Tales of Liutana II
Breaking Paralysis (cont.)
Two Years Later…
"So…?" Liu asked tentatively. Kitana blew a breath outwards.
"So Doctor Hasato has confirmed it. I'm definitely pregnant... again." she answered with equal hesitation, though a smile immediately bloomed over both their faces.
Their slight apprehension was understandable, after all things had not gone so well the last time. Roughly two and a half years ago now, Kitana's last pregnancy came to an abrupt and tragic end. Neither she nor Liu had seen it coming: The entire pregnancy had gone smoothly, even easily, up until that horrid morning. In the very beginning she'd hardly gotten sick or felt much fatigue, and as she got heavier she had been comfortable and totally relaxed.
And then one morning, just a week shy of her six month mark, she awoke with stomach pains more intense and sudden than what she felt with her firstborn child. Then just an hour later, her baby boy… her sweet, already beloved Tenchi, was dead. Dead before he even had a chance to live. The blow was devastating, understandably more for Kitana than Liu. It had been so traumatic that she went completely catatonic for nearly a month. It took Liu nearly losing his patience with her completely to bring her back; but even after that day, when he goaded her into fighting him and releasing all the turmoil she kept inside, the process was long and arduous. It took many more weeks, many more tears, many more angry lashings, before Kitana finally had her feet planted firmly beneath her again. All the while, Liu was patient and supportive, and Kitana felt guilty for putting him through the ringer throughout her prolonged period spent healing. After about three months, for the most part, his wife was herself again.
But neither were ready for another baby just yet.
In the back of their minds both knew that they still wanted another child, still desired for their sweet Mytaliah to have a sibling. But their experience and the fear it left was difficult to completely discard. So Kitana returned to her monthly doses of contraceptive herbs from the apothecary, keeping her body sterilized once she and Liu had recovered enough from the loss to resume their passionate couplings.
And so a year passed, and then another.
And then, on vacation in Ao Nanmei*, while watching as Liu and Mytaliah played in the surf, Kitana realized she was ready. The vague outline of another little figure dashing through the waves with them in her mind's eye made the sweet temptation too difficult to resist any longer. The memory of large eyes, tiny hands and feet, toothless little grins, and chubby, kissable cheeks began calling to her. And so she decided that it was time. Liu was ready too: For the past few months he had made very subtle hints at the prospect of having another child. Perfect timing. Later that night, after tucking their daughter into bed and assuring the guards were close by, Kitana took Liu down to one of their favorite haunts from their honeymoon almost nine years ago; a "cave" of sorts near the shore. She confided in him that she felt ready to try again to expand their family, and as she expected he was beyond ecstatic. They made love that night with remarkable passion, even for them: And Kitana made sure to abandon the preventative concoctions.
Like clockwork, around five weeks after she began to feel the tell-tale symptoms. Kitana was not one to come down with sickness very easily: So when she suddenly felt the urge to vomit upon smelling the fish making up her lunch, she knew immediately what was happening. As soon as she recovered from heaving her guts, she wrote a summons to the Court Physician. Being that it was still quite early, he waited another two weeks before making his visit, and during that time Kitana's waves of nausea continued, as well as the noticeable absence of her menstruation. When Hasato completed his examination, he basically told her what she already knew.
"Well, we had planned for this, so I'm definitely excited." Liu said.
"But nervous too… aren't you?" Kitana lowly asked. His smile fell somewhat, and he gave a single nod.
"Yes… but I'm sure we'll be alright this time."
"I hope so Liu." Kitana sighed, walking to him and wrapping her arms around his body. Liu reciprocated the embrace, kissing the crown of her head and nuzzling into her hair. She continued, "And I want to keep this quiet for as long as possible. I don't want the Court hassling us about ensuring that this pregnancy sticks. They were already pressing us about getting on with another one not long after we lost Tenchi."
"Yes I remember… insensitive bastards." Liu grumbled. The stiff, traditionally-minded members of the Assembly, thankfully fewer in number now than a few years earlier, eagerly coaxed the Prince and Princess to produce a second heir to the throne, a back-up future leader in case fate dealt a cruel hand to their daughter. Liu and Kitana were disgusted by how dispensable their children were to them; merely heirs to continue a bloodline and dynasty, not precious lives, people, that they loved and cherished. They paid them little mind though, and carried on with their personal lives as they had planned.
