Exactly How It Should Be
Disclaimer: I have nothing to do with any of the characters, and am in no way associated with C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia
Rating: K
Pairing: King Caspian X and Queen Susan
Summary: Susan stayed in Narnia and married Caspian, instead of returning to London with her brothers and sister. Five years have passed, and they are now preparing for, and anxiously awaiting, the birth of their first child.
Queen Susan opened the doors leading from the royal bed chamber, and walked out onto their very own, private verandah. She looked all around, and still couldn't believe her eyes. She just couldn't believe that 5 years ago, all this land, everywhere she looked, had become not only Caspian's, but her's, as well. It wasn't that she wasn't happy about it,but of course, it did mean that she would have had to stay in Narnia, and not return home to London with Peter, Edmund, and Lucy. Back then, she had struggled immensely with the decision: to stay in Narnia, marry Caspian, and start a new life there, or to return home to her old life in London, along with Peter, Edmund, and Lucy. She would end up having to choose between family, and true love, which was no easy task. By staying there, she knew that the chances of ever seeing her brothers and sister again were very, very slim. She may not have always admitted it, but she really did love them all. On the other hand, though, by returning home to London, she would never see the only man she had every truly loved, Caspian, ever again, and that killed her just as much as the thought of never seeing her family again. In the end, though, she had chosen true love over family. Five years had passed since she had made that decision, but even all that time later, she still didn't feel truly certain that it had been the right one. She prayed over and over again for a sign, something that would ease her mind, and let her know that she really had done the right thing.
Then, just 7 months ago, that something finally happened. For you see, that was when she and Caspian had found out, after 5 years of marriage, that they were expecting their first child. It wasn't until now, though, 7 months later, as she laid both hands on her almost full term belly, that she began to realize that this was the sign she had been waiting for all along. This was the sign that proved to her, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she really had made the right choice after all.
2 months later (early morning)...
Susan, as usual, woke up first. That was the easy part. Getting up and getting out of bed, especially this far along into the pregnancy, was a completely different story. She had, by now, managed to sit up in bed, and had just started trying to push herself up off of it, when Caspian woke up. Seeing what she was trying to do, and that she was failing miserably at it, he got out of bed himself and walked around to her side.
"Need some help, darling?" he asked, holding his right hand out and helping for up, while at the same time covering his mouth with his left, so as to control the laughter that was just aching to escape. In these last few weeks, her mood swings had increased, so much so that any little thing could set her off, and so when she noticed that he was trying to stifle a laugh, she just about flew off the handle.
"Don't even think about laughing! This is soooo not funny! I CAN'T DO ANYTHING!
No sooner had those words left her mouth, than that urge to laugh, which had been so strong just a few minutes before, vanished completely. Then, in the blink of an eye, just like that, she was back to her old self, just as nice and gentle as she always had been. She moved over closer to him, and wrapped her left arm around his waist.
"I'm sorry I got so upset, but I am really getting tired of not being able to do anything. I just want this baby to come out already."
Caspian wrapped his right hand around her waist, pulled her close to him, and kissed the top of her head.
"It's all right. I completely understand. I know you want to baby to come out now, so do I, but he or she will come when they're ready, and only when they're ready."
"I know, I just hope it's sooner rather than later."
He let out a small little chuckle, before heading off to get ready for the day.
About 15 minutes later...
"All right now, darling. I have a lot of work to do, so I'll be in my study most of the day. If anything happens," He laid his hand gently on her belly. "just have one of your ladies come get me, and I'll come running."
"Don't worry, Caspian. I will." They both leaned in for a quick kiss, before he walked out of the room, and closed the door. No sooner had he left, then all her ladies-in-waiting came in, all of them looking forward to spending some quality time with their Queen. "This is going to be a wonderful day. I just know it." she thought to herself. Little did she know, though, that it was about to get even better.
About 10 minutes later, she decided to it was about time to get dressed, so a couple of her ladies helped he up, and over to her closet. No sooner had she laid out what she was going to wear that day, then a wave of pain shot through her, causing her to hunch over and hold her stomach.
"What is it, my Queen?" one of them asked.
"It's nothing-really." Susan replied, after it had passed. About 10 minutes later, it happened again. This time, though, it felt wet after wards. She looked down, and, sure enough, there was a big wet patch on the front of her nightgown.
She looked up at the two ladies with her. "Okay now, I don't want to alarm you, but I think I just went into labor. I want you to help me back into the bedroom, and then one of you go and alert the King."
"Yes, your highness." They did as they were told, and dashed out of the room. About 5 minutes later, Caspian ran in, and over to where Susan stood.
"One of your ladies just informed me that you're in labor. Is it really time?" She looked down at the wet patch, and his eyes followed.
"Okay, it really is. Here, let's get you all cleaned up." He went into her closet, got a clean nightgown, brought it out, and helped her change into it. He then, although it wasn't easy, managed to pick her up in his arms, and set her down carefully on the bed. Next, he turned to her ladies. "Quick, one of you go and fetch the midwife." One of them immediately rushed out the door. While they waited, he leaned in close to her, and gently held her hand.
