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Post by FaizahPandora on Dec 25, 2011 19:32:25 GMT -5
IC Date: November 4th, 2011
IC Time: 10:00 a.m. Faizah sat inside the Infirmiry, with Nakia, and waited for the doctor to give them a moment. He had told Faizah the previous day that Nakia's blood tests had come in, and that talking to both of them was what he wanted to do. The man had seemed nervous as he said it, however. Faizah didn't want to know what had come up on Nakia's blood results. If Nakia ended up with the same blood disorder that Faizah herself had... Faizah didn't want to think about it. Hopefully the worst that would happen was show that Nakia hadn't been eating properly... Nakia, however, practically knew what was going on. Her nausea, strange dreams, odd aches and missing monthly pest told her exactly what was wrong. She had seen it with her mother enough to know... She was pregnant... She didn't know how S'tor would handle being a father. She didn't know how her sister would take the idea of Nakia being pregnant. Or of S'tor as the father. Nakia wasn't even sure she wanted to keep the baby... "I'm not keeping it..." She told Faizah. She didn't dare tell Faizah that she had told S'tor to be here as well. Faizah looked at Nakia. She was confused what Nakia meant. "What are you talking about...?" Faizah asked. Nakia sighed. "You, the supposed smartest of all us kids, have not figured it out yet? I'm pregnant, you imbecile, and I'm not keeping it." Faizah blinked in astonishment. It took her a moment to realize that Nakia had to be right. Nothing else could explain all the symptoms... Faizah rubbed her temples. She was feeling the stress. "Who's the father...?" She whispered. |
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Post by shadowreine on Dec 26, 2011 10:01:10 GMT -5
At that very moment, the brownrider came into the room, his bronze firelizard decorating his right shoulder.
Who's the father. Those were the words that he entered to, softly spoken by the Weyrwoman. Oh...dear. Despite his overall lack of respect for the woman and firm belief she should not hold the position she did, the brownrider at least managed civility. His eyes rested on Nakia.
"Is it me?"
A child...but, of course, it was her right to decide what happened to it. She could abort, she could hand it over to the creche at birth, she could send it away. That was an absolute...a woman of the Weyr had the right to dispose of her own children. He had only the right to know which were his.
He knew he did not want her to abort, but it was her right, and he steeled himself inwardly against that possibility.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Dec 26, 2011 12:40:50 GMT -5
Faizah's head snapped to the entrance. S'tor was standing there, his bronze resting on his shoulders, and looking right at Nakia. Faizah glanced between the two. When had...? She decided she didn't want to know.
Faizah looked at Nakia and sighed. "Answer the question, Nakia..." She told her little sister.
Nakia looked up at S'tor. He didn't seem excited. Maybe he didn't want to be a father...? She didn't care, really. But it would have been nice if one of the child's parents had wanted it. Nakia surely didn't. She shook her head before she looked at S'tor again, defiance in her eyes.
"Yes." She told him.
The doctor appeared in the doorway, waving Faizah, Nakia and S'tor into one of the exam rooms. Nakia stood up and headed for the room. At the same time she called back to Faizah. "I'm aborting it."
Faizah leapt to her feet. "Like hell you are!"
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Post by shadowreine on Dec 27, 2011 20:04:39 GMT -5
"It's her choice," S'tor managed, although it was through gritted teeth. He knew he didn't want her to.
At the same time, he couldn't force her to keep it and he was a rider...Earth or no, what could HE offer to a kid? Faizah, though, wanted her sister to keep it. Of course, she was from Earth, and perhaps didn't understand. Still, the fact that he did, at some levels, want the baby...or at least want it to live...showed in his body language even if he dared not voice it in words.
At the same time, Faizah was proving she was no kind of Weyrwoman...on *this* matter nobody had any say but the woman, in his mind. No matter how much they might want it.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Dec 27, 2011 21:01:31 GMT -5
Faizah glanced at S'tor. His teeth were gritted, and his body language told Faizah all that she needed to know. He wanted Nakia to keep the baby... She paused for a moment, assessing the rider before her for a moment. Then she waved him ahead of her, into the room.
