“Yes, ma’am,” Ky answered. “I know nothing about it whatsoever, honestly.”
"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]
"Oh!" Elise's eyebrows shot up, and she chuckled with a shake of her head. "Let's not start on the orrery, then. You'll need to start at the very, very beginning."
"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
Well, that was frustrating. She wasn’t sure she necessarily cared about astronomy to that degree, she just wanted to know what the orrery was. The floating sky balls could worry about themselves. Still. She was open to recommendations. And she supposed it wouldn’t be a terrible way to spend a few days to read up on it all. “Okay! Whatever you think is best.”
"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 think it's supposed to be whatever you think is best," Elise scoffed. "Do you want to jump ahead? You're welcome to; you'll just have a bit more trouble. Or I can sit you down, give you a lecture, and then hand you the book about the orrery."
"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 continued to be startled by Elise’s brisk demeanor. “Um… honestly, you’re the expert here, so I’ll defer to your judgment… but, um, well… I guess I’m not super interested in learning everything there is to know about space. But I could definitely use help in getting a foundation that would help me understand the model upstairs.”
"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]
"Right, then." She turned another corner. "I think I have the book for you, then."
"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]
Elise dipped her head. "Are you Cecily's or Tomhas's? Or is there one of Michael's nobody told anyone about?"
"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 flinched at that. Holy hell. Imagine being one of Michael’s children. She didn’t want to. She didn’t want that at all. Or even Cecily, for that matter. The woman was a hot mess. And Gaius, well…
There was exactly one sibling in this family she was willing to belong to.
“Tomhas,” Ky said. “He adopted me a little under a month ago.”
"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]
"Ah, that's no surprise. Good for him, and good for you." Elise nodded approvingly. "I haven't worked here long, but from what I hear he's the more stable of the four."
"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
That seemed like dangerous territory, to agree Tomhas was better than Gaius, when she was standing in Gaius’s home talking to Gaius’s employee. “I’m very fortunate and greatly appreciate his kindness. It’s been wonderful getting to know his family… how long have you worked here?”
"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]
"Mm, about six years? The East got to be too much for me, so I accepted a position here at the library."
"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
“Oh, very nice.” Six years seemed like more than enough time to Ky to get a reliable feel for the family. But she wasn’t going to question it. “What did you do before?”
"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 was the Esteemable Astronomer at the palace of the Grand Reputations," she said with a wry smile. "Twelve years I worked there, and then they decided I had a bad glint in my eye. I packed up and left the moment one of them gave me a wary look."
"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
“Oh, wow!” Ky’s eyes went wide. No wonder she seemed so confident, perhaps on the border of arrogance. Ky probably would, too, if she’d been an actual employee of someone that prominent rather than a slave. “I’m glad you were able to get out. Powerful people can be fickle.”
"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]
