"Everyone good?" Eddard asked after dinner was done and the kitchen was clean.
Lyanna smiled. "Benjen's up playing video games, I will make sure he goes to bed after I get my homework done. Go talk to her." Lyanna said with a knowing smile.
They talked every night only building the connection that grew between them with their baby. He asked if that would be okay and she was more than happy to accommodate him she actually thought it was the sweetest thing ever. He did not know where they were at any time, he went to see her for doctors' appointments he stayed with her. Sometimes they slept together sometimes she was to tired and he just held her, and they fell asleep talking. Either way he had to leave in the morning to go back to the North and that part was killing him.
"Hey are the kids asleep?" He asked once he was in the privacy of his room with the door looked. He laid down on his bed staring at the ceiling wishing he was in her bed instead.
"Honey the kids have been asleep for hours its 12 here." Elia said she was sitting in her bed with her laptop in her lap looking at law firms.
"That's late do you want to go to bed?"
"No, I don't sleep well anymore, it's a pregnancy thing." Elia promised.
"Last month I thought-"
"I don't sleep well when you're not with me." She admitted softly with a blush she was happy he could not see.
He tried not to let that affect him as much as it did.
"How are the kids, how's baby?"
"The kids are good; I cannot pick a preschool for Rhaenys. Aegon is scared of Arianne after seeing her throw a really good temper tantrum Infront of him. And at 25 weeks our baby is the size or a rutabaga." She told him he smiled his heart smile soared when she said our baby.
"When is your next appointment?"
"Thursday."
"Benjen has a science fair Thursday and I promised him I would go and Lyanna actually has her own-"
"You cannot go to every appointment Ned it isn't practical." She reminded him softly.
"You go to all the appointments for the baby it's going to like you more." He said making her laugh he loved that laugh.
"If I have a leg up its because he is kicking my bladder." Elia teased.
"Is there anything I can do?" Eddard asked desperate to help.
"About our soccer star? No but if you would thank Robert for me, I would appreciate it." Elia said softly. Robert lead the case on Rhaegar and crushed him while keeping Lyanna and the children out of it as much as possible.
"I will." Eddard promised.
"I thought about baking him a cake but that's not good enough, and I'm not the best cook."
"That's not true I've had your food you're a great cook."
"You are sweet."
"I am honest."
"You are. You are a lot of good things." Elia mused.
It wasn't anything exactly she was being her usual charming sweet self. It wasn't really any of it but it was also all of it, who she was the good sweet smart classy person she was that brought him to the breaking point.
"I know I have no right to say this to you, but I miss you so much. I know we it's not ideal but everything else about meeting you has been unorthodox, and meeting you is the best thing to happen to me. I am only half focused on anything here because your always on my mind. I hate being apart from you, the baby, I miss Aegon and Rhaenys so much because those kids of yours are special. Rhaenys is becoming smarter than me by the minute and Aegon's little face when he calls me wolfie, not to mention that Benjen was campaigning pretty hard to get him to call him Ranger or how much he misses you because your probably the most adjusted adult Ben's ever met. But I also think we could do this together. I mean really together, not just trying to pass a baby back and forth but if there was one person I would want on my side facing two grumpy teenagers, two toddlers, and a surprise on the way it would be hands down you-"
"Eddard." She said mournfully.
"May I finish?" He asked because this was probably more then he had ever said but he also wasn't done.
"Of course." Elia said softly setting her laptop aside.
"It's not just that were a good team or that I'm drawn to you, but I think I could make you happy and you deserve to be Happy because you're a great person and when you smile everything is a little brighter, and I know I make you feel safe." Eddard said a little out of breath not exactly sure when he ever talked this much or how this heartfelt jumble seemed to just flow out of him, but it did, and he couldn't seem to stop it. He was surprised he didn't actually want to it felt so good to get it out.
"You do, you really really do, but it's so complicated Ned." Elia almost whimpered.
"I don't care, and Lyannna doesn't care either. I love the North and Winterfell, Lyanna and Benjen's lives are here, and the other day it snowed a really good packing snow and all I could think about was teaching Rhaenys and Aegon how to make a snow man. But I know its selfish to want you to pack up your life and to children to come here. But if I packed up my two children and came to you, would you let me?" Eddard asked and she was silent for a while.
"You would not do that to Lyanna and Benjen. That's not you." Elia reminded.
