Logs:H'vier: Hero?
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| RL Date: 13 August, 2013 |
| Who: H'vier, Tayte |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: After several unsuccessful messages, Tayte finds the right combination of words to bring H'vier to her room to tell him the Big News. It's goes unexpectedly on all parts. |
| Where: Tayte's Room, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 6, Month 7, Turn 32 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: Cherie/Mentions, Estarra/Mentions, Jeyli/Mentions, Jo/Mentions, K'del/Mentions, Madilla/Mentions, Markarin/Mentions, Mikaelen/Mentions, Yvalia/Mentions |
| OOC Notes: Adult themes. Played via gdocs. |
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| Tayte's Room, High Reaches Weyr The peculiar shape of this room suggests that it was unintentionally expanded, cement holding the ceiling together towards the peculiarly shaped alcove build into the back corner. It's larger than most personal quarters as a result, and though the uneven walls mean nothing sits flush, there's plenty of room for more than the usual amount of furniture. The larger lobe of the lopsided kidney shape that the room has might be considered a studio room. A large bed is tucked into the roundest part of the alcove, though there's a gap behind where the straight headboard does not meet the wall. It's piled high with furs and pillows. In this curve there's also a wardrobe, a dresser, and nightstands. Hooks extending from the ceiling over the dresser have been rigged with two layered chain-link that holds a number of bottles of alcohol of different varieties. The highest drawer in the dresser which is bizarrely the largest locks with a key. Opposite it, closer to the door, is a hearth that's had a throw rug and loveseat set in front of it, along with a few low tables. A set of shelves and a small desk sit opposite the curve of the smaller end of the room. Around the curve and into the little lobe, one finds a great change. There's color everywhere instead of the muted things in the front half. Scarves and streamers hang from little hooks installed in the ceiling, their lengths varying, and a crib is set up in the middle with two small boxes that have toys poking out of their not-quite-shut lids. There's a tall table stocked with all the tools a mother needs (well, those that are safe to be at toddler height) and a small dresser and wardrobe. The furniture is all hand-me-downs but in decent enough condition to make the occupants comfortable.
He didn't show. A second note the following day:
He didn't show. A third note, the following day:
Still, no H'vier. Finally, a fourth note, the last, she resolved. If it went unanswered, she would find him and do it in public. She'd really rather not.
She sent it in the morning. If found it's way to him just after he touched down from morning drills.
Avoiding Tayte is one thing. The possibility of her leaving the Weyr is another. H'vier doesn't ignore her latest note. And when he comes to her room, he doesn't knock on the frame or anything to announce his presence. All he does is say, "The fuck are you leaving the Weyr for, woman? This better not be some passive aggressive bullshit to get me down here." It sounds threatening but there's no actual threat in his words so he's probably just being a guy. Tayte spins, surprised by H'vier's voice. Her hands hold a yellow sundress on it's hanger. She blinks at him, then at the dress and she tosses it carelessly onto the bed. Her hands settle onto her hips and she gives the bronzerider an annoyed look. "I'm going home so Vali can meet her grandparents." She'd rehearsed the line and it came off smoothly. "I'm not sure when I'm coming back." This part isn't a practiced lie. "That's not what I want to talk to you about. It will only take a minute." She's moving as she says this, toward him, and then swinging wide to go around so she can close the door behind him. "But I'd rather we not be overheard." "She's never met her grandparents?" is the first thing that H'vier asks. But that's not something he cares about all that much so he shakes his head and it's the rest that he focuses on. "How can you not be sure when you're coming back? Visiting your parents doesn't sound like the sort of thing you don't want to put a time limit on." He must not have had a great relationship with his. The bronzerider moves inside but he closes the door behind himself, crossing his arms over his chest and looking at Tayte like she's some young lady that has explaining to do. "No, she hasn't. My parents are very Hold-minded. And Yvalia was born under less than Holder friendly circumstances. They don't know about her." Tayte answers this distractedly, but it doesn't take a lot of thought. "Anyway, I'm not sure because I'm not sure how long I'll want to stay there or when I feel like I can