After the end of the celebrations, members of the royal court led Areiv and Lindsay not to the main tower but the tower to the left. It confused Lindsay, but she said nothing as they climbed a set of stairs which led to a double-door room. As the doors opened, she saw that there was a large bed in the center of the room surrounded by lit candles which emitted smoke of varied colors. Stepping inside made Lindsay lightheaded, and she grasped onto Areiv's arm. He glanced at her in slight alarm.
"Are you okay?"
"I... what is this room?"
"This is the room where the mating ritual occurs for those of the royal court. Is the aroma too great for you?"
"A bit. Um, Areiv-"
"Extinguish the candles and open the window. It seems that Lady Lindsay is overwhelmed."
"Yes, your majesty." Reyarts nodded and went on as instructed. Lindsay switched glances from her new advisor to the other members.
"Areiv... you mean to tell me that there's been others in this bed?"
"Do not worry; the area is cleansed before and after each ritual."
"Still a little creepy. But, um... they're gonna leave... right?"
"This area, of course. However, they must remain to escort us ba-"
"They can't." her eyes widened and Areiv gave her a strange glance before realizing what she meant. He turned to the other Esperians before they departed.
"I must request that there will be no need for the royal court to accompany myself and Lady Lindsay back to our quarters." he surprised the others; they looked at one another before returning their gazes to the Royal Magistrate.
"We mean no discourtesy, your highness. However, the Royal Magistrate must acknowledge it is tradition for-"
"I am well aware of the traditions; however Lady Lindsay has reminded me of the consequences of mating with a human being."
"Oh... they don't know...?" Lindsay looked at her husband but the members bowed towards the two.
"Forgive us, my grace. It appears that we forgot about that... detail of the mating ritual between a human and an Esperian. We shall take our leave." the royal court members bowed once more as they left the room.
"Reyarts..." Lindsay stopped the shorter Esperian, and he turned to her. "Could you send for Emuh and make sure to let him know that we're about to perform the mating ritual?" she asked. As expected, her request confused the advisor, but he nodded.
"Yes, m'lady."
"Oh, and Reyarts..." Lindsay approached him before he left. "I'm so sorry for how I reacted earlier. I wasn't really upset with you; just with the way the guards handled Brad. I shouldn't have put my anger out on you, though," she apologized. The Esperian widened his eyes at her words and opened his mouth but nothing came out. It surprised Lindsay to see his eyes moisten but before she could say anything, Reyarts fell to his knees and placed his head on her feet. "Oh, my God; what is he doing?!" she turned to Areiv as the small Esperian wept.
"You did not need to apologize for whatever way you reacted towards him, Lindsay. No Lady of Esperia has ever done so."
"W-What? That's horrible! Reyarts, please; stop crying and get up..."
"I am not deserving of an apology, m'lady."
"Yes, you are! And I promise, I'll never yell at you for no reason, again. Just, please; get up!" she was glad he stood but huffed when he looked down. "I don't know how the last Lady of Esperia ran things or treated people but trust me; you're dealing with a different one this go 'round! You're not a child, Reyarts... wait; are you a child...?"
"N-No, my grace. I am older than the Royal Magistrate."
"Okay. So, I won't treat you like one; I promise. Now, could you bring Emuh here?" she gave him a smile. Reyarts returned the gesture and nodded.
"Of course, your highness." he left and closed the door. Lindsay sighed as Areiv hugged her.
"You will become accustomed with your responsibilities soon enough, my dear Lindsay."
"You make this look so easy..."
"I was groomed for this. Your apology to Reyarts; is that related to why Bradley apologized to me?"
"He did what...?" Lindsay gazed up at Areiv and the Esperian gave her a light smile.
"Before you returned to the festivities, he approached me and apologized for his behavior. It was... surprising, yes but highly appreciative." Areiv explained. Lindsay smiled and nodded.
"And, you didn't want me to talk to him about it! So, on to this..." she waved her hand over the room. "You're not gonna get into trouble for, uh, breaking tradition, are you?"
