Oblivion (A Black Clover Story)

Thirty-Six

"So what kind of dress are you going to wear to the banquet?" Julius asked, heaving beside me after another finally-satisfying round of sex with him. I felt that he had finally earned back the privilege to finish inside of me again, so I let him. Of course I knew what the risks were, but we had such trouble getting pregnant previously. It couldn't happen immediately this time, right?

The banquet was now only a week away, and I still hadn't visited a tailor to have a brand new dress made as per Julius' request. "Do I really have to wear a dress?" I asked painfully. "I've gotten so used to wearing nice loose clothes from being in the Black Bulls. Yami doesn't make us wear any special uniforms like William and Nozel do!"

He actually laughed at the mention of these two men for once. "That's a very fair point, my love. But I still would like you to wear a dress. This event will be quite formal and given the amount of people who have already gotten back to me about attending, it will be a large-scale event. I want you to look as nice as possible."

I sighed. "Alright, fine. I'll make sure to have a nice dress tailored."

"Do you need my help with it at all? What color will you wear? Oh, I hope it's red like you wore on the first night we went out together!" he exclaimed, excitedly snuggling up to me in the bed.

I laughed. "No, I'd like to choose the designs for my own dress. I want to show off how confident I feel now that I've pretty much been on my own without my memories. But if you really want me to wear red, I'll wear red."

He hummed in satisfaction. "I can't wait," he whispered softly, nestling into me even closer than before. Then, he hugged me tight. "...Iris?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you think..." he started, voice small and unsure. When his hand softly trailed down to my stomach, I knew exactly what he was going to say. "Do you think we will ever get pregnant again?"

"Julius..."

He sighed. "I-I know this is only the first night I've truly been able to properly complete the notion of getting you pregnant but... I do want to try again."

"I don't know if we'll ever be able to again. I'm not confident at all. If I'm being honest, the reason I didn't make you pull out is because I'm positive that it won't happen immediately just like last time," I explained.

Julius' mana crumbled, just like it did on that horrible day so long ago. "You really don't think we can have a baby?"

"I think it's foolish to hope for one."

-

On the afternoon of the banquet, I sipped on a large glass of orange juice as I browsed a small selection of jewelry that I'd accumulated during my time with Julius back then. I also munched on a small chocolate pastry. Just then, he came back into the room with his hands behind his back. "How about this one?" he asked, revealing... My mother's gold bangle. "Oh, Julius!" I exclaimed, hugging him as soon as I slipped it onto my right wrist. "Did Marx give this to you?"

"He sure did. Now, why don't you pick out a nice gold set to match the bracelet?" he encouraged, trying to hide something else behind his back.

"What's that?" I inquired, getting a large, nervous grin from him. "Julius, what did you get me?" I asked in a low, warning tone.

"J-just pick out a set of earrings and a pendant and then I'll give it to you," he insisted, making me roll my eyes and quickly choose something simple. A set of gold, round diamond studs and a matching necklace would be just fine. 

Then I turned to him after putting the set aside. "Alright, now what the hell did you do?"

He chuckled, eyes curiously wandering to the table where I had my drink and snack sitting, gaze lingering for a moment. Then he snapped his gaze back to me, showing me a dainty gold headpiece that would match my mother's bangle. "Is this a tiara?" I asked, running my fingers across the delicately carved pattern. In the center sat a simple rounded gemstone.