Sylvia Chapter 21

[random_xtras]

"Cygna!"

"Oh!" The soft-spoken doctor staggered back, her arms flailed out wide in response to the shock of suddenly having a baby hugging her face.

"Silverflame, remember. You must not grab the faces of pets or people." Grandfather took a step forward, leaning on his cane, and gently caught the little one by the arm. "Come to me now."

"Oh..." Silverflame looked up at him with big-eyed sadness, but then laughed and waved the arm that was free. "Weee! Cygna! Cygna?" A sudden pause and looking around. "Arcturus?"

"Arcturus is at work." Grandfather tucked her into the fabric sling that he wore over one shoulder and around his body. "Perhaps you can see him tonight."

"Yay!" Silverflame let loose with more joyful arm waving, then paused and gave a big-eyed look to the blue plastic shape that Cygna was offering her. Intense frowning followed, and then she looked up. "Grand... father? Grandfather! Grandfather! Nom nom nom!"

"What is she saying?" asked Cygna softly, still holding out the snack.

"That that treat is my favourite flavour." Grandfather was staring down at the baby, his eye white with shock. "But I cannot recall eating them in front of her to a great enough extent to enforce that knowledge. Silverflame, who told you I like blue glitter plastic?"

"You." Silverflame tilted her head slightly and settled back in the sling to absently hold her toes. "Grandfather do." A laugh and a fairly accurate rendition of a fire alarm then followed.

"Yes..." Grandfather stumbled back slightly and allowed Cygna to guide him over to sit on the examining table, then spoke more softly, his voice frizzing with static. "Yes, the day I told you I did set off the fire alarm."

"You're saying she's remembering things from Sylvia's life?" Cygna's hand sprouted a scanner as she passed it over the baby's head.

"Sylvia!" The little one patted herself, grinning excitedly. "Slilverfame!"

"Yes!" said Grandfather, struggling to keep calm. "Those are your names. Yes..."

Silverflame paused then and looked around, her expression intent before she suddenly brightened and pointed to empty air. "Uncle potty mouth."

"What??" demanded the voice of the General in tones of the deepest shock and outrage.

Silverflame sat back and folded her arms across her chest. "Oma says so. Hmmph!"

"I am not a potty mouth. That's the Artist and his dimwit sister."

"Full hard drive function," said Cygna softly. "Pathways are being filled as we speak, and new ones are forming. I've never seen a development burst like this before."

"Oma says so."

"Well Oma was wrong that time."

"No."

"She was too."

"Old friend, you are arguing with a baby." Grandfather's eye deepened to a more normal blue as amusement managed to shove aside his shock long enough to be felt.

"I... Grrrrr. She's just like her grandmother."

Grandfather paused to think about that, and then chuckled softly. "And like her Oma. Olivia and my Airy One were not so different."

"Olivia wasn't as annoying about it."

"You did not know her as long," countered Grandfather quietly. "And neither of them are annoying."

"Even when they're jabbing you in the side with a pointy finger?"

"Even then." Grandfather smoothed Silverflame's head gently with one hand. "And do not forget. You married my Airy One's younger sister."

"What's that got... ACK!"

"I rest my case." Grandfather chuckled as he heard the sounds of an invisible scuffle marking the General's attempts to defend himself against further poking.

"Tante!" crowed Silverflame, holding out her arms.

"Hmmm? Oh, can you see us?" came the beautiful voice of the General's wife.

"Uh huh." Small hands wriggled appealingly, and then gripped invisible arms as Silverflame was lifted from the sling and cuddled to her step aunt's chest. "You right here."

"I think she's going to be alright now." Cygna came to sit beside Grandfather and put an arm around him, her eyes twinkling as she watched and listened to Silverflame being made much of by the two unseen members of the group. "I'm not sure why it took so long for her memories to become accessible, but it's not very likely that they'll stop being accessible now."

"I am glad," he said quietly, his own arm going out to return the embrace of his older granddaughter.

"Are you praying?" She glanced up at him quizzically.

