Therese recoiled momentarily at Desiree's bluntness.
"Knocked up." What a strange way to put one's own conception and birth, to a mother that one obviously loves... But I should know by now that family matters look -- different
to those with some elven blood than to us humans. She had never considered, and would never consider, the possibility that her own unusual height and the sprig of silver hair in with the flowing flames of her scalp might imply that she, too, had a tiny bit of that elven blood.
"I guess I can understand that," she said as they passed a tree swathed in bands bearing brightly-colored pebbles.
Wonder what kind of "spirit" lives in that one? I can actually sense a little magic there. But it's not the one we're looking for, and really none of our business. "Refuge-Nouveau has some -- similar issues. Women outnumber men there, but many are past their childbearing years, and many others have decided never to have children. I guess they all have different reasons." She shook her head. "Some don't think it would be consistent with doing what we do to save the women of Goriel, but that's mainly us in the Sisterhood, which isn't every woman in town. Others hate men." She shook her head again, and there was a wry smile on her face when she stopped. "In case there's any uncertainty, I don't hate men. I hate
bad men, and men like Argus and Brad and even Tim aren't bad men. But some of the Sisterhood don't draw the distinction. And others... I don't know why. But anyway, fertility in town is low, and the newcomers from Goriel help with that."
The wry smile had disappeared by the time she opened her mouth again, and she squeezed Desiree's hand. "I, though ... I'd like to have children, I think. It's just that I don't know -- don't know how -- we --"
She didn't finish the sentence, however, as the trail was leading them to a tree bedecked by blue flowers; columbines, no doubt.
[OOC: Yes, Desiree has exactly one surviving half-sibling that we know of,
grumpy old
Marius back at Snamish.]