Well, second chapter on a planned one shot. Silk and Liselle are married, and well… If you're married and have some fun in the bedroom, things happen. Fluff with a tiny tiny bit of Silk angst/panic/worry. Enjoy!
Also, this is dedicated to Artemisdesari, still, since she made me read these wonderful books. Also, I'm publishing this juuuuust for her ;)
~*Silk*Silk~Silk*~
After their wedding, Silk bought himself and Liselle a house in Boktor. Both of them still worked for the Intelligence Service, and Silk still had his business going, but occasionally, both of them liked to take a few weeks to spend together in their house.
Some months they married, they took what they called a small vacation, just spending time with each other, doing everything married couples do, both inside and outside the bedchamber.
However, one morning when they were just waking up, and Silk snuck his arm around his wife's waist, intending to persuade her to stay just a little longer in the bed and maybe even seduce her into more than just taking a lazy morning, Liselle threw his arm off her and bolted out of the room. Silk sat up, confused, wondering why she left so suddenly when he heard distinct retching sounds. He quickly got out the bed and found his wife violently throwing up into a bucket that she'd luckily enough had found just outside in their kitchen.
Silk stood still for a moment, at a loss of what to do, then took a few tentative steps towards his wife.
"Liselle?" She gave him a weak wave, trying to shoo him off while throwing up again. Silk stepped backwards, deciding that returning to the bedchamber since she obviously did not want him there.
After a while, she returned to the room, pale and hair sticking to her sweaty forehead. She collapsed in the bed, looking quite exhausted.
"Liselle?" Silk reached a hand towards his wife, gently stroking her hair away from her forehead. She turned her face to look at him.
"I'm alright now, Kheldar." She gave him a weak smile.
"Do you want me to send for a physician?"
"No, it's alright." She smiled and scooted closer to him in the bed, brushing her face against his for a moment.
In the days, Liselle was all her old self, all mischief and teasing Silk about having being so accustomed to being a married man. Although, she had taking the habit of resting her hand on her stomach whenever she was sitting or lying down. Though Silk did not think much of it, it was just another female peculiarity, he told himself.
However, the third morning in a row Liselle bolted out of bed, and he could hear the retching sound from the kitchen, a suspicion began to sneak into his mind. He had seen both Polgara and Ce'Nedra behave like this when they were… just thinking the word made him panic almost enough to just bolt and leave Boktor and Liselle and everything. Though with an enormous amount of will power, he stayed in the bed, pressed against the wall with his eyes squeezed shut, trying his hardest to fight his instinct to flee.
When Liselle came back into the room, pale and exhausted, hair plastered to her face, she took one look at him, and instead of falling into the bed as usual, she sat down on the floor, her back against the wall, hand splayed protectively over her stomach.
"You know", she said in an oddly flat voice, her expression somewhere between fear and tentative joy. Silk nodded.
"Yes", he croaked out. "You're…" He couldn't bring himself to say the word.
"Pregnant", she filled in for him, and she could not supress a smile at his terrified expression at the word. "Yes, Kheldar, I'm pregnant. With your child. Our child." He could only nod. Liselle's expression softened, and she got up from the floor, making her way towards the bed. When she reached in, she gently climbed into it, moving closer to her husband. "Kheldar, what did you expect?"
"I – I…" She took his hand, gently moving towards her stomach.
"It's our child in there." She smiled and led his hand under her nightdress, putting it gently on her stomach. Silk took a deep breath and did his best not to flinch back, but when he felt the warm skin of his wife's stomach, he managed to calm himself down a little. He stroked her stomach, and she smiled.
"I'm going to be a –" He took a deep breath, "– a father." When he said it, he felt an unexpected rush of joy. He splayed his hand over Liselle's stomach and kissed her. "I'm going to be a father." It was easier to say it this time. He kissed his wife again. Then she pulled back a little.
"Kheldar… You know that I'm stuck in Boktor now. I can't do any work in my state. And…" She looked down. "I want you to be here a little more as well." Silk pulled back. If Liselle was stuck here, and wanted him to be more at home… He considered it for the moment. Both of them had to discuss the matter with Javelin, and he had to talk to Yarblek… The thought of leaving more the business in his hands was not very tempting, but it would be necessary if he were to spend more time here in Boktor with his… he still had a hard time thinking the word… pregnant wife.
~*Silk*Silk~Silk*~
The solved the details of work and Silk's business by forcing, or more truthfully bribing, Yarblek to report every single detail back to Silk. Tiresome, but functional and necessary.
Silk still did smaller assignments for the Intelligence Service, but they were mainly in Boktor or close by, so most of the time, he at least slept in his and Liselle's house.
