What's It Like?

Writers: AL, Jane
Date Posted: 14th August 2008

Characters: Rahona, Eliste
Description: Rahona comes to visit Eliste and her new baby as well.
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 11, day 22 of Turn 4

Rahona was practically jogging through the corridors of the main Hold building, racing to visit the new baby - and Eliste, of course. At the door of the room she paused to knock softly, not wanting to wake a sleeping baby, or a sleeping mother.

"Please come in." Another visitor. One had just left, a resident of the hold and foster mother by the name if Fierla. She had expressed interesting in Eliste's quilts and even bought one of the baby ones she had made prior to coming to the waypoint. Fierla had also proven to be pleasant company and had joined Eliste in the garden on more than one occasion, chatting as the two watched the children.

"It's like having a new nephew," Rahona said by way of greeting, her smile wide as she looked around the room for a glimpse of the babe.
"How are you, Eliste?"

"Rahona!" Eliste's face lit up at the sight of the familiar face. She was wondering when she would begin to see other crew members. "I'm fine. How are you?"

"Quite well, really. My morning sickness has gone away, finally. And now I'm looking forward to getting to the stage you're at - with a real baby to cuddle again!"

"It is nice." More than nice. It was glorious. While she missed the feeling of the child inside her, she wouldn't dare take away the feel of his weight in her arms, or the warmth of him against her as they slept. "Ours will be close enough that they will have playmates with one another. Do you suspect if you're having a boy or a girl yet?"

"I _suspect_ we're having a dragon. Look at the size of me, and honestly, I'm not far enough along to show." She turned side-on to show Eliste her already noticeable bulge. She sighed. "He or she had better not be as big as this is suggesting."

"Well, I've been told that you show more with subsequent pregnancies."
Though with Eliste, the opposite had been the case. She had been halfway done with her pregnancy before she had started showing at all.
The midwife had told her the baby had just been far back. "But, if you're having a dragon, what colour do you think you'll have?"

"Brown. We only do browns in my family." Rahona rubbed her bulge with a smile. "This one won't be weyrbred. How strange."

"I suppose the weyr is all you've ever known?" Eliste had never been to a weyr. She'd never set foot out of Emerald Falls territory until her flight from her husband. She had, on occasion, wondered what it was like.

"Until I joined the Sungazer," Rahona agreed.

"What's it like there?" Eliste had never thought to ask any of the watchriders, and they were usually busy with their duties anyway.
Besides, perhaps getting an idea through someone who wasn't a dragonrider would be better.

"Big. Everything's on a grand scale - to suit the dragons. And busy, these days, since Thread." Rahona tried to think of ways of explaining such vast differences between life on the riverboat or in the Holds and life in the Weyr.

"Emerald Falls is big to me. I suppose it must be much bigger." Seeing the watchdragons, of course it would. "And it's hard to imagine things being busier than a large hold."

"Not so crowded," Rahona said, "but just as busy these days."

"Maybe some day I can go see a weyr. Or a hatching." Eliste had to admit that seeing a hatching sounded exciting to her.

"I wouldn't think that would be too hard to arrange," the other woman said with the assurance of one who had always had dragonriders in the family.

"Well, not for a while." Eliste wasn't sure how often hatchings happened. Besides, Follen couldn't travel just yet - the midwife wanted to keep him landbound for a while. After he was able to travel...well...then Eliste would have to face the Lord of Emerald Falls. She just hoped she could sever her ties to Helvar once and for all.

"No, probably not until he's weaned. May I cuddle him?"

"Of course." Eliste carefully held out the baby and slipped him into Rahona's waiting arms.

"Oh, isn't it wonderful! So little and ... snuggly. It's so long since I've had one this small to love."

"But it won't be too much longer." Eliste pointed out, unable to hide the grin that spread across her face. "And then you'll get to love one all day, every day. Alas, I wish they stayed little longer."

"Me too, though ... I do look forward to when they're adults too, and we can be friends."

"I hope so." While Eliste would never say her parents were her enemies, she didn't necessarily feel like she could confide in them like she could a friend. Well, no, she could with her mother. Her father was the one she couldn't approach. She had a feeling Fog wouldn't be like that. "How many children do you want?"

"Well, there's not so much choice for me. We have two already, and I'm not getting younger, and really, if we want to make the family much bigger than three we'd have to move off the riverboat. Some people do, but that would be hard on Lineal."

"Oh...I never thought about size being a concern." It made sense though. The riverboat could only hold so many people. "I suppose it comes from not having been on a riverboat to appreciate the space. So this will be your last one. I'm thinking...a girl."

"A girl? Hmm. I think Lineal would like a boy - another chance for his son to inherit the Sungazer, in time, in case Nalin wants to craft or go back to the Weyr. But, me, I'd quite like another girl."

"Have you two thought of any names yet?" Eliste had as soon as she found out she was pregnant with Varel. With Follen, however, it wasn't until she was on the riverboat and felt safe that names had occurred to her.

"I would imagine it will contain something for Lineal's father, Jesten.
Depends on whether it's a boy or girl. We'll do the Weyr thing and combine names. Jesten and mine, I suppose for a girl, Jesten and Lineal's for a boy."

"That's only a weyr thing?" Eliste couldn't hide her surprise. "I find it rather common, really. At least, in my experience." Helvar and Eliste had combined their names for Varel. Well, Helvar hadn't taken much interest in the female names, though Eliste knew he would have been displeased if she hadn't used his. She wasn't about to do that with her son, however. Not since she had the choice.

"It's a Weyr tradition," Rahona said firmly, but I suppose it's caught on with hold folk. So, what have you named this wee one?"

"Follen." The younger woman's expression softened. It had just seemed proper to name him after the man who would be his true father.

"Like ... Fog's name?"

"Yes." Eliste nodded, "Named after Fog."

"But he's not Fog's baby?" Rahona asked slowly, just wanting to make sure.

Eliste's set her jaw, a hint of stubbornness that rarely showed its face with her. "He is now."

Rahona laughed. "But he wasn't when he started out?"

"No." Eliste admitted, looking down to her son.

"It won't make any difference to Fog."

"I know. Follen is his son." Fog would love him more than the man who sired him ever would, of that Eliste was sure.

"The Weyr's a bit like that. All the fostering and the like. There's not as much store by who created them as who raised them."

Eliste graced Rahona with a tentative smile. "It's not who sired the, but who loved them."

"Exactly. Oh, I think he's hungry," Rahona said with a sigh as the babe stirred. "I suppose I'll have to give him back now."

"Don't worry, I'll be happy to let you hold him more after he's eaten."
Eliste held out her arms for her son.

"Oh good." Rahona settled into her chair and instructed the little gold firelizard that had accompanied her to behaver herself while they waited.

Eliste took her son and shifted her tunic to nurse him. She caressed his cheek, then smiled up to Rahona. "Soon...you'll have another one of your own."

Rahona rubbed her belly and smiled, looking forward to the day.

Last updated on the August 16th 2008

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