The Pistis, Elpis and Storge of Yannis and Amalia Chapter 1, an earth's children fanfic

Amalia, warm in her furs, heard her little girl leave the lean to. Snuggling down further, she decided she would get up soon but it was too early yet. Hearing the distant hums of her child, she smiled; she was a lovely girl, so full of life. Seeing her mate had awakened, she leant over to him and was greeted with his arms snaking around her; he pulled her into a deep kiss. She reluctantly broke away, and getting up, she started to get ready for their day, as he did. They had just about finished getting dressed when she felt the first tremors. In fear, she could not move, and when she felt the ground underneath them open, she knew it was too late. As they fell into the chasm, she could hear Danyayla scream, "mother, motherr."

One moment, Yannis had been gazing into his lovely mate's eyes, the next he was falling, and as people say at those times, his life flashed before his eyes.

He could remember travelling nearly as long as he had lived. He knew that he had been born to a people named the Fanari; he remembered many things from when he was a small child, before they had started on their long journey. They had lived near the sea, and he still remembered the cool sea breeze tempering the long hot summers. He recalled his mother's mate going out onto that sea, in a hollowed out tree, to fish for the blue finned tunna that seem to teem there. They had been good times, always with full bellies. His mother would often go out gathering food, berries, edible roots and the small blackish, purple bitter fruit that she had discovered, she would dry these out in the sun for a couple of days, before she would let anyone eat them. They had been named olives after his mother, Olivia. When he was five summers the people of his hearth decided that they wanted to go on a journey. What they did not know, was they would never return. They followed the sea coast around, visiting people after people, many he could not remember, but as he got older, he would remember the ones that had a particular effect on him. One of these memories was when they reached the Venezia when he was ten, they had still been following the coast and they had just come upon these people in the middle of summer. Yannis had never been to a summer meeting before, not that he remembered, the previous years they had always travelled in the summer and wintered with the people they had met. So this was special, he had wandered around the area, shocked to see so many people. He had been given such delights to eat, his favourite was kebobs, bits of meat and vegetables laced onto carved slivers of wood, and rolled in spices and herbs, and then cooked over hot rocks. When they had left early the next spring, they had followed a carve map of ivory that their new friends had given them, and eventually settled down with the Larochai. By then he was thirteen, and felt he was a man, so when they decided they had had enough of travelling, he decided that he would continue on. He felt an urge within him that he knew was from the mother, that he must journey, until she told him it was time to stop. And so, his mother hugged him goodbye, with silent tears running down her face, for the son she must give back to the mother. And so, following the example of his mother, and Tiege, her mate, he continued to follow the coast, meeting along the way the peoples of the Challenii, and the Lannioi, and finally he meeting the Larochoi, where he settled for a moon. The Larochoi, also dug out trees to make small boats, and with these they would trade with another people across a small sea of water, a people, called the Sandownia, and on one such mission, he went along with them. Feeling the familiar swell of a boat brought a smile to his face. When they landed, he noticed the people were all fair headed and when he saw one young woman, he fell in love.

While Amalia fell, she also saw her life played out before her eyes.

She had been born to the people of the Sandownia on a small island. Her mother had been the chief healer in her cave, and she had taught Amalia everything she knew. Her and her friends had spent many fun days in the all too short summers, but the winters had been hard, because they lived so close to the glacier. But they had many friends on the main land, who they traded with, and lived a comfortable life. When she was thirteen, having just had her first rites, she had been helping her mother, the Larochoi were there on one of their regular trade journeys, and she was serving them rabbit stew. She turned to scoop some of the stew into a young man's bowl, when she caught his eye. He had stared at her, and she being so young had blushed and hurried away. But the man had started to try to get to know her, he had introduced himself as Yannis, and told her stories of the journey he had travelled, first with his mother and her mate, and then on his own. And slowly, she fell in love with him and was ecstatic when he asked her to mate him. She was blessed soon after and gave birth to a little girl who had the colouring of her mother, but the features of her father. And they named her Danyayla. When the child was three summers, Yannis heard the call from the mother that it was time to travel again, and so they said their goodbyes to their people, and travelling on one of the Larochoi's boats, they had landed on the main land, and started their voyage, that would prove to be the adventure of their young lives. They had been travelling for two summers, when one day, they had stopped by a small river to spend the night. Yannis had gone hunting, bringing back two ptarmigans, while Amalia had taken Danyayla with her to gather berries, and vegetables. When the food was cooked they had eaten it, followed by the small ripe raspberries that Danyayla loved. When the sun disappeared into a night sky, she had put her child to bed in her furs, and told her a story, and then as the little girl had fallen asleep, she had watched her breathe. Little did she know it would be the last time they would do these, oh so normal things, because the next day, everything changed.

