Misery

By:  Orca

Maeve studied the illustrations with a mask of concentration but her mind was already else where.  She flipped through the pages, no thought to what she did.  All she could think about was him.  Frustrated, the sorceress slammed the book shut and tossed it aside, staring out to the horizon before  her.

A gentle breeze carried the salty smell of the sea to where she sat, perched on the smooth boulder.   He was always in her thoughts, always had been. Tossing her head, she inhaled deeply, wondering for the millionth time what he was doing.

I cry myself asleep again tonight
'Cause I can not hold you tight
I wish I could see you again tomorrow
To take all this sorrow , sorrow, I'm hollow

Despite the fact that everything she watched was imaginary, Maeve couldn't help but enjoy the sunset as it sunk low to the ground.  It cast off a warm, pinkish light that illuminated her hair and eyes.  Anybody walking by would have thought she was an angel, descended from the heavens. But there was no one to walk by, no one to talk to.

That was probably the worst part of the ile, there were no people and all the animals were images, nothing more.  Maeve heaved a sigh, glad to know that Master DimDim had sensed she needed time alone.  This was her little haven from that place that lay just behind her.

The image of the ile that had been sent here to remain for eternity.  The boundaries extended far out to the "sea" but Maeve had never taken the time to find out exactly where it started and ended. It was a cage, her bondage that she may never be rid of.

Bridge:
When I touch you
can you feel it
When I need you
can you give it
When I look in your eyes
Can you see me
When I fall , fall
Will you catch me , catch me , catch me

She let her mind drift and eventually her thoughts went back to her favourite subject, Sinbad.  It had been a while since she had actually been able to touch him, talk to him.  Three long years lived out in agony at the thought of him.  Maeve had a crystal that helped her watch the real world, but it had been broken due to her temper.  She believed that he had finally forgotten about her and in some left-handed way, she was right.

He no longer wore the leather pants and tight shirt that he had adorned before.  Instead it was the same suit the celt had admired him in, including the red headband.  Sinbad had cut his hair, shaved and become the man Maeve once knew well.  He never reminisced about old times. The only old times he ever talked about were when Bryn had first joined the crew.

The rest of the crew were overjoyed to see the old Sinbad back and it was as though she had been erased from everybody's memory.  Even Dermott no longer tried to contact Maeve;  he seemed to finally settle with Bryn as his mistress.

Chorus:
Misery
Is what I feel
When your not around so I can heal
Misery
Is what I feel
Is what I feel

All of this made Maeve stalk around in misery no matter how beautiful a day.  Master DimDim noticed but knew better than to consult his pupil.  Looking up, Maeve watched the first star of the night glitter brightly, and it was then she realized how late it was.

She wiped away the few tears that always appeared when she remembered and went to join her master for the last lesson
of the day.  She jumped off the boulder and went to retrieve her book that had been so carelessly discarded moments before, her heart bleeding with memories of long ago that no one seemed to remember.

These tears on my face are for you
I wish that I could hold you , touch you , feel you
My heart is bleeding can't you see
I wish that you could hold me , touch me , feel me

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Down on the real world, Sinbad also watched the first evening star appear from his position at the tiller. He brought his sea blue eyes down and watched as the crew celebrated Bryn's birthday.  Firouz was busy getting his invention set up with some help from his silent friend.

Doubar was chatting away happily with Bryn.   Dermott perched just above Sinbad, taking in the festivities.  He smiled as he watched the machine clunk to the ground for the hundredth time that night.   It seemed that Firouz was having a bad day.  Though he was happy, something inside of him ached.  His heart was no more the stone hard one he had had a few years before, but there was still something inside that made him agonize over that fateful day when he had been deprived of true love.

Bridge:
When I touch you
can you feel it
When I need you
can you give it
When I look in your eyes
Can you see me
When I fall , fall
Will you catch me , catch me , catch me

He let out a sigh, and tried to focus on what was happening before him instead of what had happened in the past.  Yet he still couldn't erase the memories that clouded his dreams and thoughts.  Though they came less each year,  he still found it hard to smile sometimes.  The crew had no inkling of the storm that brewed inside of  their captain.

They all believed Sinbad had gotten over that tragic event and was moving on.   Only Dermott seemed to realize the truth, but he kept it to himself.  Though many of his wounds had scarred over and later disappeared, this one was still open and
bleeding with pain every day.

Shaking his head, he tried to blink the sudden tears that always seemed to appear when the subject came up.  Diverting his
eyes from the deck he plastered a smile on his face, secured the tiller, and went down to join the celebration.

Chorus:
Misery
Is what I feel
When your not around so I can heal
Misery
Is what I feel
Is what I feel

The End