There are Minor scenes in this chapter please read with caution.     One month later. Six months, two weeks along.
Kai was going to strangle Sehun. This was the fifth time in as many days that he had taken off when he’s supposed to be resting, and, not for the first time, Kai was tempted to just tie him to the bed so that he would rest like he was supposed to. “It’s for his own good,” he muttered to himself as he pulled the door to their chambers shut. Five days ago he found Sehun in the stables trying to mount a horse while all of the stable hands just fluttered around him helplessly. Kai had never been so angry in his life, both at Sehun and at the stable hands for even letting him near the horses in his condition. “I’m not a child,” Sehun had groused, and he’d looked so cute, standing there with his arms crossed as the wind blew his loose, flowered tunic about, a sweet little pout on his face, that Kai's irritation had dissipated in an instant. Shaking his head, he had cupped Sehun's face in his hands and said, “No, love, but you are carrying one. You can’t go off riding horses, it’s too dangerous. Next time you’re bored, we’ll go for a walk or sit on the beach. You need to stay on the ground and not do too much bouncing.” Sehun had just smirked at that and quipped, “That’s not what you were saying last night.” At Kai's long-suffering groan, he sighed, “Alright, alright. No horses, no excitement.” He hadn’t kept his promise. The following day, he found Sehun in the kitchens with Soo-Jung as his partner in crime, bent over a lit oven watching a loaf of bread rise while the heat curled his hair and soot dusted his face. “I stayed in the castle,” Sehun had protested, scowling when Taemin lifted his hands and said defensively,  “He pulled the pregnant card, sorry Kai. I couldn’t say no.” The third time, he found Sehun in Ilda, chatting animatedly and enjoying a few snacks with his sister's wife, while Joo-hyun sat in the corner of the room, looking over some scrolls. Sehun and Seulgi had asked Kai to join them, but Kai was angry at his husband for not letting him know he was leaving the palace and Kai instead helped Joo-hyun sorted out the scrolls.  And now, Kai knew better than to revisit the stables or the kitchens, or Ilda this time because Sehun always have knew places to visit, but he checked the library and all the places he knew his husband liked to be but there was no Sehun in sight. Kai hanged out the window in the library so that he could scan the premises before retracing his steps to the entry hall to think.  Sehun wasn't in Enchancia and Kai knew where to find his husband this time.Letting out a sigh, he created a portal directly to Dracoland and into the palace. A gust of bitterly cold wind, bringing with it the scent of winter and, strangely enough, roses. Kai groaned. He knew exactly where Sehun was, and that he was probably not wearing a coat, or even a cloak in this unforgivable coldness. Bracing himself against the cold, Kai slipped into the palace and trudged off toward the garden. Despite the lack of life in the garden, Kai found Sehun right in the center of it all, Chanyeol was there as well. The wisteria arbor sat in a small clearing, bare but for the brittle, lifeless vines twisted around the wooden frame, weak winter sunlight shining dully through the gaps. The rose bushes that surrounded the arbor shiver violently in the wind and Kai's boots made quiet squelching noises with every step he took across the muddy ground. But there Sehun was, sitting on the ground underneath the arbor with his legs crossed and his eyes closed. He look peaceful, if a bit cold, but the temperature was dropping as it approach nightfall and as he had suspected, Sehun was wearing just a pair of low-waist breeches and a thick cotton shirt that hugged his frame and stretched across his belly, showing off the bump he’s so proud of. Chanyeol's eyes widened and he bowed, opening his mouth to speak but Kai shook his head and the knight seemed to understood as he stepped aside, pointing towards the palace before he walked away. Kai came to a stop in front of Sehun's and settled his hands on his hips, allowed himself to just watch for a moment before saying, “I thought we agreed that you would rest.” “I am resting,” Sehun smiled. He didn't even open his eyes, just tilted his head up toward Kai and murmured, “I am tried of just sitting around doing nothing and you