CHAPTER NINE

NEILLA'S POV

This is not good, I thought, dashing straight into the bathroom to throw up whatever I had left in my stomach. Mirald followed closely behind me, holding up my hair as I retched nothing but bile into the washing hand basin.

When nothing more climbed up my throat, I sank back down on the cold tiles, leaning my back against the wall for strength. It felt like life was drained out of me at that moment. An invasion could be happening in the next room at that point, and I wouldn't even have the strength to bat an eyelid.

I was that drained.

"What's up? Spill."

I managed to look up at Mirald with a confused expression. "What do you mean spill?"

She dropped down to her knees next to me. "I know you're pregnant, baby girl. Even if you choose to hide it from me. I'm a special wolf, dog. Don't miss out that important fun fact."

Pregnant? How?

I'm sure my face mirrored my inner turmoil as I turned to look at her slowly. I couldn't be pregnant. "I'm not pregnant. I really am not. We haven't done anything intimate since a couple of weeks ago. I'm not pregnant."

I must've sounded like a broken record, trying desperately to convince myself than her. Her expression turned mocking. "Look at yourself, honey, you are with pup...or pups. Whichever the goddess grants us. Oh, I'm so happy for you."

She pressed my weak frame into a big hug and I fought the urge to throw up against her hoodie. Don't get me wrong, she smelled wonderful but it wasn't the scent I needed. So, I gently pushed her away, starting to rise and smiled in appreciation when she reached out a helping hand.

"I'm fine and I'm not pregnant." I was trying my hardest not to snap at her stupid jolly mood as she did a little dance; one she usually did whenever she was in a great mood. Like now. I raised my nightgown to pull it over my head and toss it to her. She caught it fluidly.

"Wow. Your breasts are pretty." She commented, her eyes narrowed down to slits as she stared at me.

I palmed my breasts in shock, my cheeks tingling as embarrassment filled me. "What the fuck, Mirald? You're molesting me! I am not fucking pregnant okay? You're only raising such speculations because I threw up in your presence. I am fine."

"Well, tell that to your full and extra perky breasts." Her cheery voice rang out as she stared at my body like I was some lab animal laid on a slab for dissection.

"You're insane, Miraldina. Get the fuck out of here." I yelled, feeling more ashamed as I slammed the bathroom door shut against her face. I didn't like how naked she made me felt even when I was already without clothes. More like she was picking me apart, defining to me what emotion was which and exactly why I was feeling the way I was.

I soon found myself drawing near to the bathroom mirror as I tried to observe my body. My breasts did feel full but it wasn't something unusual. My mind went back to the last time I and Rylan had sex. I'd broken my 'no sex till we are fully mated' vow because of how badly I wanted to be with him and prove that I didn't want anyone else as much as I did him.

The image of the shiny foil wrapper which he produced from the back of his pocket that night, the gleam of his pearly whites as he ripped it open with his teeth and hand flashed in my head.

Hence, my strong conviction that I wasn't with pup.

"You say you're not pregnant, right? Then, stop looking at the mirror for goddess sakes and wash up else I'll tear down this door to do it myself." Her voice boomed as she threatened.

I stuck out a tongue childishly at the door even when I was certain she couldn't see me. I tuned out distracting thoughts as I turned on the water.

You're not pregnant, Reneilla.

.

.

.

"You're pregnant, Reneilla." Mirald and Mana Sylveon echoed in unison as I stared dumbfounded, my heartbeat ringing furiously in my head.

Mirald had developed a red forehead with the imprint of her palm from constantly slapping it in exasperation. In her eyes were flying sparks of anger while Mana Sylveon only gave me a blank look.

Mirald tried again. "On a scale of one to ten, how clueless are you?"

"None!" I yelled in response, unable to help myself. For the past hour we'd be going back and forth with them trying to force their pregnancy reveal on me.

Mana Sylveon rolled her eyes, finally giving up on me. To her, I was probably a lost cause in this. She took another sip of her steaming ginger coffee from a blue mug. I fought the urge to cover my nose at the smell of ginger and throw up again but that would only give them the satisfaction.

After an entire minute of point-blank staring at me, Mana Sylveon stopped sipping. "Ask your wolf. Have you tried that?"

I releases a puff of breath. "She hasn't been of any help all morning. Hence my crappy mood."

"She's absent?"

"Yes. For now. I don't know what crawled up her ass and died." I shrugged my shoulders, moving away from the strong smell of ginger before I broke my resolve.

She turned to Mirald who was now sprawled up on the couch, her sneakers laying carelessly forgotten. "See if you can get to stir her wolf. That vicious thing sure knows how to alienate herself from her host."

"This might get me in a lot of trouble but sure thing." Mirald switched the position of her body as she sat up straight in the chair. "Look here bitch. You better admit the truth to this dumbo here that you're both carrying a bunch of mutts in your womb, okay?"

I hissed at her, feeling insulted. "Stop talking to her like that."

She ignored me, staring deep into my eyes as she continued, "We're about to perform a cleansing ritual on her now, ridding her of everything that's going to cause her unease. We don't want her puking in every space at the pups shelter and scaring them away. I give you a solid five. One..."

"Now I know you've gone bat shit--" She smacked my mouth out of nowhere. "What the fuck bitch!"

"No, you bitch! Do as I say. Two..."

"Don't be such an idiot. You won't get anything by provoking--" Another smack to my lips. "Ow! Do you mind?"

She rolled her eyes. "Make this easy for us and shut the fuck up, lazy ass bitch. Three..."

A low grumble sounded in my chest as I glared at her, promising to smack the shit out of her if she does as much as touch me again. I watched her eyes move behind me for a fleeting moment but before I could put two and two together, her hand came flying in my direction.

I felt a sudden surge of anger, a fierce force of the instinct to protect swallowing me whole and that's when I discovered my wolf had pushed forward, throwing me behind her.

She bared our canines at Mirald whose hand froze midair. "Come at me bitch and you won't like the consequences."

Her voice was coarse and gruff unlike mine. Mirald raised her hands in mock surrender as she slowly lowered her head in submission, sliding away from our view. The chuckle of someone else in the room stole our attention. Mana Sylveon.

"My little wolf, how I've missed you."

My wolf only growled at her in response. She didn't seem to be in the mood for pleasantries nor in the best of moods to behold our adoptive mother.

However, Mana Sylveon didn't care so much for her rudeness. "You're pregnant, aren't you?"

For the umpteenth time since Queen Elizabeth, we are not--

"Yes." A gruff voice that wasn't mine spelt out. "Yes, we are."