From being an Abandoned who had rarely left the Hollowed Grounds, to embracing the call of adventure, to dying and being reborn first as an Ascended and then as an Ancient, Maea has gone through quite the amount of changes in her life. One thing remains common, though, in her attempts to find out just where she belongs; she’s always had a craving for knowledge which has brought her to so many places and to meet so many people here in Caido. We can’t wait to see what else is in store for her!
Congratulations, Maea!
Credits
Court of the Fallen was created in October of 2018 by Odd, Honey, and Crooked.
Skinning and hosting by the epically talented Kaons, and functionality fanciness by the coding magic of Neowulf. If you ever see either of them around, make sure to show them some love!
Just like she had expected, following Long Night, business seemed to be booming for the young midwife. Some babies had been born, some women realized they were expecting, and she knew it was just a matter of time before more began noticing the signs of pregnancy too. Spring had a way of making that happen it seemed.
Needless to say that meant Phoebe had a lot to distract her from the things in her life that were troubling her. She poured energy into making sure her clinic was set up and spotless and as comforting as ever. She had plans to begin a little herb garden so she didn’t have to forage as much. Things were looking up, she just had to stay positive! On that afternoon she was expecting a newly expecting mother to stop in for a checkup. Vervain had requested some of her time to make sure her pregnancy (which Phoebe was glad to hear she had been right about) was progressing normally. Of course she had gotten a very enthusiastic reply that she was of course welcome to drop by any time, her door was always open!
So in preparation she made sure she had all of her teas prepped and ready, some calming tea brewing over the fireplace while she waited. A private room was prepped if Vai preferred, otherwise there were plenty of comfortable places for her to sit when she arrived.
Taking over the infirmary was proving to be as much work as running the Rathskeller, but Vervain thought she was beginning to get the hang of it. She had set off just after midday towards the Domiciles, advising that she likely wouldn't be back for the rest of the day - unlike Isla she refused to be a slave to the place, and it would serve as a good excuse for the rest of those who worked there to brush up on their skills.
Besides, much as she wanted to help and much as the desire was genuine, her children came first. She arrived at the clinic with a soft breeze tousling her dark hair, blue eyes bright and perhaps even a touch excited as she knocked at the door. It was the first time, it felt, that she could properly register that this child was going to be a part of their lives. What wasn't to love about that?
Phoebe rushed over to the door upon hearing the knock. She was probably just excited as Vervain but for different reasons. This was a situation where she felt entirely comfortable, and if any doubted her due to her youth she knew she would quickly prove them wrong. "Hello, Miss Vai, please come in!" she said brightly. As always the clinic was a perfect little slice of homeyness, but with the window shutters opened and the springtime sunlight pouring through it was bright and fresh and just the place anyone would want to be.
"Please have a seat and make yourself at home. If you'd prefer there are some private rooms in the back." Phoebe said with a warm smile. The young midwife made her way over to the fireplace to pull the tea off, pouring Vai a cup. She would bring it wherever Vai had sat, as there were plenty of tables for her to set the cup on as well. Easy was a good word for it - Phoebe had everything arranged in such a way that everything felt easy, like want for anything could be fixed at a word.
"Do you have any idea how far along you are?" she asked. Not very, based on the size of her baby bump, but Vai would know best based on when her last period had been. Of course there were a few other factors Phoebe could use but it was one of the better places to start.
Vai had met Phoebe before, so she wasn't surprised that the midwife she was to see was so young - she had no doubt that she must be knowledgable to be able to set up her own clinic in such a short time. But it was the bubbly nature of the young woman that surprised her; Vai had seen Phoebe at her worst, it was true, but she had hardly expected that she would be quite so different. Still, it was hardly a bad thing!
"Thank you, Phoebe. That's very kind, but I lived much of my life out in the woods. Any prudent nature I once had has likely long since dissolved." The child growing within her was likely conceived in a romp in the Woodlands, to be honest, so it was a little late to worry about privacy. So saying, Vai got comfortable in one of the seats whilst Phoebe made the tea, the huntress accepting her cup gratefully and with a murmur of thanks.
Sipping at her tea, she hummed thoughtfully as she tried to place her pregnancy. "I realised I was pregnant at the end of Leafchange, I believe," she murmured. "So about four months?"
Indeed, her disposition might be surprising given how zhe and Vai first met. She wasnt some scroungy, half-naked, overly emotional girl most of the time. Usually she was happy, bubbly, with a calming presence. But Phoebe didn't think how shocking this might be, instead simply going about her business per usual.
