Healing by the River

Writers: Halyonix, Heather
Date Posted: 24th October 2024

Characters: Mirona, Coran
Description: Coran and Mirona meet by the river where they're both trying to.
Location: Green Valley Hold
Date: month 1, day 9 of Turn 12

It was a brilliantly sunny day with the temperatures soaring near
ninety. Despite the open windows, Coran found the inside of Green
Valley Hold to be stifling. Like many others, he sought the outdoors
and the banks of the small river that ran the perimeter of the valley,
but flowed near enough to the main buildings that it wasn't too much
of a trek for people on foot.

As he sat with his shirt unbuttoned, his pant legs rolled up, and his
feet in the water, Coran wished for the less reserved nature of the
Weyr. What he wanted was to strip everything off completely and jump
into the water, but he supposed as acting holder that others would
frown upon such behavior. Children, however, were not restrained to
the same rules. Some distance away, there was a young boy, barely old
enough to begin his lessons, running around wearing very little. And a
woman watching over him from the bank.

"I found a fish!" Mirasoren squealed loudly. He plunged his hands into
the water but only came up with empty disappointment. "It got away!"
He wandered a few more steps and then tried again. And let out another
disappointed cry. A few more steps and another failure. But when he
came up that fourth time, nearly at the range of his mother's sharp
gaze, was when he noticed Coran. "There's a man there!" he yelled to
his mother, pointing.

Mirona rose from her spot and calmly strode over to her son, following
his finger as she shielded her eyes from the sun. A mother's
protective instincts were never far from her thoughts as she weighed
how to proceed. Eventually, she raised her hand in greeting, letting
the stranger make the next move.

Coran, realizing that he'd been spotted, lifted a hand in return.
Since it would have been rude to ignore the woman and child, Coran
stood and made his way down the river.

"Well met," he called when he was within speaking distance of the
woman. "He looks like he's having a good time," he said, gesturing to
the boy in the water.

As the man neared, Mirona's breath caught. The acting Lord Holder,
Coran. That's who it was! "Lord," she greeted, dipping into a curtsey
without dropping her eyes. When she rose, her gaze was still steady,
not quite defiant but definitely not subservient. "Son, manners," she
remarked to her son, who gave Coran a big boy bow. Mirona waved for
him to return to his play while the adults spoke. "What brings you to
the river today, Lord Holder?"

"Oh, I'm not a Lord," Coran waved the title off. "I'm a journeyman
healer, so please. Journeyman, or just Coran is fine." He tipped his
hat back on his head so the brim wasn't so far down over his eyes. "I
suppose I'm out here for the same reason you are - it's stifling
inside today."

Mirona tilted her chin thoughtfully. Eschewing such a prominent title
was interesting. Most men couldn't wait to be called Lord Holder. But
calling him Coran felt far too familiar. Mirona decided that she'd use
his journeyman title. At the mention of the weather, her dark eyes
canted upwards, as if looking for something. "You're correct -- the
breeze isn't with us today." The lack of wind movement made the heat
oppressive. "I'm a bit surprised that more people aren't trying to
avoid their duties with this heat."

"They're used to the heat," Coran said. "I grew up here and used to be
impervious to it, but I've spent the last few turns at Jade Harbor.
I'm afraid the breeze off the water has spoiled me."

"Jade Harbor?" Mirona echoed. "Was it as lovely as people always say it is?"

"Even more so, honestly. It's too beautiful to put into words, well,
I'm sure the harpers could wax poetic about it and do it justice."
There was a pang in Coran's chest as he considered the people he'd
left behind at Jade Harbor. "Green Valley has its own beauty, though.
The rolling green hills and the crops looking like a patchwork quilt."

Mirona shifted her stance, arms crossed but listening curiously. "A
patchwork quilt. That's accurate. I wonder..." Her voice trailed off
as her gaze looked past her son towards those mentioned fields. "I bet
the weavers would like a project," she said cryptically, thinking
aloud.

Coran took the opportunity to study Mirona a little more closely since
she was distracted. She was a lovely woman, he thought. He also felt
sure that he would have noticed her at Green Valley when he'd lived
there before. "Are you and your son new here?" he asked.

His question drew her focus again. "We are," she answered. "We arrived
a few sevendays ago. From the Weyr." She didn't say which Weyr though
but he could assume. "I've been...asked to come help the Headwoman and
her staff here. I learned a few skills at the Weyr that are useful."
She also learned plenty of skills at the Weyr that were not useful at
Holds and she knew it. She knew how to be someone's toy, and how to
use someone to get what she wanted as well, but now she had her son to
think about. She couldn't be _that_ selfish anymore.

"Oh, a woman of many talents, then," Coran said, genuinely meaning the
compliment. "I've only ever visited the Weyr a couple of times, both
in short stints, but I'm continually Impressed by the way it can
harness and organize the Lower Caverns to run so smoothly."

That drew out a quick laugh from her. "Don't let the looks of it fool
you," she said. "It's a bit organized chaos some days, especially on
Threadfall days. But..." She shrugged one shoulder nonchalantly. "It
_is_ organized. The Headwoman and her team work very well together,
all leaning on each other's strengths. It was something I was drawn
to." Truthfully, Mirona had initially been drawn to the power
associated with that position. Deprived of her chance to be Weyrwoman,
and having burned all of her bridges to get there, she instinctively
sought the next best seat of power -- Headwoman. And was sorely
humbled there as well. It was a _job_, a hard one, not basking in the
golden light at all. She didn't dare call it a thankless position but
the more she worked with the team, the more her illusions fell apart.

It seemed like a lot of her illusions were falling apart nowadays,
leaving Mirona with a sense that she had built an entire life on
crumbling sand.

She set her shoulders, discarding that line of thought. "But the Weyr,
for all of its charm, was just _too_ chaotic for me. The dragons,
beautiful as they, they're loud. They never quiet, even in the dead of
night, so you either get used to constantly hearing them roar or grunt
or warble or it just interrupts everything you're doing." She waved a
hand towards the green fields. "This...has its benefits."

Coran looked out over the quiet hills. "Yes, there is something...
healing... about nature. I'm afraid I took Green Valley's beauty for
granted growing up here, but since returning, I've appreciated it
more."

Mirona wasn't sure how she felt about nature being a healer but she
didn't disagree with him. She shifted her feet a little,
uncomfortably, then said, "You know, you have some weavers who would
do a good job of capturing that beauty for the main hall. If you were
looking to get a new tapestry made."

The healer's head snapped back to look at Mirona again. "That's a
great idea. I'm sure my brother and his wife would enjoy that as a
welcome back present when they return to Green Valley." Mirona really
was a lovely woman, he thought. Maybe the type of woman he could get
to know.... "Thank you for the idea. I should be getting back up to
the main hold. It was nice meeting you."

She didn't dip into a curtsey that time. Instead, she nodded her head
regally as she said, "A pleasure to meet you as well." It was kindly
meant. He seemed like a good acting Lord. Maybe their paths would
cross again. A part of her certainly hoped so.

Last updated on the November 4th 2024

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Healing by the River