wouldn't even allow me to do my duty as a ruler. And I missed Bong-Cha and her papa, I haven't seen them since Joo-hyun's wedding” Kai let out a deep breath. "I know how you must be feeling, but you've done enough for the time being and I promise you you'll resume your duties as soon as you put the baby to bed." Sehun's eyes slid open, pupils so wide his eyes were nearly black, and he fixed his gaze on Kai. “Okay,” he murmured, smiling wistfully. "I trust you." "So where is Baekhyun and Bong-Cha?" "They've gone hunting and Baek asked Chanyeol to stay with me." Kai sighed. Sehun looked so happy, so lovely, sitting in the middle of a winter garden with wind-burnt cheeks and his hair blowing madly about his face, but Kai worried. Shaking his head, he held his hands out and coaxed, “Come on, love, let’s get you back to Enchancia and warm up. We can go for a walk tomorrow, while the sun is still shining." To Kai's surprise, Sehun didn't protest. He let Kai hauled him up, awkward and front-heavy as he stood up belly-first, even crowded in close when Kai chafed at his arms to try and rub some warmth back into them. He was shivering. Exasperated and over-protective, Kai wrapped an arm around Sehun and led his stubborn husband back to the castle with a single flick of his fingers. He called for a hot bath to be drawn and stripped Sehun down by the fire so that he could warm up a bit first. His fingers and toes were frigid, but his belly was warm, always warm, like their baby wanted to take care of Sehun just as much as Kai did. Once he’d rubbed the feeling back into Sehun's extremities, Kai helped him into the giant copper tub, one hand in the small of his back to steady him as he tottered on the slippery bottom. When he let go so that Sehun could ease into the steaming water, Sehun threw a hand out to grab his wrist, looking up at Kai with wide eyes glimmering brightly in the torchlight, and asked, “Join me?” “Who else would wash your hair?” Kai teased, stepping back so that he could strip off, then slip into the tub behind Sehun. Sehun settled against him with a sigh and tipped his head back onto Kai's shoulder. Steam clouded Kai's vision, and the heat of the water, the weight of Sehun's body against him, sapped him of energy and left him loose-limbed and sleepy. He tangled their feet together and ran his hands in lazy up and down Sehun's sides until he had melted against him. “How do you feel?” Kai asked quietly, nosing at the damp hair behind Sehun's ear. He smelled of lavender and rosemary, and Kai's stomach twisted appreciatively. “Perfect,” Sehun sighed. “Good. Want me to do your hair?” Sehun nodded, then struggled into a sitting position so that Kai could reach. Kai took a moment to run his hand down the length of Sehun's back, broad and smooth and pale. Sehun hummed and arched into his palms, moaned when Kai dug the heels of his hands into the small of his back. “Feels good,” Sehun mumbled, and Kai smiled, pressed a kiss to his damp shoulder before twisting around to grab some of the hairwash the Royal physician(Seokjin) created for Sehun and tipping some into his hand. “I’m going to make you feel even better,” Kai promised. Kai took his time working the mixture into Sehun's hair, tugging and massaging at his scalp until everything smelled like lavender and Sehun was grinding mindlessly against him, his soft, whimpering sighs filling the room. “Lean back, darling,” Kai whispered, using his grip on Sehun's hair to tug his head back so he could rinse the hairwash out. Sehun moaned at the pull on his scalp, and when Kai slid a hand around and wrap it around his , he shuddered and slumped back against him. Kai wiggled around so that when he roll his hips, he could rut against the curve of Sehun's . There was not quite enough pressure or friction for him to get off, but he cared more about getting Sehun off than himself. Settling back, he pulled Sehun with him, part his legs with his feet hooked around Sehun's ankles and tightened his grip on Sehun's member. From this angle, he could just see his hand over the head of Sehun's over the swell of his belly, and it had heat curling in his gut. He slid his free hand over Sehun's stomach, twitching at the way Sehun shivered and moaned in response. “Kai,” Sehun whimpered, canting his hips up as best he could, trying to meet Kai's tugs and urge him on. “Shh,” Kai soothed, circling his hand over Sehun's belly and him