The master had not approved of Cersei's desire to see her child, saying she was too weak from the past hours, but she would have none of it. Her child, her precious child… she wanted to see the creature she had given birth to. She had heard the babe cry when the midwives had taken it to wash the blood away. No, not it. He. She knew he was a boy, she had always known, even before he was born.

Now, as she looked at that little frame cradled up against her chest, she could not help but feeling a rush of love for this creature. He was so tiny, searching for her warmth, and she gladly provided. Instinctively, she held the babe in her arms, calming his soft whimpers with gentle hushes. She was tired, and felt a pulsing pain between her legs, but none of it mattered now. She was a mother, this child in her arms was her son, and she knew she would not love anyone the way she did this babe. This boy would seat the Iron Throne… in her mind, the child had her summer green eyes, and Jaime's smile.

She had not expected the door to open, and even less her husband to come in, yet she supposed he wanted to see his first child. To her surprise, he was not drunk, but walked steadily towards her and the bed, his eyes fixed on the child. Without a word, Robert sat on the edge of the bed, but did not dare to touch the infant. It was as if he did not know what to say.

"You can hold it." Cersei broke the silence, half hoping that Robert would refuse the offer she was forced to make. It should be Jaime here, and it should be his the child in my arms. Yet, the King nodded, and took the babe from Cersei's arms. He was surprisingly gentle for a man with his strength, and incredibly careful not to hurt the new-born. For a long moment, he was silent, admiring the new life in his arms.

"He is strong." She had never seen Robert looking so happy as the moment when he turned his eyes back to her, a smile lighting up his features.

"Yes. He is." Cersei reached to brush the babe's forehead with her fingers, as gentle as she could, but allowed Robert to have the child for a bit longer.

"Like me." The man laughed at his own joke, and Cersei rested her head on the cushions behind her with a deep sigh. The gesture brought her husband's attention back to her, his thick eyebrows knitting together in a frown.

"Are you… fine?" The question took Cersei off guard. He had never even pretended to care for her, and she knew that he did not love her. He had been happy when she had told him that she was with child, but that had been all, and every man would have had the same reaction when given the news. Of course he wants to make sure I am fine. I have to give him more sons. The thought was bitter in her mind.

"Yes. I am strong too." She managed a tired smile, and he returned it, the worry faded away from his features. Gently, he laid the babe back in her mother's arms, allowing Cersei to hold him. The mother took the child back in her lap as if she had been afraid he would never come back to her.

"I know." She could not decide if he was sincere, or just trying to be supportive, but decided that there was no point in knowing. She turned her head towards the babe, adjusting the blanket around his tiny body to make sure he would stay warm.

"I wanted to name him Jon." Robert admitted after some moments of silence, his big hands sinking a few inches in the mattress as he placed his weight on it. The whole bed creaked at every movement from the King.

"But?" Cersei asked, glad that something had made her husband change his mind about the name of the child. She was not going to have her son with a northern name, though she had feared that Robert would want to make the Prince Jon Arryn's namesake.

"But my Hand of the King is too bloody modest, and asked I would choose some other name." The king explained with a half annoyed scoff. Cersei, however, could not help but be pleased that the Lord of the Eyrie had made Robert changed his mind.

"So what name did you choose?" She asked, knowing that he would never ask for her opinion on the matter. A child belonged to his father, not to his mother, especially a Prince. Especially the rightful heir, the first trueborn son.

"What name would you like?" For the third time in a few minutes, Cersei was surprised by her own husband. Was he really seeking her advice, asking her opinion? He must have noticed the questioning look on her features, for he explained himself better.

"Well… we did it together, didn't we?" Robert might have not been the best man with words, but she still somehow appreciated the effort he did. It was possibly the first thing he did she approved of since the day they had married. She took a moment to think about the answer.

Jaime. I want to name him Jaime. She bit the inside of her cheek, looking down at the child in her arms. No, it would not do. Robert would not approve of it. And it would be too painful.

"Lyonel." She suggested after long seconds of silence.

"Lyonel." Robert repeated, as if he was testing the name on his tongue. "Lyonel Baratheon." It was a name the both of them could approve of. A Baratheon name, with the sound of the lion's roar in it, perfect for the child born of the union of the two families.

She did not know for how long they stayed like this, in perfect silence, the both of them looking at the child now sleeping in his mother's arms. He looked so peaceful, and Cersei could not help but feeling more at ease as well. She had given her husband an heir, now. A boy… everyone would love her for it, praise her for doing her duty as a wife. She dared to ask herself if this child would make her husband love her as well, if such a thing was possible. Without Jaime by her side, she felt lonely, and she was not used to it. Robert Baratheon was not what he wanted, but in the end she was not what he wanted as well. What a great pair we are. We both lost the one we loved, and now we are stuck with each other.

When the midwives came to take the child to his crib, Cersei had a hard time letting go of her son. When she did, all the tiredness from giving birth came back to her, like a wave sucking in her strength. Robert waited outside when the handmaidens washed the sweat and the blood from her body, and prepared her for sleep. Yet, that night he slipped under the covers with her, in the same bed, and did not even try to touch her. She guessed that was as much kindness as she could expect from him. At least he did not spend the night with some whore. Usually she did not care if he shared her bed or not but, that night, she was glad for the warmth under the sheets.

"You don't have to stay." She told him in the dark of the room they shared. When he turned to look at her, there was a puzzled expression on his features. "I can't… please you." She explained, for a moment ashamed of the words she said. Her body could not have handled her husband's urges, and the thought of using her mouth as she had done during the last months disgusted her.

She almost felt offended when he laughed at her words, that sound that was half a roar and half a laugh. Apparently he found her words incredibly amusing.

"I did not ask you to spread your legs." He had the gift of speaking clearly, that much she was going to give him. "Now sleep." The smile she gave him was a bit embarrassed, but the sleep she found soon afterwards was deep and without dreams.

When she woke the next morning, he was still there, still asleep. It would have been so easy to suffocate him with a cushion, or slit his throat with a knife. Then, she would be free to run away, to wherever Jaime was. She pondered the possibility for a moment, before pushing it away.

This man was her son's father, whether she loved him or not. She was not going to make her son grow up without a father, on the run because his mother had killed her husband and would be beheaded for it.

The only thing she could do now was giving this man a chance to be a father. He may not love me, but he will love our son. It is all that matters.

Author notes:

This chapter was not beta-ed, because my beta had personal problems and could not do it. I hope you will all understand, and I apologize if some spelling or grammar errors slipped!

To answer the question I got about Jaime - the answer is no, he's not in the Kingsguard anymore. In canon Robert pardoned him and Jaime kept his place in the Kingsguard, but in this story things took a different turn! He still feels some sort of duty, towards Elia and the children, but he's not a Kingsguard anymore.

Now to the chapter! It is quite of a crucial chapter, a turning point in Cersei and Robert's relationship as you can see. I strived to be as in character as I could, and I wanted to let you know that I am not going to make Robert the "villain" of the story, or bash him. As I see him, he's not a bad man, though he's an unfit ruler, and that is what I was trying to go for with this chapter. Let me know what you think, if you feel like it, and catch you next week for the new update!