"So? How was it?" It was close to noon, inside the hallway of Castle Hange, Nifa, the young maiden was cornered to the wall, surrounded by two, no, three older women who refused to give her any chance to escape.

"How was…what?" Alarmed but unfazed, she held the clean lingerie of Lady Hange tightly against her chest, determined to play fool till the end. She may be just a lowly handmaiden, but she'd be damned if she allowed these busybodies to use her for the gossip they wanted. Not to mention Mistress Nanaba would no doubt have her flayed if she dared to let anything of Lady Hange's bedchamber affairs out.

"Oh, don't you play the fool with us, girl. You have been waiting at the Lady's quarter almost every night. You must know something," a woman pried. Nifa blinked, resisting the urge to roll her eyes.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Nifa blurted out, eyes searching for an escape route to slip away. But being the shortest one among them, she was hopeless. 

"I couldn't see what was happening…nor did I really care…Hey! That hurts!" The handmaiden flinched as one of the women slapped her on the arm. Furiously, she glared up, ready to raise her knee to kick a way out.

"Come on! Don't you pretend you don't want to know, Nifa. We all know the sex of our Lady's child will be of utmost importance for Castle Hange's future! Now, either you be a good girl and tell us what you saw or we'll - "

"Or you will what?" Slapping away the woman's hands on her arms, Nifa pushed through the barricade of the three nosy women to rush down the hallway. "I already told you I saw nothing. If you're so into the fashion the Lord had taken when he did nature's work, go to the bastion and ask him yourselves!" She spat, sprinted around the corner to make her way to the stairs to the Lady's quarter.

But her efforts were soon interrupted, for another stern call suddenly raised from behind, demanding the young handmaiden to cease advancing.

"Halt." Mistress Nanaba Zacharias' voice sounded like a looming summer storm. "What is going on here?" By the manner she deliberately withheld her pattern of breathing, Nifa could tell that she must have been listening to them for quite a while. Turning around, she bit her inner cheek, secretly pleased that she had revealed nothing regarding Lady Hange's privy matter. So if the Mistress decided to let her anger fly, at least she wouldn't be at the end of it.

"Mistress." Blinking, Nifa greeted the lady-in-waiting with a nod, noticing the mistress standing at the other side of the hallway had a water jar covered with clean linen in her hand. "Do you need me to carry the jar for you?"

"No, thank you, Nifa." The mistress breathed, shifting on her feet slightly as if she was keeping the jar away from the women. "Lady Hange specifically asked for water from the fountain, I shall bring it to her myself."

"Very good, mistress," Nifa said.

"And why didn't any of you answer my question? Why was Nifa cornered while fetching the Lady's clothes?" The mistress asked again, eyes narrowing at the people behind Nifa.

"Oooh...We were talking about whether the Lady is carrying a boy or a girl." The woman who had hit Nifa on the arm cut in, oblivious to Mistress Nanaba's clenching jaw. "Do you know, Mistress?" she asked, approaching the knight's wife while the mistress merely stared intently at them.

"Know what?" Flatly, Mistress Nanaba asked.

"Well…" the woman started, grinning as she made eye contact with the mistress. "You must have heard the wise words from our elders, mistress. If the father was facing east when the child was conceived then it'll be a boy. If west, the child will be a girl." 

"And here’s another one. If the father feels a bit unwell after the act of conception, then the baby will be a girl. If it's the mother who feels slightly ill, then it'll be a boy!" Another woman supplied. 

"We have been asking this girl if she saw anything but she's too simple to tell." The third one nudged Nifa from behind. Nifa rolled her eyes at the word "simple". Stomping her foot, she wanted to turn and poke her back. But Mistress Nanaba's raising eyebrow stopped her, as Nifa knew it was a sign that the lady-in-waiting was about to snap.

"So…you believe that it is perfectly fine for a bunch of wives to gossip about the lady's condition." Mistress Nanaba stated, taking a step forward to make the women flinch away. But to her surprise, they seemed to be determined to get to the bottom of it. 

"Oh, it wouldn't hurt if we're able to know, would it? Besides, as a new mother, we think the Lady would love to know about the baby's sex…" A woman said.

"Knowing the baby's sex also allows us to better prepare the Lady for the confinement.' Another waded in.

"Not to mention the postnatal food. Our Lady's is bound to due in the next spring. If it's a girl child she'll need more apples and pears. We can store and pickle more beforehand."

"And I think the Lord would like to know, too, wouldn't he? It's his firstborn after all."

"Firstborn for the Lady. Not necessary for the Lord, though. He's an experienced handsome man. Who knows what he had been up to before he got here!" One of the women giggled.

Standing with her back to them, Nifa couldn't help but swallow nervously as the three of them continued to tattle about the Lord's possible experience and what he may do to determine the baby's gender, as well as all the signs he and the Lady had already shown to the world. In front of her, Nifa could see Mistress Nanaba's scowl deepen. She was ready to scold but a look of panic appeared on her face. 

