So we'll be delving deeper into how the wider world views the marriage in an admittedly somewhat shorter instalment. But then not everything has to be War And Peace.

Oh, and Merry Christmas.

Married Life

Chapter Six: Rest And Relaxation

The new bath was, in Cow Girls considered opinion, her favourite part of the cottage.

Before her marriage, a bath meant putting large pails of water on the stove and then dragging a large tin basin into the kitchen and placing it in front of the fire. But Dwarf Shaman had laughed at the idea, and proclaimed that his wedding gift to them would be a bath fit for a Chieftain, and he had certainly lived up to his word. Made of glazed, terracotta tiles, it was more than big enough to hold all four of them, and was fed by a cistern that used some form of alchemy to heat vast quantities of water on demand. Nothing soothed away the stress and strain of the day like immersing ones self in hot, fragrently scented water.

And so it was that she sat in one corner of the bath, with just her head and shoulders above the steaming hot water, Guild Girl nestled at her side. While it was still far too early in her pregnancy to see any outward changes, it was clearly taking a tole on her young body, and she was dozing contently. High Elf Archer was at the other end of the bath, washing her long, slender legs. Cow Girl watched the Adventurer, admiring the grace with which she performed such an everyday task: of all the People With Words, Elves were certainly the most sublime, almost ethical, even if they were ultimately the same flesh and blood as humans. And yet, even other months of living under the same roof, eating at the same table, sleeping in the same bed... making love to one another, hardly a day seemed to go by where High Elf Archer didn't do something that surprised and or amazed Cow Girl.

At first it had been the little things, like how she'd hum tunelessly to herself while she carried out her chores around the house, or the look or utter concentration on her face as she oils her bow and exaimed the spider-silk for any signs of damage. Cow Girl had watched Goblin Slayer examine and repair his weapons and armour plenty of times, but he'd always been almost mechanical in his actions, as if it was just another task that needed doing. But High Elf Archer was more like a bard maintaining their lute, or an artist their brushes. For while Goblin Slayer ultimately considered all of his equipment expendable, to an Elf Ranger, their bow was a part of who and what they were.

Guild Girl shifted, muttering something under her breath, and Cow Girl slid an arm around her to hold her steady.

Where as High Elf Archer had her People's natural affinity for, well, nature, Guild Girl had grown up in the Capital and then lived in town before the wedding, and as such had had a far steeper learning curve when it came to living on the farm. She'd almost fainted the first time she seen a chicken taken from the coop and prepared for supper, and she still found some of the sounds and smells of the countryside... unnatural. But despite her discomfort, she had thrown herself into her new life, body and soul. In part, Cow Girl knew, this was because her family had disowned her when she'd gone ahead with their unconventional marriage against their wishes. They'd only just tolerated her going to work for the Adventurers Guild instead of settling down to marry some well-to-do young man, and the idea of her not only marrying a mere Adventurer, but also taking two wives was simply too much for them.

They had forbidden her to go through with the marriage, even threatened to disinherit her, and had made no attempt to attend the ceremony or contact her since.

Both Cow Girl and High Elf Archer had tried to broach the subject, only to be firmly, if politely, rebuffed. All Guild Girl would say on the matter was that they were her family now, and that that was more than enough for her to be happy. They weren't even sure if she'd written to her parents or siblings to inform them that she was pregnant, and it wasn't something that they wanted to push.

In comparison, High Elf Archer's family seemed almost unphased by her marriage. After some coaxing on Guild Girls part, she had explained that, given their effective immortality, it wasn't unknown for Elves to... experiment a little in their younger days. And even at two thousand years old, she was still very much a youngling in a race where some still lived who could remember the Ages Of God's. As such her family considered her relationship with her human husband and wives little more than an passing infatuation that would eventually pass, and that one day she would find a suitable mate from among her own kind with whom to settle down.

The Ranger had laughed at that: she knew what she felt for her new family was no passing fancy, but if it made them happy to believe that and give their blessings, so be it.

Cow Girls uncle had been... unhappy when she first informed him that she was going to marry Goblin Slayer, and looked ready to drop dead from shock when she informed him of the exact nature of her planned wedding. He'd tried to talk her out of it, but it was clear that his objections came from a genuine sense of concern. It was no secret that he thought Goblin Slayer was...broken, but he also knew that the Adventurer was a man of his word, and that he'd do everything in his power to keep the young woman who had become as a daughter to him happy and safe. Had he hoped that she'd find someone else to fall in love with? Yes, but he also knew that, once she set her mind to something, not even the gods themselves could dissuade her, and he had somewhat reluctantly walked her down the ailse.

High Elf Archer finished washing herself and lent back against the side of the bath, her arms resting along the edge. Cow Girl smiled as she closed her eyes and rested her head against Guild Girls: by her reckoning, they had the better part of an hour before she had to take the vegetable casserole out of the oven for supper.

That left plenty of time to just relax and enjoy the good company.

To Be Continued...