Rasetsunyo looped her arms under her heavy belly, trying to ease some of the weight off her thighs. Silent servants paced back and forth with her in her private garden, which connected directly to her rooms. As soon as she'd come 'home' to Houtu Castle, she'd requested her own accomodations. The only time she ever really had to see her husband was during meals and during sex, which was thankfully short and to the point. And, also thankfully, it had been remarkably easy to establish herself as a true queen and not some tart sitting next to Gyumaoh with a crown. It seemed his subjects were thrilled to have someone with such a different temperment than their lord.

Gyumaoh had grudgingly given some control to her as well in the past years. She'd taken the task of managing the Castle away from Gyokumen Koushu (who, to be honest, was not the most organized person in the world) and within three months, Houtu Castle was thriving and doing very well, despite the constant wars their lord was always campaigning. She was the only one who didn't seem to mind the wars too much. Oh, it wasn't that she supported the needless bloodshed, but it kept Gyumaoh occupied and left her as free as she could be to try and fix SOME of the damaged he'd caused with his people.

The only thing that really hampered her efforts to maintain peace inside Houtu Castle and stem off any riots was standing slightly behind her. Gyokumen Koushu was very clever at not openly trying to thwart her. It annoyed her no end that every time she turned around, the concubine was there, waiting with that smile. That smirking, cat-with-cream smile that she was coming to loathe. What did a common whore have to be so smug about, she thought miserably, wincing at the sharp pain stabbing through her stomach. This child hurt so much when he kicked! She knew it had to be a boy. Only a son could be this much trouble for his mother.

"Queen Rasetsunyo, is anything wrong?" Koushu questioned, her tone giving the title an almost mocking ring.

"I'm fine," she replied as calmly as she could. She continued to pace, hoping walking would ease some of the aching. Gods, it was so HOT! She'd been married in the summer, gotten pregnant a couple years after that, and here she was going through something uncomfortable in the summer again! Her timing was atrocious.

"MY QUEEN! WHAT IS THAT?"

"Huh?" Rasetsunyo stopped her pacing at the frightened squeal coming from her servant. The other girls began to jump around hysterically, hands waving as they backed away from... a puddle of water? Puzzled, Rasetsunyo noticed the front of her skirt was wet and realized the puddle had come from her. Oh... gods, NO! "My water broke. One of you, get the midwife at once. The rest of you, make yourselves busy or get out. I'm about to give birth." She was amazed at how very in controled she sounded. Inside her head, she was near panicking. Her first child... her first delivery... was she going to live, was the baby? No one had explained any of this to her. She had no idea what to do, what was going to happen. The pain came back and this time it was so sharp and insistant that she hissed, wincing and clutching her stomach. Muscles pushed and contracted on their own, trying to force the child out.

"Merciful Goddess!" Rasetsunyo managed somehow to get herself to her own bed inside, glaring at the girls running around and screaming. The only one who wasn't was Koushu. She was standing just inside the doors leading to the gardens, the little smile still on her lips. "I don't need a spectator, Koushu! Get out!"

"My Lord Gyumaoh instructed me to be here as a witness," she purred back, tapping her red nails against her arm.

Rasetsunyo wanted desperately to reply to that, but unfortunately a new wave of pain swept over her, so powerful she actually groaned out loud. "Where the HELL is the midwife? All of you, OUT!"

"But, my queen-,"

"You need us here-,"

"What don't you understand about this?" she snarled, glaring at all the women hovering around her. "You're making too much racket and not doing a damn thing to help me, so leave! GET OUT, NOW!" She knew her magic was close to breaking with her temper and quickly focused her attention elsewhere. Like to delivering this baby.

Some of the girls burst into tears before rushing from the room, others left, muttering about 'pregnant hormones', while the few that remained took deep breaths and calmed themselves down. Rasetsunyo dropped her head back against the pillows, hands on her stomach and trying to take deep breaths of her own through the near constant pain. This was murder. This was hell. No one should go through labor, not ever. Now more than ever she truly hoped she was having a son so that she wouldn't be forced to EVER do this again.

"You lazy little sluts! You, get behind the queen's back and help her sit up. You, get some hot water in here quickly. You, grab a blanket and get ready to receive the heir to Gyumaoh's throne. And you, stand by if I need anything." The old midwife was a very welcomed sight. Rasetsunyo opened her eyes as a girl wedged herself between the headboard of the bed and herself. She took the slim hands offered to her, squeezing a little as the pain came back.

"My queen, look at me," the midwife said gently, slapping lightly at Rasetsunyo's cheeks to get her attention. She did as she was asked, breathing ragged and uneven as another pain quickly followed the first. "Your contractions, how are they?"

"Oh, just wonderful! I wish I could remain pregnant like this all the time," she snapped back before digging her claws into the girl's skin, screaming as one tore right through her hips, thighs and lower back. Good gods, this was awful!

"The sarcasm, while understandable, is not appreciated at this moment," the midwife continued sternly. "My queen, how fast are they coming?"

"Fast enough! One finishes and another is immediately there."

