The Darkling, however, was a big fan of Halloween.

It has begun as a small tradition that she had passed on to those in the surrounding villages, but as the years went on, it only grew. Now the children from the mines were free, living in those villages in houses she had created for them out of guilt, Halloween had grown within the Dark Realm. Within the castle itself, Fiona had given in to the tradition of decorating the halls and a few of the rooms for Halloween, as well as Christmas. Initially, she had only started for her husband, but she had begun to enjoy the actual act of decorating, of trying different looks, and the challenge of creating creepy looking things without accidentally *creating* those things. The giant spiders that now roamed the echoless forest were testament to how difficult that could sometimes be. This year, it was a little more difficult thanks to the sheer exhaustion she was feeling in the last month of her pregnancy. Each day she planned on beginning the decorating, and each day she put it off, finding something baby-related that she needed to do instead until time had passed so quickly that it was the day before Halloween and the castle was still bare.

She made her way down the grand staircase, pausing halfway down, a frown washing over her face as the starkness of the castle surprised her, the emptiness of the Entrance Hall where she would usually invite the village children to receive candy, if they were brave enough. With a wave of her hand, she began to cascade streams of spider webs from the ceiling, the occasional large, but fake, spider mixed among the white. The doors to the other rooms began to bleed, blood pooling around the bottom in an effect that would disappear when one approached the door to slip through. Above her, fake, but very realistic looking, bats began flying sporadically.
"Wow.." the voice came from behind her and she turned to face him, "I didn't think you'd decorate this year.."
"Well, I can't let my husband's favourite holiday pass without acknowledgement, can I?" she chuckled
"You're nine months pregnant. I'm sure your husband would forgive you this once." the Darkling kissed her on the cheek, placing a hand on her lower back to guide her down the stairs.

"I think I could do more in here.." the fairy said softly as she paced their sitting room, trying to shake the heavy, aching feeling that pressed against her lower back. She had been decorating all day, not wanting the Darkling to miss out on the celebration of his favourite holiday just because she was pregnant.
"Fee, will you just rest?" his tone was firmer than he had been with her in a while, and she felt his hands gripping her arms, guiding her towards the couch. Sitting down, she let out a hiss, feeling a tightness wash over her stomach.
"What is it?" the Darkling asked with a frown, sitting down beside her. Her gaze fell on him and she forced a smile.
"Nothing. So, do you like them? The decorations?" she needed to change the subject, needed to focus on anything other than the discomfort she had been feeling all afternoon, the discomfort that grew slightly more intense as time had progressed.
"They're amazing, but I told you.. I could have done without them for one year."
"Yes, well, I don't want to slip in my wifely duties and have you fall out of love with me." she teased, but there was an odd truth to her words. She still wasn't sure how he was going to feel about sharing her, after having her to himself for so many years.
"Don't be ridiculous. If anything, I think I'm falling in love with you all over again.." his fingers brushed into her hair, gently petting her and she leaned into his touch, closing her eyes as she allowed herself to relax. Almost as soon as the tension had faded from her form, a sharp pain made her wince, eyes flying open, a soft yelp leaving her. "Right, that was definitely something.." her husband frowned, his hand pausing it's movements in her hair. "What is it?"

"I.. think we might be about to meet our son.."