Young Writers Society

(awwww hahah)

Ky didn't know what to do. The silence felt oppressive. But she didn't want to be the one to break the peace. And she didn't even know what she'd say if she tried -- it was hardly like she and Tadaaki could talk about Aleth when there were witnesses, and it wasn't like she had anything at all that could be comforting to Lyra, or anything in common with Alex aside from their shared love of Harold.

Poetry.

She suddenly remembered the book she'd seen Lyra reading. Of course, it wouldn't fix anything at all. But the only thing that comforted her after Aleth left her bedridden was when Tadaaki would come in and hold her hand and tell her silly stories to distract her from the pain. She doubted that would be comforting to Lyra -- they barely knew each other at all, and almost everything Lyra knew of her was Kyber rather than Kylia -- but there had to be something she could do.

Ky stood up, not quite sure who -- if anyone -- she should ask for permission to go to the library. It felt weird to be making a decision for herself. But it also felt equally weird to ask any of the three of them for permission. So she wordlessly slipped out of the infirmary, made her way to the library, and browsed the area until she found the right book.

When she got back to the infirmary, she gently walked to Lyra's bedside, then sank down with her back pressed against the wall, and cracked the book open to the bookmark and started reading softly.

Lyra didn't move for a moment. Then she rolled over very gingerly to watch Ky. Why was she doing this for her? Lyra had tried to distance herself from Ky somewhat over the week Aleth and his servants had been made to diet, and now she was reading her poetry.
It was nice, Lyra found. Ky's voice was gentle, and she knew how to change the cadence of her voice in tandem with the lines' rhythm. Her father was good at that, too. Her mother wasn't particularly good; she'd been raised in a very poor family and hadn't learned to read until she met Tomhas. Even so, Ky reminded her of the times her parents had read aloud to her when she was too frightened to sleep.

Ky resisted the urge to look up as she heard Lyra roll over, trying to afford Lyra the dignity of privacy as she read. She wasn't actually sure if she enjoyed it or not, but she was afraid to ask for fear that it would make her uncomfortable. So she decided she'd keep reading unless Lyra asked her to stop.

Tadaaki sat and stared at his own knees, listening to Ky read. He'd never learned how, even though Ky had claimed it was easy and offered to teach him. Aleth hadn't liked that. Maybe Ky would offer again? He didn't know what he'd say, at that point. But he liked listening to her. And he especially liked it now that her voice was soft and feminine, not the low, gruff voice she'd been forced to adopt as Kyber.

Eventually Tomhas returned to the infirmary, knocking softly before he opened the door.
"How is everybody?" he asked awkwardly, trying to smile and failing miserably. "Sorry I was gone so long. I was a bit busy."
Lyra kept her eyes on Ky's reading. She knew that excuse; it was her father's line for when he was overwhelmed. She knew she was the cause, though she also knew it wasn't really her fault. She wasn't responsible for what Tomhas's family had done. Evem so, it made her feel sick.

Ky hesitated, keeping her finger on the page. Her gaze flicked from Loquitur to Lyra, then to Tadaaki, wishing he could tell her what to do. She knew that he probably had even less idea than she did. Usually, if it was just her and Tadaaki, she did all the talking. If it was her and Aleth, she did none of it.

She felt like the conversation should be between Loquitur and Lyra, but, she didn't respond immediately. Which left Ky feeling tense and awkward. She knew a "good" wasn't appropriate -- not a single one of them was good. She was mostly-starved, Aaki had broken ribs, and Lyra had a thorough thrashing. But she forced a smile. "Good evening, sir."

Tomhas looked at her, startled. "Good evening," he replied after a moment. "How have you been, Ky?" He had come in to ask Alexander for something to calm his nerves, but he should have realized his own endless chatter and the amiable relationship he shared with everyone in that room wouldn't make that easy.

"Good, thank you," she murmured.

Should she stand? Should she be sitting by Lyra's bedside to begin with? Maybe this was a bad idea. Lyra hadn't asked her to stop so she'd been reading for quite some time, but now she was doubting that decision. It probably didn't seem very respectful that she was sitting next to Lyra's bed. Servants didn't do that. At least, not as comfortably as she was now. She'd never be this relaxed around Aleth. Never.

She sat a bit straighter, deciding that standing up would just make things awkward. "And you? Sir?"

"Oh, I'm fine, I'm fine." Tomhas kept his eyes off Lyra. "Have you seen Alexander?"
"Here, sir." Alexander rose. "Is there something you need?"
"Yes." Tomhas grinned, relieved. "A word in your office, please?"

Ky was relieved that the attention was off her again, but now she was feeling like a very small, stupid child, sitting on the floor. She closed the book and flushed a bit, deciding to sit very still and hope that he didn't ask what she was doing, because she didn't have the first idea of what she'd say to him.

Hopefully, Alexander's office was out of this room. And, hopefully, she'd be able to make it back to her cot before either of them returned and pretend that she wasn't a stupid little girl who thought poetry was going to fix anything.

Alexander dipped his head and waved him into a side room, shutting the door behind them.
"He's upset," Lyra said quietly. "Because of me."

"Ah, I, uh..." Ky tapped the book on her knee twice, then forced herself to set it up on a nearby table, staying on the floor next to Lyra's bed. This was precarious ground -- comforting without contradicting. Or insulting Tarr.

"I don't think you upset him," she answered carefully, swallowing hard. "I think... he's concerned... and it's hard to be concerned when you don't know-- when..." She wet her lips, chest feeling tight. She was on thin ice. "I think it's hard when someone you love is in pain, and you can't make it better. Ma'am."

"He's upset," Lyra insisted, tears pricking at her eyes as her voice grew thick. "I made him remember. I didn't mean to..." She clutched the covers tightly. "I didn't mean to!"

Ky couldn't breathe. She looked at Tadaaki desperately, but then realized he couldn't help. She pushed herself to her knees so that they were closer to being on the same level.

"It's not your fault that you got hurt," Ky said. She hesitated, wondering whether to add on the 'ma'am' or not, but now didn't seem like a time where formality would be comforting. "You didn't choose any of this."

"I know..." Lyra wiped at her eyes. Why was she losing herself like this? She could usually control herself in front of people. Why was this getting to her? "I...I don't like when he's upset. It hurts. To see." Nobody but her and her mother and siblings could ever tell when Tomhas was putting on one of his shows. Lyra never understood why; there was a haunted look in his eyes no matter how much he smiled and he talked even faster than he usually did--that was saying something. He never made eye contact, either, yet nobody ever picked any of it up.

"I know," Ky answered softly.

In reality, she didn't really understand much of what had happened. Loquitur had seemed far too cheery for the fact that his daughter was lying here battered -- and he hadn't even looked at her, which was perplexing. Maybe that's how Lyra knew he was upset. Ky didn't know. Loquitur didn't seem upset, but Lyra surely knew her own father better than Ky did. And, he seemed far, far too kind to be unphased at his own daughter being in such a condition. He'd gotten upset when he learned that Ky -- a mere servant -- was being abused. He had to be far more upset about Lyra, and for good reason. But she still didn't understand why he was pretending to be happy instead of sitting at Lyra's bedside to comfort her.

"You're in pain that he can't fix. And he's in pain that you can't fix. And none of it is either of your faults. It just... hurts."