Warning: Un-beta'd.






Suho and Victoria are out for lunch one fine day while Tao is away for business. She suddenly becomes very ill, gripping her stomach and keeling over the table.

Worried, Suho holds her upright by the shoulders and searches into her tensed face.

“Are you alright?” He asks.

Unable to answer, Victoria barely shakes her head but that is enough to convince Suho to carry her in his arms to the nearest medical office just a few buildings away.

“How is she?” He asks the doctor.

The doctor smiles happily and shakes his hand. “Congratulations. Her excellency is pregnant with child, no fewer than three months.”

Not sure whether to be happy or shocked by the news, Suho schools his expression before pulling the curtains back and settling in a chair beside the examination bed. “How are you?” He asks her.

Victoria forces a smile. “Better.”

“The child…” Suho trails off, “or rather, the child’s father…”

She nods, staring down at her abdomen. “Kris.”

“But—“

“It’s fine,” Victoria interrupts him. “This does not make a difference.”

Luck would have it that Victoria was never impregnated when she and Kris had tried for a child, yet, when their relationship falls apart the baby appears. She clutches her fist over her stomach, breath trembling as she thinks of her future.

“Will you tell him?” Suho wants to know.

“Who?” Victoria asks.

The man chuckles at her ignorance, “Kris, of course.”

“What difference does it make whether or not I decide to let him know?” She laughs. “We are in no position to consider the child above all else.”

“There is nothing else for you to consider,” Suho tells her. “First and foremost you are a wife; now you are a soon to be mother.”

“You speak as though you hadn’t taken part in our division,” Victoria lectures him.

Suho is taken aback by her words. “It was for the best.”

“Then believe me, Suho,” Victoria tells him. “My decision not to tell Kris is for the best, as well.”





When Tao returns to town, all of the Counts in the area are invited to a charity function held at the theater Suho had purchased not too long ago.

Victoria attends the function not with Kris, but with Tao. In similar fashion, Kris attends the event with Luna.

“I can only imagine the life that you must live, milord,” Tao teases. “Beautiful women left and right. If only the women in Rhone-Alpes were as beautiful as the women here in Aquitaine.”

Luna curtsies. “You are too much, Count.”

“Not at all,” Tao smiles, “I hope you enjoy yourselves this evening. Come, Victoria, let us admire the art piece being auctioned by the painter from Auverne.”

Kris watches as Tao carefully and cautiously walks Victoria over to the stage, extremely attentive to her every step, almost as though he were afraid she would break if he even so much as let go of a strand of her hair.

Beside him, Suho sighs. “Quite a pair, aren’t they?”

“I wouldn’t know,” Kris answers honestly.

Suho laughs. “Yes, of course, then let me have the pleasure of informing you. Tao and Victoria can read each other with a simple glance. It is odd, really, even to me, who is more or less of a close companion to Victoria herself.”

“How much do you know about him, Suho?” Kris wants to know.

In response, Suho shrugs, “Just about as much as you do.”

“The letter I received months ago was addressed from you,” Kris calmly remarks. “I would only expect you to be somewhat familiar with him before writing a letter to me for him in your own name.”

“I was only following instructions,” Suho replies.

At that, Suho tilts his glass of wine towards Kris for a cheer before stumbling off into the crowd of nobles in his company. They greet all guests with equal enthusiasm, selling many pieces of artwork and frames, earning lots of revenue for future usage towards building and construction.

Luna, who has been inspecting the situation, smiles in gradual understanding.

“Madame Wu must be with child.”

“What?” Kris asks.

She glances up at him, smile bright and eyes shining. “Count of Rhone-Alpes has been refusing wine on her behalf ever since the event had started, she drinks only juice, and both Counts are wary of her every action and movement. It is obvious her health is of great concern to them. However, most importantly, she constantly seems to runs her fingers over her abdomen, even if only for the briefest second, as though guarding it from harm when she walks.”

“So you have come to the conclusion that she is impregnated?”

“It is only a guess,” Luna shrugs, “but a woman’s intuition is more often than not accurate.”

“My, my, Kris, have we already moved along to another beauty?”

He would recognize that voice from its ashes. “Signor Lee.”

“Your father appears to be absent?”

“Yes, he has not been feeling well as of late,” the younger boy replies.

Signor Lee laughs. “Then he should pass down the reign.”

“He will do so as he sees fit,” Kris explains. “However, don’t you think it is about time you’ve handed over your title to your son as well?”

The Count’s smile falls. “My son still has a lot to learn. Unlike you, Kris, my son still lacks in many areas. In fact, I’m sure he could learn a thing or two from you.”

Standing his ground, Kris does not waver as he inquires, “However so?”

“Learning from one’s mistakes,” the Count replies simply. “Oh, but we can’t be so sure you very good at that either, can we?”

They watch as the Count leaves them, a smug grin on his face as he turns away. Victoria is watching out of the corner of her eye, not wanting to catch the attention of the Count of Haute-Normandie as he passes them by after a brief greeting.

Tao slants a look at her, nudging her with his elbow. “You seem bothered.”

“I want to know what the Count told him,” she says.

“Whatever it is, it can’t possibly be about the child,” Tao shrugs. “At the very most, it would be another slur of insults, knowing that sly old grouch.”

Pouting, Victoria turns away from Tao and accidentally meets eyes with her husband. They haven’t met in a while now and it seems as though there is much he wants to tell her. Anxiety begins to run through her, bottom lip trembling as she bites down on it to repress her urge to call him over.

Those eyes—those eyes were never a sight she could turn away from.

“Are you alright?” Suho asks.

