"Well, Amazons certainly are not human by any standard," he made a wry smile, his lips curving upward with amusement and affection, "but I am still worried about you and the baby, so please take it easy for my sake, okay? Just slow down a little. Let me help you with some things."

Awww! What a delightful husband! I love him.

As I was about to respond to him, to tell him that I was fine and that he did not need to fuss over me like a mother hen, he brought his face even closer to mine.

Closing such a distance between us, my heart nearly stopped beating in my chest entirely.

I... I like it that I can still react this way to him after everything we have been through together.

Like every single time I get close to Benjamin, I always feel like I am falling in love with him again and again, as if each meeting is our first meeting and each touch is our first touch.

The feeling never grows old or familiar, never dull. It always hits me fresh and new.

His soft lips hit mine, warm and gentle, and I immediately lashed my tongue into his mouth without any hesitation or restraint, wanting to taste him, wanting to feel him, wanting to be as close to him as physically possible.

It was so warm in there, so comfortable and inviting, and I wanted to live inside his mouth now.

To make a home for myself between his lips and his tongue and his teeth, to never have to leave the warmth of his embrace.

We spent some minutes enjoying the company of our tongues, dancing and sliding against each other, exploring and tasting and playing, before he pulled back just enough to ask a question.

A question I hadn’t been really expecting to come up at some point during this conversation.

"So what are we naming them? The baby, I mean. Have you thought about it?" He asked, his blue eyes looking directly into mine, curious and eager.

That was surprising to hear, considering I had never really thought about it.

I had been so focused on the fact of the pregnancy itself, on the miracle of carrying his child inside me, that I had not stopped to consider what we would actually call the little one once it arrived.

"Benjamin." I said with a straight face, my voice firm and certain, as if the decision had already been made and there was no room for discussion.

"Yes? What is it? I am right here," Benjamin answered, clearly thinking that I was calling his name.

"No, no, that is not what I meant. I mean let us name our child Benjamin! After their father!" I clarified, my voice rising with excitement at the idea.

Yes, Benjamin!

The name that rings as legendary to every Amazon in Verdant Spire; the name that evokes purity and strength and kindness all at once.

What better name could I possibly give to my child than the name of the man I love most in all the world?!

"Rejected! Absolutely rejected! Anything but that!"

Eh?! H... He rejected my suggestion so quickly without hesitation?

"But why? What is wrong with naming our child after you? It is a wonderful name!" I asked, concerned by his immediate refusal.

"Well, your concern is killing me here!" Benjamin suddenly bellowed, his voice rising with exasperation, though his eyes were still warm and his hands were still gentle on my waist.

Mhm?

If I did not know better, I would say that he had read my mind just now, that he had heard my narration about being concerned.

He suddenly blushed, his fair cheeks turning pink, and looked at somewhere else in the room, avoiding my gaze.

"J-Just so you know, I don’t read minds, okay?" he suspiciously clarified, his voice slightly rushed and defensive. "And how can you name a girl Benjamin? That is a boy’s name, no? It does not fit a daughter at all."

"A girl...?"

Oh...

That was when it hit me, like a pile of boulders being thrown over my head, waking me up from a pleasant dream I had not realized I was having.

I do not know when and how I reasonably forgot something so fundamental about my own body and my own people.

Something so important that it should have been the first thing on my mind when I thought about having children. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

Amazons do not bear male children... ever.

There has not been a single Amazon birth in all of recorded history where the child was male.

The curse of Artemis, placed upon our ancestors so many millions of years ago, ensures that only daughters are born from our wombs.

Benjamin’s hand touched my cheek gently, his fingers warm against my skin, concerned, and he asked softly: "What is wrong, Sara? You suddenly started looking gloomy and sad. Did I say something that upset you?"

I did not know how to explain it to him, how to put into words the fear and the doubt that had suddenly risen up inside my chest.

But I mustered up the courage anyway, because he deserved to hear me out.

"Do you... do you ever dream of having a son? A little boy?" I asked him, looking straight into his beautiful blue eyes, searching his face for any sign of disappointment or longing. "When a child matter is brought up in conversation, do you expect a male child in your mind, or do you expect a female child?"

I had to let him know now, in this moment, before any more hopes or dreams were built, that a male child will never be born from our wombs.

It is simply not possible.

The curse will never allow it. Though I am sure that he already knows that.

And he has many other women in his life who are not of Amazon heritage, women who can give him a son if that is what he desires.

Many sons, in fact, from many different mothers.

"Uhm... if I am being completely truthful with you and with myself," he began with a flat expression, his voice calm and thoughtful, "I only started understanding that I was even capable of creating offspring at all some weeks ago, when the women around me started announcing their pregnancies.

"It was not something I had ever thought about even before coming to this world. Son? Daughter? Honestly, as long as the child is born with the ones I love, I will even take a goblin as my offspring! Haha, just kidding!"

Ah, I see.

I understand now.

He truly does not care about the gender of the child. He only cares that the child is loved, wanted, and welcomed into the world.

"Understood, Benjamin! I will take your words to heart!" I steeled myself, my grip tightening on his shoulders, my resolve hardening. "I will make sure to give you all the female children you could possibly desire! So many daughters that we could form a whole army out of them! A legion of little Benjamin look-alikes running around Verdant Spire!"

"Uh, I would like to know all of their names, so please do hold back a little."

Benjamin raised one hand in mild surrender, his expression caught somewhere between amusement and alarm, as I laughed at his easy and predictable reactions to my enthusiasm.