Possible trigger warning for death of a child
Before Lanliss had left, a pair of sending stones made for communication between him and his sister. Using his, he’d contacted her roughly once per month, but then the communication just…stopped. No one would answer when Tessara tried to check in, and no one would send a message to her. Presently, she was pacing the length of her bedchamber, twisting a length of cloth in her hands, ignoring the draft the large keep typically had.
“What!” she snapped when someone knocked. The only reply that came was a series of intricate knocking, which gave her a small smile. “Come in, Tyraine.”
A tall, lithe elf with ashen hair, dark eyes, and a scar running from his right temple to his chin stepped into the room, and closed the door behind him. “You’re ignoring your duties, highness.” he said.
She sighed. “Can’t you do it? Tell people I’ve fallen ill?”
“That would be a lie, Princess.” he said, smiling as he approached.
“As if you and my brother haven’t told enough of those. What’s one more?”
“For how long?” he said, coming up behind her.
“A few months? Until I hear from Lanliss again?” she shrugged, though there was a hint of hopefulness in her voice.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her neck a moment before resting a hand on her abdomen momentarily. “Months would worry the people. I’ll find a handmaid who can also function as a midwife, and be quiet about it. You’ll have to dress different. Winter is ahead anyway, so it shouldn’t be too difficult to hide.” he said, kissing her again.
“Lanliss would kill you for this.” she said, referring to the affection.
“True. But I might be able to convince him to let me live.” he said.
“Maybe.” she said with a sigh. “I really do hope he can be forgiving.”
“We’ll see.” he said.
“Any word on him?” she asked, that tinge of hopefulness returning to her voice.
“Not yet. I’m staying on it though.” he said.
“Oh.” came her reply, and her demeanor changed immediately.
“Come on, you need to tend to things.” he prodded, trying to take her mind off of her melancholy. “Don’t leave things a mess for Lanliss to take care of.”
“I guess you’re right.” she sighed, dropping the cloth she held and donning a light coat before heading out to the main hall to hear grievances.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
A few months later, she was crying out in pain, and had been for hours. Tyraine had taken her to an isolated home away from town, smuggling her out of the keep unbeknownst to anyone. Between the winter months and her not gaining much weight, they were able to successfully hide her pregnancy. The birth was proving to be difficult however, and there was some risk of harm coming to Tessara. Eventually, in the middle of the night, the baby was born. Tess was thankful the ordeal was over, though she was ordered by the midwife to rest as first Tess and then the baby were tended to.
The midwife gestured to Tyraine to show him the son that had been born. “‘Tis a curse on that family.” she whispered. Tyraine shot her a warning look, and leaned in to look at the child. The baby was unmoving, pale, and not breathing. “Never a good sign when they’re born dead.” the midwife hissed at him.
“Watch your tone.” he muttered back.
“It’s a curse on the land. I must warn people.” she said, turning to rush for the door. She did not calculate that Tyraine was quicker. With a quick motion, the midwife was dead, unable to tell anyone about the stillbirth. After her body fell to the floor, he brought the child over to Tess, though the look on his face said everything. Wordlessly, he handed their son to her, and she began to cry helplessly, until there were no tears left.
They agreed that there should be no evidence, so when Tess was able to move about again, she was disguised, and moved back to the keep. Tyraine would go back to ensure that the small hut was razed to the ground, the body of his son and the midwife still within. Over the months, Tess’ mental state began to deteriorate. She distanced herself from Tyraine, considering him a painful reminder of what had happened, until eventually he had to assign someone else to be her guard, though he still watched over her.
Tess would still try to do the suits expected of her station, but the cracks in her mental state were gradually beginning to show. Tyraine worried that if Lanliss’ fate wasn’t discovered soon, Tess would be lost. Defying Lanliss’ order to tell no one where he had gone, Tyraine put up a post to try to find a band of adventurer’s to look for him, and made regular prayers that Lanliss’ fate would be discovered. While he himself didn’t know where or why Lanliss had left, he know where his first destination had been, so he would direct the party that way…whenever the job was accepted.