Gladys cleans herself a little and lays on the bed with clean sheets waiting for the midwife while feeling a little nervous for the childbirth almost a whole month ahead schedule. When she feels the first abdominal cramp it almost surprised how mild it is, almost perfunctory. The subsequent 9 hours felt like a dissociated reality for Gladys where she is not the patient but a close observer, even when she can feel her body molting to adapt to the chore that is about to happen, the blinding pain from coping with the changes just didn't appeared as like it was with Luis, where at this point she was drenched in sweat and even loosing control of her bodily functions.
The only thing that assure her that everything is real is that all the sign are present and her cervix is in fact ripening for labor. Gladys didn't know that every cell in her body was precisely and continuously receiving the amount of healing needed to be kept at topnotch condition while being masterfully directed by Aurora to perform their intended task in the most efficient way, Aurora was already a healer and Gladys was her first patient.
Finally Gladys could feel it was time, and says almost to herself "Is coming". In a breeze the baby descends gently, her head pops out, then her shoulders one after the other surface and just like that Aurora is born into this world. At the time of her birth Aurora could only think in the words of a certain ancient real-time strategy game: "Awaken my child, and embrace the glory that is your birthright", which, in hindsight, may have been a little too ominous for this world.
After that thought, Aurora screams to try to avoid being given the proverbial spank and she succeeds, but not exactly because of her quick thinking, but because the middle-aged midwife got enthralled with Aurora appearance in a strange feeling of incongruity, so the right moment for the spanking just passed by.
The baby in her hands is beautiful like a doll with cherry blonde hair, well shaped head (Aurora moved the pregnancy before schedule and widen up a little the hips of Gladys to avoid her head being squashed to the shape of a melon at birth), fair skin, long eyelashes and, more eerie that everything else combined: those big turquoise eyes that were staring at her soul and measuring her out. Those were not the eyes of a new-born child.
After the middle-aged midwife recovers and not daring to disrespect a Ducal house with some inappropriate comment, she passed the baby to her mother. Gladys received Aurora in her arms with the vague sense that maybe it all has been a dream because how easy it was compared to the birth of Luis. "Am I going to wake up? or maybe, is supposed to be like this the second time?" Gladys whisper to herself. But as soon she saw the deep turquoise eyes (a perfect combination of her own blue eyes and Sid green eyes) of her little baby girl, she forgets about those silly things and in turn gets lost in more serious and heavy thoughts.
Gladys is a beautiful delicate 25 year old fine featured woman with sunflower blond long hair, 1.70 meters tall, expressive deep blue eyes, porcelain skin and (even when it might take a few weeks) her body will undoubtedly recover her hourglass shape. The Graystone women were known for being beautiful and fertile and Gladys was a true Graystone, even when some insidious people doubted those capabilities when it took one year after being married to Sid Lionhearth to become pregnant of Luis.
Gladys respected Sid for honoring the memory of his first wife Emilia, but even she thought that after the painful and perfunctory consummation of her marriage on the first night, not touching her for almost a year was ridiculous and hurtful in a complete different way. Gladys is sure that General Patrick Lionhearth, Sid's father and previous Duke Lionhearth, confronted Sid about the absence of a heir, probably even suggesting that if Gladys was the problem a concubine or even a mistress might do fine (which in fact is not true and is only the projection of Gladys insecurities). After the brief visit of the General, Sid requested Gladys to move to his bedchambers, that lasted a couple of months until Gladys pregnancy of Luis was confirmed and she moved back to her room, but the deed was done and Gladys even perceived that some of the ice over Sid's hearth have melted away.
Luis expected role was clear: being the heir of the house of Lionhearth and until ten seconds ago Aurora's role was also clear in Glady's mind: become the legal wife of royalty or another Ducal house. Men inherit, travel, explore, fight, administer a territory, become civil servants or launch a business, while women bond families through marriage, give birth to children, socialize and administer the internal affairs of the manor. Is that not it?
Gladys could empathize with Sid's situation but that didn't meant she was not hurt when her value as person was put into question when people suggested she was not fulfilling her duties as a wife. Did her family expected her to seduce Sid? Gladys had many talents, specially in magic (including enchantment and inscriptions), mathematics and foreign languages, but seduction was not one of them, and being a virgin she was very conscious of her "performance" in intimate situations to begin with.
Watching intensely at the eyes of her daughter like trying to decipher something, she asks offhandedly "You are special, aren't you?". Aurora knows her neck isn't strong enough so she uses a little bit of magic to give Gladys an almost imperceptible nod, just enough to make her wonder if it hasn't been her imagination, and finishes with a beautiful half smile. Gladys' eyes open fully in surprise but finally also give Aurora a half smile in response.
"Aurora Lionhearth, I am Gladys Lionhearth, Duchess consort of the House of Lionhearth and your mother. You clearly have been blessed by one of the great spirits of this world and your mission may be more profound that I can fathom and, truth be told, you may need to leave this House to fulfill it. But I promise you this, as long as you mean no harm to this House and their subjects I will nurture your potential to the best of my ability only for the privilege of seeing what you can become".
Aurora felt very lucky to have been born in this world with such an amazingly encouragingly woman as a mother and even felt a little guilty for holding back a little bit in sharing the efficiency improvements she embedded in her anima, but she had time to correct that and in the mean time she decided to give Gladys a new blessing she was not sure about a minute ago. Aurora quietly genetically modified all the eggs in Gladys ovaries to make sure any child she mothers from now on will be astounding.
As for Luis and her father, Aurora thought that maybe also help them compact their anima if they are nice people. As for the prodigy children Gladys will birth from now on, it will be fine ... probably.