This chapter will have a few cute scenes with Lance and Emmy and some emotional scenes with Arthur and Lance together as well.
The Sun and Moon of House Lyon 7
Lancelot groaned as a bright beam of sunlight cheerfully reminded him it was time to get his arse out of his comfortable bed. He winced and placed a hand over his eyes to block out the sunlight. He rolled slightly and grinned. His wife, of six months, was glowing beautifully in the morning light. He had heard a lot of women in his life talk about which time of the day they were most beautiful, and he could honestly say Emogen's best time of the day was dawn. Although, he added with a mischievous glint in his brown eyes, Emmy looks great during any part of the day!
He placed a hand on her, now very extended belly, and said in a soft voice, "Good Morning my child. How are you?"
He knew the other Knights would laugh at him if they ever saw him acting like this, but he couldn't help it. This was the child he and Emmy created together with their love. Even if those same Knights acted the same as he did in the privacy of their chambers, he knew they'd still laugh at him-Lancelot the Brave. He rubbed his wife's swelling stomach and gasped when he felt two kicks. He looked at his hands in amazement. Before he could do anything else, the kicking returned wherever he put his hands.
Just as he moved to wake Emogen, she groaned and said sleepily with her own hands rubbing soothingly over her stomach, "Shhhh, my children. Yes, I know you are hungry my loves, but you must not kick me so. I'll feed you in a few minutes."
Then her eyes closed again and she quickly returned to the lands of dreams. Lancelot couldn't believe his ears. CHILDREN! As in MORE THAN ONE! Lancelot grinned largely and placed two reverent kisses upon his wife's stomach.
He muttered, "My children, I love you."
As he moved to dress, Emogen rolled over and her eyes fluttered open. As she sat up, she placed a hand upon her very pregnant belly, and said sleepily, "Are you going to the Meeting Hall?"
Lancelot grinned largely at his wife and decided to not tell her that he knew her secret. He decided, that if she wanted to keep the secret of their children to herself, to surprise him, he'd let her have that. He moved to her side, placed a strong kiss upon her lips, and then placed another kiss upon her stomach. Emogen moaned in approval. He smirked and thought as he moved away, Her being pregnant makes her ultra sensitive to my touch. If I didn't have to go to that blasted meeting, I'd be tempted to stay in bed today!
He nodded and said, "Yes, we have some reports to go over and Tristran says that some of his operatives have discovered some strange people along our coasts. We're going to be discussing First Contact, defensive procedures, and offensive tactics. You should go eat, I'm sure our son," here he smirked and rubbed her stomach again and his grin widened as he felt two more strong kicks, "…is very hungry. Emmy, when did this start? Why didn't you tell me?"
Emmy blushed and said shyly, "It started about two weeks ago, and I wanted you to find out yourself. Isn't it amazing!"
Lancelot laughed, kissed her hotly again, and said happily, "Emmy, my maiden, it is glorious! That is our child! We created this little person, and I can tell he is going to be a very energetic child! I can't wait to meet him and have him in my arms!"
Emogen smiled at her husband, pushed him away softly, and said, "You'd best be going. It is already an hour after dawn."
Then she added teasingly, "You don't want to make Arthur mad at you, do you?"
Lancelot placed a kiss upon her crown of black curls and said, "I'm off then. You eat and then maybe go see Cordelia. Ever since Enys placed her on bed rest, she's been a bit…ah…chaotic. She could use the company I bet."
Emogen laughed and nodded.
Lancelot tugged at his emerald shirt, glanced at his reflection in his wardrobe mirror, and sighed. It's been more than half a year, since they have taken up their responsibilities as the Lords of Camelot and Briton, herself, and he still wasn't entirely comfortable in his clothes as Knight Commander and King Protectorate. He was dressed in a billowing emerald green wrap shirt and revealed a bit of his well defined pectorals and cuffed tightly around his wrists. Upon his heart, was a silver shield cut into four parts. The upper top left was emerald green, the top upper right was silver, the bottom left was silver, and the bottom right was emerald. In the center of the shield was a golden lion with emerald eyes over lapping a golden dragon with dark blue sapphire eyes-this showed his allegiance to the royal family of Camelot. Behind both animals were his twin swords colored steel and black. All his shirts and cloaks now had this symbol emblazed across the heart, and he liked them. But it still made him a bit uncomfortable wearing such things of finery. After all, he dressed commonly for nearly thirty years. Around his trim waist, or bone-y butt as Emogen would say, was a black leather belt. The belt buckle was silver and carved into a lion's head with its mouth open in a mean roar. The lion's eyes were emerald as well. His trousers were black leathers, well lived in even before he received them-it was a new style of dress in Briton apparently. The tanners beat the leathers until they felt softer than a newborn sheep's wool. His feet were encased in new shiny leather black boots with an emerald orb in the front upon his shins where the boots ended their reach. Upon his left ring finger was his most favorite of accessories-his wedding band. Upon his right pointer finger was a silver ring with an emerald orb on it too. Lastly, around his head was his silver crown.
