Wapsi Square Forum

Unfortunately, you cannot unlearn what you have learned. But mom hugs do help.


I have to admit, I'm not sure what Katherine is trying to say, by saying that they're her girls...

That no matter what happened in the past they are her girls now.

Whether or not Kat is in the loop at this point, instinct tells her that a hug is needed now.

And Castela is stuttering again . . . pretty big red flag.

Not sure if Katherine is answering or not . . . "You're my girls" can be read as either yes or no.

But she got the important part, that Castela needs a hug badly.

--FreeFlier

"It doesn't matter what happened THEN. This is NOW."

oldmanmickey wrote:That no matter what happened in the past they are her girls now.

This, this exactly. They are Katherine's girls now and forever.

oldmanmickey wrote:That no matter what happened in the past they are her girls now.

And, "I'm here for you. I'm not going to turn against you. I'm not going to abandon you."

Very much like what Castela knew that Atsali needs to hear, in fact.

The healing power of mom hugs.

I don't see much ambiguity in Kath's statement. She's not floundering or asking Castela what she's talking about, she's simply offering unconditional reassurance and love. She clearly knows the whole story. Maybe it wasn't presented in a Q room, maybe it was, but she knows. And Pickle gets that, and is overwhelmed.

The Q room is an extremely powerful tool and is probably available to anyone with access to the Library.
In the case of the Gilchrists, and Kathrine in particular, it is needed for maintaining the well-being of Paras trying to wrap what is essentially a human mind around a very inhuman environment.
In other words it is very likely Kat got the whole story when she declared her intent to adopt Atsali and Castela and has just been waiting for this moment.

eee wrote:She clearly knows the whole story. Maybe it wasn't presented in a Q room, maybe it was, but she knows. And Pickle gets that, and is overwhelmed.

sheik wrote:In other words it is very likely Kat got the whole story when she declared her intent to adopt Atsali and Castela and has just been waiting for this moment.

While that's certainly not impossible, I'm not convinced. To me, it reads more like a "I don't know what happened in the past, but that's the past. You're my girls now, and that's all that matters."

Although there is some sense in telling her ahead of time, before adopting them, so she knows what she's getting into.

Then again, knowing that much of their back history might also work at cross purpose, and actually discourage all but the most determined, to adopt those two.


I'm of the opinion that MIB may have told her that there was some trauma in their past, which may manifest itself in emotional turmoil later on, but not specifically what happened.


The reason I asked my question, at the beginning, was that it seemed out of context, not saying enough to tie in to the current conversation Pickle was trying to have. But I guess Pickle did get the meaning.

Hugs are nice.

The fact that She went directly into the "We are family" mode without hesitation or questions tells me she knows enough about the situation... and enough about her daughter's needs right now. I am not sure what all is involved with the paranormal parenting classes, but I wish they were available to us mere mundanes... I certainly would have benefitted from it.

"... oh, by the way, Aunt Bryn is going to be visiting for a week next month ..."

sheik wrote:In other words it is very likely Kat got the whole story when she declared her intent to adopt Atsali and Castela and has just been waiting for this moment.

There's something I noticed, way back when the adoption occurred, that supports what you're saying.

Consider this: As far as Kath knew during the Big Adventure (and the aftermath at the Library) Atsali was completely alone in the world. Atsali hadn't ever mentioned Castela to her, and neither did Bud nor Tsillah. All Kath knew was that Atsali was an orphan in an orphanage. Even we, on the other side of the Fourth Wall, hadn't seen anything of Castela until after Atsali was vorped out of the Library.

Kath and Bud went to the orphanage so that Kath could offer Atsali the chance of adoption.

Atsali's first reaction: "Castela's part of my adventure too." She was keeping her promise not to abandon Castela.

Kath's reaction to this: no surprise. Not an instant of hesitation. No "What do I do now?" glance at Bud. She immediately made it clear that she was offering to adopt both of them... and that MIB had already offered to support the whole idea. She knew about Castela and Atsali's relationship before she arrived at the orphanage... enough to know that they came along as a pair.

It's not definite, of course, but the fact that she knew that the girls' relationship was both close and deep suggests to me that MIB had given her something at least close to the full story.

I concur with Sarge... Kath was briefed on the kids' background before the adoption offer. However, I think that briefing was more of a sit-rep rather than full disclosure of the gory details. Kath's military background would help her accept a sit-rep overview with a caveat that there's more that need not be disclosed until one of the kids asked,

In fact, I seriously doubt Castela's Q-room session included any mention of the retaliation leveled at the Senate.

Gets ya right in teh feels...

So... Is that a mathematical answer?

Gyrrakavian wrote:So... Is that a mathematical answer?

Yes - it's precisely ∞

Warrl wrote:

Gyrrakavian wrote:So... Is that a mathematical answer?

Yes - it's precisely ∞

I would have judged it to be i∞.

--FreeFlier