Jerica glanced over her shoulder, then, deciding she was far enough away, put her sword belt back on. Then glanced at Sera. What had she done wrong?
"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]
Sera glanced back at her. "I'm afraid I can't explain much about that; her situation is sensitive. How did it go with Rickard?"
"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
"Good." Jerica nodded, deciding to take it up with Derik instead of Sera. She could take her stern talking-to -- over both Ash and being out of the barracks despite being explicitly told to be in the barracks. But she needed advice. "Um... it was... good to see him. And... I think..." She nodded awkwardly. "I think... it was good for both of us."
"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]
"Good." She dipped her head. "I'm glad; he needed that badly."
"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]
They headed down the stairs to the second floor. Tomhas was on his way up. "Hey, Sera! Is Ky in her room?" "She was just in the infirmary talking to me, actually," Sera replied. "Great--hi, who's this?" Tomhas looked toward Jerica with a smile.
"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
"Jerica Ainsley." Jerica extended a hand, shoulders squared. It was the man next to Ash, she was pretty sure. Though she'd admittedly been pissed so she couldn't be certain.
"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]
"A-ah!" His eyes widened but he maintained the smile. "Good to meet you, miss Ainsley. I'm Tomhas Loquitur."
"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
Jerica narrowed her eyes at him before he even got to his name. She saw the panic. And then he called her 'miss'. She didn't like being called 'miss'. If he was going to act like she was a monster, then he was going to respect her in her full monstrosity. Her expression didn't soften when he finally revealed who he was. Great. It was the douchebag. Fine. Good, he should be scared of her. She was better than he could ever hope to be. "Lieutenant," she corrected, letting her hand fall to her side.
"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!" He blinked. "Gods, I'm sorry--I need to read up on the South a bit more; my mistake. Lieutenant Ainsley, then." He moved to shake her hand, then realized it wasn't there and quickly switched to offering his instead. "How are you finding the North?"
"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
Gods, he was a bumbling idiot. She supposed she wasn't surprised. This was exactly the sort of moron she'd expected this jerk to be.
But then she remembered how much trouble she was already in, and decided she wasn't going to make Derik even angrier by being directly mean to a noble. So she reluctantly shook his hand with a nod. "Cold." Just like 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]
Tomhas chuckled, shaking her hand heartily. "It certainly is 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
Jerica nodded, dropping her hand back down to her side and sizing him up. He had an easy-going aura. But that meant nothing at all. She'd already made up her mind on him; he didn't get a shot at redemption. "...You're Ky's adoptive father?"
"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]
His face drained of color, and his smile dropped. "I--" It returned swiftly, almost as quickly as it had gone. "Yep, that's me. You've met her then?" His eyes darted to Sera, and her brow furrowed. He was panicking about something.
"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
Jerica's brow furrowed as well. She may not be good at social cues, but she could sniff out bullshit from a mile away. What was he hiding? She kept her gaze intently on him, not answering in hopes her silence would make him squirm into the truth. Whatever it was that he was trying to hide.
"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]
