Then suddenly she stopped, grabbing her stomach with a pained expression on her face. "Oww..." she whimpered, drawing in a sharp breath. It felt like someone was jabbing her in the lower abdomen. She couldn't imagine what the pain had come from. It came on so suddenly!

She winced, trying to put her hand back on the keys before jerking it back to her stomach. "I'm sorry...I...don't know... what's wrong..." her words were labored, the pain growing in intensity. Could it have been something she ate? Or perhaps her time of bleeding was almost upon her? It shouldn't have been for another two weeks, and while it sometimes pained her, she'd never felt an affliction like this before.

His face dropped almost instantly. Maybe he was mistaken, but he believed these were the pains they had warned him about. "Here, take a more comfortable seat" he helped lift her away from the piano and sat her down in a plush armchair.

The thought immediately came to his mind: was she with child? If so, that really would change everything. Their honeymoon period would end as quickly as it had begun. He would have to explain the grand secret, how important her role was in it, and how best she could take good care of herself and the baby. He'd wanted her to have his child. It had been his mission in all of this, but he'd thought they have more time before it would consume their lives.

First, he needed to discern what was causing the pain. "What are you feeling, my sweet? Where does it hurt? Can you describe it to me?" He was no physician, but he had sat through hours long lectures about the carrying process. If it was indeed what he suspected, he would have to inform certain staff who would then take on the roles of her pregnancy team.

He tentatively placed a hand overtop her own. Could it really have happened so soon? They had made love, sweet passionate love, twice. A level of sadness sunk into his heart. He had just started to enjoy being with her, and she was becoming more than just a carrier for a powerful child. Now, she might not live to see the next few months. He looked up from her stomach to her eyes, his face serious and concerned. "Natalia, I need to know."

"It's like... a stabbing pain..." she replied, drawing in another sharp breath, nearly doubled over. "Oww..." she winced again, tears forming in her eyes. "I've never... felt anything like this before.." she looked back at him, searching for answers. The way he spoke... that he needed to know... had he had something to do with this?

Maybe that decanter had poison in it! Her eyes suddenly grew wide, feeling the need to confess. "That—the wine decanter—in your studio—" she blurted. "I... I tasted something from it. Is—is that—what's doing this?" She was gasping between words, as the pain felt like it was swallowing her whole. Was she dying? Had she accidentally poisoned herself?

He knew it! He knew she had tampered with his decanter of blood! There was no pride to be had in this affirmation of his detective ability, though. She was in pain, and he knew how to fix it. The child, now burrowing its way in her womb, had tasted blood, and it wanted to be satiated further.

With her safety in jeopardy and an explanation forthcoming, he no longer needed to hide any of his powers. Marcello had completed the task required of him, and hence she was now stuck with him whether she liked it or not. He sped out the room inhumanly, returning with a glass of blood. He held his hand over the top to avoid any spillage from moving at such a speed, and then he held it out to her forcefully. "Drink this. Now."

She looked hesitant. Too hesitant. So he tilted her head back and lifted the glass to her lips, pouring it down her throat, slowly. "Swallow it Natalia. I will explain all when you've drunk it."

He knew this must absolutely terrify her: being in pain, watching him move, drinking more blood. He was counting on the suddenness of it all to overwhelm her so she would listen to him and follow his orders. She could question and be angry later, but right now she had to goddamn listen.

She was so confused. What was happening? She was going to do as he commanded, but apparently she hadn't moved fast enough. He tilted her head back and poured the metallic liquid down her throat. She gagged, trying to swallow it, but at his insistence, she managed. Even after swallowing, the taste in her mouth was still making her gag and almost retch. But slowly, miraculously, the pain lessened, becoming only a dull ache after a minute or so.

"Wh—what's happening?" She asked, terror in her eyes. That aftertaste made her sure he'd just poured blood down her throat and somehow... it had helped the pain in her belly. It made no sense. And the speed with which he'd moved! Her head was spinning.

"I—I don't understand. That was—" she stammered, now trembling in fear. "That was—blood. Right? Why? And how? And?" She felt like she might faint, but she tried hard to steady her mind and body. She wanted, no, she needed answers.

He put the glass down and pulled up another chair opposite her, taking her trembling hands and holding them still. "Calm down Natalia. Shh. Calm down. Panicking is not good for anyone." He stroked the back of her hands with his thumbs, but it didn't seem to soothe her much. How could it?

"I'll start with who I am and let that lay the grounds for what's going on here." He tapped her stomach lightly.

