Logs:Something Wrong with Satiet
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| RL Date: 10 March, 2009 |
| Who: K'del, Milani |
| Involves: High Reaches Weyr |
| Type: Log |
| What: Milani and K'del talk families, and then Tiriana... and then touch on what's going on with Satiet. |
| Where: Records Room, High Reaches Weyr |
| When: Day 21, Month 2, Turn 19 (Interval 10) |
| Mentions: N'thei/Mentions, Satiet/Mentions, Tiriana/Mentions |
| Records Room, High Reaches Weyr Books. Scrolls. Bound hides. Maps. If it's a record pertaining to the Weyr, it's likely to be in this roughly oval room with its floor-to-ceiling cherrywood shelves, its multitude of slots for scrolls, and its wide drawers for materials that shouldn't be rolled up or folded. A scribe is usually on duty at the tall desk up front with its good view of the room, and is able to help visitors find what they're looking for via the big bound index on its rotating stand. Past the desk, several tables stand in neat rows for note-taking, each stocked with glowbaskets, scrap hide, paper and pencils. Additional lighting is provided by a many-armed wrought-iron light fixture, its glows gleaming through luxurious glass containers in fluted shapes instead of baskets. To one side of the room, a gap between two sets of shelves outlines where another set once stood, now replaced by a tapestry-covered aperture. Peeking behind the tapestry reveals another cavern, this one likewise full of shelves, but occupied by only a few boxes of older records and a somewhat musty air of disuse. As well, two narrow but solid doors are locked when the room is unattended and a discreet staircase provides direct access from the Weyrleaders' weyrs. By this time of turn, winter is getting pretty old for any number of weyr residents, and this, combined with the bitter wind and continued snowfall outside, has driven plenty of people indoors to be noisy and unpleasant to each other. The records are an exception to this, for the moment: it's early enough in the evening that it's not entirely abandoned, but those in here are at work, rather than at conversation, for the most part. K'del is one of these, bent over something that he's working at diligently, every so often pausing to adjust his page, or consider what he's written. The headwoman comes in with a stack of ledgers and other assorted records to file. Milani doesn't really look around at first, stopping by one shelf first to slide a slender volume into place. It's when she moves on and passes K'del's table that she catches sight of him and pauses with a smile on her face and sets her things down, likely making the thunk to announce her presence, even as she walks nearer to rest a hand lightly on his shoulder. "Hey, Kas." K'del does not, to his credit, spill any ink on his page as that thunk breaks him from his thoughts - but that's likely because he tilts his pen up just in time. His head rises, then turns, allowing him to glance up at her as she rests that hand. "Hey, Millie," he returns. "Working late again?" "Just putting some things away," Milani answers and slides her hand along his shoulder with comfortable affection. "Is this one of your projects?" she asks him next, leaning a little to see, eyes curious. K'del lifts his hand, the one not holding his pen, to rest atop of hers on his shoulder. As she leans in to see, he turns his gaze back to the page, which, on closer examination, will prove to look more like a letter. He confirms this with his explanation, "Just writing home. Gets lonely, doing it at my desk, though, but too noisy everywhere else." His tone is light. Milani bends then to press a kiss lightly to K'del's temple. "You can come into my office sometimes for that too if you want. While I work on numbers," she invites with a grin. "How is everything at home? Have you heard from them lately?" She blows out a light puff of air and nods. "That time of the winter. It's starting to wane, but it's still snowy and people get fidgety to be out-of-doors." K'del looks, for a moment, as though he intends to turn and lift his head, and try for a real kiss, but the initial motion of his head ceases; instead, he twines his fingers through hers and squeezes, then releases her hand. "Hadn't thought of that," he tells her. "But if it won't distract you too much, sounds good." As for his family, he adds, "They're okay. Not much you can do with the vines this time of turn, so they're getting a bit... Well. But Bren's second child was born. Another girl. His