Chapter 35: Lamiaceae

The celebrations kept going long into the night; the majority of students slowly trickled away, leaving only the newlyweds's closest friends and acquaintances present. Clavell stood aside, a small smile on his lips as he simply watched; he had just finished dancing with Sada, who had now been dragged in a lively gigue by Jacq. The woman was laughing as Jacq enthusiastically showed her all the steps, messing up half of them.

Turo meanwhile was catching his breath away from the dance floor, and was busy showing one of the sensors to calculate the Tera type of a Pokémon he had developed to an interested audience composed of Brassius, Larry, Hassell and strangely enough, Raifort.

A Sudowoodo and a Staraptor were waiting on the grass as he moved a device similar to a metal detector up and down, scanning them.

« As you can see, even as it is not currently Terastalized, if we scan this Sudowoodo it's type shows up as "Grass"» Turo said, before moving to the other Pokémon. Brassius smiled, his usually gloomy eyes alight.

« So, if this Tera Orb becomes commonplace, I could terastallize it whenever I want?» he asked. Turo nodded, before moving the detector towards the Flying type.

« Meanwhile, Larry's Staraptor shows up as... Uh. »

He quirked one eyebrow, and checked the device expecting some error code.

« ... Weird. It says "Normal" type here. » he muttered.

« I suppose it would happen... if a Pokémon's Hidden Power just happens to be in tune with their actual type... err, I'm sorry, Larry. » he shook his head with a sigh.

Larry didn't look particularly perturbed, as he stroked the Staravia busy preening himself.

« I don't really mind. » the smallest hint of a smile appeared on the man's face.

« A flashy type like Dragon or Fire wouldn't have suited us. Sometimes being ordinary is exactly what makes someone stand out. I'm actually glad you confirmed how in tune we are with each other. » he said.

Well... all right, as long as he was happy with it.

« Ideally, when that time comes, it would be great if we could integrate these sensors into something that every trainer could carry with them, so everyone could immediately check the Tera type of any Pokémon they have... » he explained.

Unfortunately, to his slight frustration, the technology wasn't quite there yet. Maybe in a couple years time... Now if people would just hurry up and invent the touchscreen pushing for further device portability, that would already be a step in the right direction...

His thoughts got interrupted by Hassel stepping forward.

« Could you check my Pokémon next?» he asked, excited, but before he could comply, they both got interrupted by a loud yell. He turned around, recognising Jacq's voice, to find the younger researcher stumbling in his direction, dragging a still laughing Sada behind him.

« Wait! I haven't given you my wedding gift yet!»

There was a pause as Turo furrowed his eyebrows, perplexed.

« ... um... Isn't it in that envelope along all the others...?» he asked. Jacq took a moment to fix his glasses - was he drunk? He looked a bit tipsy -

« Yes! I mean, not quite... It's another gift! » he exclaimed, before he started to fumble in the breast pocket of his two-piece suit. A brief silence fell as Turo watched Jacq turn every pocket inside out muttering "Now where did I put them...?" To himself. He turned towards Clavell, hoping for an explanation, but the man just shook his head.

« Found them!»

And with that, Jacq pulled out no less than six miniaturized Poké Balls and threw them in a wide arc in the air.

« What... » Turo's eyes widened as the forms of six Magnemites started floating in the air. Ampere let out a buzz and floated closer to the group. They must have started to communicate in some way - probably electromagnetic signals-, because they all started to bop up and down in midair.

He turned back to Jacq, who wore a big, dumb grin on his face.

« Jacq... what's the meaning of this?»

« Well you know how Magnemite needs to link with two others to evolve? I thought to myself: "But what if I catch two random ones and then they don't get along?" So I caught a whole bunch of 'em for you!»

He didn't really know what to say to that. On one hand, it was a sweet gesture and he appreciated it, on the other... He looked at the group of Magnemite that had started to float in circles all around Ampere, and him indirectly, making him look like some bizarre, human-shaped satellite.

« All right, but... What am I supposed to do with the ones that don't choose to evolve?» he brought one hand to his face with a sigh. Jacq didn't look worried.

« That's okay, I caught 'em near the Levincia lighthouse! I think they all like to hang around it because of the signals the lighthouse emits... so they should feel right at home at the Cabo Poco one!»

That ... was not what he was worried about, but whatever. He looked towards Ampere, who hadn't stopped happily twirling his magnets, and smiled.