come back here. It's complicated." And not what she wants to talk about. She shifts, standing a few paces away from the bronzerider since she didn't need to close the door. One would think that being a bartender would grant the woman a certain amount of tact in situations like this, but... "And because I'm pregnant again and I'm not sure about when I'll feel up to traveling." The delivery is faltering, her expression uneasy. His mouth opens like he wants to respond to something she's said. But when Tayte delivers her last line, nothing ends up coming out. H'vier stands there looking stupid for several moments before he manages a simple, "You're what?" But he holds up a hand to keep her from saying anything. He can absorb that. Just give him a second. "And it's mine?" He probably shouldn't have to ask that question but maybe she's gone back to her old ways or something between seeing him. "Yeah." Tayte draws out the word a little once she's allowed to speak again, looking fairly awkward herself now. "Pregnant. Madilla said the herbs aren't one hundred percent effective. I'm one of the lucky few." She pushes a hand through her hair. "You're the only one I was sleeping with that has a penis." Another shove through her hair. "Look, I'm not asking--" That's not what she wants to say, she starts again: "I don't expect--" Not it either. Is the third time the charm: "I'm keeping the baby. It's your choice if you want to be involved in it's life." No pressure from Tayte, apparently. She looks at him, brow furrowed in mild concern. Honestly, it's not like H'vier probably doesn't have kids. Somewhere. But he doesn't know who they are. He's never really been confronted with their existence before. But now here he is, standing in front of a woman he might have-- no, that he did knock up. And he's not sure how to feel about it. So he asks what everyone wants to know, "You're sleeping with women?" He still needs a moment or five hundred to process the rest of that. Hold onto your seat, H'vier! The ride's not over yet! "Yes." Simply, about the women. She had been known to have threesomes with her female friend, Cherie, back at Ista before she got pregnant and they had a falling out. But that was a lot of turns ago, so maybe not a rumor H'vier would remember. "There's something else." Tayte tugs at her hair again. Apparently, this is her nervous tell. "I never mentioned it before because you're one of maybe five people it could be, but-- well, this might make twice. Yvalia might be yours by blood." It's added in a 'in case that's relevant' sort of way. Maybe it's once she started confessing the truth about babies, it all had to be said before her conscience was satisfied. There's a difference between what Tayte did at Ista and what Tayte is doing now. But H'vier resists the (strong) urge to question her about any possible partners she may have had of the female persuasion lately. It's actually not that hard right now. It might be harder later. Now, though, the bronzerider can only lift a hand to rub over his face before he's gesturing vaguely toward where she usually keeps her booze. "I think I need-- no, it can wait. I have..." His voice trails off and his gaze drops down unconsciously toward Tayte's belly. It's not often his eyes go that far down. "Why are you telling me this if you're leaving?" "Because Yvalia wanted a father and didn't have one." A fact that lets a small amount of hurt touch the woman's expression. "It wasn't -- with Vali, I didn't know who, so I never had to think about if the father had a right to be in her life if he wanted. I think you do, if you want. With this child." Her hands fall self-consciously to her abdomen which looks no different on the outside than it did in the past sevens when he saw it without the fabric that now covers it. "Things are too complicated here for me. But I will come back, after the child is born, if not before. So, I'm telling you so you know, in case you want to be anything to it when it comes. So that I don't show up here in eight months with a baby I conveniently forgot to tell you about." Like the one she hadn't mentioned for four turns and change, though unlike at the same time. H'vier is a man that defaults to physicality. But that's not really something that will help him here. It's pretty obvious that he's uncomfortable with the emotions he's feeling. Especially since he can't just turn and leave. Well, he could. But he's not. That should count for something. "So," he begins, not entirely sure where he wants to go with it right away. "So I'm just supposed to sit here on my ass while you're off-- where the fuck are you gonna be, anyway?" The lie is well-practiced. It's there, waiting to be used. Where is she going? Bitra Hold, to visit her parents. Only, she can't seem to reach for it. Not with him still standing there looking uncertain. She sighs. "Southern