Page 9

T he drive home from the Crossroads Collective was tense.

Not even Greg's magical blue chips could fully distract me from the weight of what had just happened.

Between shapeshifters at Clio's and cryptic hooded figures at the market, this day was shaping up to be a real winner.

My belly symbol pulsed with a gentle rhythm that somehow managed to be both reassuring and annoying as hell.

"We need to decompress," Mom announced as we pulled into the driveway. Her expression was set in that familiar 'I-know-what's-best-for-you' look that hadn't changed since I was five. "You mentioned wanting to try that magical prenatal yoga video Clio recommended, didn’t you, Phoebe?"

I groaned and shifted uncomfortably in my seat. "Mom, after everything that's happened today, do you really think doing downward dog with this on my belly is the best idea? These babies are already doing acrobatics without encouragement."

"Actually," Selene interjected from the backseat, "some gentle movement might help stabilize the energy you’re putting off. Plus, it could help with your back pain. If these babies are anything like you and your kids, they get more restless when you're stationary for too long."

"I’ve read about pregnancy, Mom. The babies do need you calm and centered," Nina added.

Her fingers were flying across her phone as she spoke.

Given the way Stella jumped out of her vehicle behind us, I bet she texted Stella about our yoga plans.

"Honestly, Mom, you've been wound tighter than Dad before a big surgery. "

"Fine," I conceded as I hauled myself out of the car with all the grace of a beached whale, "but if I end up getting stuck in an uncomfortable pose, I'm blaming all of you. I hope Mythia will make me a smoothie before we start. With pickles. And chocolate sauce."

"That's disgusting," Nina muttered as she walked through the door and headed for the kitchen.

“This is going to be so much fun,” Stella enthused as she bounced into the house beside me. I wasn’t so sure, but I was always up for a challenge.

Mythia flew right for me, stopping a few feet away. “Please tel me Nina was wrong. You want a smoothie with pickles and chocolate sauce?”

I bobbed my head. “Yep. It’s going to be as good as adding pickle juice to my sodas.” Based on the retching sounds around me, no one else agreed, but Mythia agreed to make one while we got ready.

I watched as Aidon, Stella, and Mom shoved our furniture against the walls like they were preparing for some kind of magical throwdown. Which, given our track record, wasn't entirely outside the realm of possibility.

"I'm staying right here," Aidon announced, hovering nearby as if I might spontaneously combust. Knowing our luck lately, I couldn't exactly fault him for the helicopter-mate routine. I nodded and pressed a kiss to his lips.

" Remember ," Tarja projected from the windowsill, " your magic is tied to your emotions right now.

When you feel yourself slipping, ground your energy into the earth instead of letting it spiral outward.

We don't need more dancing toasters. There is enough of that coming from your magical tattoo. "

"But dubstep would be an improvement," I countered.

Mythia swept in carrying what looked like a toxic waste spill in a glass. "Your afternoon craving, my lady!" she announced with a flourish. "One pickle, dark chocolate sauce, and vanilla protein smoothie. Blended to perfection."

My mouth watered as I grabbed the glass. The rest of the room gagged at the combination, but my babies had the taste buds of a chaos demon. I took a long sip, sighing happily as the weird-but-wonderful flavors hit my tongue.

" That ," Tarja said with visible disgust, " is an abomination against nature. "

"Says the cat who ate sardines on her ice cream during her pregnancy," I shot back, taking another deliberate sip just to watch her whiskers twitch. "I'm going to have Mythia make this for you next time you're pregnant."

Tarja's ears flattened against her head. " That was a moment of temporary insanity ."

"Alright, ladies," Stella cut in before our pregnancy-craving showdown could escalate. "It's time for prenatal yoga." She pulled up the video on her tablet and then streamed it to the television.

The yoga instructor on the screen had that serene look that made me want to throw things at her.

Her voice oozed calm like honey from a jar.

"Center yourself," she cooed, "and allow the magical energy to flow through your chakras.

Embrace the divine feminine within." My divine feminine was currently craving pickles while my magical tattoo was making household appliances dance. Let's see Little Miss Zen handle that.

