occhallenge: Believe
Prompt: Believe, Table 1
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Any other characters mentioned aren't mine.
Notes: Takes place last weekend.
Word Count: 766
Cross-posted to occhallenge.
Mia hated religion. Ever since the Yuuzhan Vong had slaughtered hundreds of trillions of beings in her galaxy, including family and friends, all in the name of their "gods", she'd shunned all aspects of religion and faith. The closest she came to believing in anything invisible was the Force, and that was only because she'd seen physical manifestations of its use and had it used on her a time or two. She hated even the idea of supposed gods, though encounters here had made her realize some actually existed. But it was still a far cry from any sort of faith, belief, or worship.
Which was why she'd never stepped foot in a church before today, not even St. Julien's. This one had caught her eye. It was a completely impulsive action. It was one she'd never admit to and probably wouldn't even understand later. She hesitated at the entrance, looking over the design and decorations, but unsure of what to do or why she was even there.
It was possible that Wes' spirit still existing and him and Aidan being brought back from the dead had made her reflect a little more on this existential metaphysical stuff. And things had been a little rough lately. She wanted Aidan back, not just for herself, but especially for Wes, and April too. Some days she wasn't sure how to help Wes any further, or that anyone would be able to if getting Aidan back took any longer.
With the oncoming winter and holiday season, Wes was trying to retreat more and more. They weren't much closer to figuring out where Aidan's soul might be, and she was worried the longer it took, the harder it would be for Wes to pick up the pieces and feel at all like his old self again. She could believe all she wanted that Aidan was still out there and that they'd find him, and she did, but that didn't help Wes any. All the same, the belief was all she had left.
There was nothing left for her to actively do. Frank had taken care of all the logistics for Aidan's body and putting his soul back in, Wes and Frank were waiting to hear back on a lead, and that was it. She was feeling a bit useless, which meant she needed to be doing something, and going for an aimless drive was probably how she'd found herself here.
After awhile of her standing just inside the doorway, a priest or monk of some sort -- kriff, she didn't know what to call them -- approached her.
"Welcome to St. Joseph's," he said pleasantly. "Is this your first time?"
"Uh, yeah. Is this where people come to pray or light candles or whatever?" She wasn't trying to be disrespectful, religion just wasn't her thing and she didn't have the first clue about it. She'd seen the candle thing done in a few movies and thought she had the general gist of it. She looked around at the few people spread throughout the benches.
"It is," he answered. "And though you can pray anywhere, some choose to do it here at times."
"Can anyone light a candle? Even if they're not -- you know. Don't come regularly. Don't really believe in church."
The priest smiled. "Yes, anyone's welcome to light a candle. It can symbolize your prayer for someone in particular, or can be used as a way of extending your prayer -- no matter what you believe."
She smiled tightly at his last word. "At this point, I'm not sure what else to do."
Mia went to the stand for votive candles and lit a candle for Aidan, that his soul was not lost and still recoverable. A candle for Wes, that he would be able to find his way through this. And then, she thought, a candle for Frank too, that whatever deal he'd made to bring the boys back wouldn't be too bad, or that they'd find a way to keep him from the hell dimension.
She wasn't sure if she was supposed to bow to one of the statues or anything, so after an awkward pause, she went to a bench nearby and sat down, thinking about what she'd just done. Something was better than nothing. Doing something -- believing -- was better than sitting around waiting for something to happen. And she hoped that if this particular higher power did exist, and they did notice or did care, that they might do something to help out or intervene -- and possibly, even, help her believe.
[OOC: I'm religious, but not Catholic, so forgive me if I got any aspects of the candle lighting tradition wrong. I mean no disrespect either. :)]
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: Any other characters mentioned aren't mine.
Notes: Takes place last weekend.
Word Count: 766
Cross-posted to occhallenge.
Mia hated religion. Ever since the Yuuzhan Vong had slaughtered hundreds of trillions of beings in her galaxy, including family and friends, all in the name of their "gods", she'd shunned all aspects of religion and faith. The closest she came to believing in anything invisible was the Force, and that was only because she'd seen physical manifestations of its use and had it used on her a time or two. She hated even the idea of supposed gods, though encounters here had made her realize some actually existed. But it was still a far cry from any sort of faith, belief, or worship.
Which was why she'd never stepped foot in a church before today, not even St. Julien's. This one had caught her eye. It was a completely impulsive action. It was one she'd never admit to and probably wouldn't even understand later. She hesitated at the entrance, looking over the design and decorations, but unsure of what to do or why she was even there.
It was possible that Wes' spirit still existing and him and Aidan being brought back from the dead had made her reflect a little more on this existential metaphysical stuff. And things had been a little rough lately. She wanted Aidan back, not just for herself, but especially for Wes, and April too. Some days she wasn't sure how to help Wes any further, or that anyone would be able to if getting Aidan back took any longer.
With the oncoming winter and holiday season, Wes was trying to retreat more and more. They weren't much closer to figuring out where Aidan's soul might be, and she was worried the longer it took, the harder it would be for Wes to pick up the pieces and feel at all like his old self again. She could believe all she wanted that Aidan was still out there and that they'd find him, and she did, but that didn't help Wes any. All the same, the belief was all she had left.
There was nothing left for her to actively do. Frank had taken care of all the logistics for Aidan's body and putting his soul back in, Wes and Frank were waiting to hear back on a lead, and that was it. She was feeling a bit useless, which meant she needed to be doing something, and going for an aimless drive was probably how she'd found herself here.
After awhile of her standing just inside the doorway, a priest or monk of some sort -- kriff, she didn't know what to call them -- approached her.
"Welcome to St. Joseph's," he said pleasantly. "Is this your first time?"
"Uh, yeah. Is this where people come to pray or light candles or whatever?" She wasn't trying to be disrespectful, religion just wasn't her thing and she didn't have the first clue about it. She'd seen the candle thing done in a few movies and thought she had the general gist of it. She looked around at the few people spread throughout the benches.
"It is," he answered. "And though you can pray anywhere, some choose to do it here at times."
"Can anyone light a candle? Even if they're not -- you know. Don't come regularly. Don't really believe in church."
The priest smiled. "Yes, anyone's welcome to light a candle. It can symbolize your prayer for someone in particular, or can be used as a way of extending your prayer -- no matter what you believe."
She smiled tightly at his last word. "At this point, I'm not sure what else to do."
Mia went to the stand for votive candles and lit a candle for Aidan, that his soul was not lost and still recoverable. A candle for Wes, that he would be able to find his way through this. And then, she thought, a candle for Frank too, that whatever deal he'd made to bring the boys back wouldn't be too bad, or that they'd find a way to keep him from the hell dimension.
She wasn't sure if she was supposed to bow to one of the statues or anything, so after an awkward pause, she went to a bench nearby and sat down, thinking about what she'd just done. Something was better than nothing. Doing something -- believing -- was better than sitting around waiting for something to happen. And she hoped that if this particular higher power did exist, and they did notice or did care, that they might do something to help out or intervene -- and possibly, even, help her believe.
[OOC: I'm religious, but not Catholic, so forgive me if I got any aspects of the candle lighting tradition wrong. I mean no disrespect either. :)]