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Aurelia woke to sunlight streaming onto her face and the stab of rocks in her back. She and Lae’zel had spent the last few weeks traversing the Sword Coast since splitting with their friends, and the current accommodations were…lacking, to say the least.
It was really no one’s fault but their own. They were traveling light through wooded outskirts of Iriaebor so they could move quickly while they scouted areas that were known to have remnants of Vlaakith’s forces. Their packs were dedicated to food and medical supplies—unfortunately, their sleeping bags were threadbare at best.
Aurelia sat up, wincing as her back twinged.
Their friend group had slept rough endlessly before fighting the Absolute. And after Aurelia escaped Malbolge as a teen, she slept in dark corners of rotting wooden ships and in the supply basements of taverns with her hands always firmly on her daggers. There had been no shortage of shitty sleeping arrangements in Aurelia’s past, but as of late, the inns and other accommodations she and Lae’zel found themselves in had spoiled her.
Aurelia looked over her shoulder at her partner. Lae’zel was curled onto her side, her auburn hair splayed in a halo of fire around her head as the sun beamed down. Aurelia smiled fondly and tucked a strand of Lae’zel’s hair behind her ear. She could tell that Lae’zel was awake—her partner was simply enjoying the morning warmth and being doted upon. Although Aurelia knew that Lae’zel would rather eat rocks than outright admit it.
Aurelia peppered Lae’zel’s face with soft kisses until Lae’zel blinked up at her. Her gaze was hazy with sleep. “You’re up with the sun today, zhak vo’n’fynh duj.”
Aurelia grinned. Source of my joy. That phrase, falling gracefully from Lae’zel’s lips each time without hesitation, never failed to make her smile.
“So I am. I’m more surprised that you weren’t scouting the area before dawn, love,” Aurelia teased.
Lae’zel’s expression remained content, but she pushed herself up into a rigid sitting position. “I scouted the area twice over by the time the sun rose. Those wretched chickens on that farm across the way insisted upon screeching. Impossible to sleep through!”
Aurelia snorted and climbed to her feet. “I slept soundly.”
“These days, I fear a ghaik attack would not wake you. Perhaps we should see a healer…”
Lae’zel’s dry humor often made others blanch, but Aurelia simply laughed and pulled her partner to her feet. This was their life now—an endless push and pull of teasing remarks bracketed by blunt declarations of adoration.
Aurelia never had to wonder if she was loved. She felt the answer in the weight of Lae’zel’s gaze on her back, in the bruising kisses Lae’zel pressed to her lips, in the gentle, deliberate way Lae’zel said her name—like it was a promise to keep.
She thanked Tymora for this good fortune every day and hoped with all her heart that she was showing Lae’zel just as much devotion and love that was heaped onto her.
Aurelia began to rummage through their packs for a change of clothes. They had encountered wargs yesterday on the main road to the city, so the acrid stench of blood clung to their skin and clothing. Luckily, the countryside road leading into the great city of Iriaebor ran alongside the Chionthar River. They were due for a bath.
“Is the soap somewhere easy to find, or should I be searching among our apple stash?” Aurelia asked.
Lae’zel’s deep sigh drew out another laugh from Aurelia. “I suppose that one instance will forever linger in your memory?” Aurelia pulled out a clean shirt and a pair of thin leather breeches from her bag. Their shoes were worse for wear because of their recent travels. They would need to invest in new pairs soon.
“I’m afraid it’s cemented itself quite firmly, dear, considering I bit into it while expecting an apple.”
Lae’zel gave an indignant sniff as Aurelia passed a new outfit to her as well. “Of all the ridiculous things they do on this planet, perhaps the most audacious is creating soap in the shape of actual food.” Despite Lae’zel’s tone, her eyes were full of mirth. Aurelia never grew tired of seeing Lae’zel at ease, lamenting about Faerûn with none of the heat or vitriol she used to carry for this world.
Now, it was home to them both.
Aurelia eyed their second pack with reverence. The egg, as vibrant green as the thick foliage around them, was wrapped in a blanket within. “The little one should join us. They were so used to being submerged in the pool of acid in the hatchery…maybe they would like the feeling of weightlessness around them again.”
Aurelia’s words were soft, unsure. She always felt raw when she gave suggestions about the egg, like she was overstepping or being too naive. Aurelia was learning as much as she could about githyanki culture from Lae’zel, but she worried that her limited knowledge would become a hindrance to the child once they hatched.
Then again, they were young, soon-to-be parents expecting a baby that they hadn’t originally planned for, so there were bound to be hiccups along the way for both of them.
Lae’zel sensed her partner’s unease, so she scooped up the egg and placed it in Aurelia’s waiting arms. “A wise choice. Perhaps the warmth of the water will entice them.”
Aurelia cradled the egg to her chest and gingerly stepped toward the riverbed. The water in this area was shallow and gentle. She placed the egg onto the soil so she could strip to her undergarments, and then she pulled the egg to her chest again as she waded into the warm water. Skin to shell, with the green stark against the purple-blue of Aurelia’s skin.
