(I've got nothing significant, though it could be funny for Ky to be giving Gaius deets about Zander for the letter only for Zander to show up in the middle of it or something like that)
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
(Nice! I'm gonna go to bed now but if you'd like me to start I can get a post up tomorrow.)
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
(Okay so I was thinking about trying to help out but I’m not sure how you want this set up in terms of where they are and who they’re with so imma leave that up to you still — but I thought I’d throw out there that I think it’d be good for them to meet Zander in the courtyard. If he walks in she’s going to break regardless but if she’s aware of others in the room she will have some fragment of control left, I think. Where if she’s in the courtyard she’s going to fully forget about everyone else xD and she very well may warn Zander about Ash’s mind reading hahaha)
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
(Absolutely excellent idea! I can have Tomhas or someone be like "Ky, come out to the courtyard real quick" and she'll be like "omg Ellen you didn't")
(Do you wanna start though cuz I planned on having this take place the next day, and I'd love an insight into Ky's mind as she wakes up on the day of her rites ceremony!)
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
Ky was antsy. And the closer the ceremony was, the antsier she got. After all the chaos had died down yesterday about Raina, it finally hit her that she was the next daughter to be the center of attention.
And holy hell that was a terrifying thought.
Everyone.
Everyone was going to be watching her.
Were they allowed to object last minute? Like a wedding with a ‘speak now’ sort of caveat for why she shouldn’t be allowed to join the family? She shook that thought off. Ash wouldn’t do that. He was a big boy. If he was going to raise a stink about it, he would have done it already. Besides, she thought she was making progress with him. Slow, painful progress. But progress all the same.
And then she’d woke up this morning and could barely contain herself. She was barely talking because she knew if she did then anxiety would spew out. And she didn’t want everyone to know how utterly terrified she was. And how much her brain was screaming that she was bothering them all and no one actually wanted her in the family and this whole thing was just born out of pity. A pity adoption. Like a pity date — but a million times worse.
Ky was pacing. She hadn’t stopped pacing since she woke up this morning. Well, okay, she’d made it through breakfast — but her leg was bouncing the whole time and she’d excused herself as soon as was polite so that she could come to her room and pace some more.
This was fine.
Everything was fine.
Unless she messed everything up.
And she did have a propensity for messing things up.
God, she was going to mess this up.
There was a knock on her that about made her jump out of her skin. It wasn’t time yet. What was this? She wasn’t ready for a knock. Not yet. Had something happened? Was she in trouble? Were they about to reveal that this was all some elaborate prank that they were all in on?
Gods, shut up. They wouldn’t do that. They wouldn’t. And you know it. She forced a deep breath past the tightness in her chest. She was projecting. And it wasn’t kind to imagine such nastiness from people this wonderful. She needed to stop.
Ky tried to brace herself and look less anxious than she was, then pulled the door open.
It was a servant. “Good morning! Lord Ash sent me to ask you to join him.”
Her heart stopped. This was it. She was in trouble. She hadn’t made any progress with him whatsoever and now—
“He said he’d like more details about your uncle so he can help you find him.”
Ky realized she was holding her breath and she let it out, giving a stiff nod. She needed to stop. Here he was being absolutely wonderful and she was imagining the worst of him. “Thank you.”
“I’ll lead the way.”
“Thank you,” she murmured again with another nod, then slipped into the hall and followed the servant into the hall and towards the room where Ash was presumably waiting for her.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
Gaius was seated at a small writing desk in one of the public studies of Caracal Keep. He had begun the letter already, writing in concise, elegant script. The majority of what he had already written consisted of exactly what Ky had told him the day before, and preceding that were a set of instructions for his steward to carry out. He had not yet dressed for the ceremony, electing instead to wear an old waistcoat and trousers rather than get his finery dusted with flour while he was baking. He had tried to get his unruly hair to lie flat, though, but it stubbornly refused to do anything but stick up. Ky must be feeling absolutely terrified, he mused to himself as he waited with quill in hand. He could imagine she might be having second thoughts, though hopefully she would have the good sense to understand that there was no backing out now. Unless of course she or Tomhas objected during the ceremony, which seemed increasingly unlikely. Good.
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
She focused on her breathing, bracing herself to stop having thoughts. She could shut up all day and it wouldn’t mean anything at all if Ash was just sitting there listening to her thoughts and judging her anxiety. Besides, she needed to focus on Zander. That thought excited her, but grounded her at the same time. He was familiar. Comforting.
The servant knocked and opened the door. “Here she is, sir.”
Ky walked in after her, giving a tight, nervous grin at Ash. “Hi! Good morning. Hi. How are you?”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
Gaius looked up, nodding to Ky. "I'm quite well. And you? Ready for your big day?" He set down his quill and gestured for her to pull up a chair. She certainly looked anxious. The servant had explained to her what he wanted, right? There was no need to be uncomfortable. Of course, this was Ky, and Ky was always a little afraid. Especially of him, which Gaius couldn't blame her for. He wasn't exactly a disarming presence.
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“Yes, sir!” Ky pulled up the chair, still smiling anxiously as she tried her best to mask it. “I’m very well. Looking forward to it very much. Very ready.”
She wasn’t ready in the least. She sat down in the chair and immediately started bouncing. Like a child. She took a deep breath and focused on pushing down on the chair as strongly as she could. Forcing herself to stop bouncing. She tucked her hands under her legs as well to keep them from being nervous as well.
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
"I'm glad to hear it." Gaius turned back to the parchment. "Now, I said yesterday that I would need more details regarding your uncle, and I hoped I might be able to cover all that before the festivities begin and before my aunt in-law spirits me away to the kitchens." He paused. "You didn't have a specific filling in mind for the pie, as I recall. Has that changed?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“Nope! I’m happy with anything!” Ky smiled, resisting the urge to get up again to start pacing. “Looking forward to those as well!”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
Gaius dipped his head, making a mental note to prepare both a sweet and a savory batch. "Excellent. Now, then." He jerked the left sleeve of his shirt up so no ink would get on it. "Your uncle. Does he have any distinguishing features, marks, scars, anything like that?"
"The Imperial need for control is so desperate because it is so unnatural. Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks. Authority is brittle. Oppression is the mask of fear. Remember that." -Karis Nemik
“Um…” Ky thought for a moment, realizing she’d never thought about how to physically describe Zander before. “His nose is a little crooked because he broke it. It’s not very dramatic though. And he’s got a thin little scar here.” She gestured from her left ear down to the side of her neck, angling slightly towards her throat. It very much looked like he was centimeters away from getting his throat sliced open, but Ky hadn’t ever really put that together and she didn’t now, either. “But he’s already pale so that’s not super apparent either.”
Gesturing had been a mistake. Now her hand was free to do as it pleased. And it pleased to start drumming on her knee, which now began bouncing since her focus was split rather than determined to keep her body under control.
“And he’s got a huge scar across his abdomen right here—“ this time she gestured with her right hand, which was an equally bad choice to free it. “It is very noticeable but he always keeps it covered so that’s probably not very helpful.”
"u and rina are systematically watering down the grammar of yws" - Atticus "From the fish mother to the fish death god." - lehmanf "A fish stole my identity. I blame shady" - Omni [they/he]