« ... I guess there's enough space there for a couple more Magnemite. Thanks, Jacq. »

###

Very late into the night, a Flying Taxi landed near the Cabo Poco lighthouse.

« Congratulations for your wedding, or whatever-» their by now usual pilot said in the most bored and sleepy tone possible, lighting a cigarette before getting back into the air again, his flock of Squawkabilly looking less lively than usual after having been woken in the middle of the night.

Turo was the first to step down, helping her get down while she was still wearing the dress and shoes she was definitely not used to. They approached the lighthouse together, hand in hand, and Sada could not help a little smile as she looked on at the building up ahead, visible only because of its own light it emitted. From this night, this would officially be their place.

As soon as they were near the door, she felt Turo's hand in hers clamp up and then let go. She threw him a glance, even if she couldn't really see much of his expression in the dark.

« What are you thinking about?» she asked.

He fumbled with the keys, taking a moment to unlock the door.

« Well, um... there's this tradition when getting inside your house for the first time as a married couple...»

She couldn't help but laugh a bit.

« You want to pick me up?» she had seen it enough in movies to know what he was talking about.

Turo nodded, a bit stiff, and she threw her arms around his neck, laughing.

She didn't think he would care about something like that. Aw.

They crossed the door, but instead of putting her down, Turo held her close, now trembling a bit. She heard him sigh, and moved her head to better look at him. He had a distant look in his eyes.

« Is something wrong? You can put me down if it's too much effort -»

Having her twirl while they danced was one thing, but he had never exactly carried her "bridal style" like this-

Turo just shook his head, and raised his shoulders.

« It's nothing. For a moment, it just reminded me of another time I carried you like this... when you were injured by that other Winged King. But it's fine. » he pressed a kiss on her lips, and she could feel him smile faintly.

« Things are much different now. Better.» he murmured.

He didn't seem to want to let her go until they had crossed the whole house and stepped into the bedroom, turning on the lights.

Sada held her breath, excited. Not because it was their bedroom - that was nothing new for them-, but because she had actually hidden her personal present for him into the new wardrobe just earlier that morning. She had woken up at dawn and ran out with a Flying Taxi to be able to do it and make it back to Mesagoza in time, but his reaction would be worth the sleep she had sacrificed to do so.

However, what she didn't expect was that apparently, judging by the big something propped against one wall, he had had the exact same idea.

When had he even brought that in? It wasn't there this morning, and he had been with her the whole time after that... He hadn't opened the wardrobe by accident, had he?

Turo put her down - not without a little grunt of effort - and turned towards her with a wry smile.

« Hassell helped bring it here during the afternoon. Did you notice he and Brassius seemed to disappear for a short bit?» he asked.

She had actually, but didn't think much of it with all the other guests present.

Her honest thought had been that the two had disappeared in a room somewhere, and good for them.

« His Noivern is apparently really fast... I'll have to thank him for the favour!» Turo laughed, before moving next to the mysterious object, grabbing hold of the cloth that covered it completely.

With a bit of a dramatic flourish -something told her he must have practiced it many times -, he pulled the cloth off, letting it fall to the floor.

Sada barely noticed, her eyes widening as she took in the large canvas in front of her. The upper corners of the painting had been painted to look almost like leather, while the subject of the painting was the interior of one of the tents of her tribe. Not the big, communal tent where most of the tribe gathered together, but one of the smaller, more private ones. She realized after a moment that Turo had painted the canvas so that the perspective made it almost look like she was lifting one of the flaps that would act as a door and peeking inside, in a 1:1 scale. A little fire glowed at the center of the canvas, barely illuminating the couple of everyday objects strewn all around. A pelt, arrow-heads, scrapers and other tools made of bone and stone, little things left around as if their owner had just walked out.

It was a simple, everyday scene that she thought she would never see again.

« I tried to get it as accurate to my memories as I could... Before I started to forget.» she heard Turo whisper beside her as he put one arm around her waist

« But I didn't want to simply reproduce a tent in particular... I wanted it to feel... Like yours, in a way. » he added.

She didn't know what to say to that: the more she looked, the more little details she caught. The little embers and ashes from the fire in the center of the painting, the parts of the painting that had his fingerprints faintly visible on them, as if he had dipped his fingers in paint to do them, just like the people of her tribe would do...

