"How are you feeling now?"
"A lot better, but the pain has still not subsided completely."
Neera sat beside Davina, who was resting on a fallen log while warming her cramped legs next to the campfire.
After quickly leaving Vinoa, they changed their route back to the mountainous region bordering with the Ronna territory. On their way, they heard of a large expedition in search of the two fugitives from the Duke's castle arriving mere days following their departure.
The knights searched through the city after hearing of an encounter with a Ronna warrior and a child wearing robes on the road towards Vinoa. The search was futile, even when they tried sifting trough all the Ronna slaves around the city, none of them matched the description of the healthy, tall woman with a small girl by her side.
Some claimed to have seen them pass, but all leads ended up being dead ends, forcing the troops to increase their efforts in the area, relaxing the intensity of their manpower in other places.
This left both of them a clearer path, although they still had to be careful since they continued meeting mounted guards on their way. They maintained their method of avoiding main roads, opting for the forests and smaller towns in the region.
"Are you sure you can trust that man?", Davina had asked Neera one day as they walked.
"Trust? I do not trust him. I just have knowledge that could put his life in danger and he's aware of it. That is enough."
Neera was right. All it took was just one missive towards the Count for their relationship to crumble, likely resulting in Ron's demise. The man might have had a chance if he had told his boss about Neera's proposal form the beginning, but the more the time passed, the worse the situation got for him.
Davina found herself once more thinking how it was good she was on the girl's side.
'Sometimes I forget she's only eleven.'
She wondered when was the child's birthday, but she didn't ask, since she understood by now Neera must not know it herself either.
They continued travelling just as they had done before, training when they had time to prepare for what would come in the future, until Davina stopped in her tracks one day as she was delivering a swift kick that swept Neera off her feet.
From the floor, the girl asked if she was alright, but Davina's pained face made her stand up immediately, ignoring her own discomfort.
"What happened?"
"I don't know, my leg just won't move."
"Are you in pain?"
"Yes."
They both looked at each other without saying anything. It was starting.
Davina had been lucky with the symptoms in her first trimester, barely feeling any discomfort from a mild nausea in the mornings which quickly went away. Now, her stomach was protruding slightly outwards beneath her robes, and she noticed how its weight made her movement a bit slower.
Pain in her hips and cramps on her legs began sprouting every other day while they traveled. Sometimes, her chest felt sore and nausea overcame her.
Davina was no stranger to pregnancy, she had seen many women go through it back at her home, even helping in some of the births when more hands were needed, so she knew she had been lucky so far with how unnoticeable her symptoms had been so far.
They were expecting her body to change as time passed, but they hoped they would have a bit more time before it limited her so much. There still was a long way to go before reaching their destination, and Neera was no way near being ready for what she needed to do in the proceeding months. But life waits for nobody.
Thankfully, the seasons began changing, with nature waking from its slow slumber like a behemoth yawning after opening its eyes. Flowers resisted the grip of the dying winter, stubbornly rising their buds to the mild sun in defiance, brining with them a sweet breeze that tickled the branches.
The forests around them shed their muted colors, revealing vibrant greens in the growing leaves atop the trees. More animals were seen roaming around, with younglings popping up incessantly in the season of rebirth. This made hunting certainly more easy, and even Neera was able to get a few scores with a cheap practice bow they had bought for her. Their clothes became lighter and the budding greenery hid their silhouettes from sight which had been previously exposed among the barren trees.
Davina wondered whether her body was reacting to spring.
During winter they had to hunker down, trying to make themselves invisible to pull through. Maybe the child inside her was doing so too, making itself unnoticeable to survive the harsh environment. But now, when life took revenge on the snow and rain, the child seemed to be screaming: 'There's life here as well!'
The Ronna felt the baby she had been trying to forget refused to remain ignored, the pregnancy she didn't want to acknowledge becoming the main element of her life, as if the baby was rebelling against its mother for her refusal to accept its existence.
She now came to terms with the fact that she would become a parent, whether she wanted to or not, making her chest tighten at the uncertainty that came with that fact.
Whenever these thoughts overcame her, Davina squeezed her eyes shut and focused on regaining control over her breathing.
