The Sorcerer's Bride 30 Friendly Wellwishing

But if the most she could be was a nanny, then so be it. She couldn't wait for the little one to come into the world. Forget the parents of the kid, she would be the one to spoil him or her. She looked forward to being called Auntie.

"Have you picked a name out yet?" Zylvia asked her friend brightly.

"We've picked out the names for our first ten kids," Fayre was almost glowing.

"So, what are you naming this one?"

"Well if it's a boy Jaekel, but if it is a girl Nilarah."

"Ooh, Nilarah, that sounds pretty," Zylvia couldn't stop grinning.

"We thought so too."

"Now that you are going to have a little one we should probably start making baby clothes," Zylvia made the suggestion brightly.

"Aye, can you work on some for girls and I'll work on boys?" Fayre smiled, "You've always been better than me at cute little girl outfits."

"Of course."

As they began working, they were quiet for a few minutes. Partway due to them just being really excited.

After a while though, Fayre broke the silence, "So, Zylv, when are you and Kaldrek going to have a kid?"

Zylvia stared down at her sowing trying to fight the blush threatening to creep up her neck, "Well, umm, we haven't really talked about such things?"

"Do you want children?" Fayre sounded curious but at the same time gentle.

Yes. "Maybe someday," Zylvia focused on her sowing. "Not immediately though." Zylvia knew she wasn't being totally honest but she didn't want to tell Fayre that she wasn't sure Kaldrek wanted kids.

"Better to start having children as soon as possible," Fayre pinched Zylvia's arm. "You're at a good age for childbirth, you know."

"Perhaps, but Kaldrek and I aren't ready. We aren't really close enough to possibly have children together."

"Having children might bring you closer together."

While that might be true there was a few steps that had to be taken first. Zylvia might be inexperienced but she still was aware of a few things.

"Maybe, but, Kaldrek and I aren't to the stage where we are even considering children." She kept her voice neutral despite the twisting pain in her heart. Of course she wanted to get closer to her husband. But she was afraid he would reject her, and the thought of that hurt far more than just staying like this. She knew she was being a coward.

As Fayre opened her mouth to say something more, Zylvia was spared by the arrival of Hazel. Asrar had been with her but took his leave at the door.

"You learned your way around fairly quickly," Zylvia smiled at the girl, feeling thankful for her arrival. Because the girl was only sixteen she knew Fayre would drop the subject while she was here.

"Not really," Hazel smiled. "I relied on Asrar to get here. He has a surprisingly good memory." Her eyes glowed with pride as she talked about her knight. Yep, the girl was definetely crus.h.i.+ng on him. Oh, dear. That would probably not end well. She hoped neither one would get too hurt, because it was obvious her knight valued her friends.h.i.+p deeply. He talked to her differently than anyone else.

"You seem close," Fayre smiled at the young woman. That was an understatement.

"Really?" The girl's eyes had a bit of a shadow to them, "We used to be a lot closer when we were children. Now I feel as if there is some barrier between us. But I have no idea what it is."

"Well, um, maybe it's just that you're getting older? I mean maybe it's just that because you aren't the same gender. I mean he's a knight and knights tend to get a few lectures on subjects like that."

"Maybe," She sounded doubtful, "It was about the time he would have been getting such lectures. But that doesn't explain the entire extreme s.h.i.+ft in his behavior. He used to be a mischievous little sprite and now he's always so serious, and keeps to himself more."

"Maybe something happened to him."

"Well, there was the time when he got lost in a forest for about a week. Thinking about it that was about when it started. Maybe being lost like that scared him and he's been unable to get over it."

"Probably was. Traumatic experiences can linger for years." The princess brightened up as they comforted her concerning her friend.