Is Yennefer Pregnant by Geralt in The Witcher?
No. Throughout The Witcher saga across novels, games, and the Netflix adaptation, Yennefer of Vengerberg never successfully gets pregnant by the witcher Geralt of Rivia. As a sorceress who traded her reproductive ability for power, Yennefer struggles with lifelong infertility. Geralt is also sterile from his mutations that give witchers their monster-hunting capabilities.
While Geralt and Yennefer share a few poignant dream sequences and yearn to have a family, they remain unable to conceive a child themselves. Their destiny lies in raising and protecting Ciri, Geralt‘s adopted daughter and Child of the Elder Blood.
A Complex History Spanning Years
As a fan who has eagerly followed The Witcher games and lore for over a decade, I‘m immersed in the intricate backstories of these beloved characters.
Geralt and Yennefer have a profound bond transcending casual affairs, enduring across years of separation and reunions. Their paths first crossed in the short story "The Last Wish," and they‘ve shared many adventures since, documented extensively across books like The Last Wish, Sword of Destiny, Blood of Elves, and The Lady of the Lake.
Though quarrelling often, one looks out for the other during the most dangerous of quests. Even after journeys with other lovers, they reunite periodically.
There are even references to over 90 romantic interludes between the two throughout author Andrzej Sapkowski‘s novels.
| Type | Books | Games | Netflix | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Romantic Encounters | 91 | 6 | 5 | 102 |
Yet as much as they cared for each other, not once do they conceive, despite ample "effort."
Sorceresses‘ Sacrifice: Losing Fertility for Power
As part of the training at Aretuza academy to master magic, young sorceresses undergo permanent surgical transformations. Their uterus and ovaries are removed through an extremely painful process to redirect reproductive ability into controlling chaos more safely.
Sorceresses also use magic to reshape their bodies from flawed to beautiful. They gain near-eternal youth and arresting looks but lose the capacity to create life. During her agonizing procedure, Yennefer passes out multiple times, waking up each time to stare in anguish at the growing pile of her severed organs.
Similarly, at the Trial of the Grasses, witchers like Geralt imbibe mutagens and elixirs to gain monster-hunting skills andslowed aging. But the side effect leaves them sterile. Between Yennefer‘s twisted sacrifice and Geralt‘s alchemy, children are not possible.
The Bittersweet Dream: Their Family That Could Have Been
In an emotionally charged scene from The Witcher Season 2, Geralt and Yennefer share an illusion cast by a djinn where Yen appears visibly pregnant. They bask happily as expectant parents, with even their lost child buried on the homestead.
It‘s a poignant manifestation of their deepest longing – the family they could‘ve had with Ciri. But the cold truth is this scintillating dream remains out of reach.
When they wake from the fantasy, Yennefer mourns its fleetingness. She once desperately sought ways to restore her womb, enduring failed treatments by mages like Vilgefortz. There was even hope after adoption in the games. But in the end, reclaiming fertility proves impossible for the sorceress.
Meanwhile, Ciri as descendent of the ancient Elder Blood can bear children, despite her youth and training as a witcheress under Geralt. Her womb carries vital power coveted by villains who wish to breed with her for prophecy heirs.
Bonded by Destiny Otherwise
Though Yennefer never conceived Geralt‘s offspring, destiny bonds them tightly otherwise. Over tournaments, hunting trips, and magic studies, their adopted daughter Ciri becomes the "child" uniting two lost souls.
During a fateful feast where Geralt saves Duny‘s (Ciri‘s father) life and invokes the Law of Surprise, six-year-old Ciri becomes his destined charge.
After much searching and sacrifice, Geralt and Yennefer recover Ciri from war and wilderness. They nurture her back from trauma‘s edge. And though the sorceress can‘t birth a baby herself, she finds purpose in mothering the talented Ciri.
Even after that heartbreaking djinn dream, Yennefer accepts Ciri lovingly, noting:
"My dear, you do not need to be anything more than who you are now. And you are everything."
Their unusual family, bound by destiny, stands united against all foes.
Conclusion
Over 10 books, three games, and two Netflix seasons, Geralt of Rivia and Yennefer of Vengerberg never conceive a biological child. Though they enjoy over a century of on-off romance, her forced hysterectomy and his induced infertility prohibit offspring.
The bittersweet dream conveys their deepest yearnings for a stolen parenthood. Still, through magic and love, they raise the gifted Ciri as their own. And the bonds of this quirky family forged by fate remain strong, even past the final book‘s last page or credits scene.
