Nanowrimo 2022 - Day 1 Word Count and Best Bit (Patreon)

It's that time again! Nanowrimo babyyyyy! I started off strong today by making it to 1,726 words! Here's the best bit!

Heavy, humid air filled the room, fighting for space with pained screams. Open windows beg for the relief of a cool evening breeze in exchange for the haunting pain of the woman within. The halls of the palace were empty at this hour, but the concubine’s bedchamber had never been more full. Gentle, insistent voices called for her to push, to breathe, to endure. Motherhood, like many other journeys, began with pain.

And then, as sudden as a lightning strike, the pained wails stopped. Heavy, exhausted panting took their place, followed by excited, gossipy whispers.

"A girl," they said behind their hands and just around the corner. "The Emperor's first born is a girl."

Midwives with steady hands and kind faces cleaned and measured the newborn princess, taking in the dash of golden hair atop her head. A good sigh, they agreed. A manifestation of the Yellow Dragon's blessings upon the child.

The child cried --as all children do -- loud and defiant of the world they did not ask to enter, with tiny fist raised in rebellion.

"Congratulation, Your Grace," one of the midwives said, laying the child upon her mother's bare breast. "The princess is healthy and energetic. I am sure the Emperor will be pleased."

The concubine laughed breathlessly, barely able to keep her eyes open, let alone hold her newborn. Exhaustion settled deep in her bones, and her voice was raspy from screaming. "I am glad."

"With this," a handmaiden piped up, "Surely the Emperor will name you his empress. You have given him an heir, just as he requested."

"The others certainly haven't had much luck on that front," another said haughtily.

"Do not speak so hastily," a midwife scolded. "Lest you jinx us all!"

The handmaiden bit her lip, casting her gaze downward in shame. The midwives laughed amicably, going about their tasks of cleaning up after the birth. With the hustle and bustle inside the room, they hardly noticed the commotion going on outside.

Then, the door was thrown open, a frantic laundry maid in her nightgown tumbling through. The handmaidens shouted in panic, frightening the babe that had only just begun to eat and settle.

"What is the meaning of this?" the head midwife shouted, shaking a bloody towel at the laundry maid. "Explain yourself!"

The laundry maid bowed low, not daring to lift her eyes. "This lowly maid greets Her Grace, the Summer Moon Consort, with news from the Wine Palace."

The concubine stiffened, holding her child close as if to protect her from what she knew was coming. "Speak."

"The Autumn Rain Consort is with child!" the laundry maid cried. "And the fortune tellers have declared it will be a boy!"

The handmaidens turned on each other, blaming the one who had spoken haughtily. The midwives joined the shouting, trying to push the laundry maid and the handmaidens out, lest they kill the new mother with all the stress they were causing. None of their words reached the concubine's ears. All she could hear were the cries of her child. Did the babe know? Did she know how cruel fate had just decided to be?

The concubine wept, holding her child close to her chest. "I'm so sorry, my child. My golden girl.

"My Jin Xia."