Lancelot shook his head as he opened his chamber door. Emogen was in the Washing Chambers and he didn't want to interrupt her there. Emogen LIKED her baths. So much so, that even HE got kicked out when she wanted to be alone.
As the door squeaked open, he raised an eyebrow and looked up. His door was too new to be squeaking already and gasped.
SPLASH!
Lancelot shivered with cold and anger. He rushed to the Meeting Hall and roughly opened the door.
He blinked in shock as tiny yellow baby chicken feathers fluttered to the ground; Most of them sticking to him-of course!
"DAGONET!" he roared as he stomped into the Meeting Hall.
Immediately, all the Knights of the Legendary Round Table, all three of the Dukes-his father-n-law included, and all the Knights Pages', Gilly, Galahad's Page, Alec, his own Page, Ganis, Bors' Page, Jols, Arthur's Squire, Lucus, Gawain's Page, Liam, Dagonet's Page, Lavelle, Tristran's Page, Connor, Dean's Page, Angelus, Seamus' Page, and Dustin, Connor's Page laughed uproariously at him.
Lancelot ignored them all and stomped up to Dagonet, the Head of Finance. He stopped just before his friend, and raised a clenched fist. It was shaking at what they all thought was rage, he was sure.
Immediately all the laughing silenced and Arthur rose and walked quickly to his side.
"Now, now Lancelot, it was only joke." Tried Arthur.
Lancelot rolled his eyes and said, "No, it was only a joke with him splashing me constantly with water for the past month and a half. I've taken it all, because it was all in good fun, but splashing me with all this water is TIRESOME! And this is all in retaliation for a comment about him and Cina! A comment, might I remind you, I told him more than a month and a half ago!"
As Lancelot tried to clam himself, or as it appeared to the others, Bors asked cautiously, "So, what are you going to do?"
Lancelot eyed Dagonet and Bors evilly and said, "Nothing…but this!"
Then before them all, he jumped onto Dagonet, wrapped his arms and legs around the large man, and shouted out happily, "My baby just kicked me!"
He jumped off the shocked Giant and laughed even more hilariously then the others had at him.
Arthur got over the shock first and started to laugh with him. Slowly, but surely, the others got over their shocks and joined in-even Dagonet.
As Dagonet patted him on the back, he asked, "So, how did it feel? To feel your child, for the first time through Emmy's belly? I've been waiting for this, actually. I got to meet him a week ago during one of our walks. It was amazing, no? And you're not really mad about the joke, are you?"
Lancelot shook his head and replied, "Nah, after this morning's events, not even news of war could ruin my good mood! My son is strong! He kicked me many times this morning before I left!"
Bors laughed, patted him on the back too, and said, "So, now you know how I feel!"
Lancelot smiled at the older man and nodded.
Merlin stepped in, "Now, now, this is good news indeed. But, we really DO need to get this meeting started."
As they all sat down, Merlin added, "Congratulations Lancelot."
Lancelot couldn't stop grinning the entire time the meeting was in progress. When the meeting finally came to a close, he and Arthur remained in the room as the others left. Lancelot could tell there was something going on in Arthur's mind, and it didn't have anything to do with the Kingdom's defense. Lancelot sat himself back down in his dark oak throne-like chair with the engraving of a lion and crossed his arms. If this was like last time, when Arthur was having troubles determining his feelings for Cordelia and Guinevere, this might be a long discussion. (Reference to All Because of One Chapter 11 or 12)
Lancelot watched as his friend, dressed in his courtly clothes of a dark blue wrap shirt with tight cuffs, his golden shield with the castle of Camelot and his sword Excalibur in the center of the shield, black belt, golden dragon head belt buckle, and black trousers and boots paced up and down the back of the chambers.
The Meeting Hall or the Round Table Hall of Justice was very large and took up almost half of the second floor. He smirked and thought, This castle is the most unorthodox one in the entire world! Who would think that our chambers would be split into wings and be placed on the first floor with the kitchens for our personal use in the very center? The underground floor is nothing but storage and prison cells. The second floor is the Great Hall and the Meeting Hall with a few Chamber Pot (Bathrooms) rooms as well. The third floor is public baths for visiting dignitaries and the population of Camelot too. They can use the front way to the third floor, or use the secret passage that the entire populace knows of but would never tell a person not of Briton. The forth floor is the Infirmary or Enys, Ula, and Alma's personal world of Medicine. Then there are the Library and armory-for weapons of display, not use- on the fifth floor. The weapons used for war and training was in their own chambers or in the Training Hall located in a different building between the castle and the Inner Defense Wall. The next two floors have more than one hundred chambers for visiting dignitaries as well and their own privet washrooms. The last floor has storage and servant chambers. Arthur sure knows how to dismiss conformity!
