The carriage ride had been anything but comfortable, Maka in a constant state of repositioning as the weeks of traveling wore on her. Liz didn't seem to mind half as much, eyes glued to the scenery as it passed, happy comments popping from her lips at different intervals. Honestly, those small interjections were the only thing keeping Maka sane and the more hours spent in that little box the more she was sure of her offer. The last of her nerves were fraying when the carriage came to its final stop, Soul exuberantly opening the carriage door.

"That couldn't have taken any longer," Maka groaned as she urged her aching body forward and into Soul's arms, leaving her weight to him.

Soul helped her down from the step, giving her solid ground to stand on. "And the day's just starting. There's already a crowd of people at the gate."

"Maybe I should have stayed in hiding," Maka grumbled before patting his hands to release.

He let her go, turning back to the carriage to do the same for Liz, who thankfully only took his hand rather than throwing her waist into his hands. "Liz, welcome home."

"Same to you," Liz laughed but was still eagerly looking around him to scan the yard.

"She's already there," Soul laughed as he motioned towards the side entrance to the kitchens.

No sooner had he done so than Liz was off, running towards the cheers that started from the girls as soon as she came into view. Maka turned her head, lifting her eyes to Black Star still sitting high on his horse. "We made it. You can get down now."

"Is that an order?" Black Star grumbled.

She followed his line of sight to the girls before bringing a smile back to him. "Yes, a princess level order. Get down. Say hello."

He huffed as he dropped out of the saddle, producing a cloud of dust that continued to swirl as he stomped along.

"What was that?" Soul nodded after Black Star.

"That certain someone," Maka hummed happily.

Soul shook his head with a low laugh, "Don't test him. You should know better."

She put a sweet pout to her lip before blinking innocently. "I'm not doing anything."

He snorted a laugh before taking her hand and starting to pull her across the yard. The soft murmurings starting all over again as they approached, the girls seeming to still be trying to restrain themselves but as Maka let go of Soul and started the act of taking each one by the hand, whispering still ecstatic greetings, that slowly warmed them to the liveliness of an actual celebration. Soul let his eyes fall to Black Star, watching the smile trying to start on his lips but failing as he moved shoulder to shoulder with him. "I think Maka ordered you to say hello."

Black Star sucked his teeth. "I have recruits to check on. Left those idiots alone for too long."

"She's not going to let it go," Soul chuckled.

He shot a glare back Soul's way before starting to hurry off.

"Black Star," Maka called sharply.

"The captain's in a hurry," Liz laughed.

"Is he alright?" Tsubaki offered softly to Maka, letting a hand touch her arm.

"I think he's a little overworked at this point," she sighed before letting pleased eyes fall on Tsubaki. "He did too much to save me, after all."

Soul expected the twinge in his chest as she said it but her eyes instantly came over her shoulder to him, a brilliant smile doing nothing but clearing a path straight to his heart. "Picked the right man as the captain of the guard."

"Alright, not too many compliments," Maka giggled. "Not to mention we've already wasted enough time. Will you take me up to your mother?"

His eyebrows started to rise but found no change in the resolve on her face so they froze. "Let me take you to our room and then-"

"I need to walk," it was almost a desperate pleading.

Soul cringed slightly as the girls started to giggle and he sent a glare their way, noticing that none of them bothered to cover the laughs or look away.

"Well? Escort your wife," Kim prodded before crumbling back into giggles.

"Get a move on, prince," Patty chimed.

"This I didn't miss," Soul grumbled as he took hold of Maka's elbow, starting to guide her into the stairwell. I wonder if Mother knows, someone on the parapets must have seen me, word must have spread and now… He looked to her and found the opposite playing on her face, no worry but a calm determination that started the heat in his cheeks. The focus on her had to be short-lived as the bustle started around them as the castle came alive with the news. The steward found them as soon as they came even within a whiff of the main hall and they were instantly pressed into the cavernous expanse where Maka had made her promise all those months ago.

This time as the Queen stood on the dais it wasn't frozen anger but a rumbling rush, as she lifted her skirt to make it a quick trip to the center of the floor. Soul almost could have laughed at the lack of propriety, an utterly uncharacteristic attempt from his mother, until the tears started to spring from her eyes, her hands dropping her skirt to reach for both of them. It was a gentle touch to Soul's shoulder and a hesitant one to Maka's hand. "You're alright," came weak words trembling off her lips.

"Fine, thank you, your majesty, and…" Maka took the hand from hers and placed it on the swell of her stomach, moving the fingers until they settled on one of her babies' many flutters, "so are your grandchildren. Twins well on their way."

