Emperor. The word hit him gently, his ear flickering forward as if momentarily confused; then, he understand. His lip had twitched up into a small, brief grin, subdued by his desire to not seem overly proud or eager at the prospect. Of course his son had managed such a thing and yet, he grew nervous at the prospect that he had shared the information regarding he and his mother. Even now, he had no doubt such a thing would have been looked down upon. Still, at least he had one thing to be proud of, even though he felt as if he had not been there enough to have any real influence on his success. It just... made sense that Praetor had been the one to make it. He'd been the calmest of the children; collected, well articulated. He'd been born a prince in more than just name alone.

He hadn't been able to articulate a correct response and so, he had looked off into the marshes and mists, almost hopeful that speaking his name ought to have summoned Praetor. Of course, things did not work that way and so, he had turned back to Aithne only to see her bewilderment; it made him just as momentarily confused, his head pulled back with a jerk to the right. Only when she speak did he sigh in response, a quiet ahh of understanding. "Exactly," he laughed slightly, "No part of raising children makes any sense, but it can be done. Praetor attests to that, at least." Even though I had not been there entirely, he mused in silence, the thought tight behind his lips.

He didn't have much time to ponder it any more, though, for she quickly chewed into him with her words; that, of course, was not entirely unexpected. He did his best to lean away, giving her ample space and lowering his stance somewhat; it felt odd to show any indication of submission and yet, not only was she an alpha... she was a pregnant one at that. She ought to be the only wolf other than Caligula to have seen such submission from him, a thought that he mused briefly with an inkling of a grin. Trust Praetor to pick a mate like this, no? Her mention of... the act... instantly made him clear his throat too, undeniably awkward as he shifted his paws and looked towards the mists once more, an ear flicked forward as if some far off sound had caught his interest. Aithne did the honors, however, of moving the conversation elsewhere, something Tesseract was glad for.

"Have you a healer in Iromar?" he inquired, his eyes meeting hers with curiosity - unwilling, at this time, to break the news that large litters seemingly ran in his family, "One might be able to tell you closer to spring."

At least, he had a feeling they were able to do that. He'd never really utilized healers, as had been the case with Caligula. He waited some moments before he began to speak again, however, his tone taking on a much more serious timbre as his brows furrowed slightly. "Aithne," he began, waiting once more in order for her to put her own thoughts together, "It might seem unusual but I would like to offer you - and Praetor, of course - what services I can. I do not know if I can stay here entirely as there's... a lot I need to sort out. However, I can still hunt, and protect. I'd... like to be here, I think, for the two of you and your family. If you would have me, of course." After all, he had not spoken to Praetor yet. Would he even want him around their children?