She was still alive, she had fallen down an abyss, her arm felt funny, and her body ached, but she was still alive. She couldn't see anything, it was too dark, "Yannis, are you okay?" she called; she thought she had heard a moan. Scrabbling on her knee, she searched with her hands around the floor of this shadows laded hole. Finding a warm body, she felt for the head, and again asked "are you okay?"

Yannis groaned, trying to sit up, he felt dizzy, putting his hand to his throbbing head, he felt moisture, "I'm alright, Amalia," he comforted her, "are you injured?"

"My arm hurts but apart from that, I'm not hurt?" she started to cry, "Yannis, where are we?"

"I don't know" and then he asked in fear "is Danyayla with you?"

"No, she left the lean to before it all happened" then with great urgency she cried back "Yannis, our baby, she all alone up there."

Trying to comfort his mate as much as he could, he told her "she'll be okay, we will get out of here, and we will find her," he felt he was trying to convince himself as much as her.

"We'll get out, we'll get out" he could hear her muttering to herself, almost hysterically.

Feeling around on the uneven floor, he found some of their belonging they had stored inside the shelter the night before, a pack, a flint knife that from handling he thought was not broken. Then he started to examine further a field, always with his hands, there was no light. Finding a wall, he followed it around and eventually, discovered a tunnel leading off. Going back to his mate, he stumbled over her, and grabbing her hand, went back to where he though the passageway was, and they started travelling through it, carrying their only supplies left.

They walked a long way, always with their hands in front of them, so they would not bump their head. Eventually, they found their way blocked but touching the way, they found a small hole that was big enough for them to crawl through. They maintain this agonising position as they pulsated along, like caterpillars wriggling on a leaf.

When they believed they could go no further, they got their first gift from the mother. They had come upon a very strange enormous cavern; it had white walls, which shined with unnatural light. "It is a Naria's womb, the mother's place" Yannis gasped, and fell to his knees in worship.

The more practical healer came out in Amalia, and knowing that this gift of the mother, was not just for worship, but simply so they could examine their injuries. "Let me look at your head, Yannis" she instructed him, rummaging in the pack they had she found some salve that she used for Danyayla's cuts, and a small fur to tie around his head. It was not much, but it would have to do, until they could find something more suitable. Seeing to her mate first, she then tied a hide that she used for collecting food as a sling for her arm. Looking at Yannis, she saw that he was examining the knife, "is it broken?" she asked.

"No" he was relieved.

Deciding they should hurry up, Yannis thanked the mother for her bounty, and said to Amalia, "We have to find a way out" nodding at a dark tunnel up ahead, he lead her to it, gulping as they entered the pitch black again.

Walking for a while, their feet became wet, and then their seeking hands were met with a obstruction, examining the place they were in Yannis, could not feel anywhere that would offer a possible escape, with a last ditch effort he felt the blockage, and towards the bottom, felt a way through, but it was under water.

"Have you found a way out" Amalia asked.

"I think so, but it is under water, you have to be brave Amalia, I'm going to see if we can get out that way, but it means leaving you for a few minutes" he told her.

She nodded, knowing he couldn't see her; she gulped "yes" and listened to the sound of him dropping into deep water.

Waiting, alone in the dark, it felt like a whole life time had past, but soon he was back

Gasping for air for a moment, he informed her, "there is light down there, I followed it and it comes out into a small pool, and Amalia, I could see the sky."

The small child wandered in the wilderness she had found herself in, she had no one to provide or protect her, she was alone, a tasty morsel for any roving meat eater. Seeing a lion she ran, as fast as she could, knowing it was stalking her, finding a small hole in a cliff, she hid but he found her. She felt her leg rip open as he shredded it with his claws, he couldn't get to her, and she wasn't coming out.