"Get in there. As the father, you have a voice in this too." She told him, waiting for him to walk ahead of her.
When they were all settled in the exam room, the doctor looked at them. He seemed nervous about Faizah. "I see you've already figured out that Nakia is pregnant..." He trailed off for a moment. Faizah nodded, keeping silent long enough for the doctor to continue.
Nakia wasn't so patient, however. She looked at S'tor for a moment, seeming to ask him forgiveness, before her gaze found the doctor. "I want an abortion." She said pointedly.
"Nakia, we're going to discuss this first." Faizah cut the doctor off.
The doctor looked between the two sisters. He backed up to the door. "I'm going to let you talk about this. I'll be back in a few minutes..." With that the doctor fled the room.
Faizah glared at Nakia. "Did it ever occur to you that S'tor might want to keep his child?" Faizah practically growled.
Nakia tossed her hair, a haughty look on her face. "Don't care. Because unlike you, sister, I see no problem being just like mom." Nakia put emphasis on the last word.
A moment later they heard a roar of fury. Faizah's face was a mask of hurt and anger, and it was no question that the very vocal dragon out in the Weyrbowl was Surth. Faizah's hands were clenched fists on her lap.
Faizah took a deep breath, glancing at S'tor from the corner of her eye. She hoped she was right in assuming the man wanted to be a father. He had seemed upset when Nakia had said she wanted to abort. She blinked, turning her gaze to Nakia.
"Then be like mom. Be exactly like mom..." Faizah growled.
Nakia blinked, her brow furrowing. She thought a moment before speaking again. "I will. I don't want a kid. So I'm doing the responsible thing and aborting it." She said. She seemed to be thinking about every word before she said it.
Faizah nodded. "That's not what mom would do. Mom would have the kid and dump it on me..." Faizah's voice rang with hurt. But she knew that Nakia would take the bait.
Nakia's eyes gleamed. Faizah had a point...
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Post by shadowreine on Dec 28, 2011 18:13:43 GMT -5
Now, S'tor fully understood why Nakia didn't like her sister...they were both incredibly alike and completely different.
Have the kid and dump it on Faizah. She was the Weyrwoman...she didn't have time to raise it either, not alone, not properly. But from the gleam in Nakia's eyes, she was considering just that.
He decided...to keep his mouth shut. If he pressed anything, Nakia would go back to her original plan of Betweening the child...the remedy Weyr woman had used for many generations to deal with an unwanted pregnancy. If he did not, then she might let it live, and it might grow to be a strong rider...or to leave and explore Earth. He had to admit *that* possibility. Surely, some of those born at this Weyr would not want to stay.
No child of HIS would turn his back on the chance to become a dragonrider, though. Right? Right...
For right now, he just watched the two furious women. He was seriously considering getting between them if this got much worse. Just in case one decided to sharpen her nails on the other. When women got physical, they could do some real damage...
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Post by FaizahPandora on Dec 28, 2011 20:40:03 GMT -5
Faizah waited for what Nakia would do.
Nakia glared at her sister. She wondered... Could Faizah possibly be trying to force her to keep the baby? It wouldn't be unlike Faizah to do that... But from what Nakia could see, Faizah was hurt...
Nakia glared daggers at Faizah. But at the same time, her green blue eyes gleamed with mischief. "Fine. You want a screaming kid, you can keep it..." She said, leaning back in the chair. Nakia crossed her arms and continued to glare at Faizah
Faizah fought the intense desire to smile. She had won. Nakia was going to keep the baby. It was going to have a chance to live...
She looked over at S'tor. "You have anything to add?" She asked.