"I know but if I did."
"With open arms." Elia admitted she hung up without another word.
He waited for her call the next night, but she didn't call, she called him the next morning asking if he could pick them up from the airport.
He happily agreed he had a thousand questions, but she said she had a lot to do and kept it very brief. He did not get an explanation until he was at the airport watching the exit anxiously.
"It's easier this way." She insisted when she arrived, he took Rhaenys who was whining and put her up on his shoulders making her giddy. He took Aegon onto his hip so she wouldn't have to struggle with him. "Rhaenys hasn't started school yet and I don't want Benjen and Lyanna to have to go through adjusting to a knew place. Aegon and Rhaenys love the north already and I love you." Elia said she smiled as he kissed her.
"I love all of you." Eddard promised his hand going to her stomach. "Come on let's go home."
"We should at least live somewhere else at least at first." Elia said but taking his hand.
"I think we are past doing things in the right order Elia." Ned said making her giggle.
Eddard helped Rhaenys hang all her pictures of kittens and she squealed with delight when she saw the cat bed Eddard made in the shop for Baelarion who came with uncle Oberyn and the moving trucks. Eddard didn't much like cats, but he loved that little girl that's how he ended up spending a Saturday designing and constructing a wooden castle cat bed that he then painted pink.
Aegon to was thrilled with his big boy bed especially because Benjen helped make it look like a pirate ship. Eddard enjoyed making the bed which made him decide his next project would be hand carving two cribs.
Best of all Elia's bird picture was already hung in Eddards room when she arrived, he told her she could pick anything she wanted to change but she could not do it herself Eddard did not want her to lift a thing.
"I don't want to change anything." She told him cuddled against him that night.
"I want you to feel like this is your home, I want you to be happy here." Ned told her kissing her head.
"Thanks for the road salt Sherriff Stark." Sheriff Maege Mormont told Eddard slapping his shoulder happily, Bear island maybe small but it could be wild and the 5'2 woman before Ned was the first person to be able to keep it inline. Eddard nodded to her but instead of coming out into the lobby when she came in, he hung in his doorway.
"Of course, we had plenty." Eddard promised Jory and Alyn were loading it as they spoke, Ned would like to have helped but he didn't drift far from his office today.
It only took a little baby babble for her to figure it out.
"Why didn't you say you were on baby duty! I have been wanting to see your little ones!" Maege said pushing past Eddard into his office. He followed smiling at what he saw. Robb Banged his hand happily on the bouncer he was in the moment he saw his daddy; he had a head of dark curls and stark grey eyes and olive toned skin.
Jon on the other hand was sound asleep in his rocker. His skin was pale like Eddard's, he also had dark brown hair like Eddard and brown eyes like Lyanna. At first Lyanna wanted to keep her baby but she started having doubts though she was sure it was nothing seeing her baby would not fix. She was sure she could not keep him when he was born but she cried and cried because she didn't want him to be raised by strangers, for her to never know if he was ok, and she was sure her baby deserved to be a Stark.
Ned knew what to do immediately but he wasn't sure it was fair to ask of Elia, when she surprised him by asking how he felt about adopting Lyanna's baby. Ned asked Lyanna if she would rather, they raised her child as his aunt and uncle instead of mother and father but she was sure and demanded he be legally adopted.
Ned named him Jon after Jon Arryn who was sort of an adoptive father to him in many ways.
About three hours later Elia went into labor early which she had been very spooked about after having so much trouble with Aegon but Eddard had been so good and strong and said all the right things to calm her down as much as possible. After 4 long hours they had a second boy and he was perfectly healthy Elia was doing well too.
She decided to name him Robert for the man who made sure Rhaegar did not get out of his charges while not making the trial into a huge circus and dragging Rhaenys or Aegon into it in any way. They decided to call him Robb.
The nurses jokingly called them twins and it just sort of stuck because they were never happier than together.
"How old?"
"14 weeks." Eddard said simply they were so little and new, but he couldn't live without them.
"How's their mother?" Madge asked cooing at the babies.
"Elia is amazing." Eddard said he couldn't help but smile talking about them. "She joined a local firm as a partner because of her impressive resume she usually works from home unless something comes up and something did. Last minute daycare is hard to come by." Ned said walking over to his desk to check on Aegon who was sound asleep in Eddards chair, he was as much his son as Robb or Jon. "I don't know how she does everything she does, but I am happy to help as much as I can." Eddard admitted.
