Hey sorry, I had forgotten about the usual introduction…

Here is the very first fanfiction I ever published. (I usually write much before getting the nerves to put anything on the web). It is about the life of a certain elf, a Bhaalspawn that chose to let go of the taint and go on with a normal life, and somehow it is just now that the normal life is about to begin.

Some background info on Amousca:

str 12 (not amazing, but eh)
dex 9 (gets wiped each time she plays knucklebone)
cons 18 (carrying her spellbook and bestiary on her back for years of adventuring HAS to give some sort of advantage)
int 18 (she studied with Gorion after all)
wis 17 (she can make a genie eat his socks when she Wishes)
char 10 (oh well. 1 stat had to be sacrificed for the two 18…!)
She is an elf, and a sorceress.

Chapter 1. Too early

She was alone. She nearly always was. She didn't like the attitude of most citizens of Athkathla, and most citizens didn't like her much. Peasants and servants tended to think she was the most generous and kind rich person they ever met, but that didn't mean they were eagerly looking for her company.

So, Amousca was slowly walking from work back to her Sphere. Anomen had been able to help her find a place as a teacher for novices in the Order and in the church of Helm, the guardian god. She was giving four different courses, each for a cohort of a particular age. Young girls and boys usually came into service at the age of twelve, staying in formation for six years before they were complete priests or paladins ready to be squired. Amousca was giving courses for those of thirteen through seventeen; she was the teacher of Common monsters and animals, Dangerous, foreign and extraordinary monsters and animals, Undead and spirits and Demons and others.

Right now, she was on the way from the Church of Helm in the Temple district, where she just gave her class of Common monsters and animals to the thirteen years-old, to the Planar sphere. With the pregnancy, though, she hadn't conducted many experiments recently; the elemental rooms were pretty much left to their quiet existence, while she stayed on the first floor of the Sphere, in her brand new office, where the golem assembling machine had been. These times, she was quite busy to catch up with all the taxes, authorizations by the Cowled wizards – as if they could do anything against the Sphere, were she pregnant or not –, and other paper work that just seemed to magically multiply without spellcasting in any too-well-organized city.

Anomen was out of the city for the moment, sent for his duty of lookout man to be fulfilled at the watchpost in the Umar hills. Each of the knights of the Order who were not assigned to permanent duty at the Headquarters, usually because of age or parental responsibilities, had to take rounds in the different farposts of the Order. Despite the late pregnacy of his wife, Anomen had not been able to skip his turn and had to leave for a week. A whole week, she had thought ; just a week, had said the Order. Anomen had been torn between his duty to his wife and to his Order, but Amousca was not one to take gently to be over-taken-care-of. So, she had said she would be fine, that she was healthy and that the priests of Helm would be there if she needed anything.

Anomen was a cleric; she could not really hide from him the dull suffering of pregnancy. Her feet hurt, her legs hurt, her back hurt, she was constantly tired, and she was teaching to turbulent teenagers who didn't really want to be sympathetic to her state; they usually prefered to take advantage of it. They underestimated the strength of will of a certain elven sorceress, however, and were quick to realize that, fatigue or not, pregnant or not, she was not the kind of teacher to be defeated by a few practical jokes and well-aimed cantrips – of course, they didn't know she had an archmage sister, and a good month of adventuring with a certain illusionist gnome, to hone her skills at stoicism. Things had calmed down after a few weeks, and now her work with the kids was not so tiring, but Anomen could still see that she was tired.

She had an extremely good constitution for a sorceress ; she was the toughest spellcaster he had ever come across. Still, he was beginning to worry about her, wondering if she was this kind of female that had troubles all through pregnancy, problems usually culminating with the birthing, or if it was hard for her because she was an elf and was bearing an half-elf, or if it was just this job she insisted on keeping that was too much for her. He was worried, and his worries had not disappeared with time, as he had to massage her feet and back longer and longer so she simply could sleep at night. And all these gossips said she had such a weak constitution, pretending she slew a dragon with her own hands, but could not stand pregnancy. Anomen was so annoyed with his neighbours, since he heard them hold such disrespectful speech about his wife, that he did not speak to them anymore.

He did try to explain to sir Ryan about his wife's health when the paladin called him to his duty in the Umar hills, but each time he thought of his wife and her health possibly jeopardized by their child – his child, he usually thought in those circumstances –, he found he could barely speak. So his plea had not been moving enough, it seemed, and Ryan had smiled kindly, and said pregnant women tended to obsess the mind of their husbands, and that she would be fine, and that he should not worry, and that he must go. Anomen saw the worry on Amousca's face when he told her, but she quickly hid it and he left her, still worried.

Which let her, three days later, go back alone to the sphere. When Anomen was not in the city, she usually slept there too, in a small but comfortable room she had the golem set out in the small room near the entrance. Anomen had this habit of frowning when he heard of her wandering alone in the Slums, but there was nothing to be done about that – she was just too obstinate – and anyway, she reminded him, she was very capable of taking care of any inhabitant of the Slums threatening her.