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Post by shadowreine on Dec 29, 2011 17:43:46 GMT -5
S'tor let out a breath. "Just so long as it's healthy." Now Nakia seemed to want to keep it, he was becoming just a little bit brusque again, but there was some affection in his voice. Of course, he had no idea that the Weyrwoman had just been told she could not have children of her own.
He might, in that case, have even found a little bit of sympathy for her. But then he realized...that the freakrider would have his kid. How did he deal with that? But he certainly couldn't take the brat himself....he'd only end up dumping it on the creche the first time it screamed.
"I guess I don't have anything to add, except that if he or she goes and Impresses a white, it's not my fault." That was the closest to wry S'tor had ever got...was he *teasing* Faizah? Just...a little? It was probably relief.
Yeah. That had to be it.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Dec 29, 2011 18:31:45 GMT -5
Faizah nodded at S'tor's comment of the child's health. She did hear his sudden hint of affection when he spoke. She wanted to smile. Perhaps this child would make S'tor a little more willing to accept that he was staying on Earth now...
Then again, perhaps not...
She was going to be raising S'tor's child... He could not certainly be happy about that. Faizah knew how much he despised her, how much many in the Weyr despised her. She hung her head, suddenly overwhelmed with frustration.
S'tor's next words made her smirk in amusement. She even managed a small smile at the usually sour brownrider.
Nakia watched and listened. S'tor certainly seemed relieved that she was not aborting the child. And deep down, Nakia was glad she had let Faizah convince her not to abort. She hadn't really wanted to kill her child, but she couldn't take care of it. She knew that, and at least she was mature enough to admit it.
Nakia decided to have a talk with S'tor on her own.
"Faizah... Would you step out for a moment? I want to talk to S'tor alone." Nakia smiled sweetly at her sister.
Faizah arched a red eyebrow. Nakia only ever used that sickly sweet voice when she really really wanted something. With a sideways glance at S'tor, Faizah nodded and calmly walked out of the room.
Nakia didn't say anything...
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Post by shadowreine on Dec 30, 2011 18:55:44 GMT -5
For a long moment, S'tor waited, dealing with the silence by reaching up to gently pet his bronze.
Finally, when it became clear that Nakia was not about to say, he violated the quiet with a fairly soft, "So..."
What did she want? She had not wanted to raise the child, so she had threatened to kill it, but to S'tor, traditional, harsh and very Pernese, that was perfectly acceptable, even expected, behavior from a woman who had Impressed a green. Goldriders tended to be more nurturing, but greens could be...well. Hard, and Nakia was hard, and a child would cramp her style. He knew all of that.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 1, 2012 14:16:15 GMT -5
Nakia looked S'tor up and down, almost as if sizing him up. Then she looked him in the eye before speaking. "Do you want this child?" She asked, a little abruptly and with an almost daring tone to her voice.
She had no idea what had possessed her to ask. He was Pernese, and a dragonrider, and likely didn't care. But Faizah had kept glancing at S'tor as she had been convincing Nakia to keep the child. It made Nakia think. Perhaps S'tor did want the child...? Perhaps he did want to be a father? There were a lot of questions floating around her head.
Nakia continued to watch S'tor with a haughtiness that meant she was awkward and uncomfortable, waiting for him to reply.
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 2, 2012 19:05:47 GMT -5
"By Pernese custom, it is always the woman's choice," S'tor noted. Then he let out a breath. "But if I had the choice, yes, I do want this child..."
What man did NOT want to be a father. And he at least knew it was his, which was sometimes a question with rider women. "I know things are different by Earth customs, but I did not choose to come here," he added. Hence his awkwardness. "I did not want to voice my feelings, because I was not sure I had the right."
Not chosen...but in that moment, for the first time, S'tor was not entirely miserable. Who would have thought it...
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 2, 2012 23:05:13 GMT -5
Nakia nodded. She had forgotten that men did not have a choice with children on Pern. She almost wondered if it worked better, if woman had the only choice where children were concerned...
