If the carriage ride lasted any longer, she was going to be sick.

She knew that it wasn't the terrain that was making her sick — though it was quite rocky. They needed to stop before she threw up again, most likely somewhere hidden. It was too obvious now of what she was trying to hide.

I knew I should have gone home sooner. She shifted in her seat and stared across the carriage at her traveling companion. Oh well, better late than never, as they always say.

“Loki,” She reached out as much as she could, trying to pull on his sleeve to get his attention. However, the man seemed to be too engrossed in his view of the outside, and his dark hair covered whatever else she could have otherwise seen of his face.

This was unlike him. Back in University, he was a bumbling idiot who couldn't stop running his mouth off. It was also impossible to not get his attention, which, of course, had led to their constant hallway meetings.

Their first meeting had been purely by coincidence. He had run into her as she ended her conversation with a friend. She wanted to watch where her friend was going, but Loki had spent too much time apologizing to her for her to properly watch. They shared small talk, then Loki ran to class.

Their small talk evolved from there somehow, and so had their relationship. The latter had grown so much so, as to where she realized that she had been neglecting her other friend.

That had been a mistake.

She now looked upon those recent memories with regret. Her friend had been so listless lately, and she had hung him out to dry. She knew she'd had time to speak with him, but spending time with Loki had felt... More rewarding.

Don't fool yourself, Elvira. You could have gone to talk to him once.

But you didn't, and look where that got you.

Of course, now she and Loki were to be married because of a simple mistake they had both made.

I wouldn't really call a child a mistake, would I? I mean, this was purely an accident.

She sighed and rested her chin upon her hand.

I waited too long to tell my parents, and then I didn't tell them why I was coming. Now they will see and question. I doubt I'll be trusted on my own away from home ever again.

“Loki?”

The man looked to her, inquisitive. He flashed her a warm smile but it faded, replaced with concern.

“What are my parents going to think about this? I did tell you that they have very high morals, and I — we — kinda disobeyed them, and —”

Loki abruptly leaned over and set a hand upon her knee. “El... We don't have to worry. Isn't there someone that would understand?”

Elvira straightened out her dress and sat up. “I know my mother can make exceptions, but those have been minor things, and I don't really think a child is a ‘minor’ thing.”

“Well, I guess we'll know when we get there, won't we?”

Elvira set her hand atop Loki's, but said nothing, though a moment later, she managed to sputter out a sigh.

“Alright.”

“Good evening, sleepyhead.”

That had to be the third thing he had said in five minutes. She couldn't ignore it any longer.

“Almost home?” She opened her eyes and blinked sleepily as she gazed at him. She wiped away drool when Loki pointed it out.

“The driver said we just arrived in Munich.” Loki shifted uneasily in his seat; he turned to stare out the window again. “Should be about ten minutes at the very most.”

“Wake me up when we get there, alright?”

Loki didn't reply, but she took the silence as a yes and closed her eyes.

It only seemed like seconds later that he made another request, the fourth thing that he had said. She granted the request by opening her eyes.

The carriage had stopped, and when she looked out, she could see the familiar doorstep to her parents' mansion, a great white house that was almost blindingly bedazzled with gold upon every door and window.

At least it was a relief to see for the first time in months.

“Your mother's waiting,” Loki glanced out the carriage window. “Unless that tall woman running toward us isn't someone you know.”

Elvira slowly stood as tall as the carriage would allow her too, and followed his gaze out the window.

A tall, ferociously feminine figure was rushing toward the carriage, her hand furiously waving about in the air.

Oh, that's my mother alright. Elvira sat back down and rolled her eyes. She's going to hate me when she sees me. I just know it.

Loki sat up as though ready to confront her, but Elvira waved a cautious hand in his direction. “I can handle this.” She said, getting up to open the carriage door.

She was immediately attacked by her mother who pulled her into so tight of a hug that she couldn't breathe.

“Oh, you're back!” Her mother only pulled away to kiss her cheek. “Thank goodness, you're back! We were worried sick about you!”

“Oh, mother. Mother be careful.” Elvira pushed her away and moved away from the carriage door. Loki stepped out of the carriage and dusted himself off.

“Where should I take your things, m'lady?” The carriage driver addressed Elvira, but it was her mother that spoke.

“There should be a place around the back! Johann should be waiting for you.”

The driver drove off without another word.

“Well, then.” Elvira laughed nervously. “This is, um, Loki. He's... my fiance.”

