| INTIMACY | - HPxTMR

Chapter 34: [Unexpected]

Hope you enjoy :))

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2nd August 1999- Monday

The official announcement of Harry's promotion to Fifth Consort wasn't until the next day, as the first of August had fallen on a Sunday. However, the Harem had all been there to hear it directly from the Emperor, so the reactions were swift and unhidden, although thankfully dulled by trained public facades. The room had filled quickly with harsh whispers, but none had dared to speak louder than that, not under the watchful gaze of the Emperor. Harry had mostly ignored them and their stares, until they were finally forced to file out of his Palace once the spectacle reached its end, leaving Thomas and him to watch over their daughter.

The man remained in his Palace for the night, overseeing her whilst Harry recovered and slept. The Emperor then left in the early hours of the morning to draw up the announcements needed for the daily meeting, having spent much of the previous day hovering in the hallways of Harry's Palace.

Harry wasn't attending the meeting today, he wouldn't want to even if he hadn't been exempt. But, how he wished he could see their faces as Penny announced it, the formal confirmation that he was now on practically equal ranking to the most powerful members of the Harem.

In two years, he had gone from Noble to Consort. It had taken Bellatrix nineteen years to reach the rank in 1995, Regulus twenty as he'd been promoted just earlier in the year, Isla fifteen by 1997 and Penny nine and a half by the time of her third child in 1998. Evangeline had become one after eight years, and a Noble Consort six years after that.

And, most of all, his promotion proved how it wasn't the gender of the child that granted the promotion, despite the Harem's staunch belief that boys were worth more to the Emperor. It was the matter of who gave birth to the child, and the affection the man held towards them.

Whether this would register with them, however, was another thing.

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Harry was leant over the side of his daughter's crib, staring down at her tiny, swaddled form with glistening eyes, tracing her dainty features with his fingers. Soft as a feather, he brushed back the fluffy curls on her forehead, watching as Alsephina's lips pursed in her sleep.

She was everything he had ever dreamed of and more. Her tiny face was framed with bright, red curls, a full head of hair that was silky soft and unique. She had a cute button nose and lips that pouted cutely, tiny little hands and even tinier feet. He could see his own features in her- the nose, most prominently. From her grandmother. Alsephina, however, looked more like her father to him than Harry. Her eyes were shaped exactly like Thomas', her facial shape also more prominently defined than he's expected to see on a newborn. Other than that, they would just have to wait and see what their daughter looked like as she grew.

"Your Highness." Anya's soft call from the doorway barely registered to him as he continued to observe Alsephina. "You shouldn't be leaning over the side like that, you are putting pressure on your stomach."

"I just want to stare at her all day, Anya. She's just so perfect." He whispered gently, stroking a gentle finger down her cheek. She snuffled, and he drew back quickly, but that didn't stop her from waking with a distressed whine. Her eyes, hazy with sleep, fluttered, before closing once more after a few breathless moments

"You can stare at her all you like, sitting down with her in your arms. It is time for a feed." Harry turned and spotted the bottle in her hands, a grin forming quickly. He hurried to the rocking chair a few feet away, eagerly waiting as his maid reached into the crib and oh-so-carefully picked up his daughter.