In Which Ashe Makes a Promise

November 18, 1178

Yvanette would not be lifted from her basket without flailing. For such a tiny thing, her body held a surprising abundance of energy; it was a much greater struggle than Ashe would have guessed, just trying to keep her from squirming out of his arms. "It's all right. Trust me, I'm much more afraid of you than you are of me."

If anything, the baby's wriggling intensified. The comparison still held, but he'd underestimated on both sides. Not that it made any difference, now that she was actually here. "We're going to have to get used to each other sooner or later. Might as well get that out of the way, right? For Mama's sake," he added, shifting her to a cradle position.

"You love Mama, right?" The little lips formed a small 'O'. Ashe took that as a yes. "There's something we have in common, then."

The baby blinked. She took after Rona far more strongly than she did him--luckily for her--but he thought he could see a couple freckles scattered around her nose. Those hadn't come from her mother, but she wore them better than he did. "You're lucky, you know. You have the best mama in all the world. I'm just sorry that you got stuck with me too."

His daughter whimpered. He hoisted her to his shoulder and rubbed her back, just because it seemed like the right thing to do. As for whether or not it worked, was he an idiot if he wasn't sure?

But of all the things he was unsure of, it was hardly the most pressing. "I have no idea how to be a father. Honestly? I don't even know how to be a m--"

Back on the bed, Rona stirred. Ashe clutched Yvanette a little tighter and waited a minute before resuming in a whisper. "I'm sorry. You deserve so much better than me."

The baby swatted at the key around his neck. Worried that she might cut herself on the teeth, he distracted her with a couple bounces and prayed she wasn't too young for such motions. "I'll try, though. I'll try to be a good father to you. You'll just have to be patient with me; I never thought I'd have to do this, but I'm willing to try for you. I promise."

It had been no more of a conversation than what he'd said to his dead father the previous night, but it seemed to have reached a natural end regardless. Ashe raised Yvanette a couple of inches and let her rest her head on his shoulder. He kissed her cute little seashell ear before tucking her in beside Rona and settling himself on her other side.

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