[Flashback] Unwanted Child [Solo]

[Ahilya]

87th Day of Summer, 511 AV Stormhold Citadel in Syliras Flashback - 10 Chimes after the 18th Bell - Fedrick paced back and forth out in the hot, well lit hallway in front of his apartment in the Stormhold Citadel. Through the cracked door he could hear his wife, Salla breathing heavily as she counted down the time between contractions. He could tell by her screams when one hit that their child was nearly ready to be born. {Where is the midwife? She should have been here by now...} He thought as he stopped his pacing to look at the door. Salla had kicked him out of their little home as soon as the contractions had started, sending him to fetch a midwife. He had promised to pay a child he saw in the street a miza or two if he would run to fetch a midwife for him as he was honestly scared to leave his wife alone in the pain she was in. Another sharp scream from inside had him pacing again. He was torn now about what to do. He knew the child was close and knew now wouldn't be a good time to leave Salla alone, but what if the kid hadn't done as he'd asked? What if there wasn't anyone coming? "FRED!!" The sound of his name being screamed through the cracked door stopped his thoughts as he quickly shoved through the door, leaving it ajar as he rushed to his wife's side. Sweat coated her body, making the thin cotton dress she wore stick to the swell of her body. Her hair was matted against her face and her face was flushed with the stress of the labor. "Where is she?!" She hissed out through clenched teeth while waiting for the next contraction to hit. Fredrick just shook his head as he looked down at his wife. "She's coming, don't worry." He said in a low voice trying to calm her. He prided himself on being a brave man, able to face a lot of bad stuff thrown his way, but this... His wife in pain and angry, he didn't know how to handle and it made him very uncomfortable. "Aggh! You try not worrying when your lower half is...." Her sentence gets cut short as her back arches and she hisses in pain as another contraction hits. This one seemed to last the longest before her body slumped back down again, her breath coming out fast and ragid as she shook her head, her hand outstretched reaching for him. "She's not coming... Come here..." She said between deep breaths of air. "I can feel his head... I need you to pull him out." She said, voice sharp and demanding not giving him an option to back out of the task she had just given him. Moving down between his wife's legs like she wanted to, he cringed at the sight he saw. He'd heard the child birth was not a pretty thing, but he had no idea how not pretty it was. She was right though, she was stretched wide as the head of their child was starting to come out. "Ok... Uh..." He said, nervous about touching her and stalling. Salla let out another scream and gripped the side of the bed tightly. "Grab his head and pull! Now!" She screamed as she started pushing, not giving him time yet again to complain. His fingers pressed against the head of the child and pulled as she pushed and he watched, rather grossed out, as their child came out inch by inch until its head was free. Salla slumped back against the bed, eyes locked up on the ceiling. The hardest part was done, he didn't know how he knew that, but he guessed so. After a brief moment of rest, Salla was up again and after a quick nod of her head was pushing again as he pulled gently on the little body until their child slipped free of his wife's body. Cutting the cord that connected the moist little bundle from its mother, Fredrick moved away from Salla as she lay exhausted on the bed. Something didn't feel right about the child now that he wasn't between his wife's legs. Wrapping the bundle in a linen cloth, he works the babe dry only to feel himself go still as he saw the little folded ears and the short tail tucked up under the child's legs. This wasn't a child. It was a cub. Not drying the kitten the rest of the way, he walks back to Salla and just looked down at her only to see the realization dawn on her face as she looked at their child. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* - 5 Chimes after the 19th Bell - Fedrick was out in the hallway again as he heard the voice of the child he had promised mizas too if he went and fetched a midwife for him. He could hear him talking excitedly to someone what he would do with the coin once he got it. Fredrick couldn't keep the scowl off his face as the boy came around a corner with a withered old woman. Her skin looked drained of any fluid left in her and there was hardly any hair left on the top of her head. This couldn't have been the only midwife the boy had found. Walking forward to meet them in the hallway, he holds up one of his hands to get them to stop. The boy looked up excitedly only to have his face drop at the look. "You're too late." He said, not elaborating on his wording as he looked between the two. The old woman smacked her toothless gums against each other as she leaned heavily against a thick wooden walking stick. "Too late, huh..." She said, her voice sounding as winded as she looked. "Where is the babe?" She asked then as she started to hobble forward again, aiming to move around him. "I don't hear anything going on in there, did you..." She was cut off as Fedrick stepped around to stand in front of her. "I said you're too late. The babe came still born and it has already been disposed of. Your services won't be needed." He was blunt and to the point as he gave a sharp nod of his chin back the way the pair had come from. He didn't have any intentions of paying either one, they hadn't done any work for him and he was willing to let the kid believe that his slowness had cost the child its life and in turn would think that was why he wasn't getting the mizas he was so eagerly looking forward to. The boy looked nervous and frankly a little scared. Fredrick figured the kid was thinking what he wanted to. The old woman however was looking past him, toward the door to their apartment. "What of the mother?" She asked, her eyes shifting slowly to look up at him as if she knew what he was doing. "Did she pass with the babe or did the gods grant you a mercy?" Fredrick's body tightened in anger. "We were granted a mercy that she lived. She is heart broken though and does not wish to see anyone. She appears to be just fine." He fights the urge to lean forward and get right in the old woman's face. "If we need medical aide, we will find her someone." He stood there for a moment longer, just looking at the two before turning and making his way back toward their unit only to close the door behind him. He could hear the boy talking now, even if it was in a hushed voice. He thought it was his fault the baby didn't make it, that he had taken to long. Hearing them turn and walk away, he listened as the sound of the kids voice got quieter and quieter until he couldn't hear it any longer. Looking over to Salla who was still sitting on the bed, he let out a small sigh as he pushed away from the door and made his way closer. The kitten was dried now and laying on a clean part of the sheets of the bed. He could clearly see the spots now. Nothing had to be said at the moment. He knew that Salla had the same views regarding Kelvic as he did, views that weren't that positive. Neither of them had known they even carried the right genetics for this to happen. They sat there for what felt like hours, just looking at the little bundle before it started to move then mewl out as it blindly sought its mother. "Its not a boy..." Salla said, seeming to sound disappointed in that. They hadn't planned the pregnancy, but had looked forward to having a boy to carry on Fredrick's name. Fredrick didn't respond and after a moment Salla got up off the bed and went to the chamber pot. "You shouldn't be moving just yet." He said as he watched her move, rather glad that she had a smaller frame back again. "I don't want to be close to it. Think of something to do with it while I clean up." She said as she took care of herself. Fredrick walked back to the bed and looked down at the mewling kitten. Even though he didn't have any liking for Kelvic, he couldn't help feel a little soft spot for the kitten. He just stood there thinking while Salla did her thing and when she finally came back, he looked up at her. "The KRI in Ravok?" He asked, shrugging his shoulders. Salla let her head tilt to the side a bit as she considered the option. "They go through a lot of their own there... We would get more out of her from the market." Fredrick looked back down at the blind kitten and a moment later he nodded his head. It was decided, once Salla got her strength back, they were going to Ravok. End Flashback (This was my first IC post and first flashback, I hope I did it alright.)