Abbaye Saint-Pierre Solesmes, two months later
The abbey shop turned quiet at one in the afternoon, after the first group of day visitors left. The girl at the counter, who was wearing a head scarf was very helpful, assisting the visitors in buying the abbey's famous pain d'épices -- that is, honey spice cake -- and Gregorian chant recordings. It was summer, and the sunlight shone through the windows, causing the shop to be warmer than usual. The shop girl, sensing the slight change in temperature, removed her head scarf, revealing short wisps of brown hair growing out of her still visible scalp. As there was no one else in the shop, she proceeded to get an ancient book that she was reading before the visitors came in, and continued from where she left off.
She, then, heard the abbey shop's bell door ring, and looked up. It was Abbot Antony who came in, and another figure in a hooded jacket and sunglasses. "Dei Maria," smiled Abbot Antony, "you have a visitor."
Dei Maria's brows furrowed. "A visitor? Who is it?"
Abbot Antony gave way to the man behind him, who stepped forward. He removed his hood and his sunglasses, thus showing a familiar face to her.
"Dr. Faulkerson," she said, half-whispering, as she made her way out of the counter and to where the two men were.
Abbot Antony explained that Dr. Faulkerson's keeper, the Reverend Bishop Nicholas II, from the Sumela Monastery in Turkey, has asked the abbot's permission for Dr Faulkerson to visit the abbaye, and Dei Maria in particular. "He'll be on his way to Geneva this evening to take over the reins of the MSF from Dr. Lee," the kindly abbot said, "so he asked whether he could pay you a visit before he leaves."
Dei Maria bowed to Dr. Faulkerson, as she just read from the ancient book that it was the newer oblate's sign of deep respect to bow to a more seasoned one. "Humiliatus sum, Dr. Faulkerson," she said, hoping she said the words properly.
Dr. Faulkerson, while slightly surprised, put his hand on his heart and gave a short bow, as an older oblate does when he greets a younger oblate. "Servio tibi, Dei Maria," he said, which meant 'I am at your service'.
Abbot Antony, pleased that the two have exchanged proper greetings, said that there were some refreshments ready -- bread, cheese, and apples --at the monk's dining area for them to partake. Dei Maria grabbed two loaves of pain d'épices from the shop before she and Dr. Faulkerson followed the abbot to the dining area.
Once they reached the dining area, Abbot Antony left them to eat in peace.
While making their way to the table prepared for them, Dei Maria spoke. "It is good to see you again, Dr. Faulkerson," she said. Now that they were near to each other, she noticed that, while he had recovered, he was visibly thinner. "Are you well?"
Dr. Faulkerson looked at her, "Yes, yes I am, all thanks to you, Dei Maria. I never got to thank you properly after you saved my life in Aleppo. While I did gain some of my strength back before I was airlifted to the UAE, it was not enough for a decent conversation, given the circumstances."
Dei Maria coloured slightly. "Yes, yes, of course. I wasn't expecting anything, really. I am glad that you're safe and well now. And I am glad to be of your aid when you needed it."
They sat down and started talking over the simple but delicious fare. They talked about their current lives as oblates, about Dei Maria's most recent mission, and about Dr. Faulkerson's new responsibilities as the head of the MSF.
As Dei Maria cut him a slice of the honey spice cake, she asked, "Does that mean that you will no longer go with Dr. Gupta to the frontlines?"
Dr Faulkerson shook his head. "Before I accepted the post, I told Dr. Lee, the outgoing head, that I will still go where I'm needed. I was taught in Sumela that, as an oblate, and as a doctor, I should never turn my back on those who are in need of help. It is a great joy for me to serve, and use my ability as an oblate to provide temporary relief to the sick while we seek and wait for a cure, which always happens in war-torn areas."
Dei Maria nodded. In front of her was a noble man -- an oblate true to his oblation, his vows. She promised herself to strive to fulfil the same vows, although, for some reason, she felt a heaviness in her heart.
