Titled: Nine Months
Author: drunk on moonshine
Genre: Romance/Family
Rated: T, suggested themes, language
Characters: Tamina, Dastan (and a handful of others)

Summary: A collection of drabbles following Dastan and Tamina's first pregnancy.
Expected Number of Chapters: 10

Author's Note: Alright, here is the final chapter! :D It's 4 days late, but isn't it exciting? Anyway, I was researching childbirth during Ancient Roman/Greece/Egypt (because I couldn't find anything on Ancient Persia) and there is a long process to prepare for labor, so I've decided to make this installment about the length of one of my one-shots, and that's about 1,000 to 2,000 words. So, isn't that great? It'd be super long, so it's kind of a like a farewell gift.

The Lady Grace, you suggested I make another set of one-shots, and I was actually considering that. I'm out of school in about two weeks, so I should have time to think up of something to write about by then. If anyone has suggestions on what I should write, don't hesitate to review this chapter and tell me. I'm going to need a lot of help, because all I've been thinking about lately is how much I want school to be over with and sleeping in. :P

Disclaimer: How unfortunate it is that I do not own Disney's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time! If only I had a Dastan to steal it for me, but, alas! Dastan is property of Disney, too. Wahwahwah. Disney owns everything. :| Pretty soon, it'll rule the world.

Worth It. (1975 words)

Already nine months into her pregnancy, and Tamina knew she was going to meet her baby soon. It was exciting, yet terrifying. She'd heard stories from her maids about the pain of childbirth, and she wasn't sure she could handle the excruciating labor contractions.

A couple weeks prior, a midwife came to stay at the palace. To aid her in the birthing process. She was to prepare her for the day Tamina bore the child. Olive oil was rubbed on her stomach nightly to prevent stretch marks, and goose fat was injected into her... To make the baby's arrival easier, and to prevent tearing.

"Do you have an idea as to what your child will be, Your Highness?" the midwife asked Tamina as she rubbed oil on her bulging belly in her bedchambers.

"A little boy or a little girl?" she thought, liking the idea of a family more and more.

"I have not put much thought into what my baby will be, for I don't mind," she answered, staring down at her swollen abdomen.

"Both you and Prince Dastan need a male heir to rule Alamut in the future," the midwife commented, rubbing her hands on a cloth to remove the remaining oils.

"A female would be beneficial to Alamut, as well," Tamina responded, her thoughts on the Dagger. She would train her to be a Guardian and as the next High Priestess. Just as her mother had taught her.

"Well, Your Highness, I will leave you to rest. You will need your sleep to give you energy once you go into labor sometime soon," the midwife announced, before shutting the door closed behind her.

With a sigh, Tamina climbed into bed and shut her eyes. No more than five minutes later, she heard the slap of boots landing on the balcony and the swish of the curtains as they were drawn open.

"Dast, must you always arrive through the window?" she asked, her eyes still closed.

"Of course, Princess," he responded. She could hear the smile in his voice. "Much more exciting than using the palace's main entrance."

She laughed, then felt a stabbing pain in her lower back and a tightening to her abdomen. She gasped in shock, eyes snapping open as she sat up to grasp her stomach.

"Tamina!" Dastan exclaimed in shock of her sudden outburst. One moment his wife had been laughing and the next, she was in pain.

"Oh, Gods, that hurt," she winced. It felt as if her baby had just stretched as far as it could, as the muscles of her stomach tightened. The pain was quick, but she knew another would be on its way soon.

Her husband rushed to her side immediately. "Tamina, are you fine?"

"Y-Yes, I'm fine. False alarm," she assured him, not wanting him to worry.

He seemed wary to believe her and stayed to watch her for a few minutes to see if it'd happen again. Seeing she was fine, he went to strip himself of his street clothes and climbed into bed next to her.

"Are you sure you are fine?"

"Yes, sweetheart. I'm fine."

It was hard to believe her, but he tried his best. Dastan wrapped his arm across her waist...or tried to. Their child's protective chamber prevented him from reaching all the way. His arm only made it two-thirds of the way across, his hand resting on the side of her belly.

A few moments later, he could feel her breathing begin to slow. He decided that it was a good sign, and let his guard down. He too followed her example and slept. Come three hours later, Tamina awoke with that pressure on her lower back and tight feeling of her belly. She hissed in pain, as it lasted a few seconds more than her first contraction.

It was a cycle. She'd fall back asleep after the pain was gone, then would wake up after she felt it returning; however, they would come more frequently and last longer over time. Four hours later, they would come every ten minutes and last for about thirty seconds. Suddenly, after one painful contraction, she felt a pop in her lower abdomen. Some sort of liquid started to seep through her clothes and into the bed. Her eyes snapped open, feeling the wetness beneath her. She jumped out, feeling the water gush down her legs and onto the tile floor.

It was coming. And, she was sure she couldn't deliver the baby herself without the midwife's assistance.

"D-Dastan," she called quite loudly, hoping he would awake soon to call for help.

"Hm?" he responded groggily.

"I—I think the baby's coming," Tamina said, shocked that it was really happening.

Dastan's reaction was slow. It took him a full minute to realize what she said.

"…what?"

"The baby's coming!" she exclaimed impatiently.

He shot straight up in bed as a million emotions passed through him at that moment: Shock, Excitement, Happiness, Fear...

"Th-Th-The baby?" he asked in disbelief. He couldn't believe his ears.

"Yes, Dastan!" she yelped, as she felt another contraction hitting her. "Now call for the gods-damn midwife!"

The Persian prince froze on the spot for a moment. His baby was really coming?

Tamina cried out again from the lingering pain, knocking him out of his shock. And without another word, he jumped out of bed and ran out the door, grabbing his discarded street clothes along the way.

