Chapter 275: The Hands That Held the Future
[Silthara Palace — Malika’s Private Residency — Royal Nursery — Later]
Levin walked through the marble corridors as quickly as his exhausted body allowed. His steps remained steady...yet there was the slightest limp beneath every stride; pain still lingered throughout his body.
He ignored it. Nothing...nothing mattered more than reaching the nursery. As he rounded the final corridor, Raevahn and Lady Arinaya immediately straightened and both bowed deeply.
"We greet the Malika."
Levin slowed, offering them a gentle smile, and his eyes softened. "It has been far too long...Lady Arinaya...Captain."
Both returned the smile.
Lady Arinaya stepped aside from the nursery doors. "The little ones have been waiting for their father, My Malika."
Levin’s heartbeat quickened; he glanced toward the carved cedar doors. "...Have they already—"
He stopped, and Lady Arinaya’s smile widened knowingly. "They are waiting."
Nothing more needed to be said. Levin nodded once, then...he pushed open the nursery doors. Immediately—
"WAAAAAHHHHHH!! Waaaaaahhh...!"
The desperate cries of an infant echoed throughout the chamber. Levin froze, his blue eyes slowly widened. There...beneath the warm glow of afternoon sunlight...were his children.
No longer tiny dragon-serpents and no longer hatchlings wrapped inside silver and golden shells.
Two infants.
The crying child possessed soft, pale skin; tiny strands of black hair rested upon his head. Golden eyes...identical to Zeramet’s...were clouded with tears as little fists waved helplessly through the air.
He hiccupped between every sob.
Beside him...another infant remained remarkably quiet and possessed warm sun-kissed skin. Silver hair shimmered beneath the light. Large sapphire-blue eyes blinked curiously and calmly observed everything around them.
The quiet one did not cry, simply...watched, studied, and listened. Duke Aren gently rocked the crying infant in his arms, and then he noticed Levin.
"Finally you’re here, son...this one is crying more; I never handled two of them at once."
A soft laugh escaped Iru; the quiet little infant rested comfortably in his arms. "I believe...they simply knew his father was missing."
Duke Aren looked up, and he carefully approached Levin. "Come here, Son. I believe he has exhausted all of us."
Levin stared at the tiny child.
"...He?"
Duke Aren stared at his confused son and then chuckled as his smile became warm. "Congratulations, my Malika. Lord Urzan has blessed Zahryssar with both."
He looked first toward the crying infant...
"...a son."
Then toward the quiet little girl.
"...and a daughter."
Silence.
Levin simply stood there, his throat tightened. His eyes slowly drifted between them. A son...and...a daughter. His children, his own. Then the little girl suddenly turned her head; her sapphire eyes met Levin’s.
She blinked once and twice. Then...the tiniest smile appeared upon her little face, and her arms immediately stretched toward him.
"Baaa...baaaa..."
She kicked her tiny feet happily, reaching with all the strength her little body possessed. Levin’s heart stopped; she recognized him without ever seeing him before...she recognized him. The crying boy suddenly hiccupped; he looked toward his sister, confused as if wondering...
Why had she become so excited?
His teary golden eyes slowly followed the direction she was reaching, then...he saw him, his father. The crying stopped completely. He blinked; one tiny tear still rested upon his cheek, and then...his tiny mouth opened.
"Daa..." Another tiny sound followed. "Daaa..."
His little hands immediately reached toward Levin as well; his entire body leaned forward impatiently. As though afraid...afraid his father might disappear again.
Silence filled the nursery.
Even Duke Aren looked away for a moment; no one wished to interrupt that first meeting.
Iru smiled quietly. "It appears...they have found their father."
Levin slowly stepped forward, then...he stopped again. He looked down at his own hands; they had held swords, they had drawn bows, they had carried wounded soldiers, and they had slain monsters.
Yet...at this very moment...those same hands trembled and he whispered almost inaudibly. "What if...I hold him incorrectly?"
Duke Aren’s expression softened. "You won’t."
Levin looked toward his father. "There is no perfect way..."
Duke Aren smiled. "...to hold your child, there is only your way."
A long breath escaped Levin; he quietly wiped his palms against his robes twice, almost nervously. Then...very carefully...he extended his arms.
Duke Aren gently placed the crying little boy into them. The moment Levin held him...everything became still; the little boy blinked up at him, his tiny fingers instinctively wrapped around Levin’s thumb.
He stared...as though memorizing every feature of his father’s face. Then...a soft giggle escaped him, and the tears disappeared completely.
The nursery erupted into relieved smiles, and seeing her brother laugh...the little girl immediately became impatient. She stretched both tiny arms toward Levin.
"Baa! Baaaa!"
Tiny feet kicked furiously beneath her blanket.
"I believe..." Iru laughed quietly. "...someone is jealous."
Levin smiled through eyes that had begun to glisten. "Come here..."
Iru carefully placed the little girl into Levin’s other arm; the moment she settled against his chest...she sighed. A tiny...perfectly content sigh.
Then she curled one little hand around the fabric of Levin’s robes, as though declaring... This is where I belong.
Levin looked down at them, one sleeping peacefully against his heart, the other happily gripping his finger.
For the first time since the war...the Malika of Zahryssar felt utterly speechless; his voice barely rose above a whisper.
"...A son..." His eyes moved to the little girl. "...and a daughter."
He smiled, a smile unlike any he had ever worn, soft, peaceful, and complete. His gaze never left his children.
