Tessellating

Writers: Kaysea, Jane
Date Posted: 12th August 2007

Characters: Rahona, Lihona, Linli, Tahna, Neke
Description: Rahona and her daughter start their quilting lessons.
Location: Elsewhere on Pern
Date: month 5, day 13 of Turn 4

"I _can_ sew," Rahona said in uncertain protest at the lesson that had been 'specially arranged for her and Lihona. "You know, thread a needle and make simple garments." Nevertheless she settled into a corner of the crew common room with Lineal's cousin and the two girls she fostered.

"Sewing is the final part in the process." Neke explained, pulling out a pillowcase stuffed with off cuts of fabric. "Most of the fabric we have here is from old garments we've chopped up." she explained, pulling out a length of very soft fabric that still retained some of the original deep colours it had originally contained.

Tahna opened a box that rested on her knees. "This's got templates in it," she explained, pulling out some well worn hide shapes, similar to the ones the Harpers used in children's classes to teach them the different shapes - triangles, squares, rectangles and hexagons.

Lihona picked up a shape and grinned. "This is like the numbers lessons from the harpers. Sides and angles."

"Yep, it is." Linli nodded her head. "That's where Tahna got them from, when we were doin' tess ... tessa ... those thingummies where they all sit snug together."

"Tessellations." Tahna nodded. "Really that's all a quilt is."

"Tessa-whats?" Rahona said faintly. "I've seen a lot of lovely quilts here but I don't think I've seen any of those other things on them."

Neke laughed softly, "The girls are being smart." she said, shaking her head at the pair of them. "Ever since that Harper came aboard two trips ago, they've been playing with that word and aching to use it."

Tahna and Linli looked at each other and laughed. "Its not a _thing_, Rahona." Tahna said, looking from her to Neke. Neke gave a nod of assent and sat back, waiting to see if Tahna had really understood the Harper.

"These shapes tessellate." she said, holding the different shapes in her hands. "It means they all fit together neatly with no gaps. Like tiles that fit together to form a floor, or even rocks that fit snugly and form a pattern."

"Yes," Neke nodded, "the shapes we cut out and sew together form patterns, or tessellations. We use those shapes, that Tahna has, to form patches of fabric which are sewn together to create quilts. The Harper gave them a new word and they have clung to it ever since."

"Why didn't the Weyr harpers tell me, then?" Lihona asked, looking quite put out that she hadn't learned the word.

"Er - perhaps they knew we didn't need the word in our everyday lives," Rahona suggested, feeling much as her daughter looked. She'd never heard the word before, either.

"He only mentioned it to us when he saw us sewing one afternoon." Neke offered as an appeasement. "I doubt he would have mentioned it, but he was trying to impress the girls I think. You know - a new word, and all," she shrugged.

Rahona smiled, grateful for Neke's tact. "So, we're ... tessellating? This quilt?"

"Yes!" Linli piped up, "Isn't it a lovely word. One I can feel rolling around my tongue." Her eyes shone as she looked from one to the other of the women, before turning to Lihona, "C'mon Li, you try it ... tessa ...
tessellating!"

"Tessellating!" Lihona said with a laugh. "That sounds better than sewing!"

"Well we still have to sew." Neke laughed, "but for now, how about you choose which colours and fabrics you like the look of?" she asked, pushing forward the bag of scrap fabric she had in front of her. "Once you've chosen your colours we can start preparing the patches."

"I want all the pretty ones," Lihona said, rummaging around in the bag, pulling out some she liked the look of.

"There're plenty to choose from." Neke smiled.

Tahna reached across to a pillowcase of her own and pulled out the comforter she had been working on; a mass of deep reds and greens and burnt orange flamed out from the plain white cover, as she pulled it across her knees.

"Oh, that's lovely," Rahona exclaimed. "Did you choose the colours yourself, Tahna?"

"I chose the fabrics and the pattern - but the colours were a request." Tahna answered, "I wasn't so sure they'd look good to begin with, but I'm quite pleased with the effect now it's all come together."

Again Rahona thought the girl sounded too old for Turns. Perhaps Weyr children had an easier life, and certainly for many Hold girls life could be very much harder than Tahna's was, but the riverboat girl had had to grow up after her father's accident and when her mother had left and that had given her a maturity that wasn't typical for her age on the Sungazer.

"I want to do one like Tahna's doing," Lihona said, diving back into the bag to choose similar colours.

"I think you'd better get hatched before you try to fly," Rahona murmured, making eye contact with her daughter. "Let's see your sewing first."

"Oh, the sewing doesn't come for ages, yet." Linli shook her head, "Not the proper sewing, anyway." She shook her head, "We have to use the templates first, to cut and shape, right Neke?"

"Yes Linli. First we chose the fabrics, then the shape and then the stay - stitching." She dug into her own pillowcase and pulled out a wad of fabrics in all colours and patterns. "See," she proffered the assorted colours to Rahona and Lihona, "these have all been shaped and stay stitched." Each individual colour of fabric had been shaped into either a square, triangle or rectangle shape and roughly stitched into shape.

"That looks like a lot of sewing," the weyrbred girl said uncertainly.

"Not too much, a few tacking stitches to hold the shape, it's just you need quite a few patches for each quilt. But - " she held up her hand, forestalling any protests, "we'll start you both out on a pillow cushion. How does that sound?"

"Wonderful," Rahona said with obvious relief and she found herself exchanging amused glances with her daughter. It appeared that some things about riverboat life would prove harder to adjust to than others.

Neke didn't miss the relief on both faces, and she looked across to Tahna and noticed she too was trying to hide an amused smile. "Good stuff! Let's get started."

Last updated on the October 1st 2008

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Tessellating