"Oh, two?" After the flutter in her voice almost became one in her knees, Soul quickly moved from Maka's elbow to his mothers, holding her until she turned a tearful face into his chest.

"It's alright, Mother," Soul murmured, "but there's a lot to discuss after we get settled."

"Yes, we'll need the priestess here right away," the Queen instantly seemed to perk, clearing the tears from her face. "And your father, he's in one of the council meetings right now, but-"

"As if that would keep me from my son," the King's jovial voice bled over the Queen's insistence and in an instant, he was at Soul's side.

While Maka had tried to bolster herself the entire ride, and even the last few steps into the hall, the sight brought a keen pain in her gut, churning envy settling in her heart to watch his father and mother fuss over him for a moment. She couldn't fool herself that it was the perfect picture of parental love but it was more than a missing mother and a father that she could only just allow to return. As her eyes almost began to swim she felt the hands in hers again and raised her eyes to the King, a smile that almost reminded her of Soul's gracing his face.

"And you, welcome home." His hands were trembling in hers and it was the last encouragement she needed for the tears to fall. "I'm sorry that this has proven to be such a tumultuous time for you but be sure that you were deeply missed."

A bitter part of her wanted to disbelieve it but as Soul moved to her side, a sweet hand coming to her cheek to bring her eyes to his, all of it drifted away.

"She's home now," he murmured as his thumb rubbed across her jaw. "And it's thanks to Black Star and Stein that she's safe and well. I think it proves our trust in them even further."

"Your son's too modest," Maka shot back at him. "Even if the captain brought me home there was enough fighting for your son to partake in as well. You should be proud of him."

"Maka," Soul wanted to argue but the goofy grin on his face, the pull of his cheeks, kept the words trapped on his tongue.

"We are proud of him," his mother insisted, bringing back at least a ghost of her usual haughty air. "But you shouldn't be forgotten in this, just as the King said. You've had your own struggle."

"From which I'd like to rest now if you don't mind," Maka tried to make that murmur small, not actually tired but exhausted by the spotlight.

"Rest for now," the Queen came back with hard insistence, "but we'll have to surely have a feast tonight, something grand to wish you home and tomorrow, the priestess-"

"Mira will have to come tomorrow," Soul finished for his mother, the same hard tone.

"Yes," Maka nodded, even though she wanted it to be a sigh. Oh, of course, more poking and prodding, exactly what I want.

"I'll arrange it." The Queen spent one more moment carefully caressing Maka's stomach before taking the King's hands away from her, freeing Maka to take a step back.

She didn't hear the last few soft words that Soul offered his parents before he started leading her back out of the hall, the castle still overly alive around them. "That went well," Maka breathed out.

"It was… weird," Soul clenched his jaw for a moment and felt her eyes on him, her fingers moving to lace in his. "They… seemed more alive, I guess. More real than I've seen them in a while, that I can remember, honestly. Does that make sense?" For some reason, the idea of looking at her face pained him and he settled with squeezing her hand.

"I wish it didn't," forlornly brushed from her lips.

"It's not a bad thing," he replied with a short laugh. "It's better. This is better, and now that you're home…" He stopped her right on the threshold of their door, stopping her hand before it reached the latch. "I told you I had something for you, so close your eyes."

"Soul…" Her eyebrows furrowed as if she were going to object but her lids closed just the same.

He eased open the door and let his hands plant on her shoulders, guiding her soft steps into the room and to the foot of the bed. His arms slipped around her, clutching her tightly across the chest to his. "Open your eyes," he murmured softly into her ear.

All of Soul's practice had paid off and not a single stroke had gone awry on the beautiful bassinets. Regardless of his victory with the carving, Soul had challenged himself with paints as well, adding even more depth to each blossom with vibrant color. He wasn't any good with fabric unfortunately but had employed Tsubaki with making the lace and blankets that should accompany any baby's crib and she certainly hadn't disappointed.

Maka's hands quickly grasped his arms as all breath left her lungs.

"Stein built them," Soul started slowly. "I can't take credit for that but the design, the paint, that's what I did when I missed you the most, and as you can probably guess that was a lot of the time. Tsubaki made the blankets and she's done some outfits too. Can't say we're entirely ready but I'm pretty sure Mother will take care of that now that she's up to date on the pregnancy."

"You…" Maka shook her head, loosing some of the tears from her eyes and letting them patter across his arms. "You did this?"

