A wave of dizziness washed over Te'ijal as she leaned over to pull on her boots, forcing her to sit back down on the bed until the room stopped spinning. Once it had faded away, she finished putting on her boots and got up, grabbing her bow and quiver of arrows. She suspected that the dizzy spells might hinder her a bit during her travels, but at least she wouldn't have to worry about the morning sickness as much, seeing as the herbalist had given her an elixir to help keep it at bay. Te'ijal thought it to be a strange name for such a sickness, considering the fact it took place all day, not just in the morning. She rolled her eyes. Humans and their strange ways. She feared that she would never understand them, even though she technically was one.
The fact that she was indeed human still hadn't quite sunk in, despite the fact that almost two full years had passed since the transition occurred. There were still moments in which she forgot that she wasn't immortal. She missed the feeling of invincibility that came with being a vampire. She missed so many things about it that her poor human mind wasn't able to remember them all. That was another thing she missed. Some of her earlier memories of being a vampire were starting to fade away, and that frightened her, though she would never admit it.
She started to pull her red cloak over, when all of a sudden the door opened, and in came Galahad with a tray of food. Seeing Te'ijal decked out in all her usual battle gear, he stopped dead in his tracks. After a moment, he let out a sigh and set the tray down on the bedside table.
"Do you honestly expect me to eat that?" Te'ijal asked him, glancing at the food as if it was the most disgusting thing she had ever seen. She had never understood how humans could eat so much of it.
"I know food doesn't appeal to you at the best of times, but you must try to eat at least a little. You haven't been able to keep anything in your stomach for the last week."
Te'ijal rolled her eyes at him, but reluctantly sat down on the bed, grabbing a small loaf of bread and taking a bite. It was hard and dry, and not at all appetizing. Since becoming human, she had discovered many foods that she hated, but she had also discovered a few foods that she didn't mind. In general, she liked things that were juicy. She enjoyed sinking her teeth into things like tomatoes and plums, sucking all the juice out and discarding the wrinkled up peel. It made her feel like a vampire again, and so she continued to do it, even though Galahad thought it was rather strange. Unfortunately for her, it seemed that there was no such fruit to be found in the village of ghosts.
Slowly she managed to force down the loaf of bread and gulp down the mug of water, but she didn't dare touch the fried egg. Galahad had tried feeding her eggs many times back in Sedona, but she had never been able to stomach them. They might have been one of his favorite breakfast food's, but they certainly were not hers.
"Are you pleased now?" Te'ijal asked with a scowl.
Galahad nodded his head, "Yes, I am pleased by your effort."
She placed a hand on her belly, rubbing it gently as she began to feel a bit queasy from the food. For the last week or so, she had often wondered what was happening to her body. Between the unexplainable fatigue, dizziness, and nausea, she honestly had not known what was wrong. For a while, she had thought that her body was dying on her. She was relieved to at least know that wasn't the case.
Never in all the centuries she had lived had she ever thought that she would become pregnant, mostly because it had never been possible while she was a vampire. She had only started to think about it when Galahad told her of his wish to become a father. At the time, she wasn't sure if she was willing to grant that wish. It wasn't that she was opposed to the idea of giving Galahad a child, but rather that she knew that by having a child, it meant that she would be forced to remain human for the rest of her short life.
Now that it was actually becoming reality, she still wasn't entirely sure how she felt about it. She didn't hate the child that was forming inside her. How could she? It was a part of her. Even though it was causing her all sorts of problems, it was still her flesh and blood. Not only that, but it was Galahad's flesh and blood as well. As she looked over at him, she saw that he was watching her with a smile.
She hadn't seen that smile for the first three hundred years of their marriage. There had been many delicious looking expressions of his that she had seen, which were thoroughly entertaining, but never a smile. She hadn't even known what his smile looked like. Then, on that fateful day when she almost burned to death at the top of Darkthrop Keep, that all changed. As Galahad untied her and rubbed sunscreen into her skin, he smiled at her for the first time, and she was hypnotized by it.
Although she still did enjoy teasing and taunting Galahad from time to time, she realized that she enjoyed making him smile even more. So, she decided that she would try to be happy about this child for his sake, regardless of whether it meant she had to remain human or not. He seemed to think she was capable of being a mother, and she really didn't feel like arguing with him.
"Well, if you're finished eating, we should probably go rejoin the others. Edward is particularly anxious to get going," Galahad said as he got to his feet, taking Te'ijal's hand and pulling her up with him.
"Did you tell them?" Te'ijal inquired.
"They were too busy eating to ask any questions when last I saw them," he explained, shaking his head. "However, I do think that we should tell them. After all, I will need them to watch over you while I'm gone."
Te'ijal groaned. She had almost forgotten about that. "I see that you are still just as determined as ever to go through with your little plan to save Mel," she remarked, pulling her hand out from Galahad's.
"Wife, I know you're worried about me, but I will be fine," Galahad reassured her, reaching out to stroke her cheek. "Besides, someone must save her, and since fate has decided to turn me back into a vampire, it seems only fitting that I should be the one to go."
Te'ijal didn't like the sound of this plan one bit. She hadn't liked it from the very start, but Galahad was stubborn and refused to reconsider. Once he set his mind to something, there was no way to stop him from pursuing it. It was a trait that she both admired and despised. However, she chose to let him have his way and not fight him on it. Perhaps it was the slight lack of energy, but for once, she didn't feel like trying to convince him otherwise. At least, not at that moment.
"While I do not approve of this idea, I will refrain from arguing with you for the time being," Te'ijal stated firmly. "Just be careful and promise that you will come back to me."
"Thank you for being so agreeable today," he said, smiling at her yet again. "I swear by all that is holy, that I shall do all that I possibly can to return safely to your side."
Te'ijal nodded her head, accepting his promise. "Well, I suppose we should go and tell our friends the news ... They're bound to find out one way or another."
With that, Te'ijal took a deep breath and followed her husband out of the room. She couldn't help but wonder how they would react.
