December 14, 1178
Raia had told Falidor that she'd be upstairs in ten minutes, but that was twenty minutes ago now.She wasn't sure what was taking so long. It had been her routine for years now--put the kids to bed, then take a couple herbs from the jar on the highest kitchen shelf and brew herself a weak tea before turning in herself--but tonight, something was off. She'd never had any trouble drinking the tea before, but every time she thought to reach for the mixture, her hand resisted. She wasn't quite sure why.
She had been thinking about it--it was a bit difficult not to, given all the nieces and nephews that practically rained from the sky--but she was no closer to concluding the matter than she'd been when Leara had first posed it. She did want a third child, she had decided... but she wasn't sure if she wanted one now. She had a wild daughter and a finicky son and now she had the business too. She was still young; it wasn't as if she couldn't conceive a couple years from now if she wished.But Alina and Sev were getting older. They were out of the house as often as they were in it, off running about with their friends, wreaking plenty of havoc but not that baby havoc that required immediate containment. And it wasn't as if a fat stomach would prevent her from whittling. In fact, wouldn't it give her an excuse to do practically nothing else?
Of course, once the baby actually arrived...She wanted more time to think about it, even if she did have all the time in the world. She knew that Falidor didn't mean to pressure her when he got that twinkle in his eye, but he did--just as Leara did when she came over with her bulging belly on display, just as Raia's father did when he sighed over the antics of the most recent additions, unwitting and unselfish but vexing nonetheless.
Raia shivered. She'd have to get to bed soon, if only to snuggle up next to Falidor beneath the cover of a warm blanket. But if she was going to Falidor, then she would need to drink the tea. Or maybe she wouldn't. Then again, maybe she would.Maybe. What did that say about all of this if that was the most concrete answer she could find?
NEXT CHAPTER:
8 comments:
Ah, the inevitable fluff posts :S
I liked this post, fluff or not. If I was in Raia's position I would agree to disagree, and let fate decide. I mean, just because she doesn't take the herbs doesn't mean she's going to get pregnant instantly.... Though I guess that IS debatable remembering what family she comes from... I'm loooking forward to the next post! Things look interesting ;P
I think Raia needs to talk this out with someone -- Falidor, preferably, but Laveria or Nora would also do. Maybe, since she is so conflicted and confused, she shouldn't be making this all on her own.
But that's just my two cents. ;-)
EkhoGirl: Yeah, she won't get pregnant just because she doesn't take the herbs. Conversely, the herbs can't be a hundred percent effective, so she might get pregnant despite taking them. It could very well be up to fate here.
Morgaine: For sure. I'm not sure if Falidor would be the best choice because he has a bias (even though I can't see him forcing Raia into something she doesn't want, or isn't sure she wants), but talking it over with someone essentially neutral like Laveria (who is the resident expert on contraceptives and abortifacients) or Nora (who is no stranger to having kids or using herbs either. At the end of the day, though... well, it's not the sort of decision anyone can really make for her.
We'll just have to see how it goes ;)
I'm still with Morgaine. Where is Falidor in all of this? Yes, it's not his body but it would be his kid and his vote does still count. Other than that, he's her partner. Important decisions should be made together regardless. It's all about the mutual airing of concerns, and the two heads being better than the one head.
In some ways, I think Raia and Falidor are in pretty different places in life. Falidor is getting close to forty now and has a pretty good idea of what he wants, and what he wants is a big, happy family. Raia is in her twenties and she's not quite sure what she wants, or at least not what she wants most at this point. It might do them well to talk about it, but it could also turn ugly. Of course, not talking about it could turn ugly too.
Ach, yeah an age gap like that can play havoc with compromise. It was my experience that when the age difference was greater than 10 years between me and a boyfriend (before Mr. Pen, way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth) then the boyfriend could get pretty paternal when I was making a decision that he did not agree with. Across the board, it became a, "You're young and I know better" situation. I can't imagine Raia responding well to something like that. It would seem that Falidor would be particularly prone to that sort of reaction too because he halfway raised her. But doesn't Falidor HAVE a huge happy family? He's a grandfather at 40 for Pete's sake.
No, I can't imagine Raia would react well to an "I know better" at all :S
Falidor does have a pretty big family, but who knows? Some people always want just a little bit more :S
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