« This... This is beautiful. Thank you so much. » she whispered in response. « ... I actually have something for you, too. Open the wardrobe.» she added after a moment, smiling in anticipation. Turo raised one eyebrow, but complied after a moment.

She watched with a grin as his eyes went similarly wide as he saw what was hanging inside in the otherwise empty wardrobe.

« It's... A new labcoat... » he said, carefully taking it off the hanger, just to get silent when he caught sight of the luminescent fabric on the innermost part and on the seams and cuffs. He quirked both eyebrows, something he only did when he was genuinely surprised.

« I know how much you find the clothes in this era uncomfortable, and that you miss wearing your suit.» she said, picking one sleeve up.

The old one he had always worn had gotten unusable after spending an entire month in Area Zero wearing it constantly.

« So I tried to make something that would look good with the suit and remind you of it.»

Turo carefully pinched the fabric between two fingers, apparently just to enjoy the feeling of it, and smiled.

« Wait... look good "with" the suit?» he said after a moment, turning to look at her.

« I cant wear my bodysuit, people are going to-»

« People aren't going to even notice it's from the future!» Sada laughed. « Clavell doesn't count, people aren't going to analyze it under a microscope like he did! Maybe not everyday, but you can wear it with the labcoat while working... make it part of your image. That's what I want to do with mine. Those clothes are the only thing left from my time, and I don't want to stuff them in a closet never to be seen again for the rest of my life!» she said.

« Let's do it! We'll wear them with pride. And we'll finally have matching labcoats. I plan to make one for myself, too.»

She could see a little smile make its way on his face at her words.

« ... why not. Thank you. It's incredible.»

Sada smiled in return and threw her arms around him, a mischievous glint in her eyes.

« But first... How about we take these clothes off? » she whispered tugging at his necktie, and Turo grinned.

###

Turo honestly thought it would take more for him to get used to thinking of Sada as 'his wife', but it came surprisingly natural. Maybe it was because they had already spent so much time just living together in some way or another.

As much as he had tried to reassure Sada that everything was going to be okay, Turo had his fair share of freaking out to do in the following weeks.

Usually every time they went for a checkup. He... frankly speaking... still had no faith in the level reached by medical science in this era. Didn't... didn't they still like... cut people open in this time? And only sometimes used anesthesia?

That was barbaric.

Today's checkup at least was more of the usual; Sada was starting to develop a very visible belly, and had to really start paying attention to what she could and couldn't do.

« Definitely no more chasing wild Pokémon around with a bow! » he had commented, incredulous, when Sada had told him of what Jacq had asked her to do in exchange for helping with her gift.

« What was Jacq thinking, asking you to take part in it?»

« You know that in my time people did a lot more while pregnant, and they managed just fine.» Sada had simply answered, and he had sighed.

But in the end, Sada had never failed to listen to what her doctor recommended when she actually told her that she would need to slow down a bit and avoid strenuous effort.

« Even if you are in great physical shape, it's better to be cautious... by the way, do you want to know the gender?» the doctor asked that day as she finished her examination.

« You can do that?!»

« You can do that?»

Sada and Turo asked in unison, the first in wonder and the second in genuine confusion.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Uh.

He didn't think they could discern it already... man, this whole century was a mess. So many new inventions and technological advancements done so incredibly fast, relatively speaking... it was impossible to keep it all straight.

Honestly, the thought had never crossed his mind. His head was full of scenes from old-timey movies where the nurse screamed "congratulations, it's a boy!", or whatever, so that was how he had pictured it would go with them, too.

Getting told that he could know right now, out of the blue... he didn't know what to think. It wouldn't be "their child" or "the baby" anymore, but their son or their daughter. In a way, it would make it more... tangible.

Once they knew, they would have to think of a name, too... was he ready? He looked towards Sada, feeling like she had to decide.

###

At their answers, the gynecologist stared at both of them, and Sada blushed slightly, embarrassed. Turo grasped her hand, and she felt his fingers brush over her wedding ring, and she smiled just the tiniest bit. They exchanged a glance, and she realized he was leaving the choice to her. She had no idea this was even possible! Sure, her mother had known all kinds of little tricks that apparently told you if it was a boy or a girl, like the shape of the belly, but Sada had honestly never really understood how to tell the two shapes apart... it wasn't even that accurate either.

« I-I mean... yes, I... we would love to.» she whispered after a moment, holding Turo's hand tighter. The doctor smiled, looking between the two.

