guffawsungraciously | psl time: single dad au edition

You had best keep her from exploring under your bed lest she find all those Digests, then.

[To Jasper’s credit, he at least keeps his voice low enough that the carpenters won’t hear it... even though hey! It looks like they’ve finished, and they’re headed on over to the two of them.

“Right, then, give it a look over and let us know if it’s to your liking, sir,” says the non-masked carpenter, and Jasper nods and heads over. ...and the bull mask guy is also on his way over with an invoice for Jasper’s desk and an extra scrap of paper for Hendrik........]

[Seeing Jasper head over to inspect the finished baby furniture, Hendrik busies himself arranging the little accessories bought for Celestine. After an awkward moment of remembering he should probably put on his shirt, he heads over to retrieve it from the chaise, only to be intercepted by the masked bodybuilder and handed the scrap of paper.

He shoots a perplexed look at the other man for a split second, then remembers what had been asked for and walks over to Jasper's desk to look for a quill.]

Ah, an autograph, was it?

[“Would you please, Sir Hendrik?” says the masked bodybuilder imploringly.

Meanwhile, Jasper looks over the cradle approvingly and begins counting out a handsome sum of gold. It’s ornate, but not, like, tacky, and the craftsmanship is extremely high quality, so he adds some extra gold on top of the agreed upon price. The carpenter thanks him and wishes him and his little one well before heading for the door. He tells his partner to hurry it up and stop bothering Sir Hendrik before heading on out. Jasper, meanwhile, heads on over to Celestine’s chest and goes to gingerly pick her up without awakening her...]

And workout tips...? Ah, I suppose I can write something down.

[The scrap of paper is rather small, but Hendrik has put a lot of work into making his autograph neat and legible no matter the size. (It's an embarrassing fact if he really thinks about it.) After blowing on the ink a bit so it dries, he writes on the back of the paper about eating bread and rice before training and meat and vegetables after. And some more stuff about steady weight increments for strength training.

...It's one of the things on which he can actually offer advice, even if he has to put it all down in shorthand.]

["Cor! Thanks a lot, Sir Hendrik!" says the bull-masked carpenter, giving an excited fist pump as he excitedly takes the paper. "I can't wait to show all my mates!"

...ah, and he notices Jasper with the baby... so he kind of lowers his voice a bit, with a bit of a self conscious double take...

"Oh, and good luck with your little one, Sir Jasper! I hope she likes her crib!"

...the other carpenter pokes his head in and gestures exasperatedly for him to leave, and he does, but with a wave... Jasper bemusedly watches the two go out with a wave, then looks down at Celestine, who grunts in annoyance and wiggles a bit.]

Ah, did we wake you, then?

[Hendrik casts Jasper a slightly chagrined look as he sets aside the quill and sees the two carpenters out, shutting the door behind. He then walks over to join his friend in staring at his baby daughter, distracted away from his thought of grabbing his shirt to put it back on. He smiles when he sees she's awake, watching her wiggle and open and close her fists.

The look on Celestine's face draws a faint laugh from him.]

She reminds me of you waking up for morning roll call, back in training.

[Jasper actually does kind of chuckle at the comparison as he gently rocks Celestine to soothe her a bit from her slightly rude awakening.]

I am certain you can see why I wanted to let her sleep a bit longer, then.

[He turns back to his daughter with a smile.]

But come now, Celestine. I have awoken you for a far more pleasant purpose than roll call. Let me show you your new lodgings.

[He gently sets her in the bassinet and waits to see her reaction.

...

He is not going to insist Hendrik put on a shirt because hahahahahaha.]

[While Jasper settles his daughter in her new crib, Hendrik takes a closer look at the carefully put together pieces, amused but not surprised that Jasper would also select something that looks rather expensive. All Celestine is missing are silk sheets and she would be sleeping in a bed comparable to her father's.

He then turns his attention to Celestine, who still looks more asleep than awake. If she does stay awake, there's still a third-full bottle of milk for her.

He keeps his voice quiet as he speaks.]

I assume the preferred reaction is that she goes back to sleep?

Well, it would be a good sign she likes it, at the very least.

[Celestine yawns and wiggles sleepily, not quite sure if she wanted to be awake, especially since now she’s even more comfortable than she was...

...

Hey, that guy she spent a lot of time with is back! She is kind of surprised, but like, in a good way, so it does wake her up just a little more. She is not making any more frustrated noises, instead just looking more alert!]

...well, she is not in distress, at the very least.

[ah, so cute....]

Edited 2020-09-13 05:04 (UTC)

[Hendrik watches carefully, still learning Celestine's little mannerisms and looking for cues to her being upset. Contrary to being upset at being awakened, she seems to look more ... interested. He hums in thought.]

She seems to be looking at you. You may have trouble moving away lest she thinks you are disappearing again.

Ah, well, I suppose I will have to spend some quality time with my daughter, then. How dreadful.

[He gently pats her on the head and smiles...]

I wonder if she ought to be introduced to her new toys now, while I have her attention?

