Semua Bab Leesa's Advent: Bab 361 - Bab 370

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 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

Baby Ralin grew even more rapidly than he had inside Leesa’s womb. By three months he was as large as a human child twice his age, and by six months he was pretty much the size of a one-year-old. His physical abilities were equally accelerated—he started walking at four months, and within days was toddling easily around the house, keeping mom and dad anxious and on the alert. Not long after, he could jump from a standing start up onto the bed. Once he learned that trick, he began leaping up and down off all the chairs in the house. His favorite landing spot, though, became the old round end table still stashed away in the corner of the living room.The first time Leesa saw her tiny infant son leapt up onto the creaky table, she was beside herself with worry that he would miss or fall or suffer some equally disastrous fate. She soon learned that his balance and coordination were as advanced as his strength, and her concern turned more to the furnishings in the hous

Stefan's appearance seemed to trigger a rebirth of Ralin’s magic. It didn’t happen immediately, but looking back, Leesa was pretty sure the incident marked the beginning of the magical resurgence. Whether it would have occurred anyway without Stefan’s visit no one knew for certain. She thought it probably would have happened eventually, and probably sooner rather than later. Balin concurred.What did happen right away was that Leesa became more careful with Ralin when he was around other people, keeping him wrapped in a protective shield for the overwhelming majority of the time. Hugs from relatives and friends without a shield became far less frequent and much shorter in duration. Whenever she allowed a hug without a shield, Leesa made sure to focus her attention completely on her bond with Ralin, alert for any small sign his magic might be about to erupt. People who loved holding Ralin were disappointed at the restrictions, but they all understood the newly awakened danger and the n

On his first birthday, Ralin decided it was time to begin talking. Unlike most children, his first word was not “Ma-ma” or “Da-da.” Instead, it was a word he had heard his parents use often.Friends and relatives gathered in the back yard to celebrate the occasion. Judy and Bradley were there, of course, as were Aunt Janet and Uncle Roger. Cali showed up wearing a rainbow clown wig and a bright blue sweatshirt festooned with big yellow polka dots. Where she had found the psychedelic garment, Leesa had no idea. She was just glad Cali hadn’t added clown-face makeup to her getup—potentially saving Ralin from being scarred for life by a fear of clowns.Balin, Bain, Dral and Kaila came from the volkaane settlement, and Jenna had happily responded to Leesa’s invitation as well. Ralin watched excitedly when a big brown and white owl descended slowly into the yard and then, with a bright silver flash, transformed into a person. He laug