Chapter 3
2 months later...
It had now been 2 months since the wedding, but Anne hadn't felt right for the last few weeks. She had been more tired than usual, and had been hit with rather severe bouts of morning sickness. She thought she knew why, and had even told one of her ladies, who suggested that she see the castle midwife. She did so that very day, and her suspicions were confirmed. She was, in fact, 2 months pregnant with her and Caspians' first child. Now, all she had to do was figure out to tell him this news.
Later on that night...
They were both laying in bed. He was on his back, with his left arm wrapped around her, and she was snuggled in close to him, with her left hand resting on his chest. She looked up at him.
"So, my love, how was your day?" she asked.
"It was horrible. Nothing seemed to go right at all."
She turned away from him briefly, and smiled to herself. Now was the perfect time to tell him.
"You know, I heard something today that I think will really cheer you up. Hmm, let me see if I can remember. Oh yes, I remember now. It was something about a visitor that will be here in 7 months."
"7 months? Why seven...?" He stopped mid sentence, finally realizing exactly what she was saying. He shot up in bed, a huge smile on his face, and looked over at her. By now, she was sitting up, as well.
"Really? We're going to have a baby?"
"Yes." she said. She took one of his hands, placed it on her still barely noticeable belly, and then laid one of her hands on top of it. "We are. I'm going to to be a mommy, and you're going to be a daddy."
They both looked back up at each other, which was when she noticed tears in his eyes.
"Caspian, darling, are you all right?" she asked.
"Yes, my love. It's just...it all just sunk in. I mean, knowing that that's our baby in there, and realizing that I really am going to be a father."
She couldn't help but choke up a little as he said that. "I know, it is hard to believe that that's our little prince or princess in there." They smiled at each other, before both leaned in for a kiss.
"So, did all this cheer you up?"
"You know, it did. It really did. In fact, compared to this, everything else that happened today means nothing."
They kissed one more time before reaching over, turning out the lights, and snuggling up close to one another. Yes, this day may not have started out so great, at least for him. By the end of the day, though, well, you couldn't have found two happier people even if you had tried.
7 months later...
Anne, as usual, woke up first. That was the easy part. Getting up and getting out of bed, especially this far along into the pregnancy, was a completely different story. She had, by now, managed to sit up in bed, and had just started trying to push herself up off of it, when Caspian woke up. Seeing what she was trying to do, and that she was failing miserably at it, he got up and walked around to her side of the bed.
"Need some help, darling?" he asked, holding his right hand out to help her up, while at the same time covering his mouth, so as to control the laughter that was just aching to escape. He should have known better. In these last few weeks, her mood swings had increased, so much so that any little thing could set her off. So, when she noticed that he was trying to stifle a laugh, she pretty much flew off the handle.
"Don't even think about laughing. This is soooo not funny. I CAN'T DO ANYTHING!"
No sooner had those words left her mouth, than that urge to laugh, which had been so strong just a few short minutes before, vanished completely. Then, in the blink of an eye, she was back to her old self again, just as nice and gentle as she always had been. She moved over closer to him, and wrapped her left arm around his waist.
"I'm sorry I got so upset, but I'm really tired of not being able to do anything. I just want this baby to come out already."
Caspian wrapped his right arm around her waist, pulled her close to him, and kissed the top of her head.
"It's all right. I completely understand. I know you want the baby to come out now. I do, too, but he or she will come when they're ready, and only when they're ready."
"I know. I just hope it's sooner rather than later."
He let out a small little chuckle, before heading off to get ready for the day.
About 15 minutes later...
"All right now, darling. I have a lot of work to do, so I'll be in my study most of the day. If anything happens," He laid his hand gently on her belly. "just have one of your ladies come get me, and I'll come running."
"Don't worry, Caspian. I will." They both leaned in for a quick kiss, before he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. No sooner had he left, though, than all her ladies-in-waiting walked in, all of them very much looking forward to spending some quality time with their Queen. "This is going to be a wonderful day. I just know it." she thought to herself. Little did she know, though, that it was about to get even better.
About 10 minutes later, she decided that it was about time to get dressed, so a couple of her ladies helped her up, and over to her closet. No sooner had she laid out what she was going to wear that day, than a wave of pain shot through her, causing her to hunch over and hold her stomach.
"What is it, my Queen?" one of them asked.
"It's nothing-really." Anne replied, after it had passed. However, about 10 minutes later, it happened again. This time, though, it felt wet after wards. She looked down, and sure enough, there was a big wet patch on the front of her nightgown.
She looked up at the two ladies with her. "Okay now, I don't want to alarm you, but I think I just went into labor. I want you both to help me back into the bedroom, and then one of you go and alert the King."
"Yes, your highness." They did as they were told, and then one of them dashed out of the room. About 5 minutes later, Caspian ran in, and over to where she stood.
"One of your ladies just informed me that you're in labor. Is it really time?" She looked down at the wet patch, and his eyes couldn't help but follow.
"Okay, it really is. Here, let's get you all cleaned up." He went into her closet and grabbed a clean nightgown, before coming back out and helping her change into it. He then, although it wasn't easy, managed to lift her up into his arms, and set her down carefully on their bed. Next, he turned to her ladies. "Quick, one of you go and fetch the midwife."
"Yes, your majesty." one of them answered, rushing out the door. While they waited, he leaned in close to her, and gently held her hand.
