Oriana led the way, her eyes fixed on the warm glow of the inn’s lanterns in front of them. The sign creaked in the gentle breeze, reading, Merry Mug Inn. The voices of the people inside echoed outside.
Pushing open the door, the trio stepped inside, welcomed by the warm, cozy atmosphere. The room fell silent as all eyes turned to the newcomers, but after a brief, uninterested glance, the patrons collectively shrugged and returned to their lively chatter.
"Don’t look anyone in the eyes," Oriana whispered to Freya before they walked straight to the counter.
The innkeeper, a stubby man with a quick smile, greeted them. "Welcome, travelers! Room for three?"
Oriana nodded, handing over the pouch the kind noblewoman had given them. "Yes, please. We need a place to rest for the night." When she said this her stomach rumbled, reminding her that she haven’t had a proper meal in the past few days.
"And food. . ." She completed.
The owner of the inn quickly took the pouch, looking at the contents. A small grin graced his lips,
"Follow me, food will be served down here after you’re done settling in your rooms."
Oriana turned to look at the other guests in the inn, she didn’t know who might recognize her and so it was better to avoid crowded places like this one.
"Can we not eat here? Maybe the food can come to our room."
"I don’t allow patrons to eat in their rooms, all food must be served here." The inn owner replied, fishing out keys from his pocket as he got to the passageway that led to the rooms.
He opened the first door, moving to the side as he waited for the first person to enter.
"You can go in," Oriana said to the physician, "Let us meet outside after you’ve settled in."
The man nodded before walking inside his room, Oriana and Freya followed the inn owner behind until they got to the last room.
"One person can use this room, while I clear up another room for the other person." The man’s voice was sweet, giving his guests a friendly smile.
Freya shook her head, "It’s fine, we both can use this room." The girl who had no intention of being separated from Oriana again suggested.
"B-but you paid for three rooms." The inn owner replied, looking at the two young women suspiciously.
Oriana nodded, "Um. . .you can keep the rest, mm. . .just make sure to tell us if anyone comes around asking suspicious questions. And also let us have our meal inside the room, we’ll come get it."
"Thank you so much! I will bring to your table every news you’d need. Also you will even hear the first hand gossip if you eat at the table, but that’s fine I’ll let you eat in your room just for today." the man replied with a bright smile, acting even more friendlier after the money was given to him.
Freya pushed the door open, taking the key from the man. When they entered the room, Oriana locked the door properly making sure it was secured. Then she looked around the room, there was only one wooden window which was locked at the moment.
"I am going to ready a bath for you quickly," Freya suggested walking inside the bathroom.
Oriana nodded, giving the girl a small smile. "Thank you," she muttered letting out a tired sigh. She couldn’t remember the last time she had a relaxing bath, where she didn’t have to worry about anything. Knowing how tough her situation was, and how so many lives was on the line because of her Oriana knew better than to relax.
She made her way to the window, trying to push it open but it wouldn’t budge, she looked around the room for something strong to open the window with. When she finally found woods near the fire place, she grabbed a log and walked back to the window pushing it with so much force .
When she tried to push the window again, a dull ache similar to the one she felt earlier back at the forest settled in Oriana’s abdomen, a subtle reminder of her exhaustion and the tiny life growing within her. She took a deep breath, trying to shake off the discomfort.
"Are you okay?" Freya who had finished drawing the bath, walked back inside the room just in time to see Oriana wince.
Trying to be strong, Oriana nodded with a dry smile. "I’m fine, I just wanted to make sure the window is open. We have to be prepared for anything."
"You should have told me. . ." Freya ran to Oriana, taking the log away from her. "The man said you needed rest, and you know why. Sit here let me do it for you,"
Freya tightened her grip around the log, though it was heavy but she used all her might to hit it on the window. It didn’t work the first time but on the second hit, the wooden casement creaked open unleashing a torrent of icy winds that gushed inside the room making the flames in the fire place burn brighter.
"I guess this was why it was locked," Oriana exhaled, looking at the door then back at the window. "We need to leave it open,"
Freya nodded, but the next attack of harsh wind that gushed in caused her to shiver.
"We can sleep close to the fireplace, just for tonight. Okay?" Oriana asked and the girl nodded slightly. Then she stood up, "I’ll go and bath now,"
Entering inside the the bathroom, Oriana’s hands tiredly pushed down her dress. As they pooled on her feet, she moved to the side now standing with no clothes on, Oriana looked down at her form. That was when she noticed how her body had changed without her even realizing.
Her breasts were now fuller, her nipples looking darker. Her stomach had the most significant change; it was no longer as flat as it used to be and straight from her upper stomach was a black line that traced down to her lower belly, as if dividing it into two halves.
Oriana touched her back gently, feeling a soreness she was slowly getting used to before she entered the bathtub that was filled with warm water. Not taking much time in the bath, she washed her face and quickly dried her body changing into a dress that Freya had brought along.
The dress was very causal and wouldn’t bring any attention to Oriana. Tying her hair with a scarf before leaving the bathroom. Oriana found Freya curled on the bed, the girl was now sleeping soundly.
Not wishing to disturb the young girl who must have been stressed all day, Oriana quietly exited the room. Going to get their meal from the counter.
"Ah I see you’re here for your meal. I’ve already served the warm stew and bread. Do you need wine?" The innkeeper asked, raising the plate with their food on it.
Oriana shook her head, "Water is fine." She replied, feeling nauseated at the mere mention of wine. The pungent aroma of ale that filled the room did little to help her condition.
"Sure, water. Let me get it." The innkeeper said, turning to get the water.
Oriana stood there waiting, with her gaze on the ground trying to avoid people’s eyes. When she heard the conversation of two men sitting close to her.
"I heard someone very important is missing from the palace," one of the men reported, raising his heavy cup to his mouth for a quick gulp. "And there’s a big reward for anyone who finds her."
Oriana’s hand tightened on the plate when she heard this. She turned her face to the other side, hoping the men wouldn’t notice her.
"Reward? Do tell, what is this big reward? If it’s so huge, I’ll raid the entire Avon until I find this person," another man added, causing others to laugh at his joke.
"I heard seventy gold crowns and a spot in the royal court."
"What?" the men shouted, even those not at the table joining in, now interested in the prize.
The man who had started the conversation nodded. "Yes, I heard it’s a young woman... I don’t know what she did, but everyone is looking for her. She has golden hair, from what I hear."
Oriana’s hand flew to her hair, pulling down her scarf. She quickly grabbed the plate, ready to leave, when the innkeeper returned with water.
"Don’t forget your water," the man said, handing it over to her.
Oriana bowed slightly, taking the water and hastily making her way back to the room. Before she could reach the door, the physician ran up to her.
"Aren’t you going to eat here?" he asked.
Oriana shook her head. "No, we’ll eat in the room. Also, we’ll leave tomorrow before dawn. It seems news of my escape has already spread, and there’s a re-" Oriana stopped talking.
"It seems you’ve already heard of it."
The physician cleared his throat, smiling nervously. "Ah, that... yes, I overheard them speaking earlier," he replied, not meeting Oriana’s eyes.
Oriana nodded. "I see," she said shortly.
"About leaving tomorrow before dawn, I think it’s too early. You know you need to rest for the sake of your child." He said pointing at Oriana’s stomach.
Oriana looked down at her stomach, giving the man a small smile. "My child is fine. You too, get some rest." Without waiting for the man to reply, she turned and walked back to her room.
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