« You never said anything so I was starting to wonder if you were the kind of couple that doesn't want to know...» she said, before taking a big breath. Sada felt Turo's hand squeeze hers, and felt her own chest tighten. Her mind was completely blank. It's not like she had ever thought of one option over the other, so why was she even feeling nervous? It made no difference-

« It's a boy. Congratulations!»

... And right as the doctor said it, in a way, it was as if she had always known. Like it had been natural, as it was meant to be.

Turo's hand twitched, and she turned her head towards him. His face was completely blank, but his eyes had gone wide.

His fingers trembled slightly in hers.

« A boy... » she repeated, caressing her belly with a wide smile.

« Why don't we decide his name?» Turo whispered after clearing his throat, and Sada's eyes widened.

He wanted to do... what?

###

His offer to pick the boy's name was met with complete silence by Sada, and that had left him puzzled. She had looked almost... troubled at the idea, and Turo couldn't understand why.

They left the doctor's office hand in hand, and for a couple of minutes they simply walked through the streets of Mesagoza. Sada kept walking with her head held low, and Turo didn't know what to say. Had he said something wrong?

« Sada... what's the problem? You looked so happy, but the moment I mentioned choosing the boy's name, you-» he stopped. Saying "the boy" still felt unreal to him. Their little boy. Their treasure. They were going to have a son.

He caught sight of a bench in an empty little plaza, and they sat down. Sada still didn't look up.

« I... » she started wringing her hands. « I didn't think to give him a name yet... in my time, we... We didn't name the children when they were born.» she said in a low voice, her eyes still lowered to the ground. Her long hair fell forward, partially cowering her face. Turo blinked, caught by surprise.

« You didn't... name the children...?» he asked, and she shook her head.

« Everyone would get their name when... when they were able to visit the tribe's cave for the first time. » she added, and Turo flinched back.

« But... but isn't that at least when they are a couple years old and can walk? You... you didn't have a name before that?» he asked, incredulous. Why would they ever make such a tradition -

Sada's eyes were still hidden, but her face was growing red, and after a long moment, he understood the reason almost at the same exact time she spoke up again. His face fell and he moved to hug her, wrapping her arms around her with a trembling sigh. Oh, Sada...

« ... No, I didn't, because that way, if I didn't... if I... it would hurt less... maybe -» Sada was saying all at once, stumbling over her words in hushed whispers.

« The baby is fine... he will be safe here, and you won't have to worry about anything happening to him like your parents had to do-» he whispered, stroking her hair. He felt her nod weakly against her neck.

« It's just... I feel bad because I didn't even think about it, that it could somehow be bad... but they weren't'...bad parents - I felt like my memories of them were getting... ruined and it's all I have left of them...» she kept talking almost like she was trying to convince herself more than him, and he just kept holding her close.

« I'm sure they weren't... They did the best with what they had- it's obvious how much your mother loved you when I visited your village.. and I'm sure your father was the same. » he said in the end.

Sada said nothing for a while, until he felt her shoulder relax and she pulled back from him, nodding slightly.

« I... have no idea what name we could even choose. » she whispered, but he stopped her by cupping her face in his hands.

« That doesn't mean anything. I know you love the baby anyway - no one that doesn't would call him "my treasure"... And get that sparkle in their eyes like you did when you told me you were pregnant. » he said.

Sada was so strong... Much stronger than he could fathom to have survived in times as harsh as she did, and still keep her bright and curious attitude, braving wild Pokémon just to satisfy her curiosity. But, almost paradoxically, she found herself stumped by the little things of this time, things that were obvious to everyone here but not her.

« It's perfectly normal not to think of a name for quite some time. Even the doctor said it, some couples don't even know the gender of their kid until it's born! They choose only after the birth.» he laughed, trying to reassure her. Sada smiled, raising one hand to play with his hair. She already looked a bit better.

« All right... But I want to start thinking of a name-» she said.

Turo swallowed, now feeling suddenly a bit anxious himself.

« Well, um... » all male names he had ever heard in his life suddenly sounded bad.

The thing was... he could barely name his variables while coding, now he was supposed to bestow a name on a person?

Something they would carry for the rest of their life?

At least Pokémon could tell you if they liked the name!

« We have time, and you know the names of this era better than me... but you definitely need to put more thought in it than you did naming your Miraidon "Mirai"» Sada laughed, and he felt himself blush. For once, thinking of Mirai didn't hurt.

