"He can be a bit....unnerving to people," Sara said slowly. "I understand why you're wary of him, really I do. He's strange in a lot of ways, not very approachable at all. But I promise he does care for you, Ky."
"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 looked at her warily. How was she even supposed to respond to that? They seemed to be at the cusp of forcing Ky to open up if she wasn’t careful, given this new arrangement. She wasn’t sure what to do about it. What was something honest she could say while staying noncommittal? “I… appreciate the reassurance.” Even if she was wrong. Ky was fairly certain she was just wrong, not lying. That made this easier.
"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]
"He will have to grow up and deal with talking to teenagers eventually," she mused. "Mattathias and Marcella are growing up fast, and so is Regulus."
"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 looked at her for a moment then nodded, glancing back at her empty cup. “I don’t understand why he dislikes us so much… well, I understand why he dislikes me — I also wouldn’t like me after that — but… well… I’m confused by why he’s so confused.” She glanced up at her. “He can glance at me and know every thought I’ve had in the past five minutes, then turns around and says I’m too confusing to talk to… I don’t understand how I’m confusing if he’s reading my mind.”
"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]
Sara chuckled. "He's no mind reader, I promise you that. But I suppose teenagers are confusing because they're sort of...in between adulthood and childhood. Gaius doesn't do very well if things aren't in a neat little category. I think he swings between thinking teenagers are kids and thinking they're adults, and he's not sure which to treat them as."
"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 he keeps calling me a child," she said dryly. "And then acts like I'm childish when I tell him I don't like that."
"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 mean...he'll be forty this spring. When you get to be our age, even twenty year-olds look like kids."
"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
So she was defending him. Great. She supposed she shouldn't be surprised that they thought similarly. "You can't just classify everyone younger than you as a child -- just like I shouldn't classify everyone over the age of twenty as 'old'. It lacks nuance."
"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]
"It does," she agreed. "I try not to be too patronizing but it does get difficult."
"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 nodded. "I don't feel like you are patronizing."
"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]
"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
"Of course." Ky offered a little smile in return. Good enough that she somehow got Ky talking like this. She wasn't sure she liked it.
"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 that. Here's hoping I don't mess up with my own kids!"
"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
"I'm sure you won't." Hopefully. Though they were both setting themselves up for war if they were going to insist their kids were children their entire lives. There was a limit to how many times you could be dismissed before you revolted. And. Who knew. Maybe Aleth had just racked up an irredeemable debt in her and that's why she was so fickle. But. Well. She didn't think she was all that unreasonable to be asked to both treated and regarded with respect. "You seem like a good mother."
"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 hope I am." She smiled slightly. "I try very hard."
"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
