Next chapter will be to the left, I noticed it’s getting a bit squeezed to the side.
Also, I know nothing about what doctors may have done to check up on the health of a pregnant person a couple of centuries ago (plus added complication of A/O universe). Making it all up as I go.
Also, I think I disgusted myself with Matthew’s attitude which I found even more appalling than Charles’s, given he’s a doctor...then again, those in the medical profession back then had no oath to do no harm and frequently took advantage of situations for their own benefit...
Master of the House
Chapter 16 - Doctor's Visit
As Matthew bustled about Connor’s bedside, Charles found himself getting extremely irritated.
Matthew was taking his pulse, prodding him with various thermometers, massaging his belly...
And the only thing that his wife had on was a long, thin, white shift, unbuttoned at his stomach so that Matthew had access to him.
The sight of the doctor rubbing at his wife’s smooth skin, at the vulnerable flesh that housed his child...
Charles ground his teeth and restrained himself from ripping Matthew off of his wife. He reminded himself that, unlike Edwards and the late Hickey, Matthew Davies was a greedy bastard, not a lecherous one.
It didn’t help much.
To distract himself from unwanted thoughts, he turned his attention to the only conscious Omega in the room.
To his great satisfaction, he saw that, Clipper, too, seemed somewhat disconcerted at how intimate the inspection was.
The Omega fidgeted, horrified eyes glancing at the hands on Charles’s wife and then away to the far wall. Whether the unease came from the fact that the hands belonged to Matthew or seeing more of his mentor than he had ever dreamed, Charles did not know.
A thought came to him, and his eyes narrowed. At least, he hoped the man had not seen more of his wife.
Oblivious to the thoughts that tormented Charles, the Omega’s curiosity overcame his unease, and he approached Matthew.
“How is he?”
Matthew spared a quick disinterested glance at the Omega. “Not getting any worse and perhaps even a little better, I’m surprised to say. He is no longer deteriorating quite as quickly as he was.”
He turned to Charles.
“Did you change his regimen?”
Charles nodded slightly. “We took him outside with the dogs, yesterday, in the afternoon.”
“Hm.”
Matthew was, once again, absorbed examining his patient.
“And,” James’s Omega hesitated. “And the baby?”
“Can’t tell as of yet.” Matthew was testing the limberness of Connor’s hands, arms and legs.
Charles clenched his fists at the sight of his wife being handled like a puppet by another Alpha.
“How did you know he was pregnant then?” The Omega stared at Charles’s wife with mixed concern and reverence.
“He missed a couple of heats since the miscarriage.”
While James’s Omega flinched, Charles gaped at Matthew.
“How do you know when his heats are?” he choked out, scandalized.
Matthew turned to him.
“Come now, Charles, sir,” he amended. “I knew how long the last pregnancy lasted, and given that heats are regular and a male Omega is only fertile during heat...”
“But couldn’t he just have an irregular cycle? Or-or the recent stress cause him to miss them?” the Omega babbled, face red with embarrassment.
Matthew shrugged.
“The servants showed me their log of his daily needs, and his urination has increased significantly within the past couple of months as his growing womb increases pressure on his bladder. Plus, his breasts are also softening a bit and getting ready to produce milk for the infant, well,” he chuckled, “as much as any male Omega can.”
He turned to Charles, also flushed bright red at this point. “You may want to look into getting a wet-nurse for the child to help with that. It has the added advantage of helping him conceive again faster if his milk dries up. I can give you the names of several reputable female Omegas...for a fee, of course.”
The man smiled toothily and then turned back to his patient.
The room fell silent again, Charles too flabbergasted with the thought of Matthew of his wife’s cycles and Connor nursing their child, Clipper too mortified by the sudden information regarding his own body.
After a moment, the Omega gathered his courage. “Doctor,” Clipper began, face still flaming from the last comment. “We’ve been trying to increase positive memories and associations. Connor means a lot to me—“
Charles coughed.
“—and the child means a lot to Mr. Lee—“
Charles glowered at the Omega. Was that all he had taken away from their earlier conversation? Did he not see how Charles was actually doing right by his mentor?
“—for him to get better...”
Matthew waved an impatient hand. “Yes, yes. Continue doing as you did. It is difficult to tell so quickly, and his recent improvement may just be happenstance, but it cannot hurt to continue increasing the positive stimulus.”
“...what about the negative ones?” the Omega asked suddenly.