The thrum of the child’s movements behind the shell made Aurelia’s breath catch. It was so easy to forget that a little life resided within when they were looking at the egg from a distance. “We’re so excited to meet you,” Aurelia whispered, so quietly that the words were swallowed up by the lapping of the water at the bank.
Lae’zel waded into the water after them. Her long limbs glistened in the sunlight. She was just as otherworldly and beautiful as she had been a tenday ago, but Aurelia was struck speechless for a moment. Their child must have sensed a change in Aurelia’s heart rate because she felt them land a solid kick through the shell.
Aurelia let out an embarrassed laugh, tucking her face against the egg. “Shush, little one. You’ll give me away.”
Lae’zel raised an eyebrow and paddled toward them. She held up their soap—this bar was pink and in the shape of a rose. “Shall I wash your hair now? You can hold them while I do.”
Aurelia nodded. “Thanks, love.” She tilted her head back as Lae’zel wetted her short hair and set to work lathering in the soap.
Washing each other’s hair had become a ritual of theirs while they traveled solo. Aurelia’s hair was still a pixie cut since she hacked it off before facing the Absolute, but Lae’zel’s long auburn hair, intricately styled and braided, was much less easy to untangle alone. Aurelia personally loved this type of intimacy—the feeling of Lae’zel’s sharp nails against her scalp, plus the tenderness and concentration she needed to meticulously untangle Lae’zel’s hair…
Neither of them had received that level of care or softness with their previous romantic partners. This belonged to them, and them alone.
Aurelia closed her eyes as Lae’zel continued to wash her hair. Suddenly, there was another strong kick from the egg. Strong enough that Aurelia heard a distinct crack over the babbling water.
Aurelia’s eyes shot open and her head jerked up. There was a thick zig zag down the front of the egg. The egg was hatching. The egg was hatching!
“Lae’zel?” Aurelia croaked. Her hands trembled.
Lae’zel peered over Aurelia’s shoulder. Her green eyes were bright and filled with pride. “Ah, so they’re finally ready to join us, praise be to Mother Gith. There’s nothing to fear, my joy. Githyanki children are quite capable once they’ve decided to leave the egg.”
“We don’t need to…to help? Or should I set them down?”
“I suggest holding them as you are. It’s not customary to do so in our culture,” Lae’zel said matter-of-factly, “but that’s because it could cause the children to become attached to the varsh. We, however, are their mothers.” Lae’zel kissed Aurelia’s shoulder. “They shall know our breath and touch before all else in this world.”
Aurelia choked back tears and nodded. The egg continued to splinter in her arms, until one final kick shattered the bottom of the shell and the entire structure fell away into the water. Aurelia watched, mesmerized, as their baby emerged.
The first thing Aurelia noticed was just how much hair the kid had. It was a fair brown and wavy from the fluids of the egg. Their baby—a boy, a son, Aurelia thought in elation—had light green skin and the same black markings curling from his cheekbones up into his brow bone that was a staple of the githyanki people. His eyebrows were thick and furrowed as he squinted in the sunlight. He did not immediately cry like most Faerûnian newborns—he simply whimpered and squirmed in Aurelia’s arms.
She instantly tried to quell his distress, curling him more snugly in her arms as she bounced on the balls of her feet and murmured: “It’s okay, little one. We’ve got you.” Tears spilled down Aurelia’s cheeks as she laughed. “You sure kept us waiting, huh?”
The baby boy’s pout seemed as though he was acknowledging her teasing. In reality, she knew that the sun was harsh on his sensitive eyes. Aurelia nearly gasped when he finally fully opened his eyes to look at her. They were a dark pink, the color of the sky at dawn. Aurelia was enamored. Their son was perfect.
“He’s lovely,” Lae’zel said, wrapping her arms around both Aurelia and the baby. She rested her cheek on Aurelia’s shoulder and stared at their son with so much adoration that Aurelia almost started sobbing. Before, Lae’zel might have commented on only their son’s strength. But to hear her compliment his beauty first and foremost—that touched Aurelia’s heart in a way that she couldn’t even begin to describe.
“He is,” Aurelia agreed. “Just perfect. Wow. Gods…” She kissed his tiny head as he blinked up at her and cooed. “We’re still going with the name you picked, right? I think that’s the right choice, to give him a proper githyanki name. I want him to have that connection to his people, even if he’s not going to be among the stars for a while.”
“As do I,” Lae’zel said. Water droplets from Lae’zel’s hair sluiced down Aurelia’s shoulders. “Looking at him now, I cannot think of anything more befitting to call him. He has both the might and gentleness of this river he was born in, and so he shall be named after the very thing so many across the galaxies die and live to find—freedom. You, my son, are named Xan.”
“Xan Ebrus Fryft,” Aurelia whispered. To her son, and to her lover. To the open air of a free Faerûn. In the desolation of the Hells, among the ashes and blood and death of Malbolge where she was raised, she could not have ever imagined this life. It was a dream within a dream. She would mourn all those who would never meet Xan later. She would hold that grief in tandem with the new overflowing love nestled in her heart. But for now, Aurelia embraced her cooing son and allowed Lae’zel and the river to hold her aloft. “May you find everything you seek in this world, our little one.”