Of course, she was not really prepared to take care of what was happening to her just then. Right in the middle of a back alley, just before she reached the Bridge, her water broke. At first, she thought she was mistaken. But then the first contraction took hold of her, and she knew what was happening. She assessed her situation, hoped she was right, and began to walk back her alley, hoping she would really have the time to reach the Temple district. Already, following a mental command, her familiar was flying full-speed towards the Order's headquarters. He could not go far from her, but it would be enough if he reached the headquarters.

She stumbled north of the Government district, people seeing she was in pain but not willing to come to her, uncertain of what to do. She didn't call for help, but she was a little disappointed that people didn't spontaneously come to her. Just then, Minsc came into sight. She sighed in relief as the strong man ran towards her.

"My witch should not be wandering the streets alone!", the ranger scolded when he came close to her. "She should wait for her bodyguard, and let him escort her home!"

"You were late, Minsc, and I thought I would be fine by myself," she answered quickly.

She had planned to ask him for help after that, but just then Minsc, probably feeling guilty for being late for his very precious witch, exclaimed in this loud voice of his:

"I was almost there! There was an orphan on the road, Boo said I had to accompany him to his uncle's house… Boo was right, of course, and the uncle gave me a little beer, then I slept a little under the tree, then Boo woke me and reminded me of my witch, so I came running!"

"Minsc," Amousca called to interrupt him, "I need you to help me to go to the Temple of Helm."

Then Minsc, even in his simple mind, saw the pain and sweat on her face, and understood what was going on.

"Minsc and Boo will carry you!"

The ranger lifted her as though she was weighing nothing, swinging her in his arms as easily as he would have a child. She laughed; she had just wished for an arm to lean on to, but it seemed she and her child wouldn't have to walk all the way back. She was quite grateful, actually, and didn't care much for the scandalized looks the good nobles of the city gave them as Minsc was almost running towards the Temple district, although careful not to shake her too much. She was laughing inwardly, between the contractions beginning to increase in frequency, at the thought of what they would say about her, her simple-minded bodyguard and her husband being out of town.

They quickly came to the temple and, when Minsc flew the doors open with his booted foot, she was in the middle of a contraction. She had to let Minsc explain the situation.

"My witch needs the best bed in this temple! Tell me where it is, that I may lay her upon it!"

Fortunately, sirs Keldorn Firecam and Ryan Trawl came storming in at that very moment, her pseudo-dragon familiar flying behind them, and the inquisitor, seeing her, shouted at the priest:

"Her child is not to be born so soon!"

Of course, the priest had seen her before; many times. He knew who she was, but never told her a word and did not answer her smiles with a "good morning". Sometimes, she missed having Keldorn at the head of the party. Her reputation of heroism and her good deeds apparently vanished from everyone's memory the minute the party dissolved. But just then, the priest apparently realized she was just another patient needing his healing skills, because he gestured Minsc to one of the back rooms of the temple, where the really ill were kept.

She was gently put on the bed and, as the numerous priests now in the room busied themselves with birthing preparations and divination and other spells to see if the baby was ready to be born, although early, Keldorn came to her bedside and paternally patted her hand.

"Do not worry, milady, the priests will take good care of you. Ryan, here, sent a horseman to inform your husband of your labour. Anomen will be here in a few hours."

The divination spell came to an end and Amousca quickly, so quickly, lifted her head to look at the face of the priest; Keldorn knew that movement to be that of her judging someone. He stared at the priest, too, and saw, clearly, despair on his face. Keldorn instantly was angry at him; it was not good for Amousca to know if something was wrong. The priest was not showing great professionalism, and it angered Keldorn.

"Is he not ready to be born?", she asked in near panic.

Keldorn actually had to hold her shoulder to prevent her from jumping off the bed to her feet.

"Oh yes, they are," the priest answered, without hesitation, but still his tone was not reassuring.

It took a moment for everyone to notice.

"They?", Amousca asked finally, feebly, but already smiling.

The priest didn't add anything, but Amousca was reassured that the worry of the priest was caused by her safety, having to give birth to more than one infant, and not by her babies' health.

Then the priests had everyone out of the room, except Keldorn, because Amousca asked not to be alone. Besides, she was considering the paladin like an uncle or a father, and he was honoured to be allowed to stay by her side.

He turned as two priestesses helped Amousca out of her teacher's robes and into a more simple and comfortable gown. Then he went back to her bedside, remembering his wife when she had given birth to their two daughters. Just then he almost felt like he had a third daughter, and held Amousca's hand.

She was a little scared, but not too much. She wasn't really afraid of pain – after what the last three months had been, she didn't really know what more suffering these babies could cause her. She was worried about the fact that there was more than one; there more often was trouble at the birthing of twins. Stillborn or umbilical cord around the neck, or blood loss for the mother. Her husband being a cleric, she knew those things. And there was an even greater probability of health threats for premature babies.

But she determined to be courageous, drove away the thought from her mind, and thought about the joy of Anomen when he would come into this room and see his children born.