Logs:Striking a Balance
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| RL Date: 13 July, 2015 |
| Who: Ebeny, E'dre |
| Involves: Fort Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: After a long day, Ebeny and E'dre talk some things through. |
| Where: Autumnal Eventide Weyr, Fort Weyr |
| When: Day 21, Month 3, Turn 38 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: M'vyn/Mentions, Elayne/Mentions, Eden/Mentions, Eryn/Mentions |
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| It's late when Ebeny finally returns home, though Laurienth has been slumbering in the wallow for more than an hour already, so perhaps it isn't the weyrlings who have kept her. She doesn't enter the weyr through the office, but from the bowl, and casts her gaze about for any sign of life as she moves in from the outside world, shrugging carefully out of her jacket. On this rare occasion, the children have been left in the nursery, and so she takes the opportunity to collect stray toys from the floor and gather them together on the nearest table without the protest of young voices. It must have become a bad habit of E'dre's to fall asleep over his work. He's got a handful of records spread out before him on the table they normally eat meals at when they take them at home. His elbow is propped on the table and his chin is cushioned in the curve of his palm. From behind he may look to be studiously reviewing what's in front of him but in reality he's clearly asleep. With the children settled at the nursery and Wroth equally slumbering in his wallow there has been no one to rouse the brownrider from his dreams. Ebeny's entrance does not wake him either. Ebeny continues to quietly gather up toys and other discarded items here and there, tidying up when she could just as easily (and be more likely to) leave everything where it is. Order in one sphere, chaos in another. She sneaks a look at E'dre every now and then, thoughtful, yet doesn't seek to wake him, and when she reaches the conclusion of all that can be sorted and tidied, she pauses only a few feet from him and glances down at her clothes - at the dress and not the usual, somewhat battered leathers she wears day to day with the weyrlings. Something near to a grimace passes across her face, then she reaches out to gently touch his shoulder. E'dre blinks his blurry-eyes in a flurry of activity to clear his vision from sleep. "Huhn?" he shakes his head and rubs his hand in one clear sweep down the length of his face. "Ben?" he queries, turning in his chair to wrap an arm about her middle and tug her close. It's when his hand connects with the nicer fabric of her dress that he more fully awakens. "What's this?" he asks and follows with a smile and a lift of brows. A look she may recognize - he lets his hand travel lower and tugs to draw her towards his lap. "Kids are gone. Is this a surprise for me?" Swaying with the motion of being tugged close, Ben lets the same momentum carry her down into his lap and lets her hands drop to curve to his shoulders. "This is me playing pretend and dress-up and lady harper," she answers a little wryly, self-deprecation most evident. "Also known as 'couldn't be bothered to get changed', but I like your idea better," the greenrider murmurs. She glances down, gaze finding his collarbone as she says, "You keep saying we hardly have time together anymore. I should've come home sooner. It's silly; I'm probably making a fool of myself, and I have our family and two caverns of weyrlings where my time would be better spent." E'dre settles her on his lap and keeps his arms about her loosely for support. "Don't say that," he says, shaking his head at her. "Please. Not to me. It is very important you find time for something you love. You're a wonderful singer. Your finding time for a craft? That gives everyone else something to want time for too. Hasn't singing helped M'yvn? I imagine you had a lot to do with that." He wraps his arms more closely about her in a hug. "I'm proud of you. I'm sorry I didn't make it to listen. I feel asleep." He tips a rueful smile at her. "Forgive me?" "I have more than I ever deserved," Ben quietly insists, "and I shouldn't go looking for more. I'm not some kid to be discovering herself." She finds it easier to acknowledge the more practical side of it, and agrees, "I hope it's helped M'vyn, but it'd be selfish to think that I let him instruct me solely for his own good. I didn't. It might scare me senseless, but I enjoy it. And I like seeing him more settled. ...Maybe I'm just trying to convince myself I didn't screw him up so badly when he was a weyrling." Leaning forward, she drops her head down against his shoulder. "I always forgive you, but there's nothing to forgive," she says softly. "You're Weyrleader now. Your work takes precedence. Anything you need from me, you can have." "I don't want you go ever think I put this Weyr ahead of you or our girls. I have to do what I can, I have responsibilities but it doesn't take up so much of me I've lost this," E'dre taps his heart and then reaches forward to tap hers. "Follow your passion. It's healthy and not at all misplaced. I miss working with my cloth and making dresses," he trails his fingers from her shoulder down along her side to brush against the garment in clear appreciation. "You never faulted me when I made time for it." He tips his face forward to kiss Ben's nose. "I'm going to help you however I can to keep making the time. You're stunning. Singing makes you happy. Keep hold of that." "I don't," Ben quietly answers, "but maybe you should, sometimes. We won't suffer for it, if we can all strike a balance. I don't want us to be the reason anything goes less well than you'd want it to." She smiles into the curve of his neck, then lifts her head. "...Seems even less fair that I should have this, if you can't have that," she murmurs a touch ruefully. Tilting her head a little, considering, she hesitates before asking, "...Do you think we need a nanny? So the girls have someone if we don't always get home when we should? So they're not staring at the nursery door and wondering?" "Life isn't fair," E'dre reminds her quietly, moving his hand forward to cup against her cheek briefly. He taps her nose and the smile that spreads across his face does much to reduce the fatigue and worry lines that have been etching their ways into his forehead and around his eyes. "If N'muir and Hattie were able to have their children and their knots, we will do just fine," he reasons. He can't help but tease her on her question. "I've had Hematite help out in the past and you weren't overly fond of that." He doesn't let that tease last long before he answers her more seriously. "I'm sure Elayne would rather come home than be stuck in the nurseries. Eden and Eryn... I'd rather they came home too. Do you have anyone in mind?" "It should be more fair," Ben murmurs, tipping her head into his hand. "And I'm hoping that you might do something about Hematite, now that you're in more of a position to. I just don't... think some of the things they say and do are the right things our daughters should be hearing." She's not so harsh about it, her voice still soft, but it's clearly something she wants to say. "...Even if it was just someone who worked in the nursery and watched them for a few hours in the evening, if we need them to. Maybe someone on my father's side of the family would be willing. There's more of them than I can count, it seems." From his shoulders, her hands sweep up into E'dre's hair as she lowers her mouth to his. "...Come to bed." "I started transferring people yesterday. I threatened a few from Hematite and they all thought I was joking," E'dre's expression is hardened by the memory of that conversation. "I wasn't. I've moved out a handful of bronzes, browns and the larger blues and greens into some of the lighter wings. I've brought in more blues and greens, I've even asked some of Agate to join Hematite - those that are able to physically keep up still. I need Hematite to be a better example. I'm hoping this change will help make all the wings stretch and grow. The Interval is so much harder. At least when Threadfall was happening, we all had a reason to be smart about our actions." He unloads all of that in a rush and then nods his head at her suggestions of a nanny. "Ask someone you think would be willing and capable, love. I know you'll handle that best." He leans into her kiss, moving his arms about her and holding her close against him. Ben doesn't need to encourage him further as to bed (but not sleep) - he goes willingly. |
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