« I... I was four years old at the time! Like you're the one to talk with the nickname you wanted to give Kim at first! What are you naming that Swinub Grusha gave you, by the way?» he asked. Sada huffed.

« Don't try and change the topic!»

There was a pause.

« ... Bacon.»

« We're going to buy one of those books about baby names, and read it really carefully» he muttered.

###

Months slowly passed and Sada's pregnancy forced them both to make some adjustments; their research on Tera Pokémon slowed noticeably now that she couldn't visit Tera dens for the time being, and their Gym challenge had to be put on hold.

The development of the prototype of the Tera Orb however was almost complete: if everything went well, they would soon be able to present it officially to Briar and other possible backers; with some luck, it would impress them enough to get both her and Turo a grant and allow them into Area Zero with the excuse of further developing the Tera Orb.

They had moved permanently into the lighthouse in Cabo Poco, even as the actual lab part of the house was still pretty much empty. Sada had been forbidden from doing any kind of heavy lifting and work, something she was not used to. Thankfully she had plenty she could still do sitting down, and her Pokémon helped her with anything else.

« Can you get me the orange yarn, please? » she asked Ötzi as she lay down on a couch, hook in hand, busy crocheting a couple of tiny baby socks. The Golett diligently obeyed, taking a moment to pick up the correct color and bringing it to her. Kim watched the ball of yarn with some masked interest; now that she was a Pyroar, Sada sometimes caught her trying to act as if she was now too grow-up to get up in little things like play around with a ball of yarn, something she found quite funny. She had still found her completely entangled in it just the other day, trying to not burn the whole skein to ash.

Bacon (name still pending) lay by her side, like a very cozy and (surprisingly, for an Ice type) warm pillow. Turo was somewhere in the laboratory, which was slowly taking shape. Granted, their lack of money meant that for now, most of their research equipment consisted of Turo's laptop, a small collection of books they were amassing, their school notes and research papers, her little excavation toolkit and camping equipment, and... Not much else.

But if their Tera Orb really got people excited and secured them the funding they needed... She suddenly stopped crocheting when she felt a sudden stab of pain in her stomach.

« Ötzi, Kim... run to call Turo, please» she said, her voice surprisingly calm even as she took a big breath. She knew what was happening. Had seen it happen countless times already. It was normal, completely natural. She was going to be fine. Just fine. The baby was also going to be safe. It wasn't like back in her time, people knew how to handle things, worst case they would just put her to sleep like her gynecologist explained and-

She was scared.

She couldn't be scared.

The Golett and Pyroar just looked at her as she grabbed her phone and started dialing for a Flying Taxi, trying to keep her hand from shaking and voice steady.

« I think the baby is coming.» she said with another stab of pain.

The Golett raised its hand to its head and ran off in a panic, clattering towards the laboratory, while Kim curled up behind her like a big warm pillow, kneading her back with her paws. She didn't know if it was just some instinct the Pyroar had or if she was genuinely trying to soothe her, but she appreciated it anyway as she waited for the call to get picked up.

«Yes, I need a taxi service, I'm at the Cabo Poco lighthouse. It's really urgent, I need to get to Mesagoza as fast as I can-urgh. Reason? Um... I think I'm about to give birth.»

She had never seen a Flying Taxi arrive so fast before.

###

So... the baby was coming. Right now. Turo knew they were approaching the deadline, so it would have been a matter of days or a week at most anyway, but when Sada's Golett barreled into the lab and forcibly dragged him in the living room and he saw her clenching her teeth in pain on the couch, he still flew into a panic. Sada had been... almost unsettlingly calm during the whole ride towards the hospital, he couldn't help but feel like he was doing something wrong. Was she putting up a brave front? Or maybe she genuinely didn't think much of it? After her life in the Paleolithic, maybe everything looked so easy and cozy to her.

... But what if she wasn't, and he didn't notice because he was too busy trying to calm himself down-

He could only keep thinking of how little faith he had in the medicine of this time. Sure, they did amazing things to Pokémon, but humans were another matter entirely.

What if they had to-

« Turo » Sada's voice snapped him out of his thoughts: they had been left momentarily alone, a nurse coming in just to check on "how far along" they were. Things could apparently still take hours, or even more than a day, and that terrified him.

In his mind, those hours were where everything could go wrong, and he could do nothing to help.

« You're not the one giving birth, so stop making that face » she gasped, and he could feel himself blush.

