To Heal A Lonely Heart

Advantages Of Elven Blood

Giggling, I held my stomach. Yes, I was hungry. The early morning had become noon, and my stomach was empty – thanks to the morning sickness.

"We should head inside. I'll make breakfast, or... lunch. And, uhm, you could use a bath, we both do," I laughed as I got up, reaching a hand out to pull Geralt up, knowing full well that I wasn't strong enough to do so – or would I ever be. He got up, accepting my hand afterwards, holding it as we made our way back to our house.

Back inside, I prepared a meal of freshly baked bread – well, I made it yesterday evening - , goat cheese and fruit from our garden, while my husband ridded of his armour. When I went to cut the bread, Geralt stopped me and took the knife from my hand.

"No," he said, pushing me back gently and taking my place, "I don't want you near that. So much could happen."

To be honest, my heart grew a few sizes. He was already so protective; what would it be like when I was bigger, or when the child was there? But, in all honesty, it was also annoying. The day before he left, we fought with swords and he was delivering hard blow after hard blow. It had been difficult to keep up. One wrong movement and things could have ended badly – but he'd never hurt me. And now, he wouldn't even let me get close to a small cutting knife.

But I only nodded and did as he asked, grabbing a pitcher and conjuring some cold water.

"Geralt?" I asked casually.

"Hmm?" he hummed in response, still cutting the bread.

"Did you know that Jaskier's name isn't really Jaskier?"

To my surprise – well, not really, I knew that secretly, deep down, Geralt did care about the bard – Geralt whipped around – not before dropping the knife next to the bread, of course – and looked at me, surprised, eyebrows raised, wanting me to continue. His face was answer enough and I laughed and continued.

"His name is Julian Alfred Pankratz. And guess what! He's a noble. The Viscount of Lettenhove."

"Well, explains a lot. He was always too confident to be a commoner. And his clothes, way too expensive," Geralt chuckled, nodding.

"He also studied," I added with a smirk. Now, this surprised him more. He took the bread and placed it on the platter on the table, sitting down, stunned.

"We're still talking about the same bard, are we?" he chuckled once he regained control over his face.

"Hmm... I don't know," I joked, "probably, unless a Doppler took his form and is now playing with us."

"I don't think any Doppler would be that stupid."

"To do what? To play with a witcher or to hurt our friend?" I teased. Geralt's expression, however, turned serious.

"Both," he deadpanned.

"So you care about him," I continued teasing him.

Geralt didn't say anything. He lowered his gaze to his plate. An answer enough. Yes, he cared, just like I had said.

We ate. I asked a lot about the monsters he had faced while he was gone. As usual, he didn't give many details, only if they were an easy opponent or how much coin he got for them. When we were done, I cleaned off the table, Geralt paying close attention I didn't come anywhere near a knife. I only smiled and shook my head.

"You know I'm not stupid," I pointed out.

"I know, but it took us so long. I just don't want anything happening to you and our child," he muttered tenderly, coming up behind me as I was washing off the dishes, putting both his hands on my belly and resting his chin on my shoulder.