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He was exhausted. It sat on his bones, turning his limbs to anchors. And yet his heart raced, the smile on his face making it impossible for him to rest. He was not sure if he would ever be able to close his eyes again. He did not want to miss a single second.
Beside Claude, the small precious bundle stirred, making a noise of discontent. On his other side, his wife began to move, responding to the complaint.
“Hey now,” Claude whispered, attempting not to further disturb Byleth. “What’s wrong, small bean? What’s got you all upset?”
Claude reached into the crib as his daughter squirmed against the blanket swaddled around her. Her little face scrunched in disapproval as Claude lifted her, carefully cradling her head. He untucked the blanket around her, freeing her tiny flailing limbs.
“There we go,” Claude continued to whisper to her. “Was that what you wanted, little star? You didn’t want to be trapped?”
His daughter’s face smoothed, seemingly content for the moment with her newfound ability to move about. Claude watched as her little fingers curled and uncurled, the ring finger on her left hand pale against the olive skin tone that covered the rest of her hands, so close to his own complexion.
Claude propped up his legs, laying his daughter against them. She cooed as his warmth enveloped her back, a tiny giggle echoing through the room as she waved her arms around. If Claude could physically melt right then and there he would have.
His fingers traced the pale patches of her skin. He loved them. It was as if she could not decide whether to take after her father or mother, and so decided she would do both. There was a patch along the left side of her jaw, a constellation of dark freckles already present throughout the pale spot.
There was another on her left elbow, spilling down the back of her arm like a waterfall. The bottom of the patch even looked like water spray as it hit the rocks.
The one on the back of her right knee looked like the inverse of an ink drop as it spread through a bowl of milk. One swirling line reached up to the half snowflake that spread across her hip.
And her toes! His daughter’s right foot was completely pale up to the ankle, while the three smallest toes on her left foot were the only parts that stood out. Claude gentle grasped her tiny feet, laughing as she kicked against him. She echoed the sound and kicked again.
“You’re going to be a happy one. I promise you, you will want for nothing.” Claude’s grip tightened, just enough to hold the flailing limb still as he leaned down to place a series of kisses against her foot. “You are going to know how much you are loved.”
His daughter responded by kicking his chin.
His smile stretched so wide it hurt his cheeks, but it did not matter. Claude had only ever known a joy like this in those quiet moments he shared with Byleth, when they whispered their feelings to each other through a series of soft caresses and gentle kisses.
His daughter blinked those big green eyes at him, the same mint shade as her mother’s, and Claude’s heart started trying to do flip flops in his chest. Claude never thought he would relate to Seteth so much, but he now understood the man’s overprotectiveness. If anything happened to his child, Claude would quickly adopt a scorched earth policy in his quest for revenge.
And then those little hands curled into fists, her face scrunching in displeasure. “Oh no, small bean,” was all Claude managed before she wailed.
Next to him, Byleth stirred, blinking open bleary eyes. Still half asleep, she lifted herself enough that she could plop herself against Claude’s side, staring down at their upset daughter.
"She was fine a second ago," Claude pouted. He reached for his daughter's tiny hands, but she only cried louder, smacking at him as she moved her arms around in her tantrum.
"She's probably hungry." Byleth sat herself up against the mountain of pillows Claude had insisted be provided for his wife, and untied the knot of her robe.
Claude reluctantly handed over his now screaming daughter. He repositioned himself so he could look over Byleth’s shoulder as their daughter immediately quieted when she latched onto a nipple and happily began to feed.
“How did you know that was what she wanted?” Claude asked. He tucked a stray lock of hair behind Byleth’s ear and leaned in to kiss her cheek.
“Mercie said she would probably want to feed in a few hours.” Claude felt Byleth’s shoulders tense as she fought the urge to fidget against whatever terrible thought had entered her mind. He offered her another kiss, rubbing small circles against her back to keep himself from wrapping his arms around her and possibly disturbing their daughter. “I’m worried I won’t be able to figure out what she’s asking for,” Byleth admitted.
“You figured out the Deer,” Claude pointed out. “And an entire army.”
“Those were all adults who could say what they needed,” Byleth countered.
“I’m not so sure about that last part,” Claude teased. “We’ll figure it out, together. I have to learn all this too, remember?”
“You can already make her laugh.” Byleth leaned back against him, allowing Claude to kiss the side of her frowning lips.
“Isn’t that what we agreed? I get to be the fun parent, and you get to be the one who disciplines?”
Claude laughed as Byleth turned her head and playfully snapped her teeth at his nose, missing by a considerable distance as he pulled away.
Their attention went back to their daughter as she finished her meal, smacking her lips and stretching her arms. Her mouth opened wide as she yawned, Claude not caring that Byleth was smiling and shaking her head as he cooed over their daughter.
“Let me take her,” Claude said, already reaching for the baby. “I’ll burp her. You go back to sleep.”
Byleth looked for a moment like she was going to refuse, but the exertion of spending almost two full days in labor was catching up to her again. She bent over to place a kiss against her daughter’s forehead, brushing back the patch of white hair that stood out against the thick dark curls, another gift from her father.
Claude kissed Byleth again as she reluctantly handed over their daughter, savouring the sweet taste of her lips before resting his forehead against hers. “You’re going to be an amazing mother, my love,” Claude assured her. “You always amaze, By.”
Byleth murmured her response into her pillows, something that sounded rather rude. “I’ll let you have a pass this one time,” Claude laughed, his daughter echoing with a single giggle. “Seeing as you went through so much to give me this precious little star.”
Byleth murmured again, pressing her legs against Claude’s own. Her breathing quickly evened out, too tired to continue listening to Claude’s teasing. She was exhausted, her hair limp around her face and dark circles under her eyes. She was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, tied with the little girl in his arms.
“All right, my little star,” Claude whispered as his attention turned back to the child in his arms. “Let’s see what kind of trouble we can get up to.”
His daughter giggled, shaking her little fists before she was interrupted by a huge yawn.
“You are correct,” Claude agreed. “Nap first, then trouble.”
His daughter was already half asleep by the time he finished burping her and laid her back in her crib. Claude rested his chin against the edge of the crib, watching her sleep happy and content, swaddled back up in her blanket.
He nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt a tug on the back of his shirt. Claude spun around, still being careful not to disturb his daughter.
“I would sleep better if my husband joined me.”
Claude smiled at Byleth, following the gentle urging of her hands to lay upon the bed next to her and take her into his arms. “I didn’t want to take my eyes off of her,” he admitted.
“She’ll be there in the morning,” Byleth pointed out before kissing the tip of Claude’s nose. “And you’ll be thankful for the sleep she does allow us soon, so best to take advantage of what you’ll get now.”
Claude sighed dramatically, shifting so that Byleth could lay her head against his chest and listen to the beat of his heart.
Just as he finally allowed himself to close his eyes, Byleth whispered, “You’re going to be a good father, Khalid.”
“I hope so, my love,” he answered. But by the time he kissed the top of Byleth’s head, her breathing had evened out once more.
Claude followed not long after, a genuine smile still on his lips.