Weyr. Only I've said to everyone else that it's Bitra, so please don't let it slip to everyone who has a tongue to wag." Tayte's brows are furrowing then, confused, "I don't know what you're supposed to do. You can't exactly help me grow a baby. I'm kind of on my own for that no matter whether I'm here or not. What do you want to be doing instead?" The confusion has grown. "What's at Southern? Why are you going there?" Yup, he's turned into Questiony McQuestionpants. H'vier shakes his head though. He barely talks to anyone as it is. Not about anything important, anyway. Not telling anyone won't be a big deal. "I don't know, Tayte. I want--" That's a good question. What does H'vier want? "I want to see you. I want to touch you. I don't want you to run away for months and just show back up with a new baby - my baby - like nothing happened." "My sister. And so I don't have to answer awkward questions." Tayte hands him back answers for his questions, and then in the wake of his words she falls into shocked silence. The shock only shows on her face for a moment. Then it's buried. She does continue to blink at him. She takes a breath to process what he's just said to her and then slowly nods. "So visit me." The invitation comes slowly, quietly. "Awkward questions. You mean like who you were fucking? You're ashamed that it's me, aren't you." It's not really a question, just a realization on his part. He probably shouldn't be surprised but it's clear that it stings just a little bit. "I will be," he adds as though it was his idea in the first place and she was only agreeing with it, jaw tense with agitation that he's not really sure what to do with. "And don't think you can just find somewhere else to go if you're trying to avoid me. I'll find you." "What? No. Fuck." Tayte's shock is back at the assumption, "Faranth." She probably meant awkward questions like these. "Havi, the last time I got knocked up, the healer told me the baby was better off if I miscarried. I was scared and alone, and in one night lost all of my friends, all my usual crowd, everything. I'm scared now. Scared because like Yvalia, I want this child. But things are complicated. I let a friend of mine adopt Yvalia because she wanted a father, and then things between us went sour in a strange way, and I've asked him to keep his distance from me, not her, but me, but if I'm suddenly pregnant and he finds out about it, I won't be able to keep him from trying to be my friend again. And Markarin, my boss? He's trying to get the vintners to take my knot, working me ridiculously hard because I took a position at Snowasis, a position I love. My last pregnancy wasn't easy, I was tired all the time and nauseous and all kinds of unpleasant things that make being a very busy woman problematic. So I'm going to take a hiatus from my craft, from my position at Snowasis, from my life and go somewhere I can be relaxed so I don't miscarry this child." Now she has to take a breath (since most of that was delivered on one, or two). "I'm not--" She has to stop and think, "We see the world pretty differently where it comes to women." But who doesn't when H'vier is the otherside of the argument? "But I'm not ashamed of you being the father of my child." Now she stops, letting all that sink in. She stands, her fingers curling into the sides of her skirt, looking self-conscious. A lot of this is territory that H'vier has never had to think about before. A lot of it is probably things he never knew he didn't want to have to think about. He probably has a lot of questions left in him but, for now, all he does is move toward her. It's slow, like he's trying not to scare away some wild prey animal, and then he's reaching out to pull her in against him, to wrap his arms around her and tilt his head down to kiss the top of her head. "Everything's gonna be fine. I'll come visit you. You won't have to worry about anything." Except for this one thing, "Who 'adopted' Yvalia?" The quotes are audible. This is his maybe-daughter they're talking about. Tayte is no shrinking violet. She is scared, but not by H'vier. So as he advances on her, she stands her ground. She's even willing when he reaches for her, slipping into the circle of his embrace and pressing her cheek to his chest. Her arms wrap around his waist and her eyes slide closed. For a moment, her body relaxes against him in the wake of his offered comforts. Only, in this intimately close position, he can feel that her body tenses when he asks the question. She's silent a moment. "Yvalia asked K'del to be her father. He wanted to be, and I allowed it." There's unease in her voice as she answers, but at least she provides a straightforward response. It's nice there for a few moments, at least. The woman he's growing increasingly protective of all safe in his arms. But where he can feel her tension, she can feel his, too. It