“Pardon?” Matthew turned towards him in surprise just as Charles bristled in anger.
Surely the man wasn’t going to bring that up now. Surely...
“Connor never welcomed Mr. Lee’s advances—“
Charles couldn’t believe the gall of the boy. Now? Here?
“—and Mr. Lee insists on making full use of his ‘husbandly’ rights—”
He was going to kill the Omega, James be damned.
“—wouldn’t that be considered to be a negative stimulus?”
As Charles stood contemplating various methods of disposing of the troublesome Omega, Matthew looked ponderingly from him to the determined Omega.
“Are you asking,” Matthew removed his spectacles slowly, “if Charles bedding his wife will be deleterious for him or the child?”
Clipper stubbornly raised his chin. “Yes.”
Matthew laughed in mirth. “My dear Omega, have you had...relations...with Mr. Collins?”
The Omega turned pink again. “I don’t see what that has—“
“Yes or no, Omega.”
“Y-yes.”
Interesting. Charles was beginning to think the man a complete virgin with his insistence on interfering with his love life.
Matthew continued, “and have you been harmed by any of your...previous encounters?”
The Omega tried to protest. “But that’s—“
“Again, yes or no?”
“That’s not the same—“
Matthew put up a hand, obviously finished with the line of reasoning. “I can see where you want to spare your friend from the touch of us ‘evil’ Templars,” he laughed knowing, sharing a look with Charles. “But rest assured, sex isn’t causing any physical damage to either him or the child.”
Charles relaxed.
Perhaps he was a bit...overhasty...when it came to James’s Omega. The man’s questions did lead to some valuable insight and, well—it would have been a shame to lose access to his wife’s succulent body.
James’s Omega did not seem as pleased with the answer and opened his mouth to argue.
“I will brook no more on this,” Matthew admonished him sternly. “Although,” he turned back to Charles, “if he recovers his mind, I would not force your attentions on him if he fights you. That may damage the child.”
Charles frowned at the thought. He might need a new bargain with his wife if he wanted continued access to the boy’s body then.
“There are herbs in this new country to make him more...compliant, but little research has been done on their safety while an Omega is pregnant.”
In the corner of his eye, Charles could see James’s Omega turning pale in disgust. And for his own part, Charles had to admit he felt a bit ill at the thought of drugging his wife. Fertility teas, yes, but narcotics?
“And later on in the pregnancy?” Charles felt compelled to ask.
“That is an old wives’ tale. Pure fictitious. You may penetrate him as long as you do not damage him during it.”
With that, Matthew began packing up his instruments.
“I shall leave the books with you and take my leave. You may send the payment to the regular location.”
-----
“Wait.”
Clipper resolutely stepped in front of Davies’s path as he was about to exit the manor.
The man didn’t look impressed.
“Step aside.”
“You only said physical damage. Mr. Lee forcing himself on Connor while Connor is like this wouldn’t cause him or the child physical damage.”
Davies raised an eyebrow.
“So I did.”
“What about mental? What about emotional? What about—“
Davies stopped him. “Who do you think I am, Omega?”
Clipper stalled, suddenly unsure.
“A doctor? A Templar?”
Davies smirked.
“Yes, a Templar. A Templar who owes his first loyalty to the Order and sees his next coppers filled by the likes of our dear Charles Lee and others who seek my services. And it doesn’t pay,” he wagged a finger in front of Clipper’s face, “to disagree with the man who is paying you when he clearly wants to fuck his wife.”
Clipper tasted bile. “You would sacrifice Connor, sacrifice your professional integrity...”
Davies actually laughed at this.
“Oh, dear me, where do you Assassins get your ideas? So naïve, Omega.”
He looked mockingly at Clipper.
“Your dear Connor was instrumental in destroying more than half of our most valued members, of our inner circle. Really, Omega, do try to remember that I have no cause for sympathy for you or yours, save what I am paid to do.”
Clipper shook with anger. Vile, disgusting...
“But don’t fret yourself.” Davies patted his head condescendingly. “Connor is our soon-to-be Grandmaster’s wife and our current Grandmaster’s son. He carries the heir to both those respectable—and wealthy—lines. If I believed the child would be damaged by such activity, I would discourage it. It promises a steady stream of income for the next several years, after all.”
And on that note, Davies brushed past a stunned Clipper and stepped out the door.
As Clipper listened to the sound of a carriage being drawn away, only one thought made itself known to him.
I will protect him from you, from all of you. I don’t know how, but I will.