"Are you all right, my love?"
She was just about to say yes when the pain struck up again, this time much stronger. She grabbed his hand, and squeezed so hard he thought it would fall off. He wasn't about to let her know that, or how much it hurt, considering the amount of pain she was in at the moment. As soon as the pain subsided, he leaned in, pushed the hair out of her face, and kissed her forehead. "It's okay, darling. Everything's going to be okay."
It was about that time that the one lady returned, followed by the castle midwife and her 4 nurses.
The midwife looked up at Caspian. "My King, as much as I know you want to be with the Queen during this time, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to step out. We'll need all the room we can get. I promise we will let you know when the baby has arrived."
He nodded, resignedly. "I'll be back soon, my love. I promise." He took Anne's hand in both of his, and kissed it, before walking out of the room. He headed down to his private study, where he fully intended to wait, no matter how long, until he heard any news about his family. He knew this wasn't going to be easy, but very quickly realized that it would all be completely worth it in the end.
Meanwhile, back in the royal bed chamber:
"Ahhhh, O God, this hurts!" Anne screamed, as yet another contraction ripped through her body.
Just then, the midwife, who had been checking her again, looked back up and smiled. "Good news. It looks like it's time to start pushing."
"Finally." she breathed. Unfortunately, as soon as that word left her mouth, another contraction swept over her, this time bringing on a sudden urge to push.
"Okay, my Queen. Give one good, strong push."
Anne didn't need to be told twice, and pushed with all her might, falling back against the pillows as soon as it had ended.
"All right, your Majesty. Just one more push, and you'll have your baby."
She looked at the midwife, nodded, and took a deep breath. About 30 seconds later, another contraction washed over her, and with it yet another overwhelming desire to push. She did so with all her remaining strength, letting out one last scream. Then, just when she was about to yell out that she couldn't do it anymore, she heard the sound she had been waiting to hear for the last 9 months and 7 hours-the crying of a baby.
Back in the study, Caspian was going crazy, waiting and worrying. Five hours had passed, then five and half, then 6 and a half. Then finally, just when he thought he couldn't wait one more second, he heard a welcome knock at the door and shot up like a rocket.
"Come in."
The door opened, and one of Anne's ladies-in-waiting walked in. She looked up at him, with a big smile on her face. "My King, your wife is asking for you. Come with me."
They walked down the hall, before arriving at the entrance to the royal bed chamber. She opened the door and let him in, before walking back out and closing the door behind her. He walked in a little further, and first saw the midwife, who was just finishing cleaning everything up. She looked up at him, smiled, and nodded.
"Congratulations, your Majesty." She and her nurses walked quietly out of the room, deciding to leave the new family alone.
After watching them all leave, he turned back around, and saw perhaps the most beautiful sight he had ever seen in his life so far. His wife, his Queen, was sitting up in bed, looking completely wiped out, but with a smile on her face that stretched from ear to ear, and looking down at the little bundle in her arms. Then, as if she could somehow sense that he had come into the room, she looked up, met his gaze and smiled, before turning her attention back to their child.
She motioned for him to come over. He did, sitting down gingerly on the edge of the bed. He looked down in absolute awe and amazement at this little person, so content in his wife's arms. He was absolutely thrilled to see that while the baby had been blessed with dark brown hair, like both of them, and had his eyes, that there, overall, was more of a resemblance to Anne. After a few moments of silence, she looked back up at him, still smiling, and had tears in her eyes.
"Congratulations, daddy." She leaned forward a bit, and carefully placed the baby in his arms. "I'd like you to meet your son...our son."
As he looked down at this little baby in his arms, his son, Caspian couldn't help but start crying as well.
"Along with the day I married you, this is one of the happiest days of my life. I love you so much, my darling."
"I know. I love you, too." They both leaned in and kissed each other, before leaning in and kissing their son on the forehead.
"So, what are we going to name our little Prince?" Caspian asked, smiling down at his son, and playing with his tiny little fingers.
"About that. I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I've decided that since I went through all the hard work of actually giving birth to him, that it would only be right if his daddy was the one who got to name him."
"Well, that's very sweet of you, my love. I would be deeply honored to do so. I've been doing a lot of thinking as well, and I think I've come up with one that we'll both like. What do you think about Rilian?"
"Rilian," Anne whispered to herself, before then saying it out loud. "Prince Rilian. I love it. It's the perfect name for our perfect little Prince." They both leaned in for the another kiss, and as they were parting, the baby starting to fuss.
"It looks like someone wants their mommy again." Caspian smiled, and kissed his son on the forehead, before gently placing him back in Anne's arms.
"Welcome to Narnia, little Rilian. One day, this will all be yours." She took his tiny little hand in hers and smiled, as she again kissed him on the forehead.
About 30 minutes later, one of the Queen's ladies decided to check in on the new family. She quietly opened the door leading to the royal bed chamber, and looked inside. What she saw just about melted her heart.
Queen Anne was sitting up in bed, asleep, holding their new sleeping prince, Rilian in her arms, and King Caspian was laying on the bed to the left of her. His head was resting on her shoulder, his right arm was wrapped around behind her, and his left arm was draped gently around the baby. He, too, was sound asleep.
It really was a beautiful sight to behold, she thought, as she walked back out and quietly closed the door behind her. It was definitely one that, no matter how much time passed, she knew she would never forget.