Sada took a deep breath, holding out her hand, and he held it. She gripped his palm,almost digging her nails in.

« I don't care if in your time they do some stupidly advanced futuristic thing like teleport the baby out or whatever» she said, and that was enough to stop his mind from running in circles in a panic.

He stared at her, slack-jawed.

«W-well...» he said, not quite sure how to answer that. I mean...

« Do you want to know what my mother did in my time? » she asked, and he nodded.

« She had me in a cave, with a spear in hand, while my father was busy fending off a pack of wild creatures just outside» she took another deep breath, her hand trembling in his.

« Are you about to fight a pack of wild Houndooms? » she asked, and he shook his head, feeling himself calm down.

« N-no... »

« Exactly-» Sada gasped as she doubled over in pain again, and he flinched.

« Compared to what they went through for me, this is nothing. Nothing-» she gasped, and he could see little beads of sweat all over her face, her eyes wide, pupils shrunken and reduced to a pinprick.

« ... then why am I so scared...?» she finally whispered, and he grit his teeth.

He hated to see her like this. He had to help... he had to be the one to support her.

He cradled her hand with both of his, straightening his shoulders. It suddenly reminded him of another time he had waited at her bedside, less than a year and yet a lifetime ago.

« You're right. It will be fine.» he whispered just as the nurse came back inside.

« I'm right here. Just focus on my voice. Think of our little boy: we're going to finally see him soon!» he hoped to distract her by making her focus on something else. The one all of this was for, after all.

Sada actually smiled at that.

She knew that childbirth hurt. She saw it multiple times at the village in her time, and it had always given her a deep respect for every older woman of her tribe, her mother first of all. She thought she could somewhat imagine what it felt like.

And yet it had been nothing like what she had ever experienced. She had read books about it to prepare, in the months before. She thought that maybe fully understanding all the changes her body would go through would help. How the whole procedure happened, from a purely scientific point of view... how, apparently, the brain was wired to downplay and distort the memories of how painful it had been later on, or otherwise no living being would ever decide to give birth multiple times.

She really hoped for that to be the case.

But when, after what seemed like hours and hours of labouring, she suddenly heard that first cry, she realized that the pain didn't matter at all. She raised her head, trying to look down, towards the nurse, but didn't quite manage it. Her eyes went to Turo, but he wasn't looking at her, his eyes fixed on something else.

Like from a great distance, she heard the nurse ask him something and he let go of her hand to stand up, moving like he was in a trance.

And then the baby was suddenly put in her arms: she looked down, and there he was. Their child. Their little treasure.

He was real. His eyes were squeezed shut, his face still red from the crying after taking his first breath, and he looked so incredibly small...

« ... You're finally here.» she gasped as Turo sat back down by her side, his gaze fixed on the little bundle in her arms.

His face was completely unreadable as he kept staring, transfixed, his eyes wide and unfocused. Sada couldn't help but keep thinking about all the incredible series of coincidences that had to happen for this new life to just be here in her arms, right now. If she and Turo had never met... if they had stayed in their own times... he wouldn't be here now.

It was a miracle.

« So... which of the names we discussed do we want to give him?» Turo asked by her side after a moment of silence.

Or maybe it was a couple minutes. Or maybe an hour. She couldn't quite know: time seemed to have lost all meaning right now.

He still seemed quite a bit out of it - honestly, she was too, apart from feeling exhausted. Focusing on something concrete would probably help both.

They had made a list of possible names, but still hadn't quite decided on one, opting to do so when the baby would be born.

Sada thought for a long moment; they had decided to not choose a name from either of their times; it had to be something that would make him fit in, that would sound completely normal in this time.

« Names inspired by plants and flowers seem to be really popular, don't they? There were quite a lot in those lists of baby names... » she said after a moment. She hesitated and, almost fearfully, touched the baby's cheek with one finger. It was so strange: he had been with her for nine months, but this was the first time she was actually touching him with her own hands. It still didn't feel real.

« Let's see... "Oliver"? » she asked, only for Turo to sigh.

« ... Please no, I don't want to be reminded of something I'm allergic to every time I look at my son... » he mumbled, and she giggled.

Oh. Right.

« Sorry... then, um... "Valerian"? "Valerio"?» she offered.

« ... Isn't that from the herb they make sedatives out of? » Turo's eyebrows furrowed, and now it was Sada's turn to sigh, exasperated. He was going to object to everything she was going to propose, wasn't he?