wife's pissed, apparently." And he seems quite happy with that. "Mm. It is. Turnover's passed, and spring still feels like ages away." Her fingers return that squeeze and the abortive motion earns a caress of her hand through his hair. "I think I can manage having you in my office," Milani teases a little, then listens, nodding. "Bored of waiting? And hmm. She wanted a fine strapping boy to take over the holding?" is guessed about the sister-in-law. "Yeah. Restlessness by the mile," she says with a sigh and moves to pull out a chair, drops into it. "I gave Tiriana a mission," she tells him next, mouth pulling to the side faintly, perhaps calling back another conversation a long time ago. K'del smiles for her hand in his hair, and moreso, for her tease. "So long as you're sure!" His nod, for her next, is firm. "Exactly. On both counts, really. Think she thinks she's not proving herself until she has one. Bren doesn't care, though, and my mother just loves babies. So." He shifts, so that he can look at her as she sits, brows raising; "And? She screwed it up like she did her relationship with Satiet." Milani may well have heard - many people have - about K'del's latest yelling match with the Junior Weyrwoman. "Mm. I won't ... pretend to understand," Milani says slowly about Bren's wife's thoughts on the matter. "Just hope she doesn't annoy everyone about it," she concludes and then shakes her head. "Actually, she managed it. I don't know if it'll work out the way she'd best like it to, but who knows, it could." The headwoman shrugs lightly there. "Either way, we got rid of some pink fleece and purple sheeting and now maybe Tiriana has a chance at getting back on the Weyrwoman's good side." Beat. "And if it /does/ work, then she owes me one. And if it doesn't, well, she already hates my guts, but she might be willing to keep trying." Blue-green eyes blink innocently at K'del. "She will," says K'del, of his sister-in-law. "She did last time, too. But she'll get over it eventually. Looks like she's as fertile as my mother, so it's not as though she won't have another chance." His surprise - complete incredulity - for Tiriana's success is clearly visible in his expression. "Well. She's good for something, then." Which doesn't stop his lips from twisting, sourly. "Keep trying to do something useful, you mean, to prove herself to Satiet? Hope Satiet isn't quite that gullible. Tiriana told her to go ahead and die!" "That's something, I guess," Milani says with a healthy dose of dubiousness for the merits of fertility. "She's got a brain cell or two to rub together underneath all of the puffing and huffing," the headwoman says with a hint of a grudging tone in there. "And yes. Keep on trying to be useful and prove herself up." Another shrug follows. "Tiriana says a lot of stupid things like that, haven't you noticed? But see, Kas, wouldn't it be better maybe to have her owing, you know, to avoid more blow-outs?" A meaningful lift of eyebrows. "Makes /them/ happy," says K'del, grinning, clearly well aware of Milani's dubiousness. "So who am I to care either way?" For the rest - for Tiriana - he nods slowly; this time, he's the one looking dubious, though that head keeps nodding. "I suppose," he allows. "And yeah, I know she does. First hand, even. But.. I suppose. Will she see it that way, though? She's not exactly good at the gratitude." "True," Milani concedes about his family. "And that /is/ a good thing." Happy holders, that is. She lifts her shoulders again at K'del's commentary. "No, she's not, but I think even Tiriana knows when she owes someone something. It's worth a try, don't you think?" Her voice is kept low as she speaks and she leans in closer to K'del, reaches over to tug at his collar lightly. "I mean, wouldn't it be good if she weren't walking around glowering at everyone all the time?" K'del's nod marks his agreement: happy holders are a good thing. It's the topic of Tiriana that he responds to verbally, however, his head tilting to the side to consider what she has to say. Finally - /slowly/ - he manages to nod again. "I take the point," he allows. "It'd be nice if she could get some satisfaction out of, you know, doing a good job. Rather than out of stabbing people in the back. So. All right. Reckon you have anything else you can get her to succeed at?" Or fall flat on her face with. Because he'll take that, too. "Maybe," Milani answers with a little nod. "I'm kind of keeping an eye out. Projects that are ... well more than just you