The Saga of Tanya the Evil: Divergence

Interlude: Recovery Days

Tanya Degurechaff HATED being bedridden.

In the aftermath of her exploding her Orb to defeat the Entente forces, she had been badly battered and left stuck in bed. The 'good' news was that the Empire's magic assisted healing would have her up and about in a few weeks. But until then, there was nothing she could do but lay abed and wait to heal.

On a dresser nearby rested the Silver Wing Assault Medal she had been awarded. THAT was something she had mixed feelings about too. While on one hand she appreciated the recognition, she was also sure it was going to get her in trouble. Front line service? Or worse?

(In a lab in another part of the Empire, Herr Doctor Adelheid von Schugel was eagerly awaiting Officer Degurechaff to get out of the hospital. He needed a new test subject!)

Tanya, sadly, was unaware of THAT fate awaiting her.

"Second Lieutenant Degurechaff?" a woman's voice called.

"Here," Tanya replied.

The nurses had set up a curtain, blocking her bed off from the rest of the ward. They had ALSO lectured the doctors on leaving a young girl with no privacy in a ward full of men. Tanya herself hadn't really thought about it...

A woman in her thirties pushed aside the curtain, smiling, then visibly winced at Gtanya's condition. She recovered quickly enough, saluting as she introduced herself, "Hilde Schnee, Communications. Pardon the intrusion."

"Officer Schnee. How can I help you?" Tanya smiled slightly. She suspected at some point Public Relations would track her down... maybe this was it?

The other woman bowed slightly, "I came to apologize."

"What," Tanya blinked.

Hilde nodded seriously, "I was the one who relayed the order to you to stand your ground against those mages."

"Ah," Tanya realized, recognizing the woman's voice at last. She shook her head, "It's not your fault, ma'am."

"I also didn't realize how young you were...," Hilde added softly.

Tanya knew there wasn't much she could say about the age thing. She continued mildly, "You were doing your duty, relaying orders from our superiors to me. It's not like you made those decisions yourself."

Hilde smiled, startled by the maturity of the young woman. Why, in a way she even sounded like an old man!

"How long do you expect to be here?" Hilde changed the subject.

"It looks like another week or two," Tanya admitted.

"You have to be terribly bored," Hilde noted sympathetically. "Is there anything I can do?"

Tanya smiled wryly, "Could you get me some newspapers or something?" She nodded to several childens' books on the end table, "The nurses MEAN well but..."

Hilde looked at the books and laughed. "I'll get you some newspapers, then," she agreed.

After Hilde left, Tanya lay back with a sigh. She felt that she had made a good contact, knowing a communications officer might get her a 'heads up' on orders before they went out officially. These sort of connections could be invaluable in the future.

The possibility they could be friends never occurred to her.

To be continued...

Notes: Just a short bit, because the old writing engine isn't going too well this week.

Other than Tanya getting awarded her medal, we don't see anything on her recovery. It also occurred to me that an officer who ordered a nine or ten year old into pitched battle might feel more than a bit guilty. So, this.

May or may not do a few more shorts, possibly between full chapters. I have a few thoughts on that...