"Yes." He nodded and sighed. "I am telling God thank You. For the return of Silverflame to herself, and also for the family that He has given her."

The blue of Cygna's eyes deepened in a way that let him know that she was smiling, and then she too bowed her head.


* * *


"Zeta Zelda, Prowl, flower!" Silverflame looked up from the adventurous nanoviolet that she had just found poking a tiny golden face out of the lattice-cover plants. "Come see!"

"Flower-flower?" Zeta Zelda scooted over and shifted to her bipedal form, then squealed softly. "Oooo. Little little."

Silverflame nodded as she hunkered down again to try and coax the flower up into her hand. "Nanovi'et. Needs to go home now. See, Prowl? Lost flower."

Prowl sniffed at the much smaller cybernetic life form, and then picked it up daintily and turned to trot with uplifted tail toward the nearer of the two nanoviolet colonies, which was currently covering part of one side of the vocalithops planter. That tail was twitching by the time he reached the colony and spat the flower out, but he immediately showed his forgiveness for the tapping the inside of his mouth had received by gently nosing it toward its fellows as he purred.

"Good, Prowl," Grandfather told his pet from where he sat on the bench next to the General. "Thank you."

The cybernetic serval looked up with a soft sound, and then came over to climb up to his favourite resting spot on Grandfather's shoulder.

"And I suppose now you want me to heat that." Grandfather turned his head to look at the cat.

Prowl looked back, then rolled onto his back and looked at his master upside down, eyes twinkling and one paw reaching appealingly.

"Beings of your inherent power and dignity should not attempt to look cute," Grandfather informed his pet as he increased the temperature of his shoulder plating.

"Of course he wants you to heat up, you always do it anyway," grumbled the General. Then he growled softly. "Get this thing off of me. What's the point of being invisible if every baby and flying flower in the world can see me?"

"Flying flowers do not see." Grandfather very gently shooed the little blue blossom away from its perch in seeming mid-air. "Perhaps if you did not opt for solidity they would no longer sense your presence."

"And I wouldn't be able to sit down or touch things." The General snorted.

"It would make you harder to sense." Grandfather's eye twinkled.

"Whatever."

"Oh wow. Apples and apples!" came Silverflame's voice from among the trees. "ZZ, we need a box. Um. Or bowl? Basket? Thingie."

"Apple thingie!" Zeta Zelda scooted over to the storage cupboard by the bench and pulled out a flexible red rubber bowl with carry handles on the sides. "Apple thingie!"

There was silence as the two old men on the bench watched the upside down bowl scoot away between the trees.

Then Grandfather shook with silent laughter as an invisible palm connected with an invisible face next to him.

"Now I've seen everything," said the General.

Grandfather recognized the colloquialism and didn't refute his friend's claim. Instead he listened and watched as Silverflame and Zeta Zelda picked up the apples from beneath the crab apple tree. "Hmm. There are not really any practical reasons to have this atrium now, I suppose."

"You like it, the cat likes it, your wife likes it, and the kid likes it. That's four practical reasons. Besides, you'd go nuts if you had to stop giving the things to your human friends."

"Things?" Grandfather knew what he meant, but decided to play obtuse.

"Apples," growled the General. "You knew what I meant."

"Did I?"

"When did you get to be a smart..."

"Do not say that where Silverflame can hear it."

"...Right." The General grumbled, then shifted. "She's pregnant."

"...What?"

"It's twenty eight now. I just heard."

"Mercy."

"What you get for overcharging your life force so often."

"I suppose that makes you glad you were not a woman."

"Haha, smart aleck. I never drank like that, and you know it."

"Indeed." Softly. "Forgive me."

"Hrrm. Forget it. What are they doing over there?"

Grandfather checked his sensor feeds and smiled. "Discussing pie."

"Pie?" He felt unseen eyes turn toward him questioningly.

"It is a human dish. Some sort of fruit or other filling inside a shell made from a paste slightly similar to bread," he explained. "My Airy One learned to make it with Sylvia."

