[ORP] Ettinford: A Tale by the Sea

[Aileigh]

Aileigh appreciated the tease, grinning in response. It was true - in many ways, they were just two sides of the same coin. She enjoyed Thea’s spontaneous lifestyle. She wished she could be as impulsive. It had to be incredibly freeing.

She liked the names suggested, nodding along. “Ezra and Cade sound cute together! What about Augustine? Or Agatha?” She paused. “On the other hand, maybe no A names. My mothers really took the whole A thing to the next level.”

There were only two of the sixteen children Aishe and Akos had that did not start with an A: the two children they had before they met. Aileigh was the first to receive the the legendary A, but she certainly was not the last.

Aileigh giggled and sat back up. She got to her feet and offered her hand. “Come on, I have something to show you!!”

Her excitement was clear as she took off in a playful run, dragging Thea along. Her laugh was carried on the wind, mixing with the sound of insects and frogs. She rounded the side of the estate building to reveal a construction zone behind it.

“A conservatory for you, my wife! It’ll take about two more months, but soon it’ll be ready for you to seek escape in.”

She kept a hold of Thea’s hand and led her into the bare bone structure.

“There will be a fountain in the middle with your choice of sculpture. We can keep some fish in there. The cats would love that.”

[Thea]

Thea could not help but snort as Aileigh mentioned avoiding names starting with the letter A. It was true that she had a dozen-plus siblings all starting with A. She was half-surprised that they had not run out of A names and half-surprised that she had managed to suggest some that had not been used.

"Well I am glad we are not sticking to any particular letter; we have endless choices. We can table the A names for now."

The discussion of names was cut short as Aileigh has other things on her mind. She hopped to her feet, dragging her much slower wife along with her, and bounded through the estate and around the house. Thea was physically tired and she definitely was slowing down her spouse, but Aileigh did not seem to mind.

When they rounded the corner, Aileigh led her into the beginnings of a new building. She was bouncing with energy as she presented it to Thea. The conservatory was a project they had discussed shortly before she had run away, and in spite of her absence, Aileigh had pushed forward.

"You have done great work. I would not be surprised if the workers get it done sooner for fear of disappointing you."

She squeezed her wife's hand gently before pulling Aileigh closer to her again.

"I am much too tired to think of statues or fish for the cats."

Her voice was gentle and soft. She did not want to curb Aileigh's enthusiasm but she could hardly think about that at this moment. Thea placed a feather-light kiss on her wife's nose kissing her lips again. This was a new feeling for her but she enjoyed it.

[Aileigh]

The praise brought on a grin. She was not one that She returned the hand squeeze. The grin turned into a softer smile when Thea pulled her close. In her excitement to have Thea home and the overwhelming conversation that transpired, it didn’t dawn on her that her wife may be exhausted from her… Adventure.

The kiss was happily returned. The peace she felt resurfaced, making it seemed right. It was all so sudden, and yet it felt like an old rhythm, something they had done a hundred times. When she pulled back, she smiled.

“Let’s get some sleep then. Nothing better than sleeping in your own bed after a trip.”

She took Thea’s hand again and began to head inside. Instead of leading her, this time she simply walked alongside her partner at a normal pace. They walked in comfortable silence until they were at Thea’s bedroom door. She let go of her hand when they stopped walking, bright eyes flicking over Thea’s features. She took in her beauty before placing a delicate kiss onto her lips.

“Goodnight lovely.” She pushed past the feeling of awkwardness that could arise when dropping someone off. So, instead, she asked, “Join me for breakfast in the morning?”

[Thea]

Thea nodded in agreement as her spouse suggested sleep. She was not even sure how much longer she could stay upright as she had been up for at least twenty hours now. Sleep was necessary at this point. Aileigh took her hand again. They walked side by side at a leisurely pace into the house.

Once inside they walked up a flight of stairs and Aileigh followed her all the way to her room. For a moment Thea thought that her wife wanted to share a bed with her, but instead, Aileigh bid her good night.

"I will try very hard to be up at a reasonable hour so that we may have breakfast, but you know me… I make no promises to be up before noon."