know, the piddly day-to-day. Things that show that she can /do/ the job, if she tries hard enough. Has a reason to, whatever," Millie waves one hand. "And you know, in the end if she doesn't make it, we can fix it," she gestures vaguely towards the caverns, "so it's not a real loss. I was really surprised actually that she managed with the traders. I think the caravan master got distracted by her boobs or something though, if you believe Giorda." K'del reaches out, tracing Milani's fingers with his own, looking at them rather than at the Headwoman herself, while he nods along to what she has to say. "Probably." That would be Tiriana's boobs: they're plenty distracting, his tone says. "Well. I hope it works. Though I don't know if it'd hurt if Lujayn was the favourite. But." He waves that away, nodding again, his head lifting. "Do hope it does work." "I guess I'm really thinking of ... just being able to get by with Tiriana around. Even if she /is/ on the outs with Satiet. I mean, doesn't that mean that she's kind of at loose ends too? And I'd hate to get on her bad side when she's bored," Millie sticks her tongue out a bit, then turns her hand over to thread her fingers back through his. "Anyway. I just thought you might like to know. You know. Because of what we used to say," she adds with a little sheepish laugh. K'del laughs, rueful, at the comment that draws Milani's own laugh, nodding. His sigh is a long one, and is followed by a purse of the lips before he speaks again. "Yeah," he agrees. "I get it. Thanks for telling me. Guess I'll... try and be nicer, too. In case that makes a difference, though I doubt it." /Really/ not convinced. "Wonder why it was this particular comment that bugged Satiet so much. The final straw, probably, rather than something in particular." "Sure," Milani says gently and squeezes her hand a little around his fingers, the gesture meant fondly. His latter words though, turn her head away and her fingers retreat, the headwoman gnawing on a hangnail thoughtfully. "Well ..." she says long and slow and sighs, reaches to pick up her things. "I think ... maybe we should talk about that at my place. Let me put this stuff away and ... bring your letter?" she suggests. K'del draws his own hand back, as Milani does hers, head lifting so that he can watch her, his expression suddenly serious. And curious, if hesitantly so. "I didn't know there was something-- Of course." He slides around, gathering up his letter, his pen, the rest of his things including the coat draped upon the back of his chair. His lips are drawn in, tight. It only takes Milani a few minutes to put away the various items, then she's returning to K'del and threading her arm through his, aiming to rest her head on his shoulder even while she guides the way, not to her office, but her rooms. Where the door is firmly shut behind them to ward against prying ears. K'del's happy enough to let her head rest there, and to follow her lead, using his other arm to hold his various belongings. He's silent, throughout their passage through the weyr, and still, once they're in her rooms, watching as she shuts the door behind them and he drapes his coat over one of the chairs. Then, finally, "There's actually something up with Satiet?" Coming inside, Milani swings the door shut and steps towards where the fire's burnt down low in the hearth, picks up a log to toss on it and stokes it back up with tongs and breath. "I'm ... not sure," Millie says slowly, chewing on her lip. "But you're not the only one who's ... noticed something being off with her. And well you know, she's gotten /awfully/ thin. Not that she's every been, you know, the curvy sort, but --" the headwoman shrugs and looks over her shoulder at the bronzerider. "Frail. She looks more than thin. She looks frail." K'del rests both hands upon the back of the chair he's standing behind, considering Milani further as she begins to rebuild the fire. "Haven't noticed /that/ much what she looks like, physically," he admits, working through the words thoughtfully, his lips pursing. "Though I remember she left graduation early. Indigestion or something, wasn't it? But indigestion, that's not going to be the problem." "You? Not noticing the looks on a woman?" Milani says with arch disbelief an rises to return to him, hands cupping the bronzerider's face gently. "I've known her pretty much all my life and she's not ... well she's not looking /well/," is what the headwoman finally comes up with. "I don't know if it's just a