Once Upon a Time (A Philidosia Tale)

Her Beginning

  Once Upon a Time, there was a King and a Queen in their half of the kingdom, their names were Aaron and Theodosia. It was a nice quiet day, and the two were happily cuddling by the fireplace. Both reading the book of their choice peacefully while wrapped in a thin blanket on the parlor couch. 

    "Hey, Aaron sweetie," Theodosia casually started her dark brown finger fiddling with the page of Directions to Servants.

     "Yes, my love?" Aaron replied distractedly, face deep into the eighth chapter of Gulliver's Travels.

     "You know, I love you right?"

  Aaron, snapping out of his trance to look at his wife with a look of confusion, replied with a hesitant tone. 

     "Of course, Theodosia."

     "Great, so, would you mind carrying me to the labor room?"

  Now, this caught Aaron's attention. His book dropped with a sudden thud, forgotten by the concerned husband while his mind raced with pessimistic thoughts.

     "Ummm, might I ask why?" He questioned rising slowly from a comfortable position.

     "I think I am about to give birth." She stated calmly, turning the page.

     "Oh, okay," Aaron's shoulders relaxed and he bent down to pick up his book. "WAIT WHAT?"

  The king shot back up as soon as the severity of the situation hit him. He scooped up Theodosia with shaking hands and started running to the infirmary, his heart beating fast and his breathing speeding up.

  Aaron was patient, trustworthy, and quiet. Not one to jump into an argument without deciding the winning side, the bald, brown-skinned, bright brown-eyed king was an opponent one would want by their side. Having studied law, government, and politics in grad school, the ruler was well prepared for his current occupation. Though not everyone liked Burr and his wavering loyalty to trivial things, they knew he was their best bet as a leader.

     "Hey, easy there, I'm also carrying precious cargo," Theodosia chuckled.

  Theodosia was a confident, outspoken, intelligent beauty. A force to be reckoned with, she was always the first to strike up a conversation and throw the first punch. With soft brown skin, shoulder-length raven hair, striking hazel eyes, and a heart of gold. She didn't come from a royal bloodline, but her father was a Major General that the royal family highly respected, one that the same family overthrew later down the line.

  Aaron ignored Theodosia's joke in his state of panic, he was so worried you'd think he was the one giving birth. He called the maids and ordered them to get the midwife ready and meet him in the labor room. Theodosia, being the neutral soul she is, thanked the nurse and giggled happily. But the laugh was cut short when the baby kicked in their mother's uterus.

     "Umm, honey I think our baby's getting a little restless," Theodosia cried.

  Arriving in the labor room, Aaron gently laid Theodosia down. The former struggling to breathe correctly and the latter smiling weakly.

     "Ooooooo, this is so exciting!" Theodosia exclaimed, doing a little jig on the bed.

     "We're going to be parents! I'm gonna be the best mom EVER! When the baby is born I'll snuggle and cuddle with them forever and ever, then I'll read them bedtime stories until they fall asleep, we'll bake and eat all the cookies everyday! And you will be right there, being the-"

     "And what if that doesn't happen?" Aaron whispered.

  The pregnant woman stopped her little dance with a confused look on her face. She turned towards her husband who she noticed was shaking in the stool he was on. His hands were crossed and his thumbs were twiddling incessantly and his eyes were tearing up as he stared as his wife.

     "W-what?"

     "What if our child hates us?!" He exclaimed shooting up from his chair with shaky knees. "What if our child hates us, or just me?! What if they get sick, what if we aren't ready to raise children, what if-" He pauses his panicking as a thought dawns on him.

   "What if you and our baby don't make it."

   Just the simple thought made Aaron burst into tears. He doesn't want to let his loving wife and newborn baby go, go to a place where he will never see them again, like the rest of his family. 

    "Aaron, what are you saying?" Theodosia uncomfortably breathed out, seeing her level headed husband break down like this broke her heart.

    "I'm saying what if you die?!" Aaron started to sob.

  He sunk to his knees while his wife helplessly watched, a waterfall of tears creating a small puddle on the floor.

    "I don't want to let you go! I need you to stay here with me! You can't leave yet!"

  Theodosia slowly rose up from her laid out position and held out her hand towards her husband. She was ready, she knew it was now or never with this baby and she wasn't going to let the thought of death stop her. Aaron glanced towards Theodosia, his shoulders shaking while he raised an unsteady hand. 

     "Aaron," Theodosia softly grasped his hand and kissed it. 

     "You know that I love you so very much, and I know that you just want to be prepared for anything that happens, but some things are beyond our control, and if I die during labor, it will be worth it when I give birth to our little angel!" Theodosia exclaimed, determination ringing out in her voice.

   Aaron sobbed quieter after Theodosia's outburst, thinking about what his wife just said. He forced a weak smile, not completely agreeing with what his wife just said. So resolute, yet so unaware.

    "Y-You're... right," He said, standing up as best as his weak legs could.

  They both stared into each other's eyes, Theodosia's sparking with purpose and Aaron's struggling not to burst into tears again.  Finally, the midwife walked into the room with a towel and some tools.

     "Alright your majesties, who's ready to bring a baby into the world?" She asked knowingly.

  The king stepped back and allowed the nurse to lead him out of the room.

    "You can do this Theodosia... WE can do this!"

 They left the queen with the woman, both ready to get this party started.

   "Okay, let's go!" Theodosia replied confidently.

  The assistant nodded and put the queen into the correct position. Theodosia took a deep breath and pushed out the uneasiness as best she could. Every part of her was sure about this, and boy, was she gonna give birth today!

     "I'm going to need you to push, in one...two...THREE!

      "aaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH-"

      "Waaaaahhh, waaaahhh!"

  The midwife held the newborn with care and love, glancing at the exasperated queen, she smiled brightly and stated confidently, "She's beautiful your highness. Eyes just like her father."

Welcome to the world, Theodosia.