“Fiance? Shouldn't you have asked your father before—”

“We didn't exactly have a choice. We have to get married by the end of the month, because, I'm... well, I'm —”

“Pregnant?”

Elvira muttered a curse. “Yes.”

Her mother looked her over. There was no expression on her face. “Well, I suspected. Oh well, we'll just have to see what your father thinks about this. Come, Elvira, and bring your man friend with you.”

Regret rose with every passing second, and the glare of the entrance hall's chandelier did not help, as beautiful as it was.

Elvira tightly linked her hand with Loki's as they entered, and when they were greeted by the butler, she let go.

“Fenris, dear! Our daughter's home!” Her mother called, before immediately disappearing down a long hallway.

Elvira flinched at the shouting; she groaned as well and buried her head on a sweaty hand. Instinctively, she placed her free hand upon her stomach.

Within seconds, her father was at the top of the stairs of the entrance hall. He raced down, and before Elvira knew what he was doing, she was in his arms.

“Father. Father, I'm fine!” She attempted to push him away, but his grip was stronger than her mother's.

“And it's great that you are. You weren't responding to our letters and I —” He interrupted his sentence and let go of Elvira. His gaze was now upon Loki. “Who's this?”

“It's Loki, Father.” Elvira fixed her dress and worriedly glanced at her belly. She didn't want to bother with a long-winded explanation — her father could figure it out for himself.

“You said you wouldn't come home unless it was an emergency.”

“Well,” Elvira glanced at her stomach again. “It kind of is.”

“Well then...” Her father clapped his hands, and what appeared to be a young servant came rushing out from one of the halls under the stairwell.

“If I may be of assistance, sir?” They bowed politely and smiled at Elvira.

“Would you show them to their room, Altan?”

“That would be my pleasure, sir.” Altan skittered to the stairwell. Elvira smiled as they turned around, expectant of another order.

“Oh, and Altan?”

“Sir?”

“Afterward, could you make sure that Johann has their things?”

Altan nodded. “Of course.”

Elvira smiled, but the smile was short-lived as her father turned his attention back to them. “I'm going to check on your mother, then see how dinners going. I'll give you two time to prepare, alright.”

"That would be great, Father.” Elvira smiled nervously. She placed her hand upon her belly again and felt rising anxiety come up her throat. “Loki and I need some time to speak.”

“We do?” Loki's voice rose an octave.

“Yes,” Elvira lowered her hand and grabbed Loki's. “We do. Now let's follow Altan to our room and we can talk.”

She began dragging him along toward the stairwell, where Altan was still waiting patiently. Her father muttered a murmur of thanks, then disappeared the way Elvira's mother had gone.

Altan bade them goodbye, then closed the door.

Elvira hurried to the mirror along the right wall, a full length one where she could study herself before she headed to bed.

It was weird, seeing herself for the first time in months. She hadn't had a big mirror in the dorm of her university, only a handheld one where she could only see her face.

She looked a bit disheveled, but that was to be expected from a long journey. Her ginger hair fell messily up in her shoulders and before her face. She stared at her face and studied its intricate details — her emerald green eyes, her freckled nose, and her crooked, off-white smile. She didn't look exactly perfect, but she liked how she looked, so it didn't matter.

What didn't matter either to her was her choice of clothing, either. She was glad her favorite dress still fit, even if it was beginning to grow a little tight due to the growing baby inside her. She had always liked the yellow, a soft pastel yellow that wasn't too hard on her eyes but was bright enough to make her stand out from a crowd. She knew that she'd never give it up, even when it grew old and threadbare.

Elvira backed away from the mirror and pulled her messy hair behind her ears. That gesture was to be short-lived too.

She dropped her hands at a sudden quickening in her stomach and gasped.

Loki sat on the bed behind her and stared at the mirror from behind her. His expression showed worry. “Is there something wrong, El?”

She stared down at her belly and smiled. “I think the baby just moved.”

“It did?”

“Yeah,” Another laugh was forced out of her as she was startled by another movement. “There they go again.”

Loki laughed along with her. “Well at least something good happened today, didn't it?”

“Yeah,” Elvira stared at herself in the mirror. She wondered if there was another person on the other side of that mirror. A twin, like her, but with a different life. Already married, expecting a child — a planned one, at that — and her life was sorted around and not a chaotic mess like this one was.

She knew that it was a thought she could dwell on later. After all, she needed to eat dinner first.