the pharmacy counter. She knelt down to select one, and as she stood, she saw the elderly pharmacist tighten his lips in disapproval. Linda turned away, annoyed.
A middle-aged woman rang up her purchase, and the look in her eyes as she handed Linda the bag was kind. "Good luck, honey," she whispered, giving Linda's hand a sympathetic squeeze.
As she stepped out onto the sidewalk, Linda realized that they'd both thought she was a pregnant teenager. And in fact, she probably was.
***
Linda chose a Wendy's to take the test. The breakfast rush had passed, but there were enough customers that she slipped easily down the bathroom corridor without being noticed. She locked herself in a stall and began to read the instructions. They recommended taking the test with the first urination of the morning, but the thought of waiting an entire day and night was impossible. She'd take her chances now.
She'd read that it could take up to five minutes to see the results, but it didn't. After 98 seconds of staring at the tiny window, a pink line started to form and darkened over the following 10 seconds. It was positive. As if on cue to confirm, she felt the nausea rise in her throat and turned her head toward the toilet just in time.
***
She walked the streets of the town, taking in little, and barely avoided running into the few other pedestrians who shared the sidewalks. Over and over, her mind returned to the thoughts that had haunted her sleepless night. The child needed more than the danger and instability of their life, needed a real home, far out of reach of their enemies. Already, she loved the baby with a ferocity she'd never imagined, and she knew she could give it up to keep it safe. But could Leander? His whole life had centered on avenging the loss of his father and siblings, the devastation from which his mother had retreated inside herself, leaving him entirely alone. Linda had seen the loss in his eyes when he'd taken her to ruins of the remote Ohio farm, undiminished after more than a century. Would he give up his child? Linda knew him, better than even he might have believed, and she was certain he would not. And that left her only one option.
Her heart ached at the thought of what she had to do. She'd only just turned eighteen, though it felt like years since she'd been a child. And now she was going to have one, which meant that nothing could ever again be about what she wanted. She had to keep the baby safe, even if it meant she could never see Leander again.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End note: I realized toward the end that there's pretty much no magic in this story. But I decided to leave it that way, because this seems like a situation where magic really couldn't help.
Title: Impossible
Pairing: Linda/Hastings
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 1170
Setting: Pre-series, but spoilers for the ending of The Wizard Heir
Disclaimer: The Heir Trilogy is the brilliant creation of Cinda Williams Chima and belongs to her and Hyperion Books. This fic is written only out of love for her characters and with no prospect or desire for monetary gain.
The first twinge of sickness gripped her in mid-morning. They'd been awake for hours, rising before dawn to catch an early train away. The train lurched as she walked down the aisle to get a cup of coffee, and Linda found herself running for the bathroom instead. It made no sense; she'd never been motion-sick, but there she was, huddled miserably in the tiny compartment.
Ten minutes later, her stomach empty and her throat raw, Linda finally made her way to the train's meager snack bar and opted for tea instead of coffee. Her mother had always made tea when she or Becka had been sick, and she thought its warmth would comfort her. But as she drank it, back in her seat, she felt worse.
"You look terrible. What's wrong?" Lee asked with his usual bluntness.
"I don't know. I must have eaten something odd or caught a bug."
"I'm sorry, love." His hand rested on her knee.
"It'll pass," she replied with more confidence than she felt.
And it did. As soon as they got off the train and into the fresh air, Linda felt like herself again. But a few days later, it happened again, and then again the following day. At some point during each morning, she was gripped by unbearable nausea. She'd been alone both times, which was for the best; she didn't want Leander to worry. Their work, their mission, was far too important to be side-tracked by a stomach bug.
***
Linda awoke in the pitch-dark with her heart racing. She'd been dreaming of a child with Lee's green eyes and dark curls. And she realized immediately that she was late. She'd been distracted by the stomach bug, but her period should have come nearly a week ago. What if it had all been morning sickness? She tried to think rationally; the constant stress and travel of their lives could be responsible for her lateness, but she couldn't fight a growing certainty that she was pregnant.
