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Chapter 355
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Leesa's Advent Chapter 356
Three days later, Leesa and Rave found a new practice spot only a few miles from home. Having moved away from the territory occupied by the fell power, they no longer needed to travel far to find places for Leesa to work on her magic. They still visited some of their favorite old spots, especially those on this side of the river, but they had also started looking for new locations, farther to the west.As usual, they had gone deep into a large wooded area. The trees were barren of leaves, but Rave had carried Leesa far enough from any trails that they weren’t worried about being seen. Rave’s volkaane eyes and ears assured them they would know about any wandering hikers long before the intruders could get close enough to witness something that might be difficult to explain.This new spot was north and west of their new home, halfway up a gently sloping hill that rose from the far side of a large reservoir about halfway between Middletown and Meriden. Peering through the leafless trees,
Leesa's Advent Chapter 357
That, Leesa dreamed again.A familiar darkness enveloped her, a deep, murky purple so rich and dark as to be almost black. Testing the darkness, she held her hand in front of her face. As before, she could see it clearly, but as soon as she extended her arm, her hand nearly disappeared into the void. She squinted, trying to see beyond her outstretched arm. The same familiar, very faint white ovals appeared at the outer limits of her vision. How far away or how near they floated was impossible to determine—they might be just a few yards distant, or they might be a hundred times that. She simply had no way to tell, no scale for distance. Whenever she tried to focus on one for a better look, it became lost to her sight, so she gave up trying. Instead, she listened as hard as she could.Once again, this terrible, chill place was completely and utterly silent, so deathly quiet she thought she could hear her own heartbeat. She still had no me
Leesa's Advent Chapter 358
Leesa could feel Rave’s eyes on her as she dug into a heaping plate of frozen blueberry waffles she had heated up in the microwave. A big dollop of creamy butter and a healthy serving of maple syrup atop the waffles made for the kind of delicious breakfast she had been unable to enjoy in their previous home. Having electricity and a few appliances were nice features of their new cottage.She loved how Rave still enjoyed looking at her after more than a year together, and she liked the protective aspect she often felt in his gaze as well. She sensed there were more than those two things in his look this morning, however. Guessing he might still be worried about last night’s dream, she decided to try to lighten the mood. She looked up at him from her plate and flashed him a big smile.“What? Are you worried your wife is going to get fat, eating all this yummy food? I’m dining for two now, you have to remember. And one is half-volkaane and growing
Leesa's Advent Chapter 359
Solstice morning dawned clear and cold. As soon as Leesa woke up, she kissed Rave on the mouth and then padded into the living room and over to the large picture window. Pulling aside the curtains, she gazed outside. She knew she was being foolish, but she half-expected to see some kind of sign in the sky heralding the arrival of the solstice. Much to her disappointment, the pale blue early morning sky looked like it always did. The lawn out front, however, did not.The biting cold had brought a layer of frost with it, and the tiny ice crystals coating the dormant brown grass glistened in the slanting sunlight like thousands of tiny, sparkling jewels. Leesa had seldom seen anything so beautiful. She wished there was a spell in her magic book she could use to prevent the frost from melting as the sun rose higher. If there was, she would have used it immediately to preserve the beauty.Rave came up beside her and slipped his hand up under the back of the T-shirt she had
Leesa's Advent Chapter 360
By the time Leesa and Rave headed outside, the sun had melted the frost from the lawn, returning the yard to its barren, light brown color. The air remained bitingly cold, though, carried against the exposed skin of Leesa’s face and hands by a stiff northerly breeze. Instead of using a warming spell to ward off the chill, she simply hopped up into Rave’s arms. No warming spell was needed when he cradled her against his chest like this—and it was much more fun, besides. Leesa had considered skipping magic practice today because of the unpredictable effects of the solstice, but she hated to miss even one day of working to improve her skills. In the end she had decided to go ahead with her practice, but not to try anything too new or too dangerous, and to pay careful attention to any sudden changes in the way she felt. She was determined to be doubly attentive to the baby in her womb, though she had to admit she was intrigued to see if their son might conjure up anything as spe
Leesa's Advent Chapter 361
Leesa awoke to broad daylight. She was stunned—how could she have slept in so late on Christmas morning, of all days? Rave was sitting on the edge of their sleeping mat, watching her. A hint of annoyance at him for not awakening her earlier flashed through her, but the smile on his face and the loving look in his eyes chased it away. “Good morning, darling,” he said. “How are you feeling?” “I feel great.” Leesa stretched her arms up into the air above her head and yawned. “But how could you let me sleep so late?” Rave’s smile widened. “I didn’t really have much choice.” “What do you mean you didn’t have much choice?” Leesa started to roll onto her side so that she was facing Rave, but she got stuck halfway there. For a moment she didn’t understand what had happened, but then she looked down at her stomach. She couldn’t believe what her eyes were telling her. Her belly was plump and swollen now, big enough to make rolling over difficult. She wa
Leesa's Advent Chapter 362
Leesa met Ralin for real on a sunny afternoon in mid-April, almost six months exactly from her wedding day.Knowing the baby could arrive any day, she and Rave spent their time at home in the company of Balin and Kaila, a volkaane mid-wife almost as old as Balin who had delivered scores of volkaane babies over the centuries. Kaila looked enough like Balin to be his sister, with the same gray hair streaked with dull copper highlights and a similar lanky build. Since no one knew precisely what to expect from the magical human/volkaane hybrid child, they thought it best to be prepared for anything. Balin and Kaila did not mind sleeping on mats spread out on the floor of the living room, when they slept at all. If Rave’s nocturnal habits were any indication, Leesa suspected that most evenings the three volkaanes probably spent a significant portion of the night watching her sleep. She felt self-conscious at the thought, but there was also comfort in knowing they were there
Leesa's Advent Chapter 363
“What's wrong?” Kaila asked. Her voice was calm and matter of fact, disguising any anxiety she might be feeling inside.“It’s my shield,” Leesa replied. “It’s preventing Ralin from going where he needs to go.”“What do you mean?” Balin asked. “Preventing him how?”Leesa drew another deep breath. “It’s wrapped around him, keeping his magic inside, but it’s also keeping him where he is. I’m not sure I can explain it, but I don’t know how to adjust the shield so that it will slip out of me with him.”Rave’s fingers stopped moving on the sides of her head. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” he asked, his voice heavy with concern.Leesa nodded. “Yeah. As long as I keep the shield in place, Ralin’s not going anywhere. I have to remove it.”“But you can still feel his heat, even throug
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