Gathering Blue

It is almost time for the annual Gathering, and everyone is preparing for it: the weaving shed has been closed, people are quieter, and some even bathe. Thomas is polishing the Singer’s staff with thick oils. Matt has not returned from his quest to find blue, even though he’s been gone for many days. Kira touches her cloth, hoping for consolation, but she feels none. Sometimes, she hears Jo chanting repetitively downstairs. Occasionally, Kira hears Jo singing a high, beautiful melody, as if she’s been allowed a moment of freedom.

At night, Kira visits Jo. Jo no longer asks for her mother, but she holds Kira. Jo tells Kira that the Gathering is soon; when Jo becomes Singer, she says, she’ll be allowed to create her own songs.

In the days leading up to the Gathering, Kira completes the robe. Jamison visits her and inspects the robe, and says she’s done an excellent job. He’s particularly impressed with her weaving in a section of the robe that depicts tall buildings surrounded by fire and explosions. Kira tells him that she found this section difficult to repair, since she has no understanding of large buildings, and hasn’t paid attention to the Ruin Song. In response, Jamison says that Kira shouldn’t be expected to listen to all of the Song. He tells Kira about how the Singer prepares for his performances: he begins studying the Ruin Song when he’s a tyke, and rehearses it all year. While the Song is always the same, the Singer may emphasize different parts each year. He lives in his own quarters of the Edifice. As she listens to Jamison, Kira thinks about Jo, but doesn’t say anything.

Jamison looks at another section of the robe, and recites the portion of the Ruin Song that corresponds to it. He explains to Kira that the verses of the Song refer to places that have been destroyed in the past. He then tells Kira that after this year’s Gathering, she’ll begin dyeing threads again. Kira, distressed at the thought of doing the same repairs year after year, asks Jamison what he means. Jamison explains that she’ll begin embroidering the empty section of the robe: the future. Even though Jamison has mentioned this task before, Kira is surprised—she thought she would wait until she was much older before she began. Jamison tells Kira that the guardians have waited a long time for her.