A/N: Thank you as always to all of you who reviewed my story. -hands cookies to everyone- This one-shot is a companion piece to Elinor's pregnancy with Merida. I'm not too familiar with the whole experience of being pregnant (much less being pregnant in medieval times...), so I did my best. Please let me know how I did...I appreciate all constructive reviews. :)
Ten years passed. Ten long, tiring years with no result. Both Fergus and Elinor had aged an enormous amount. A streak of silver shot through Elinor's rich chestnut colored hair, and permanent stress had etched lines of worry into the corners of her eyes. There was no reason to think that this new year would be any different from the past years, but Elinor could not help but feel hopeful.
A new year always brought new changes, as Elinor said, and for the first time, she was right about it: she was, after all these long, barren years, once more with child. The feeling almost felt foreign to Elinor; the nausea, headaches, swollen feet, and loss of appetite. But she relished the thought of finally given another chance to provide a male heir. Certainly, Fergus was even more doting upon her. Though she outwardly scoffed at his over-protective behavior, she glowed with happiness inside.
Elinor sat alone in the room, stitching on her latest tapestry project. As she lovingly stitched scarlet thread into the the figurine Merida's hair, she reminisced about the day her darling daughter was born.
Merida was born a fighter; she came out with a bellowing cry. Fergus had teased Elinor that Merida was as strong as any boy, because when Merida was born, all the midwives had thought a prince had been born. Elinor loved her little lass from the moment she set eyes upon the fiery-haired princess. It did not matter to her that Merida was not the longed-for prince, because she was Elinor's little girl, her precious princess.
However, there was still the implied expectation that Elinor would bear a son soon after. When the prince did not come, she withdrew from Court and berated herself for the failure. It took years of coaxing by Fergus to get Elinor to come out from her shell. During this time, Elinor focused on making Merida into the perfect princess. When Merida was young, she loved to spend time with Elinor and Fergus and would spend many evenings playing by Elinor's feet as Elinor herself hummed their lullaby and stitched tapestry after tapestry.
A light knock sounded on her closed door, and Elinor looked up to see her husband smiling at her. She motioned for him to enter and rose, with a little difficulty, due to her very pregnant state. Fergus hurried in, looking worried.
"Elinor, darling lass, ye shouldn't be standing! Here, let me-"
"Och, Fergus, honestly, I'm fine. But...thank you." Elinor sank back down and breathed deeply, furrowing her brow slightly when she felt strong kicks against her abdomen. Fergus stroked her face gently.
"How is our wee babby today, Eli? Givin' ye more trouble?"
Elinor sighed. This pregnancy was much harder than the one she had with Merida. Her slender hands reached out to Fergus and their clasped hands rested against her swollen midsection. "Et's fine, and quite feisty. Et should be strong..." Elinor's voice trailed away. She blinked back into focus and smiled at Fergus kneeling at her feet. "Certainly, I'm much larger..." Elinor blushed. It was true: her gowns had to be remodeled almost every other week, as she had grown immensely in girth.
Fergus chortled and rested his chin on her knees. "But I can still wrap my arms around ye, Eli, so dinna worry about that. If ye do one day get as plump as Maudie..."
"Heaven help us all, I'm nearly there..." Elinor muttered.
"I'd still love ye with all mah heart. Because ye are carrying the future of Scotland, and our precious son or daughter."
"Should be any moment now," Elinor replied dryly. She patted his head, which was laying in her lap.
Suddenly, the tapestry slid between her fingers and she let out a sharp moan. Fergus opened his eyes in alarm.
"Wot is it, Eli? Are ye...?" Elinor gritted her teeth and attempted to smile reassuringly at her husband.
"I think I had better lie down, dear. Will ye help me, please?" Fergus had just lifted her into his arms when Elinor felt the familiar sharp pain start from her lower back. She clenched her fists and let out a ragged breath.
"Elinor?" Fergus gently lay Elinor down and smoothed the covers over her swelling belly. "Is it...?"
