Work Text:
Throne
The senator that had been sent by the New Republic to speak with them was very animated as he spoke, and Ren actually found it fun to watch him, even if he didn't care for what he was talking about at all. Hux didn't find it very interesting, actually paying attention to what the man was saying, but he was sore and tired, full term with twins, so nothing would interest him until he felt better.
Hux shifted, putting a hand on his heavy belly and frowning. Ren looked at him, concerned. He grabbed his hand. "Are you alright?"
After a few breaths, Hux nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. Just a practice contraction. Don't worry." The senator had stopped talking, and everyone was staring. "My apologies, Senator Rerr. Continue on."
The senator gladly hopped back into what he had been saying. Hux settled back down, pulling the blanket he had back over his belly from where it'd sagged to his knees. He'd been chilly that morning, so Ren had insisted he take a blanket with him to the meeting, and wear thicker clothing. He had his usual jacket on over a warm sweater, with thick sweatpants, and soft socks in his boots.
Ren went back to watching the senator, but didn't release Hux's gloved hand. A few minutes later, Hux squeezed it a bit, rubbing his belly for a moment.
-
After a while, Hux was noticeably uncomfortable. He rubbed his belly, clutching it every so often. At one point he shifted again, crossing his ankles. Anxiety spiked off of him, but he looked visibly calm. Ren was getting worried about him, no longer watching the senator. He couldn't do anything to try and comfort him, he could only hold Hux's hand and hope that helped.
"...And that concludes the first point of my speech. Now-"
"Senator Rerr, if you'd please, might we all have a quick break before we listen to the next part of your intriguing speech? I'd like to make some notes."
"Of course, Emperor!" Rerr didn't look too happy about it, but everyone seemed relieved.
"The court will resume in ten minutes. You may all be dismissed, except for Lord Ren." As everyone filed out, Hux leaned forward, resting his head against his hand. "Pfassk..." He groaned, pulling his hand away from Ren to wrap his arm around his belly.
"Hux? Are you alright?"
"I think I've gone into labor."
"I'll take you to medbay." Ren started to try to help him up, but Hux pushed him away. "Armitage."
"Labor takes hours, don't panic. My contractions aren't unbearable yet."
Ren frowned. He'd rather Hux labor under the close eye of the medical staff, but Hux was stubborn. He wouldn't go lie down in the medbay unless he absolutely had to, always wanting to work until the very last minute. At least he was sitting down on the throne. It had cushions to keep him comfortable, and he stayed still on it.
"Well, as long as your water hasn't broken." Hux didn't respond, looking away. "When did it break?"
"A while ago. A few minutes after he mentioned Starkiller base for the eighteenth time."
Ren had no idea when that could possibly be. He couldn't believe Hux was counting, either. "Don't let your stubbornness make you give birth on this throne."
"Relax. When it gets unbearable you can escort me to the medbay. Now, I do actually have to take notes."
-
Even when he started sweating and his breathing was getting more difficult to keep under control, Hux didn't ask to go back to the medbay, letting Rerr speak without interruption. Ren was getting impatient, scowling. Hux noticed his expression and frowned, looking down. Ren could sense depression coming off of him through the Force, Hux feeling guilty for upsetting him, hormones amplifying it.
He gave the Emperor's hand a squeeze, and offered him a small smile. Hux cheered up, squeezing his hand back.
Rerr's speech continued into a third part, after a long second part. Ren wondered how he'd managed to memorize everything considering he only used some charts and points he was displaying on a hologram. The court was getting bored of him, but couldn't leave.
Hux's contractions were getting worse, but not painful enough for him to call another break. He rested his chin on the palm of his hand, trying to relax and hide his grimacing. After a while, he leaned back, spreading his legs a bit. He was struggling not to pant or make any noise, squeezing Ren's hand tightly.
Seeing how uncomfortable Hux looked, Ren knew that he wasn't going to make it to a medbay in time. He couldn't press for him to leave now, not in front of the court, and not by interrupting the senator. Rerr would get offended, and Hux didn't need the stress of an angry Republic senator with the stress of two newborns. Knowing how senators were, Ren guessed that if that were to happen, Rerr would accuse Hux of faking it to get out of listening.
Maybe it was better if everyone saw it for themselves that Hux really was in labor. At least then the scandal would just be that Hux was so interested in Rerr's speech that he went into labor. Rerr would like that, though everyone in the First Order would know that Hux was just being stubborn again.
At least it would be a fun story to tell in the future. He typed a message over his comm for the medbay to get a droid ready to come to the throne room when he sent a signal.
"Lord Ren, is my speech not interesting enough for you anymore?" Rerr noticed him typing.
He already had a reputation for being rude to nobles and politicians, so he didn't have to worry about Hux getting upset with him. "Politics aren't my thing, Senator. Security is."
"Don't be rude to the senator, Ren. It's quite interesting hearing about what the Republic wants to possibly negotiate. Do continue, Senator, I apologize for my Knight's lack of interest. He's only interested in the Force."
"Hmph. Well, as I was saying..."
-
Soon, Hux leaned forward and gasped, holding his belly. He hung his head and groaned, curling up on himself. "R-Ren..."
"Hux?" Ren moved to be more in front of him. "Are you alright?"
"Call the medbay. Oh..." He took a few deep breaths before continuing. "They're coming right now." Ren clicked his comm, sending the signal. "Ren, I need to start pushing..."
"You need to get your pants off." Ren helped him get his pants off, pulling them and his underwear down partway and covering him with the blanket. He pulled them off, and got to work getting off his boots, too. Hux undid the buttons of his jacket, feeling overheated. Hux groaned and pushed, spreading his legs. "Hux, you need to get into a better position. The twins can't come out the way you're sitting now."