She was about to turn and retreat into her room however she could not resist pulling Aileigh towards her to kiss her again. She reached out her hand and pulled her closer so that their lips could meet. She then sighed to herself and pulled back.

"I do not know what you have done to me to make me like this. I have never felt this way before – it is completely out of character."

She felt vulnerable and almost helpless. If Aileigh asked her for the moon she would want to give it to her. She also felt happy and content. Being with her felt right in every way. Thea never expected any of this.

"Good night."

[Thea]

Late June 1663

Three weeks had passed since Thea had returned home to Ettinford. During this time, it felt like her whole world had shifted. Everything was new and awkward – it was a huge learning curb for her. Truthfully, she would not have thought herself to get romantically involved with anyone. She just was not that kind of person, or so she thought. With Aileigh it felt different. It felt inevitable and it made her wonder how she did not see this coming.

The morning after her return, Aileigh had seen to informing her lover, Andrzej. Thea had not been privy to the conversation but she was told it 'went well' and that Andrzej supported them. Thea questioned this, though not outwardly. It was unfair for her to place such doubts on him, but she did not know him at all. They had little previous interaction. In Thea's mind, she attributed this to him avoiding her because he did not like her, in spite of Aileigh's assurances to the contrary. When Andrzej made an appearance or when she knew he would be coming around, Thea had been excusing herself. She respected her wife's love for him but she did not feel the need to interact with a man who had purposefully distanced himself.

Thea and Aileigh, of course, spent a lot of time together too. It was new and exciting for them both even if Thea often felt like a fish out of water. They oversaw the construction of the conservatory and visited a local sculptor to decide what statue should be featured in the fountain. After much discussion, Thea chose the boring option of a mermaid to the disappointment of said sculptor. She had reasoned it did not make sense for a dragon to be spewing water all around the conservatory. Plus, a mermaid was much prettier to look at.

On the morning of her fourth week home Thea had a realization. She counted backward in her head the weeks since she had been home plus how many weeks she had been away. Five weeks, nearly six… With a mumbled curse, she finished brushing her hair and looked at herself in the mirror. How had she managed to mess things up again? She needed to talk to Aileigh right away before she could figure it out herself.

The nursery had plenty of noise – children crying or babbling and the nanny speaking to them in soothing tones. Thea did not hear her wife in there so she felt it was safe to assume that she would be downstairs waiting for her in the dining room for breakfast. She half-reluctantly went downstairs and towards the smell of freshly fried eggs and warm buttered rolls. The door was already opened and she saw Aileigh there waiting for her.

"Hello."

Thea greeted her, though her smile did not quite reach her eyes. She took a seat at the table next to her partner before saying anything further.

"I have something I need to discuss with you."

[Aileigh]

Life was bliss. She felt exhilarated and at peace at the same time. Things were going good. True to his word, Andrzej didn’t stand between her and Thea. True to Thea’s word, she wasn’t forced away from Andrzej. Finding a balance during daily life was still a rhythm she was getting used to, but that was to be expected.

Aileigh woke early and decided to join Andrzej on his morning run. Following that, she bathed and readied for the day. Due to the change of morning routine, breakfast was served a bit later than usual for the viscountess. She was about to take the first spoonful of eggs when her wife appeared. She was not expecting to see Thea up as she was a late sleeper, but it was a pleasant surprise.

Her face brightened up and when Thea sat beside her, she leaned over to press a kiss on her cheek in greeting. Her ominous words rose an eyebrow. It sounded serious, which made her worry. Did she do something wrong?

“Let’s go somewhere private then.” The downside with their nobility lifestyle was there were always eyes and ears on them and in their lives. She stood up before Thea could respond, abandoning her breakfast, and offered her hand. Together, they left the dining room and Aileigh took them into her study.

The walls were lined with bookshelves and tapestries of bright colours. The lighting was dim with the window draped in dark blue, but she went to open the curtain to allow in the daylight. Her desk was pushed towards a corner and in the center of the room was a table with a covered crystal ball. She lead her to the couch though, where she sat down. It was a room Thea rarely saw, but the gesture of using the private room was an ode to their developing relationship.

“What’s wrong?”

