We now return you to the scene already in progress
Married Life
Chapter Twenty One: Coping Mechanisms
"Very well." he spoke softly, carefully measuring each and every syllable, "Now what?"
His words hung heavily in the air.
High Elf Archer sat between her wives, looking at the child she had somehow... she didn't know the right word in either High Elvish or Common, but that didn't seem to matter, as she was still coming to terms with the idea that she had a son. A child she'd no idea had even been conceived, and was carried and birthed by another woman. Such a thing should, by all her understanding of the world, be impossible.
Oh, she'd heard the old human legend of a princess who'd been cursed to sleep forever, and was raped by a Prince who left her with a son. It was only after the child was born and set to suckle at her chest that she'd awoken to discover all that had happened, but even then, she had carried the child herself, not impregnated another woman.
"How?" She asked, only just able to get a single word out.
"Well, we're still not entirely sure about that." Mage admitted, pulling a small book from somewhere inside his robe and opening it to a bookmarked page, "I've studded the Ritual in as much depth as I can without actually reenacting it, and based upon what Sword Maiden told me... well, it's possible that the Gods misunderstood your, um, actions, or they may just have an odd sense to humour."
"Great punchline." Guild Girl responded dryly.
It had taken her some time to accept what had taken place in Water Town. Seeing High Elf Archer so excited when she'd been told that she was indeed pregnant went a long way towards healing the rift between them, as had holding Fawn in her arms for the first time. But now all those emotions had been brought back to the for with the sudden and unexpected news that her wife had a son none of them had known about.
"I did not come here to cause trouble for your family." Sword Maiden did her best to sound reassuring, "I simply...people are going to talk, once I return to Water Town, and word will spread about the Archbishop who allowed herself to fall pregnant outside of marriage. Some are going to want to discover the identity of Godfrey's father, and if they did deep enough, they'll discover that the only Elf at the temple around the time I fell pregnant was..."
"Me." High Elf Archer finished for her.
"You." the Archbishop nodded, "I don't expect for a moment that they will guess the truth, but..." she hesitated, "Life in the Church is... complicated. There are those who opposed my rising to such a high position given that I entered the priesthood later than most. Others feel that my previous life as an Adventurer, and close... friendship, with the king, leave my dedication to the church above all others, questionable. They will look for any excuse to remove me, and when they discover that you fell pregnant after your visit..."
"They'll figure out the truth." Guild Girl frowned as she reached out for her wife's hand and squeezed it.
"Or enough of it to cause trouble." Lord Paladín grimaced, "I have spent my lifetime keeping out of politics, even after being promoted to the Head of my Order. It is an arena within which I am completely unarmed. As such, there is little I can do to protect any of you from what may come."
"Is there another option?" Cow Girl asked, her voice full of hope.
"Tell the truth: tell them that you performed a ritual to help your friends, and the Gods decided to...take things a step further." Guild Girls voice was surpringly calm, "You don't have to give them all the details: I'm sure they'll fill them in for themselves, but don't give them anything to dig up." she looked around the room at the shocked expressions on the faces of the others, "My father is a man of influence and power: I learned a lot by staying quiet and letting him talk when he forgot I was there."
"Downside being that some may assume that I have... extra parts." High Elf Archer doubled over and put her head between her knees "Is it me, or is the room spinning?"
Cow Girl and Guild Girl both reached out and rubbed their wife's shoulders reassuringly.
"If I may ask a question?" Goblin Slayer spoke up, "What part do you want High Elf Archer to play in her sons life?"
All eyes turned to look at him, then Sword Maiden.
"I...honestly hadn't given it much thought." She admitted, "Assuming we do go public with their... connection, I guess it would be up to her."
All eyes moved to the Elf, who was still bent double.
"I think we've talked enough for the time being." Mage stood, "If you'll allow me the use of your kitchen, I'll make some tea for everyone."
High Elf Archer stood, and hugging herself, left the room.
"I'll go." Guild Girl stood and followed her wife.
She found her in the nursery, sat in a large rocking chair, holding Fawn in her arms, crying. Kneeling down beside her, she started stroking the Elf's hair.
"I'm so sorry." the Ranger sobbed, "I never..."
"It's OK: it's not your fault." Guild Girl assured her, "You had no way of knowing this could happen. Nobody did."
"...would you be so forgiving if I had? Would you forgive Orcbolg if he had had sex with Sword Maiden, and Godfrey was his son?"
"... I would be lying if I said yes." Guild Girl admitted, "It took me a long time to come to terms with what happened between you and Sword Maiden, but I have, and we now have a beautiful daughter, a sister that Grace can grow up with."
"How did it all get so complicated?" High Elf Archer asked.
"When we decided that we'd all marry the same man." Cow Girl stood in the doorway, arms wrapped around herself, "We thought we'd found a way of cheating the dice. Is it so hard to imagine that there'd be a price to pay?"
"If a little unexpected news every now and then is the price we have to pay for what we have, then I for one pay it gladly." Guild Girl smiled, "I wouldn't give up what we have for anything."
"You really mean that?" the Ranger asked, hope creeping back into her voice.
"We all knew that this marriage was going to be...unusual, going in." Cow Girl crossed the room and knelt on the opposite side of the Elf to Guild Girl, "OK, so this is a little stranger than we anticipated, but what's one more unexpected pregnancy between wives?"
The redhead put her arms around the Elf, gesturing for Guild Girl to follow suit from the other side, enveloping the still crying Adventurer between them.
"I wondered where you had gotten to." Lord Paladín strode out the back of the cottage to where Goblin Slayer was splitting logs with a large axe, "Working out a little frustration?"
"Yes." the notoriously stoic Adventurer responded as the axe came down again, turning one log into two with a loud crack.
"You know, I never pegged you for the domestic type." the Gold ranked Knight sat on a packing crate, "You always seemed so...obsessed with goblins."
"Yes." Goblin Slayer agreed as he placed another log on the old tree stump and raised the axe over his head.
"Indeed, I think today is the most I've ever heard you say."
"Yes."
The axe dropped, splitting wood.
"You know, Burglar asked me if I thought you had what it took to be an Adventurer."
"Yes?"
"Indeed. I told him that you might surprise us all."
Goblin Slayer simply grunted as he replaced the log and prepared the axe.
"You know, it's kind of amazing that you managed to make not one, but three beautiful, charming and intelligent women fall in love with you."
Swing. Crack.
"Not only fall in love with you, but accept being part of an... unconventional marriage just to be with you. And then they have your children."
Goblin Slayer put the head of the axe on the ground and lent on the handle.
"You have a point?" he asked.
"You're a very lucky man, all things considered." Lord Paladín looked around the small courtyard, "All this, from hunting goblins!"
"Sold a battle-axe."
"Yes, I ran into Thunder Warrior recently. He seems very happy with it."
"Good."
"Look, the thing is, you can't blame your wife or Sword Maiden for what happened..."
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Blame them." Goblin Slayer resumed cutting wood, "Never said I did."
"Well...good." Lord Paladín stood, "Glad we had this talk."
Goblin Slayer simply kept cutting wood as the other man walked away.
To Be Continued...