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"Yeah, to turn me into the world's most pregnant nightlight," I muttered as I poked at my glowing belly. "Though I guess that's better than going into labor three months early."

"Much better," Aidon growled as his fingers tightened around mine. His dark energy crackled around him like bottled lightning. "These children are ours, prophecy be damned. If any ancient power wants them, they'll have to go through me first."

Mom snorted as she dropped her magical barriers. "Through all of us, you mean. I'd like to see these ancient forces try something. They might be powerful, but they've never dealt with a family like ours."

"Damn right, they haven't." Nana brandished her walking stick like a war banner.

The tip sparking dangerously. "I didn't survive raising Little Miss Chaos over there," she jerked her thumb at Mom, "just to let some dusty old destiny mess with my great-grandbabies.

These powers want a fight? I'll give them a fight. "

Above us, the mobile's constellations settled into a peaceful dance with the stars spinning lazy patterns across the ceiling. The shadow-blanket drifted down like a surrendering flag. The symbols finally faded from a nuclear warning before they vanished.

Smiling at Nana, I refocused on the phone and my son. "Keep your eyes open, kiddo. And maybe start taking notes on what Darnell and his mom know. But be careful about it."

"Don't worry, Mom. I've got this covered." His voice crackled with static. "Just focus on keeping my siblings from being born early."

"I will do my best." I rubbed my belly as the symbol pulsed. "Unfortunately, I have no control over anything at the moment. Aside from enjoying a pickle and chocolate smoothies."

“Let me tell you, it was disgusting,” Nina called out to her older brother.

“Your mother drank it like it was going out of style,” Nana confirmed.

"Only in our family." His laugh warmed something in my chest. "Just hold those in there until I'm home for break, okay? I want to meet the tiny troublemakers in person, not through a screen."

"I'll do my best, but no promises. These three have minds of their own." I smiled down at my belly.

"Love you, Mom. Tell my ancient-power-wielding siblings their big brother can't wait to meet them," Jean-Marc replied.

As the call ended, I looked around at my family.

Whatever ancient powers were stirring, at least these babies would have an army of protectors from day one.

So," I changed the subject, "I guess magical prenatal yoga is off the table?

" At least, I hoped it was. Bending at this stage in my pregnancy practically took an act of the gods.

"You know," Stella said with that gleam in her eye that usually meant trouble, "some gentle stretching might help with the aches and pains you are no doubt feeling after that. Nothing crazy.” She held up her hands in a ‘calm your titties’ gesture. “Just a few basic poses."

I shot her my best 'are you kidding me' look. "I almost went into labor just now. I don’t think that’s a good idea."

"Come on, Mom," Nina said as she nudged a yoga mat with her toe. "We're talking super light stuff. Breathing exercises while sitting on a chair. No levitating mats this time."

"My back does hurt," I admitted reluctantly. The triplets chose that moment to begin what I called their synchronized swimming. They did it several times a day. While it was getting more uncomfortable, I cherished every second after the scare we just had. "But if anything starts floating-"

"We'll stop immediately," Stella promised, then grinned. "Though you have to admit, you were pretty impressive. You remained on that mat for a long time."

"I'll make you some tea," Mythia offered, her wings shimmering as she drifted toward the kitchen. "The pixies have special recipes for magical pregnancy support."

I raised an eyebrow. "You mean other pregnant women have had ancient magical tattoos that turn their prenatal vitamins into performance artists?"

"Well, no," she admitted with a tinkling laugh. "But we do have tea for everything else. And I might have a fresh batch of those pickle-flavored cookies you love. I even added chocolate chips this time."

"Now you're speaking my language," I said, letting Nina help me onto the mat while my stomach growled.

"Just simple stretches," Stella demonstrated, moving like she'd never had an awkward moment in her life. Show-off. "See? Nothing that'll upset the babies' ancient mojo."

"I'll look into some other Fae symbols and see if I can find other similarities," Selene said as she grabbed a nearby book.

"There has to be more information about them somewhere.

And Nina, once you're done helping your mom avoid turning into a pretzel, we should check the rest of Hattie's library. "

As everyone settled into various positions around the room, clearly planning to camp out and monitor me, I couldn't shake the feeling that this was just the beginning.

The symbol's steady pulse seemed to agree.

It was a constant reminder that my babies' arrival would bring more than just sleepless nights and diaper changes.

That was a problem for another day. Right now, I needed sleep, tea, and possibly one of those pickle cookies Mythia made me. The rest - prophecies, ancient powers, magical revolutions - could wait until I didn't feel like I'd just climbed Mount Everest wearing a full pack.

"You know," Nina said thoughtfully as she bent down beside me, "if the babies are going to change things, does this mean we get to redecorate Olympus? Because honestly, Zeus's taste in architecture is so last millennium."

I laughed despite my exhaustion, then immediately regretted it as my abdominal muscles protested. "Let's focus on getting them here safely before we start planning any big renovation projects."

"But think about it," she persisted. Her eyes sparkled with mischief. "We could update the throne room and add some modern amenities. Maybe install Wi-Fi? The gods need to join the twenty-first century."

"I'm sure Zeus would love that," Aidon said dryly. "He can barely handle email."

The symbol pulsed again, and this time I could have sworn it felt amused. Great. Not only was I carrying magically significant triplets, but I had a cosmic tattoo with a sense of humor. Just another day in the life of a pregnant Pleiades witch with a god for a baby daddy.

At least things couldn't get any weirder. Right? " Don't even think that ," Tarja said, startling me and cutting off any further thought. " You'll jinx us all ."

She was probably right. As I continued to bend and twist my body, surrounded by my family and wrapped in a blanket that radiated ancient power, I couldn't help but wonder what other surprises these babies had in store for us.

Something told me we were just scratching the surface of whatever drama was unfolding.

But hey, at least we had pickle-flavored cookies.

A girl had to take her wins where she could get them.