Eventually, she did come out, and wandered the mother's earth, until she collapsed in a heap, ready to die.

And she was found by a woman of the clan. Iza healed her, and made her a part of her hearth.

Bursting out of the water, Amalia caught her breath, staring at the blue sky, that she thought in her most bleak moments underground, she wouldn't see again, she knew that the mother had saved them. Heading to the side of the pool, she heaved herself onto the bank, sodden clothes weighing her down. Dropping to her knees, when what paltry strength she had could no longer hold her up, she lay down on the muddy shore, she was exhausted.

Yannis had arose out of the water just in time to see his mate drop like dead, dragging himself to her, he stood over her, and offered his hand to pull her up, "you need to get off that wet ground, we'll go and sit over there" he told her, pointing at an area where the grass looked dry. Seeing her comply with his request, he followed her and setting down the pack began rooting through it, finding what he was looking for, he took out a medium sized hide package, "please be dry" he muttered as he unwrapped it to reveal a fire drill, "Amalia, the fire drill is hardly wet, I'm going to try to get a fire started." Looking around, he saw a tree that looked like it had been hit by lightning, going over to it, he used his knife, the only tool he had, to scrape some of the bark off, and also pulled off some of the singed branches, breaking them up as he walked over to his mate.

While Yannis had been pulling together the tinder they would need, Amalia, after catching her breath, had collected some rocks from around the pool, arranging them into a small circle; she then sat back down trying not to think about what terrors Danyayla was going through, or what had happened to their little girl. Waiting for her mate, she rocked backwards and forwards out of anxiety, through it did seem to slightly warm her up.

Seeing the hearth she had made he smiled at her in gratitude, bending down, he put some of the slightly charred wood in the middle, and put the bark over it. Picking up the fire drill, he placed the carved wood where he would make his fire, and began twirling the wooden stick in one of the hole. It took him a long time, but eventually he saw a spark, which he blew, and they soon had a merry fire burning away.

Feeling it warm her skin, Amalia rubbed her hands in front of the heat. "We should take our clothes off to dry them" she told Yannis, "and the dry the pack and everything in it too." Taking off her sling first, she started to peel off her tunic, carefully doing so when she came to her hurt arm. "Can you help me with my leggings and boots?"

Soon they had all their meagre belongings stretched out on the ground, drying by the heat of the fire and the warm midday sun.

"We need to eat" she commented, "come on, everything will be okay by the fire, let's see if we can find some vegetables or fruit."

Walking through the forest, naked, bare footed and with only a knife and a hide to protect them, they looked for the strength replenishing food that they needed to bad. Seeing a patch of raspberries, Amalia fell to her knees, and started crying.

Seeing what his mate had found, Yannis understood, for Danyayla loved the succulent berries, "this is a sign from the mother, she is okay, the mother would not be so cruel as to taunt us with our daughter's favourite food."

Amalia, stared at him, and repeated as she had many times already that day, "she'll be okay, she'll be okay."

They had filled the hide with the berries, along with apples, and small tubers, and healing herbs that Amalia had insisted they collect. Sitting at their fire again, Amalia watched Yannis put more branches on the fire, as she munched the food. When her belly felt fuller, she picked up the three small wooden bowls she used for healing that they had miraculously found in the pack. Going to the pool, she first found some round stones, and then after filling each bowl full of water, she walked back to the fire. Placing the bowls down, she put the stones into the middle of the fire to heat. When they were hot, she used a stick to push them out of the fire, and then placed them into the bowls, using the hide to protect her hands from getting burnt. While she waited for the water to heat up, she looked through the herbs. When the water was the right temperature, she started to make healing medicine, first of all she ripped up alfalfa leaves and put them to steep in one of the bowls, she knew that this would clot the blood of Yannis' still bleeding head wound, then she chewed iris roots to a pulp, and spat them into the same bowl, this would stop him getting an infection, into another bowl she put chamomile, that would make a mild wash for their scratches and bruises, and in the final bowl she made a willow tea that would dull their pains and reduce any fever they developed. When they were cool enough to handle, she cleaned Yannis' wounds with the chamomile, and then using the alfalfa and iris root mixture as a poultice, applied it to his head, she covered it with clean burdock leaves and then she tied another rabbit skin around his head. Picking up the third bowl, she poured half of it into Yannis' personal cup, that he always carried attached to his tunic, "drink this, it will help with the pain" she told him. She drank the rest herself.