"Hrrm. Wonder if there'd be a way to make pie for us. The kid might like that."

Grandfather paused and turned to stare at the place where he knew his friend was.

"...What?"

"Will you come with me to the kitchen, old friend? There is something that I need to try."

"Alright. What about the kid?" There was a soft scraping as the General rose to his feet. "Put out your hand so I can help you get up."

Grandfather did so, then groaned as he made sure of his balance and the support of his cane. "Thank you. Silverflame, would you like to come to the kitchen with your Uncle and me?"

"Apples?" She ran over and then sat down to look up at him.

"I think we had better leave those for your Oma to find. She likes to work with them," he told her gently.

"Oh. Awwright. Can I walk?"

"You may." He smiled and watched as she got up and ran to wait by the door.

"They never walk at that age." The General chuckled. "Everywhere they go, it's at a run."

"That is true. But I do not think they realize that fact." Grandfather's chuckle echoed that of his friend as he moved slowly toward the door himself, his mind busy with possible fillings for a pie that could be enjoyed by his people.

Some time later his wife found him in the kitchen, busy presiding over a tray of small blue plastic shells filled with various colours of petroleum and silicon grease.

"Why... what's this?" She looked at them curiously as she hugged him in greeting.

"The General wondered if it would be possible to make pie for Silverflame," he replied, resting his cheek on her head. "These are my first round of experimental prototypes, and I am just about to start testing them."

"Oh no you're not. You're not eating any of those, and neither is Silverflame," she said firmly, backing away to give him a stern look.

"But, Airy One..."

"No. I don't want to see you or the baby get sick. I'll call Arcturus, and he can come test them for you." She paused and looked around. "Speaking of the General, where is he?"

"He got bored and went to watch sports on the holoscreen," said Grandfather absently as he frowned at her.

"What are you frowning about?" She quirked one brow quizzically.

"You know that I am a good cook, Airy One. Why do you fear that these little pies will make me or Silverflame ill?"

"Because." She smiled gently. "They smell pretty rich and decadent, and she's just a baby, and you are rather old. Don't worry, he won't eat them all."

He gave her an amused Look, but she only laughed softly and settled on the stool next to Silverflame's high chair. "So what are you doing? Are you helping your grandfather?"

Silverflame blinked at her, then shook her head. "No. Was trying to remember. Lots of stuff, all... smooshed..." She made a gesture with her hands, lacing her fingers together. "Hard to find end to pull."

Grandfather froze and looked at the baby, who was growing out of her babyhood even as he watched. "Is that why it took so long for you to talk to us, Silverflame?"

"Uh?" She looked up at him, absently picking up her yarn doll and smoothing its hair. "Um. Maybe? Don't know."

"It is alright if you do not know." He smiled at her reassuringly.

"Good." She gave a very familiar soft chuckle, then looked thoughtful. "Cookie? Have a cookie?"

"A cookie?" He frowned. "I am uncertain of what you are referring to, Silverflame."

"Blue and sparkly," she explained, frowning anxiously.

"Ah." He brightened, and then rumbled softly as he turned to retrieve the requested treat. "There is a strong resemblance, isn't there? I wonder why I had never noticed it."

"Grandfather have cookie too," she commanded with gentle authority, laying the doll down carefully on the side of the high chair tray.

"Yes. I think I shall. Would you like a flower shaped one, or the smiling face?"

"Fowler." She grinned up at him, then squealed softly and accepted the treat in both small hands before lifting it to Oma's mouth so that the ghost could pretend to have a bite before she had one.

Oma made the appropriate sounds of make believe eating, then smiled as the little girl studied the cookie thoughtfully, as though it reminded her of something.

"Grandfather's favourite," she said softly.

"Yes. They are." Oma nodded.

"..." Silverflame paused, and then looked questioningly from one grandparent to the other, her eyes suddenly very much sharp and aware. "I miss Esther, Hannah, Stephan, and Mattias. And... what happened to Kaneesha?"