(Flashback) [The Mithryn Outpost] The Empty Olla

by **Sydelle Faraway** on August 16th, 2014, 4:04 am

6th of Summer, 501AV

Tiny brow wrinkled with intense concentration, Sydelle reached out chubby hands to pat the dry dirt of her 'garden' - all two of her plants. Dry! She opened her mouth to tell her mum, took a big breath and - remembered bits and pieces of what the older woman had said.

"This is your garden, Syddie."
"You must listen and learn and try to take very good care of it."
"Always remember to water your plants - when the olla is nearly dry, then you must remember to refill it."

Mum had told her that using the 'very serious' voice and the 'very serious' face. It was the same voice and face that she used when Syd had done something wrong and was supposed to 'learn her lesson'. So Syd had paid attention. And now, instead of shouting to her mother that her plants were thirsty, Sydelle pursed her little mouth and crouched down low to look at the dirt.

Mum had said when the olla was 'nearly dry', so Syd frowned at it. One pudgy hand reached out to the lidded pot, mostly buried in the dirt. Raising the lid, she leaned forward and peered into the shadowed interior. Not trusting her eyes - and because it seemed like fun - Syd stuck her fingers into the cool space, and felt the shallow pool of water in the bottom. So she splashed it around, before removing her hand.

Satisfied that the first condition had been met, Syd sat back on her heels and nodded, as she'd seen her father and the other farmers on the Outpost do. "Yup. Purty dry in there," she stated, matter-of-factly, and to no one in particular.

by **Sydelle Faraway** on August 16th, 2014, 4:05 am

Syd inspected the two plants growing on either side of the olla. They didn't look very sad, even though the olla was nearly out of water. No flowers had opened on the stems, but the leaves looked... Leafy. What did leaves look like when they were thirsty? She knew this; Syd thought hard, trying to recall what her mother had told her. Plants looked drippy. No, that wasn't right.

"If your plants look droopy, that means they are sad and would like some more water."

That was it - droopy! They looked droopy and sad, but still like themselves, when they were thirsty.

'Do the plants look sad?' Studying them, Sydelle tried to find signs of sadness, but the leaves looked the same as always, and the stem looked the same as always, and in the end she gave up. 'They must not be sad yet,' she shrugged, unbothered by the fact. Surely they would be sad, if they knew how little water was left in their olla.

(In fact, the plants, both Connal, were largely taking care of themselves, though Sydelle didn't know it. Early summer on the outpost was not too demanding on hardy herbs such as those, and the plants were cheerful little clumps of velvety green leaves, each topped with a single stem just days away from blooming. Syd thought they were beautiful.)

"But its alright, little plants," Syd assured them, reach out to gently pat the leaves she'd been inspecting. I'm going to put more water in your olla so you won't have to be drippy and sad. 'Cos I want you to grow up big an' strong an' healthy, so I'm taking very good care of you."

Having 'comforted' her plants, Sydelle jumped upright so fast that she nearly toppled over, one foot landing perilously close to the precious clump of green. Round eyes looked around quickly, before she relaxed - no one had seen her. She dropped another pat onto the stem of the plant and set it bobbing lightly. "Sorry," she whispered down to it, before wandering off in search of water.

by **Sydelle Faraway** on August 16th, 2014, 4:06 am

Returning ticks later, waterskin in hand, Syd held it aloft proudly. Mum had said she was too little to go dip a bucket of water, but Syd had thought of the waterskin all by herself. It was half full, and she didn't know if it would fill up the little olla, but it was water, and she could carry it, and a little must be better than none. Right?

So Syd sat down near the olla, so close that her bent knee brushed a leafy bit of plant, and unstoppered the waterskin carefully. The sloshing noise that came from it made her giggle, and Syd shook the pouch a few more times, just to hear it again. A wet drop on her hand reminded her of her original purpose, and she leaned over the mouth of the olla.

With great care, but very little precision, Sydelle began pouring the water from the skin into the rough clay of the little olla. The dirt around the olla turned dark and soft with spillage, but enough water made it into its destination that Syd could begin to see the reflection of light inside the watering pot. When she figured it must be full enough - conveniently at exactly the same time her waterskin was entirely empty - Syd stopped up the waterskin and tossed it lightly behind her.

Though she knew that the lid should go right back on the olla, the fresh water inside was tempting. But mum's admonishments were stronger than the temptation, and with a wistful sigh, Sydelle replaced the lid to the olla, blocking out the air and light and any tiny pests who might have wanted a drink or a swim.

"If you leave the olla open after you fill it, all that water will disappear into the sun - or one of those dogs will come drink it. Or a little girl will come splashing in it until there's no water left inside."

Though mum had been smiling and her eyes had been smiling, Syd still remembered that lesson with shame. She'd been caught playing in her mother's olla last year, but I was just a baby then! The water had been all splashed out and mum had been very grumpy with her for the rest of the afternoon. So Syd was extra proud of herself for not splashing in the water this time.

by **Sydelle Faraway** on August 16th, 2014, 4:07 am

Now that her garden was watered, Sydelle looked again at her plants. They were small, but mum said that was okay. Plants had to grow under the ground and above the ground, so sometimes when Syd thought they weren't growing, they maybe really were. Just not where she could see them.

Sydelle wondered about that - did the plants look the same under the ground as they did above the ground? Was there a little stem under the dirt with a baby flower on it? She thought it must be awful hard for the plant if that was the case. That stem was really bendy, and the dirt was really hard. How would it grow straight? The leaves would probably be easier, though. They weren't so tall.

The whole plant, except for the baby flower part, was a pretty green shade. The leaves, though, were a mess of wrinkled texture on top and a soft velvety underneath. Absently, the young gardener reached out to play with the leaves, petting first one side, then the other. Syd was so lost in thought, picturing what the plant must look like under the now-wet soil of the garden, that she accidentally plucked the leaf right off the plant.

"Oh! I didn't mean it!" Swooping in close, Sydelle bit her lip, eyes tearing up in worry - had she hurt her plant? Would it still grow? There was a lighter spot on the stem where the leaf had been, but the plant didn't bleed like Syd did when she got a cut. And it didn't look any different than before - except it was missing a leaf. She narrowed her eyes, looking anxiously for any sign that her poor plant was horribly injured.

Finding none, after a serious study that lasted all of ten ticks or so, Sydelle sat up once more, leaf still curled in her fist. Remembering it, Syd opened her hand and inspected it curiously. It looked the same in her hand as it had on the plant; still crinkly-wrinkly on one side and still all velvet softness on the other. Both sides were a bit more crumpled than they had been, but... 'I squished it'. The reasoning made perfect sense to the little girl.

Bringing it close to her nose, she inhaled curiously. The leaf didn't smell like much of anything - just 'planty'. It was a smell so familiar on the Outpost that Syd barely registered it. She sniffed again, harder this time. So hard, in fact, that the little leaf got sucked right up to her face and stuck there against her nose. A surprised giggle rang out and the leaf drifted back down to the dirt. Eyes shining, Sydelle plucked the leaf off the ground and repeated the process, this time on the other side of her nose. The leaf got stuck again and this time Sydelle erupted into peals of laughter. Snatching up the leaf once more, she ran inside the house to show her mum the neat trick she'd discovered.

by **Archailist** on August 16th, 2014, 11:27 am

Sydelle :

Notes :

Was I a little too nuts in my grading?
If you've got concerns, just call me.