Now it was Yannis' turn to help his mate, he took her sling off and timidly felt the bones of her arm, feeling nothing broken, he said "I think your arm is probably just sprained, and badly bruised." Seeing the nod of her head at this, he continued, "I will put some of that chamomile mixture on you, like you did for me."

That night their clothes dried out, they slept huddled together under a makeshift shelter of tree branches that Yannis had put together.

The holy man approached the child, she smiled at him, but to him it was a grimace, momentarily alarmed, he shook this off, and sitting down in front of her, pointed to himself and grunted "Creb."

The girl realising that he had said his name tried to repeat it, "Grub" she saw the man nod.

She pointed to herself, "Danyayla."

Creb tried to get his tongue around this word, but it wasn't capable, "Ana."

The girl shook her head and repeated her name, "Danyayla."

Creb tried again, "Ayla."

The girl was about to repeat it to him another time but then decided that the name would do, she nodded, she was now and forever more "Ayla."

The next morning Amalia woke up to the sound of birds chirping in the trees, smiling for a moment, she was suddenly overcome with the memories of the day before. Shaking Yannis, she urged him, "Get up, we must find Danyayla."

Yawning Yannis nodded, and soon with their few belongings, they were on their way.

"It can't be that far away now" Yannis told her after they had been walking half the day," that river, I'm sure it is the one we camped by, the night before….."

Looking for anything familiar, Amalia shouted out, "look, I remember this bend in the river; we camped a little bit further on."

The sight that beheld them, when they found their camp of only the morning before, was a sight that would always unsettle them for the rest of their lives. The land had been ripped in two; they could see the deep gouge in the ground where their tent had been.

"Danyayla" Amalia screamed, hoping against hope that the little girl would come running out of the forest, as whole and healthy as she had ever been.

She did not appear.

Turning on her mate, she shouted, "you said she would be alright, that she would still be here" and then collapsing in floods of tears, she cried, "where is she Yannis, where is she?"

His heart was breaking, to see the love of his life so distressed and to not know where their much cherished Danyayla was, it was too much for him, bending down, he hugged her, "we'll find her, we won't stop looking until we find her" he crooned but he knew they would not find her, Danyayla was lost, to the wilderness.

They searched for many days, they had found her little trail, but to no avail, she seemed to have disappeared from the mother's earth, and with great sadness, they finally decided that they must move on, and packing all the equipment that had been waiting for them at their camp site, they forlornly left.

Ayla watched with interest as her new mother treated a man that had fallen and hurt his head. She had given him a drink and now she was putting leaves on his head.

"Iza" she signed to her later, "why were you putting leaves on Zoug's head?" and she pointed at him.

Seeing the stern stare coming from Zoug, Iza pursed her lips, "Ayla" she signed "it is rude to point towards another's hearth."

Ayla put her head down in embarrassment, and then remembering her excitement, she signed "will you teach me to heal people?"

Iza was pleased, she had grown to love this little girl, and it made her proud that she wanted to follow her footsteps, even though she was not clan, though thinking about it, she felt like she was already her daughter."

"Ayla, I will teach you" she told her.

She hadn't realised how agreeing to train Ayla as a medicine woman would affect the clan, for as Iza treated her patients, Ayla would treat hers, a bird, a rabbit, Brun drew the line, when she tried to bring a skunk into the cave.

"Wash her in the river Iza, put something smelly over her, cover her in it, and don't bring her back until she does not have that odour" he had signed to his sibling.

Shaking her head, Iza wandered what Ayla would try next.

Yannis and Amalia had walked for a moon, despondent feelings turning to rage with every step they took.

"Why did I let her go out on her own?"

"Why did I decide to camp there?

"Why had the mother done this to them?"

Over and over the questions rang through their heads, but they never got an answer because how could a reply help, they were without their child.

Out gathering one day, they heard voices and turned to see flatheads. Trying to run away, a female with kind eyes approached them after a man had grunted and waved his arms at her.

The female pointed at Yannis' head, and then opened a bag that seemed to be made from a full otter; it was full of little packages of herbs.

