Palace Grounds

When Renny spoke about the Queen being all that she had he would smile softly, “I know that, love. I wouldn’t tear you away from her,” he would murmur, suddenly feeling bad for requesting that she go to Carnaghan at all. Wouldn’t she be much more comfortable here if she became pregnant? She’d at least have another woman to talk to, to be comfortable with. He would frown slightly, his brows furrowing as he thought about telling her that she could stay at court for however long she liked, with child or no. Part of him desperately wanted to make her happy no matter where she was, but another wanted to make her happy AT Carnaghan, not away from it. Despite that other part he would sigh softly, “You don’t ever have to leave court if you don’t want to. I understand your want to stay with the Queen,” he would murmur softly, despite how much it pained him.

When he opened his arms and she walked into them he would smile, hugging her tightly against him. “There’s no need to apologize,” he would murmur softly, reaching up to gently brush his fingers over her cheek. Upon hearing her giggle he would laugh softly, “Well, I’m happy that I have to. Makes things interesting,” he would say with a grin, leaning down to gently kiss the top of her head as he strokes his fingers over her back.

Alpin couldn’t help but smile when she said that she loved him, “I love you too, more even,” he would say. When she started to talk about wanting to go to Carnaghan with him he would blink, his brows raising as he listened to what she had to say, “As long as you’re happy, I’m happy,” he would say, “And besides. Who wants normal?” he would ask, though he did feel relieved that she didn’t actually want to stay at Court for the rest of her life. When she moved to walk around him and into the room he would grin, following after her when she closed the door and moved deeper into the room only to turn around and hug him again.

When she said that it was good that he liked difficult, because women were even more difficult when they were pregnant he would laugh, “No, not more difficult. Just a different kind of difficult,” he would say with a shake of his head; he had learned that with his wife when she was pregnant with Davan. Actually, come to think of it, he had preferred his wife when she was pregnant over when she wasn’t; she hadn’t been as cold as she had been otherwise. “Anyways, I won’t mind dealing with extra difficulties as long as I get to see your beautiful belly swell with my child,” he would say, his deep voice low as he moves to gently kiss her cheek.

When she said that it was doubtful he would laugh, tugging her even closer to him and dipping his head to press a kiss to her lips, “No, it’s not,” he would murmur with a wink. Upon hearing her say that she wanted normal he would grin, shaking his head slightly, “Well, I suppose you do have a point,” he would say with a shrug, “But, I would still stay here with you if that’s something that you wanted,” he would say, his voice honest. When she spoke about how her mother was with her brothers he couldn’t help but laugh, “When my late wife was pregnant with Davan she was much nicer to me, I think it was maybe because I’d finally given her something that she would truly enjoy,” he would say with a shrug, “Unfortunately, she passed before she could actually enjoy her,” he would murmur, letting his gaze shift away from Renny and to the floor. That was probably the worst part about her death; he hadn’t liked her much, but he’d known that his late wife had loved their daughter more than anything else in the world yet she’d passed a few weeks after she was born.

He would let it drift from his thoughts when she spoke about her mother having gotten pregnant with Al on her wedding night, “Well, I kind of hope that we’re that lucky,” he would say with a grin, his eyes shifting to eye her belly for a moment before lifting to her eyes, “Davan would certainly enjoy a younger sibling,” he would say with a smile. When she moved away to sit in a chair in the corner of the room he would follow, sitting at her feet and resting his head against her knee as he looks up at her, “What are you thinking?” he would ask, a smile still teasing at the corners of his lips. She seemed to be contemplating something,

He would close his eyes upon feeling her hand in his hair, letting out a soft, content sigh. He liked the feeling of her messing with his hair, nobody else having ever done it before. It did feel rather amazing though, and he figured he ought to have her do it more often. When she answered his question he would open his eyes, grinning up at her, “Well, I would be lying if I said that I didn’t want a son,” he would say with a laugh, “But, I know that it wouldn’t be your fault; it’s in God’s control whether or not I have a son, and if he wants me to have only daughters then I will do my best to understand his wants. Besides, Davan is such an angel that I wouldn’t mind another daughter,” he would say turning his head to gently kiss her knee. He hoped that he had helped to staunch her fears, though it had caused him to really think about it. He figured that what he had said was true, though he really would be disappointed if he never got a son. Part of him was petty and didn’t want to leave his estate to a daughter, despite knowing that women could be intelligent and well versed in these things as well. Look at Queen Morgan; she was running an entire kingdom without a King. Despite knowing this, he was still stuck on tradition…it was complicated, trying to hold tradition while also being logical.

When she slipped off of the chair he would shift so that he was able to pull her into his lap, wrapping his arms loosely around her. Upon hearing her say that if her mother’s luck was passed onto her then they would have a bunch of boys he would laugh, “Well, just one would be fine with me. I’ve heard they’re quite rowdy,” he would say with a playful wink. He wondered briefly what it would be like to raise a whole crew of boys, and couldn’t help but shudder at the thoughts that ran through his head. When she kissed him he would smile, his eyes drifting shut as he kisses her back, tugging her tightly against him only to lighten his hold when she opened her eyes and shifted back. Upon hearing her say that she would love to have at least one daughter he would grin, “Well, there’s a good chance that you will,” he would say with a wink, “I plan to have at least a couple of children,” he would say with a grin, leaning in to press a light kiss to her lips. “As long as you’re okay with that, of course,” he’d say, knowing that it was her body that would be tortured during the process.

When she said that rowdy was an understatement he would laugh, “Of course it is.” He didn’t have any siblings, so all of the horror stories had come from either his parent’s friends, or people that he’d met after Davan was born. They’d all claimed that he was lucky because he only had the one child, and that she was a girl because boys were just little devils. “Oh, I don’t blame you. Not after meeting one of them,” he would snicker, shifting to gently kiss her forehead. He liked snuggling here with her, it made him happy to have her so close. When she said that she’d like a couple of children, but six was just a bit overboard he couldn’t help but laugh, “I’m afraid you’re right. I wouldn’t know what to do with six little heathens,” he would say with a soft bout of laughter, though the idea of having children with her did bring up one concern; he wondered if his own daughter would fit in with them, or if she would feel like an outcast because she didn’t share the same mother. He would frown just slightly as he thought about it, promising himself that he would try to make sure that it didn’t happen, though he couldn’t help but worry about it.

When she brushed her fingers between his brows before kissing him he would smile softly, only to blink upon hearing her words, wondering how she could have known. As she spoke his smile would broaden, and he would reach out to brush his fingers over her cheek in a loving gesture, “You truly are a Saint,” he would murmur softly. “I know that you aren’t her mother, and that you don’t have to treat her as if she is actually yours, but it means that world to me that you’re willing to try,” he would murmur honestly. He loved his daughter more than he thought Ranait would ever know, and truly did want what was best for her, “I’m sure that you two will get along nicely…she’s been asking for a mommy lately,” he would admit, pulling a hand back to run it through his hair before resting it on her hip. “How did you know I was worrying about it?” he would ask suddenly, his head tipping a bit to the side as he watches her, curious. Sure, he was able to pick up when her mood was off, but he could never figure out why it might be that she wasn’t completely happy.