"Right, so if I get to the point when…" No, too negative. This time would be it. Kitana corrected, "until, I can no longer hide the fact that I am carrying this child, no one outside family will know."
"I think that's for the best Ai Ren."
And so Liu and Kitana went on with their plan.
Kitana did not even inform her mother until she was nearly ten weeks into the pregnancy. Naturally Sindel was excited for her daughter, but also worried just as she and her husband were. She also agreed it be best to keep the news secret as long as possible. Around the same time, Kitana and Liu also told Mytaliah, who also was wary but bursting to the brim with excitement.
The months passed, and Kitana's belly grew larger and rounder. By the time she was eight months along, she and Liu finally felt relaxed. The child she carried inside her was strong and very much alive, kicking and shifting about nearly constantly at this point; costing her sleep at night and generally making her feel uncomfortable. But she took the lack of rest and the aches of latter pregnancy in stride, especially given she did not reach it the previous time. Feeling secure in the fact that this child would be born as its older sister was, Kitana and Liu rushed to make the preparations they had held off. The nursery they furnished for Tenchi, closed off since his passing, was reopened and thoroughly cleaned. The Argusean Temple was contacted, and plans were made for the new baby's Presentation ceremony, a standard practice of Edenian royalty that had been done for Mytaliah. By then the entire kingdom was aware of the impending arrival, and all were excited.
Kitana went into labor two weeks earlier than predicted, but by this point there was nothing to fear. The ordeal was mercifully brief, much quicker than how her first delivery had gone (as the midwife told her it likely would), and she was so very focused on bringing her new child into the world that she barely cried out. Within just six hours after her contractions grew severe, on a crisp, cool night in the beginning of October, Liu and Kitana's second child was born healthy and strong.
And to make the moment all the sweeter, it was another little boy. Of course he could not replace the one they had lost, even though they never got to know him, but this new son did so much good for their wounded hearts.
"Hello there little one." Liu crooned to his newborn son, whom he held up before his eyes. "We've waited a long time for you…"
Beside him in their bed, slumped back and exhausted, was Kitana, watching her husband with their baby, tears glistening in her eyes and a smile upon her lips. She turned to her left and kissed Mytaliah's forehead, who was curled into her side sound asleep. The youngest Princess insisted she be present for the birth of her baby brother, and withstood the midwife and assistants bustling about, the distressing sight of her mother in obvious pain, and the general graphic reality that was childbirth. She fell in love with the tiny boy instantly, holding him for nearly an hour. As it grew later, the seven-year-old's exhaustion became too much to resist, and Liu tucked her into his and his wife's bed; content to let her sleep with them at least until the baby cried to be fed. Kitana pulled herself up a bit, peering over into her son's face.
"He has my hair… but I think he'll look a lot like you." she noted to Liu.
"He's wonderful either way." Liu murmured reverently. He turned his gaze to his wife. "So… what will we call him?"
Kitana thought a moment. "I named Mytaliah… you name him."
"Ai-yah, give me all the pressure why don't you?" Liu teased, both of them chuckling. He thought for a long moment, then gazed down at the baby and smiled. "He's so serene… and you were so calm and focused when you delivered him. I think Zian is perfect; Son of Peace."
"Son of Peace? Yes, that is perfect." Kitana lovingly said, planting a kiss on Liu's cheek.
The couple settled themselves down, setting Zian down between them as they caught a moment's rest. It wouldn't be long before he would wake them for his first night feeding, so they seized the opportunity for sleep while they could.
*Ao Nanmei - The name I gave to an island territory in Edenia that's a tourist location for rich folk. It translates roughly ( i'm talkin' "Bing-search" roughly) into "Blue Southern Ocean" in Japanese.
Upon reading through this series in its entirety thus far, it occurred to me that this installment of Tales revolves an awful lot around loss and grief. I don't know when or how I got so morose XP.
So I felt that I would write something happier to lighten the overall mood a bit, especially after that last chapter. And what better way than writing of when Liu and Kitana finally get their son?
Anyway, please review. And get ready because there's only one chapter left, and it'll be that lemon I was ORIGINALY putting up for chapter 7 (as I stated at the end of chpt 6).
