Chapter Eleven: An Heir

Six months later, Arthur and Alfred were hurriedly discussing plans for their child's christening; despite them not being due to be born for at least another ten weeks. The Queen's once flat, slim physique had swollen considerably as their baby continued to grow.

Dr. Ramhart had returned monthly to check on their progress; gladly informing the new parents-to-be, that their child was doing well. They were the size expected, if not slightly bigger than babies at this stage in development. There had been teasing of the King as Elizabeth mentioned that their child had taken after Alfred already, leading Arthur to constantly tease his husband, causing him to blush.

As much as Arthur wished to do physical work, like tend to the flowers in the gardens or assist in making dinner preparations, Alfred and the former King and Queen blatantly refused to prevent Arthur from overexerting himself. Due to unknown biological complications from expecting male Queens, they wanted to protect Arthur at all costs, to prevent a potentially difficult delivery. The blond male scowled at being told he could not do physical work but had settled into planning out their baby's christening quite happily; allowing him to relish in the time he could spend with his baby.

"So, we'll decorate the cathedral with white roses and lilies, combined with small bunches of fern. We'll tie navy blue ribbons to the ends of the pews and around the altar, in celebration of Spadian tradition. Our child shall wear white, as expected, while I think we should wear contrasting blues and indigo? I'm leaving that up to your mother and Elizabeth to decide; but what do you think?" Arthur's face was beaming as he explained his hard thought plans to Alfred, who seemed completely dumbfounded at all the effort and attention to detail that had been put into their baby's eventual christening.

"U-Um… t-that all sounds great! But, don't you think lilies may be a little overkill? Roses and fern may be enough?" Alfred raised an eyebrow, not sure why he mentioned that; the plans all seemed perfect.

"I wanted to incorporate something precious to our mothers, roses being your mother's favourite flower, and lilies being my mother's. So, even if it may seem like overkill, that is what I have decided." He set his quill down onto the desk, crossing his arms over his chest, smirking.

Alfred could not argue with his husband's decision at that point, sighing softly, before smiling brightly. "Well, if that is what you want, then I'm sure we can provide." He pressed a kiss to Arthur's forehead, eliciting a soft hum from the other, before kneeling beside him and resting his head on the ever-growing baby bump. Arthur chuckled sweetly, carding his fingers through Alfred's golden hair.

"Do you think this little one will take more after you than I?" Arthur questioned, truly interested to hear Alfred's opinion. It almost appeared that the King was not listening as he smoothed small circles into the other's belly. His eyes were shut, simply focusing on the gentle sounds and touches of their baby moving. "Alfred?"

"Hmm?" He responds nonchalantly.

"You weren't listening, were you?" Arthur rolled his eyes, but never stopped brushing his fingers through Alfred's hair.

"I was… but I was just lost in thought," pressing a kiss to the bump, he got up and pulled a chair around the desk to sit beside his Queen, taking his hand. "I'm not really sure who they'll take after… not that it really matters I guess? They're our baby, not just mine or just yours; ours. So, even if they don't look like or act like one of us, does not mean that they are not our child. That won't change the fact that they are our baby, our Heir to the Spadian throne, right?" Alfred's eyes sparkled with eternal youth, a bright smile on his lips; leaving Arthur speechless after his words, before he leant forward to kiss Alfred's cheek delicately.

"You're right…They will be special, no matter who they take after…" Arthur rested his free hand over the bump. But, quickly glanced up as he could Alfred giggling.

"Well, it'll be awesome if they took after me! They'd look incredible and have a voice to possibly contest with mine!" Alfred guffawed brightly, making Arthur cringe ever so slightly; but soon they both started laughing. Until, Arthur jumped, gripping his bump. "A-Arthur? W-What's the matter?"

"I-I don't know… I just felt a sharp pain here…?" He rested his hand as to signify where he had felt the pain. Hesitantly, Alfred reached forward placing a hand over his Queen's and reacting as he felt something.

"I don't think it's dangerous Artie… It's just our baby letting us know they're here," he chuckled, moving his hand elsewhere on the bump and smiling as the baby lightly tapped against his palm.

Relieved, Arthur relaxed back into his chair, simply adoring the way his King was attempting to bond with their unborn child. It did not take long for Arthur to begin yawning; he had not noticed how tired he had gotten from all this planning.