passing thing though or -- or ---" she stops there and then suddenly leans into him like she needs his support. In his defense, K'del explains, "She's the Weyrwoman. And almost old enough to be my mother." But from his expression, and the way he says /Weyrwoman/, it's the former reason that matters most. He's already reaching to put his arms around her when she begins to lean, and they tighten instantly, holding her to him. "Or if it's more than that," he concludes, his voice low, more thoughtful than emotional. "You'd think she'd tell you if it were something more, though," he adds, without question an attempt to reassure her. "Because even ignoring the emotional - the personal stuff. Well, there's practical considerations, right?" "Has that really stopped you before, Kas?" Millie says into his shirt. "I just -- don't know, Kas. That's the thing. If it was something worse, I would think she would, but she hasn't and so ... it's just being suspicious and wondering and worrying a little and then trying to tell myself it's nothing." She breathes in, winds her arms around his neck. "Well, it's not like I'm very fond of her or anything, but--" But. Milani is breaking off a lot tonight. The answer to that question is 'no', which K'del admits with a wry smile that Milani won't see, give the current positioning of her face. "But it still matters," he concludes. "Whatever it is. And I suppose you haven't tried talking to her?" He apparently dismisses that thought after a moment, clearly well aware of the likelihood of that. "Or talk to the healers? Probably won't /tell/ you anything, though, I guess, given all their secret morality stuff, but..." He squeezes, arms holding tight about her lower back. "Not yet, no," Milani murmurs into his collar, face moving so she can drop a kiss there. "No. That just ... that's not appropriate, you know?" Imagine that. Milani actually has some standards about gossip. "I just hope everything is fine and if she /is/ ill she'll get better and everything will be normal." K'del lifts one hand so that he can smooth it through Milani's hair, evidently intending it as a soothing gesture. "Mm. Suppose." Though he says it reluctantly. "Hope so, too. For your sake - and for everyone's, and, I guess, most of all, for Satiet." He leans down, planting a kiss atop her head, then adds, "She would tell you, if something was wrong. She /would/." "Right," Milani exhales slowly. "She would." And the headwoman looks up at the young man, with a somewhat tremulous smile. "I mean, what would the Reaches do without her, right? Who'd keep N'thei in check, much less Tiriana." Teeth catch at her bottom lip and there's something in her face that K'del probably doesn't see often: fear. K'del gives Milani a smile in return, a warmer, more certain one, though it doesn't quite make it to his gaze, particularly given the fear, something there's no way he could miss. "Right," he breathes. "No - Satiet's not going anywhere. Definitely." The arm around her tightens again, though. "But even if it did, we wouldn't let them... you know? And we're not alone in that." Milani nods a few times, eyes still a little wide. "Right. Of course not," she agrees though there's an edge to her voice that isn't quite uncertainty. What she does finally do is run her hand up into his hair and press her cheek against his to murmur two words with a questioning lilt in his ear: "Stay tonight?" K'del meets her gaze squarely. It's probably supposed to be a certain, calm kind of look; he's only partially successful, edging more towards awkward and determined. Poor K'del - out of his depth already. It's her murmured comment, and the gesture that goes with it that gets a more confident response, as his hand slides down her back, whilst the other reaches up to trace her cheek. "It never crossed my mind to leave," he tells her; unspoken is the implication: if there /is/ anything wrong, he's there. Here. Wherever she needs him. Milani makes a small sound in the back of her throat, followed by a quiet: "Thank you." Her head turns, lips finding cheek and tracing a path along his jaw to his mouth. She definitely needs and wants him right here, right now and for however long he's willing to stay. K'del doesn't say it, the you're welcome that goves with her thank you, but it's plainly spoken in his arms around her, and his expression, and, as her lips make their way to his, in the deep, earnest kiss that follows. He's not going /anywhere/. |
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