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 Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 9:09 am
Becka had been busy, taking care of her little green flit Nightling, as well as working in the Infirmary. She'd avoided Bereck as soon as he began to wake for longer and longer periods. Most of the time she hid away, taking inventory... which was exactly what she was doing today. Bereck was awake more often than asleep lately and she knew she couldn't avoid him forever but she was doing her best for the moment.
She was worried about how Bereck would react and she knew Rochelle had been in, talking to Bereck and who knew what she'd said to her Master, the fact he hadn't actively searched her out either had her worried despite the other healers saying she'd done as best she could under the circumstances. She wasn't a happy apprentice, not only had she the worry for Bereck, she'd had to deal with being uprooted, forced away from her home and out here in the open, she regularly bumped into Whers. She was getting used to them but they still made her jump when she came across one.
She sighed and stroked her young flit's headknobs, for a green Nightling was unusually reliable and Becka had begun teaching her to fetch things from the supply cupboard, thankfully Nightling, though young, was rather large as well as reliable so she could carry larger things. Becka envied Bereck his group of flits though, she could acheive more with more than one but she also had better things to do than take care of newborn flitters so she was content with training Nightling for now. As it was she was counting the bandages, something she was getting rather good at doing quickly since she spent so much time in the store room.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 9:28 am
At first he had kept expecting to see her come around the corner to talk to him. After a while he'd thought that at least she might pop by to say hello. Now he was wondering why she hadn't, and had to confess to being slightly hurt. Technically their relationship was merely professional; he was her Master, she was his Apprentice... but he was fond of her and he'd thought she was fond of him too. A cynical part of him wondered if she had decided to ditch the broken one and attach herself to a new master. Perhaps Trine's Weyrhealer. Today, with hours and hours of pain and boredom stretching ahead of him, Bereck decided that enough was enough; building up what Becka might be up to inside his head was entirely ridiculous. There was a notebook by his bed that he was using to record the firelizards' training progress; he reached over to grab it and the stick of graphite that went along with it, pulled out a page and scribbled a note. Folding the note up he called Cap back from whatever the young brown had been up to and pressed the note into his paws. "Find." He gave the brown a clear picture of Becka, and with a cheep the flitt took off and started his search of the infirmary. Cap flew along all the rows of beds, popped into the offices, and even had a look in the empty operating room. With no luck there he started to search the storage rooms. In the second one he tried, he was in luck! Squeaking and chirping he landed on a shelf in front of the person and held out his note to her. When unfolded the piece of paper read: Are you avoiding me, Becka?
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 9:42 am
counting.. counting... Becka was doing rather well until a flitter emerged, she instantly recognised the brown, how could she not. She sighed and took the scrap of paper, reaching to see if he'd let her rub his headknobs. "Shards...." she muttered as she unfolded it.
Reading the note she groaned inwardly, what was she supposed to say .. well .. Bereck had sought her out in the only way he could ... chances are he could have yelled for her and had her come running but instead he'd written a note. "Well ... might as well hitch a ride Brown" she said to the flit, holding out an arm. There was no more avoiding him now.
She made her way cautiously to his bedside. "Master Bereck" she said, her head tilted down and not looking at him "I..i got your note, i'm sorry" she wasn't going to make excuses, lying wasn't her style. "I..... i was afraid to come" she admitted. letting the strands of hair that she couldn't tie back, flop in her face.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 10:13 am
Cap gave an amiable cheep and climbed up onto the proffered arm; he'd done a good job and he got to snuggle with a person. All in all well worth coming back from the lake.
Receiving a feeling of success from Cap Bereck tried to settle himself more comfortable against the pillows and set the notebook back on the table. He didn't have to wait long for Becka to appear, but her attitude when she did was a surprise to say the least. For a moment Bereck sat in perplexed silence, studying what he could of her face with her head bowed as it was.
"Sit down girl," he said eventually, gesturing to the chair by his bed with a thin hand. "Why on Pern were you afraid to come and talk to me?" At least he knew she hadn't decided he just wasn't worth her time anymore, that was reassuring, but now he had a whole different issue to deal with... once he found out what the shards it was.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 10:23 am
Becka sat once she let the brown hop off her arm, she almost smiled at the flit, they were lovely creatures, especially when they were affectionate. She closed her eyes at Bereck's question and took a deep breath.