"Lord Urzan...you have truly blessed our family."
Silence embraced the nursery, then Duke Aren quietly folded his arms. "There is one more blessing."
As Levin slowly looked up, his father smiled proudly. "They have both undergone their Second Awakening."
Levin frowned slightly.
"...Second Awakening?"
Duke Aren nodded. "They are both...Prime Alphas."
Silence.
Levin’s eyes widened. "...Both?"
"Yes."
Duke Aren’s smile deepened as he looked toward the two peaceful infants resting safely within Levin’s embrace. "Your son...and your daughter...both carry the blood...of the Prime Alpha."
The nursery remained wrapped in silence, not the silence of grief...nor the silence of fear, but the gentle silence born when happiness became too great for words.
Levin continued holding both children close against his chest; his son had already fallen asleep once more, his tiny fingers still wrapped firmly around Levin’s thumb, unwilling to let go even in dreams.
His daughter remained awake.
Her sapphire-blue eyes wandered curiously around the nursery, observing every face as though she had entered the world already determined to understand it.
Then...the nursery doors slowly opened and soft footsteps echoed across the marble floor. Silver robes, long silver hair, and golden eyes now free of the darkness that had consumed them only days before.
Zeramet.
The room instinctively became quiet; he stopped just inside the doorway, and his gaze immediately found them.
His family.
For several long heartbeats...the prime alpha of Zahryssar did not move; he simply looked, and then his eyes slowly drifted from Levin...to the little boy peacefully sleeping...then finally...to the little girl blinking curiously toward the doorway.
Something inside him quietly melted; a smile...small...almost uncertain...appeared upon his face.
"They’re beautiful."
Levin looked toward him; neither spoke again. The silence between husband and husband carried everything words could not.
Zeramet slowly approached, carefully. As though afraid one careless step might shatter the peaceful scene before him.
The little girl noticed him first; she blinked once and twice. Her tiny brows furrowed, she looked toward Levin, then back toward Zeramet...confused.
Her little body immediately leaned against Levin’s chest, tiny fingers clutched his robes, almost hiding herself from view.
The little boy stirred as well; golden eyes slowly opened, and he stared sleepily at the unfamiliar silver-haired man.
Then...just like his sister...he buried his little face against Levin. The nursery became quiet. Zeramet stopped walking.
A faint, helpless smile appeared upon his face.
"They do not know me yet." His voice carried no disappointment, only quiet understanding.
Levin looked down at the children. "They know my heartbeat; they will soon learn yours."
Zeramet nodded; he slowly extended one hand, not toward Levin, not toward the children, simply...waiting, giving them the choice.
The little girl cautiously peeked from behind Levin’s arm; his large sapphire-blue eyes studied Zeramet carefully, his silver hair, his golden eyes, and the scent...
She tilted her tiny head.
"...Aa..."
Another blink.
Then...she leaned forward. Just enough to sniff his fingertips; the moment she did...her expression changed, and her tiny nose twitched.
Again and again. Then...without warning...she placed one tiny hand against Zeramet’s finger.
Silence.
A tiny smile bloomed across her face as she recognized him by instinct.
"Baaa..."
The scent of her other father. The little boy looked up immediately, seeing his sister smiling...he slowly reached out as well, his tiny fingers wrapped around Zeramet’s little finger.
Then...he yawned, as though completely satisfied. The nursery filled with quiet laughter. Iru smiled warmly.
"It seems...they have remembered their father."
Zeramet’s eyes shimmered, for the warrior who had shattered armies...for the Prime Alpha feared across the continent...this tiny hand around one finger proved stronger than any victory.
Slowly...almost hesitantly...he looked toward Levin, and his voice actually faltered.
"...May I...hold one?"
Levin looked at him; the silence stretched. Zeramet instinctively reached toward Levin’s shoulder the moment his hand lifted... Levin raised one eyebrow; that single look was enough.
Zeramet immediately withdrew his hand, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. "...I...would like to hold one."
Duke Aren looked away, hiding a smile. Raevahn suddenly found the ceiling extremely fascinating. Even Lady Arinaya bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.
Levin let the silence linger just a little longer, then...very carefully...he lifted the little girl. "Support her head."
Zeramet nodded immediately. "As you command."
His movements became unbelievably cautious; he received the little girl into his arms as though she were carved from the finest crystal. The little girl blinked up at him, then...she reached toward his face; tiny fingers touched his cheek.
She giggled...a soft...perfect little laugh.
Zeramet froze, his breathing caught, and his golden eyes slowly widened as his voice almost became a whisper.
"...She...she laughed."
The little girl happily grabbed a strand of his silver hair, then pulled hard.
"...Ah."
The Prime Alpha blinked.
Everyone in the nursery laughed; even Levin could not hide his smile. "Congratulations. You have survived your daughter’s first attack."
Another burst of laughter echoed through the room; the little boy, unwilling to be left out, immediately reached both hands toward Zeramet as well.
"Baa! Baa!"
As though demanding equal attention. Zeramet looked between both children, then toward Levin; his expression softened in a way no battle...no throne...no victory...had ever managed to achieve.
He quietly kissed the little girl’s forehead, then looked toward his son.
"...We should give them names soon." His eyes returned to Levin. "They deserve names worthy of the light they brought back into this palace."
Levin looked at the two tiny lives before them, then at his husband. For the first time since the war... Silthara Palace no longer felt like a palace haunted by ghosts.
It felt...like home and a new beginning.
Comments