Victoria forces her eyes to break contact with Kris’s, turning to Suho. “What does it mean to be alright?” She asks, glancing back and forth between Suho and Tao. “When will things go back to the way they used to be?”

“It will pass,” Tao tells her.

Suho nods. “When the time comes, everything will resolve itself.”

“Is something the matter?” Signor Lee asks from a small distance.

Victoria lowers her head, muttering between her breaths. Signor Lee smiles secretively at her words, satisfied with her umbrage.

“I hate him,” she recites through gritted teeth. “I hate him.”





“You seem familiar with them,” Luna comments on the carriage ride home.

Kris is staring out the window, fingers pressed to his lips. “With whom?”

She laughs a little, throwing her locks of hair over her shoulders, “The two Counts accompanying your wife tonight.”

“I am only familiar with the Count of Alsace,” Kris clarifies, leaning a little closer to the small frame, “the other I have only just met not too long ago.”

Inclining forward, Luna grins a knowing smile. “There’s something you’re not telling me.”

“You’re not supposed to be so nosy,” he retorts in obliviousness. “Why don’t you just be a good lady and keep to yourself?”

Luna purses her lips. “You’re no fun anymore, Kris.”

And then the man laughs, nodding in agreement. “Yes, that much I admit.”





Count of Haute-Normandie walks through the doors leading to the lobby of Tao’s temporary residence, greeted by a line of servants awaiting him in the main hall.

“What wind brought you all the way over to my place today, milord?” Tao questions as he’s just walking down the stairway to the lobby, quite shocked by the sudden visitor.

“Does Victoria not stay with you?”

Tao shakes his head. “Were you not the one whom suggested for this woman of mine to spy on her very own husband on our behalf?”

“Do you not grow jealous and wonder what she does behind your back in her absence?” The Count counters.

The younger man laughs. “All the better,” Tao exclaims, “this way, I can bring other women home and she wouldn’t have a clue.”

Upon hearing his words, the Count becomes more confident in their affiliation. “We truly are the same type of people,” he remarks. “Why be so attached to one woman when we can have them all?”

Tao throws an arm over the older man’s shoulders, shaking his hand. “Yes, yes,” he chuckles, “very much agreed, milord.”

They walk out of the house arm in arm, discussing women and gambling like brother’s reunited after years of separation. From a distance, Suho hides beyond a street cart as he watches both men enter a carriage and ride off into the distance.

He grins to himself then, turning away from the scenery like a man who was won a great award.





“Luhan, I need you to hide his books, every single one of them. Bury them beneath the ground, plant them into your gardening pots, or slip them into the crevice of your walls— whatever you do, you must ensure that no one will find them!”

“But milady—“

Victoria hushes him, glancing around to make sure no one is near. “No one is to hear of this, do you understand?”

Nodding reluctantly, Luhan takes the box of books into his arms.

She smiles at him then, giving him a small pat on the head. “Oh! And these—,“ she exclaims, retrieving several letters from her purse, “you must deliver these letters for me as they are addressed when I signal for you to, Luhan.”

“Letters?” He mutters.

“Yes, letters,” she nods. “It is very important that they land in the right hands. You musn’t make a single mistake in delivering the letters, Luhan.”

Luhan nods. “Yes, milady.”

“Alright, you are excused.”

After watching Luhan leave, Victoria turns the corner to return to her bedroom. Standing not far off is Kris’s mother, staring at her with concern in her eyes. “Victoria—“

“Mother,” Victoria smiles while walking up to her mother in law, “what is keeping you awake so late at night?”

“I am ridden with worry, Victoria,” Madame Wu explains. She reaches out and takes Victoria’s hands into her cold ones. “Kris has been away and his father has been horribly busy and upset. Do you know what’s going on?”

Victoria shakes her head. “I’m afraid I am not aware of the consequences, mother.”

“I know that is a lie,” her mother in law says, parting her lips in a sigh.

Helpless, Victoria forces a smile. “We only hope that you do not worry. The Count and Kris will be able to overcome these obstacles, mother, and the skies will be cleared once again.”

“I suppose I can only hope for the best,” Madame Wu utters.

Walking the woman back into her room, Victoria closes the door and makes way towards the room of her own. Unexpectedly, Kris seems to be awaiting her there.

As she enters the room, Kris walks to the blinds and pull them close. Understanding his actions, Victoria also closes the door and locks it behind her before walking over to the bed and slipping beneath the blankets.

Kris joins her in the bed, sliding up behind her and wrapping his arms around her from behind. She can feel his large hands resting over her abdomen, a breath of a sigh warming her ear.

“You should have told me,” Kris whispers.

Victoria buries herself deeper into his chest. “I did not find it of great importance to tell you right away. It would be the same if I informed you after all has past.”

“What if we don’t succeed?” He asks. “Or what if I never find a way to work our family out of this dilemma?”

She slowly allows her eyelids to fall over her eyes. “Your family,” Victoria corrects him. “It’s only your family now.”

“The child you bear is mine,” Kris exclaims confidently, “therefore, it is still our family.”

Momentarily, she wonders if she should be allowing herself to feel so comforted by this man’s embrace. Kris presses a quick kiss to her shoulder and warms up against her, holding the woman lying before him securely.

“I do not intend to lose any more dignity of mine to you than I already have,” Victoria tells him. “By daybreak, things will return to the way they were last.”

-----

A/N: Thank you for all of your support~ I know I've been pretty focused on my drabbles lately, but this fic has still received so much support! You guys are the best! I'm a little distraught about Victoria's new series rumors, but I won't let it get the best of me. Welp, I guess I should get back to my drabbles~ THANK YOU! ♥♥♥