They also talked about the special abilities they had, and how they noticed that these abilities grew from strength to strength from that day of the rescue in Aleppo.
"While it wasn't apparent to anyone at that time," Dr. Faulkerson said, "I felt my strength returning at a faster rate than it used to, after exercising my ability. I couldn't make sense of it at first, but then, as I was recovering, I remembered why it was so. It was because of you."
Both fell silent after those words were uttered. Those words were a confirmation of what they both thought and felt. Those words were also the sentence given to fated oblates just like them. And both knew what they needed to do in order to serve each other, as an oblate is called to do.
Dr. Faulkerson, then, broke the silence, and got something out of his pocket. It was a hand-drawn card. He handed it over to Dei Maria, and said, "Bara'ah, the little girl you saved, made this for you. I dropped by the hospital where Sameer was attending to her. She smiled such a sunshine-y smile when she saw me," he said, in a slightly choking voice, "It's as if all that devastation never happened. She kept on talking on how you protected her with your particle shield -- or angel's wings, as she called it -- and made me promise to give this to you."
Dei Maria took the card and looked at it. On the cover was a stick figure of angel with her big wings over a stick figure of a girl. Inside the card was an Arabic script, lightly penned.
"It means 'my angel'."
Dei Maria smiled and bit her quivering lip. "Some angel," she said, shaking her head. She clutched the little card close to her heart and said, "Thank you for bringing this to me. I saw all their faces of relief and gratitude that day in Aleppo. I remembered how you tried to protect them, even if you were still very weak. I thought about your selflessness and compassion during my last mission, and --"
"So you thought of me," Dr. Faulkerson smiled.
Dei Maria coloured, realising what she said. "I mean -- you see, Ric --"
"And here I was waiting for you to drop the 'doctor' thing," Ric laughed. "It's hard not to replay those events. It's not every day that I get saved by a barrelling GHE-O, and, as Bara'ah said, a brave angel."
It was Dei Maria's turn to laugh. "See the things we do in the name of selflessness."
"Ah, yes, selflessness," Ric said, "one of the pillars of the order we're both in. I used to think that it's always an easy choice to be selfless, given the work I do and the training I got." He, then, looked into Dei Maria's eyes. "Now I've realised that it's not as easy as I thought it was."
"I know," Dei Maria said quietly, looking away. "I know."
They both fell silent again, trying to stretch the minutes. But they both remembered that Ric had to reach Geneva by nightfall, so they both finished their meal, stood up, and made their way out of the building.
As they walked to the lot where Ric parked his car, Dei Maria asked, "Flying to Geneva?"
"No," Ric said, "Driving."
"For six hours?"
"Who knows, maybe three."
Then, they approached Ric's car. Dei Maria gave a low whistle. "No wonder -- you'll be cruising on a Lambo Centenario!"
Ric chuckled, "And the girl knows her cars. Like it?"
"Maybe," she smirked. "But I'd still go with a GHE-O in a heartbeat. It's quite handy in sticky situations, if you know what I mean."
The doctor nodded, and took a deep breath. "Well, this is it," he said. "Till another mission, then, if the keepers decide that they need us both."
"Yes," she said, "or till the time the keepers decide that you need saving again, and they couldn't find another oblate to do the job properly."
To her surprise, Dr. Faulkerson, then, reached for her hand, brought it to his lips, d kissed it, and breathed, "Habibti."
"What? What did you say?"
"Habibti," he repeated. "It's Arabic. You have a big library in the abbey. Look it up." With that, he gave one last smile, put on his sunglasses and hoodie, got in the car, and drove off.
Dei Maria stretched out her arms, breathed deeply, and conjured a protective particle shield around the Centenario. "That should keep you out of trouble for a while, Dr. Faulkerson," she whispered. She, then, heard, the voices of the next batch of day visitors getting louder. With a wistful smile, she turned around, and ran all the way back to the abbey shop.
-- FIN
