"Freya who's at the door? Is it Banji again?" asked a red-haired man as he approached the door, carrying a baby on his back.
"Where did you get that baby? What's going on?" asked the man, confusion visible across his face as he watched the baby sleep quietly in Freya's arms.
"The gods have sent us another child Grenier. Come inside, I'll explain what happened," said the woman, walking into the house while looking at the child with both pity and care.
Freya explained to her husband what had happened at the door, silence filled their sitting room as Grenier tried to process what had just happened.
"If what you're saying is true then that means this is the child of a Dermitas. Freya, you can't be serious about this, you know what the guards will do to us if they found out we were caring for a Dermitas spawn," said Grenier finally, his face now showing signs of panic.
"We have to get rid of it quickly. Take Reyn, I'll deal with the Dermitas, we might still ha-" before Grenier could finish his sentence he noticed the dangerous look his wife was giving him and the way she was holding onto the baby tightly.
"Freya we can't keep it. What about Reyn? What about your daughter? Are you willing to put her life in danger just to care for a Dermit-"
"Stop calling the baby it. He's a living being as well, and what's all this about Dermitas? Are you really willing to throw away a baby without so much as giving it a chance? How can you judge a child off of the sins of his parents?" asked Freya, holding onto the baby even tighter.
"I understand your maternal instincts are still on full drive, you just gave birth to Reyn a few months ago, but think about this carefully. We can't k-"
"It's not just my maternal instincts Grenier. It's a living being. If we don't care for it who will? As someone who garnered the favor of the goddess of life, how could I just leave an infant to die? What would the goddess think of me?" asked Freya, determination audible in her voice as she tried to convince her husband.
"That same goddess shunned this baby and all his kind. It just doesn't make sen-", Grenier stopped midway when he realized he wouldn't be able to talk his wife out of this.
"Once its hair starts showing we have to get rid of it," said Grenier finally after he had been silent for nearly a minute.
"Grenie-"
"I won't hear it. You know we can't care for it once its hair starts showing. Everyone will know it's a Dermitas, and the city guards would be here before we even have the chance to pack."
"I'm not putting our child's life in danger just to care for someone that has been shunned by the gods," said Grenier before getting up from the table they were sitting around, taking the baby Reyn with him.
"Don't worry baby. I won't abandon you, everything will be okay," whispered Freya, caressing the baby as she said this.
"Grenier what shall we call him?" asked Freya loudly from the chair she was still sitting on.
"It doesn't need a name. Once it reaches the age of Benedictio we're taking it to the shelter." replied Grenier, a hint of anger audible in his voice.
"I'll name him after my grandfather, Arya." said Freya softly as she smiled at the sleeping baby.
***(2 weeks later)
"Grenier, isn't it odd how Arya never cries even when he's hungry?" asked Freya as she breastfed the crying Reyn.
"Maybe it knows that it should be grateful that we're even caring for it. We barely have enough money to care for ourselves," said Grenier as he held Arya in his arms with a look of disdain on his face. Holding the infant as far away from his body as possible.
Their living conditions weren't the best. The clothes they wore had a few holes in them and had the color drained out of them due to age.
Their sitting-room table looked to be second or third hand, and the chairs they sat on was made of rotting wood that looked like it had been left in the rain often.
Their home was small, with a single kitchen, and a sitting room which doubled as a bedroom for all four of them.
"Grenier what did I say about calling Arya it," scolded Freya as she handed Reyn back to her father and took Arya from Grenier.
"There, there baby. That grumpy man is just scared, he doesn't mean any of what he's saying," whispered Freya as she breastfed Arya.
'The sooner he leaves, the sooner I can have a peaceful night's sleep,' thought Grenier as he looked at his wife with concern, the fear of his family one day being killed just because of a single infant didn't sit right with him.
***(1 month later)
As Freya was cleaning the sitting room she had tied Arya to her back while Reyn was with her father since Grenier wouldn't accept to hold Arya for longer than necessary.
This had been their living arrangement for the past month. Whenever Arya was awake, Freya would have to care for him, there were only a few occasions where Grenier was left alone with the child, and each time he had contemplated getting rid of it to save his family.
However his conscience wouldn't allow him, as a father he couldn't hurt a child. Even if it was a risk to his family.
"Freya look out, Arya's about t-" shouted Grenier as he ran to catch the falling Arya. The harness that Freya had used to tie Arya to her back had become loose, causing the baby to topple over once Freya bent over to pick up the trash.
"You have to be more car-" Grenier was about to say as he held Arya in his hands tenderly out of instinct.
"What? Why are you looking at me like tha-" Grenier realized what he had just done. He had ran to save the child he wanted gone without so much as a second thought, and held him in his hands as if he were his own.
Freya looked at her husband with pride in her eyes as she took Arya from his hands.
"I must have tied it loosely. Can you please do it for me dear," said Freya, turning around for Grenier to tie her harness more tightly.
'She hasn't called me dear ever since Reyn was born,' thought Grenier as he tied her harness.
Meanwhile, baby Reyn lay asleep on Grenier's back, unaware of what was going on around her.