Numb3rs: "These stones are memory aides"
crossposted to SaveColby
Title: These stones are memory aides.
challenge: Rememberance.
author: Keenir
Character(s)/Pairings: Colby Granger, Sofya Ozgal (OFC)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: historic violence.
Summary: Colby, at a monument to a war America never fought, thinks of his own fallen.
(War Of Independence: 1920-1924)
Spoilers: I can't think of the episode name...Colby was telling David (or Charlie) about an ambush in Afghanistan.
any errors in the monument or history, are my own - its been a while since I visited.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Despite having read the bilingual signs, Colby Granger said, "Nice place," once the two of them had ascended the hill.
Running up the hill was a stone sidewalk between - well, to Colby right now, looking at them from the side, it resembled a row of standing stones, gravestones, or skinny upright rectangles; he knew there was one on each side of the sidewalk, but that aspect wasn't visible from this angle.
"You brought me to your favorite battlefields when I was your guest," Sofya Ozgal answered. "So I am doing the same."
"That's different," Colby said.
"Ne?" which had no exact translation, but could serve as 'how so?' and 'say what?'.
...and 'do tell' in a pinch, At least for her, he thought to himself. "You were a foreign exchange student in the spare room," back home in Idaho.
"And you are a visiting military officer serving alongside my brothers in Afghanistan."
"I'm not gonna win this argument, am I?"
"No, if you surrender."
"Nice place," Colby said.
"We would remember them even if this were not here," Sofya said.
"It's like prayer beads - a memory device."
She turned her head to eye him. "You are, I believe, Colby-bey, the first to ever compare a military site to a possession of the faithful."
"I've got a Catholic grandmother," Colby said, "so I know the principle. Going through them, one by one, helps focus the mind on the prayer."
Sofya nodded. "And this ground focuses the mind."
Colby nodded. "On those who laid down their lives so we could be here today." The fallen, the maimed, the wounded. He sighed softly, thinking of the men he'd lost in Afghanistan, whom I'd remember all my life, even if nothing gets erected for them - but I'd prefer if something was put up.
"Our grandfathers," Sofya said, turning back to look at the monument that rose up and down the hill. "Who brought the carnage to an end."
"And bought independence for a country." Like at Cowpens.
"Secured independence, yes." Sofya's hair was freshly-cut, trimmed back to within regulation that very morning.
Our regulations, Colby thought to himself, being unsure of just what the rules were in the Turkish army. "And they'll never be forgotten," Colby said, referring to both the Turkish soldiers and the American Revolutionaries. A thought occured to him: "When we're little, we're impressed by big rocks, so our parents take us to monuments so we learn what we should know."
"A good description. Though my parents took me to Troy throughout my childhood."
"Ah, that explains why you weren't impressed with any of the horses back home."
Sofya shrugged innocently.
We'd better be getting back, Colby thought to himself. Me to Afghanistan, and Sofya-hanim to Iraq. But they were here in Central Anatolia because they each had earned downtime. "You hungry?"
She nodded.
"Ne kedar?" Colby asked.
"There is a limit to lunch?" Sofya asked, humor in her eyes.
"Didn't I just ask 'how much?'?"
"You did - if you were asking a salesman the cost of pants or fruit."
"Oh. Well, how hungry are you?"
"Very.
And they walked down the hill for a filling lunch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end
Title: These stones are memory aides.
challenge: Rememberance.
author: Keenir
Character(s)/Pairings: Colby Granger, Sofya Ozgal (OFC)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: historic violence.
Summary: Colby, at a monument to a war America never fought, thinks of his own fallen.
(War Of Independence: 1920-1924)
Spoilers: I can't think of the episode name...Colby was telling David (or Charlie) about an ambush in Afghanistan.
any errors in the monument or history, are my own - its been a while since I visited.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Despite having read the bilingual signs, Colby Granger said, "Nice place," once the two of them had ascended the hill.
Running up the hill was a stone sidewalk between - well, to Colby right now, looking at them from the side, it resembled a row of standing stones, gravestones, or skinny upright rectangles; he knew there was one on each side of the sidewalk, but that aspect wasn't visible from this angle.
"You brought me to your favorite battlefields when I was your guest," Sofya Ozgal answered. "So I am doing the same."
"That's different," Colby said.
"Ne?" which had no exact translation, but could serve as 'how so?' and 'say what?'.
...and 'do tell' in a pinch, At least for her, he thought to himself. "You were a foreign exchange student in the spare room," back home in Idaho.
"And you are a visiting military officer serving alongside my brothers in Afghanistan."
"I'm not gonna win this argument, am I?"
"No, if you surrender."
"Nice place," Colby said.
"We would remember them even if this were not here," Sofya said.
"It's like prayer beads - a memory device."
She turned her head to eye him. "You are, I believe, Colby-bey, the first to ever compare a military site to a possession of the faithful."
"I've got a Catholic grandmother," Colby said, "so I know the principle. Going through them, one by one, helps focus the mind on the prayer."
Sofya nodded. "And this ground focuses the mind."
Colby nodded. "On those who laid down their lives so we could be here today." The fallen, the maimed, the wounded. He sighed softly, thinking of the men he'd lost in Afghanistan, whom I'd remember all my life, even if nothing gets erected for them - but I'd prefer if something was put up.
"Our grandfathers," Sofya said, turning back to look at the monument that rose up and down the hill. "Who brought the carnage to an end."
"And bought independence for a country." Like at Cowpens.
"Secured independence, yes." Sofya's hair was freshly-cut, trimmed back to within regulation that very morning.
Our regulations, Colby thought to himself, being unsure of just what the rules were in the Turkish army. "And they'll never be forgotten," Colby said, referring to both the Turkish soldiers and the American Revolutionaries. A thought occured to him: "When we're little, we're impressed by big rocks, so our parents take us to monuments so we learn what we should know."
"A good description. Though my parents took me to Troy throughout my childhood."
"Ah, that explains why you weren't impressed with any of the horses back home."
Sofya shrugged innocently.
We'd better be getting back, Colby thought to himself. Me to Afghanistan, and Sofya-hanim to Iraq. But they were here in Central Anatolia because they each had earned downtime. "You hungry?"
She nodded.
"Ne kedar?" Colby asked.
"There is a limit to lunch?" Sofya asked, humor in her eyes.
"Didn't I just ask 'how much?'?"
"You did - if you were asking a salesman the cost of pants or fruit."
"Oh. Well, how hungry are you?"
"Very.
And they walked down the hill for a filling lunch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the end