She was the first person to ever touch him, trembling and bloody, and at that moment she knew his life would end as if had begun – with a pain that was followed by relief and blood surrounding his body. Nimueh shook her head, sending the image away, as she noticed she had a prince in her arms.
He was perfect – toes and fingers, ears and nose, the very image of Ygraine. The queen panted and cried, demanding to see her son, and Nimueh wrapped him in the cloths prepared for that very moment, and left the other women to deal with Ygraine's bleeding. She knew too well that if she didn't hurry, there would be no time for the mother to see the child, the smell of death had been creeping around the room for hours, each moment closer.
As Ygraine held him in her arms – too tired, her breath too shallow, her body too broken – there was a ghost of a smile in her face, and a happiness that seemed to lighten all the world.
"Arthur" she said, softly. "My little Arthur."
She cried in pain, and Nimueh got the boy back, knowing it was time. She almost hated the child she helped to conceive in that moment, for all that he was stealing from her as Ygraine's life slipped away, but as the boy opened his eyes just a beet, she saw his noble spirit shining through.
With a soft sigh, the baby closed his eyes again, too tired to do anything else. Nimueh called the power within her and cast a spell in his forehead to protect him from all harm, before whispering to the baby.
"Welcome, Arthur Pendragon. And may the triple goddess protect you."
She had no idea how right she was.