faster, tighter, swiping his thumb over the head and mouthing at the soft skin behind his ear. “I’ve got you. Come on, sweetheart.” Sehun gripped Kai's thighs where they’re bracketing his hips and twisted his head around for a kiss, and Kai swallowed his cries as he came. Kai him through it, held his husband while he trembled and panted into his mouth. He could feel Sehun's eyelashes fluttering against his cheek, could feel his body slowly going lax, like his bones have liquefied and Kai was the only thing supporting him. Kai's member was still hard, throbbing where it was trapped between his belly and Sehun's back, but the water was cooling around them and he wanted to get Sehun out of the tub before he fall asleep. “Alright, Sehun, let’s get you into bed, love.” Kai sat up, using his body to tip Sehun forward, then climbed out quickly so that he could grab a towel to dry Sehun off. It took a bit of maneuvering and a few grumbles of embarrassment from Sehun to get him out of the tub, but Kai just clicked his tongue and bundled Sehun up for the walk to the bed. Kai continued to stare at Sehun, his changed body pale and round in the candlelight. There were pink marks on his belly now, like the stripes of one of the tigers Kai once saw during his trip to Banxanda. "Give me a moment!" Sehun said and wiggled out of Kai's arms, he stood on his feet and moved to the corner of the room to clean his teeth. Once Sehun had cleaned his teeth with the mixture of sage and salt they keep in a little pot on the dressing table, scrubbing at them with a rag, he took up a larger jar and unscrewed the lid, loosing a sweet scent of juniper into the air. “What’s that?” Kai asked from his spot at the foot of the bed, meeting Sehun's gaze in the glass mirror over the dressing table. “Mmm? Oh, it’s whale fat, mixed with some herbs to make it smell better, Seokjin gave it to me this morning while you're in court” Sehun said, looking back at Kai over his shoulder, “ he said It'll help keep my stretch marks to a minimum, since the baby's growing bigger. I am to apply it all over my belly every night before I go to sleep.” “Ah.” Kai let him get back to it, moving to settle himself up against the headboard, reaching for the book he kept on his bedside table. His attention wouldn't stay fixed, though; it kept drifting back over to Sehun, latching onto the sight of Sehun's hands rubbing the oily mixture into his skin.  “Come here,” Kai said after a few minutes. “Let me.” Sehun's hands pause, then he got up from the stool and moved over to the bed, offering Kai the jar. “Here.” Climbing up beside him, Sehun let Kai tug him back onto the mattress, leaning against Kai's chest between his spread legs, just like how they've been moments earlier in the bathtub. Kai dipped his fingers into the jar; the fat came out solid and congealed, and he had to rub it between his hands and warm it up before it’s soft enough and he started to massage it slowly into Sehun's skin. “like this?” he asked, smoothing his hands under Sehun's bump. “Yes,” Sehun said, wriggling a little against Kai to get himself into a more comfortable position, his snugged up against Kai's crotch and his head tipping back a little to rest against Kai's shoulder. “All over. And you have to rub it right in so it gets absorbed.” “I know how to apply skin cream,” Kai laughed, but he did as Sehun suggested anyway, wasting little time as he pressed the fatty mixture onto Sehun's belly. The baby was kicking more than usual these days. Even now he could feel a slight ripple against his palms as it shifted its position somewhere deep inside Sehun's body. Sehun just sighed and relaxed against Kai, his hands resting on Kai's thighs on either side of his own, the bridge of his nose brushing against the side of Kai's throat, his breaths warm and steady. His stomach was full and taut, firm under Kai's palms with only the slightest give to it. “That feels nice,” Sehun said, making a pleased sound almost like a purr as Kai rub over his navel. “How much do I have to use?” Kai asked “Mmm?” “How long do you need me to do this for?” "Oh, I think that should be enough." Sehun smiled. “You take such good care of me," Sehun said wiggling out of Kai's hold. “You are mine,” Kai pointed out, allowing Sehun to get comfortable. Sehun scooted back against the pillows and waited for Kai to join him, shivering a bit in the cool air. Moving in close, Kai tug the blank