1304 - The Cold Year
The Chapman bungalow became a bustling and lively place to live as the decade went on. All of the children successfully survived the harsher winter this year and all reached their milestones at their various ages making Byrhtnoth and Olyff proud. The pair tried hard to manage parenthood with love and care, with Eddida being their newest addition born just before 1303 came to a close, and with their assertive management came a lot of noise from their little tots!
The young parents quietly celebrated Linyeve's first year of life on one of the biggest blizzards they had witnessed on the Chapman farmstead. Her tranquil personality began to shift into a somewhat attention seeking one as she fought for the attention from her busy mother who tended to her older and younger sisters. Other than that she often followed Pipa around the bungalow and learned what fun there is to be had through the guidance of her older sister.
While the blizzards swept through Praaven Byrhtnoth secured the open windows with scrap wood they had left from their extension, boarding up the entrances to keep the heat from their fires inside the home. In turn the bungalow did get a bit smokier, with the plumes rising to the ceiling of the home, but it kept everyone safe and somewhat healthy. The handywork was a little shoddy but it was better than the risk of freezing to near death.
During the weeks when the snowfall was too thick to even see the river flowing only a hundred meters down the hill from the Chapman stead the family spent lots of time socialising and caring for one another.
Byrhtnoth kept his baby girls clean and rested, with ample time to gently play with Pipa and Linyeve, and Olyff continued to teach their eldest girls how to talk and walk, while also making sure they were well fed from her breastmilk and various sweet porridges.
The two parents made sure to give extra time to their beloved newborn, Eddida, taking turns in bathing, feeding, entertaining and loving her wholeheartedly and strengthening their family bond with one another.
And as with each year, one thing led to another and Olyff never failed to be with child again! Olyff's grief from two years ago had dissipated now and she felt the butterflies of excitement in her stomach grow as her typical pregnancy signs presented in her daily life.
The Watcher spectated in astonishment at the Chapman's ability to produce children but only wished them well with their parental endeavours. The omnipotent observer must have had great intentions for the family, and the people of Praaven, as the blizzards subsided and only left thick snow on the ground, staying there until the middle months of Spring.
The boards got peeled off of the windows of the Chapman bungalow by Byrhtnoth and Olyff began to care for the farm animals more often with the confidence of avoiding frostbite from the elements.
With Olyff stepping outside once again Pipa couldn't help but follow as she did in the previous year and set up happily in the wet sand near the stable, Linyeve following her stride sometimes crawling sometimes waddling after her. Their mother would try to scold them for leaving the warm home while the snow still clung to the ground but couldn't keep an angry tone with them as they both apologised in their baby voices.
Byrhtnoth found himself fishing once again as the snow began to melt and his horse had led him closer and closer to fishing near Praaven keep. There were some higher quality fish he had discovered to be swimming in the water near the castle walls and took the opportunity to snatch them up while the king's men didn't pay attention to him.
These somewhat illegal actions led him to selling his catch to the markets and various craftsmen inside the castle walls for good coin, as always striking up various deals with carpenters, masons, tailors and various other labourers that met him on his journeys.
This year's summer was an unusually cold one, even for Praaven's standards. The garden where Olyff grew her crops every year kept getting hit with random bursts of frost, resulting in a worse yield than she has experienced thus far. This wasn't as bad of a situation thanks to her husband's abundance of fish but they both knew this wouldn't last forever and brainstormed an alternative for when the winter frost would freeze the waters over as it did every year.
With Byrhtnoth's recent ventures inside the city walls of Praaven he found himself learning the ways of how the nobles tended to preserve their food, most often salting their meats and keeping it in dry and dark places. He quickly learned that salt was a precious commodity, so precious that even the King didn't have easy access to it! But he kept scoping out rumours and found himself at the fishing post right outside the walls of the town.
Fishermen were happy to trade their food preservation secrets with him and explained a useful process in detail to him; they would scoop several buckets of sea water and boil it above their fires to obtain sea salt before sprinkling it back into some clean water from their wells and soaking their daily catch to keep it fresh for a season or two.
Byrhtnoth became close friends with these local fishermen and as a kind gesture got offered some salt brine he could take home and attempt to preserve his fish for himself. As he galloped home on his horse that day he couldn't help but smile from the excitement of telling his darling wife and family that they would be safe for food this winter, even with the lack of fresh crop produce.
The Chapman's fears for the year came true as the waters along the shore grew ice far earlier than any year before and by the middle of autumn they spent more time indoors, staying warm and keeping each other company.