"Well that is good to know, then you won't be terribly shocked and horrified when you experience how not prudent labor can be." she said with a light laugh, sitting across from Vai. "Unless this isn't your first?" If it wasn't her first then she definitely didn't need that warning. Phoebe pulled out a little notebook and quill and ink from a drawer in the side table. Like a good little midwife she kept notes on all her patients, especially early on like this.
Four months ago, so she was realistically probably closer to five months along. "Based on your gait and general timing of first signs probably nearer five then." she said with a smile. "How have you been feeling? Any morning sickness, trouble sleeping, back pain?" Phoebe was in information collecting mode. The more she knew about how things were now, the better she could do her job keeping Vai and baby comfortable and healthy throughout the rest of her pregnancy.
Vai laughed as well, but it was precisely because of Phoebe's question - she did indeed know that childbirth was anything but prudent. And in fairness, too, the huntress was a lot more prepared and relaxed about it this time. Age and experience were wonderful things. "No, this is my second," she confirmed with an easy nod. "Though the first is about your age by now!" Certain that would shock but feeling more than comfortable in the midwife's presence, she shrugged her shoulders.
"If it helps, the first was a straightforward birth. No complications as far as I was aware. And I did have morning sickness, but it has eased off now. No trouble sleeping yet, but my back certainly knows that something is different." She smirked. Five months, then? This suddenly got a lot more real.
Phoebe pressed her hands to her cheeks in surprise. ”Really?” she said. ”You don’t look old enough to have a child my age!” she said with a light laugh. Vai was unmistakably an adult female, but she didn’t look like a particularly old one. Maybe if she had her right at around sixteen she supposed it was plausible. Regardless, at least she had some frame of reference. She wouldn’t be a panicky new mother. ”Well, with that time lapse I am afraid you won’t get the physical benefit of this being your second, but at least you are more mentally prepared!” she said with a wide smile.
As Vai delved into what she knew and remembered, Phoebe took quick notes with a practiced hand, smiling all the while. ”That is all very helpful.” she said with a smile. Then she got up to collect a few things, still speaking as she did so. ”Is the father here with you or are you on your own? Either way I can show you some stretches to help your back, and if you bring him or someone else here for your next visit I can show them some massages to help too.” she said. Unlike some midwives who insisted child carrying was women’s work only, Phoebe figured if a man could get a woman pregnant that he could help her through it too. To a point of course. No daddies in the delivery room if she could help it.
From her cabinets she began collecting various teas and tonics. ”I’m going to send you with some teas for any nausea, just in case that starts up again. There are also some tonics you’ll want to take, once a day, just to keep you both healthy.” Phoebe said, going through the list of everything in detail so that Vai knew, as well as writing down what everything was.
Vai laughed at the obvious surprise that bloomed across Phoebe's face, and she nodded gentle confirmation. "Mm, I had just gotten married to my first husband. We proved a particularly fertile couple, apparenty." She shrugged her shoulders. "Though you're quite right - I remember barely anything from that birth. This will be all new again to me. But as you said, I'm at least more mentally prepared."
She snorted as Phoebe asked her questions about the father, unable to help herself. "Oh yes, he's around. Though I'm not sure you'd trust him with a massage. He can be quite clumsy and heavyhanded. Though I've known him to have his gentle moments, so perhaps it won't be all bad. The stretches, though, would be quite useful."
Watching curiously as she moved around and collected her herbs and teas and other potions, Vai nodded once more. "Thank you - I'll be sure to take the tonics as prescribed, and hopefully the nausea stays away. What would you like in exchange?"
"Apparently!" she said with a laugh. It did happen she knew, some couples were just blessed with child after child. Then there were others that struggled to conceive even one. It didn't seem to have a specific rhyme or reason, but there was only so much anyone could every really know about how that worked.
Frey or Safrin would probably have a much clearer idea. Perhaps she would ask them sometime.
"Well if you are concerned he won't be gentle enough I can give you massages as part of your treatment every so often." Phoebe said with a smile. She would be checking up on her regularly anyways, it wasn't like it was something that was out of the way. "I am assuming he is more the rough and tumble type? My brother was like that until he had his daughter." she said with a grin. After Ara had been born, Brahm had become quite the gentle giant unless provoked. But Phoebe would still carefully walk Vai through the process of stretching out her lower back on her own, showing her how to use tabletops and walls as a brace to push or pull against. "If it is even particularly bad, you can stack up pillows in a circle and put your tummy in the middle. You'll look and feel a little ridiculous but the relief will be well worth it!"
Phoebe put the list and all the prepared remedies in a little bag for Vai. "Anything with which I can trade or things I can use like foodstuffs would be preferred, but I am willing to work with whatever you've available." she said with a smile. She wasn't sure what Vai's personal working situation was - mostly she wasn't sure what someone who owned a tavern and ran an infirmary had for payment - but if her child's father was still in the picture he might have other means of providing for her that could be used.
