Months breezed through the county as the dust of Gisborne's past settled into the soil and faded memories of the locals. The attention to his family was brought on now by the coming of their second child; Lucy had finally come to her third trimester but it would never, in her opinion, be over soon enough. The gnawing ache of her spine drove the mother thoroughly crazy as she tried to not only keep up with her house duties, but also her one year old daughter. Libby was a master at standing freely, though her pace still rivaled a turtle, and she was thrilled to be discovering everything in her reach. She shifted her weight in her hips again, the bones feeling like they were grinding from the load of holding both her daughter and fetus, and eventually had to pass off Libby to a nanny. She didn't know what she would do without the staff that aided the noble family. She stepped out of the kitchen and collapsed on a chair in the den, her hands holding her desperate back. Lucy shut her eyes and did her best to repose until Gisborne returned early from his work in the city. True to his word, he arrived home before the sun began to sink.
"Hi there sweetheart." Guy kissed his wife's forehead, breaking her from the spell of in between consciousness where sleep fought to prevail.
"I didn't hear you come in," Lucy sat up from her slump, "how was your day?"
"As fun as it can be in a place like that; now where's my birthday girl?"
"I think Mary put her down for a nap."
"I can go get her, Sir." Mentioned one of their workers before she dashed up towards the nursery. Guy set his bouquet of flowers on a side table and kneeled before the fatigued mother, resting his head on her swelling stomach. Lucy's womb was not just painful to carry, it was uncomfortable to watch. A grimace constantly haunted her. With the birth of their first child she had not reached this size until Elizabeth demanded she was to be released; now only six months down her skin was groaning and the bubble of her belly was so large that it actually hung down and came back up to hips. The misery in her eyes saddened her husband.
"Are you doing alright?"
"Depends, can I take this out now?" She joked.
"It must be quite a strong, healthy boy."
"I don't know what it is, but I mean it, Guy, no more babies for a long time."
"Deal." He laughed.
"I had one of those tests done," Lucy brought up, "Those silly things all old women swear will tell you the gender."
"And?" Guy held such anticipation in his eyes that it crushed her a bit to purse her lips.
"She thinks it's a girl… I don't know. It's a bit of a faff if you ask me." She shrugged just as the squeals of unbridled excitement rang from the top of the staircase. Libby bounced down the steps, aided by her nanny Mary, and got as much momentum as possible to rush into Gisborne's arms. The man in leather twirled her in a circle with a great hug and even bigger smile; Lucy was easily caught up in their giggling and happiness. Elizabeth went into a chain of baby babble, her lips and tongue still too confused to form words, but her tones and rhythm let the parents know she was not far away.
"Happy birthday, princess!" Gisborne glowed when he handed her the bundled daffodils and creamy roses, which set the infant into another fit of ecstatic squeaking. She clumsily wrapped her hands around the flowers and waved them as if flaunting priceless gems; Libby was so proud of her new gift, almost as much as her parents were of her.
"I have her a cake all ready," Mary noted, "Would you like it before or after supper?"
"Before; all I want to do is eat anymore." Lucy joked and let the woman go grab the foodstuffs for the Gisbornes.
"My sweet Elizabeth," Guy hoisted the girl to sit on his lap on the wooden floor, her flowers in hand, "How are you already a year old? You aren't my baby girl anymore, are you?" The way he hugged and doted on his daughter brought overwhelming tears into hormonal Lucy's eyes. She knew he was a tender man by the way he honored and treated her, but something about the intimate moments between father and child truly sucked out her breath and replaced a warm calm into her. It was beautiful and in no way reminiscent of the same being that owned the dungeons of hell and horror in Nottingham. Guy, she knew, was so much more than that. Soon Mary was back with platters of sweet carrot cake prepared for them; Libby's was much smaller, with forks included. The mother doled it out and prayed a birthday wish for their daughter before letting the birthday girl gobble up the sweet treat with awkward pincer grabs and smashes of food onto her own face.
"I wish she wasn't so fond of feeding herself, I don't think any of it actually gets in there." Lucy smiled while smearing frosting from the baby's hairline. They laughed and played as a family for a good amount of time before the sky began to haze into sunset, the energy and glee of Guy's piggyback rides second to none. Eventually, though, the forty year old felt himself tiring and dramatic sprawled on the floor to be crawled upon by Libby.
"Do you think she's ready for her surprise yet?" Gisborne still managed to beam cheerily.
"I think so, sure. Say Libby," Lucy picked up her daughter and sat the precocious baby in her hands, "Do you wanna know what your big present is?" The infant smiled and bobbled her head in a nod for yes; a skill she had only mastered in the past few weeks, "Your Daddy and I got our very own doggy!" Little Elizabeth writhed in excitement when her father whistled in the aging bloodhound. It took no time for her to scramble to the floor and begin exploring the animal in all of his strange and furry glory. She was fascinated by the flopping ears the dog kept twitching away from her little hands.
"Not a bad idea, eh?" Guy kissed the crown of her head and went to sit beside his pregnant wife, who was bursting ecstatically at Libby's happiness.
"I can't believe the castle doesn't want him anymore."
"Too old, he can't keep up with chasing outlaws," he folded one leg on top of the other, "I'm starting to feel his pain."
"Oh, hush. You're not that old, Guy… only kind of."
"Only kind of? Thank you."
"Of course." She mocked with silliness. Gisborne wrapped both arms around Lucy's torso and held her closely to his chest, both of them spectating as their daughter passed her first milestone in life. The proud parents knew it would only be a matter of time before they shared this special moment with their next child, and Guy of Gisborne simply could not wait.
