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Mako Mori has a secret.

Several, in fact, but this is one of the biggest secrets that she's had to deal with in quite some time, and she doesn't know what to do about it. Raleigh knows - of course he knows, he always knows even when they don't Drift -- it's that pilot to pilot thing, two minds, two hearts coming together as one in the body of that giant machine. It leaves residue, leaves her feeling like she's part of him and he's part of her. One soul, split into two bodies.

He knows. He hasn't said anything to anyone, but he knows.

She's so grateful that he keeps it to himself, but she knows that it won't - can't - stay that way for long. Herc is going to find out why she's not able to pilot right now, why she can't get in the Jaeger and why she's temporarily grounded. Right now, she's made a million excuses but it cannot go on any longer. Someone is gonna figure it out if she doesn't confess, soon.

A few weeks pass and she's put on some weight and she's throwing up every morning when no one is around and -- she can't do it any longer. She sends for him, requesting him to please come to her quarters immediately because there's something she needs to speak with him urgently about, and she waits.

It's the longest wait of her life.

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The very thought of fatherhood again is nearly enough to send him spiraling into a panic attack, his nerves unable to deal with the idea that he's going to fuck up again, he's going to make the same mistakes he did with Chuck, there's going to be another child out there who shares half his genes who hates him and wishes they were never born.

How can he do that to someone?

But looking at Mako, knowing that she'll do what he wants despite her own wishes — if she's ever thought or wished about this before — makes something inside him crumble.

"Mako, sweetheart. I want whatever will make you happy. If you don't think you're ready for a baby then I won't ask you to carry it. If you want to, though, then... That's okay too."

His voice is a little choked up and his hands are shaking with fear, but he's serious.

"I'm not... I'm not going t make you do something you don't want to."

Mako is perceptive. She does not have the connection with Herc that she does with Raleigh, but she is smart, and she is perceptive, and she sees the look in his eyes and the way his hands are trembling when he holds her and how his voice catches mid sentence.

"I messed up," she whispers, "I messed up, and I don't know what to do."

"No." He's very firm on this, pulling away enough that he can cup her face in his hands and make her look at him. "Mako, no. You did nothing wrong."

Maybe...aw, hell, he has no idea. Something must have gone wrong with the implant. Maybe she lost track of when it had been put in, but that's not like her. Maybe something to do with Jaeger tech or Drifting or the radiation exposure of Gipsy Danger had screwed with the hormone release.

He doesn't know.

But he does know that none of this is her fault.

"It's okay, sweetheart. We'll figure this out together. There's plenty of time to decide what to do."

"Not much."

Not plenty, Herc. She will only wait so long before that isn't an option anymore.

"I promise, I did not do this on purpose." It feels important that he know that, and she hopes that he believes her. "I would not do that to you."

"Enough that we don't have to decide right now."

He has absolutely no idea what he wants to do. He's not sure he could handle being a father again, but he is absolutely not going to make Mako get an abortion if she doesn't want one. And he's not going to dump her for this, either. They did this together, they're going to stick it out together, no matter what they decide.

"Oh, love."

He pulls her in close and kisses her hair, breathing in the smell of her shampoo and her perfume and trying to ground himself in it. "I know."

"Okay."

That -- helps, that she doesn't have to decide anything right this second. It makes her appreciate him even more, and as she's wrapped up in his arms she sighs and presses her face to his chest, eyes closing.

"We will talk about it later."

Tonight, tomorrow. Soon -- but not this second.

He strokes her hair gently, glad that his hands have stopped shaking, even if he's still terrified out of his mind.

"Can I get you anything?"

Because he's planning on staying here for the foreseeable future, staying with her until she tells him to go.

"No. I'm okay."

Sort of. Not really -- but in a way, she is. It could have gone so much worse, and she knows that this isn't something that he wants but...

His reaction is...well, it's not good, but it wasn't horrible.

"Don't you have a meeting?"

"Fuck my meeting."