Master of the House - part 18
Also, I know nothing about what doctors may have done to check up on the health of a pregnant person a couple of centuries ago (plus added complication of A/O universe). Making it all up as I go.
Also, I think I disgusted myself with Matthew’s attitude which I found even more appalling than Charles’s, given he’s a doctor...then again, those in the medical profession back then had no oath to do no harm and frequently took advantage of situations for their own benefit...
Master of the House
Chapter 16 - Doctor's Visit
As Matthew bustled about Connor’s bedside, Charles found himself getting extremely irritated.
Matthew was taking his pulse, prodding him with various thermometers, massaging his belly...
And the only thing that his wife had on was a long, thin, white shift, unbuttoned at his stomach so that Matthew had access to him.
The sight of the doctor rubbing at his wife’s smooth skin, at the vulnerable flesh that housed his child...
Charles ground his teeth and restrained himself from ripping Matthew off of his wife. He reminded himself that, unlike Edwards and the late Hickey, Matthew Davies was a greedy bastard, not a lecherous one.
It didn’t help much.
To distract himself from unwanted thoughts, he turned his attention to the only conscious Omega in the room.
To his great satisfaction, he saw that, Clipper, too, seemed somewhat disconcerted at how intimate the inspection was.
The Omega fidgeted, horrified eyes glancing at the hands on Charles’s wife and then away to the far wall. Whether the unease came from the fact that the hands belonged to Matthew or seeing more of his mentor than he had ever dreamed, Charles did not know.
A thought came to him, and his eyes narrowed. At least, he hoped the man had not seen more of his wife.
Oblivious to the thoughts that tormented Charles, the Omega’s curiosity overcame his unease, and he approached Matthew.
“How is he?”
Matthew spared a quick disinterested glance at the Omega. “Not getting any worse and perhaps even a little better, I’m surprised to say. He is no longer deteriorating quite as quickly as he was.”
He turned to Charles.
“Did you change his regimen?”
Charles nodded slightly. “We took him outside with the dogs, yesterday, in the afternoon.”
“Hm.”
Matthew was, once again, absorbed examining his patient.
“And,” James’s Omega hesitated. “And the baby?”
“Can’t tell as of yet.” Matthew was testing the limberness of Connor’s hands, arms and legs.
Charles clenched his fists at the sight of his wife being handled like a puppet by another Alpha.
“How did you know he was pregnant then?” The Omega stared at Charles’s wife with mixed concern and reverence.
“He missed a couple of heats since the miscarriage.”
While James’s Omega flinched, Charles gaped at Matthew.
“How do you know when his heats are?” he choked out, scandalized.
Matthew turned to him.
“Come now, Charles, sir,” he amended. “I knew how long the last pregnancy lasted, and given that heats are regular and a male Omega is only fertile during heat...”
“But couldn’t he just have an irregular cycle? Or-or the recent stress cause him to miss them?” the Omega babbled, face red with embarrassment.
Matthew shrugged.
“The servants showed me their log of his daily needs, and his urination has increased significantly within the past couple of months as his growing womb increases pressure on his bladder. Plus, his breasts are also softening a bit and getting ready to produce milk for the infant, well,” he chuckled, “as much as any male Omega can.”
He turned to Charles, also flushed bright red at this point. “You may want to look into getting a wet-nurse for the child to help with that. It has the added advantage of helping him conceive again faster if his milk dries up. I can give you the names of several reputable female Omegas...for a fee, of course.”
The man smiled toothily and then turned back to his patient.
The room fell silent again, Charles too flabbergasted with the thought of Matthew of his wife’s cycles and Connor nursing their child, Clipper too mortified by the sudden information regarding his own body.
After a moment, the Omega gathered his courage. “Doctor,” Clipper began, face still flaming from the last comment. “We’ve been trying to increase positive memories and associations. Connor means a lot to me—“
Charles coughed.
“—and the child means a lot to Mr. Lee—“
Charles glowered at the Omega. Was that all he had taken away from their earlier conversation? Did he not see how Charles was actually doing right by his mentor?
“—for him to get better...”
Matthew waved an impatient hand. “Yes, yes. Continue doing as you did. It is difficult to tell so quickly, and his recent improvement may just be happenstance, but it cannot hurt to continue increasing the positive stimulus.”
“...what about the negative ones?” the Omega asked suddenly.
“Pardon?” Matthew turned towards him in surprise just as Charles bristled in anger.