"You're a good man Eddard Stark. She is lucky to have someone who appreciates her." Maege tells him smirking as she never thought Ned would become a lovesick fool.
"How's your sister?" Maege asked softly.
Ned's smile never faltered. "Apparently she is having the time of her life in Dorne, I was nervous about her studying abroad but she's really happy and Elia's family have been amazing to her and she's going to Essos next and Elia's sister in law reached out to Elia and told her she would love to host Lyanna, Ashara is going to go with her for at least the first week, Ashara has really taken Lyanna under her wing. Lyanna never stops talking about her." Eddard said Elia had been so sure Ashara would be good for Lyanna. Ned hadn't been so sure, but Elia was totally right. Ashara had helped bring back his confident wild sister.
Elia came home through the kitchen door to clean babies in their playpen while Rhaenys drew at the table and Aegon was playing on the floor. And Eddard was cooking dinner with flowers on the counter next to him. Elia smiled putting down her brief case she went to kiss him on the check, but he turned in time to kiss her, his hand going into that wild hair he loves. "Councilor." Ned greeted.
"Sheriff, you made dinner." Elia mused.
"Mommy!" Rhaenys called running towards her, Aegon toddled after with open arms. She kissed both their heads hugging them.
"Dinners almost ready the babies have been feed and bathed." Ned told her she smiled up at him.
"Rhae will you go tell Ben supper is almost ready?" Elia asked. Rhaenys ran off and Aegon followed.
Elia turned back to Eddard. "Say that again it was very hot." Elia said making him laugh and kiss her again.
"I missed you." Eddard admitted making her smile.
"I saw you this morning and I thought I left quite the impression. " Elia told him with a smirk.
"I always want to be with you." Eddard admitted. Leaning back to grab the flowers. "These are for you."
"They are lovely but why?" Elia asked taking them.
"I took the children to the grocery story and I did not know how to apologize since you do that all the time. Where do you put them all I had one cart full of kids and one for food." Eddard said making her laugh. She put the flowers down going to check on Jon and Robb and kiss both their heads.
"I put the twins in my double sling, I like having them close to me and after sterilizing it I put Aegon in the baby seat thingy and Rhaenys job is to hold onto the side of the cart and then she gets a treat when we check out if she did a good job holding onto it."
"Did I tell you how lucky I am to have you and what an amazing mother you are." Ned asked with a smile.
"You are going to spoil me with Flattery Ned." Elia told him getting out the plates.
"No its your due." He assured as the kids came running down stairs Ben was getting taller every day he had Aegon in one arm and in his other hand his math test.
"Elia I got an A!" Benjen said.
"I knew you would! That's amazing Benjen!" Elia said happily.
"It's because of you." Benjen said as she hugged him.
"No, I just helped you study it was all in your head." Elia promised.
Ned got the Meatloaf out of the oven as Benjen helped Elia set the table.
"We eat cookie Daddy?" Aegon asked Ned pulling on his jeans to get his attention. Ned looked down at those big purple eyes.
"After dinner buddy." Ned said putting him in his highchair.
"Neddard did you see my pictures!" Rhaenys asked lifting on up. He smiled taking the picture and kissing her head as Elia put a plate of food in front of her and Aegon.
"It's beautiful sweetheart." Ned said.
Eddard and Elia just got sat down when the Jon started crying which made Robb start crying, they got up and each grabbed a baby use to holding a baby and eating.
Benjen smiled at them as he cut her meatloaf while patting Robb and Elia was humming to sooth Jon while pouring Ned a glass of water. He wasn't sure they even realized how in sync they were.
"I made more at school and they are all of my baby sister." Rhaenys announced.
Elia laughed and Ned only smiled.
"Don't enough people live in this house Rhae?" Elia asked her daughter.
"But the twins are both boys and Egg is a boy and I want a little baby sister! "Rhaenys whinned.
"It's a big house." Benjen reminded.
"It is." Eddard agreed with a small smile.
Finally finished it and in true me fashion I wanted to add just one more chapter so we could see there wedding as well as a little older Robb and Jon. I've probably dragged this out as much as possible. I go back and fourth on whether i'm happy with it but hey that is life right. Anywho, thanks for reading and let me know what you think and message me if you have a ship or prompt for Elia!