"Because of me.... you're still stick in here ... you got an infection and ...and....and... and i'm sure Rochelle told you how awful i was to her, but Master, i said sorry right away i didn't mean to .... but" she stopped, she was making excuses... "I'm sorry master, i should have done better, you've always taught me to stay calm but when everything was happening and she told me to just 'deal with it' i snapped .. i don't know what came over me"
She gulped a breath though her face was full of apology and low self worth. She didn't bother to mention the continued threats she'd gotten from Rochelle and she'd already forgotten about pushing Rochelle away so she could look at Carltis' eye. Despite the fact Aleck had yelled at her for it. Excuses got you nowhere, admit mistakes, move on and learn from them, that's what Bereck had taught her. "I ...i was the only one Master Bereck and you were hurt... and Sessie..." she choked back a sob at mention of her friend "Then there was a Wher and i was scared..." she mumbled, trailing off as emotion got a hold of her
"i'm so happy you didn't die because of my mistakes" she said, tears dropping freely down her cheek unchecked.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 10:35 am
...Oh.
Not what he had been expecting. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting, but this wasn't it. He had been planning to talk to her about what had happened with Rochelle, to hear her side of it, though yes admittedly probably to reprimand her for hitting somebody.
She was crying.
For a couple of moments he found himself sitting in silence with no idea what to say or do but eventually he gave himself a mental shake and shifted over (slowly, gritting his teeth against the pain), and patted the bed beside him. "Come here girl," he muttered gruffly, opening his thin arm to wordlessly offer an embrace. He could address everything she'd said once she'd calmed down a bit; after everything that had happened a hug seemed like the right sort of thing to do. He wasn't the best at this sort of thing but she was his apprentice, and he was willing try for her sake.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 10:54 am
She tried not to sob but she couldn't help it, she didn't notice Bereck moving until he patted the bed. She looked up with shining eyes and it was clear she hadn't been sleeping well for a while. When she noticed his arm was offering an embrace she (carefully) moved to cling to the old man, aware he was hurting and she tried not to hug him too hard but she collapsed into wracking sobs, no one had offered her comfort like this, she'd been so worried he would die, that it would be all her fault... and Aleck yelled and Rochelle's threats when she was only trying to do her best... it was several long minutes before her sobs slowed down but by then Bereck's shoulder was probably soaked. Nightling crooning, her eyes whirling in distress, she hadn't seen Becka cry before and she didn't know what to do beyond cuddling up to her and crooning soothingly.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 11:08 am
Having somebody clinging onto him wasn't comfortable in the least, but he couldn't bear to mention it when she collapsed sobbing. Instead he wrapped his arms around her in return, holding her close against his bony frame. "It's alright," he murmured softly, "I'm here. I'm not going anywhere."
Eventually Becka's sobs started to diminish, and Bereck gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "It's alright," he repeated, "I'm alive; that's more than I would have been without you." A more experienced healer could have given him neater stitches, and yes the wounds would probably have healed better and left him with fewer problems but there hadn't been a more experienced healer. "It's fine," he gave her another gentle squeeze, "you did your best, and it was enough."
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 11:27 am
When Bereck squeezed her shoulder gently she got up, wiping at her face and feeling bad, she knew it must have been uncomfortable for him. She sniffed and stroked Nightling who crawled up into her arms the minute she moved away from Bereck, holding the flitter tight in an embrace with a smile "I was so scared Bereck ... i couldn't face coming to see you ... all the mistakes i made..." she sighed and straightened her back "I was so afraid you would die.... even after we got here... i've just been staying out of the way, taking inventory... doing what the others didn't want to" she said, not mentioning the bodily fuids and such she'd cleaned up in the time she'd been here, she was so unsure of herself she'd been little more than a drudge for the other apprentices and Healers, doing the more unpleasant tasks so they could get on with their jobs.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 11:56 am
Rather glad to be released Bereck sank back against his pillows and offered Becka a small smile. "You're an apprentice Becka; nobody could expect you to have been perfect in a situation like that. Yes I've taught you to stay calm in a crisis but it's not the sort of thing you can just tell someone to do. It takes time and experience that you haven't had; do you really think I was perfectly cool and capable when I was your age? I doubt I would have done better than you in the same situation at the same stage in my training." Bereck shifted slightly to try to get more comfortable, or at least less uncomfortable, and reached down to stroke Sanguine and Marrow as they made their way up from the foot of the bed to his lap.