"The divine beings within me are currently doing the macarena on my bladder," I muttered as I tried to follow her instructions.

I'd barely gotten into the first pose when the symbol on my skin flared like a disco ball. The room's energy shifted, and suddenly, my yoga mat was floating three feet off the ground.

"Well, shit," I muttered as I tried to maintain my balance. "This is new. A little help here?"

"Stay calm," Aidon advised, hovering nearby with his hands raised like he was spotting a gymnast. "Maybe try to?—"

He was cut off by a loud pop. My hands flew to my stomach, thinking the worst had happened and my water broke.

A sigh of relief whooshed from me when several delivery boxes materialized in the middle of the room.

They were wrapped in black paper that shimmered with Underworld energy and tied with ribbons that looked suspiciously like pomegranate vines.

A faint scent of brimstone and designer perfume wafted from the packages.

"Oh good," I said from my elevated position. "More surprises. I was just thinking we haven't had enough of those lately. Please tell me your mother didn't send another three-headed puppy. The last one ate my favorite shoes." And Buttercup had only been with us for five days.

Aidon snorted at the same time his gaze traveled to the window as if searching for Buttercup, whom Tseki and Murtagh had taken charge of corralling until Aidon could return her to the Underworld.

As if that was going to happen. The little hellhound had already wormed her way into our hearts.

All three of her heads sported different personalities that somehow worked in perfect chaotic harmony.

I'd caught Aidon sneaking her treats and letting her sleep in his office chair while he worked, those six ears perked at attention.

I had decided she could stay if we could train her not to eat the furniture - or the triplets' future belongings - before they arrived.

A girl needed a good guard dog, after all.

Or in this case, three guard dogs in one very energetic body.

Nina approached the packages excitedly. "They're from Grimpop and Flowergram," she announced as she snagged the attached card.

"Baby gifts from the Underworld. How thoughtful?

The babies will have a piece of their other home.

The card says 'To our favorite grandchildren-to-be. May these ancient treasures guide your path through both light and shadow’. "

"Ancient treasures?" Mom's eyebrows shot up. "Persephone doesn't do anything halfway, does she?"

"Perhaps we should open them after Phoebe's feet are back on solid ground," Selene suggested diplomatically. "Her energy is understandably off the charts now."

The yoga instructor's voice echoed as if trying to counter Selene's observation. "Now transition into warrior pose?—"

"Lady, I am literally defying gravity here. Warrior pose is not happening. Unless you want to explain to my mother-in-law why her grandchildren were born in downward falling pose," I snapped.

Stella, who'd been flowing through poses next to me with irritating grace, stopped mid-motion. "And you're doing a bang-up job of it, Pheebs. I would have fallen off that mat the second it went airborne."

The symbol on my belly pulsed again, making every object in the room with even a hint of magical energy start floating. Tarja's tail puffed up as she gracefully leaped away from a now-hovering pillow that nearly hit her in the head. Binx hissed at another as he raced for Mom’s legs.

"This is ridiculous," I declared. "I can't even do regular pregnancy yoga without—" The light glowing from beneath my shirt flashed, and my mat tilted alarmingly.

"Okay, okay! No complaining! Just please don't dump me on my head.

These babies are breach enough right now without adding actual breaches of gravity. "

"I've got you," Aidon assured me. He lifted his hands and was ready to catch me if needed. "Though I have to admit, whatever this symbol is doing is a new one even for me. And I've seen Zeus try drunk shapeshifting."

That's when one of Hades' packages decided to unwrap itself.

A beautiful mobile emerged, the paper falling away as if guided by invisible hands.

I was transfixed, completely forgetting about my precarious floating position as I watched delicate pieces rise into the air.

They were crafted from whatever divine elements the gods used.

The pieces began to dance through the air.

They spun and connected with soft musical chimes.

We watched in awe as the mobile assembled itself.

Each component found its perfect place as if choreographed by the Fates themselves.

Tiny constellations sparked to life around it, sending shimmering patterns of starlight across the walls. They shifted and moved.