´Life flows like an ebbing river. No matter how many stones you place to stop it, life always finds a way to filter through the cracks and continue its course.'
The phrases she had heard her mother say when she was younger repeated in her mind over and over like a mantra, their premise being quite simple. Life is too big of a phenomenon for us to be able to go against it, so there was no use in worrying about what would inevitably come.
Among all the ailments that haunted Davina, the one that affected her the most were the leg cramps, greatly reducing her mobility and their traveled distance every day. They had to wait, as they were doing right now, for the pain to subside before continuing.
Davina looked at the girl who's face light up in gold from the light in the campfire.
"How do you think they are doing right now?"
"Who?"
"The workers?"
"Ron is quite a competent man. He's intelligent enough to know it's in his best interest to abide by the terms of that contract."
Davina fell silent as she turned the rabbit meat toasting over the fire. In the end, she decided it was best to ask what had been plaguing her mind ever since they had left the slave shop.
"Why did you choose those people?"
When Neera had told her they would go and purchase some slaves, she had warned her that there would be many of her brethren inside the cages. She couldn't help but wonder why didn't she take more of her people out of there, choosing instead men and women from other races.
Neera looked at her for a couple seconds, noticing the bit of resentment the Ronna held for her in her eyes.
"Not only your people have been treated unfairly. I left behind those that were too far gone to save and those that seemed like they would last a bit longer in there."
Davina remembered how the girl had discarded all those who met her eyes when she spoke to them. She had been wondering whether Neera was looking for the most submissive people for her business since they would take orders well, but she was actually thinking about this?
"I do not believe in slavery."
The girl's words pulled her gaze away from the sparks dancing over the fire.
"People should not be treated as possessions."
Davina looked at the countless scars on the girl's clenched fists.
Ah, right. How could she forget that?
This girl knew first hand what it was like to be treated as an object, used for another's entertainment. She felt ashamed at her previous speculations. The girl tried to take those that looked like they needed to get out of there the most, regardless of race and gender. She had tried to save the ones that seemed like they would perish sooner.
"I wish I could have taken them all, but we had a limited amount of money. Once the business is up and running I plan on buying more."
The fury and shame in her eyes shone like the dancing fire reflected in her irises. The memories she had left behind resurfaced once more.
"I understand your discomfort at your people being left behind, but they are sturdier than most, and therefore have a better chance."
Davina nodded, finally understanding why. Had this girl thought of all of that while in there? All while she was too shocked to form even one coherent thought?
The woman remembered how that night, after leaving the slaves in the warehouse, the child had discarded her pristine clothes as if they burned her skin. Her scarred limbs came into view while she rubbed her arms in shameful anger. Neera sometimes had nightmares that woke her in the middle of the night with tears falling down her face, but that day she had cried herself to sleep, curling up her body to become as small as it could, almost as if she wanted to disappear.
Davina thought she was just as perturbed as she was at the time, but now, looking at Neera's face, she understood the girl had been drowning in self doubt.
Should she have just discarded the idea of the fleet and bought them all? Was she a bad person for setting up the business instead of purchasing their freedom? Would they resent her for it? Would they even be alive to do so?
Neera felt angry at herself. Angry at not having more money. Angry at not having bought more. Angry at wanting to feel joyful for finally having the means to support herself in the future.
She should feel ashamed.
With her face contorted in anger, Neera was unable to hold in the tears that streamed down her dirty cheeks. She refused to make a sound, standing still like a statue, with her eyes firmly set on the burning fire while the drops from her eyes moistened the ground at her feet after dangling from her chin.
Before she could continue berating herself, a warm embrace wrapped itself around her. Tan arms held her trembling torso while gentle fingers wiped her face.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have blamed you. I sometimes forget you are so young because your eyes are old. You did nothing wrong. Those people will have a better life now that you helped them, you have nothing to be ashamed of. No child should ever have to make such a heavy decision. I'm truly sorry for not helping you and make you do it all yourself."
"I-"
Neera wanted to speak, but a painful sob stopped her midway. The warmth around her tightened.
"I know, don't worry. You did your best. You always have. You couldn't help them all, that's just impossible."
They stayed like that for what seemed like hours, with Davina softly rocking the girl in her arms, feeling the dampness on her skin and listening to her heaving sobs.