Dinner that night was lovely and it took a lot to get the children to leave but they finally did; Naomi fell asleep, Elijah does whatever I say, and that we agreed to let Evi and Adah spend the next day with mother.
"Mama no!" Naomi yelled while I tried to bathe her.
"Please Naomi, let me wash you." I tried to plead with her.
"NO!" She yelled.
"Here Ila let me try." Shem told me.
Shem took the cloth from my hands and I got up and went to check up on Elijah. Naomi was not an easy child to deal with and bath time was always the worst. She hated being held down and cleaned but she always listened better to Shem then to me. Probably because she knew he would punish her if she didn't listen. I went into Elijah's room to check on him. He was lying on his mattress, wildling a flute.
"Elijah, are you ready to go to sleep?" I asked him.
"I'm almost done with this mother." He told me.
"Dear it looks like you just started it. Go to sleep now, you can finish it in the morrow." I said to him, taking the knife and the wood.
"Fine then, goodnight mother." Elijah said.
"Goodnight son." I told him, kissing the top of his head.
I grabbed the tzohar lamp and closed his curtain. I walked over to the girls' room to check on them.
"Girls it is time to sleep." I told them.
"Yes mother." They said unanimously.
I took their lamp out as well and brought them all to the hearth. When I got there I saw Shem was already there, examining some of Elijah's wood work.
"He's quite good." Shem stated.
"Just like his father." I replied.
"Yet he has a gentle heart, like his mother." Shem said, kissing me.
"He gets some of that from you too Shem. And you get your heart from mother." I told him.
"How are you feeling?" Shem asked me, touching my belly.
"Fine, I really haven't been sick." I replied.
"It is still early." Shem said. "Are you going to put those out?"
"I was. Are you going to be in here much longer?" I asked him.
"No, I will go to sleep now as well." Shem said.
I put out the lamps and once Shem and I finished our nightly routines, we lied down on our mattress and fell right to sleep.
The next morning I woke up with a start. I felt hot and as soon as I sat up I retched and vomited on the floor next to the mattress. Shem woke up once I was done being sick and cleaned up the awful mess. He then ordered me to stay in bed for a little while longer and went to wake the children. I had just about fallen back to sleep when I heard Elijah calling for me.
"Mother."
"Yes Elijah." I said groggily.
"Mother, grandfather and Uncle Japheth came and asked if I would like to go on a hike with them to try to find special plants and herbs." He told me, "May I please go mother?"
"Of course you can go. Just make sure you eat first and have father pack you a sack before you go." I told him.
He kissed me on the cheek and ran excitedly out of the room yelling at Shem to get him a sack ready. I decided to get up and went to go get some water. I noticed that it was too quiet and when I got to the hearth, all the children and Shem were sitting silently and eating.
"Oh good Ila you are up. Would you like something to eat?" Shem asked me.
"No I would just like some water. It is very quiet in here." I said.
"Yes well you were tossing and turning all night so I figured you would need some extra sleep." Shem told me as he handed a cup of water.
"Thank you. Did Elijah leave yet?" I asked him.
"No he hasn't. He went to go see if mother had something. I do not know what though." He explained.
"As long as he remembers to say good bye before he leaves." I said. "How did you girls sleep?"
"I slept really good mama!" Naomi yelled excitedly. "I slept so good that I don't think I will ever need to sleep again so now can I go with Elijah papa?"
"No I told you Naomi this trip is for big children to go on. Soon grandfather will take you." Shem told her gently.
While Naomi pouted, Evi took a turn to speak.
"I slept quite soundly mother." She told me.
"And you Adah?" I asked my eldest daughter.
"I did not sleep that well. Evi's snores kept me up." Adah replied.
"I do not snore!" Evi yelled at her twin sister.
"Yes you do and it is quite loud." Adah told her.
"Mother make her stop!" Evi yelled at me.
"Do not speak to your mother like that, ever Evi!" Shem yelled at her. "Go to your quarters and do not come out until I tell you!"
Terrified, Evi got up quickly and ran to her room. Adah stared at Shem in shock while Naomi clung to me, scared by her father's outburst. Shem was fuming and without a word grabbed his tools and left.
"What was that about?" Elijah asked, walking into the room.
"Father got mad at Evi because she yelled at mother." Adah told him.
"Are you ready to go son?" I asked him.
"Yes. Grandfather said we will be gone for a few days so a packed plenty of clothes. Grandmother will have food for us. Goodbye mother." He said.
"Good bye love. Say goodbye to your sisters." I told him, kissing him on the forehead.
"Goodbye Adah, goodbye Naomi." He said before running out the door and to his grandparents' home.
"Boys are strange." Naomi commented.
"Yes they are." I told her, playfully tapping her nose.