Their wedding was only six days away, and Lon'qu hadn't spent a single moment alone with Robin since Morgan had come into their lives.
Their son was exactly like his mother in all ways; outgoing, generous, intelligent, brave and infuriatingly stubborn. Everyone at camp immediately idolized him.
Maribelle especially went on and on to Lon'qu about how "handsome and well-mannered" his son was, like he'd had anything to do with Morgan's behavior or appearance.
The few times he'd even talked to the kid it had been extremely awkward. Morgan didn't recall anything about him at all. Lon'qu had sat in uncomfortable silence as his son stared into his eyes blankly, trying to jog his memory. Robin was nothing but supportive of his amnesia. She of course knew how it felt firsthand, so she babied the teenager like he was a newborn.
The only thing Lon'qu and Morgan even seemed to have in common was their love for Robin.
He couldn't deny the obvious devotion and adoration Morgan had for his mother, it was apparent to anyone who talked to him for more than a minute. Lon'qu figured that was probably the only thing that the dark-haired boy had inherited from him: his love for Robin.
Robin was beyond elated with her life. Naturally she was a happy person, but even she lost sleep over the stresses of life sometimes. Lon'qu had been her greatest joy. He was cold-hearted to most people, she could admit. But to those he loved he was incredibly tender and loving.
Many nights he had stayed up with her 'til dawn, just listening to her whine about how hard to was to have an entire army's expectations hanging over your head or massaging her sore muscles with his talented hands. He liked it when she wore her hair up, he liked sitting with her and just watching her work. She was learning these things about him slowly and it had been her favorite pastime. His proposal wasn't even official; he'd just slid the ring on her finger without a word.
That worked for her if it was easiest for him. He'd already had to grow accustomed to her constantly touching him in some way or another; a hand on his knee, her feet in his lap. She could make sacrifices if he could.
But now she had two favorite pastimes. Getting to know Morgan was just as fascinating to her as spending time with Lon'qu, and she felt the same kind of instinctual love towards the boy that was purely maternal that she felt romantically towards her swordsman. She couldn't explain why she loved Morgan, just as she couldn't explain why she loved Lon'qu. She just couldn't not love them.
In six days she would be married and everything would be absolutely perfect. Thankfully, no Risen had appeared across the land in a long while.
Morgan spent every free moment she had begging her to teach him battle strategy. No one else showed any enthusiasm for her work, though they all relied on it so heavily. She found his attitude refreshing.
"No, darling, you leave yourself open right… here," Robin corrected gently, pointing down at Morgan's detailed drawing of a battle situation. The boy sighed in frustration and began sketching frantically, pushing his hair out his dark eyes impatiently.
"Better?" He demanded, showing her the updated paper with a hopeful pout.
She pursed her lips, examining the plan thoroughly before nodding. "Much better," she assured him, smiling as he raised a fist into the air victoriously.
"Thank you, mother! I'm going to go show Noire!" With that, Morgan rushed out of her tent with the old cloak fluttering behind him dramatically. He hadn't even been in camp for a week and already he had a crush on the timid archer, something Robin wasn't certain she appreciated.
At least he hadn't inherited his father's fear of woman. And Noire was a nice enough girl, even if she was a bit… scary. Just like her mother.
Robin shrugged off her heavy cloak and folded it neatly, tossing it on the floor before lying on her bed. Though there hadn't been a battle in weeks, she found herself getting more and more exhausted each day. She felt like she needed a nap around midday but rarely gave into the desire so she could spend the time with Lon'qu or Morgan or Panne.
Today, though, she would probably treat herself to that nap- even if it wasn't even noon yet...
She was almost asleep when suddenly she sat up straight in her bed, clasping her hand over her mouth. A wave of nausea went through her; she walked outside and emptied her stomach of breakfast with shaking hands.
"Robin? Did you contract a malady of some sort?"
Robin wiped her mouth and looked up at Miriel, shaking her head weakly. "I don't think so," she told the mage truthfully. The nausea was completely gone now and she felt normal, aside from the slight soreness in the back of her throat that always accompanied vomiting.
Miriel nodded, looking as if she were going to reply. But Panne walked up just then, a strange look on her face. The tall woman leaned towards Robin and sniffed delicately, her nose scrunching up.
"I know, I probably need to get cleaned up," Robin muttered, wiping her mouth again roughly.
Panne shook her head, the pinched expression still on her face. "You," the taguel said, her voice a pitch higher than normal, "Are with child."
Robin immediately pressed her hands against her flat stomach, looking down at the fabric covering it as if it could prove or disprove Panne's assumption. Miriel's eyes glistened with curiosity. "What made you come to that conclusion?" The redhead asked in interest.
"I can smell it," Panne explained, looking at Robin quizzically.
Panne's concern snapped Robin out of her trance. She lifted her hands from her stomach and clasped them behind her, taking a step away from Miriel and her closest friend. It made sense to her now. The fatigue, the random nausea that she'd just experienced...
"If you'll excuse me," she muttered, whirling on her heel and jogging away.
"You must have an acute sense of smell if you were able to detect a fetus in the first trimester of pregnancy," Robin heard Miriel say behind her, with Panne mumbling her reply quietly.
The mage's words filled her with a strange sort of happiness. She pressed her fingertips to her stomach again, as lightly as possible. Lon'qu would be just as elated; he'd told her he wanted children. Lots of them, even.
She wondered how Morgan would feel about being at two places at once.