"I think it's time for you to go to bed, my Queen," Alfred grinned, getting up while lifting Arthur bridal style; much to his disputes, he was honestly too exhausted to fight back, and so he curled into his husband's hold, resting his head on his shoulder.

Arthur's senses were dulled as he grew drowsy, he could feel himself beginning to slip into a pleasant slumber; barely recognising Alfred changing him into his nightclothes and setting him into their cosy bed. Before completely passing out, he felt a soft kiss to his forehead, and the gentle hands on his growing bump.

"Your mom's doing their best to protect and prepare for you, little one… I know you won't be able to really show your gratitude and thanks to him for a few years, but know that everything your mom does, he does it for you…" He felt Alfred lean over to press a kiss to the bump, the baby responding with a light kick, and a final kiss to his cheek before going to change. A pleasant smile crossed Arthur's lips as he finally fell asleep.

Around eight weeks later, Arthur woke up with a start, a sudden nausea weighing over him. He sat up carefully, as to not wake his King who was currently clinging to him. Getting to his feet, he stumbled toward their ensuite bathroom, but he gasped out in pain as he crumpled to the floor in agony; using the wall to support himself, so he did not have a harsh fall and risk injuring himself or his unborn child.

Leaning back, he clutched at his nightshirt, panting softly as he cringed in pain. He pressed his hands back against the wall, in attempt to push himself up on his feet, to at least get into the bathroom. However, Arthur could barely get to his feet before the sharp cascading pain returned through his abdomen and stomach. He winced before crying out; he could not hold back his cries of pain anymore.

Despite his sweating brow and gritted teeth, he could hear a presence shuffling toward him; opening his eyes, he noticed a familiar sapphire gaze glancing at him. It was Alfred, he looked worried and seemed to be saying something, but Arthur could not hear him over the pain.

Alfred continued to try and catch Arthur's attention, but all he could see was the agony in his partner's face. He got up, attempting to pull Arthur up along with him, holding him by his waist to steady him. Walking his partner over to their bed, he lay Arthur on his back, squeezing his hand in reassurance. "I-I'll go and get Lizzie; will you be okay for a minute?"

Arthur could not even respond to his partner, before wincing again, curling into himself and gritting his teeth. The Spadian King simply dashed out of the room, toward the maid's quarters, knocking desperately on the door; only a moment later, Elizabeth opened the door with an indigo silk night-robe wrapped around herself.

"M-My King? W-What on earth are you doing up at this time?" She spoke, blinking the sleep out of her blue eyes. Her features were soft in the dim moonlight shining through the windows. "Alfred?"

"I-It's Artie! Call Dr. Ramhart immediately, then come to my chamber… A-Arthur's going into labour! He's early Lizzie, what do I do?" Alfred's eyes were clouded with panic, his sun-kissed skin pale and beaded with sweat.

Elizabeth nodded, "Get back to Arthur's side, I'll request for Dr. Ramhart immediately. I won't be long, keep Arthur as relaxed as possible to prevent problems for the delivery."

Alfred wasted no time, he dashed back to his chamber; Arthur had not moved from his spot, his hands turning white from how tightly he was clutching the bedsheets in his agony. Running into the bathroom, the Spadian King rinsed a fresh face cloth under the cold taps before bringing it out to Arthur, patting his warm face gently to cool him down. "A-Artie… Lizzie's coming to help us…Dr. Ramhart should be here soon… E-Everything will be alright…" He frowned at seeing his Queen in pain, taking his hand, and allowing Arthur to squeeze it tight as he fell victim to another harsh contraction.

Soon the door opened without hesitation, Elizabeth and younger maid, Lucy, stepped through with blankets, and fresh clothes for the new baby. "Alfred, we need to sit Arthur up a little more, can you assist please?"

Alfred nodded, embracing his partner gently and cradling his head with a hand while sitting him slightly more upright. The Queen whimpered at being moved but sighed in relief as the pain began to calm for a few moments.

"Alfie… I-I'm so frightened… Our baby's not meant to be due for almost another month…!" Arthur wept, his emerald eyes sparkling with tears; his already pale skin now appearing completely white. "I don't know what to do… what if something's wrong?"

"Now, Arthur… Nothing's wrong. You must try and relax, if you begin to stress yourself it can pass onto the baby and make this delivery more difficult than it already is. Hold onto your King… Lucy and I will handle the rest until Dr. Ramhart returns, alright?" Elizabeth's voice was music to Arthur's ears, and he nodded in response, attempting to calm himself down before reaching out for Alfred who was sitting next to him.

