Hello everyone….sorry for the wait….again. The same usual stuff: school, work, and life getting in the way. Not really sure how many people are still waiting for this update, though I do still get notifications from readers (amazingly). This one is a bit short, but that’s because I’m going to update this weekend. That’s a promise :D Please enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think!

Soo knew that when she woke up with a start in the middle of the night, and feeling the damp bedsheets underneath her, that something was wrong. She sat up quickly and the movement woke up So, who was already a light sleeper due to this former days as a warrior. One look was all it took, and he quickly got out of bed to don his robe and boots, before turning around to caress Soo’s face gently.

“I will be back soon Soo ya, do not worry. I will be here when the baby arrives.”

And with a light kiss to her forehead, he was off.

Soo peeled back the bedsheets, only to hunch over in pain as the first of the contractions hit her, and she took deep breaths as it did, waiting for it to pass. Within a few minutes, the doors of their bedroom burst open and the royal doctor along with the midwife came in with a parade of servants. They quickly laid her back down before the maids installed the yards of fabric on either side of her head, so she could hold them in both of her hands as she progressed through her labor.

The doctors and midwife wanted to send So out of the room, as was customary during childbirth but with one glare from him, they both backed away and went back to their preparations for the baby. Soo felt another contraction come on and she held her breath, counting backwards to distract herself from the pain. So seeing the pain that Soo was experience went to her side and brushed her now matted hair away from her face, accepting a towel from a court lady to wipe her face.

So knew that this was all part of the process, but seeing just the beginning stages of Soo’s labor was so painful for him. He knew it would get worse, and a frown settled on his face. Soo, who always knew how he was feeling tried to smile reassuringly through her pain

“So ya, I know it is painful now, but it will pass. We will be okay.”

He didn’t know what else to say to that. She had somehow found the motivation and power in herself to endure this, and reassure him no less! Despite that, he was still reduced to a bundle of worries and nerves. Instead, he chose to nod and smiled in return.

It seemed as if the hours dragged on. At some point during the labor process, Soo had taken a hold of his hand, and it felt like she was going to break his fingers. However, he knew that that pain was nothing compared to what she was experiencing. He continued to wipe the sweat off her face and encouraged her as much as possible during the process.

Eventually, when the sun had risen high in the sky, the sounds of new cries could be heard in the room as Soo gave her last push.

There were sighs of relief and joyful laughter filling the room as they all heard the baby cry for the first time. The baby was the bathed and cleaned by the court ladies as the doctor and midwife examined Soo to make sure she was all right after the birth. After a thorough examination they also checked on the newborn to make sure there were no complications either. Finally everything was done, their baby was handed over to Soo.

“It is a daughter, your highnesses. Congratulations,” the royal physician said.

A daughter! Soo looked over at So who was smiling with excitement and couldn’t help but mirror his smile.

“It seems my husband was correct.”

“What do you mean, your highness?” The royal physician asked.

“He insisted I would have a daughter as our firstborn. I told him we would not know until I gave birth, but he told me he knew it would be a daughter!”

Everyone in the room laughed and So’s grin grew wider.

“And I was right, was I not?”

“Yes, your highness,” everyone in the room chorused.

“It seems that you and the baby are in good health. We will leave to clean up but if there are any changes, please send for us immediately,” the midwife said as they all bowed and left the room.

The room was much more quiet and calm after everyone left, though Soo and So knew it would not last for long.

“I suppose the rest of the palace must know what must have happened since this morning,” Soo said as she began to feed their daughter.”

“I would be surprised if they did not. I expect people to be calling soon, so let us enjoy this moment of peace before they visit.”

He looked at Soo feeding their daughter serenely and smiled. 10 years ago he would never imagined he’d be in place like this, living in the palace, married to the love of his life, and with a child! All he could think about then was the idea of entering the palace, and earning the love of his parents. As he spent days in hell, locked in the same room day to day, he could only dream of what could be. Now that he was here, it was hard to believe it was all real.

But real it was. Soo was real, and so was their daughter: Seol.

“Would you like to hold her?”

So was broken out of his reverie when Soo spoke and he blinked to clear his thoughts before focusing on her.

“Sorry, I was lost in my thoughts. What did you say?”

Soo chuckled and held the tiny bundle in her arms out to him.

“Would you like to hold our daughter?”

So stared at Soo in agape.

“M..me? Hold her?”

Soo nodded once, an obvious expression her face.

“You’re her father. You can hold her as well. You might as well before all her aunts and uncles come.”

“Are you sure I can do that?”

“Of course you can. What are you afraid of?”

That I might hurt her.

So stared at Seol as she breathed steadily. She had quickly fallen asleep after being fed, but he was still wary of holding her, fearing she would awaken.

Soo seemed to sense his hesitation, but held out her arms out further, waiting for him to take their daughter.

“You won’t hurt her. If you do, you can be sure to hear from me. Now, are you going to hold her or not? Might I remind you, I just gave birth, and keeping my arms out like this is quite tiring.”

So panicked a bit before he realized Soo was joking, but hurried to accept the bundle none the less. When he finally held Seol in his arms, he realized how light she was. Sure, he had seen how tiny she was in Soo’s arms, but to finally feel her in his own was something else on its own.

He and Soo had created this beautiful daughter, and she was finally in this world with them. He would be able to watch her grow, and he would bestow all the love she deserved and more on her. So vowed that he would do everything in his power to make sure she grew up safely.

“She looks exactly like you,”’ he said softly as he held Seol closely to his chest, but careful to not hurt her.

“Does she? I think she has your nose though.”

“She has your eyes and face shape, Soo ya.”

“Perhaps she does, perhaps doesn’t. She needs to grow a little more so we can see her features clearly.”