Surely the man wasn’t going to bring that up now. Surely...
“Connor never welcomed Mr. Lee’s advances—“
Charles couldn’t believe the gall of the boy. Now? Here?
“—and Mr. Lee insists on making full use of his ‘husbandly’ rights—”
He was going to kill the Omega, James be damned.
“—wouldn’t that be considered to be a negative stimulus?”
As Charles stood contemplating various methods of disposing of the troublesome Omega, Matthew looked ponderingly from him to the determined Omega.
“Are you asking,” Matthew removed his spectacles slowly, “if Charles bedding his wife will be deleterious for him or the child?”
Clipper stubbornly raised his chin. “Yes.”
Matthew laughed in mirth. “My dear Omega, have you had...relations...with Mr. Collins?”
The Omega turned pink again. “I don’t see what that has—“
“Yes or no, Omega.”
“Y-yes.”
Interesting. Charles was beginning to think the man a complete virgin with his insistence on interfering with his love life.
Matthew continued, “and have you been harmed by any of your...previous encounters?”
The Omega tried to protest. “But that’s—“
“Again, yes or no?”
“That’s not the same—“
Matthew put up a hand, obviously finished with the line of reasoning. “I can see where you want to spare your friend from the touch of us ‘evil’ Templars,” he laughed knowing, sharing a look with Charles. “But rest assured, sex isn’t causing any physical damage to either him or the child.”
Charles relaxed.
Perhaps he was a bit...overhasty...when it came to James’s Omega. The man’s questions did lead to some valuable insight and, well—it would have been a shame to lose access to his wife’s succulent body.
James’s Omega did not seem as pleased with the answer and opened his mouth to argue.
“I will brook no more on this,” Matthew admonished him sternly. “Although,” he turned back to Charles, “if he recovers his mind, I would not force your attentions on him if he fights you. That may damage the child.”
Charles frowned at the thought. He might need a new bargain with his wife if he wanted continued access to the boy’s body then.
“There are herbs in this new country to make him more...compliant, but little research has been done on their safety while an Omega is pregnant.”
In the corner of his eye, Charles could see James’s Omega turning pale in disgust. And for his own part, Charles had to admit he felt a bit ill at the thought of drugging his wife. Fertility teas, yes, but narcotics?
“And later on in the pregnancy?” Charles felt compelled to ask.
“That is an old wives’ tale. Pure fictitious. You may penetrate him as long as you do not damage him during it.”
With that, Matthew began packing up his instruments.
“I shall leave the books with you and take my leave. You may send the payment to the regular location.”
-----
“Wait.”
Clipper resolutely stepped in front of Davies’s path as he was about to exit the manor.
The man didn’t look impressed.
“Step aside.”
“You only said physical damage. Mr. Lee forcing himself on Connor while Connor is like this wouldn’t cause him or the child physical damage.”
Davies raised an eyebrow.
“So I did.”
“What about mental? What about emotional? What about—“
Davies stopped him. “Who do you think I am, Omega?”
Clipper stalled, suddenly unsure.
“A doctor? A Templar?”
Davies smirked.
“Yes, a Templar. A Templar who owes his first loyalty to the Order and sees his next coppers filled by the likes of our dear Charles Lee and others who seek my services. And it doesn’t pay,” he wagged a finger in front of Clipper’s face, “to disagree with the man who is paying you when he clearly wants to fuck his wife.”
Clipper tasted bile. “You would sacrifice Connor, sacrifice your professional integrity...”
Davies actually laughed at this.
“Oh, dear me, where do you Assassins get your ideas? So naïve, Omega.”
He looked mockingly at Clipper.
“Your dear Connor was instrumental in destroying more than half of our most valued members, of our inner circle. Really, Omega, do try to remember that I have no cause for sympathy for you or yours, save what I am paid to do.”
Clipper shook with anger. Vile, disgusting...
“But don’t fret yourself.” Davies patted his head condescendingly. “Connor is our soon-to-be Grandmaster’s wife and our current Grandmaster’s son. He carries the heir to both those respectable—and wealthy—lines. If I believed the child would be damaged by such activity, I would discourage it. It promises a steady stream of income for the next several years, after all.”
And on that note, Davies brushed past a stunned Clipper and stepped out the door.
As Clipper listened to the sound of a carriage being drawn away, only one thought made itself known to him.
I will protect him from you, from all of you. I don’t know how, but I will.