Adeline was often bedridden. She could barely move her legs and whenever she tried, it felt like they fell asleep. Sharp pain would tingle her limb until she'd be forced to take a break and sit down. She was struggling to cope with the fact, but having the cribs inside of her bedroom was motivation.

Adeline didn't want her children to be taken care of by nannies. She wanted her babies to be loved by her own hands personally.

"W-wahhh!" Adelia suddenly began to cry, the sound more high-pitched than Elios.

Adeline had just sat down when Adelia woke up from her nap. She glanced around, worried because Elias wasn't around, and the crib was a few feet away. Pushing herself out of the chair, she grabbed onto the walker used by the eldery.

"Hush, hush, it'll be alright—" Adeline's leg suddenly gave out and she collapsed onto her knees, but didn't even feel the pain.

Upon hearing the loud tumble, the bathroom door immediately slid open, revealing a frantic Elias.

Elias had gone to use the bathroom for a split second and was startled by the noise outside.

"Darling," Elias chided, walking towards her and carrying her straight into his arms. She wrapped her hands around his shoulders, burying her face into his neck in dismay.

"What were you doing?" Elias asked. "I told you to stay put."

"Adelia is crying," Adeline said as he put her onto the bed. She pointed in her baby's direction and instantly, Elias brought the child to her.

"There, there," Adeline softly said, swaying the crying baby in her arms. "Shh, shh, did you have a nightmare?"magic

Adeline spoke slowly to the child, but in a normal-pitch. She read that baby talk slowed brain development. She had read about a research that claimed speaking to a baby as if they were an adult was known to improve their brain activity.

"It must've been a scary one," Adeline added on. She carefully stroked Adelia's forehead, smiling at the little bundle of hair that she had.

"You know, I used to have nightmares too," Adeline whispered.

Adelia peered up at her mother with large wide eyes, highly engrossed in the gentle voice and tender touch.

"It was about your father," Adeline snickered.

Elias scoffed. "More like I was your fantasy dream."

Adeline ignored his words. "Sometimes, the nightmares were forgotten memories of my childhood, and sometimes a ruined castle that can only be a metaphor for my stolen throne in Kastrem. I used to think my Uncle would suffer from usurping me."

Adelia continued to stare at her mother and Adeline smiled down at her child. Without warning, Adelia began to squirm and cry again, tears dripping out of her eyes."Oh dear, it mustn't have been a nightmare then," Adeline said, realizing maybe the baby was hungry. But Adelia's current cry didn't make her seem hungry and she was moving her legs a lot.

"You must need a diaper change," Adeline stated, her heart dropping in response. She needed to stand up in order to give Adelia a new diaper. The diaper station was near the corner of the room, by the crib. She needed to tell Elias to make everything sit-down proof.

"Give her to me then," Elias said.

Right on time, Elios began to make a fuss, waking up from his nap as well. Elias scowled down at his son, but bent down to pick him up regardless. Instantly, Elios quieted down a bit, but was still making bizarre noises.

Elias sighed and pressed his baby to his shoulders, swaying his body a bit. "Take Elios, I'll bring Adelia to the changing station."

Elios said nothing, but was squirming his head to get closer to his father's cold body. Elias paused for a split second, but then adjusted his baby.

"What a good little monster you are," Elias murmured, lovingly kissing the side of Elios's head. Elios had more hair than his younger sister.

"Don't give our baby such a horrible nickname!" Adeline groaned. She took Elios from Elias, and then handed off Adelia.

"Your father is a bully to you too?" Adeline asked Elios who had stopped crying by now. He was moving his arms, almost fascinated by his own fingers.

Adeline tried to ignore the nip at her heart. They were Half-Bloods, but they were growing exponentially faster than the usual growth rate.

Adeline wondered if there was a new term for babies with human and Pure-Blood parents. That kind of relationship was so rare, she'd practically never heard of it.

"Don't worry, one day you can tease him back," Adeline reassured Elios, as she began to stroke the wisps of hair resting on Elios's round forehead. Suddenly, he grabbed her finger, and her heart melted.

"Your tiny nails are so cute," Adeline blissfully sighed, so happy for her infants. Their skin was a pale color and they had a faint scent of sweet milk all the time. She wanted to hug and kiss them all day long if she could.

"And look at your hair, as brilliant as the sun," Adeline gushed. She was falling even more in love with Elios's dark brown eyes. Sometimes when he cried, it'd be a bright red, but then, it'd settle back into a dark burgundy color.