"Of course not. They may carry a peculiar impression of me however I am not distressed over that matter. If you have not observed, you can affect even their opinions, now. We serve you... m'lady." he said with a sly smirk and she rolled her eyes. Her eyes widened when he grabbed her hand and went down to a knee, kissing it gently.
"I'm so gonna ban this bowing crap..." she laughed along with Areiv and he drew her near him.
"We should begin the mating ritual although... I am in no haste to... oh..." Areiv concentrated on her stomach and Lindsay gave him a curious glance.
"What? What's wrong?"
"My dear Lindsay; why did you not inform me?"
"Inform you of-"
"You are with child!" he gaped at her in excitement but Lindsay gawked.
"I-I-I'm with who what?!"
"You... did not know...? Can you not sense the child inside of you?"
"W-Wait... slow down. I... I can't get pregnant; have kids." she corrected herself when he tilted his head to the side at her.
"I am most positive you are carrying, Lindsay. I can sense him... or her; I do not know the gender. Ah... my senses are finer than your own; you would not feel the child at this stage, I am assuming."
"... N-No. Oh, my God; can this day get any more overwhelming?!"
"Oh. You are not pleased by this."
"It's not that. It's just," she sighed but guided him to the bed where they both sat. "Me and Trace had been married for ten years, dating for two. And all that time, it never happened. I never got a positive test or anything. There's, um, ways to prevent pregnancy on Earth. Pills, condoms, shots; we did none of that. After all that time, I just assumed that... I couldn't. And now, you're telling me you did something in a few months that's never happened in ten plus years with someone else?"
"I see. I understand your reaction, now. I do not have an explanation as to how it occurred. Perhaps it is because I am alien? Whatever the case may be, I am beyond elated you are with child."
"I'm excited, Areiv. It's just... everything will hit me soon... probably like a ton of bricks... dropped from five hundred feet..." she laughed and Areiv wrapped her in a tender hug.
"Oh, you and your Earth terms. Am I to understand that there will be no mating ritual performed tonight?"
"Is that all you can think about? Oh; no, I was kidding: don't frown!" she saw the expression he gave her. Lindsay sighed and laughed as she placed her arms around his neck. "It's tradition, right? Who am I to break that?" she was glad Areiv gave her a smile as he leaned in for a passionate kiss.
It bothered Lindsay it was her royal attendants who woke her up and not her new husband; he wasn't in bed as she rubbed her eyes. By the time she dressed for breakfast, Lindsay decided to take Areiv's absence to her advantage; she needed to speak to his father.
She shooed Noin and Asi away as she made her way down the steps; Lindsay held in her sigh as Reyarts approached her. He offered her a smile and nod.
"You are finally awake, my grace."
"Sorry. Was I supposed to be up earlier?"
"Only if it was your desire. The Royal Magistrate is in council with the court; it was his order to let you rest. Shall I retrieve him for you?"
"Oh... no. That's fine; he's not needed for a while." Lindsay smiled at him. She struggled to figure out a reason for Reyarts to leave her until Emuh appeared. Lindsay gave him a smile as Reyarts bowed.
"Reyarts, Lady Lindsay. I assume that you rested soundly?"
"I did... okay, what do I call you, now that you're not the Royal Magistrate anymore?"
"You can address me the same as you did when I was Royal Magistrate. Others will greet me as Sir Emuh; there is no need for you to do so. You outrank me now, Lady Lindsay."
"Is it safe to say I outrank everyone in this galaxy, now...?" she smirked and was glad Emuh chuckled. "Well, if I can't call you 'Sir Emuh', then no more of that 'Lady Lindsay' crap around me! Emuh, can I talk to you?"
"Of course."
"Alone...?" she glanced over at Reyarts who remained by the two. Emuh nodded and gave the shorter Esperian a smile.
"Reyarts, please inform the Royal Magistrate that Lady Lindsay is up and about," Emuh requested and Reyarts complied, leaving the two alone as he went down the hallway. "I sense we need to walk... and that whatever you wish to speak with me on is too important to mention in the presence of Reyarts. Is this concerning why I was summoned to the mating ritual chambers?"
"Kinda. Areiv told me that I was pregnant, already." she attempted to explain as the two walked. Emuh stopped in his tracks and gave her a curious look.
