Fatima noticed immediately, moving to Samantha's side. "Braxton Hicks contractions?" she asked knowingly.
"I think so," Samantha nodded, trying to breathe through the tightening sensation. "I've been having them on and off, but this one's stronger."
Fatima guided her to a nearby alcove where comfortable seating had materialized—the Sanctum responding to their need. "Perfectly normal, especially in your third trimester. Your body is practicing for the real event."
"Though in the Sanctum, such contractions often carry additional significance," Émilie added, her mathematical aura swirling more rapidly around her head. "The child's energies are beginning to align in preparation for birth."
As if to prove their point, the obsidian walls around them pulsed with soft light in rhythm with Samantha's contraction. Small objects nearby—a cup, a decorative crystal—briefly levitated several inches off their surfaces before settling back down.
