A Beautiful Baby

Writers: Bree, Eimi
Date Posted: 5th October 2005

Characters: Jio, Miryene
Description: Jio brings Miyon to visit Miryene, and they manage to have a civil conversation.
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 8, day 4 of Turn 3

Jio wasn't sure this was such a good idea. Miryene was probably still very upset at him, and who could blame her. But she was stuck all day in that bed, probably bored and brooding. And since Jhonnel had so mysteriously vanished... Well, she might need someone to get her mind off of things for a while.

The little boy in his arms began to fuss a bit. "Don't worry, Miyon. We're almost there." Jio was surprised at how much the little tot had grown since he first met him, the first day he had met her... "Shall we knock on the door and see if she will let me in?" The vintner wasn't entirely sure he'd be welcome, but he knew Miryene would be happy to see the little boy she had been foster mother to until her marriage to Jhonnel, and that was what mattered most.

A girl answered the door, the adolescent daughter of one of the journeymen who had been sitting with Miryene sometimes during the day. She gave Jio a friendly smile before disappearing back inside, leaving the door hanging open in obvious invitation. "Miryene! Journeyman Jio is here, and he brought Miyon!"

He stepped through the door before Miryene could change her mind. Perhaps seeing the boy would make her feel a _bit_ more pleased to see him.
"Miryene, can I come in? I brought Miyon to see you."

Miryene was in the process of sitting up when he came into the sitting room, ignoring the girl who was hovering anxiously. "I can stand up on my own, Elisan!" Miryene said, though the gentle smile took the sting from her words as she managed to get to her feet. She took the few steps to her chair and settled into it before looking up at Jio with a slightly nervous smile. "I'm sorry, Jio... I hate trying to carry on a conversation while laying down."

"No need to apologize," the vintner assured her as he bounced the little boy up and down in his arms. "It's probably easy to hold this little man in your lap anyway. Say hello to Miryene, Miyon."

The boy gave a friendly gurgle, and Miryene laughed and held her arms out.
"Miyon, you've grown so big!"

Jio laughed as he gently set the boy in Miryene's laugh. It was such a relief to see the woman smile again. She had precious little to smile about recently, and the journeyman hadn't helped matter before. He hoped he could make it up to her in little ways. "He looks happy to see you."

"I'm happy to see him," Miryene replied, cuddling the little boy against her. With the baby in her lap, she looked like an entirely different person--bright and happy for the first time in too long. "Sit down, Jio...
Elisan was just about to make some tea. Would you like some? She makes _very_ good tea."

Elisan beamed at the praise and gave Jio a shy smile. "I can make you some tea if you like, journeyman."

"Yes, thank you, Elisan. I'd like that." He looked back at the woman with the baby in her lap. "He has grown a lot, hasn't he."

"He has," Miryene replied, stroking the child's hair back from his face. Her eyes were filled with honest tenderness as she smiled down at him. "It's so sweet of you to bring him to visit, Jio."

The journeyman smiled. Maybe they could get back to where they were? Hope began to well up in him. "Well, I thought you might need a little relief from the border. How is Ivy? I think I see her with Pom and Mulch sometimes."

"Oh, she's growing so quickly! I wish I had more time to care for her, but some of the girls have been helping me out..." Miryene kissed the top of Mayan's head and then glanced up at Jio. "I'm sorry, Jio. About the last time we spoke. I... I was not myself."

Jio shook his head to ward off further apologies. "No, you had every right to be angry at me. I behaved shamefully, and I'm sorry."

Miryene looked back down at the child in her lap, using him as an excuse not to meet Jio's eyes. "I suppose you've heard. It's been three days now... and no one has seen or heard from Jhonnel."

The journeyman also looked at the boy, unwilling to meet the woman's eyes as he said, "Yes, I heard something about that. I wish there was something I could do."

"There's nothing anyone can do," Miryene replied sadly, her fingers brushing through Miyon's hair absently. "The Hallmaster has been very kind." Of course, Miryene wasn't fool enough not to realize that the Hallmaster's attitude probably had more to do with his new wife than with some new respect for women in general. "I suppose... if he doesn't show up by the end of the month..." She couldn't quite say the words, the ones that had been told to her only yesterday in a voice that sounded far too relieved. If he wasn't back in a month, she should consider herself a widow...

The journeyman leaned forward and laid a tentitive hand on her knee. "I'm sorry, Miryene. Truly I am. If there is anything you need, I hope you know that you can count on me. I promise, I will be a much better friend than I have been to you in past sevenday."

For a moment it looked as if she was about to say something, but Elisan returned with two mugs of tea carefully balanced and set them down on the table between Jio and Miryene. The girl picked up her needlework and retreated back to the kitchen, leaving Jio and Miryene the illusion of privacy without having to worry about rumors that they were spending time together.

Jio had pulled his hand away guiltily when he heard the young woman approach. He felt as if he had caused some infraction, and he retreated behind a mug of tea to hide his embarrassment. "I wonder what kind of tea this is. It smells so good."

"I don't know..." Miryene shifted Miyon to one arm and took a sip of the tea. "It's something the new healer brought to me. He says it's not medicinal, it just tastes so good that it makes us feel better." Miryene smiled as she took another sip. "Have you met Talrian? He seems very nice."

The vintner nodded as he swallowed a bit of tea. "Yes, he and I have been working together since he came. I can't say how pleased I am he's here. He can help me so much with my work."

"That's wonderful, Jio." She set the cup aside and shifted Miyon on her lap again, leaning down to kiss the young boy on the top of the head. "Isn't it, Miyon?"

Miyon made a happy noise, reaching up to tangle his fingers in a few strands of Miryene's hair.

"It seems he's missed you," Jio said with a soft smile. "And soon he will have another new playmate for when he comes to visit."

"Soon," Miryene echoed, resting a hand on her stomach. She was obviously pregnant now, and the occasional strong kick from the baby reassured her that so far, things were still going well. Elisan had even felt the baby kick the other day, an event which had thrilled the girl and left Miryene wishing she had someone to share the experience with other than a thirteen turn old girl.

Jio could see a sadness in her eyes that he wished he could erase. This should have been such a happy time for her. "It will be a beautiful baby, Miryene."

"I know," she replied, doing her best to force a cheerful expression on her face. She couldn't take any more pity--not when it was all she got from everyone, day in and day out.

"Well, when they get older, you can have Miyon over and they can play together. You would like that, wouldn't you little man." He poked at the little boy's stomach and was rewarded with a smile and a giggle.

Elisan peeked her head back into the room, clearing her throat gently.
"Journeyman Talrian is here, Miryene. He says it's time for your visit."

"I suppose that means I should take Miyon back to his foster mother now."
Jio knew Miryene would be reluctant to give the boy up so soon. "I will see if I can bring him back again soon. Maybe even tomorrow if you're up for it."

"Maybe the next day," a voice said from the door, and Talrian smiled in.
"Though I know Miryene appreciates the visits, I'm going to be a mean old healer and make her rest tomorrow."

Miryene gave Miyon a final kiss on the forehead before handing him back over to Jio. "Then on the day after tomorrow, I'd love to see him."

Jio quickly hid the sour look he almost cast in the healer's direction, but instead just picked up the boy and bounced him in his arms. "All right, Miyon, we'll come back day after tomorrow, won't we! Say bye-bye to Miryene and the healer, Miyon."

Last updated on the October 5th 2005

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A Beautiful Baby