At the Bottom of the River (2/2)

Writers: Eimi, Paula
Date Posted: 21st December 2010

Characters: Zelanka, Shadux
Description: Zelanka remembers tragedy from the past.
Location: Amber Hills Hold
Date: month 12, day 5 of Turn 5
Notes: Follows: "No future left". A flashback-post, (part2/2).

~*~ flashback continues ~*~

The little boy stood underneath the doorknob, looking up at it with some
intense consideration. A little stuffed runner was tucked under one
arm. The other arm was wrapped around the blanket he held against his
chest. He had run out of hands. One of them would have to be dropped
in order for him to reach it. But which one? He looked thoughtfully
between the two and finally decided they would _both_ have to be put
down.

"And what would you be doing, Shadux-dear?" Zelanka asked with a silent
voice. She had been sleeping lightly.

"I'm going home," he stated matter of factly as he set his runner
carefully on the ground next to his blanket.

"You don't want to stay here with Lantriv and Pelanka?" Zelanka asked
and squatted down to his level. Zetriv was so much older that he was not
interested playing with small children.

He shook his head, chin pointed towards his chest with a bit of a pout.
Shadux might be too young to understand all that was happening around
him, but he knew _something_ was wrong. "I want to go home."

"There's nobody at your home," she said gently. Shayven was in no
condition to look after himself not to mention his children.

Well, that defeated the purpose! But he was undaunted. "Where are
they?"

"Well, your sister is sleeping over there," she pointed Pelanka's
bedroom. Shayven was probably getting very very drunk.

"Where's Vesan?" That was the real question. Why wasn't his brother
with them? His parents had gone away for a night before. But he was
always with _both_ his siblings.

Zelanka looked and felt very, very sad. She had to think what to say
next. She didn't believe in telling children comforting lies, but what
did three turns old understand about death?

"He's gone. He's never coming back. The river took him."

His eyebrows raised in surprised. He had heard the older boys talk
about Wherries and Dragons coming and taking small children, but this
was the first time he had heard about the _river_ taking them too!
"Where? Where did it take him?"

"He drowned, with your mother. They sank to the bottom and then they
couldn't breath," Zelanka said.

He wasn't sure what all those words meant. But from her face he could
tell that it wasn't a good thing. His brow furrowed further as he tried
to piece it together. "Why would the river do that? What's at the
bottom?"

"The ship they were in collided and all the people on it fell to the
water. At the bottom, lot of fishes and water plants, I suppose,"
Zelanka tried to explain it, but she felt she was sinking deeper.

Again, a lot of words he didn't quite grasp the meaning of. But it did
sound like they were somewhere, and maybe it was a place he could go,
too. "Well, can I visit them at the bottom?"

"No, you can't," Zelanka said gently, she was starting to feel that the
boy wouldn't understand untill he saw the cold bodies of his mother and
brother.

Shadux didn't think the bottom of the river was a nice place after all.
"When will they come back?"

"They never be back," she said and pulled to boy to her arms.

"No!" he protested, pushing against her. "I want to go home!" Because
his mother was _always_ there when he went home. And so was his
brother. And if he went home, they were be there waiting for him. He
was as sure of that as he was that the sun would rise the next day.

"Not tonight, tonight you stay here with us," she said firmly, keeping
the struggling boy in her lap.

"I want my mama!" he wailed, reaching both hands for the doorknob that
seemed now so far away. Tears were starting to spill out of his eyes
out of frustration and more than a little fear that the lady might be
right. That his mother and brother might be trapped at the bottom of
the river, and that the river might never let them come back to him.

"Oh, sweetheart," Zelanka murmured and hold him close.

Little Shadux continued to struggle, demanding to be let go, insisting
that he should go home, cries for his mother. But she didn't come and
Zelanka hold him firm. Finally he stopped fighting, and instead fell to
loud sobbing, his eyes never leaving the door. His mother should come
through it and rescue him any moment. She always did.

Zelanka stroked his hair. "Just remember, sweetheart, what ever you do,
when ever you go, there's always someone who loves you."

He could not hear her words then, and even if he had, he would not have
remembered. But there was never a day growing up that Shadux did not
feel the truth of those words. Even in his darkest moments, he knew he
could count on the unwaivering love of a mother. And that mother was
Zela.

~*~ End of flashback ~*~

Zelanka shook herself like a wet canine and quickly wiped her eyes, hiding
the tears. Yes, loosing Shadux would be like loosing her own son. But he
wasn't gone yet, and she had work to do.

Last updated on the January 23rd 2011

Welcome to Triad Weyrs!

At the Bottom of the River (2/2)