"How are you feeling this morning, little queen?" Egon asked her for the second morning in a row. She knew what he was really asking her. How was she recovering from their night of wild lovemaking?
"I am doing well, thank you for asking." She smiled at him and kissed his cheek before sitting down to eat breakfast.
"That's good because we have some walking to do today. I just got word that Evander's sword is ready, and I thought you might like to see the progress on yours." He explained as she filled her plate.
"I would love to come with you two," she admitted. A walk through the market was always fun for her. The energy and the colorful sights, the smells and the noise all scratched an itch in her brain.
"Then it's settled. After morning training and our midday meal, we'll head to Eisele's. We can train when we get back."
The market was particularly busy that day. She had to hold onto whichever man was closest to her whenever they moved through the crowd, or she would no doubt get swallowed up and cut off from them. They stopped when she wanted to look at anything she was interested in. They were looking at an array of beaded accessories when she felt like she was being watched. A quick look around, and there she was, the oracle, standing outside her home, staring at Mina intently. Mina wanted to know what she had to say despite everything that had happened last time.
"What are you looking at?" Evander came up behind her and put his head next to hers to look in the same direction.
"The Oracle is staring at me."
"Yes, she is. Well, that's creepy." Evander laughed a little in her ear. "Wait, you're not thinking of going over there."
"Don't tell Egon." She said, looking over her shoulder to where Egon was haggling prices for a beaded belt she had lingered on too long. She pressed through the crowd towards the Oracle, who hadn't broken her stare. "Why are you staring at me?" She asked incredulously.
"You're glowing." She stated as if that explained everything. "Congratulations."
"What are you talking about?" Mina was annoyed by the cryptic beating around the bush.
"On the baby." She reached out and gently touched Mina's stomach. "Congratulations on the baby."
"But I'm not… am I?" Fear rushed into her. If she were pregnant, it could be a girl. If it were a girl, she would die. "Can you tell me if it's a boy or a girl?"
"I can," She smiled and held out her hand expecting payment.
"Three gold?" She took three gold coins out of her pocket as the oracle nodded and placed them in her hand.
"Girl." The moment the oracle uttered the word, she was filled with dread.
"If we leave now for Sapphirus, will we succeed?" She asked next. If she was going to die within months, then they would have to go soon to fight the darkness.
"Maybe." The oracle answered.
"'Maybe?' That's not an answer!" She was raising her voice.
"It's an answer, just not the one you're looking for." The oracle insisted.
"Mina, what are you doing?" Egon's voice cut through the crowd. She only had moments for one more question.
"Will my daughter live a long, happy life?" She had to at least know if the child she was carrying would avoid a short, miserable existence.
"If you succeed? Yes." The oracle answered the final question as Egon appeared by her side.
"What's this again? We talked about this." Egon chastised. Van appeared by their side, looking a little disheveled from forcing his way through the crowd quickly.
"Don't worry about it, I'm fine," She said and smiled weakly at them. "Let's go."
"You're clearly not fine, but if you don't want to talk about it now, we can wait," Van responded, rubbing her shoulder. She wasn't sure she was going to tell them. She wasn't sure how else she'd convince them to go. She supposed she could just order them to. That was unlikely to work. Maybe she just needed to give Van a little more time to come into things. She had weeks before she would even start showing. But then, how was she supposed to act normally around them? There was so much she wanted to do with them. So much she needed to tell them.
Egon led them through the crowd until it broke as they passed out of the market into the craftsmen district of the city. She remained quiet and distracted as they entered the blacksmith. Eisele was working on a blade at her anvil, fully focused as she hammered the red-hot metal before her. She cooled it in a nearby pail of water before examining it and setting it down.
"What's wrong with Violet here?" She asked as she approached. "She looks… deflated."
"The oracle," Egon said gravely.
"That would do it." She laughed. "Come here, let me show you where we're at with yours." She brought her into another room where an elderly man sat working diligently on the hilt of her sword. He was working on some fancy filigree on the handle that had little fasteners for gemstones that had yet to be placed.
"It's beautiful." She offered. The elderly man bowed his head a little in acknowledgement.
"And here's Evander's. I had a few sapphires inlaid on the pommel here. I figured if they're married, they might as well match. But we kept the grip and guard simple as discussed." She pulled out a sword in a leather sheath and handed it to Egon, who unsheathed it to examine it.
"Beautiful work, as always." Egon put the sword back in its sheath and turned to Evander. "You'll have to get used to wearing this now. Put it on." She watched them fuss with the sword, but she was somewhere else entirely.
"Are you bored with them yet?" Eisele's words were spoken so close to her that she was startled.
"No, not at all. The opposite, actually." She broke her stare to turn her attention to Eisele.
"Oh no. Don't tell me you've fallen for Egon." She glanced over at the two men. "You both have. Well, I can say that I did that once. It was worth every moment."
"You were in love with Egon?" Mina asked carefully.
"Yes, for a time." She smiled.
"What happened?"
"He didn't love me." She answered simply. "I'm not sure you have that problem. Look at them."
Egon had made Van unsheathe the sword again, and they were going over it together. Egon was teaching Van what to look for in a sword by describing all the good features of the sword at hand. They were standing close together, and Van hung on Egon's every word. She knew she loved them. She knew that Van loved her, but did Egon? Did it matter if Egon clearly loves Van? She wasn't sure, but she was going to find out.