Young Writers Society

Lyra shook her head slightly and turned away. Ky didn't understand. She was trying to help but she didn't understand. Lyra knew her father's failings and his fears, and nearly all of them stemmed from all those years living under the roof of Serpent Keep. To see someone harmed in the way Lyra was harmed hurt Tomhas for so many more reasons than the one Ky was set on. It churned up memories Lyra knew he and her mother had done their best to bury, but they always surfaced if he saw anyone beaten or mistreated. Sometimes they were mild enough that he could go on with his business, but a few times Lyra had seen her father's jaunty countenance crumble under the weight of everything he had lived through.
She remembered walking in on him with his head in her mother's lap once. He was sobbing softly, hands clasped over his wife's hands, shoulders shaking. Lyra hadn't known what was going on; all she got was a sharp "Lyra, leave!" from her mother.

"I'm sorry," Ky said softly, pushing herself the rest of the way to her feet, then immediately wondering why she'd done so, since now she was standing awkwardly by the bed. "I wish I could fix it for you. For both of you."

"You can't," Lyra said bitterly. No need to rub in the futility of the situation; she knew she was stuck here until her father pulled her out. The return home would offer a little respite, but that was only for a few weeks. Soon she would be sent back here and she'd be helpless again.

"I'm sorry," Ky murmured again, taking a few steps away from the bed.

She was absolutely right. Ky couldn't fix anything about any of this. She didn't even understand it. Why was Tarr demanding Lyra be here if he clearly hated her so much? But, then, why had Aleth? There were so many things about terrible men that she didn't think she'd ever comprehend.

But, she did know how it felt to be hurt. And she knew how badly it hurt to see that your own pain was causing suffering for someone that you loved. The last image Ky had of Papa was one of sheer anguish and desperation as she was being hauled away from him. And nothing would fix that. Ever.

Tomhas stepped out of the office several minutes later, feeling somewhat better. Things were cloudier now, certainly. Not as cloudy as it would be with glassweed, but Tomhas had sworn off that stuff the moment Cecily took a turn for the worse. What he had just taken was safer, though the after effects would be vastly unpleasant.
Tomhas smiled vaguely at the shapes of Ky and Tadaaki. "I'll see you tomorrow," he told them, trying to keep his speech from slurring. "Don't forget to ask Alex to lock the door." He swayed slightly, unbalanced, then moved toward the door and blinked as it swerved dizzyingly in front of him. Perhaps he'd taken a bit more than he should have. Oh, well.

Ky had almost made it back to her cot when Loquitur appeared again. She blinked at him. She wasn't quite sure what was happening. Clearly, Alex must have given Loquitur something, but she wasn't sure what, or why. She stepped forward swiftly, instinctively, as he wobbled, barely catching herself before she wrapped her arm around him. Stop. Touching. Nobles.

Still, she didn't know what to do. Father used a wheeled chair most of the time, but still tried to stand to get himself into and out of bed, and, occasionally when he was being stubborn, would try to take a few steps instead of just standing up from his chair and then right down in his bed. It never ended well. There'd been more than one time that she'd gotten to him just before he fell and tried to catch him, but was too small, and then they'd both end up tumbling to the floor. But, just before she got taken, she was finally getting better at bracing herself and bracing him, and keeping him from falling over.

She didn't know what to do here.

If it were Papa, she'd already have her arm around him and be chiding him for taking such a risk. As it was, she wasn't sure whether to offer a hand -- or to just help without asking -- or pretend to ignore it entirely.

She decided for a compromise, and quickly stepped past him so she could get the door for him, planting her hand on it firmly so that it wouldn't give if he leaned against it, then held her right arm out towards him -- well out of his way, but opened to him so he could lean on her if he needed to. She'd be softer to stumble into than the wall.

Tomhas looked at her in confusion. Why was she there? What was she doing?
"Right," he said slowly, easing himself out of the room. "Goodbye." He made it several straight steps down the hall, then ended up curving toward the wall at a slight angle.

Ky watched him go a few steps. The stairs weren't going to go well. She cringed a bit at the thought and shut the door. That was one of the many, many things she wasn't going to concern herself with.

She felt so unsettled. There were so many people here that she wanted to help, and literally nothing that she could do for any of them. She walked over to her cot and crawled into, pulling her knees close to her chest and burying her face in her hands.

(Should we skip? Lyra is gonna stay put and not talk)

(Works for me! I don't think Ky or Tadaaki will talk, either. Next morning?)

(Sure! Will Aleth have tried to sneak out to get them or is he in too much pain?)

(I think he's in too much pain for it to be realistic... just fantasizing about murder xD ... he might try something the next day if he gets the chance, but we'll have to see if it's natural. I'm content for him to just sulk and threaten if not lol)

(Okie dokie! I'll write up a post in the morning; it's been a long day and my bed calls to me. Goodnight!)

(Night! Sleep well!)

Early the next morning, Aleth was awoken to prepare for his journey to Serpent Keep. The Lords and Ladies had decided it would be wise to provide him with an escort that would then leave him a day's journey on foot from Serpent Keep. That ensured he would be safer than he would traveling alone and also that he wouldn't bail on them the moment he got out of the gates.

Tomhas had recovered over the night; Alexander had given him a larger dose than he'd asked for and he'd slept very heavily because of it. Tomhas wasn't complaining, of course. He trusted Alexander to know what he needed at that time. He still felt slightly ill about leaving Lyra like that in the infirmary, but he hadn't been able to look at her without feeling faint. Surely she would understand?