doesn't follow through into his embrace, exactly. He doesn't hold her any tighter or do anything that might hurt her. But the tension is definitely there and he's trying very hard not to react to it in his usual, impulsive manner. "Okay," is all that he's going to say about that right now. And he'll even stand there until Tayte withdraws on her own. But he's probably thinking about hitting K'del. She stays for a time, the longer they are silent, the more relaxed she becomes. One of her hands even starts rubbing H'vier's back lightly. Eventually, Tayte does slip out of his arms, letting one of her hands find its way into his. "Sorry I sent so many notes. I didn't want to bring you here under false pretenses. But I wasn't sure how else to get ahold of you." Or what she assumed would be false pretenses. Although, from the way she's looking up at him, the blonde might be interested in something more than an embrace from H'vier. H'vier doesn't like apologizing for things. But, "I'm sorry I ignored them. I just... thought I needed to keep some distance." He's still not really sure about that. But he's here. And he's not running away just yet. "You're not fucking him, too, are you?" It's a weird question coming from him because he doesn't usually care who else touches his conquests once he's done with them. His fingers tighten around hers slightly, like he expects her to pull her hand away when he doesn't really want her to, and he doesn't let too much distance get between them if he can help it. Tayte probably wants to ask questions about why he thought that, only she doesn't. Not just now. That might be because his question, so direct, has put a blush on her cheeks, making the freckles spread across them seem darker. The muscles in her hand tighten, not really tightening with his fingers, or against them, just tightening, tensing. Direct question begets direct answer. "I did, once. Long after I was pregnant but before I knew. And we don't anymore." That last wasn't part of his question, but she wanted to say it. "I'm still sleeping with Jo, if you want to know." Her tone has a touch of 'though why it's any of your business I'm not quite certain', but not so much that it's really a rebuke, just an edge of frustration with the awkward questions. It's not exactly the answer he was hoping for. But it's better than he was expecting. It keeps him from look quite so possessive. The fact that she's sleeping with Jo doesn't seem to bother him as much. In fact, any other time, he might ask to watch or something. But right now H'vier is moving into her again, crowding her slightly in the vague direction of her bed. "If you don't tell me to leave, I'm going to take all of your clothes off." And it doesn't take a genius to figure out what he's going to do after that. "My clothes are all over the bed." The words come before Tayte thinks. They're true. Her outfits spread out there in her packing madness. But that isn't 'no' and that isn't 'leave'. And the fact that she's letting herself be pressed back toward the bed isn't sending any 'let's not do this' signals either. She places her hands on H'vier's hips, to balance herself while they're moving back, so she can crane her neck around to look at the clothes in peril; not the ones she's wearing, but the innocent bystanders. "I'll be gentle," is not the sort of thing that H'vier says very often. He's not opposed to just pushing things out of the way, either, entirely more concerned about getting Tayte out of the clothes that are on her body than the ones on her bed. They're just extra padding for all H'vier cares about clothes anyway. Somewhere along the line of trying to get Tayte naked, H'vier kisses her, heated and possessive but with an edge of care to it that wasn't really there before. It's something that's probably going to stick around now that H'vier knows she's pregnant, too. H'vier is true to his word, though, they can't spare enough time and attention to neatly hang each innocent bystander. Tayte somehow manages to not be driven to distraction by the way she only had the smallest second to snag them up in her arms and set them gently in the bottom of the wardrobe before she was pulled back to the cleared bed. It was different than any time that had come before. When H'vier had said he'd be gentle, Tayte might have thought he meant with the clothes, but really, it was with her also. Gentle and almost unnervingly tender. He even gathered her into his arms after, to cuddle. She took everything in stride. She'd been in bed with strangers before, but never one who looked so damned familiar. Asking 'Who are you and what have you done with H'vier?', she knew, would distinctly ruin the mood, so instead, once they were satisfied and curled together, she spoke softly, "Havi... I'm-- curious." A safe enough start. "You said earlier that you felt like you needed distance... why?" The