Meeting of the Prince
"What shall we name him; apparently my sister left this honour to us."
"How about Alric?" he asked thinking of a suitable name for his new son.
He thought that the name of Alric would be a good name for his son. It was a true name of the house of Rahl. It would put a stop to any rumours that might come up about how the baby came to the palace and not being his and his wife's.
"Alric Rahl," she cooed to her new son. She smiled and looked over at Darken."Good thinking to name him after one of your earliest ancestors. No one would name his son after any important figures of his family if it wasn't his legitimate son."
"That is exactly why I think that his name is a good one."
~*~*~
Rahl decided to keep his wife and new son hidden in their quarters for a few days to make a birth seem possible. The baby was still young enough that it would all work out in the end. He made appearances at dinner and in court but his wife stayed neatly stashed away in her room taking care of the little prince. Her maids and his guards had all been paid off to go along with whatever was told to the public. He really hoped that no one would question his word when it came down to it; it would save him a lot of lying and money.
On the day that he had chosen to announce the birth of his son, there was a feast in the honour of the newly born prince. It had seemed a surprise to everyone to hear that the queen had been pregnant without showing it but they all seemed to just except Rahl's word, to his face at least. He sometimes loved that he his people feared him enough not to think to doubt him and question his word.
A week later, he saw it fit to let his son been seen by the court and the people of D'Hara. There was a huge festival in honour of the little prince and the people descended into the courtyard of the palace in their best. Music was played and food and drink were sold. It would be a day to be remembered. The yard was decorated with garlands of flowers and Darken was even seen publicly smiling; an odd thing to be seen on the face of one of the most feared kings in history.
Shara was dressed in a new fine gown that made her seem more motherly and his little Alric had a fine little outfit on, made just for the occasion. It was silly for such a young child to have clothes of such quality, but on a day like this he would be decked out in the finest. His little amount of jet black hair was neatly combed on his head and he smiled so large that his cheeks dimpled slightly. He was all in all an adorable baby, a strong and healthy thing that would grow to become a good young prince and heir to the throne.
Rahl saw this as a thing to celebrate and even showed a bit of deep affection for his wife to the people around them throughout the day. A kiss there and touch here, it wasn't much but it was a lot more than anyone was used to. He was playing the role of a proud and overjoyed husband perfectly and she fit in with the whole new mother role. He didn't know what she did to herself this morning but she honestly seemed to glow like new mothers did. He figured it was a –product of some magic but he really did like it.
When it was time to introduce Alric to the noble court, she walked beside him holding the little boy snugly in her arms. He looked so perfect there; he didn't even fuss and cry like one might expect him to. He looked around at the people in the room with intrigued eyes and seemed to love the attention. His cute little smile earned a few murmurs of "he is adorable" and "a fine looking lad" from the nobles around him. His doll like appearance was only amplified as a tiny cornet was placed on his little head to show his status. The three royals looked picture perfect with their official crowns on and fine clothes. It looked like a painting or a drawing out of an old history book.
The doors were opened to the courtroom and the common people were allowed to flood in the back portion of the viewing room. The people were freer in expressing their feeling for the little doll-like prince and the sight before them. They all seemed to agree that they were staring at the most handsome prince ever born and the most handsome royal family there ever was.
Rahl waited for them to quiet down until he spoke out to the crowd.
"Inhabitants of D'Hara, noble-men and common-folk alike, you have come together today in order to bear witness to the naming of my new son. This will unite you all in history as you witness a monumental day in D'Hara's history. It is not every day that a new prince is born, much less a prince of this quality and beauty, so this will not be like all of the other crowning of the past. You are all witnessing the crowning of the future greatest king there ever will be.
So, without further ado, may I present you to Alric Rahl the Second, prince of D'Hara."
The mob exploded into applause and general jubilation. Hails and congratulations were called out and praise was directed towards all. The people hurried to line up and meet to little prince in turn.
Most of the people that approached the bench were happy to praise the family and coo at the little gem in front of them. A few asked questions and got a bit nosy but all that was needed to shut them up was a stern look or a curt reply and they went on their way looking sheepish.
It was when the noble ladies came up that the problems really started. They had seemed their queen everyday almost and they knew that she hadn't looked pregnant in the least. Their gazes were full of suspicion and questioning. They also had the power to ask questions without being in fear for their lives.
"How on earth did you ever hide your pregnancy?" almost all of them asked.
With a bit of quick thinking she looked down and tried to look bashful. She mumbled something about magic and being vain and they would all just leave with annoyed looks on their faces. This obviously wasn't the end of this conversation. She would really need to come up with something a lot more convincing.
