Winlay decides to stay with Prudence

"No wait," Winlay stopped just as she reached the door. "I'm sorry, can I stay here for a while?" Winlay didn't know why sitting with Sister Prudence seemed important, but she felt it was the right thing to do, and this could be her last chance if her assignment took her from the convent. She was pleased to see Sister Margaret's face crinkle into a broad smile.

"Of course Sister, I'll have the dining hall send you a plate." Margaret seemed pleased that Winlay was willing to spend her time in this small humid room. "Is there someone who will be expecting you?" She asks and Winlay explained that Mika would be looking for her. Sister Margaret listened to Winlay's description of her vibrant golden-haired companion and assured Winlay that she explain to Mika why Winlay would be late getting to her room. And then, suddenly the room was quiet again other than the soft breathing coming from the bed.

Winlay moved back to the comfortable seat and wondered as she sat down how many times Sister Margaret and others had kept a vigil in this very seat. She read to Prudence, starting with the book marked passages, until a tray of food arrived. She paused to eat the stewed chicken and rice, grateful for the flagon of pale beer that helped sooth her dry throat. She had read from the teachings of Xelta and the other early Prophets many times in her life sometimes to her mother and little sister, but more often silently to herself; she was unused to reading aloud for so long.

After her break, Winlay thumbed through the volume of teachings until she found a passage about healing and started reading again. The noises from the Convent quieted and the lights in the hallway darkened and still Winlay read, quietly and smoothly letting the rhythm of the words carry her along like a raft drifting with the gentle current of a lazy summer river. She paused when she sensed Sister Prudence stirring under the thin blanket by her side, the potion that had kept her calm must be wearing off because Winlay could hear Prudence making small inarticulate noises as she lay by her side. Her once calm form now jerked and shook under the thin blanket; as her slender body moved the blanket slipped off of the sleeping initiate exposing the soft cotton night-shirt and one of her bare shoulders.

At first Winlay couldn't make any sense of what Prudence was trying to say. The young initiate was clearly not fully awake but whether she was dreaming or trying to speak in her **** state of confusion Winlay couldn't be sure. She set down the book of Teachings and listened carefully to the grunts, moans and half words until she started to realize what it was that she was hearing.