Logs:Last Turn's Madilla
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| RL Date: 23 July, 2009 |
| Who: Madilla |
| Type: Vignette |
| What: Madilla marks the anniversary of Satiet's death with introspection; Delifa marks it with news. |
| Where: High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 13, Month 4, Turn 20 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: Anvori/Mentions, Delifa/Mentions, N'thei/Mentions, Riahla/Mentions, Satiet/Mentions, Suireh/Mentions |
| Madilla supposed it was a kind of mourning, what she was doing. Had done. She'd counted down the days, one by one, remembering, until there were no days left, and there it was: one full turn. And then she'd gone about her day as if it were any other. She'd worked her shift in the infirmary, eaten her meals, conscientiously taken her mostly-completed quilt with her to Delifa's, where they talked over tea, while she worked, chatting about inconsequential things: patients, friends, the weather, whether Madilla would be selected to attend the intensive healer workshop being run in the summer. They never once mentioned the former Weyrwoman, not even in passing, not even without name. But it was a commemoration, nonetheless. As she carried out her duties, and cared for her patients, her mind slunk away every so often, to dig up some piece of information, some recollection. There weren't many, so, in the end, most of her thoughts were abstract, mere fragments of something, and faded by time: Madilla both felt very close to, and very distant from, the young woman who'd cried so hard, and then, pulled herself together, one turn ago. She felt different. As though these recollections were about someone else, and the time spent on them an indulgence, the loving attention of a caring parent or sibling. As though it had all happened half a lifetime ago. She felt as though she should be more sad for the woman who was gone, and, instead, she thought about those little girls, their uncle, the Weyrleader-that-had-been. Those left behind. And she thought about herself. It was a private anniversary in her own life, too: one turn ago, I learned how to cope with death; one turn ago, I didn't know what I know now; one turn ago, everything was different. I was different. Was it a turning point? The start of one, perhaps. That, and then the baby, and then-- last turn's Madilla was wholly different. And next turn's Madilla will be different again. It was as close to comforting as any thought. It made her stronger, didn't it? A better healer - a better person. Better. Just... better. She and Delifa talked later than usual. They talked about Delifa's boyfriend, whose confirmed existence was only new to the apprentice. They talked, too, about the Journeyman's surprise pregnancy, confirmed only today, the one she'd never expected to have, the one that, at forty-one, could prove to be difficult, and yet, was so, so wanted. Madilla swallowed back envy to greet the news with excitement and delight she came by honestly; this turn's Madilla was better at that, would have to be better still. She smiled and smiled: a baby! What better news could there be, to mark that day? Not that she said that. Not that she implied it. It stands to reason, though, that it's not something that would have passed Delifa by. Not much ever got past her. |
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