"Are you all right, my love?"
She was just about to say answer when the pain struck up again, this time much stronger. She grabbed his hand, and squeezed so hard he thought it would fall off. He couldn't let her know it hurt, though, considering the amount of pain she was in at the moment. As soon as the pain subsided, he leaned in, pushed the hair out of her face, and kissed her forehead. "It's okay, everything is going to be okay."
It was about this time that the lady returned, followed by the midwife and her 4 nurses.
The midwife looked up at the Caspian. "My King, as much as I know you want to be with the Queen during this time, I'm going to have to ask you to step out. We need all the room we can get. I promise we will let you know when the baby has arrived."
He nodded, resignedly. "I'll be back soon, my love. I promise." He took Susan's hand in both of his, and kissed it, before walking out of the room. He headed down to his private study, where he fully intended to wait until he heard any news about his family. He knew the waiting wasn't going to be easy, but very quickly realized that it would all be completely worth it in the end.
Meanwhile, back in the royal bed chamber:
"Ahhhh, O God, this hurts! Susan screamed, as yet another contraction ripped through her body.
Just then, the midwife looked back up, after having checked her again, and smiled. "Good news. It's looks like it's time to start pushing."
"Finally." she breathed. Unfortunately, as soon as that word left her mouth, another contraction swept over her, bringing on a sudden urge to push.
"Okay, my Queen. Give one good, strong push."
Susan didn't need to be told twice, and pushed with all her might, falling back against the pillows as soon as it had ended.
"All right, your Majesty. Just one more push, and you'll have your baby."
She looked at the midwife, nodded, and took a deep breath. About a minute later, another contraction washed over her, and with it yet another overwhelming desire to push. She pushed down with all her remaining strength, letting out one more scream. Then, just as she was about to yell out that she couldn't do it any more, she heard the sound she had been waiting to hear for the last 9 months-the crying of a baby.
Back in the study, Caspian was going crazy, waiting and worrying. 5 hours had passed, then 5 ½, then 6 ½. Then, just when he thought he couldn't wait one more second, he heard a welcome knock at the door, and shot up like a rocket.
"Come in."
The door opened, and one of Susan's ladies-in-waiting walked in. She looked up at him, and smiled. "My King, your wife is asking for you. Follow me."
They walked down the hall, before arriving at the entrance to the royal bed chamber. She opened the door, and let him in, before walking back out and closing the door behind her. He walked a little farther in, and saw the midwife, who had just finished packing everything up. She looked up at him, smiled, and nodded.
"Congratulations, your Majesty." She and her nurses quietly walked out of the room, deciding to leave the new family alone.
After watching them all leave, he turned back around, and saw perhaps the most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his life so far. His wife, his Queen, was sitting up in bed, looking completely wiped out, but with a smile on her face that stretched from ear to ear, and was looking down at the little bundle in her arms. Then, almost as if she could somehow sense that he was in the room, she looked up at him, still smiling, and met his gaze, before turning her attention back to their child.
She motioned for him to come over, and when he had, he sat down gingerly on the edge of the bed. He looked down in absolute awe and amazement at this little person, who had been blessed with dark brown hair, like both of them, but definitely had his mother's eyes, so content in his wife's arms. After a few moments of silence, she once again looked deeply into his eyes, and smiled.
"Congratulations, daddy." She started crying happy tears, as she handed him the baby. "You have a son...we have a son."
Caspian, especially upon hearing those words, starting crying tears of happiness and joy, as well.
"Along with the day I married you, this is one of the happiest days of my life. I love you so much, my darling."
"I know. I love you, too." They both leaned in and kissed each other, before leaning in, one at a time, and gently kissing their son on the forehead.
"So, what are we going to name our little Prince?" Caspian asked, by now having turned his attention back to their new baby.
"About that, I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I've decided that since I went through all the hard work of actually giving birth to him, that it would only be right if his daddy was the one who got to name him."
"Well, that's very sweet of you, my love. I would be deeply honored to do so. I've been doing a lot of thinking, as well, and I think I've come up with one that we'll both like. What do you think about Rilian?"
"Rilian," Susan whispered to herself. "Prince Rilian. I love it. It's the perfect name for our perfect little Prince." They both leaned in for another kiss, and as they were parting, the baby started to fuss.
"It looks like someone wants their mommy again." Caspian smiled, and kissed his son on the forehead, before gently setting the baby back in Susan's arms.
"Welcome to Narnia, little Rilian. One day, this will all be yours." She took his tiny little hand in hers and smiled, as she again kissed him on the forehead.
Susan looked all around her, and then at her wonderful, loving husband, and beautiful new son. She finally had a family-something she had dreamed about all her life, and she couldn't be any happier. "This," she thought to herself "is exactly how it should be."