With dinner well taken care of—Mother barely let Miranda help—we left for Petra's house. She was, at this point, very pregnant and visibly miserable. She was huge, and her annoyance was frankly adorable.
"How is Moritz handling it?" I asked while caressing her stomach.
She was munching on mazzepan, the only one aside from Zephyr who actually liked them.
"He's useless most of the time. Vistellia helps." She shot a grateful smile towards Granny, who brought in some tea.
"Men don't know how to deal with such... a change when a woman is pregnant," Granny said, handing the tray to Demelza and sitting down near Petra's bed. "We become angrier, hungrier, moody, and after all that... the end is not enjoyable." She would have gone into further detail but didn't want to frighten her daughter-in-law, who looked nervous all the same.
Pregnancy was a scary thing. Women often died from complications, and it was also one of the most painful experiences in life. Granny was a pro, the best possible help, since no woman had died under her hands—at least since I was aware of this horrendous thing called the miracle of life.
"I remember mine," Demelza, who was in that position a little over three years ago, offered. "As unenjoyable as it was, when it's over, you'll have someone who will love and need you for the rest of their lives. Everything that happened before turns meaningless."
Her experience was the most effective balm to calm our expectant mother. "Thank you, Dem. I can't wait, for all sorts of reasons." Her shyness was mostly a thing of the past, and she gave us a few suggestive looks.
"How long?" I asked with a coy smile.
She answered between sipping her tea. "Four months."
Ouff.
"Well, I remember that, too..." Demelza's painful expression was mirrored not only by Petra but by Granny as well.
Well, it's the miracle of life.
"Any estimate when they'll be back?" Granny asked, but I couldn't answer.
"It's a guessing game. Tonight? Tomorrow morning? Maybe later."
"What do you mean?"
I had talked last night with the Borea Martells, and they had some valid points.
"They might be inevitably delayed. Carlos's family has close ties to the Papacy. They support them financially. They also value the Blessed of Ehlite as much as Insatel does." I parroted back what had been told to me yesterday. "...They might need to attend at least one celebration thrown in their honor. Could be an extra day or two."
"Why didn't you tell your mother? She's been working, really—"
"I know, Granny, but it might not happen. What am I supposed to do? If we don't prepare and they arrive tonight? It's better to remain positive."
I shared looks with Demelza and my sister. They agreed with me, and Granny nodded with understanding as well.
"It can't be helped. He stands out too much. According to your mother, Carlos doesn't have the best relationship with his family. Neither does Ciren. They refused to believe him and accepted that their younger son is dead."
I hope they are not unfriendly.
"Is divorce the same as in Insatel? Or are some strange customs involved?" Eli asked a good question, but Granny had limited knowledge as well.
"As far as I know, it's about mostly papers. Maybe they need permission from the church."
We didn't have that here in Emet. Paying for the Faith's acknowledgment meant little far removed from their churches and priests. According to them, Ehlite watched us all, so why pay for his attention?
"It's getting late. We need some food, look into the children, and then go train." I reminded them that we had busy schedules.
"Oh, I wish to join that. Another thing denied me." Petra crossed her arms.
We did our best to cheer her up. "Once the baby is out, you'll have plenty of time and help with... him? And then training can start."
Granny had a cheeky smile while massaging Petra's back and asked Eli and Demelza, "How are the two of you doing? Any improvement?"
Eli wasn't amused. "Since... yesterday, Granny?"
Granny hid behind the pregnant girl.
"Alright, let's go. We hardly have time for this." I waved them goodbye.
We left the cozy little house and went to get some food from a tired chef and her little helpers.
~
It was night, and they were nowhere to be found.
It turned out Mother anticipated it as well and made just enough food that, with a little extra help from the Welk family—Lizzy, Norman, and their son—we were able to finish most of it.
"Well, they must be delayed. It's late." I confirmed what everyone knew.
For the first time since they left, we all ate together. If they happened to arrive, no one wanted to miss them. The last few days, either Alexander, Lucian, or the Emil brothers were there. Someone was always missing.
Alexander shook his head, looking at the light snow and complete darkness outside.
"Well, tomorrow then... hopefully."
He didn't seem concerned; none of us were. Those two could deal with an army.
"You know, inside the Civitas Dei, the main force comprises Holy Archers. The best of them are called the Arrows of Ehlite." Saam offered some tidbits of information. "They dip their arrows in a substance that's called Devil's Fire. Once lit, it cannot be extinguished."
That sounded a horrible way to die. Not enough to be shot through, but also burned with magic fire? Dharma sounded a cruel place to die.
Cintia, as she always did, demonstrated what she remembered as illusions. Towers made of large stone blocks surrounded a giant settlement of various buildings and large castles with more towers surrounding it. A giant church building of Ehlite, topped with the double-moon circles, was right in the middle of the city.
"They don't use walls, for some stupid reason, and rely on these towers able to hold dozens of marksman-priests. That's what they call themselves, but they're soldiers all the same." She pointed at the beautiful, tiny image of the capital of Dharma.
We could never get used to her incredible power.
"That right there is the Apostles Palace." Her fingers went through the biggest castle standing on a clifftop. It looked old and full of mysteries. "That is where the Pope and his family reside."
The kids, as always, tried to touch the almost solid-looking building while I enjoyed the glow in her irises. It made her look beautiful and scary at the same time. The color went back to blue, much like Zephyr's, and lost its white hue, much like Nifa's fingertips did when she finished using her ability.
"Anyway... are you sure?"
She looked right at me, drawing everyone's gaze with it.
"About what?"
She looked at me and then my hair, then repeated it again and again.
"Stop, I get it. Yes, I'm sure," I said with confidence.
I looked right at the main reason: my daughter, with her blue hair she had grown to love, really fast. There was no going back.
One more night being alone. I'm probably going to sleep with her. Maybe he won't walk straight out the door if we put up a united front.