Linda thought of the child in her dream, trying to hold onto the image that was already fading, as dreams do. The idea of being pregnant was terrifying, but when she thought of the child, a flicker of warmth dispelled the terror's chill. Their own child! Lee, who had lost his entire family, would be so happy.
As quickly as she began to imagine a child in their life, the chill crept back into her heart. What they did was dangerous, and after more than a hundred years, Leander Hastings still had far more enemies than allies. He'd gone farther than anyone she'd ever heard of toward changing the way things were, but as powerful as she knew he was, Linda also knew that his success was due in part to his recklessness, the feeling that he had nothing to lose. He had her, now, but very few of the Weir knew of their relationship, and anyway, Linda had learned the hard way how to take care of herself. A child would be essentially helpless and could be used as a powerful weapon against someone as relentless as Leander had always been. If their enemies learned of the child's existence...well, she simply couldn't let that happen, no matter what.
Disturbed by the prospects she found herself considering, Linda told herself that there was no point in speculating, no purpose in fearing the outcome of a situation that might not be at hand. She would first have to find out whether or not she even was pregnant. Decisions, if any, could be made at that point.
Sinking back onto her pillow, she closed her eyes, listening to Lee's soft breathing and hoping it would lull her to sleep, but she lay awake for hours.
***
After breakfast in their room, Leander went out to meet a contact who'd hinted that he might have information about a Trade sale. They often went to meetings alone; it wasn't wise for too many people to connect them, given his notoriety. Linda had work to do as well, but she walked several blocks from their hotel and went into a nondescript pharmacy. She searched the aisles quickly, not wanting to attract offers of help. The pregnancy tests, along with the condoms, hung on a rack below the pharmacy counter. She knelt down to select one, and as she stood, she saw the elderly pharmacist tighten his lips in disapproval. Linda turned away, annoyed.
A middle-aged woman rang up her purchase, and the look in her eyes as she handed Linda the bag was kind. "Good luck, honey," she whispered, giving Linda's hand a sympathetic squeeze.
As she stepped out onto the sidewalk, Linda realized that they'd both thought she was a pregnant teenager. And in fact, she probably was.
***
Linda chose a Wendy's to take the test. The breakfast rush had passed, but there were enough customers that she slipped easily down the bathroom corridor without being noticed. She locked herself in a stall and began to read the instructions. They recommended taking the test with the first urination of the morning, but the thought of waiting an entire day and night was impossible. She'd take her chances now.
She'd read that it could take up to five minutes to see the results, but it didn't. After 98 seconds of staring at the tiny window, a pink line started to form and darkened over the following 10 seconds. It was positive. As if on cue to confirm, she felt the nausea rise in her throat and turned her head toward the toilet just in time.
***
She walked the streets of the town, taking in little, and barely avoided running into the few other pedestrians who shared the sidewalks. Over and over, her mind returned to the thoughts that had haunted her sleepless night. The child needed more than the danger and instability of their life, needed a real home, far out of reach of their enemies. Already, she loved the baby with a ferocity she'd never imagined, and she knew she could give it up to keep it safe. But could Leander? His whole life had centered on avenging the loss of his father and siblings, the devastation from which his mother had retreated inside herself, leaving him entirely alone. Linda had seen the loss in his eyes when he'd taken her to ruins of the remote Ohio farm, undiminished after more than a century. Would he give up his child? Linda knew him, better than even he might have believed, and she was certain he would not. And that left her only one option.
Her heart ached at the thought of what she had to do. She'd only just turned eighteen, though it felt like years since she'd been a child. And now she was going to have one, which meant that nothing could ever again be about what she wanted. She had to keep the baby safe, even if it meant she could never see Leander again.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End note: I realized toward the end that there's pretty much no magic in this story. But I decided to leave it that way, because this seems like a situation where magic really couldn't help.