"She's a healer" gasped Amalia, "I didn't know they had healing skills" she stated in surprise.

First, grunting at another female, the flathead female pulled package after package out of her bag, which Amalia could see was extremely well stocked. She saw the other flathead female had started a fire, and was heating a skin of water.

Seeing the healer flathead looking at her arm, she said "I've hurt my arm."

But the medicine woman did not understand what she said, but she already knew what problem the woman had, and had decided to examine it as soon as she had treated the man.

When they were both healed, the female scurried over to the male who was obviously their leader, she knelt at his feet with her head bowed down, the male tapped her on the shoulder, and she looked up and started waving her arms again.

The flathead leader looked towards the couple and nodded, he grunted some words, and waved his hands and they were presented by many gifts, food, berries, a lean to, a spear, cooking equipment and furs.

Looking at the flatheads presents with surprise and shook his head, he waved his arm towards their miserable belongings, they had nothing to give, but the leader also shook his head, pushed the items to them, and grunting something, they started to leave.

Amalia nodded in thanks at the flathead healer, and wanting to know her name, she pointed to herself, and said "Amalia."

The woman nodded in understanding, and she too tapped her chest and grunted before she disappeared into the trees, "Iza."

"I would never have believed it, if I hadn't seen it" Yannis said, breaking the trance caused by the strange behaviour of the flatheads.

"I know" Amalia shook her head, "who would have ever thought that they had healing skills."

"Or that they would be so generous" he continued, "you know, after meeting them, I think they are people, not animals."

Amalia agreed, "Yeah, I think we should tell about our encounter, it is time attitudes were changed."

They mulled this over, and then started to pack up all their belongings, new and old and soon, they were on their way again.

So for the next moon, buoyed on by the love that the mother had shown them through flatheads, they continued on their journey. It was now nearly winter, and they knew that if they did not find a cave soon, they would be in trouble, but as always the mother provided and eventually they came upon a cave of people just like them.

The Sungaean had been excited to see visitors so near to winter, they had all piled out of their home, to welcome the strangers, and through many days, started to understand each other. After hearing what they had been through recently, the entire cave, none with dry eyes, asked them to stay.

It was now, when they didn't have to live by their wits any more, that they began to relive their experiences.

"Danyayla, Danyayla" Amalia mumbled in her sleep, she was back to the day of the earthquake, Danyayla was running in the wilderness, a cave lion chasing her, Amalia tried to distract the animal away from her precious daughter, but the lion ignored her, and continued its pursuit of the innocent child. Seeing the child secrete herself in a small fissure in the rock, she watched as the lion panting outside, raised its massive clawed paw, seeing it reach into the gap, it tried to pull Danyayla towards him. Startled, Amalia woke up, with tears running down her face, she shook her mate, "Yannis, I had a dream, a cave lion got Danyayla" she sobbed.

Yannis put his arms around his mate's trembling shoulders, he knew there was every chance that Danyayla had ended up in the stomach of such an animal, and Amelia's dream, seemed to confirm it.

"Mother, don't have let a lion have got her" she mumbled incoherent in her grief, "I'll do anything, please, bring her back to me."

Yannis watched at his mate fell into a disturbed sleep, a tear trickled down his cheek and he made his own silent pleas to the mother.

Over the next moons, Yannis watched his once happy mate, fall into a state of despair. He knew the cave understood, but he still saw some of the younger members look at her with disgust. She was always crying, lying in her furs, she would only get up, dragging herself around, if she had too. He did the cooking, but he found it difficult to get her to eat more than a few mouthfuls. She didn't wash and in her blackest moments would talk about how she wished she could go to the mother's world to be with her daughter.

"Sungaeaa, can I speak to you" he asked out of desperation one day.

The holy woman looked up at him, she knew he would come soon, listening to his woes, she tried to explain what Amalia was going through, "she's depressed, Yannis" she told him, "the only thing you can do for her, is to be there, at the moment she is trapped in a world where nothing matters, but sooner or later, mother willed, she will come out of it, and become the woman you met, though she will probably always have moments of sadness, as I am sure you do too."

Yannis nodded his head at this, he was still upset about the loss of the daughter of his hearth, but recently he had been too worried at Amelia's behaviour to descend into his own feelings.