"I'm a Vampire, Natalia." He gave her a moment to let the words sink in. "My entire family is comprised of vampires. We are beings with superior strength and speed, able to compel humans to do our bidding and live for thousands upon thousands of years. We have a strong aversion to the sun. In fact, it will burn us alive unless we spend years building up a tolerance. The trade off for all of this is that we must consume blood to survive. Failure to do so will see us decay. We can have blood cold or warm, human or animal, so long as it's blood, it will sustain us." He spoke slowly, letting her take in every word he said. It was hard to measure her reaction. Her body still shook as if she were terrified, but the look on her face seemed as though her mind was connecting the pieces.

"There are two types of Vampire," he continued, after she did not speak. "Pure and impure. The purest of us are much stronger, superior to our impure brethren. The royal line has always been pure vampires." He stopped himself from continuing, wanting to pause before he scared her anymore by explaining her pregnancy. Then again, she was a smart enough girl. Maybe she would figure it out before he even spoke of it. He owed her that moment though, a chance to ask what she wanted to ask, and some time to process and think on what he'd said. He sat perfectly still now, the act of fidgeting like a human redundant, waiting to see how she reacted.

She tried to let her mind wrap around the pieces, but it seemed ridiculous. Vampires did not exist. They were works of fiction.

"That can't—" she started, but stopped herself. He wasn't breathing. He was staring at her stock-still, not breathing, and suddenly it all started to make sense: Why he felt so cold—no blood coursed through his veins. How he was so strong that he could rip a corset in half. How he moved so quickly. Why there was a decanter of blood. The thick curtains. The way he ate so much less than she had. It made so much more sense now.

"But why did you make me—" She started, trying to understand how her drinking blood had cured her stomach ache. "Did you...make me...like you?" She asked, her brows knitting together. If so, how? And when? And what did he mean by pure and impure? How could something that wasn't alive sustain life? How was there a 'line' at all?

Then it dawned on her, realization washing over her like a wave, and she went deathly pale. "It's inside me..." she said blankly. Then a fire lit behind her eyes once more.

"How? How did it happen so quickly? I knew when we made love it felt...it felt strange. It was like I could feel your sperm not just inside me, but like it was in my belly. Like somehow it shot straight into my womb!" She knew that wasn't how it was meant to work normally, but this wasn't normal.

"But how did it...so quickly? Was that it implanting inside me?" Her brain was spinning as she laid a hand back over the area where the dull ache was.

"It's not an 'it', its an ours. That's our baby inside there." He said the first sentence harshly, emphasising that as much as he wasn't a human, there was still a young life growing that they had both made. The second part was far softer, as he suddenly realised the implications that they would be parents. He would have a little baby in his arms before long, rocking it to sleep.

"We're not entirely sure how insemination works. Pure breedings like this are very rare, and as the human host rarely knows beforehand, it's not very easy to study. Some theorize that our physiology may speed up the process somewhat, triggering a woman's fertility cycle and then making her pregnant with ease. There are other theories—" if he had blood running through him, his cheeks would have flushed with embarrassment at this stage. He pushed the thought from his mind and continued, "Regardless of how it happened, you are now likely with child. It will grow fast and task you heavily. This means you will have to keep drinking blood because ultimately, that's what it wants."

He looked at her with pity in his eyes. "It will either take it from you or what you consume..." He knew that would be a heavy blow for her to absorb. He'd seen how much she gagged at drinking that cup. As the child grew, it would become even more demanding.

A sad smile crept across his face as he realised he could deliver some good news. "There is a light at the end, though, Natalia. Giving birth to one of us is dangerous and few have survived to live on as humans, but I can offer you more! You could become like me! We could live for thousands of years together!" His smile dropped as he realised he'd unmeaningly used the word 'survive'. The one thing he did not want to explain was that she might not survive. He would have to admit to her then that he had known from the start that she was cattle raised for slaughter.

"We have people that can help you through this. I will be here every moment with you, I swear it. We just need to take this day by day. Picture it though, Nat, our little baby sleeping peacefully, more beautiful than any other child ever born, as we stand above him, ageless." He tried to romanticise the idea as much as he could. If he could get her to agree to all the help and care the palace could give, she would stand a much better chance, and it would be less awkward for everyone involved.

As he looked at her expectantly, her head was reeling. Hours after making love, somehow, she was pregnant, and she wasn't just pregnant. She was pregnant with a monster. A monster that was going to require her to choke down glasses of blood just to keep it from trying to kill her? And she might survive? And why would she want to be like him?

She had the urge to run as far away as she could, scream, fight him off, but she found herself unmoving. She stared at him, still trembling, tears rolling down her face by now.

"This is a lot..." she wanted to be comforted, but she wasn't sure if she was more afraid of him or what was occurring. She'd developed a fondness for him. She even thought she was falling in love with him, but... he was a monster...