"Then you're doing extremely well for your first child. Now is NOT the time to be stretched on your backs, girls! Where's that water at?" The midwife continued to bark orders left and right as she prepared Rasetsunyo for the birth of her child.

Rasetsunyo screamed, her claws finally breaking through the girl's hands and drawing blood. The girl whimpered but remained steady. Her legs were spread open, knees up and skirt tucked up somewhere around her waist. The pain was nonstop, burning through her as her body fought to get the little brat inside her out. Yes, it was a brat now. As the pain increased, it dropped from being 'her baby' to 'the child' and was now 'the brat'. She opened her eyes... and met a cool turquoise gaze from across the room, laughing at her. The... bitch!

"Get her out of here," she gasped out.

The midwife popped her head up from somewhere between her legs. "Who, me?" she demanded.

"No... her! I don't want her in here, get her out!"

The midwife followed her line of sight and saw she was refering to the concubine in the door way. "You heard her, leave!"

"I was instructed to stay by-,"

"I don't care if Buddha himself told you to stay, I'M telling you to leave! Queen Rasetsunyo," she lightly emphasized the title, "is the one giving birth here, and she doesn't want you in the room."

Koushu looked ready to scratch the old woman up. Pouting, eyes promising some kind of revenge, she stalked back into the gardens, purposely not leaving the queen's rooms but obeying none the less.

Rasetsunyo finally relaxed and gave herself over to the full amount of torture being inflicted upon her. She didn't want that woman anywhere near her child! The next few hours passed in a blur of her screaming, pain ripping her apart, the midwife shouting at her to push (push WHAT?), and the girls standing by nervously. After one long burst of pain, Rasetsunyo collapsed back against the girl behind her, panting. "Gods... can I die yet?" she choked out. The pain was beginning to fade a bit, coming only in sharp little jolts that would make her groan. Never again, not even if Gyumaoh suddenly turned into the most charming, loving husband in the world. He had his whore and his hands and that was all he was getting! And she must be dying, she surmised. That was a long amount of pain, she'd seen a lot of fluid soaked cloths being taken away, some of them blood spattered. There was no way...

A sharp crack of sound and then a baby was screaming it's head off, wailing miserably. Rasetsunyo opened her eyes at that sound, pushing away the girl dabbing her face and neck with a cool cloth. "Where is he?" she demanded.

"Almost done, my queen," the midwife said, her back turned and blocking Rasetsunyo's view of her child. "Just checking to make sure everything is where it should be. He certainly got lucky and looks more like you than his father!"

He... she'd had her son. Gyumaoh had an heir. The relief that she would never have to sleep with him again made her finally break down in tears. Thank the gods! She'd done her part, she'd given him his precious son. And Gyumaoh could return to Koushu's thighs from now on. Still crying and laughing at the same time (but not entirely for the same reason everyone else thought she was), Rasetsunyo held her arms out for the boy who instantly quieted when he was in her arms, giving her the most serious glare from his indigo eyes. Almost blue, but not quite, just like her mother's. What little hair was on his head was a dark brown color that would fade soon to her own auburn. She smiled at that, tracing his face gently before touching his tiny hands. He was going to be a firemage, just like her. The auburn hair carried that particular talent. They stared at each other for a long time before he grabbed one of her fingers and held on, the tiny claws not even enough to break her skin a little.

"Gyumaoh is still away, my queen, and won't be back for a few weeks. Until then, unfortunately, the boy will not have a name, so-,"

"His name is Kougaiji," she stated firmly, smiling as the boy continued to give her a long, almost thoughtful, stare.

The girls around her gasped, whispering to themselves. It was traditional for the fathers to name their sons, and 'Kougaiji' wasn't exactly a name given to royal princes. It didn't have the traditional 'oh' at the end, like her husband's and brother's names did. But she didn't care. Her son wasn't going to grow up like his father, not if she had any say about it. The first years of childhood were the most impressionable, which is why she'd elected to keep him first. And, she had visitation rights after she handed him over to his father as well. No, Kougaiji would be brought up differently than his father wanted. Gyumaoh was going to be furious, but she could handle that.

"Queen Rasetsunyo... perhaps it would be best to wait for Lord Gyumaoh's return?" the midwife ventured to ask.

Glaring at the old woman, Rasetsunyo snarled, "He wasn't in this room with me, therefore he doesn't name the child. I gave birth to him, and his name is Kougaiji. If Lord Gyumaoh is upset about this, he can take it up with me!"

Sighing, the midwife bowed and wisely stopped arguing. "Very well, my queen. Prince Kougaiji appears to be very healthy and strong. He'll need to be fed soon, though. Girls, help me clean this up. Let's leave them alone for a bit."

Rasetsunyo smiled again as she curled onto her side, carefully tucking the infant in against her. This was her son. Her Kougaiji. No matter what Gyumaoh tried to do with the boy, she'd make certain he knew he was loved by at least one parent. She closed her eyes and began to drift off to sleep, arms wrapped around the boy protectively. She knew Koushu was still in the gardens and didn't trust her not to try and injure her son if she thought the mother was asleep.