Alfred took Arthur's hand definitively, holding onto it tightly and kissing his knuckles. "You'll be alright Artie… I promise…" Arthur could feel Alfred's hand trembling in his, he squeezed it a little tighter, but he was soon cried out as pain ripped through his abdomen again.

It took almost another eight hours for Arthur to be ready to deliver, he was exhausted, sweat and tears staining his pale skin and his body racked with agony. The Queen was running out of time, or he would be in even more pain and in need of surgery. Elizabeth had delivered Alfred and Matthew in the past, so she knew what to do; thankfully Dr. Ramhart was now there to assist.

Arthur cried out as he began to push, gripping Alfred's hand with all his might, causing the latter to cringe slightly. His face tinged red as he continued to do as Elizabeth told him, before sitting back and taking deep breathes. However, a few seconds later he was doing it all over again.

Everyone had lost total track of time now, only beginning to notice the sun truly brightening the Spadian Kingdom sky; it was a wonderful day for the Kingdom should all go well here. Despite Arthur being in pain, and Alfred worrying so much for his partner and baby's health, they knew that the Kingdom would rejoice in the birth of their child. Time ticked on, Arthur felt like it was never going to end.

His eyes opened wide as the pain began to cease and he heard grizzled cries and wails; tears continued to fall down his face but now they had turned to joy, he smiled tiredly as he was enveloped in Alfred's embrace.

"A-Alfie… they're here? They're alright?" Arthur whimpered as they pulled away from each other. Alfred looked over his shoulder to where Elizabeth and Lucy were cleaning the child, and smiled brightly, tears in his eyes.

"Yeah, Artie… they're okay," relief was evident in his voice, he glanced down to Arthur and kissed him deeply. "I'm so proud of you…"

Their moment was interrupted, quite happily, as Lucy stepped over with a bundle of blankets and cloth, the small weeping baby wrapped up tightly inside. "It's a boy, Your Majesties…" She spoke up as she set the child into Arthur's outstretched arms, before curtsying and stepping away to allow them space.

Arthur sat up a little more, holding his new-born boy close to his chest, brushing a fingertip over his chubby cheeks and nose. "Lizzie was right… he definitely takes after you Alfred…" He teased, glancing up to his King. Alfred simply chuckled and held his husband and child close; but he could sense Arthur beginning to drift off.

"Artie… lemme' take him. You need to rest after all that…" He smiled, offering his arms out to take the boy. "What shall we name him?"

The Queen tenderly handed the baby over to Alfred, smiling at seeing him rock the bundle gently upon receiving it. "I think… we should name him Edward… Edward Joseph Kirkland-Jones…"

Alfred grinned brightly, "I love it… do you Edward?" The baby babbled in response, making everyone in the room chuckle. "Lizzie, Lucy… thank you so much for helping Arthur all night. We couldn't have done this without you…"

Elizabeth and Lucy curtsied, "It was our pleasure, Your Majesties. Congratulations. We'll inform your parents and try to let your have privacy until Arthur recovers. You should rest too, Alfred… you were up all night as well."

The King laughed, "Yeah, I'll rest soon. I'll stay here with Arthur and Edward, keep them safe until I sleep." He sat beside Arthur, who immediately leant against him tiredly, and brushed his fingers through his blond hair. "They're my family… I have my family…" He began to cry again, drying his face with his hand. "You're dismissed now… thank you all…"

The two maids and Dr. Ramhart left, shutting the door quietly behind them, leaving the King, Queen and new Prince of Spades to be alone. Alfred carefully lifted the blankets swaddling Edward and smiled softly at seeing the faint King's crest spread across his chest. He kissed the baby's forehead softly, holding him tight to his own chest, before leaning down to kiss the top of Arthur's head, as he had already fallen asleep.

The new Prince was born, and the Kingdom began to rejoice. Amelia would not stop hopping with excitement, but for that day, everyone allowed the King and Queen to spend the time they needed with their new baby boy.

Author's note: Hello everyone! I'm so so sorry for this to take forever in being published. I hope you can forgive me, uni and orchestral work has been insane the past few months. However, here we are, finally a new chapter of this story! Hope you all enjoy! ~aphshan31 xx