#some insight in unsuur's mind about liira and her relationship with pen

[sandrockian]

(A WIP snippet from a fanfic I'm currently working on: Home & Hearth. The events of Knives Out have left Builder Liira depressed, heartbroken, and pregnant with Pen's child...only to move on and find a new love in Unsuur. The first chapter starts with Unsuur's pov, where he contemplates the events that led him to fall in love with Liira, confess his feelings, and adjust to life as the stepfather of Pen's daughter. I was in the mood for some family fluff, and this happened)

Obsessively, Unsuur kept track of every detail of his Liira’s pregnancy. Still, he hadn’t been prepared for the sheer emotion of watching the little Builder round out, of feeling the small kicks and flutters of the baby grow into a more robust, more demanding activity. And if the mere moment of life unfolding before his eyes had blindsided him, how had Liira felt with that same little life growing inside of her?

Sometimes, even during the physical misery of the last month of pregnancy, he’d caught an expression on her face, a rapt, absorbed look as she unconsciously stroked her belly, that told him she was lost in a world inhabited only by herself and her baby, Pen’s final gift to her before his inevitable fall from grace. And then Kaya had arrived, squalling and healthy. Unsuur had felt light-headed with relief and euphoria, cradling the little bundle wrapped in a sepia-colored blanket (Liira’s favorite color ).

In the six weeks since, each day seemed to bring some small change as the infant grew; the dark-purple fuzz on her head had become curly like her mother’s, and her skin was the same shade of dark brown as Liira’s with bright brown eyes that were alert. Kaya was noticing things, recognizing voices, waving her chubby little arms and legs in a jerky, uncoordinated rhythm as her muscles grew in strength, cooing happily whenever Mi-An or Owen lifted her in their arms. She loved bathtime. She loved being bundled up in the baby sling Fang had made for her. She loved babbling to Wilson and stacking rocks. She cried when she was hungry. Slept after feeding. Both he and Liira had been able to tell the difference within days and loved her all the more for it.

The changes in his beloved were fascinating, too. Liira had always held herself apart from the world as if she were more an observer than a participant. A Builder far from home and living in the suffocating confines of Sandrock. Before his misdeeds had been brought to light, Pen had a way of coaxing Liira out of her shell or making her laugh and smile. Sometimes, he would lift her up in his strong arms and spin round and round until Liira was breathless, giggling and kissing him, blooming under his affections. After Pen had been sent to prison for his crimes, Liira had locked herself away in her workshop, barely venturing out and only speaking in quieter, clipped sentences.

Unsuur had no way of communicating with her and had resigned himself to leaving letters in her mailbox only to be caught in the act when she'd appeared before him, eyes red-rimmed and confused, looking so beautiful in the light of the rising sun.

And it had only taken Liira catching him in the act for her to leave her workshop for the first time in weeks and chase after him, finding him in the dark confines of his closet.

The rest was history.

Liira had been a silent puzzle from the moment she first came to town, but he had stubbornly worked to earn her trust until she couldn’t help but notice him as a person rather than a face in the background. Unsuur could remember perfectly the exact moment when he’d succeeded: they had been taking refuge in his home during a fierce sandstorm, and in the middle of teaching Liira how to make his famous lemon soup, introducing her to Wilson and showing off his rock collection, Liira had looked at him and stared, a faintly soft expression crossing her face as if he were her entire world. That was it; no weeping, no heartfelt exchanges in the night, just a sudden gentle clarity in her gaze as she finally, truly saw him. Then Unsuur had smiled and leaned forward to kiss her...,

...and she’d kissed him back.