It wasn't all bad though as Byrhntoth was happy to take on more responsibilities looking after the farm animals, including their mighty steed Beauty, as his wife put more energy into raising their children. Olyff was far into her pregnancy at this time and found it more of a burden to engage in heavy labor but still had the willpower to handle the energy and excitement from her three growing babies.
Linyeve wouldn't stop fussing when Olyff spent time teaching her new words, trying to grow her vocabulary and encourage her to speak with the rest of the family, but all she wanted to do was move around and follow and play with Pipa. Even though her big sister sat beside them, playing and babbling happily to herself, Linyeve always wanted to be a part of her playtime.
And it brought great joy and pride to the parents when they could finally let Eddida join the fun alongside her sisters after her first birthday. She was beginning to sit up by herself with confidence and her wriggly attitude had her crawling around the home in no time.
"She looks so much like you, my love," Olyff said to her husband for the millionth time as she gazed upon her youngest daughter's blonde streaks and button nose, it made her incredibly happy.
The three girls were a great joy and all wanted to spend as much time with their parents as possible, each taking turns with which parent they would be cuddled or tickled by. Even with raging winter storms outside it really felt like the strong loving bond between the family could keep them warm all winter long.
One winter day The Watcher decided to let the family have a day off from the frightful weather and stopped the snowfall for a while, leaving only a thick, fluffy and cold blanket on the soil of the Chapman farm. The pair wrapped their children up as warm as they could and let their girls frolic in the white powder for a short while.
Olyff felt like a little girl again and gently fell backwards into the snow behind her, moving her arms and legs to create an angelic figure beneath her. Her husband chuckled at her behaviour and felt truly at peace with where their life was right now; he couldn't help but think to himself,
How could life get any better than this?
Just like this, The Watcher said to themself, and Olyff felt a rush down her legs when she stood up from her snowy creation.
"I... uh... I think my water just broke," stuttered Olyff with surprise, her tunic underneath her soaking from an unexpected liquid. Her husband's eyes widened but he quickly scooped up his children in his arms and brought them back inside.
"Pipa, Linyeve, Eddida, mammy and I have to go upstairs and wait for your baby sister or brother to arrive," he said to them as he squatted down to their level. The trio gasped with excitement and Pipa took the lead shouting,
"I remember this! It's going to come out from her belly, isn't it?"
"Yes, good girl for remembering! But it might take a while as it's a difficult activity..." explained Byrhtnoth as he smiled at his eldest girl, then an idea came to him.
"Hey, Pipa, how about you create some fun games to play with your sisters while we all wait for the new baby to come? Just promise me you won't step a foot outside while we are upstairs, understood?"
"Promise!" exclaimed Pipa and her sisters tried to imitate that word too. Byrhtnoth kissed all of his girls on the forehead before climbing upstairs quickly to join his wife in labor.
They both went through the motions of birth with ease and experience while hearing their other children giggling and chatting below them. Byrthnoth occasionally peered over the railing upstairs to make sure they didn't leave the bungalow and to their relief the girls listened to every caution he told them.
With one final push Olyff gave birth to another healthy baby girl, this time with more of a resemblance to the mother than the father. The pair had been discussing baby names for the last few months and they had agreed that if it was another girl they would call her Teffan, and so Teffan she was!
They couldn't help but mention their nervousness about not having a male heir to take over the family farm once they grow old, with five pregnancies later all they had were baby girls, but Byrhtnoth reassured his wife that they still had many more child rearing years to achieve a traditional heir for their land.
The parents descended down the ladder into the main living area and their three little girls looked up from their playtime activities and began to smile when they saw their mother holding their new baby sister.
They all stumbled and crawled over as Olyff squatted down to introduce them all to each other. The girls were very gentle with Teffan as they brushed her small strands of hair with their small fingers and each gave her a kiss on her head.
Once everyone was satisfied with their quality time with the new addition to the family Olyff brought her newborn back upstairs and placed her gently into the small crib near her bed. She rocked her back and forth in the wooden bassinet and hummed a quiet lullaby and just as Teffan shut her eyes to sleep Olyff felt her husband's hand on her shoulder. She stopped rocking the crib and looked up at him with a soft smile, he smiled back.
Life felt good, as good as a peasant's life could be, and with this happiness brimming throughout the bungalow they spent their last days of 1304 in peace and harmony.
No comments:
Post a Comment