Adeline was slightly worried for Adelia, as the child always had jewel-like green eyes. She had never seen Adelia with red eyes before. The phenomenon for the change of eye-color was normal in Pure-Bloods and superior Half-Bloods.

"My babies are angels, not monsters. I don't know what your crazy father is thinking," Adeline softly sighed, hugging Elios closer to her chest.

"I'm thinking I'm more rational than you and your baby fever," Elias said, his lips tilting upwards at her feisty glare. She was so protective of their infants, he was growing jealous of them.

Elias carried Adelia towards the bed, where he sat down directly beside Adeline. Despite her irritation, she leaned her head upon his arms, for his shoulders were too tall for her petite height to reach.

"Are you sure you're fine with staying here?" Adeline warily asked. This morning, they were practicing walking, and it had been incredibly difficult. He ate lunch in their room and never left it.

"Yes, I've passed the less important workload to Weston and Easton. I'm bound to stop my workaholic behavior at some point," Elias said, despite his twitching fingers.

Elias's body was brimming with stamina. He usually burned off his energy by working on important documents like the legislation of new laws, overseeing the country budget, speaking to diplomats, and the list went on. But now, he was focused on taking care of his children, and his body wasn't as drained as earlier. In fact, he could go for rounds with Adeline right now.

"I see," Adeline said, reassured by his words.Adeline realized Elios was no longer looking at her, and was instead, peering up at Elias. The same applied to Adelia. She didn't blame either one of them. They were Half-Bloods and like every vampire, were naturally drawn to the power and prestige of a Pure-Blood.

"Oh, are you hungry, my baby?" Adeline asked, realizing Elios's eyes were slowly turning red.

Elias's gaze darkened, sending a warning glare in Elios's direction. The baby hadn't developed teeth yet, but when their fangs grew out, there's nothing stopping them from wanting to drink blood.

"Darling, when Elios grows even a single tooth, you will stop breastfeeding him immediately," Elias said.

"In case his fangs tear it into pieces?" Adeline asked.

Elias coldly nodded. "Specifically for that reason. He might also try to suck blood from there too, as impossible as it'd be to get blood from your chest."

"I don't think they'd drink the blood of their own mother," Adeline murmured. "But I will heed your advice."

"You are human," Elias slowly said, one hand stroking Adelia's face, whilst the other wrapped around Adeline's waist, bringing her even closer.

"Even if you are their mother, the babies are still vampires and young. For now, they don't know how to distinguish between human, prey, and mother," Elias told her.

Adeline didn't know that much about vampires. She guessed it was time for her to read more books about them, seeing as she had all the time in the world to do so.

"I see," Adeline said as she began to breastfeed Elios. She turned to look at Adelia and gasped.

"Elias, her eyes—"

Adelia was staring straight at her mother now, revealing a pair of pink eyes. They weren't as blood-thirsty as Elias's ruby ones, but it was still there.

"A weak vampire," Elias murmured, his hand sliding over Adelia's eyes. He covered them for a split second and moved his hand away, her eyes still the same pink color. She was still staring at her mother, despite his distraction to capture her attention.

"They're beginning to view you as more than food," Elias realized, glancing at Elios who was drinking the milk, but his eyes were bright-red. "You're prey to them, Adeline."

"No more breastfeeding," Elias roughly said. "We'll put them on formulas and after monitoring their growth, we'll move to baby food."

Adeline's heart raced at his words, but he knew more than her, so she didn't protest. She simply looked at Elios, her heart aching.

"The only way for them to view me as their equal is if I'm turned into a Pure-Blood," Adeline pointed out.

Adeline was terrified with that revelation. She didn't think there would be a hierarchy with her own children. Was this how most human mothers felt with their Half-Blood babies? What will it be like this for the rest of her life?

"Darling—"

"W-what if I get turned soon, so that I don't have to get my tubes tied and you don't have to get a vasectomy? I can go on birth control," Adeline said. She knew she'd survive the pregnancy indefinitely if she was a Pure-Blood.

All of a sudden, becoming a Pure-Blood seemed to solve all of their problems. But it didn't neglect the most problematic one—she could potentially die.

Elias warily looked at her. "Birth control is harsh on your body. It's exactly why I didn't want you to go on it in the first place."

Elias peered at Adeline's troubled expression and his stone heart softened again. He could never say no to her. One look from her shimmering eyes, and he was ready to give her the world.

"We'll worry about equal standing when they grow older. For now, they're babies and won't be able to harm you. Once there is no need for breastfeeding, you will naturally stop producing milk," Elias reassured her.

Elias bent down and kissed the side of her head, his lips lingering on her hair. "One step at a time, darling. Trust me."