I see no reason why not. It may be rather unexciting, depending on if she will even understand what she is seeing.

[As far as he can tell, the worst Jasper can do is scare her by moving too fast with the toys.

He steps back to walk over to where the toys and baby supplies are arranged.]

Is there anything in particular you want to introduce to her?

That is the issue, is it not... well, the stuffed animals may very well keep her company, at the very least. I do not know if they would help her feel less lonely if people must leave her line of sight.

[Honestly, this would be so much easier if babies were born a little bit smarter... why can’t they have object permanence right out the gate!]

[Unsure what may interest Jasper, Hendrik picks up several of the stuffed toys and carries them back for his selection. After all, Jasper's not allowed to disappear from Celestine's sight now.]

It is interesting, is it not? Even a child so young can know when they are completely alone.

[...

If he thinks about it more, he supposes it makes sense. The baby would have grown used to the heartbeat and warmth of the mother.]

I suppose it is natural for people to desire to be with other people.

But it is not as though she truly is...

[...]

I suppose I do understand, though. Particularly when things have been so turbulent for her and she does not quite understand any reassurances.

[...even when he was old enough to properly understand these sorts of things, it was...

...

Not the easiest thing to swallow. He gently takes Celestine’s tiny hand between his forefinger and thumb and just kind of looks at her pensively...]

[As Jasper falls into a contemplative silence, Hendrik continues standing there, watching. As the silence stretches on, he shifts his weight from foot to foot, somewhat uncomfortable. The lack of distraction causes him to focus on the fact that he's still without his shirt, and he heads off to retrieve his shirt at long last.]

Fortunately, she does not have to worry about you going anywhere. Unless you had any intentions of taking an assignment out at sea.

...

[aw fuck that is a possibility, isn’t it. Especially given... you know...

...]

Perhaps she could get her sea legs early enough.

[He gently rocks Celestine’s bassinet with a smile.]

It cannot be too different in calmer waters, can it? Though I suppose there is no guarantee of those.

[That... That was a joke, right? He couldn't possibly be thinking of taking a baby out to sea?]

I would imagine it may delay her ability to walk. With the rocking of a ship and such.

[Er. He really shouldn't be humoring that idea. He walks back over to offer the small slime plush to Jasper. The rest of the toys pressed to his chest with one arm while his hand holds his shirt.]

Here. If something else, she may eventually think this is a pillow.

Ah, yes, of course. That would be unfortunate...

[His brows furrow, though. What does he do if he has to be stationed away from her...

...ah, right, toys! He'll take the slime and hold it out to her.]

See, I did not just get you a bed, Celestine. I procured some friends for you!

[...she is at least looking at it! She's not scared! ...but, um, it's still hard to read her reactions outside of that...]

[...Hm.]

Perhaps she is still a little tired.

[That's probably a generous assumption. He adjusts some of the other toys in case Jasper wants to set some of them in the crib.

And he should ... really...]

Jasper, you-- er, you would not seriously consider a sea assignment now, would you?

...perhaps she simply needs some time to learn how to express herself.

[She does at least follow it with her eyes as he puts it next to her bassinet, so that's... something!]

I imagine it is difficult, being her age and having absolutely no idea how to do anything.

[...but he does... think that over...]

...

Not unless there was no other option, no.

[If things were normal, he wouldn't be worried about it, but...

...

He's worried.]

[...

The hesitation isn't comforting. When he looks at Jasper, his eyes focused on his new daughter, he can see concern.

The source of that concern is a little less clear, but it obviously would have to do with potentially being separated from Celestine.

Seafaring knights received a considerable commission due to being stationed away from Heliodor and any guard posts in the kingdom. If it was a matter of money...

...So...]

You may be interested to know that Lazarite had you on his shortlist even before I recommended you for succession.

...ah, is that so?

[That at least shakes Jasper out of his ruminations, and he sounds legitimately hopeful. If Lazarite recommended him for his position, it might be somewhat suspect if the king turned it down...

...but he doesn't know that for sure. Maybe he should temper his expectations...]

I will hope that his considerations reach the king, then, and I will doubly hope that the king agrees with his recommendations.

[He knows now of the friction between His Majesty and his friend, so the way Jasper phrases his hopes both makes sense and saddens him.

...And yet. Something about what he's said strikes him as odd.

...

It takes him a long moment to realize what it is.]

I... Now that I am thinking about it, I do not think His Majesty's approval is needed for you to be appointed as Lazarite's successor.

[...

you know... you know... he'd been distracted by thinking of all the things that could go wrong that he hadn't thought through the strategic implications of how this could go right.

It's true. If the "king" did go out of his way to censure Lazarite, it would probably look really suspicious in a way that would be difficult for others to write off. Then, maybe, he could have an easier time exposing the demon... or, if the demon didn't take that risk, he'd get the promotion he wanted.

Either way, it's a win for him, and it does cheer him up a bit.]

Well, do let Sir Lazarite know that I am open to a meeting to discuss the possibility at any time. I do have a new responsibility to take care of, admittedly, but it is not as though other knights do not manage to balance their families with their careers.

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