The Dark Maiden

Chapter 8

"Come in, Sidi."

Sidi opened the door to see his mother lounging on the chaise. She had a plate of dried seaweed that had been procured specially for her. Sidi winced when he saw it. The room was like his own- a bit more spacious with a bigger bed, the size of Carmen's. A large wardrobe stood in the corner and a wide vanity with small tins, jars and various brushes scattered all over it. The walls were wood like the other cabins, but there were paintings that were hung on the wall like Sidi hung maps or Iz pictures.

Sidi hadn't seen them before, and suspected that they were new, or at least that they hadn't been hung on the walls until very recently. He suspected she had brought them with her when she and Joei had joined them aboard the ship. He hadn't been in her cabin since they had and it had been empty before then; he'd been too busy with his father, and besides, his mother didn't spend much time in there anyway.

One painting was of his mother lounging on that very same chaise, and a few others were of her different children. There was even one of him on The Dark Maiden, standing and peering up to the top of the crow's nest. He had no idea when that had been made. Another was of Joei and Iz, their two smiling faces painted with perfect precision. There was even one of Jaya and Ivy, the two of them sitting cross legged below a tall willow tree. Their bright and dark heads, respectively, made a large contrast to the rest of the painting, which was colored in greys and whites.

There was no painting of his father, and that did not surprise Sidi, no, not at all. There was a small painting, so small that it fit in a tiny frame, on her vanity. It was turned away from the door, towards the bed, but Sidi did not need to look at it to know who it was of. He wasn't curious to look at it- just sad that his mother had chosen to bring it with her on a journey with his father.

"How did you know it was me, mother?" He asked.

"Who else would it be?" She sat up straight on the chaise. "Your brother and sisters are still all doing their chores. You're always the first to finish them."

He didn't move or answer, and she continued. "Come here." She patted the space next to her.

He came to sit next to her obediently, and she began smoothing his hair. "Your hair's a mess. Let me guess," She paused. "Doing chores best suited for your father again?"

"He's been busy steering the ship-"

"I know darling." She fixed his hair and locked gazes with her oldest son. His eyes were just like his father's, she remarked to herself. Just like Obi's, when they had first met. So full of life and potential. Optimism too.

She kissed the top of his head. "What did you need me for?"

"I wanted to ask you about Carmen," He ventured carefully, gauging his mother's reaction very carefully.

"What about her?" Her eyes were impossible to read. Sidi wished that weren't so. She had the same eyes as all of his sisters, and he could tell what they were thinking all the time. At least in the important moments. But his mother's were a blank wall of stone- an impenetrable barrier to her thoughts.

"Why didn't you tell us about her before?" He asked. "You've never mentioned her."

"I thought it was best left in the past." She got up from the chaise and took the tray of seaweed, placing it on a table. "She didn't even know about me until a few weeks ago."

"How do you know?" He continued.

"I have many ways of knowing things." She smiled at him, but did not really answer the question. "All that matters is that she's here now."

"Why did she decide to come with us, back to the Embassy?" Sidi mused. "If she only just found out about us... She mentioned that-"

"What are you asking, Sidian?" She used his full name. "Don't beat around the bush, sweetheart. It's not good etiquette. You need to be direct if you really want to know something."