"Just try and hold on a little longer", Naofumi told his wife, who was in his arms and crying from the pain in her body. He ran through the streets, before arriving at the home of the resident doctor. His hand rapidly hit the door, before it finally opened. "Shield Hero? This is a..." "My wife is going into labor!" The doctor looked in Naofumi's arms to see Raphtalia writhing in pain. "Right this way! Quickly!"
Naofumi walked in and placed his lover carefully onto a bed. "Just hang on, Raphtalia. The doctor is here." The said woman panted heavily, before letting out a strained cry. "It's okay. I'm right here. I'm right here", Naofumi reassured his wife, holding her hand and placing kisses on the knuckles. She gave him a smile, then let out another cry of pain.
The door swung open, and a little girl with blonde hair ran in. "Master! What's going on?" "Filo..." said Raphtalia, before crying in pain once again. "Is the baby coming?!", asked Filo. She saw the doctor coming into the room with a bucket. "Can I help?", asked the little girl. "I don't see why not", said the doctor. "I need to fill this up with water. You go look for a towel." "Yes sir!"
Seeing the filolial so excited made Naofumi smile. "She is really excited. Now that I think about it, she'd basically be our kid's big sister." Raphtalia laughed lightly, until another contraption kicked in. The doctor returned, trying not to spill a single drop of water in the bucket he carried. Filo also entered the room, having found a towel.
Naofumi took the towel and soaked it in the bucket of water. He wiped it across Raphtalia's head, while he held her hand. The pain she was feeling made her grip tighten, but the shield hero has been through enough hardships for the pain not to bother him. The doctor lowered himself down by Raphtalia, getting ready to help deliver the baby. She was luckily in her sleepwear, so the preparations were quick. "Alright ma'am, I just need you to start pushing." Raphtalia nodded, and did as the doctor instructed.
She gathered all of the strength in her body abd pushed as hard as she could. Filo looked on in worry, while Naofumi stayed by his wife's side. "Just think, Raphtalia. Once this is over, we can go home, where that nursery is, remember? Just imagine how happy our kid is going to be in there. I bet they'll have the cutest laugh a person will ever hear." Raphtalia, regardless of her current state, imagined the scenario. It was enough to make her smile. She pushed again, the sensation of her child moving lower into her body. "Almost there, ma'am", said the doctor. "I can already see the head." Naofumi's eyes widened at hearing this. "Keep pushing, Raphtalia! Keep pushing! Don't stop!" Raphtalia let out a loud cry of pain. "The baby...!! Out baby, Naofumi...!"
The young woman let out one final painful cry, before it was replaced by the shrill wailing of a newborn. The doctor cradled it in his arms, slowly standing up until both Naofumi and Raphtalia could see their brand new child. "Congratulations. You have a healthy baby girl." The doctor took a pair of scissors and snipped of the umbilical cord.
Raphtalia held out her arms as her new daughter was placed into them. Her crying began to stop, almost as if she knew she was in the presence of her mother. The said woman looked down at her, feeling tears of joy begin to form in her eyes. "She's beautiful", said Naofumi. "She's so cute!", gushed Filo. "She is both those things", said Raphtalia.
"Have you decided on a name?", asked the doctor. Naofumi looked at his lover. "Well, she's a girl, so I guess we can choose that one." Raphtalia nodded, then looked back at her daughter. "Aurora. Her name is going to be Aurora." As she said that, the infants eyes began to open just a crack, then let out a little whimper. "Hello, Aurora", said Naofumi. "I'm your dad. And this amazing woman here is your mom." Raphtalia smiled at her husband. The way he was so gentle with his child was a beautiful sight for her. What made it better was that she was going to be able to see it every day now that Aurora was in their lives.
"I can't wait to tell Melty!", said Filo. Naofumi tried to think of the scenario. Melty did have a fondness for cute things, and since Aurora was just that... "You may need to rest here for tonight. Just to give yourself time to recover", the doctor told Raphtalia. She looked at her husband, who took her hand and gave her a smile. "Don't worry. I'll stay right here." "Me too! I'll protect Aurora!", Filo said with determination. Raphtalia laughed lightly. "Thank you. Both of you." Naofumi gave his wife a kiss on the cheek. "Any time. For you and our daughter." Raphtalia caressed the man's face, watching him lean in to her hand's warmth.
The doctor brought in two bedrolls for Naofumi and Filo, and a small miniature box for Aurora. That night, the family all peacefully slept together, excited for the new life they were going to have with the brand new member.