Hux nodded, moving so he was diagonal across the throne, partially laying down. It didn't look very comfortable, but it would have to do. Ren helped him spread his legs, keeping him covered with the blanket. Hux remembered that the court was still in the room, and called out, "The court is dismissed for the day!"
People filed out of the room, and a medical droid pushed past them to get in. It came up to them, and Ren let it take his place between Hux's legs. He took Hux's hand instead, and put his other arm around Hux's shoulders.
"The first baby is crowning, Emperor!"
"Already?" Ren couldn't believe Hux had waited until the baby was already starting to come out to ask for a medical droid.
"Push!" Hux squeezed Ren's hand, bearing down. The droid coaxed him through the first contraction, and the head came out. Hux was panting, now. He did his best to relax during the reprieve, and groaned loud as he went back to pushing, red faced and sweating. Ren was surprised at how fast it was coming. "Remember the techniques the medics showed you, Emperor."
After just a few more contractions, where Hux followed the droid's instructions closely and got louder as he pushed harder, the baby slipped out. The droid cut the cord, and used the blanket to clean off the baby's face. It began crying. After tending to it, the droid passed it to Ren. Hux was trying to get a good look at the baby, but had to focus on a contraction.
"The second baby is coming, Emperor. You can hold your son as soon as you're finished giving birth."
The next twin came down faster than its brother, though Hux was getting tired. He started struggling after the baby's head came out, his progress slowing to a halt. He kept pushing, but it wasn't amounting to anything. Ren could tell he was ready to give up after a few worthless contractions. "You can do this, Hux."
"I think it's stuck..."
The droid moved its arms, and Hux drew in a sharp breath. He groaned, and bore down again. Ren looked over to see what the droid was doing, and then winced. The first twin was still wailing, so he rocked him as best as he could. It didn't work much,
"I've rotated the shoulders, Emperor. Continue pushing." The baby started to come out as he pushed, unstuck. After the shoulders emerged, it only took a few big pushes for it to come out. The droid set to work cleaning it off. As Hux caught his breath, the droid passed the second baby to Ren and started tending to Hux.
Ren helped Hux sit up a bit, and gave him the twins. He tried to steady his breathing so he wouldn't disturb them, smiling down at them. The droid called the medbay to come pick them up for proper examinations and care.
-
The medics told Hux to take bedrest for a few days, and Hux was reluctant at first, but was convinced as Ren handed him the boys for another feeding. The two were healthy, and Hux would recover soon. As the twins nursed, content in their mother's arms, Ren watched the three of them. He smiled, happy to see his family relaxed, to see Hux so peaceful. The man was always so anxious, and would likely end up anxious after a few days. For now, he was calm.
A droid came in, holding a datapad. Ren's smile faded away. "The medbay said that the Emperor isn't to work during his bedrest."
"This is not work, Lord Ren. Here, the latest news," the droid beeped and whistled. Ren took the datapad when the droid came close, and then it left.
Looking down at the screen, he could see it was a news holosite. There were multiple tabs open. A First Order holosite was on screen, then a Republic holosite, and some other holosite where the title was 'EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Emperor Hux of the First Or...' and cut off, too long.
As he read through the first holosite, he was surprised at how quickly it'd been written. For a second, he wondered how they knew it was two boys, and then realized that the medbay would have updated Hux's personal file, which was mostly public. Anyone could look at it, as it mainly contained his small family tree, background information, and a basic physical description, along with a status box saying whether or not he was working. Of course news holosites would use that to get information, they probably had an alert sent up for whenever it changed.
In a classic move for our ruler, who, in one example out of many others, once fainted during a council meeting last year due to fever, Emperor Hux remained in negotiations with a Republic representative despite the fact that he was in labor, only asking to postpone the meeting when the first baby began to crown.
Hux, during his first few years of rulership, had often fell ill when traveling, unused to the unfiltered air of planets. He'd stay in negotiations or meetings even when droids ordered him to stay in his bedroom or tried to confine him to medbay for treatment.
Still... "Hux, this site called what happened a 'classic move' of yours."
Hux scoffed. "Classic? When have I ever done something like that?"
"Naboo? Your morning sickness made you faint."
"That's one time."
"You passed out due to fever multiple times. Your first year ruling you would attend meetings ill."
"I'm just doing my duty as Emperor."
Ren went back to reading, going to the Republic site. As he thought they would, they were saying that Hux was very interested in Senator Rerr's speech, to the point where he was willing to ignore his labor pains to keep listening. "Did you like Rerr's speech?"
"No. I don't plan on agreeing to his terms."
"The senate will be disappointed."
"Is there anything else?"
"Just one more tab- Pfassk."
Hux tried to look at the screen after he swore. His movement disturbed the twins. The older one stopped eating and whined. "What is it?" Ren angled the screen towards him. "A video of me giving birth?!"
"Someone must have left a holocamera in the room."
EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: Emperor Hux of the First Order gives birth on throne
Thankfully, it looked like the droid was blocking between Hux's legs. It wasn't a good picture of Hux for the thumbnail, him mid-shout and red faced while he pushed. Ren hit play, and it started with the camera being blocked by people in the court passing by, sounding playing. Once everyone had passed, the camera zoomed in. Ren stopped the video.
"Well, it seems everyone in the galaxy has seen what happened, and knows what you sound like when you're screaming." Ren took a seat next to him, and offered a finger to the older twin. The baby grabbed it, calming down.