Finding D&D - 6

Tamara was behind her time as the next session began, so that there were dice and papers laid out before she got her coat zipped up. "Have fun killing everything," she said, receiving grunts of assent and promises that nothing would be left alive. I wrested myself from the table to walk her to the door for a last kiss; we had a private moment to ourselves in the front hall, so I asked her if she was doing okay. She'd was to see the doctor on Tuesday, to learn if our efforts to maintain her diet had succeeded in staving off any further damage to her kidneys; neither her nor I wanted to hear that after Tuesday, she'd have to start dialysis.

She said she was bearing up and not much else; she didn't want to think or talk about it, though I knew she needed support. This had become the routine every four months for the last year. The doctor would tell her everything was fine and there again would be a grace period, until she'd see the doctor again.

We hugged and I closed the door. As ever, she was off to look after her grandson, so my daughter and her husband could have a night out.

I shook it off and put on my game face, returning to the living room. I had five players tonight; the fifth was Jason, Susan's friend. On meeting, he'd seemed well enough, a bit stiff — which was reasonable, given that he was in a strange house surrounded by four strange people. The other players greeted him positively, saying they were glad to have them there, for which I was grateful.

I'd been a noob at a game table, though not for a long time, and remembered the cold, disinterested feeling that a lot of them gave, like a company of soldiers meeting a green recruit in a war zone. The expectation that I wouldn't come more than one session was palpable... and usually self-perpetuating, as I would feel no desire whatsoever to become familiar with such unfriendly, standoffish people. I was proud that my party weren't like this — though of course, this wasn't my doing. They were simply the sort of people I wished to have around me.

Continued on The Higher Path