He needs a little time to come to grips with the new reality of his life. And if that requires a nap so he can have a panic attack without upsetting her, then so be it.

Meetings are suddenly at the bottom of his list of priorities.

"I'm not going anywhere until you want me to go."

Mako gives him a look, but she doesn't argue.

"I don't want you to go." She releases him and steps back, hands on his arms.

"But you should tell them you are cancelling. You are the Marshal. You cannot leave them hanging in limbo. I will wait here."

"This is a family emergency. It trumps my meeting."

He doesn't think he can handle sitting in front of that screen while the knowledge that Mako is pregnant is bouncing around in his head.

She gives his shoulder a little shake to make sure he's listening to her.

"Go cancel. Come back right away. Okay?"

"Okay."

He pauses before he leaves, though, tucking his fingers under her chin and lifting her face so he can kiss her.

"I'll be right back."

Mako smiles at him, because for all his cleverness, he is still such a man sometimes.

"I'll be here."

Sitting on the bed, legs pulled up with her arms around them, door unlocked. She's patient. She'll wait.

"Okay."

He's reluctant to go, but she has a point. He needs to go deal with his meeting and shit, and he wants to have a quiet freak out where he won't upset her.

"I love you," he blurts out, one hand on the doorframe, hesitating for a minute before he goes.

That has her looking up at him, eyes starting to shine because that's the first time he's ever uttered those words to her, and he's too far away. She gets up onto her feet and crosses the small room, pulling him back into her arms and down for a deep kiss.

"I love you too, Hercules."

He clings to her, clearly scared but since when has being scared ever stopped him from doing the right thing? He's Hercules fucking Hansen, he's faced down world-destroying monsters, he can handle a pregnancy.

"We'll be okay." He kisses her again, stroking her cheeks with his thumbs. "I promise."

"We will."

She's starting to believe it now -- or at least, she really wants to believe it. She wants to talk to him later -- really talk to him about this, not just drop a bomb on him and then send him off to go cancel meetings with world politicians.

"Hurry back." She smiles lightly at him, and smoothes her hands down his shoulders to take his hands in hers. "I will be right here."

"Okay."

He nods sharply, taking in a steadying breath, and squeezes her hands before pulling away so he can go back to his office and beg off this incredibly important meeting he shouldn't be missing.

She feels bad about it. Really, she does -- but at the same time, she can't make herself feel too guilty because she's already using up most of her mental capability on feeling guilty about bigger, more important things.

Like, how this happened to begin with.

She's also consumed with how to handle it -- now that he knows, now that they're in this together, Mako isn't so sure about anything anymore. She doesn't want to let this go, it's right, it feels right even if it makes her throw up every morning. Her arms circle around her stomach and she rolls onto her side to try and catch a nap before he comes back.

It takes him longer than he'd like to duck out of his meeting, and then he sits in his office and has a quiet panicked moment to himself, before he pushes out of his chair and makes his way back to Mako.

He lets himself quietly into her room, toeing out of his shoes and draping his vest over the back of her chair before slipping into bed behind her and curling around her.

Sliding his arm over her waist seems much more significant now, and he can't help pressing his hand to her belly, his fingers spread wide like he can feel their child somewhere beneath his palm. Oh god, their child.

She's asleep when he comes back; the lights are off save one small paper lamp by the door that gives off just enough of a golden glow for him to see his way back over. His arm around her wakes her, and she stirs quietly, making a soft noise as she shifts to look over her shoulder at him.

It's a hesitant movement. She's still...not really sure what he's thinking.

"All finished?"

Hercules just tucks his face into her hair and hums, holding her close against his chest.

"All finished," he finally replies, sighing a little.

"How are you holding up?"

"I'm okay."

She hesitates, then snuggles in close against him and relaxes in his arms, breathing out a long held sigh.

"You?"

He's quiet for a moment, then he lets out a sigh of his own.

"I'm pretty scared," he admits, because honesty is important. "No, I'm pretty close to pissing myself." Honesty is really important. "But I'm okay."

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