[Thea]

Aileigh could sense the seriousness in her tone immediately. She took Thea's hand and led her to somewhere they could talk in private. The room they entered was one that Thea had entered less than a handful of times. This was her wife's private space and she did not like to intrude on it.

Thea sat down on the couch beside her and looked at her partner who was definitely worried and anxious for whatever Thea had to say. This left her feeling guiltier. She sighed to herself. It was better to get things over with then draw it out.

"Unfortunately, I am pregnant. Well, I am almost positive anyway."

Her stomach felt queasy as she said this. Was it from this discussion or was it morning sickness? Both, maybe. She continued on quickly before Aileigh could respond.

"I am sorry. The timing is terrible, truly. That said, it is still early enough that termination is not impossible."

When she was pregnant with Zevander she had been offered an out in this way by her cousin Cordelia. At the time she had refused. It was too far into the pregnancy and would have been very risky. Death scared her more than raising a child, so she had her son. Doing this would not be without risks, but it would not be as risky this early on.

"I am not like you, I can do it."

[Aileigh]

Aileigh was not sure what she was expecting, but this wasn’t it. Her response would be deemed odd by most: she started laughing. It was more of a stress response than a humourous one. Her eyes were quick to fill with overwhelmed tears, but her laugh continued for a good moment until she could catch her breath.

“Zachré!” Her exclamation was met with a tear rolling down her cheek. Either she was having a mental breakdown or her hormones were really roaring. Maybe both. She cleared her throat.

“That’s definitely unexpected…” She took a moment to wipe a tear. The floodgates were open now and more followed. “Okay, okay… So you’re pregnant. We’re both pregnant. OMZ, we will be pregnant at the same time!”

The idea was mildly exciting, in a way. Friends planned this sort of thing all the time, at least she thought so. But this was different. They were married and would have three babies to take care of.

That would make seven.

“I’m sorry,” she said in regards to her laughing and crying and general behaviour. She put on a serious face, wiping away tears. “We can handle it, just the way we can handle these two.”

She patted her abdomen.

“… Unless you want to terminate. I will support whatever decision you make. I take it it’s still early enough to do so safely given I haven’t heard the heart beat yet.”

To her, life was precious. Family was a gift and children were the ultimate desire. Yet, they had four young children with another two on the way already. And it was Thea, who had a horrendous first pregnancy and did not enjoy it like Aileigh did. She was torn between suggesting they keep the child and supporting the termination. She would be there for Thea regardless of what she chose, but Aileigh, in that current moment, was confident they could make it work. She tried to offer a reassuring smile while wiping away more tears.

“Bloody hormones.” She mumbled under her breath.

[Thea]

To say that Thea was shocked by her wife's reaction would be putting it mildly. She jumped up in surprise at the exclamation. She expected Aileigh to be upset or frustrated by this revelation, not happy.

"You are not upset? Or are you?"

Thea tried to clarify as she watched her wife simultaneously laughing and crying. Aileigh continued on to offer support to Thea, whatever she decided.

"I am not sure what to do… It feels unfair to you if I were to keep it. You take care of the children for the most part. What do I do? Nothing of actual use here."

She sighed wearily. Aileigh seemed excited, but Thea was not sure that she was really thinking it through. She was not attached to this pregnancy emotionally, but neither had she been attached to either of the previous two. She had never felt connected to the life growing in her body, instead, they had felt more alien to her than anything. Zevander she had kept because she had found out far too late to change anything. Lenora she had kept because she and Aileigh were married by that point and she knew that she should keep the child.

[Aileigh]

Was she upset?

“Maybe. I don’t know.”

She sighed, her tears drying without being replaced. Hormonal shifts could be a lot for a pregnant woman and for a moment, she felt a bit crazy. She took a steadying breath. Her hormones weren’t the problem to worry about right now.

Aileigh could see the stress on her wife’s face regarding their situation. Again, she offered a reassuring smile. She understood the argument Thea provided, but she was not convinced that it was the right argument.

“We will hire an extra nanny. It can be manageable… It’ll just be tiring for a while. One more to love is not a curse. Do not decide solely based on fairness. I will always happily welcome another with an open heart.

The question is do you want to be pregnant? Do you want to grow our family? I don’t want you to be miserable.”