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“I was never meant to lead. Not with my—”
“With your what? Your blood? I think we’ve found out just how useless that is here. The girls listen to you. They respect you.”
I look over at Nori. “Tell her.”
“Sorry, Elena, but Meg’s right. You weren’t given the respect of the girls—you earned it. They look up to you, and giving up now will only sow fear.”
“My condition—”
“Will bring hope,” Meg says. “Your baby will be utterly spoiled with all its aunties.”
“We can’t tell them yet.”
Meg snickers. “Well, it’s a bit late for that.”
“What do you mean?”
“When you fainted, Arwin was hysterical. We shooed everyone away, but before we even got a chance to see you, there were whispers.”
“Dammit!”
“Sometimes it’s better to force the issue,” Meg says.
Easy for her to say.
A dark thought startles me.
“What if the baby isn’t normal? Grixis is…I mean…they’re different.”
“We’re alike enough that I’m not worried,” Nori assures me. “In nature, if two things aren’t meant to breed, they generally can’t make babies. Horses and donkeys make mules, which usually can’t have their own offspring, but they’re actually pretty healthy animals, fertility aside. I see no reason for concern.”
Meg smirks. “I think a little blue baby would be adorable.”
My anxiety only increases at Meg’s thought. “What if it’s like twenty pounds?”
“Calm down,” Nori says.
“You’re telling me to calm down? You’re not the one with a giant’s baby hanging out inside her—”
“You can choose to live every day in fear if you’d like, but how do you think that will work out for you?” Nori’s voice is deadpan, devoid of anger and frustration. I don’t know how she stays so calm in almost every situation.
“I guess it is kind of stupid for me to worry when there are so many unknowns.”
Nori grants me a reassuring smile. “It’s best to take it one day at a time.”
The flap to the tent tears open, and Fiona comes charging inside.
“What is it?”
“The men are back. Grixis and four others. They wish to speak with Elena.”
My eyes dart to Meg. “How do they know?”
She shrugs. “Maybe they don’t.”
“Don’t you think this is a little coincidental?”
“I do, but it’s been such a short time since you’ve fainted, and I doubt they were in the area.”
