Books of Bayern Series Bundle by Shannon Hale

Author:Shannon Hale
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2017-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

Fahil thought they should rest a few more days after the ordeal on the hilltop, but Enna insisted they leave the next morning.

“If I don’t get my best friend home soon, she’ll pop,” said Enna. “Translate that, Isi.”

Isi had some gold coins in her saddlebag that they traded to Fahil for supplies. After Isi talked with Fahil about the possibilities of renewing trading between the two lands and much thanking in two languages, the Bayern set on the road for home.

The change in the two girls was immediate, though it seemed even to improve day by day. Enna felt freed from the prison of heat that had been building around her since the first word of fire, and the voice of the wind did not press in. Both were there, but holding each other back, just out of reach. Relief at last from the fever was almost unbearably wonderful, but even better was seeing Isi look around at the world with a forgotten smile on her lips, her face peaceful, at last at rest from the voice of the wind.

Though it was on Enna’s mind, they did not speak aloud about how what happened on that hilltop might affect a baby. Enna was relieved to detect a healthy amount of heat from Isi’s middle, and Isi said the creature still did flip-flops as much as ever, so they hoped.

There was much time for such thoughts, as the road home was slow. For Isi’s sake, they never dared push their horses past a walk. Avlado was good at walking smoothly and slowly for his pregnant rider.

They followed the same path home, keeping to the stream Isi called the Small Suneast for as long as possible. Enna despised the taste of its water and named it the Horse-spittle. Finn always called it Enna’s Stream. He tended to refer to most anything as belonging to her—Enna’s Meadow, Enna’s Mountain. When he referred to Yasid as Enna’s Kingdom, she said, “Isn’t that your heart?”

Finn smiled and kissed her hand. Isi rolled her eyes.

“Oh, you two are impossible.”

Enna laughed. “This coming from the girl who calls her husband ‘sweet little bunny boy’?”

Isi blushed. “That was just once.”

Isi could not hide her longing for Geric. She observed Finn’s affection for Enna, and it seemed to make her both happy and sad. Enna returned once from washing in the stream to find Isi holding her belly, laughing and crying at once and not sure why she was doing either.

Isi’s belly doubled in size before they crossed the Bayern border, and so, seemingly, did her aches and complaints. Near the end, they rode half days and then let Isi rest and eat. She alternated between nausea and ravenous hunger.

“How’s your back? How’s your belly? Are you well?” Enna asked continually.

“Hush up for five minutes, will you?” Isi got grumpier and grumpier and insisted on taking more than her fair share of turns lighting their cookfires as her ability with fire improved. Finn seemed to find Enna’s overattentiveness and Isi’s mood changes completely delightful.

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