As the days went on, it was a struggle. Valia was having a hard time coping with herself, with her faults, and with the unyielding rain. Perhaps were the sun shining, she might feel the need to get outside the castle walls, or to do something other than let herself fester inside. But thank the Gods her husband was an angel, and she only realized her own ignorance as the days sweetly passed, both long, numb and cold.
But it seemed little by little, when days finally turned into weeks, and weeks into months; that she began to feel different. She began to appreciate the little things. She was reading books, playing with her son, and enjoying her long talks at night with her husband. Never before had she felt so close to her son and husband as she had in those past few months.
Now she was beginning to show, both breasts and her belly swelling as her child continued to grow. And she found herself out on the balcony over looking the hills of Orchy while the rumble of a battle far off in the distance echoed on the country side. It was a sobering thought, that the war could be getting closer to home.