"Time? Yes." Fergus grew frantic and started tearing around the room, not even sure of what he was looking for. Elinor managed a small eye-roll before she waved her hand regally for him to come closer. "Fergus, calm down. The babby isnae coming this very second. Just...go f-find Maudie." Elinor drew in a sharp breath and looked at Fergus through hazy eyes. When she saw that he was standing as though frozen, she cried out: "Now would be a good time to go, Fergus!" Fergus gulped and nodded, barreling out the door. Elinor trembled from the immense pain and made sure she could not hear his heavy tread before she let out a piercing scream.
Hours later, with her hair plastered to her beet-red face, Elinor felt the contractions coming closer together, and she heard Maudie's squeaky, but reassuring voice telling her to push. Sweat poured down her face and she bore down on the pain. Fergus watched from a safe distance, and winced every time Elinor convulsed. Maudie was surprisingly calm, the lass, he noted. Elinor's eyes drifted shut and her entire body grew limp.
"My lady, you must not give up! Only a few more..." Maudie gripped Elinor's hands and peered anxiously into Elinor's face.
"Et...hurts...Maudie...so much." Maudie gently wiped Elinor's flushed face.
"Almost there, my lady."
The sudden, shrill cry of the newborn caught all of the people in the room by surprise. Maudie caught the babe and examined it, letting out a shriek of glee. "Et's a wee lad, a prince, my lord and lady!"
Fergus gaped for a moment and then hurried forward. He felt tears come to his eyes when he saw the little baby nestle close to Elinor. Elinor smiled dreamily and gently stroked the baby's cheek with her finger. "Oh Elinor, I'm so proud of ye! A fine, strapping lad to join our beautiful family! I'm so proud..."
Elinor felt immensely relieved; finally, they had their longed-for heir. But before she could answer Fergus, the pain returned, and she arched her back, letting out a little shriek. Fergus gave her a confused look before it hit him: there's was another baby on the way!
However, within twenty minutes, DunBroch had not only two new heirs, but three. Princes Hamish and Harris were born within seconds of each other, joining their elder brother Hubert, and as soon as they had made their entrance into the world, Elinor fainted. Her skin was pale and clammy. Fergus let out a bellow of fear, which seemed to rouse Elinor.
She gestured for Maudie to bring the triplets closer to her, and tiredly, she gazed into each little baby's eyes, which were each pair of them as blue as her husband's. "Th-th-three babbys!" Maudie was nearly incoherent in her dazed state, and for once, Fergus was too shocked and happy himself to tell her to calm down.
"Three handsome lads, Eli! I...can't believe it!" Elinor smiled with her eyes closed and she let out a long sigh of contentment and fatigue.
"We did it, Fergus...after so long...Well then, et was no wonder I was so large...three boys...oh dear."
Fergus laughed and marveled at the three miracles before them. "Och, I canna wait tae see old Dingwall's face! He thinks his precious laddie is so special, wait til he sees our boys, Elinor! He'll be reeking like haggis! HA! And I'll teach our boys how to sword fight, how to shoot arrows, and...and..."
Elinor chuckled quietly. "All of that can wait, Fergus. Heavens, your sons are merely hours old, and yer already planning out their futures!" Fergus fell to his knees, and the floors seemed to quake. Elinor slowly opened her eyes and gave him a glowing smile. She touched his knuckles lightly. "Be careful, Fergus, ye dinna want to risk injuring yer knees as well..."
Maudie had left the room to give the King and Queen their privacy, and to tell Merida that she had three new brothers. Merida was already bouncing on her heels and as soon as she heard Maudie calling her, she ran out and left Maudie flustered but grinning in her wake, struggling to catch up.
Merida tumbled into her parents' room and gasped with delight to see the three little bundles lying close to her mother. "Mum!" She whispered excitedly. Fergus motioned her closer and Merida nearly squealed when she saw that the triplets had precisely her coloring- flame-red hair and dark blue eyes.
"My darlin' Merida," Elinor murmured. "Meet Hubert, Harris, and Hamish."
"I'm a sister!" Merida shrieked in a whisper. She gathered her three little baby brothers close and planted a loving kiss on each forehead. Elinor smiled proudly.
"Aye, Merida, that ye are."
At that moment, Fergus thought his heart would burst from happiness. He had a beautiful queen, a warrior princess, and three sons. He was truly the luckiest man in the whole of Scotland.