How do you handle a mother?

Writers: Victoria Voss
Date Posted: 2nd December 2005

Characters: Arima
Description: Garima tries to deal with her mother while Arima tries to cope with Marza being a candidate.
Location: River Bluff Weyr
Date: month 8, day 24 of Turn 3

Arima watched as Marza walked towards the candidate classes. The master vintner sighed and turned back towards her quarters. Wandering through her dining area, Arima snagged a skin of wine and headed into her bedroom. She tossed the wineskin on the bed and knelt down before one of the numerous chests that she used as seating in her rooms. Shoving the throws and pillows off of the chest, Arima threw open the cover and stared into the opening. A tear seeped out of one eye as she reached into the box. Tears began to flow more freely as she pulled out a statue of a man on a flying dragon.

"Oh G'zel!" Arima sobbed and, half standing, stumbled to the floor next to her bed. Cradling the statue to her chest, Arima reached blindly over her bed and fumbled for the wineskin.

~*~

Garima looked proudly as her daughter entered the hatching grounds. She smiled and leaned into the green dragon that stood by her side.

* So what do you think? * Garima turned to her dragon while still keeping an eye on the hatching grounds.

}: I think you want her to succeed to spite your mother. :{ Zoluth answered as if continuing a long standing conversation.

* Don't you think I'm a bit old for that? *, the greenrider grinned, "Besides, it was Marza's idea, not mine."

The green snorted, almost chuckling, }: Of course. :{ Zoluth turned her head to nudge Garima softly so she could see an older woman stumbling away from the weyr bowl towards the crafters' quarters.

* She's not taking this well is she? * Garima thought, mostly to herself.

The green dragon snorted, }: I need to sun :{ Moving away a little from Garima, Zoluth took off for the heights.

Garima watched as her dragon flew off, leaving her to deal with her mother alone. Sighing, she headed for the dining hall to grab a couple of mugs of klah. Know her mother, she might need it!

~*~

"Mother?" Garima called as she stepped into the open door to Arima's quarters. She waited a couple moments, "Arima?"

No response.

Sighing, Garima moved quickly towards Arima's bedroom, making as much noise as possible on the way while still balancing the two mugs of klah.

"Mother!" Garima sighed in exasperation. Her mother was just where she thought she'd find her, although the wineskin looked to be mostly full.

Arima seemed to be more interested in petting the statue in her arms that drinking the wine. * Well there's one good thing. * Garima put the mugs down on the floor and sat down next to her mother.

Arima looked up as she felt someone touch her shoulder. She blinked a couple times to clear her vision before she could focus on the figure sitting next to her.

Garima tried to smile as she saw Arima's eyes focus on her, "Hello Mother."

Arima reached out to touch her hand to Garima's jaw. "You look so much like him."

This time Garima did smile, sadly, "I know Mother. I miss him too." She took a deep breath, "But you can't let what happened to Father keep hurting you so."

Arima gazed sadly at the statue in her lap, "I miss him so. And now Marza wants to be a dragon rider too. And thanks to you I can't stop her." The vintner frowned at the dragonrider.

Garima sighed, she knew it was going to come to this, "She deserves the chance to be happy."

"So do I!" Arima snapped at her daughter, "She was going to be a vintner, and you ruined that!"

"Mother, let's not talk about this now." Garima picked up the wineskin from where it was laying and gently tossed it into a corner of the room. She handed Arima one of the still-warm mugs of klah. "Here Mother, have some klah."

"NO!" Arima put the statue down gently and pushed the klah away, spilling some of the hot liquid on her hand in the process. She sucked in her breath as the heat burned her hand. "See what you made me do?!" Arima glared at her daughter, "Go away! You've caused enough pain!"

"Mother . . ." Garima put down the klah and held out a hand to help her mother up, "Let's go take care of that burn."

Arima pulled away from the greenrider, "No! Go away!"

Garima sighed and got up. She looked down at her mother, "Take care of that hand, Mother."

She thought to herself as she walked out of the master vintner's quarters,
*No one said my family was boring. *

Last updated on the December 2nd 2005

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How do you handle a mother?