"Now Azalea. Azalea? Azalea!!!!"
The taller dark haired girl wasn't paying attention. Azalea was very tall 5'9" and thin, making her look like a bean-pole. She had large dark eyes and dark hair. She cringed and looked as if she was about to break into tears. "I....I.....I.......I......"
Feena sighs. "I'm sorry Azalea. Look at me. That's good. I'm sorry." Feena pats the other girl on the back and she quiets.
Azalea opened her mouth, but no sound comes out. She looked hopelessly to Feena. The words always formed in her head, but she couldn't commune them to Feena. Her eyes filled with tears again.
"It's okay. Think before you speak. Calm down, breathe. Now speak."
"I...I pay atten...attention." Azalea stammered, thinking before each word, making sure that was what she wanted to say.
"Good. Now Azalea, look. This is a square. How many sides does it have?"
Azalea looked dumbfoundedly at the shape. Square? Had she heard that word before? What was a square? How many sides does it have? She started to breathe heavy, scared. I remember going over this yesterday. I remember Feena telling me what a square was. Why can't I remember? What's wrong with me? The girl finally looked up to Feena in reluctance. "Ten."
Feena smiled softly and sighed. "How about we go see Celeste? Okay?"
Azalea, not trusting herself to speak, just nodded.
* * *
"What wrong with her Celeste?" Feena demanded the Healer.
Azalea sat on a chair, moping. She hated it when people talked about her like she wasn't there. They thought just because she had some problems speaking, she couldn't understand. No, I understand Azalea sighed. That's my curse. I understand perfectly, but I can't make other people understand.
Celeste looked pityingly to Azalea. "I've told you before Feena. The treatment will take a long time. You won't see results on a day-to-day basis. It'll take years..."
"Why?" Feena interupted, distressed. "She's eighteen turns, why can't she remember shapes? Why can't she form sentances? Why can't she learn numbers?"
"She may be eighteen turns, but she has the mind of a child of four turns!" Celeste raised her voice slightly in her annoyance. "I've explained it before. She was born pre-mature, really pre-mature, about 4 months pre-mature. She's lucky to have lived. The problem is that her brain is missing some of the necessary cells to handle all this information. She has little to no short term memory and I don't know how much long term memory. This treatment may not even work, I'm trying Feena, really!!!!"
Celeste was at her wits end. Eight turns ago, Azalea's parents had brought Azalea here, to Adanuk. They came searching for someone who could help their daughter. They had left Azalea in Celeste's care and left. Celeste sighed. She couldn't blame them. They could not care properly for Azalea. It was best that they leave. Still, Celeste thought, If they had stayed it would have shown that they cared. Maybe Azalea would have reacted to stimulus from them better?
"C'mon Azalea." Feena said, defeated. "Let's get back to your lessons."
NO!!! Azalea wanted to shout. I don't want your lessons. I'm fine. I don't have the mind of a child. I understand. I am an adult. I'm not a lost cause. She stammered for a minute, both Celeste and Feena looking at her expectantly. They looked like they were waiting for their pet bird to speak. Azalea sighed and followed Feena back to the weyrbowl.
* * *
How were lessons today? Hyth asked Azalea as she saw her walk by.
Azalea was glad to see the Sr. Queen, as always. Hyth and the other dragons were the only ones who understood. They didn't need words, they saw she wasn't stupid. I learned about squares, for the fifth day in a row.
>Don't be so sad. You'll get it. Hyth smiled at the young girl.
Azalea sighed. How come I remember now? How come right now I could tell you the multiplication tables, but tommorrow I'll forget them? How come I remember names and faces and conversations, but forget my shapes? Hyth, please, someone tell me. I can't keep doing this!
Hyth noticed Azalea's hysterical tone and tried to calm her down. Azalea. Calm down.....
DON'T TALK TO ME LIKE THAT!!!!! Azalea screamed into Hyth's mind. I'm not an animal. I'm not stupid. I'm not a child. Don't talk to me like Feena does. Don't make me think I'm stupid. In her anger Azalea didn't realize she'd gathered an audience. They do it all the time. They talk to me like I'm not a person. Celeste, Feena, my parents, everyone. They make me feel stupid...I'm not stupid.....I'm not... Azalea broke down into tears and fell to the ground. She finally noticed the crowd when K'rik caught her.
"Are you okay?" The tall dragon-rider asked.
Azalea looked around her and saw the crowd. She wondered briefly if she'd said all that out-loud. She opened her mouth to explain and realized she couldn't have. "I....I....I.....am....am....I...."
K'rik smiled. "Good." He helped Azalea sit up.
She looked around. All the dragons that were at Adanuk Weyr were gathered in the Weyrbowl, with their riders. "Ho...Ho...How?" Azeala managed to stutter out.
K'rik gave her another smile. "Every dragon in the Weyr heard your outburst and conveyed it, word for word, to their riders. Azalea, I'm sorry if you feel we treat you like you're stupid."
Azalea stared blankly at the rider.
K'rik helped her stand up. "Now I'm sure Celeste will want to hear about this."
* * *
Celeste gaze wandered from Azalea to K'rik and back. "Amazing. All this time. We never knew. Why didn't Hyth tell her rider?"
K'rik shrugged. "Who knows?"
Azalea could see Celeste thinking. "So her actual problems are with speech and complex thoughts, right?" She asked Azalea.
Azalea's heart leaped. She actually asked me. She refered to me as a person. She's going to help. She's...
K'rik broke her train of thoughts. "Calm down or your going to gather another crowd."
Celeste looked to K'rik. "Is your bronze really telling you everything she thinks?"
K'rik searched for words. "Sort of. Only when she thinks in definate thoughts. Like if she was trying to send a message with her mind."
Celeste looked thoughtful. "I've heard of something like this. Empathy with all dragons. Interesting."
Azalea heard K'rik and used clean, precise thoughts. I have trouble with math, memory work and talking.
K'rik smiled at her. "She says math, memory work and talking are what she has problems with."
Celeste smiled. A huge smile. One that hadn't crossed her face in along time. "Now we're getting somewhere."
The smile spread to Azalea's face. For the first time she knew Celeste was right.
A turn later. . .