"And…" He stepped back and pivoted, twirling her with him by keeping her steady against his chest. "While I want to say I was thinking of the babies, it was mostly of you. So…" Across from the cribs was where he had set up the canvas, purposefully set lower to the ground with the intention to be visible to little eyes. Soul would never see it as his finest work, he was honestly more proud of the cribs, but it was still beautiful - a breathtaking painting of the two of them, designed from the vivid memory of the first time he had seen her with the hairpin. "That moment I thought about a lot since, well, if you couldn't already guess, it was the moment I remembered how much I loved you when we were kids and realized how all of that love never left me, especially not when I could have you in my arms again."

Maka pressed her lips into his arm, letting it hide away the sound of her sob.

"It wasn't meant to make you cry," he chided.

"Liar," she sniffled before letting out a weak laugh. "Your design the entire time was to turn me into a sobbing puddle."

He started to chuckle, glad that he heard it catch and her soft laugh came clear to him as she turned in his arms. "Do you like it?"

"The cribs are absolutely beautiful," she murmured against his neck as her arms clutched desperately around his shoulders. "The painting… sometimes you're embarrassing, you know that?"

He snorted, "Embarrassing?"

"You make yourself look lovesick, like I'm some paramour-"

"You aren't," he urged back as he sunk his hand into her hair so her head tilted to meet his eyes. "But I am." Her cheeks flushed a pink that made his heart tremble against his ribs. "And I couldn't give less of a damn if that's supposed to be embarrassing." With that, he brought his lips to hers, his arm moving to hook around her waist and bend her into him. "Just tell me what else you need, what else I can do because I want you to be happy now, to have some kind of fucking happiness."

Maka sealed that bitter sounding end with another kiss as her fingers touched softly at his neck to his cheeks. "You should tell the guards outside to make sure we're not disturbed."

"Really?"

She plucked the taste of his hopefulness off his lips. "That tonight you promised was more than four weeks ago. Not that I was desperately counting, but…"

"But you feel alright? Honestly, you're-"

"I feel like the only way you can finish that sentence is huge," she said with a huff.

He grimaced slightly, "Very pregnant."

She sighed sharply as she pressed her forehead against his shoulder. "Yes, and probably not that far from giving birth which means more time without your touch and… I am getting to the point where I may not be too proud to beg."

"Beg?" His face flushed a particular shade of scarlet that he swore had been reserved for those long dead moments of teenage embarrassment.

When she lifted her head he couldn't help but catch the way her lip trembled as her breath betrayed her, barely moving the words off her lips. "I need you." There was something in those jade eyes that made the words evolve, blossoming into something more than he had asked for that night on the parapet. These were the kinds of looks that murdered jealousy, that for a devastatingly beautiful moment made him utterly sure that she had never looked that way at anyone else before and never would again. She sealed it with the tenderest kiss, a barely-there brush of her lips against his.

Completely red in the face, Soul gently plucked her hands from around him, leaving them floating between them as he turned and marched towards the door. It was a terse, hoarse order in the hall before he was slamming the door shut and rushing back to her with such force she was almost sure he was going to knock her over. He did end up pushing her back a few steps, his arm scooping her waist again to bend her as he forced his lips to hers without any of the tenuous hesitations that had laced his mind moments ago.

He was starving, tasting her lips and only wanting more, trying to find it as he kissed along her jaw to her neck. His only sustenance was that look and the glow that came from it, that openness peeling off her with each kiss like he was drinking raindrops off her skin. They stumbled towards the bed, Soul pausing only as the back of her knees tested the side. He dejectedly detached from her as he sat her on the bed, taking a just barely rational moment to stare at the setup and then back down to her.

Soul slipped onto the bed, sitting against the headboard as he spread his legs. "Come here, like in the bath." Maka scooted back, pleased to find him grabbing on and pulling her as soon as she was close enough. His hands were desperate to take her, fingers instantly working to rake her dress up her thighs. "Comfortable?" he murmured next to her ear before latching his lips to the lobe.

Maka hummed out sweetly, her hands covering his just for a moment as they crumpled her skirt in her lap. "I love you."

"I haven't even done anything yet," he chuckled against her skin, sending an electric thrill down her spine.

"Just that you would," she murmured as she turned her head towards him.

Soul caught the corner of her lips before bringing his hand up under her chin, forcing her the last bit of the way so he could hit dead-center. "Not would, want to. Fucking absolutely dying to." While he held her neck, his other hand hitched under her skirt and drew a dangerous line along the inside of her thigh. "So make sure to tell me everything feels alright."

"Better than alright," she heaved out with a jittery breath.

