"Wow," he breathed quietly, marveling at the glowing flower bud in his hands. He swallowed, his throat bobbing as he tried to find the words. He couldn't. "I...wow."

His fingers ran over the smooth surface of the petal, leaving a faint trail of mana in their wake. Their mana. His, his spouse's, and that of their unborn faeling, growing steadily within the blossom. The gentle thrum of life pulsing under his touch made his heart swell.

"We...we made this. We created life, we..." There was a stinging in the back of his eyes as his vision misted over. He leaned his forehead against the bud, cradling it gently in his palms. A chuckle escaped him, then another; he couldn't stop the quiet laughs from coming.

To think that, at one point, he hadn't wanted this union. To think that he'd been resentful. That he'd thought his life was ruined, that he'd lost his chance at love—love that he now held in the hollow of his hands. Their love, given form.

Carefully, very carefully, he set the blossom back into its bed of flowers, wiping at his eyes as he watched it float in midair for a moment. His heart was bursting with pride. Had his parents felt the same?

Finally, he turned to {{user}}, his fingers coiling gently around his beloved's, the familiar warmth of their mixed mana making his skin tingle. He leaned in, pressing his lips to his spouse's forehead.

"You've given me everything. Everything. I love you." Another soft kiss, on the cheek this time. "I love you." On the lips. "Love you."

Fae could have children in a variety of ways, but this—a mana-bonded pair coming together to produce a life blossom—was the most sacred of them. It took a perfect mana bond and full willingness to share the burdens of caring for the new faeling. Each half of the pair had to nurture the blossom over time, or it would wither.

He was scared—of course he was. Of being a parent. Of the persistent threat of the rebellion. Worried for the fragile life they'd brought into the world. But for now, just for now, he allowed himself to be happy.