Soo settled back into the bed and let out a content sigh, closing her eyes. So smiled, seeing that Soo was comfortable and no longer in pain. He didn’t know how long it took for him to get the feeling back in his fingers again, but that was miniscule to the pain that Soo experienced.

“What is it?”

So was startled slightly, and checked to make sure Seol had not awoken before shifting his eyes to Soo again. Her eyes were still closed and he wrinkled his brow in confusion.

“What do you mean?”

“You are worried.”

That much was obvious, but he had tried to hide it. Once again, he forgot how astute his wife was.

“Yes, I was. I mean, I still am but I was much more worried earlier.”

“I’m all right. I promise I will tell you if I am feeling unwell.”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

Carefully holding Seol in one arm, So reached out to grasp Soo’s hand and squeezed it affectionately. Soo cracked an eye open and smiled before closing it again, settling deeper into the blankets and pillows to rest.

A few hours later, Soo was woken up by Seol, who was crying in So’s arms. He looked so baffled and worried that Soo couldn’t help but laugh, immediately clearing away her sleepy haze.

“Soo ya. How can you be laughing when Seol is crying this much? Won’t her lungs burst?”

Soo couldn’t stop laughing, but shook her head and held out her arms, in which So carefully but quickly placed Seol in.

When she finally regained control of herself, she began to feed Seol, whose cries immediately stopped.

“Babies cry, So ya. This is normal. It usually means they’re hungry or their diapers need to be changed.”

“Di..apers?”

There was another modern slip. They certainly didn’t have diapers during the Goryeo area, but Ha Jin knew what babies used during this time. She had washed her fair share of them as a water maid, and she didn’t envy whoever would end up with Seol’s soiled cloths. She would definitely reward them well, though.

“Ah, it’s what babies wear during my time. We usually don’t wash them either. Once it’s used, we throw it away.”

“That seems…convenient.”

Soo nodded.

“It is. Nothing like washing soiled cloths early in the morning.”

So grew silent and Soo looked up to see his somber expression. Whoops, it seemed like she said something wrong again. Hearing her say that must have reminded him about the time they spent apart, during which she was serving as a water maid.

Luckily, Seol quickly finished feeding and Soo cleaned up before focusing her attention on So.

“So ya, that was in the past. We shouldn’t dwell on it anymore. I certainly don’t, and I was simply making a joke about it. I’m okay.”

“But still…”

“No buts, I’m fine. Now, are you going to help me get out of bed, or am I going to have to do everything myself? I’ve been in this bed for an entire day, and I’d like to wash up.”

“Wash up, right. I’ll keep Seol here while you send for Arang and Eun Bi to help you.”

Soo placed Seol back into So’s arms and pushed the bedsheets aside. Yes, the maids had helped her change into new underclothes after the birthing, but they decided to not bathe her because she was still so tired. Now that she was up again, Soo could finally feel how icky and sweaty she felt.

Granted, she was still feeling a bit weak and had a hard time standing up and walking. However, with the help of Arang and Eun Bi, she was able to bathe and change into fresher clothes.

When she was done, she came back to the bedroom and realized So was still sitting in the same spot, holding Seol carefully in his arms and staring down lovingly at her face. The sight made Soo grin, and it was only then that she realized So had been with her the entire time, from the moment she woke up until now.

“So ya.”

“Oh, you’re back. Are you feeling better now?”

“I am, but I just realized something: you’ve been here the entire time.”

He smirked and tilted his head giving her a sly look.

“I’m glad you noticed, Soo ya.”

“You aren’t needed in court today? Is it all right that you are skipping today?”

“I believe the court will be just fine while I spend the day with my wonderful wife and newly born daughter. The kingdom will not fall that easily in my absence.”

“In that case, do you want to go wash up as well? You’ve been here as long as I have.”

“Well, I suppose that would be a good idea.”

He seemed reluctant to leave Seol, but Soo convinced him to do so.

“When you get back, I would like to visit the prayer towers.”

She was half expecting him to ask her if she was feeling all right enough to do that, but was pleasantly surprised when he simply nodded, giving her a kiss on the cheek and patting Seol on the head gently before leaving.

Now that Soo was alone with her daughter, she could finally look at Seol properly. So was saying earlier that Seol looked like her, but Soo couldn’t see it. However, what Soo could see was that Seol had a high nose bridge like her father, and his mouth shape as well. Furthermore, her hair was pitch black, like that of So’s. Her hair wasn’t nearly as dark, more of a dark brown.

Regardless of how she looked like, Seol was beautiful. There was no other word to describe their precious daughter, and she was sure that So would agree.

Then it hit her: Soo was finally a mother; Ha Jin was a mother now. Certainly, the thought had occurred to her during the long months of pregnancy, but now that Seol could be held and felt in her arms, the baby’s warm permeating through the sheets, and the slight rising and sinking of her chest as she slept, Ha Jin realized that she was a mother.

How she wished that her own mother could be here with her, to guide her through the uncharted waters of being a new mother! But she knew that wasn’t possible. However, Ha Jin knew that there were plenty of people in this world who would willingly and happily help her along in this journey. She would feel sad of course, that her own parents from the future couldn’t help her, but she had a trustworthy group of people here in Goryeo. She would be fine. And maybe if one day she was able to return, she would tell everything to her mother.

Soo felt Seol squirm around a bit in the bundle of cloths wrapped around her, and held her breath. After a few seconds, Seol settled down and began sleeping quietly again, her face nestled against Soo’s chest.

So felt an overwhelming feeling of love, and knew that it was because of this one tiny baby in her arms right then. She knew right then that she would do everything in her power to protect Seol, no matter what it took.