A few months went by, and Silk saw the gradual swell of Liselle's belly, and as her stomach grew, he also grew more accustomed to the thought of becoming and father, except the occasional bout of panic when he fled their house to the nearest alehouse. Liselle knew him well enough to only scold him for show.
As her pregnancy – Silk had by now grew calmer and less panicked at the word – proceeded, Silk also discovered how pregnancy changes women. The hormones rushed through Liselle's body, Silk had to learn when to both flee when she got angry, and when to hold her as she cried for the slightest things. In the nights they altered between Silk faithfully massaging her aching legs or back, and finding new, creative was to make love. So it was not all unpleasant. Especially their new creative positions were very pleasing for them both, and Silk finally started to think that having a pregnant wife might have its perks.
~*Silk*Silk~Silk*~
When the time grew close for the birth of the child, they sent for Polgara. She came as fast as she possibly could, and since they had a highly comfortably guestroom, quarters were no problem at all.
Silk marvelled over how huge his wife's stomach had gotten during the last months, he had never thought that someone as slender as Liselle could hold an extra weight like that. When he finally had grown accustomed, even comfortable with the thought of a child, he enjoyed spending quiet hours with only himself and Liselle, softly stroking her stomach and feeling the baby kicking in there. The first time he put his ear to her stomach and heard the baby's heartbeat, Liselle burst into tears as she saw the pride of a soon-to-be father in his eyes.
One morning, Silk woke up from him wife urgently shaking his arm. Her face was contorted with pain, and she only hissed out:
"Get Polgara!" Then she clutched her stomach and moaned. Silk bolted out of bed and knocked on Polgara's door.
"It's time!" he shouted. "It's time now!" Polgara came out, calm as always.
"You, wait here. Stay in the house, and don't worry about the screams. Everything will be fine."
The next hours, Silk thought he would go insane. He paced back and forth. He sat down, and a minute later he got up and resumed the pacing. He brought of some ale, took two sips, put down the cup and managed to tip it over so the fine Mallorean carpet was ruined. He tried mopping up some of it, but after thirty seconds, he gave up and started to pace again.
Every time he heard Liselle scream, every instinct screamed he would run to the bedchamber and do… and do… and do something! He paced faster and repeated Polgara's words over and over in his head.
When the screams finally ended, and the door to the bedchamber opened, he immediately ran to it, and Polgara had to catch him so he would not bolt right in.
She held him firmly by the shoulders, and looked him in the eyes.
"Everything went well, don't worry. But Liselle is very tired, so be gentle." Silk nodded shakily, his whole body trembling. He was a father. A father… he, who never thought he would marry, even less have a child. He tried to voice his thoughts.
"I… I…" He swallowed, voice thick with emotion and fear. "I am a father." He smiled shakily, feeling a strange feeling of joy in his chest. Polgara smiled.
"Yes, you 're a father. It's a little girl, and you will hold her in a moment. But remember, Liselle is very tired, giving birth is hard work, so be gentle. But she wants to see you." She smiled wider. "Congratulations to you daughter."
"A – a – a daughter." Silk stared at her in wonder. "A girl."
"Yes, now, go in there and say hello to your little girl." Silk nodded shakily, his body trembling as he entered the bedchamber, Polgara closing the door behind him, giving them some privacy.
Liselle lay in the bed, holding a bundle to her breast.
"Kheldar… it's a girl. I'm a mother." She smiled weakly, and Silk made his way over to the bed, gently climbing into it to kiss his wife's forehead. Then he looked down on the tiny bundle to seemed perfectly content sucking on her mother's breast. Liselle smiled. "She'll be done eating in a moment, then you can hold her." Silk felt a jolt of fear. She was so tiny! What if he would break her? Then the baby let go of her mother's breast, burped and seemed to fall asleep. Liselle gently lifted her and held her towards Silk.
"What – what I break her?" Liselle laughed weakly.
"You won't. Just hold under the head, and it'll be fine, Kheldar." He nodded shakily and accepted the bundle who was his daughter. His child.
He looked down on his daughter's face, and she opened her eyes, meeting his, and suddenly all fear and worry melted away, and the pride only a father who holds his child for the first time can feel.
He leaned over, kissing Liselle on the lips, scooting close enough to hold both his wife and daughter.
"Our child, Liselle", he whispered. Then he kissed his daughter on the forehead, marvelling over how soft and tiny she was. Suddenly she freed one of her tiny, tiny hands from the bundle and took hold of Silk's little finger. He smiled, a smile full of joy, matching the one of his wife's face. "Our little daughter, Liselle." Then, his daughter still holding onto his finger, he thought for a moment. "Have you thought of a name yet?"
~*Silk*Silk~Silk*~
Enjoy and review, please?