Or just born different?

Writers: Chelle, Jelena
Date Posted: 16th January 2015

Characters: Genna, Nokala
Description: Genna comes to Nokala for some help with her problem.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 10, day 16 of Turn 7
Notes: Note: Follows Born Stupid?

Genna

"Excuse me," Genna knocked and then peeked around the door curiously.
She'd been told Journeywoman Nokala was in this office, but she had no idea
what she looked like. So the lady in the room could just be a random staff
member cleaning. "I'm looking for Journeywoman Nokala."

Sometimes she really did feel stupid when about in the Weyr. People always
knew who she was, but she had such trouble matching names with faces of
people she had met. She hoped it would get easier with time, because it
would be awfully awkward if she was ever called upon to represent the Weyr
in formal occasions.

The harper was still fairly new to the Weyr so she didn't expect everyone
to know who she was beyond 'That tall woman!' Smiling to herself, she
turned and her dark eyes took in the knots. **So this is the young
goldrider** Her interest was certainly piqued and she got down from where
she had been stacking sheets of music. Looking down at Genna, she nodded.
"That would be me. What can I do for you, goldrider?" Her tone of voice was
pleasant and there was a lively fire in the office despite the Weyr's heat
being restored. Nokala was always cold still yet. She imagined her tropical
blood needed to thicken.

"I was hoping you could help me with some... harper matters," Genna said
softly. "I could use a bit of extra teaching with regards to.. ehm..
reading and writing." She looked at her hands suddenly, feeling very self
conscious. That she'd be asking for help in such a simple matter, something
that she should have learned turns and turns ago. It was beyond shameful.

"Ah well I am a harper so I am certain that is something I could do. What
about reading and writing do you need help with?" Her voice was calm and
pleasant and Nokala finished climbing down to settle into her chair. She
gestured for Genna to do the same to the empty one.

Genna took the seat and looked at her hands again, before beginning to
speak. "Well, I'm a slow reader. Very slow compared to the other weyrlings
it seems. And with my assignments.. I have trouble spelling words
correctly." She still hoped the Weyrlingmasters understood it wasn't
carelessness, that she really did try to get it right.

"Do you have problems sounding things out or is it something else?" Nokala
wondered exactly what the problem was. The holder girls generally didn't
have as good an education as the Weyr girls did but most of them that came
from families that were well off could read and write at least. This girl-a
goldrider-had a Master for a father she had heard so it didn't add up
really.

"Sounding them out, I guess," Genna said, a thoughtful frown furrowing on
her face. "Sometimes it's like the letters dance around on the page. If
that makes any sense." She blushed slightly, betting that it really didn't
make sense.

"Actually it does. Do you only have trouble with letters when reading or do
you also have it when writing things down?" Nokala was beginning to think
she understood the problem and she began to get out something to write down
notes with.

"Uhm, well it's the horrible amount of spelling mistakes that alerted the
Weyrlingmasters to my.. issues at first," Genna confessed, still feeling a
little uncomfortable professing difficulties with so basic a skill.

"Let's try something." Nokala held up a board with a word on it. "Tell me
what you see." The board itself read 'wallet'.

Genna felt herself blushing again, part panicking and part embarrassed that
she'd be asked to read such a simple word. Yet it took her quite a few
seconds before she spoke up, sounding the word out in her head as she did
often. "Wallet."

The girl had taken a bit of time, but hadn't mentioned seeing letters out
of order or spelled it differently. So maybe the problem was really just
when she was writing. **Do it again to make sure.** Holding up another
board, she nodded. "Tell me the letters as you see them, Genna." It read
'patches' this time.

"Patches," Genna read after again a short moment of panic. Well, she had
always been slow, but eventually it worked out.

"So when you read, you see a P-then A-T-C-H-an E-and an S?" Nokala wanted
to be sure. Reading didn't seem to be a problem, she was just a bit slower
than normal.

"Well, I needed to take a moment, because when I try to read fast, the
letters start to.. dance around on the page, like I said. It was sort of
like.. I don't know anymore. But when I sound the word out in my head first
and take it slow, I can read it out loud no problem," she paused for a
moment, biting her lip. "Do you want me to read one aloud right away, the
way it appears to me that second?" That was going to be horribly
embarrassing, but then again she had come here to be helped, right? Nokala
surely wouldn't laugh at her. This was her job.

"That's exactly right." What she said confirmed Nokala's supposition. That
gave her a starting point. There were techniques that Genna could learn
that would help her. She held up the next card. 'Canine'

"C.. na.. nane, canine," Genna blushed deeply, giving Nokala an apologetic
smirk. "Yeah, it's like that up there," she said as she tapped the side of
her head.

"I think I know what the problem is. And don't worry-you're not the first."
She set the cards aside and began to take a few notes. "Basically your
brain organizes things differently. There are a few techniques you can
learn that will help you tell it to do things the right way." Nokala wrote
quick and sure, thinking about what she was going to need.

"It does? And there are?" Somehow that sounded a whole lot better to Genna.
Organizing things differently was better than being simply retarded, right?
"That sounds good. When should I report back in?"

"Give me a sevenday to prepare the materials I am going to need when we
work together. Then feel free to see me on your free lesson." She would
send a note to the weyrling staff to make sure they were on the same page
and worked with her to help Genna.

"Alright. Thank you, Nokala. I hope you can help me," Genna nodded,
avoiding the word 'fix' purposefully.

Last updated on the January 27th 2015

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