He sighed and asked, "Arthur, what is it? You've been pacing for more than five minutes now AND you've had this topic on your mind during the entire meeting. Out with it!"
Arthur sighed, ran his hand through his hair, and said with a laugh as he sat back down beside him, "You know me to well, my friend."
Lancelot smirked and said pompously, "Of course! I'm the only one who could handle your broodiness and make you smile for a long while before Delia came along. And even then, she comes to me often on how to bring you out of whatever depression you've fallen into."
Arthur smiled at him and threw his head back and laughed. Lancelot smiled and said teasingly, "See, I did it again! Now, what is it Arthur, really?"
Arthur calmed down and said seriously, "Lance, in only three months my son will be born. I'm not sure I'm up to this?"
Lancelot raised and eyebrow and waited for his friend to continue, "I mean, will I be a good father? I never knew my father, and all my life I've readied myself for war and death. Sure I can be a good uncle, Bors' lot assured that, but can I truly be a good father to this innocent child I've created?"
Arthur stopped and raised scared eyes to him. Lancelot sighed, ran his own hand through his curly hair, and said, "Arthur, that's a question I've asked myself as well. The thing is, we won't know until we are fathers and hold our children for the first time. Tell me Arthur, who are you?"
Arthur blinked at him in confusion, but replied, "I am Arthur Pendragon Camelot of the House of Pendragon and Camelot, King of the Briton Isles, husband of Queen Cordelia Dragonheart Pendragon Camelot and father to the new heir which scares me to hell!"
Lancelot sighed and asked again, "Who are you?"
Arthur stared at him in exasperation and repeated, "I am Arthur Pendragon Camelot of the House of Pendragon and Camelot, King of the Briton Isles, husband of Queen Cordelia Dragonheart Pendragon Camelot and father to the new heir and Prince of Camelot and Briton!"
Lancelot pursed his lips and asked again in a thunderous voice, "WHO ARE YOU ARTORIUS!"
Arthur gasped and pushed back from him and replied after a few shocked moments of silence, "I am Lucius Artorius Castus ancestrally name after the first Artorius. I am the son of Uther Lucius Castus and Igraine of the Woads, Lady of Peace. I am Arthur, Commander of the Sarmatian Knights and Commander of Hadrian's Wall. I am Arthur."
Lancelot nodded with a proud smiled and asked more gently, "And, who is Arthur? Not Artorius, not King Arthur, but Arthur-just Arthur."
With comprehension in his clear green eyes and said strongly, "I am Arthur, a simple man. I am husband to Cordelia. I am a fair and just man. I can fight and bring peace. I am a friend to my Knights and my best friend is Lancelot. I am to be a father. I am Arthur."
Lancelot nodded and said back, "I am Lancelot, a simple man. I am husband to Emogen. I am just but opinionated. I can fight and bring peace. I am a friend with all the Knights and my best friend is Arthur. I am to be a father. I am Lancelot."
He stopped and looked to his friend and ended, "We are who we are Arthur. It doesn't matter what our titles or our ranks are. We are who we are. When it all comes down to it, we are all men and we all have the same thoughts and fears. We are both going to be fathers within weeks of each other. We will learn how to be good, no GREAT, fathers together just like we always have, right?"
Arthur smiled and nodded.
Lancelot stood up, stretched, and said, "Well, I don't know about you, but al that talking about Gaul Rebels made me anxious to fight. How about you and I go and practice a bit?"
He froze and added a bit sheepishly, "After Emmy's appointment."
Arthur laughed, clapped him on the shoulder, and said seriously but emotionally as they walked towards the stairs, "Lancelot, will you grant me the honor of becoming my child's godfather?"
Lancelot froze on the first step and stared at his king.
Arthur met his gaze evenly and continued, "You are my best friend and I'd like for no one else to raise my child with Delia if something should happen to me. I would trust no one else with this. Will you?"
Lancelot swallowed the lump within his throat, and answered in a croak, "Only if you become my child's as well."
Arthur smiled back and the two hugged. It was heartfelt and both felt more connected to one another than ever. It didn't even matter that there were servants in the same area as them, to them; this was so emotionally filling for them both.
They pulled back and Arthur said, "How about we get to Enys' Healing Chambers, eh? I dare say that Delia and Emmy are both there and I don't think having them both mad at us is a good thing."
Lancelot barked out a tearful laugh and nodded.
As the entered the Senior Healer's Chambers, Lancelot thought happily as Emogen smiled beautifully at him I am truly the luckiest man alive!
Okay, so how was it? I hope the bonding of Lance and Arthur wasn't too bad for those of you who don't like to see men bonding? But I thought this was a good place to put this in since the birthing of the children is almost upon them. I thought it was a good time to have Lance and Arthur doubt themselves like every father-to-be.