"Oh?" Vai tilted her head at Phoebe's offer, though she seemed more than grateful for her help. "Rough and tumble is one word for it. He's a bear Attuned, and a farmer. He's used to keeping his hands busy, and while he can be gentle it's safe to say that he's more used to hammering nails than giving massages." She grinned, though the warmth in her tone told that she didn't begrudge her husband a single bit of it.
Listening intently to all the information Phoebe had to give, Vai smirked and nodded at her idea for the pillows - ridiculous indeed! "I remember the latter parts of pregnancy well - no matter how ridiculous I look, I'll be willing to try it. My only concern is that I'll not be able to get back up!" Laughing, the huntress sat back and considered what she could give to trade, humming out a soft breath.
"I've been growing herbs for the infirmary - perhaps I can bring some along for you? I live in the Woodlands, and there's always plenty to forage as well. I can bring some snow moss, too. It works very well on a fever."
Phoebe nodded and smiled, affirming her offer. "I've had enough patients who don't have someone to help them, or whose husbands are...not the brightest paint on the palette to say the least...or simply aren't willing to help." she said and shrugged, not wanting to get into the nitty gritty of that. Nor did she think she needed to. Vai was smart and obviously experienced, she likely knew exactly the sort of man that wouldn't be willing to help out the mother of his child. "Part of my job is to make sure this experience is as comfortable as possible. And if that means rolling up my sleeves and rubbing peppermint, eucalyptus, and sandalwood oil into your back and legs so you can move around pain free as your baby belly grows, then I am happy to do it." she said brightly. She wasn't the sort of midwife that waved off discomfort as unavoidable or a sign of weakness. Where it could be fixed, she didn't see any reason why it shouldn't be.
She grinned as Vai described her...well she assumed husband. "My brother was a bull attuned. Started as a stone mason then joined the Northwind army. Big brawny sort. But I suppose he had the benefit of three younger sisters and then his daughter to teach him how to lighten up sometimes." she said with a laugh. And oh boy if Brahm even hurt her or her sisters, even on accident - you bet he was in big trouble with their pa. "Well maybe make sure to do that technique when your brawny fellow is around so he can pick you up." she said with a light laugh. No need to get stranded on a pillow mountain if someone capable could right her.
"That sounds perfect. Medicinal herbs or supplies would always be welcomed." she said brightly. And it would mean she didn't have to trek out into the woods all the time to go foraging if Vai was already out and about that area to get them anyways.
"You're a breath of fresh air, Phoebe," Vervain said honestly, flashing her a grin and nodding. "Have you considered taking on an apprentice one of these days? The more midwives you can get on board who think the way you do, the better." And it would do untold good for the settlement, of that she had no doubt. Whilst it had been a literal lifetime ago, Vai did remember some of the midwives she'd dealt with. Some were homely but useless, others sour but got the job done. Phoebe was something else.
Nodding in agreement, she rested her hand gently on her bump. "I'll certainly do that. Hopefully he'll be able to stop laughing for two seconds to actually help," she joked. "And that's great - I'll be sure to bring some herbs along for you as soon as I can, and anything else that might be of use. Is there anything else you need from me today? Or shall we make another appointment?"
”Oh! Well thank you!” Phoebe said with a smile, appreciating the unanticipated compliment. The question of if she ever considered taking an apprentice obviously hadn’t crossed her mind though. She paused, blinking slowly as she considered the possibility. ”I hadn’t considered, but I certainly wouldn’t be opposed. I am not sure there is anyone who is really interested, but if you hear of or know anyone I’d be happy to consider it.” she said with a small smile.
The blonde shook her head when asked if she needed anything else. ”I think you should be set for now. Let’s have you come by every few weeks, just to keep an eye on progress and get you more medicines. Of course, should any concerns arise between know and then, don’t hesitate to send for me, day or night.” she said with a smile.
"I'll certainly keep my ears open for anyone who seems interested. I might be more likely to run into someone at the infirmary than the Rathskeller, too. Still, when I am down in the tavern, I'll still look out for you." She smiled gently to the young midwife. Her techniques ought to be fostered or at the very least written down - perhaps it was worth mentioning to Jigano about it, and they could work with Phoebe as Loreseekers to get the information somewhere safe and stored.
As Phoebe confirmed that she needed nothing further from today's meeting, Vai rose to her feet with the supplies the other woman had gathered up for her, nodding in confirmation. "I'll make sure to get an appointment with you in a few weeks, then," she said. "And hopefully I won't need you in the meantime, but it's nice to know that you're there. Maybe I'll catch you at the infirmary, too."