"My Lord." With a small nod, the lady-in-waiting greeted the Lord of the castle who suddenly appeared behind the small crowd. Nifa flinched, nearly dropping the clothes in her hands. Behind her, two of the three women immediately stopped talking. One of them, however, didn't seem to notice the Lord's untimely presence.

"That's right! The Lord is a good-looking man who seems to excel in a lot of things." She continued to titter. "If that's the case, I'd say the Lady is carrying a boy. Men with experience tend to know what they are do - "

"Exactly what kind of experience do you assume I am wealthy of?" With a deep voice, Lord Levi Ackerman, husband to the Lady of Castle Hange asked, his narrowed gaze immediately sent the woman jumping.

“My Lord.” She uttered, unknowingly stepping backward to bump the other two women behind her. “Um…we’re just trying to guess whether the Lady is expecting a boy or a girl…”

“And my past life experience is related to it because…?” He asked again. Nifa and Mistress Nanaba exchanged a look, alarmed as the Ackerman Lord was clearly crossed. 

“Ugh…no…well, it’s just some random things we’ve come up with…”

“Oh, for mercy’s sake, women! Just hold your tongues and scram!” With a crack of her fingers, Mistress Nanaba finally snapped. "And if you dare to let me hear any talk about the Lady's condition again, I will banish not only you but your husbands and children from the Lady’s household. See if that makes you learn!"

With a few squeaks, the three women quickly scattered. Mistress Nanaba then turned to Lord Levi Ackerman, lowering her head to apologize on behalf of the Lady's household. Nifa was about to do the same but a curious voice interrupted her.

"Oh, no! Please don't go!" On top of the limestone stairs around the corner, Lady Zoë Hange leaned against the wooden banister as she stared down at them. Her face was flushed and her knee-length hair fuzzy.

“Come back, you three! I want to hear more!” She called for the three women, tucking on her green woolen shawl. 

Surprised, they walked back to the staircase. One of them gasped as they saw the Lady was wearing only her nightgown underneath that shawl as if she had just risen from the sickbed. But Nifa and Mistress Nanaba knew better. They knew that Lady Hange was like this because she had been tiring herself out watching over the logistics and winter fortifications despite the Lord's concerns and warning. She had ignored him so many times, that last night the Lord finally lost his patience and locked her in the bedchamber alone so she could properly repose. And when he found out this morning that instead of sleeping, she had snuck books and manuals to read on her bed, he demanded she remain in her quarters today. 

As a result, Lady Hange had refused to get dressed for today, because I, too, shall let my anger known.

“Ugh…there’s not much to hear, my Lady.” A woman uttered, glancing at the Lord who was now staring up at the woman on the stairs. Together, Mistress Nanaba and Nifa whispered a prayer, silently begging them to stay quiet as the Lord of the castle looked like he was ready to murder.

“But you’d said a lot of things, hadn’t you?” Lady Hange said, smiling brightly as she touched her pregnant belly. “About telling my baby’s sex. How many ways do you know? Is the sire's experience really related to it?” 

“Well…there were old people who said that…” The woman started. But a harsh look from Lord Ackerman instantly silenced her.

“My dear, why are you not in your solar?” The Lord of the castle asked, worried as he further took in the Lady’s thin nightgown. “You shouldn’t leave the warmth of the fire if you’re dressed so little.”

Tilting her head to look down at her husband, Lady Hange simply shrugged. Nifa took in a deep, long breath. From the way the Lady behaved, the handmaiden could tell that she was still angry at the Lord, for forbidding her to go outside. And by the scowl on the Lord’s face, Nifa guessed that he may want to have another talk to the Lady tonight.

“I was waiting for my fountain water…” Lady Hange replied, looking at Mistress Nanaba. The mistress immediately walked up the stairs. 

“I have the water here. Let’s go back in.”

“...And then I heard them talking about the baby’s sex. I have a question - ” She said, pulling up her nightgown skirt to descend the stairs. 

“Don’t come down, Hange. You’re not dressed,” Lord Ackerman warned. Lady Hange paused, a defiant look on her face. From the distance, Nifa couldn't tell if that curl on her lips was a pout or a smirk.

“I just want to ask…”

“If you walk one more step down those stairs, Zoë, I promise you, you will be sorry.” The Lord threatened. The three women flinched and looked around at one another, unsure of what to do. He was all harsh and stern. While Lady Hange, on the other hand, had other ideas.

Hopping up to sit on the handrail, the pregnant Lady smoothly slid down the stairs, landing on both feet in front of her husband with a click on the heels. Rubbing her belly, she grinned as the Lord's face went completely white. 

"So," satisfied with her husband's reaction, Lady Hange promptly turned to the three now dumbfounded women. "When you said the manner of my husband when he did nature's work had determined the baby's sex…"

"SERIOUSLY, WIFE! IS THAT REALLY ALL YOU CARE ABOUT?" 

"...how exactly do you tell which encounter was the one that actually made me conceive?" Sincerely, the Lady asked, smiling brightly as she was keen to get to the bottom of it.