Ah, to take a break after a job well done, that's what it's all about. The harvest is done, everything is stocked away, the smart ones are taking stock to prepare for winter and trade, and tonight, the harvest festival will begin. A week-long celebration in the name of the Goddess, thanking her for the bountiful harvest and praying for the same next year. And the biggest event will come right at the start—while the coming week will see feasts, sporting contests, and the like, the most important part is the Fertilization of the Fields, a long-standing religious tradition taking place in the nearby overgrown ruins left by the Predecessors. There, in order to please the Goddess, a virgin will be impregnated, her fertilization mirroring that which the Goddess will do for our fields, blessing them with growth.
In fact, it's just about time for people to assemble for that, so I make my way over to the forest on the outskirts of the village, heading down the path towards the old ruins while the sun sinks beneath the horizon, the day giving way to night. While I'm told that this event used to be a lot more barbaric in centuries past, we have arranged for a more civilized procedure at this point. For one, this isn't a "kidnap a virgin from a rival village" affair anymore. Instead, the entire village is involved in the search, and if a couple happens to find each other throughout the year and is able to keep it in their pants, they can volunteer to be the pairing for the Fertilization and become the pride of the village for an entire year. This has worked for all the years I've been privy to this ritual, but if there ever were to be a year where no virgin could be found, there is always one man on emergency virgin duty whose job it is to absolutely make sure that if all else fails, he has someone on standby and the Fertilization can still happen.
When I arrive, most have already assembled, but there seems to be some murmuring going on amidst the the crowd, and the mayor seems quite nervous. What's going on here? As if to answer my question, he turns to address the crowd. "OK, a few more have arrived here, so let me ask one more time: is there really nobody that has a virgin ready for today? We're not picky, we'll take anyone willing to bear child that is a virgin! Virgins, please step forward..." he says, only to be met with silence. Seems like the fates did not align for us this time, but that's what we have the fallback for, right? "Alright, I've never actually had to do this, so bear with me. Who's on emergency virgin duty?" the mayor then asks, but again, he's met by mere murmuring, not an actual answer.
After some more murmuring and some insistence on the mayor's part, one voice comes out of the crowd. "Um, I think it's Ayr..." it says, and a total silence falls over the congregation as the mayor's eyes go wide.
"...Ayr. So, we gave this critical duty to the oldest man in the village. The oldest man... who died six months ago. Did nobody think to bring this up when we buried him? Nobody think to mention, hey, this guy we're putting in the ground was our lifeline for the most important event of the year? Nobody?" he asks, rather stunned. Well, of course nobody did, because nobody actually likes emergency virgin duty. It's a massive pain to be required to find a virgin willing to go along with all this, and we've frankly been lucky that it all just happened to work out for decades. Now the murmuring is starting back up, getting louder, people starting to blame each other.
But in this chaos that's threatening to spill over, a calming presence comes forth, and who else could it be but Eryon? He steps out of the crowd and in front of the mayor, turning to face the crowd and motioning for people to calm down. And as if by magic, the crowd does indeed calm down, because when Eryon wants to say something, people listen. "Um, so, this is, uh, something I've known about for a while but never got an opportunity to bring up. But, er, if you remember last year's event, the girl that got impregnated there and then moved to the capital with her husband... she had a contraceptive spell put over her. She didn't actually get pregnant. And the harvest was just fine. So maybe, uh... maybe the actual impregnation isn't the important part for the Goddess here?" he explains, and I can tell this information shocks some people. He's probably quite nervous, given that he's just blown a hole in the most treasured tradition this village has, but at the same time...
"What are you getting at?" the mayor then asks, putting out the question that's on everybody's mind.
After another moment of tense silence, Eryon begins to explain. "If the impregnation isn't the important part, perhaps we can simply substitute a different kind of virgin and get the same result? Like, say... me?" Again, the murmuring starts up, but there's little doubt that Eryon is speaking at least some sort of sense. Looking at the facts, we're all assembled here, we don't have a female virgin, but as far as we can tell, the actual impregnation wasn't that important anyway. So why not give this a shot? While it takes a bit, eventually most seem to quietly acquiesce, be it through nods or muttered affirmations. But if he's going to be our virgin, who will be his partner? And just as that thought comes through my mind, all the idle thoughts I had about him come back with it, all the times I found myself so enjoying being looked after by him, the times I thought of him as cute or attractive, and suddenly, the thought of being his partner becomes something very much appealing to me. I have to retreat into the crowd a bit to try and keep him from seeing my now bright red face. "Well, if we're in agreement, then I get my pick for my partner, right? Virgin's pick?" he adds.
Yes, he's right. It's a concept we rarely have to use because usually the partner is determined long before the actual event, with the virgin already having a partner or fiancee. Once more, he gets no counterargument or disagreement, so he moves closer towards the crowd, heading right in my direction. But there's no way, right? Even as he motions for people to move aside, as he gets even closer towards me, it can't be me that he's looking for. And that's what I believe, all the way until he's right in front of me, having taken my hand and sheepishly looking up at me. Without a word being spoken, I have to accept that I'm his pick, and we make our way to the ritual grounds—which is really just a fancy name for a raised stone platform dressed up with mattresses, blankets, and pillows to make it suitable for, well, lovemaking. "Um, what are we going to do now?" I ask, quite unsure.
Eryon, for his part, seems just as nervous, but determined to make this happen. "I have a hole suitable for, um, the act, no? So we should be capable of miming out the most important parts. But while we know the actual impregnation isn't important, um, we can't empirically confirm that the act doesn't have to be as close as possible. So, er... what I'm getting at, I suppose... Thimar, are you ready to put a baby in me?" he finally asks, seemingly fully committed to the display.
With most of the village surrounding us and looking on, and Eryon's determined eyes meeting mine, I nod. "Let's get you pregnant."