ARYADNE - XXIII

                                    

                                          
THE SIGNS ADDED UP. Aryadne tried her best to put it out of mind. Over a week passed, but it did not go away. Her body ached, her stomach rebelled most foods, her blood had not come in far too long, and she woke in a sweat most nights from nightmares so vivid and yet unmemorable. She could bear it no longer.
It was another quiet morning in the infirmary. Grey Wind waited dutifully by the entrance. It was becoming increasingly harder to go anywhere without him. She joined Talisa by the shelf of various treatments, glancing around furtively before speaking in a lowered voice, "I need you advice."
"As your friend... or as your healer?"
The question, and the pointed look she directed at her stomach, made her falter. "You know?" she whispered.
A slight smile came in reply, though she detected some hesitance there. "I suspected. The symptoms seemed to add up. How long?"
She wracked her brain for an answer. Panic shut down any thoughts of her situation but she pushed through. "A few weeks... I think. But I don't think my courses have come for a while. We have been married almost four months, so no further than that."
Her gaze dropped to Aryadne's fidgeting hands. Sighing, she hugged her. "Come." They headed towards the very back of the tent, through a curtain to the small space behind it. Talisa brought out a chair and offered it to her. It was only when she sat down that she realised how shaky her legs had become. "I'm going to ask you some questions and I need you to answer honestly. Can you do that?"
"Yes."
"Do you want this?"
Her response was automatic and void of emotion. "It is my duty."
Exasperated, her friend crouched before her and took her hands in a comforting squeeze. "I don't care about what anyone else wants from you. They cannot matter. Be honest, do you want this? Because this is the rest of your life, not to mention the risk to your life just by carrying a child."
The idea of having a child, of giving Robb something that was theirs, untainted by the outside world, appealed to her more than she had expected. But there was so much room for failure. Her body might be too weak. Even if she and the baby survived, she did not know the first thing about being a mother. Before it was even conceived, she had used it as a bargaining chip to keep herself alive. That was the way of the world but guilt overwhelmed her nonetheless. She smiled, tears stinging her eyes. "I do not know."
Talisa glanced towards the curtain before lowering her voice even more. "I could give you something. No one need know about this."
"What?" It took a moment to sink in. She was offering an end to the pregnancy. Instantly, she found one thing she was certain of. "No," she said. "I can't— I won't."
"Very well." She got up, leaving Aryadne in the little hideaway. When she returned, she brought with her two bowls that rattled softly with each step. "An old Volantene trick to determine pregnancy," she explained. "We simply pour some of your urine on these seeds and wait. If the wheat sprouts, you're likely to be carrying a girl. If the barley sprouts, it is a boy. Far from definitive but it's the best test I know."
Swallowing nervously, she mumbled, "I suppose I should at least know what to expect."
Talisa set the bowls down and came to her side, hands cocooning around hers once more. "Whatever happens — boy or girl, child or no child — I'm with you. All will be well."
—
No sooner had the seeds been set aside, a summons came. The Lannister boy, whom Robb had sent to Cersei with peace terms, had returned. She took her seat beside her husband in the war tent. His welcoming smile went unanswered. Glancing at her, the boy paled. His name was Alton, another distant cousin she had not met before.