Miscarriage and Birth
The Strange & Unusual Universe of Silver Moon Unicorn
(Seems like humans aren’t much worse than the fairies and elves that have lived in this solar system for years. I know there are people who will argue with me on this point, but it all sounds the same to me. We’re all people, never mind if we are different species. —Silver Moon Unicorn)
It was the middle of the night. Mabel, a young elf, was sad sitting in her plain brown dress. Her hair was covered with a plain brown cloth. She no longer cared if she was pretty or beautiful. What did those things matter when she had just had a miscarriage? She wasn’t sure why it happened, but she knew her lord would be angry and possibly go take another wife from the village. She had hoped her sister would be spared. She wasn’t. Her sister was given to Lord Flame in the realm nearby. Mabel didn’t know how that marriage was going.
She couldn’t cry anymore and the bleeding was lessening. She still had much pain, in her heart and her womb. Then, suddenly, she had the urge to go for a walk in the woods which separated the village from Lord Flame’s realm. She couldn’t think straight. She felt dizzy, yet she stood up. With glazed eyes she walked out of her private bedroom and was soon outside. Nor did she stop when she reached the woods. Still in pain, she walked on until she found a treehouse. She climbed up the ladder and stepped inside.
A small fairy was holding a tiny baby. She had a hard time keeping her eyes open. “Thank you for coming, Lady Storm,” she whispered.
Lady Mabel Storm sat down in front of the fairy and baby on the floor and blinked her eyes. “What? Why am I here?”
“I asked you to come. I’m sorry, I had no intention of controlling you, but I am dying and I know you just lost your baby.”
Lady Mabel nodded her head. “My lord will be angry with me.” She lowered her head.
“I am dying and my child will need a mother. Will you take her?”
Mabel’s jaw dropped. “I’d love to raise a baby. My milk hasn’t even dried up yet. I could feed her…”
The fairy nodded. “I was hoping you’d agree. Your Lord isn’t very kind. The child has been hard for me to carry and then give birth to. I do hope she will turn out alright.” She handed the baby to Mabel.
Mabel smiled at the child who didn’t cry in her arms. “What should we name the baby?”
“Hmm, let’s see…how about—” The fairy fell over.
“Oh, dear! Is there anything I can do?”
The fairy raised her head. “I don’t have any strength left. There’s nothing you can do for me, but raise the child as your own.”
“I will. I will raise her as if she’s mine. Lord Storm won’t know the difference.”
“Indeed. She is his child, at least biologically.”
Mabel gasped. “I never want him near me again!”
“He may leave you alone now that you have a child.”
There was silence as the baby started to cry quietly. Both Mabel and the fairy looked into each other’s eyes and said together, “Her name shall be Anjilina.”
The fairy collapsed and stopped breathing. Both Mabel and Anjilina cried. Mabel held Anjilina and promised to take good care of her. She wasted no time in feeding the baby. Soon Anjilina and Mabel were quiet.
Anjilina went to sleep. Mabel bowed her head to the dead fairy and then stood up. She carefully climbed down the ladder holding the baby with one arm. Once she was down on the ground, she used both arms to carry Anjilina all the way home. Lady Storm’s eyes darted back and forth to see if anyone else was about. She saw no one as it was still dark. The village was sleeping and wouldn’t wake until dawn, a few hours from now. Lady Storm went back to her private bedroom and set the sleeping baby in a cradle. Anjilina didn’t wake up. Mabel put a blanket around her to keep her warm and then she laid down.
