Theodora sat in some dining hall of Hohenwart Abbey. Her face was buried in the shawls of the gloomy atmosphere, starkly silent with breathless prayer. Her prayer rope was draped in her lap, beading through her fingers calmly, collectively. Her olive eyes glanced at the food in front of her, some vegetable soup, which a complainer announced in the midst of the prayers that this was all the nunnery had been offering for the last several days. Theodora could not judge the poor, whispered woman, however. This woman was with an infant, and the lack of food was causing her milk to run dry. The nuns had been encouraging the woman to drink wine to help increase her lactation.

There was not much noise, in the dining hall except the occasional clinking of eating utensils against plates. The candle lights flickered with the personality of the weather crying outside the shelter. The weather made the most music throughout the hall, and it danced with the candles, offering the only light. The mantra of the Jesus prayer was easy to fill in repetition in Theodora's mind amongst these conditions, which were so natural and revealing of the dark human condition.

The sisters were quiet, waiting patiently for their most honored guests to finish eating. The abbess lingered near the entrance, head of the table, watching over the sisters. Theodora was happy for the rain, the fighting was calm despite the subtle violence of the weather. She did not enjoy the fighting, it seemed so pointless and gory and yet part of the human culture. Inside the monastery, they had been proven safe, protected by God. He had blessed them so far and hopefully, despite the darkness looming over the city, His light would shine forth through all the icons and offer protection through the All-Immaculate Lady and all His saints.

Theodora recited a Hail Mary, coming to a porcelain bead on her prayer rope, before continuing her mantra of the Jesus Prayer. She drew in small breaths from her dainty lips, continually listening to the silence of the dining hall. The conversation was lost to the weather and so was Theodora's prowess, for the time being.