But she could understand being so picky. This was important. It had to be perfect. It had to... feel right.

« It also meant "strong" long ago, but alright. Um... » she looked down at the baby in her arms. He had his eyes closed, and she noticed that he had long eyelashes. So beautiful.

« What about "Rose"?»

« Absolutely not.»

Turo's vehement answer made her raise her head again, puzzled. He fidgeted a bit at her side, apparently uncomfortable.

« That name's going to get... a really bad reputation in some years time. He's going to be hurt if we name him "Rose".»

Sada stared at him, while he avoided her eyes, picking at a stray thread on the side of the couch he was sitting on.

« ... Is something bad going to happen?» she asked in a whisper, immediately feeling a spike of anxiety rise through her at the thought.

Turo sighed and shook his head.

« Don't worry about it. It's not going to happen in Paldea anyway. There's nothing we have to worry about. Let's just avoid that name.» he said, before shifting closer. He carefully raised one hand, hesitated, and she noticed that he was trembling slightly.

« Do you want to hold him?» she offered with a smile, but Turo just widened his eyes and shrank back, almost frightened.

« I-I... I don't know... what if» his eyes flickered between the bed where she was laying and the couch just next to it where he had been sitting. It wasn't even a meter, but by his expression, he looked like she had just asked him to walk on a tightrope across the Great Crater of Paldea, juggling plates with both hands as he did.

« What if I trip and... fall-» he whispered, almost shaking.

« Turo, it's fine. We practiced. Have you really never held a baby before? » she asked, and he turned his head away, a hint of red on his cheeks.

« ... just one time. One of my many cousins, when they were little. But it was completely different in that case-»

Sada simply sighed, stroking the baby's head.

« ... why, is there some stupidly advanced forcefield in the future that magically prevents babies from being dropped?» she asked, half amused and half sarcastic.

« Well, no... kind of. In a way...» he muttered. She simply stared, and he sighed, now completely red in the face, wringing his hands.

« ... You can't really drop a baby on the Moon.» he finally mumbled.

It took her a couple of seconds to get what he meant, and she just stared, before bursting into an uncontrollable fit of giggles she had to bury her face sideways in a small mountain of pillows to smother. She could feel the baby in her arms move a little bit at the sudden noise.

« Ouch... still hurts... I can't laugh too hard... » she gasped, and Turo suddenly moved closer,worried.

That wasn't exactly a sentence she thought she would hear when she woke up this morning, and she was extremely glad that they were still alone in the room.

« Hold your arms out,just like we practiced. And remember to-»

« To support his head, yes. » he finished in a low voice. But he did like she said, and with some trepidation she passed the baby in his arms and watched as he slowly walked backwards a couple steps and sat back on the couch. Despite what she just said, she realized she had just held her breath while he did so.

Turo looked down at his son, his face completely unreadable, as he always did when he was carefully masking his feelings.

Never more than now did she wish to know what was going through his mind.

« ... what about "Lars"?» he asked after a long moment. Sada blinked.

« Lars... from "laurel", right?» she tried out the name, how it sounded on her tongue.

« I'm... not that sure I like it. » she scrunched up her nose in thought.

« It feels... like something a warrior would use. I don't want our child to have such a heavy name. He lives in such a peaceful time.» she smiled, only for Turo's words just earlier to echo in her mind.

... that didn't matter. He said Paldea would be safe.

Turo simply nodded. « That makes sense.»

« What about herbs? » Sada proposed. « There's mint... people long ago called it "the herb of hospitality": it was used to greet guests because it smelled nice. » she said, looking back down at the baby still in Turo's arms.

« Something like... "Peppermint"? Too long... "Pepper"? But that sounds completely different...» she kept trying different names. There had to be one that sounded just right -

« ... "Arven".»

She almost missed Turo's whisper; he looked up, a strange glint in his eyes.

« From "Mentha arvensis". It's the scientific name of this small plant... there's some growing near the stream just behind the lighthouse.» he muttered, bowing his head again. « It has some pretty purple flowers, so I got curious about it the other day and looked up what it was called...»

Sada smiled. Yes.

The fact that he had seen the plant she had just mentioned as a pure coincidence... just like their first meeting.

It felt right.

« "Arven"... Yes, I like how it sounds. Do you like it, Arven?» she cooed softly as Turo moved closer.

Arven simply yawned, turning around in his sleep.