"I am afraid I am not familiar with that term."
"... I'm with child."
"Ah... I see."
"Not to say that Areiv's wrong but... I would really like to get more proof. I wanna get checked out by a royal medic... if there is one."
"There are several royal medics. However... it would be wise to seek advice from the common medics, instead."
"Oh? Why? Wouldn't they run their mouth about me being pregnant so soon?"
"You can prevent that. With the royal medics, news would advance faster amongst the court and they would chastise my son, regardless if you condemn them for it. However, outside the royal palace, the residents will be fearful of more... severe punishment if they were to spread that bit of knowledge."
"I... I would never do something like that."
"And I am elated that you feel that way. The common Esperians are more prone to the fear of displeasing you and acknowledge any and all the consequences of doing so. Which is why we shall go into town rather than here. I will escort you into town."
Emuh and Lindsay took the royal carriage into town, choosing to walk the rest of the way to one of the common medical clinics nearby. The building reminded Lindsay of a modern clinic found on Earth as they entered. As soon as she stepped foot into the waiting room, everyone stopped what they were doing and bowed. An Esperian nurse approached the two with a light smile.
"Lady Lindsay, Sir Emuh. It is a pleasure to have you in our presence. All is well in the palace?"
"Yes. However, we request your aid in this special circumstance." Emuh announced. The nurse was as tall as he was but she kept her eyes on Lindsay.
"Of course. If you will," she nodded and walked towards a door to the left. The two followed her and walked into an empty examination room, Emuh closing the door behind him. "How can I assist m'lady?"
"Lady Lindsay believes she is with child and requires further confirmation."
"O-Oh," the nurse gave her a surprised look but darted her eyes to her feet as she blushed. "A blessing, your majesty. I am confident that the Royal Magistrate is most elated."
"Can we trust that this doesn't leave this room?" Lindsay raised an eyebrow at the Esperian who gasped but bowed.
"A-A-As you wish, your highness. I will see to the exam, personally."
Thirty minutes later, Emuh and Lindsay walked inside the palace and was approached by a flustered Reyarts. Areiv tried to soothe the Esperian down but his mouth set in a tight line as he stared at Lindsay.
"Lady Lindsay, we have been most concerned over your absence!"
"Come now, Reyarts. Lady Lindsay was in my presence the entire-"
"Forgive me, Sir Emuh however, m'lady was told on not revealing her whereabouts. She is Lady of Esperia and cannot-"
"Are you insinuating that she is not safe with me? I am her royal deputy, now." Emuh returned the stare and Reyarts gaped before lowering his head.
"It is perfectly fine, Reyarts," Areiv gave a light smile at the scene as he rested a hand on Reyarts's shoulder. "Make certain that the table is arranged for breakfast; I am confident Lady Lindsay must be famished."
"Y-Yes, your highness." he bowed and left. Areiv chuckled as he drew his wife in for a kiss.
"If you desired a tour of Esperia before breakfast, you should have informed me, my dear Lindsay. While I do not mind my father taking you on one... I would prefer it be myself."
"I'm sorry; we didn't mean to make you guys worry."
"My father accompanied you; I was not troubled in the least. Reyarts is not accustomed to your ways, yet. Now... where did you two venture off to?" he asked with a smile. Lindsay smiled and returned his kiss.
"Not that I didn't believe you, fully but... I needed to make sure. Emuh took me to the medical clinic in town and you were right."
"Most wonderful news, my son! This is a call for a feast."
"Father..." Areiv warned as he grabbed Lindsay's hand; the three walked towards the hallway leading to the dining area.
"Ah... you are right; it is not my duty to order a feast anymore."
"I think we should wait, anyway. Everyone's still tuckered out from the one a few hours ago!"
"Yes. I am curious as to why your friends did not stay in the palace..." Areiv wondered but Lindsay shrugged.
"I dunno. Would've been nice for them to stay a bit. But, yeah; let's hold off on the feast until later. I don't think the others will take the news of this well... at least not right now."
"You are correct, Lindsay. Now; shall we enjoy breakfast?" Emuh smiled as the three made their way down the hall.