Birth
"Well done, your majesty, dear. Well done." said the royal midwife as she finished cleaning between the sweat soaked queen's legs.
The exhausted queen nodded. "My baby?" she asked weakly.
"She's fine, dear, just getting her first bath is all!" called the apprentice midwife over the wail as she finished up cleaning the newborn princess.
The midwife dumped the fluid soaked sheets in a basket, washed her hands and checked the baby. "A strong lusty cry: good. She's pink all over, though somewhat pale: not bad. She doesn't like the bath: good. She is is fighting my pulls: good, but her hands are rather cold. Are you washing her in cold water?" The midwife asked her apprentice.
"No, warm water, of course."
The midwife frowned, babies cooled off a little when wet but this was really cold, but she was crying well. "Very well. Clean up and tell the king he has a daughter."
They swaddled the tiny princess and walked the baby over to her mother and laid them skin to skin. "Warm her up a little first, your majesty, then we'll try having you feed her or do you want the wetnurse to do it?"
The queen shook her head, she wanted to do this herself. She carefully put her tired arms around her baby and held her baby close. Little princess Elsa quickly calmed under her mother's hand.
Queen Sarah was so tired but happy, so very happy. Nothing had gone wrong and her baby was alive. Her sister, Rebecca finally had a live baby too. They had gotten word earlier that month that, after 13 unsuccessful pregnancies, Corona finally had an heir, and now so did Arendelle.
Sarah had helped her older sister through many of her pregnancies, and the grieving afterwards. She had missed a few, they had come and gone so quickly. She was so sad that she had missed her sister's successful pregnancy, but Rebecca had told her to take all possible care of herself and her baby, which she did.
This was wonderful, she though sleepily as she felt the soft regular breaths of her baby on her chest.
Sarah awoke to the crying of her baby. She had fallen asleep without intending to.
"Ah good, you're awake, your majesty. It sounds like its time for some dinner." said the midwife as she came up to the side of the bed. She and her apprentice helped the queen and baby sit up a bit more. Then position the newborn in front of the nipple, it took a few tries to find the best position, and the swaddling came loose.
"Oh! Her hand is so cold." said the queen as her crying baby put a hand on her bared breast.
"Sorry, the swaddling has come loose but let's get her feeding first, this has taken some time and she's probably very hungry."
Sarah nodded, but then Elsa latched on and began to suck.
"Good, good. See the froth, she is suckling well. Well done, your majesty, your tiny highness." The midwife smiled as she covered the new mother and daughter with a soft blanket.
The queen smiled at the midwife, her daughter was warming up comfortably. But no one had noticed the tiny snowflake that had come from the baby's hand in the excitement, it just looked like a bead of sweat on the mother's chest.