"Consider what you did right," he went on as Cap clambered up to join the others, making him look increasingly like the crazy flitt man he probably was. "You closed the wounds, correct? Stopped me from bleeding out? I'm proud you held it together well enough to do anything at all, so don't concern yourself about not having done a perfect job." Had Becka had anyone to talk to, to comfort her?... Sessie was dead, one of Becka's closest friends so far as he knew and another of his personal apprentices. He remembered her a few times a day generally, and doing so always made his breath catch in his chest. Why hadn't he saved her? He should have suspected the handler's story, should have tried harder to make Sessie leave with the rest of them.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 12:04 pm
She was going to cry again, she knew it... he'd just said he was proud of her. Her eyes glistened again but she fought to smile instead of crying. She did rub her eyes a little though. "I'm just glad you're alive... when they said infection had set in ... " She blinked away a tear, she loved the man like she loved her parents. She'd been so very scared she would lose him but here he was, she was so happy. "I'm sorry i didn't come sooner, i couldn't face it"
It was true Becka had no one since Sessie died, she'd avoided Aleck and Rochelle and Carltis. She'd been to see Berath a couple of times but she was never sure if the Green had known she was there. "Berath is looking good Master Bereck... have they let you see her yet?" she asked, not having been present if they had.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 12:12 pm
Bereck gave a small tired sigh and shook his head. "No not yet. They haven't wanted to move me and risk the wounds splitting. Soon though hopefully. I'm glad she's looking well though, in your opinion; Aleck's said she looks well and so have the Trine healers, but having it from somebody who cares about her and is a healer themselves is reassuring." He really hoped he could see her soon, the long separation from his dragon was like a physical ache sometimes. He saw the sense of it though; he would have kicked up a hell of a fuss if he didn't.
"As for not coming sooner...." The frail healer gave another little smile, perhaps a slightly mischievous one, and reached over to give Becka's hand a squeeze. "Consider yourself forgiven for being tardy this time, but don't do it again. Understood?"
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 12:17 pm
Becka frowned "Shards, you taught me that the best thing for a rider is to be with their dragon, or at least SEE them .. aids in healing" She wasn't pleased with the Trine healers but the thought of Bereck opening his wounds was a worse thought. She was pleased it seemed to reassure him a bit though. She hadn't been involved in Berath's healing so couldn't say how she was truly doing, but she looked a hell of a lot better without the tatters of her eyelid fluttering about.
She held a breath when he began to talk about her lateness in seeing him, ready for a Bereck style telling off. Instead she blinked and had to blink again when she caught the mischievous smile. "I promise Master Bereck, i won't be late again" she said, a small smile forming on her face.
Nightling chirruped as she realised there were other flits there, she liked other flits but could be a bit jealous sometimes if she wasn't being paid attention to. She stayed put on Becka's shoulder, the very picture of a well behaved flit, despite wanting to go and play with the other young ones.
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 12:29 pm
Bereck's smile became rather more wan at her exclamation, and he nodded his agreement. "Yes, it is best... but sometimes we're stuck in situations that aren't ideal. It hasn't been possible to move me yet and we can hardly fit Berath inside, so that's the end of that. If she stands by the right window I can see a glimpse of her, but it's really not the same." He missed her smooth hide, missed leaning against her hugely powerful frame when he was tired to dejected.... Not long now though. Just a little longer, to be safe, and then he could be with her at least for short periods again.
"Anyway, I'm glad to hear that," Bereck went on, trying to push his own unhappiness aside for the moment; there were more important things to think about, namely his apprentice. "I want you doing proper work again, not just what everyone else doesn't want to do," he instructed, and though his words were businesslike his tones were still gentler than his general 'ordering you about now' voice. "You're on track to make Journywoman before you're twenty if you keep working hard, so I won't let you slip back. You're not going to let this Trine lot think Malvren healers," his healers, "are only going for picking up after them are you?"
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Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2012 12:41 pm
Becka nodded, of course, the Healers knew best, her opinion didn't matter too much. Hopefully he could get outside soon but it broke her heart he had been too bad to go and see her. They were good for each other and that's what mattered more to her.
"Yes Master Bereck" now this was what she was used to, this was better but his next words shocked her. She didn't think she was anywhere NEAR Journeywoman status.. that he thought she could do it before she was twenty was a shock to her and she just blinked. "N....no of course not Master Bereck, i'll show them what you taught me" she beamed, her cheeks reddening. She fought the urge to hug him again, knowing it had hurt him a bit.
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