Lilly was relieved to see that her husband wasn't ignoring their child as she had feared. On the contrary, he seemed quite attached to her. She couldn't remember ever seeing him so happy as he was when he had their little daughter in his arms. It had been a little over a month since Lilly had given birth to a baby girl. There was an ancient tradition that the mother be allowed to name the daughters, while the father named the sons, and so Lilly chose to give her daughter the name Willow. It was a beautiful name for a beautiful girl.
She was so happy to have the baby out of her body. For the last month of pregnancy, she had been confined to bed for the most part, unable to move without help because she was so huge and heavy. While her body was gradually starting to shrink back to its normal size, she still had a lot of weight to lose before she was completely back to normal, and until that happened, she was determined not to leave the tower. Although most of her family had seen her while pregnant, her friends hadn't, and she didn't want them to. Besides, it was customary for new mothers to stay out of public for a period of time until they had fully recovered from the birth.
Her mother had helped her greatly during the pregnancy, and had prepared her for many things, but there was one thing that no one could have ever prepared her for, and that was the pain of childbirth. It was, without a doubt, the most painful thing she had ever experienced. She was deeply relieved that it was over, but wasn't exactly sure if she wanted to go through the same thing ever again. Deep down, she knew she most likely would have to eventually. She needed to give Mordred an heir, a male heir, but she tried not to think of that for the time being. For the time being, her husband seemed content with their daughter, and so was she.
So far, Willow was a wonderful baby. She didn't cry terribly much, only when she was hungry or needed to be changed, which was a miracle. Lilly knew that her mother hadn't been so fortunate with both herself and Geoffrey, her older brother, when they were babies. Apparently they had both been particularly fussy. It made sense, seeing as Lilly was still fussy to a certain degree.
As soon as Lilly had finished fastening her corset, which she had recently started wearing again in an effort to get her lovely figure back, she stepped out of the bedroom and walked down the hall and into the nursery. She loved how it had been decorated. The room felt so cozy and comforting, unlike the rest of the tower, which was usually dark and depressing. There wasn't a lot of furniture in the room, only the pieces of furniture that were necessary. In the corner of the room was a wooden rocking chair, and against the north wall was a table for changing Willow, and then there was the beautiful white silk bassinet.
Leaning over the side of the bassinet, Lilly reached in and picked up the little bundle swaddled in a soft wool blanket, holding her close. "Hello there, my little angel," she cooed to the baby. "Mommy loves you so much, and even though he doesn't like showing it when anyone else is around, I know your Daddy loves you too."
Baby Willow gurgled in reply.
Lilly smiled as she placed a gentle kiss on her daughter's forehead. At least one of her dreams had come true. Even though she didn't have the overly affectionate husband that she had always wanted, she was pleased to at least have a daughter to cuddle and coo. It had added new meaning to her life, and also taught her a lesson or two. As a mother, she could no longer think solely of herself, and that was something that she was still struggling to come to terms with. There were still moments when she still thought like the spoiled girl who wanted everything, but she was trying to be less selfish. That's all she could really do.
Mordred silently tiptoed down the tower halls, making as little noise as possible to ensure that no one heard him. There was a good reason for this … well, more like two … You see, he had promised his wife to actually sit and have lunch with her for once, but a meeting had been called all of a sudden, requiring his attendance. Some of the nobles wanted a wall to be built around the village to ensure that nothing attacked them and their families. Apparently someone had spotted an ogre nearby and were now terrified. Mordred rolled his eyes. If only they could remember that they had magic, and therefore were capable of defeating the ogre for themselves.
The second reason he was sneaking around was because he didn't want anyone to notice as he quickly snuck over to check up on his little dark princess, for that was what she was to him. Initially he had intended to remain as distant from his child as possible, fearing that she might just get in the way of his plans, or do something to sabotage it. However, the moment he laid eyes on his daughter, he knew that would be impossible for him to do.
Approaching the nursery door, he stopped for a moment to listen and see if there was anyone else inside. When he failed to hear anything, he pushed open the door and slipped inside. He wasn't at all surprised to find Willow fast asleep. Willow Darkthrop. It wasn't exactly the name he would have chosen for his little princess of darkness, oh no, he would have chosen something much more regal and powerful sounding, but he accepted that it wasn't his choice to choose. Lilly was the one who would give birth to his children, and so he figured she deserved the right to at least name one of them herself. He would be able to name his son ... If he ever had a son… He wasn't exactly sure how he felt about having a son. Sons often tried to steal their father's power … just like he had …
Not wishing to disturb his sleeping daughter, he merely stood and watched her. She was beautiful, just like her mother. The resemblance she bore to Lilly was uncanny. The only visible attributes she had inherited from him were his golden eyes. He had been told that most babies eyes were blue at birth, and then changed as they got older, but Willow was different. She had been born with golden eyes, just like him.
He was proud to have passed his infamous eyes down to her. People would fear and respect her for her eyes. She would never be in danger, but not just because of her eyes. She was powerful. He could sense it already. Not only did she possess the gift of magic, but it was dark magic. That was why he called her his princess of darkness. He was so proud to have created her. He could tell that she was destined for greatness.
"Sleep well, my dear," he whispered. "May you dream of the wonderfully chaotic world I plan to create for the two of us."
And with that, he slowly retreated out of the room and continued on his way, sneaking out of the tower and off to the meeting.