"Do you have a problem with my sister raising the child?" Her tone was almost light and curious, as if this wasn't a very touchy subject between the two riders.
Nakia didn't mind Faizah raising the child. It would be better off with her as a mother than if Nakia raised it. Nakia knew Faizah knew what she was doing when it came to kids. She had practically raised Nakia, and she had raised Mentari, Cristian and Cato...
The only other person she could see raising her child would be Lakeen. But with Lakeesk... Nakia knew that was not an option. That wher would likely kill the child...
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 3, 2012 17:43:03 GMT -5
S'tor considered that. "She wants it, you don't, and with no Threadfall here, there's less of a reason why a rider *shouldn't* raise a child."
Except Faizah rode that freakish white, wasn't a true Weyrwoman. Of course, S'tor did not know the woman already had child rearing experience. "I know you and she don't...really get on. Heck, she and I don't get on at all."
He might have to change that, though...a rider should not raise his child, but he should not abandon it, either...not when he knew it was his. Not when he could help the boy (or girl) grow up to be a good rider. Maybe. Hopefully.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 4, 2012 18:55:09 GMT -5
Nakia nodded. "Sensible." She paused a moment, then sighed. "At least with Faizah, we know the child will be taken care of. My sister knows what she is doing when it comes to kids..." Nakia finished.
She hoped that S'tor would take an interest in the child's life, at least. Nakia herself knew she would be a part of it's life, only as Aunt Nakia, however. But a child needed more than a mother. That was one thing she would not copy from her mother...
Children needed both a mother and a father in their life...
((Sorry for the short post, Reine.))
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 4, 2012 23:35:14 GMT -5
S'tor hesitated for a moment, then, "She does? I know she doesn't have any."
He would probably never find out that she couldn't...and if he did he wouldn't care. She was the Weyrwoman. And she was going to be raising his kid. Life kept getting more complicated.
"And you feel...that you wouldn't be a very good mother." Some women weren't. Those who thought that all women had maternal instincts...didn't know women. He had thought that, then learned better.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 5, 2012 18:02:05 GMT -5
Nakia laughed. "Me?" She questioned. She shook her head. "I would not make a good mother. I'm horribly scatter brained, and have very little patience with screaming infants. Even less with hyper toddlers..."
Nakia tapped her fingers on her leg. "No, Faizah doesn't have any children. She likely never will, with her health and her awkwardness with relationships." Nakia laughed again, her eyes gleaming slightly. "She is good with kids, though. She raised me for the most part. And Mentari and our little brothers."
Nakia thought about her young brothers, suddenly. She knew Faizah had won custody of them, and their cousin Jovan, from their mother. But she did not know when the three boys would be joining Rocky Weyr... She had to wonder when...
Nakia sighed, losing her previous good mood. She looked at S'tor with near hooded eyes. If one looked closely, one might see the demons lurking behind the vibrant blue green color of her eyes.
"Do you plan on..." She paused, seemingly to wonder if she had chosen the right words. Nakia took a deep breath and continued. "Do you plan on being a part of the child's life?" She asked in a burst of courage.
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 5, 2012 18:07:43 GMT -5
"Aha. So, she's the Big Sister." A pause. "I certainly plan on making sure the kid knows who I am. I'm not good with babies, either, but once he...or she...gets old enough to appreciate having a father to hang out with."
Father. That was an odd word. It was not one he had expected associated with himself quite yet, but it could happen to any man at any time, unless he was celibate or had the preferences of a greenrider. (And even some greenriders fathered children - it was apparently quite possible to overcome those prejudices long enough to reproduce, but then it was normally a deliberate choice. Not a...thing that happened).
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 5, 2012 18:18:59 GMT -5
Nakia nodded, glad that he was willing to be a father. She smiled a bit. Now, she was slightly curious about his life on Pern...
"How were you raised?" She suddenly asked, pulling one knee up to her chest and resting her chin on it. She kept her eyes square on S'tor.