"She'll be okay" she assured him, "life will go on."

"Danyayla, Danyayla" Amalia called out in her sleep, yet again she was dreaming, but this time, she saw her child lying, barely alive, on a forest floor, trying to run to her, she was shocked to find herself blocked by flatheads, watching them silently, she saw a female step forward and pick up the little girl. Seeing them start to walk away, she cried out "Danyayla, Danyayla" and saw the female turn around, with shock she realised it was the healer, Iza.

Yannis, dreaming about his long ago summer meeting with the Venezia, was rudely awakened by someone shaking him. Blearily looking around, he was instantly awake when he realised it was Amalia.

"I had another dream, Yannis" she quickly garbled, "the healer, the flathead healer, picked up Danyayla in it."

He put his arms around her, "I think your dream is a sign from the mother, Danyayla is okay, remember the flatheads were so generous to us, and the healer so knowledgeable, well, the mother is telling us that whether she is in this world, or the next, she is looking after her" he soothed her and watched as she fell into the first sound sleep that she had had for a long time.

Ayla accompanied her mother on one of her many gathering trips, looking around, she picked a plant and holding it up for Iza to see, she queried to her "what is this?"

Iza gently took the plant out of the child's hand, "it is Marjoram, you can recognise it from its four pointed leaves with little yellow flowers," pointing these out she continued "the leaves are used for breathing problems, headaches, anxiety and painful moon times."

Ayla ran to another plant "and this one?"

"It is Valerian, look how the small flowers are arranged in a mushroom shaped, the root is used as a sedative if someone cannot sleep, or to slow the heart rate."

Ayla glanced around, she saw a pretty plant, "what about this?"

"This is peppermint, look the leaves are short, but pointed" she taught.

"They have a pretty pink flower on top," she motioned.

"Iza was excited now, the little girl's thirst for knowledge was insatiable, the peppermint is good for treating nausea and stomach problems," she continued.

When they arrived back at the cave, Iza scampered over to Brun, her sibling, and sat at his feet. Feeling his tap, she looked up at him, "I can report that Ayla's training as a medicine woman is going very well" she signed, "she does not have the clan memories, but she seems to have an ability to remember all that she is taught."

The morning after her dream, Amalia's life returned to normal, she still had heartbreaking moments when she thought about her little girl, but she accepted that it had been the mother's will to take her away. So she started looking after herself, eating, helping others by using her healing skills, and she started sharing pleasures with Yannis again.

A few weeks later, she awoke to an unsettled belly, just managing to make it to the night basket in time, she emptied the contents of her stomach, wiping her mouth with a small rabbit skin, she started boiling water to make a tea that would quell the churning feeling. Looking through the supplies of healing herbs she had collected, she pulled out a packet of crushed peppermint leaves, little knowing that her daughter had been learning about the healing properties of this same herb. She sprinkled the leaves into a cup, and then filled it with the hot water, putting it aside to steep; then she made Yannis his favourite tea.

When her cup had cooled enough for her to hold, she started to sip the calming tea, and nibbled an oat cake she had made the day before. Soon, she started to feel better and started to reflect on the reason for her mysterious illness, remembering how many times they had shared pleasures in recent days, she smiled, "I think I am blessed" she whispered with joy.

Broud, the boy who had just become a man, walked around the cave with his chest puffed up in pride, he saw the admiration of those he would one day preside over, he would be leader, holding his head high, he should have known that pride comes before a fall, because at that moment he tripped up on the uneven floor, quickly getting up, he looked around to see if any one had seen his embarrassment, and saw the strange girl, her chest heaving with laughter. Feeling anger well inside him, he marched over to the now cowering girl, raising his hand, he punched her in the face, and motioned you are a disrespectful girl, I don't know why Iza keeps you, she should have left you to the wild." Walking away from the girl, he seethed, it was bad enough that she had upstaged his manhood ceremony, but to find humour in his tumble, he would make her pay.

Amalia looked at her shadow in the bright summer sun, she was so large now, bigger that when she had Danyayla. Waddling to the story tent, she heard Yannis weaving the tale of his childhood. She sat down on the grass, glad to be off her swollen legs. Listening to the well loved tale, she lay down, closed her eyes, and started to snooze. She was awakened by the first contractions of labour. Knowing it was not time, she beckoned her mate, and let out a groan of pain.