He grunted, nipping at her lips again as he played along the sensitive skin, driving her to starts and stops that fed the grin on his face. "Say it again, Maka."

"Say what?" Her legs were already trembling as her feet shifted against the sheets.

"The closest thing to begging," he murmured as he trailed kisses along her jaw.

"I need you, Soul." It finished with a moan as he took his cue, ending the teasing as he ran his fingers along her lower lips, parting them to make her squirm for more.

"When you say it like that, I believe it," he whispered huskily, punctuated with a nip to her neck.

Her fingers dug into his hair, holding him tightly in place so she could capture his lips again. "I mean it." He continued to try to pull the words from her very lips, that hand on her neck keeping her close enough to get swallowed. His fingers dipped into her, one then two before she bucked her hips slightly, groaning into his kiss. It tasted so sweet that he plunged again, urging more soft cries passed from her to him. He stole each one with a building fervor, his fingers moving to that tried and true motion but with an aching slowness that made her practically whine, "Soul, please."

Soul hushed her with his lips but followed the almost order, easing into tight, swift circles that sent her gasping against his mouth. "Once more," it came out as a tight whisper clenched between his teeth, a little dose of shame coming with his own insecure wants.

Instead of the chiding that he deserved, or any other loss of her glow, a delicate smile parted her lips, just enough to suck in another trembling breath. "I need you, always you." The ending hitched, and he slipped his hand over her mouth, catching the frantic cry behind his fingers.

He waited for the sound to end before he uncovered her lips so he could feather across them again. "Feeling good?"

"Perfect," she breathed. "Are you…?"

"I don't know what I'm going to do," he sighed as he nuzzled into her neck. "I can't imagine how we used to go at it being anything close to comfortable."

She snorted a laugh, "Not with the belly between us."

The cogs in his brain were working so hard she could practically hear the grind, especially with the added grumble from his chest as he traced his teeth lightly against her skin. "Before… being on your side, that wasn't bad?"

"Best position for me, honestly," she sighed. "Just give me enough pillows and I'm fine."

Soul was careful, moving her just as much as she was moving herself, his hands aiding in whatever cushion tucking was necessary. "Maka, again, if anything feels wrong-"

"I'll say," she huffed as she pulled up her skirt before settling back into her nest. "You better be careful or I'm going to start to think you believe I'm delicate."

"Oh, no, never," he chuckled as he pressed his chest to her back, letting his voice rumble next to her ear. "Just prefer everything about this is something you like."

"I haven't had a complaint yet." She tossed a grin over her shoulder as he dove her fingers into his hair, pulling his lips to meet hers. "You need to take off your pants."

He snorted a laugh as he negotiated out of them, letting her keep her fingers running through his hair. As he pressed closer he grabbed at her hip, steadying her against him. A trembling breath drifted across her shoulder as he tested the angle of his hips, trying to pull her into the right but still gentle position. Always slow and careful, this moment fit Soul like a glove, and regardless of the tenderness, Maka let out a groan that had him frozen and clutching to keep her in place.

"More," she moaned.

"Oh, fucking thank you because," he sighed achingly against her shoulder again, "I missed this. Oh, fuck, did I miss you." His fingers dug into her hip, pulling her against him in time with his disciplined strokes. Every last inch of his mind was screaming to be careful, considerate, and he was intently listening to each utterance from her mouth, watching her lips form sweet curls at the edge with each sigh. That started to unravel him, that utterly perfect smile on her face, that freeing look that reminded him of all the little times she'd stolen pieces of his heart.

As her fingers tightened in his hair he pressed a sharp groan into the nape of her neck, his hips grinding until the spark shot from his middle to his toes, leaving every last nerve along the way lit. They were already intertwined but he somehow pulled her closer, his hand snaking up from her hip to wrap across her chest. An exhilarating twitter of a laugh left her lips before she let it trickle out to a sigh.

"What is it?" he murmured as he nuzzled into her neck.

"Just, it's foolish, isn't it?" Her head shook against the pillow and he let his lips linger against the movement of her skin as he waited for the key to this lock. "The worrying. Marie said so too, even though she teased that there was an old wive's tale about this and labor."

"What?" Soul was up on his elbow in an instant.

"Oh, there's King Worry-wort." Maka collapsed into giggles again, getting a pure glare from him.

"Maka, you feel fine?" he urged again, that brow so furrowed she was sure he'd give himself premature wrinkles.

She nodded slowly with a few hard blinks. "Yes, entirely fine. Actually… happy, Soul. I'm very happy."

The creases softened as his lips just brushed over hers. "Stay that way."