((Sorry for my bad post. And I think Nakia is a little more interesting in S'tor than she should be... ))
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 6, 2012 18:03:53 GMT -5
"Me? Weyrbrat all the way, mostly creche raised. My dad was the guy with the cool dragon. You were raised on Earth, right?"
He was pretty sure all of the Pandoras were Earth born and raised, hence the last name...most people on Pern did not have family names. "Pretty much, they throw us all together, although girls and boys tend to separate off some. It's pretty natural, I suppose."
Girls and boys were, after all, different. "And I was raised to be a rider and raised to believe in the traditions of the Weyr."
He placed a slight emphasis on 'tradition'. S'tor was well known for being an asshole, but perhaps he was simply trapped within his own traditions, beliefs and, yes, superstitions.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 7, 2012 11:11:46 GMT -5
Nakia nodded. "Earth doesn't have many traditions left, I'm afriad. And yes, all us Pandora kids were Earth born and raised." She gave a brittle little laugh. "Creche... That's pretty much an orphanage, isn't it?" She asked shyly.
Nakia was never truely shy. Not unless one got her talking about her past. A past she did not want to go back to. A past that she next to never talked about. All the Pandora children chose not to talk about it, for obvious reasons.
She shook her head, dispelling the past. For the most part. "I love Christmas though. It's a wonderful time of year." She smiled at the memories of Christmas with her grandparents, before their death.
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 7, 2012 12:11:32 GMT -5
S'tor considered. "No, it's not quite the same thing. Riders don't have time to do a great job of raising kids, but most of us try to be in their lives as much as we can. The creche looks after everyone's kids when they're working or otherwise busy. Some kids spend all of their time there, some are only there when their mother's working."
A pause. "Christmas." He considered for a moment. "I'm still a little bit shaky about Christmas." Why was he being so nice to this woman? She was a greenrider and a momentary distraction...it had to be the child who was softening his thoughts and mind.
Ryath, in his mind, was laughing.
...who was carrying his child. it had to be that. It had to be that causing him to soften
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 8, 2012 11:27:20 GMT -5
Nakia nodded as S'tor explained what a creche was. She knew she was no good with words and their meanings, so she somewhat welcomed the explanation.
She smiled at his comment about Christmas. "What's so shaky about it? You gather around with friends and family and exchange gifts. Some people don't even do that. They just get together and enjoy each other's company." She paused, thinking about the countless Christmas's she had enjoyed. And the few she hadn't enjoyed. "It's a holiday that is meant to remind you that people care about you, and you're not alone."
Nakia began to wonder, in the back of her head, why she enjoyed talking to S'tor so much. He was just another man, granted a man that was good in bed. But just a man. She had had countless in her life. She also had to wonder why she was so curious about his life, before coming to Rocky. Vaguely she knew that her only excuse was not the child she carried...
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Post by shadowreine on Jan 8, 2012 16:14:22 GMT -5
"Aha. Most people on Pern do that at Turnover. I suppose it's the same thing, really. We both have a lot of excuses to get together and party."
That was a human thing, and whatever else, Earth people were still human. "I don't really have that many people who care other than Ryath," he admitted. "I never wanted to come here, but he's unsafe to be in a normal Weyr," he admitted.
Some of the dragons here were more or less normal and healthy, born here and bonded to riders who had chosen to stay. But Nakia knew how many were...not...and it was no real shame to admit that Ryath had a problem.
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Post by FaizahPandora on Jan 10, 2012 10:30:13 GMT -5
Nakia grinned. "I wish I could have attended a Turnover. I hear they are quite fun."
She listened as he claimed that only Ryath cared for him. Nakia's hands covered her stomach for a moment, thinking of the child that grew there. She hoped that the child would care for it's father. Someone needed to. And she did understand people's hesitance to S'tor and Ryath to be there. Ryath could be a dangerous dragon.
((Sorry. My muse went on strike))
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