Reina of Hanneau (English)

MEETING THE FOLKS

Hours after baby Ritsu is born, the weather finally cleared. It left a disastrous trace for thousands of people both in Moulen and Haran. But for the Sou and Asai family, it brought them astounding joy.

Sou Ritsu. 

A bundle of joy that brought Mitsuei and Reina together. Closer than they had been when they started to both compromises with each other. 

Undeniably, either of them has grown more fond of the other. 

“Oh my goodness! What a cute little boy!”

“I know! So adorable, right? I want to squeeze him so bad.”

”Can I touch it? It looks so frail I’m afraid I might hurt it.”

“Oh, shut up, Sora. You talk like this is your first time seeing an infant.”

“But it is. I swear. I wish I had witnessed how it was born. I would have been mind-blowing.”

“Please, someone zip his mouth. You are ruining this important moment, Sora.”

The workers of Hanneau erupt into boisterous laughter at Rio’s sarcastic remarks towards Sora. She was enjoying her time playing with the little Sou napping on her arms. She loves having its soft and cold skin against her fingers. She even likes how he stirs whenever the others start poking him around. 

The other also wants to take turns in holding the new member of the Sou family. But Rio refuses to. Moreover, it would stress the baby out if he keeps on transferring from one person to the other.

They all have gathered here today to check the lodge. 

Hanneau is not completely open yet. It only had been a day since the storm passed and people are probably busy cleaning after their homes. So after doing some chores in their respective home, they went to visit Hanneau. 

They are only supposed to do some cleaning around the inn before they reprise operations in the next two days. 

So, imagine everyone’s surprise when they saw a baby born after a storm. 

None of them had any idea of what happened during the intense snowstorm. Even Kiyoko. 

The lodge was closed for a week ever since the snow started to pour heavily. So all of them broke into a series of shock and gasps when Mitsuei shared the news to everyone just before they took an afternoon break.

“I swear I almost cried when the owner told us about what happened in the last couple of days,” Akari mumbles as she tries to hold back tears. Hearing what happened firsthand brought so many emotions in her. How much more for the people directly involved.

“Well, I saw Rio crying after Kayomi told us something about the baby coming out unresponsive.”

“Someday, I hope someone finds a way to make you shut up,” Rio growls at Sora. She did her best to hide herself that moment, but she didn’t escape Sora’s keen eyes.

Mitsuei didn’t tell them about the entire situation in their estate when the storm was at its peak. He only told them about the missus giving birth and asked if they wanted to see the baby boy. The conversation about the missus only started when Sora and Yoshi asked about Reina’s whereabouts. 

They didn’t hear about what took place in their home until they all went inside the house and were welcomed by Kayomi. Mitsuei had to leave first to check if Reina and the baby were awake for everyone to visit. 

Kayomi told them how Reina battled with pain and exhaustion. Or how her father refused to give up the baby even when it initially came out practically dead. She called it a miracle and she was happy to be able to witness such a thing. Even her father’s behavior during those moments can be considered a miracle, too.

“Thank you all for visiting. I appreciate you coming here to check on us,” Reina grumbles, almost in a whisper as she is too tired yet to initiate long conversations.

Rio puts the baby back to Reina's side as he already started stirring with a furrowed face. He seems to have hated the noise of several people crowding around him.

Reina has bags under her eyes while her body still appears sluggish. Aside from the hours-long of labor and giving birth, she had to breastfeed Ritsu from time to time. 

Yuuma did a thorough check-up on Reina as soon as he settled in. Because the procedure was only done at home, he was concerned about the possibility of infection. Thankfully, she and the baby are both fine. She also requires support from any family members because she cannot perform anything on her own in the meanwhile.

A few hours after Ritsu's birth, Mitsuei put Helen to sleep. Despite her initial rejection, Kayomi was also dragged to sleep. Mitsuei, on the other hand, was not content to rest until he was certain that Reina and Ritsu were secure.

Once Yuuma assured him, Ryouta and the rest of the Asai family convinced him to rest. He refused to leave the room, though. So he pulled out a futon and rest on the floor at Reina’s bedside. 