Sungaeaa was also in the tent, she had been keeping an eye on Amalia, she was so big and through she insisted that the baby was not due for another moon, she knew differently. When she had seen her grimace, she had been on her feet and by her side, far quicker that the woman's mate. Amalia, you are in labour aren't you?" she asked, though she knew it was the truth, she saw the woman nod. "Tell me when your next contraction is over, and then we will take you to the tent, it is far to public here" she told her, seeing Yannis running over, she told him what was happening, and when Amalia felt she was up to it, they moved her to their cave's tent, settling her down on some soft furs.

Amalia knew this labour was different from her first; the pains were coming quicker and faster. Sitting in her furs, she leaned forward, and rocked, it felt better like that. When the next contraction came, she took deep breathes in and out, trying to control the pains.

"Can you give her something for the pain?" cried Yannis standing at the door of the tent.

Sungaeaa walked over to him, pushing him outside, she said, "I have some tea steeping for her, she will be okay, look, Potac is calling you, go and talk to him, she is better off with us, when the baby is here we will come and get you" she ordered him.

The holy woman walked back in the tent, picking up a cup, she brought it to the labouring woman and helping her sip it, she told her "this will help with the pain."

Normally Amalia would have wanted to know what was in the tea, but at the moment she didn't care, she was in too much pain. Straining again, she gritted her teeth against the contraction, "this is more painful than last time, help me" she pleaded.

"Calm now Amalia" Sungaeaa told her, "you will have to be patient, the tea should start working soon and then your labour will get easier."

Amalia, eyes flooded with tears, nodded she knew all this, she had been at many other births, but it was always difficult when it was you in pain.

When Amalia forcefully gripped her hand, digging her nails into the soft flesh, Sungaeaa knew it would not be long; the contractions were coming closer and closer.

"Let me examine you" she instructed, and lifting the hide that was covering her legs, she saw she was nearly fully widen, "it won't be long" she comforted, "you are nearly there."

"I need to push now" she suddenly screamed, she heard the Sungaeaa tell her to wait but she couldn't, and she pushed as if her life depended on it, and her waters broke, gushing all over the furs. She felt the woman examine her, and say it was time, so she pushed, but it was half hearted, she wasn't having a contraction, so her body was not working with her. To Amalia, the sound of Sungaeaa shouting for help was from a distance, she was too much in the moment of pain and urging. When she felt another contraction, she pushed and kept on pushing, she didn't let up, she just grunted in pain, and forced her child out.

Sungaeaa looked over at the wail of a baby, she was stood by the door of the tent, calling another mother to help, "oh, the baby is here" she muttered and rushed over to make sure everything was okay.

Amalia was still in pain, the contractions were coming as fast as before, they hadn't calmed down, and she was feeling another urge to push. She couldn't refuse it, so yet again she pushed, harder and harder.

Sungaeaa looked at the head crowning in the mother's birth passage, quickly passing the first baby to the woman who had come to help, she was just in time to catch it.

Six summers old, Ayla lifted her head, she knew some momentous event had happened but she did not know what. Shaking her head, she went back to the work of her hands.

Yannis had rushed to the tent after hearing the cries of a newborn, "are they okay?" he asked peeking through the doorway.

Sungaeaa taking his hand, drew him into the tent, "the mother and her babies are doing fine" she enlightened him, silently giggling at the stunned expression on his face.

Yannis looked toward his love, and felt his spirit surge with love when he saw the two new children. Walking over to her, he kissed her cheek, and with tears welling up in his eyes, said "two, you had two babies, two at the same time?" Looking at his love, he suddenly exclaimed "are you okay, you must be tired" looking down at her tired but serene features, he smiled; excitedly he enquired "what are they?"

Amalia chuckled as enthusiasm akin to a little boy's exuded from his joyful face, "this one" she passed him an infant, "is a boy", "and this one," she gave him the other, "is a girl."

Yannis embraced the small mites in his arms, gazing at them with a heart full of love, he whispered to their down covered heads, "I will protect you always little ones, I won't let anything ever hurt you, and when you are older I will tell you about your big sister, who would have adored you."