question doesn't come out smoothly, but at least it comes out gently. It's not just weird for her. It's kind of weird for H'vier to want to be that way with someone, too. But it's hard for him to be any other way with her right now. And he's so damned content with her in his arms afterwards. He's not even falling asleep, though his eyes are closed, he's listening to her breath, the distant beat of her heart. Her question makes him draw in a deeper breath of his own but all that comes out is a quiet, "It doesn't matter." Which, lets face it, sounds a little bit more like the H'vier we all know. "But it might," Tayte protests softly, drawing a finger up along his chest. "If I did something that made you feel crowded or-- whatever--- I'd like to know, so I don't do it again." Her alto is softly entreating, expression the same, should he look, though she hasn't raised her head from where it rests on his shoulder. "No. You didn't do anything, darling." Well, she did do something. But it's not like he can really call her out for treating him decently when he really didn't deserve to be treated decently. H'vier's arms tighten around her just noticeably for a few moments and he sighs out a breath as he relaxes again. "It's not you. Trust me. Don't worry about it, okay? I just... I like this." He might be able to feel the way her lashes bat, ticking across his skin, as Tayte blinks, perplexed. "You're allowed to like this." The words come out in certainty, but then, after a breath, "Aren't you?" It takes H'vier a few long moments to answer that. Maybe he knows that it sounds kind of ridiculous. But he does answer. "No. I don't let myself enjoy... this. I mean, it's nice. But I don't usually think about it." He's the sort of guy that tends to focus on quantity over quality, after all. It's not really that common for him to be with the same person more than once. And he was doing that before he even knew he'd knocked her up with Tayte. "Figured if I kept my distance, I'd stop wanting... this." "Oh." Tayte's lips form the round word, and some things start to make sense. She's silent a moment, though her touch to his chest hasn't stopped it's rhythmic strokes and patterns drawn with deft fingertips. "Well, I hope you let you enjoy yourself. I mean, there's something to be said for different partners, variety and all that, but I'm finding that keeping fewer, but more consistent lovers is better. There are so many things you can do with a second- or third-time lover that I'd not do the first time someone took me to bed." She focuses her words on the sex aspect, because maybe that's easier for him to deal with than the less familiar dimension of feelings. "I wanted to be with you again, after the first time... and the second... and the third," Not that she admitted the last in any of her dealings with him, "I don't think that's wrong to want." She trails off, though her tone might indicate she's slipping into deeper thought on the subject. The bronzerider absorbs what she says. Maybe he just likes listening to her talking. Maybe it's his hand moving to settle itself over one of her breasts like it just happened to end up there on its own. "I enjoy myself," he assures her. "This is just... different." There's really no other way for H'vier to describe it right now. "What about now? Do you want there to be a next time?" "Yes." Tayte doesn't have to think to answer, so it comes quickly, though it has her also shifting in position, to pull her cheek away from his chest, though not her chest away from his hand as she leans so she can see his face. "Is there a reason I shouldn't want there to be a next time?" H'vier's gaze slips down to look at her as she shifts. "I don't know. It seems like there should be. But I don't want to go thinking about all the reasons for you not to sleep with me again." Sleep with, not even fuck. "Definitely don't want to tell you about them. That would just be crazy." A grin graces his scruffy face. "I think there should be lots of next times." That prompts a laugh from Tayte, her warm smile spreading to light her whole face. For a moment, she's likely able to forget all her worldly worries and cares. She revels in the moment and then with an exaggerated teasing lilt, "Well, you're really twisting my arm..." But just in case the obvious tease is missed, she's seeking his lips with wholehearted fervor to silently assure there are next times to come. She really could have said just about anything if she's going to follow it up with a kiss like that. H'vier isn't completely silent as he returns it, but he doesn't say anything to ruin the moment. He will take advantage of the moment to touch her, though, letting his hand wander and starting to move in a way that's likely going to lead to a next time soon if she doesn't stop him. She doesn't. |
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