Alina was lying in bed,grimacing.She was 15 weeks and already massive.She had to hold her belly whilst walking,for she was worried it would just fall off.Mal was still angry,but sat on her bed every day,listening to their tiny heartbeats.He would smile at that,just not her,and that hurt.Nikolai,on the other hand was embracing it.Zoya was already pregnant with his child,and that was quite simply a scandal to the public.Aleksander,on the other hand,had been strangely absent.She secretly knew he knew,and made that the reason he was absent,even though she didn't really know.

Her belly hurt and it felt like a bowling ball was strapped to her belly.She was not really surprised she was having triplets.No pregnant woman she knew showed so much at 6 weeks.

As she exited her room,she braced herself for the walk down,but before she could start her journey,Malyen emerged from the shadows,spooking her.

"Alina,we can't just pretend this isn't happening."

"Yeah?Well i think i am being very successful in it actually.It's working very well for me,ignoring it."

"Well no,it doesn't work.Your leaving me in the dark.Look,i know you sleep with Nikolai,everyone knows.But i can't help but worry that it isn't show,and that,well that isn't my...child."

Alina gasped,but started walking down the stairs,trying to ignore the shadow of her so called boyfriend.Suddenly,she heard Nikolai step onto the landing,and grimaced.As she heard Mal trying to talk to Nikolai,she bolted.Well,it was more of a painful jog,she was pregnant with triplets after all.

When she got to the bottom,she walked through the prim and proper garden,lying on the soft grass under an Oak that had been planted for 'the late king's birth.