Ryouta and the others did not stop him further. It was enough he backed down and finally accepted the offer to rest. They understood him still being on the edge, considering what arose in the past couple of hours.

The Asai family headed for Haran shortly after everyone had a good night's sleep to begin cleaning up their home in Haran. Only Helen was left to help take care of Reina. 

Ritsu starts scowling till his face turns nasty a few minutes after being placed next to Reina. He begins to weep, his thin legs quivering as he waves his small hands around. He looks like he is struggling to get free.

“Oh, no.”

The workers gasp, blaming each other for disturbing the little boy’s peaceful sleep. 

Reina slowly turns to her side, attempting to soothe the little soul’s troubles. She just couldn't get up from her bed and dance around the house with the baby. Her entire body is still throbbing, and she can barely stand going to the bathroom. She feels helpless.

“Shhh. Shhh. Don’t cry, Ritsu. They only want to visit you,” Reina whispers, praying that Ritsu will eventually calm down. 

Regardless of her efforts to comfort her son, he still has not stopped crying. And she is growing anxious about what might happen to him when he suddenly turns bright red. Seeing him catching his breath makes her even more uneasy.

Everyone in the room also makes an effort to make the baby laugh. But their efforts fell on deaf ears. Baby Ritsu continued crying like he is hurt somewhere in his body.

“Now, now. What is the commotion here?”

Mitsuei passes through the open door of their bedroom. Behind him follows Kayomi and Kiyoko respectively, carrying trays of snacks and drinks. 

Mitsuei immediately goes to Reina’s side where the baby is stirring while constantly crying. He picks up Ritsu in his arms and rocks him back to sleep. 

Surprisingly, it did not take long for the baby's temper to cool down. It was as if he had discovered the peace he needed.

Mitsuei resumes rocking the baby even if he has cooled down. He was humming in a soft and low tone that all of them were surprised to see the owner do what he does now. They didn’t expect that someone known to be indifferent could shamelessly do such a thing in front of several people. His employees, in particular.

“There you go,” Mitsuei gently brings Ritsu back to Reina’s bedside. 

Reina smiles back at him as he wipes the sweat on her forehead. Such a magical moment for anyone in the room to witness.

Aside from singing to the baby, they also witnessed the owner being overly open with his feelings toward his wife. It is just like he became a whole different person since the snowstorm passed. It was like when the heavy snow passed, so did Mitsuei’s coldness towards his surroundings. 

“As you can see, Ritsu pretty much prefers Mitsuei over me.”

Reina giggles, slumping her head back to the pillow. Her head feels heavy all of a sudden, while her sight spins around like the room just turned upside down. 

“You should probably rest now,” Mitsuei recommends. His eyes are filled with concern and worry.

“We are sorry for disturbing you, Mrs. Sou.”

Akari sighs, pulling the rest of the bunch away to give Reina and the baby some needed space. They all got excited when they heard about the baby. And they forgot to consider how tiring it must be for everyone. All of them probably did not have enough sleep. 

“No, it is fine. I just felt dizzy for a short while. But I am okay now.”

“Here. I got you the ginseng doctor Yuuma recommended. He said it would help you regain your strength,” Kayomi intervenes, holding a small cup for Reina to drink.

“Thank you,” Reina whispers her gratitude, still unable to keep a long conversation. 

Mitsuei carefully assists Reina in rising from her bed, with her back against the headboard. Having a fork in one hand, he grabs a bowl off the tray and sits near her.

He proceeds to give Reina some sliced fruits as soon as he is seated.

“I can at least raise my hands, you know,” Reina chuckles, playfully teasing Mitsuei for being out of character.

Mitsuei sighs in defeat. He can see that Reina is getting embarrassed by the whole scenario. It was probably too much of him to spoonfeed his capable wife. 

The workers of Hanneau stifle their laughter, afraid that the owner might scold them for making fun of him. Instead, they dipped themselves on the food served in front of them. 

As funny as it seems, it has been an eye-opener for all of them. They did not realize that Mitsuei was still capable of showing emotions. He seems to have always been in control of his feelings and environment. Thus, people always think he is an impregnable high wall. 

But who knew he could be this gentle and caring person in front of his family? They are well aware that things will be different for them all from now on.