It was painful, and she couldn't do anything but wish for it to stop. She felt so useless, as each contraction felt as if it hit her harder and harder each time. As her stomach tightened from every contraction, the pain in her lower back increased. And, it didn't help that it seemed like the water would not stop trickling down her legs.

Her bedroom door slammed open to reveal a very distraught husband of hers and a very calm, middle-aged woman carrying her birthing stool and towels. Maids rushed in as well, each of them carrying something of importance: a few jugs, a basket of various produce and fruit, soft sea sponges, pieces of wool bandages, and a bottle of olive oil.

The Alamutian princess stood still, eyes closed shut, with her hands grasping her enormous belly, as the water began to finally stop dripping. It was the only thing she could do.

"Your Highness," the midwife addressed Dastan, "I'm afraid you may not stay here. You have no use here."

"This is my wife and child, here," he protested. "I can help."

The midwife shook her head and smiled, "I apologize, Your Highness, but we have all the help we need."

Tamina watched her husband leave reluctantly. She was surprised the midwife was able to convince him so quickly, for she knew him to be very stubborn.

"Now, Your Highness," she said to Tamina, "how long have you been feeling the contractions?"

"About fifteen minutes after you left me to rest," the princess answered, wincing at the new contraction that had hit her.

"My Princess, you are in labor," the midwife stated, setting the birthing stool in the middle of the room. She kicked the large, red rug away to lay messily at the foot of the bed.

"Now that your water sack has already broken, Your Highness," the midwife began, "you may lay on the bed so I may count the time between your contractions and the duration of."

Tamina merely nodded, setting herself atop the bedding. The effects of her last lingered, reaching almost to half a minute.

"How far apart are they?" the woman asked, organizing the items on the dresser.

The princess winced, "Just about seven minutes apart, now."

"And, how long are they?"

"Close to a full minute."

"Good," the midwife said. "Once you reach the five minute mark, I want you to move to the birthing stool and start pushing."

It was nerve wracking, knowing that his wife was just in their bedroom about to have their first child. The mortality rate for childbirth was very high, and not many women make it through the process, Dastan learned.

The Persian prince paced the hallway, feeling useless. He knew he could have helped. He could have calmed Tamina down and help her forget about the pain. He could have been there for her, and apologize for causing everything. They hadn't planned on having a child so soon—they even agreed on it. But, it was only natural for royals to make their marriage official through producing an heir during the first year.

Did they really need an heir?

It'd be nice; however, he and Tamina hadn't even gone through their coronation of becoming king and queen of Alamut yet.

"Alright, Your Highness, you may begin pushing."

She sat on the birthing stool, legs spread open. Sweat glazed her forehead and she felt as if she was about to pass out...

A maid stuck a melon under her nose, and she jolted awake. So, that's what the fruit and produce were for. The strong smells help to revive a fainter.

"Push," the midwife said, bringing her out of her thoughts. She kneeled beneath her, with the wool cloth wrapped around her hands.

pushed again, feeling an intense pain below.

"Towels," the woman ordered to the maids. She laid then down under the stool.

"A few more pushes, Your Highness. The babe's head is just about showing."

She pushed once more. Her already racing heart quickened as she heard a faint cry. With her last remaining strength, Tamina gave one last, hard push.

The pain was gone.

Crying filled the room; the sound, so angelic, reverberated against the walls.

A maid exited his bedchamber, and stood with a neutral expression. It made him nervous, not being able to read her emotion. Finally, she broke out into a small smile and said, "It is a boy, Your Highness."

"A-A boy?" he asked, grinning with relief and joy. "It's really a boy?"

The maid nodded, the smile still in place.

"So, may I enter?"

"Certainly, Your Highness," she answered, stepping aside to let him in.

Dastan was suddenly nervous. He didn't know what to expect, and that scared him. He stepped foot into the room, the faint smell of sweat lingering in the air. Turning the corner, he spotted his wife laying on the bed, a bundle of towels cradled in her arms.

Tamina looked up with him with tired, yet overjoyed eyes. She beamed at the sight of her husband, and urged him forward.

"Dastan, come meet our son."

It was strange to his ears. Our son. Strange, yet so right. He stepped closer, quickening his pace. As he reached the edge of the bed, the sight nearly took his breath away.

There, lying in his beloved wife's arms, was his newborn son. He could see that the baby and Tamina shared almost everything, but the jaw, hair color, and...the eyes. His son's eyes were wide and blue—same color as his own.

"Is he healthy?" he asked, mesmerized by his child.

"Yes, the midwife inspected him, and he is quite healthy."

Dastan smiled, hearing a person outside yelling and sharing news of the new royal family of Alamut to the citizens.

Family.

He had a family. No, they had a family. Together. They were graced with a healthy, beautiful baby boy who would rule Alamut at his given time. A baby boy who he could teach to walk up walls and spit pomegranate seeds at his Uncle Garsiv and cousins and maybe future siblings.

"Has he a name, yet?" the prince asked, not being able to take his eyes off of his son.

"I haven't thought of one, Dast, so we should decide sometime soon," Tamina answered.

"...Rayhan?"

The princess thought it over in her head.

"I think that's perfect," she sighed happily, cradling the baby boy in her arms.

Rayhan.

It was so surreal, that moment. She couldn't believe that she finally met the child that had grown within her. She couldn't believe that she had a child, nonetheless. Especially with a Persian. And, yet she didn't care.

She knew she would be able to live like that for the rest of her life, because she was certain that she wouldn't mind going through all that pain. The joy of meeting one's child for the first time was absolutely worth it.

THE END! :( / :D
It's over! It was a pleasure writing for you guys, and I really appreciate your time to review. :) Just like how I'd appreciate more reviews after I post this. *hint hint*