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The recovery from Princess Celine's birth was supposed to be a period of sanctuary. The Royal Wing had been transformed into a place of soft sunlight, the scent of antiseptic replaced by the soothing aroma of milk, honey, and the lingering, protective musk of the King. For the first time in years, the palace felt like a home rather than a fortress.
But for Arion, the peace was haunted by a strange, persistent shadow.
Four weeks had passed since Celine was born, yet the heavy, rhythmic ache in Arion's abdomen had not subsided. At first, he attributed it to the trauma of the birth,his body was, after all, a map of old scars and new miracles. But as the days bled into weeks, the exhaustion felt deeper, more visceral. His appetite, instead of stabilizing, had become erratic, and a familiar, metallic tang haunted the back of his throat.
He sat on the edge of the large, velvet-draped bed, watching Kyon expertly swaddle Celine. The King moved with a gentleness that still made Arion's heart ache. Kyon was in his "natural" state today,no heavy suppressants, just his own scent of rain and cedar, slightly sweet from the proximity to his daughter.
"You're pale, Arion," Kyon remarked, his amber eyes flicking to his partner with a flash of concern. "The physicians said your iron levels should have normalized by now. Are you feeling the fever again?"
Arion shook his head, though the movement made the room tilt. "It's just the fatigue, Kyon. My body isn't as young as it was when Aiden was born."
But as he spoke, a sharp, unmistakable thrum vibrated deep within his womb. It wasn't a muscle spasm. It was a kick.
Arion's breath hitched. He looked down at his stomach, which remained slightly rounded,not unusual for a month post partum, but the sensation he just felt was impossible.
"Kyon," Arion whispered, his voice cracking. "Call Dr. Haelen. Now."
...*
The Royal Physician, a Beta man who had seen the rise and fall of three generations of the Crown, looked more bewildered than Arion had ever seen him. He had spent the last hour performing a series of delicate internal scans and pheromonal tests.
Kyon stood by the window, his arms crossed, his Alpha scent thickening with a protective, anxious edge. He sensed Arion's fear,the familiar flinch in Arion's posture as the doctor moved closer with his instruments.
"Well?" Kyon demanded, his voice dropping into the authoritative register of the King. "Explain why my Consort feels a pulse that shouldn't be there."
Dr. Haelen wiped his brow, staring at the crystalline display of the biometric scanner. "Your Highness... Lord Arion... I am at a loss for words. I have never seen a case like this outside of ancient medical texts."
Arion gripped the sheets, his knuckles white. "Is it a tumor? Is it a complication from the chemicals?"
"No," Haelen breathed. "It's... a heartbeat. Multiple heartbeats. Lord Arion, you are still pregnant."
The silence that followed was absolute. Kyon nearly stumbled, his hand catching the back of a chair. Arion felt as though the floor had vanished beneath him.
"How?" Arion choked out. "I just delivered Celine. How can I still be pregnant?"
"It is an extremely rare phenomenon called superfetation," the doctor explained, his voice trembling with scientific awe. "Combined with the unique state of your biology,the residual 'Project Phoenix' compounds in your system and your exceptionally strong Alpha turned Omega constitution. It seems that shortly after the first conception, a second... and possibly third... conception occurred."
"A third?" Kyon's voice was a low growl of disbelief.
"Initially, I suspected triplets," Dr. Haelen said, pointing to the flickering pulses on the screen. "There were three distinct echoes. But the development is staggered. One was hidden behind the first placenta, and the other... well, it's a late term development. It's as if your body paused the growth of these children to allow the first one to be born safely."
Arion let out a sound that was half laugh, half sob. He fell back against the pillows, his hands covering his face.
Triplets. The word felt like a death sentence and a blessing all at once. He had spent years fighting for a single heir, and now, he was faced with an army of them. He thought of the physical toll, the way his body had already been pushed to its limit with Celine. He thought of the gilded cage, expanding, the political targets on his children's backs growing larger with every heartbeat.
"I can't," Arion whispered into his palms. "Kyon, I can't do this again so soon. My body... I don't know if it can hold them."
Kyon was at his side in an instant. He didn't care about the doctor's presence. He pulled Arion into his arms, burying his face in Arion's neck, his scent of cedar and rain flooding Arion's senses to ground him.
"You aren't doing it alone," Kyon vowed. "If I have to lock the gates of the kingdom and serve you myself, I will. We will find the best healers in the South, in the West ,everywhere."
A few hours later, after a more intensive, high resolution scan, Dr. Haelen returned with a slight correction.
"It is not triplets, My Lord," the doctor said, looking relieved. "The third pulse was an echo a rhythmic anomaly caused by the proximity of the two. It is twins. But they are 'late fetuses.' Their development was suppressed while the Princess was in the womb. Now that she is born, your body has shifted all resources to them. They are healthy, strong... and they are coming much sooner than a normal term would suggest."
Should I be happy?,Arion thought .
Arion sat in the quiet of the evening, watching the moon rise over the jasmine gardens. Celine was asleep in her cradle nearby, a tiny, perfect anchor in his chaotic world.
He was devastated. He felt a deep, weary anger at his own body for being so "efficient," for trapping him in this cycle of vulnerability once again. He felt the loss of the freedom he had just begun to taste,the ability to be a warrior again, to stand beside Kyon as an equal on the battlefield.
But as he felt the twin pulses,two tiny, rhythmic thumps against his ribs the anger began to melt into a fierce, protective love.
Kyon entered the room, carrying a bowl of the Northern stew Arion loved. He saw Arion's tear streaked face and stopped.
"Are you angry with me?" Kyon asked softly. "Because I was the one who... I was the one who wanted the 'proof' of our union and got overexcited with idea of more kids ."
Arion looked at him,at the man who had stayed awake for three nights just to watch Celine breathe, the man who had burned his own secrets to be worthy of this family.
"I'm not angry with you, Kyon," Arion said, reaching out his hand. "I'm just... overwhelmed. We went from one child to four in the span of a year. The world is going to think we are trying to populate a new kingdom."
Kyon sat on the edge of the bed, taking Arion's hand and pressing it to his lips. "Perhaps we are. A kingdom where children aren't experiments, and where their fathers don't have to hide who they are."
Kyon leaned down, pressing his ear against Arion's stomach, listening to the hidden pulses. A look of such pure, unadulterated joy crossed his face that Arion felt his own heart swell.
"Twins," Kyon whispered. "Two more little one, Arion. We will be ready."
Arion leaned back, closing his eyes. He was still on guard, still prone to flinching at sudden movements, and still holding the real logbook in the shadows. But as he felt the double blessing within him, he realized that the "Iron Vow" wasn't just about protection. It was about growth.
"Four years ago, I wanted to kill you," Arion murmured, his fingers threading through Kyon's hair.
"And now?" Kyon asked, looking up.
"And now," Arion smiled, a tired but genuine expression of peace, "I just want you to help me pick out names that aren't 'Serpent' or 'Tiger.'"