"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]
"Two. Each territory is split into two sectors, one Count for each." He nearly stopped walking then as his ankle buckled, then he caught himself and kept going, gritting his teeth.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
Ky instinctively reached out to steady him. But then he caught himself. And she jerked her hands away as if she’d touched a hot stove. It felt even worse — like she’d commuted a crime, and a heinous one at that. Laying a hand upon Gaius. Had that ever happened before? She was fairly certain she had never even shaken his hand, given the fact that he wouldn’t let any of them get within ten feet of him at the meeting. She flushed, looking both afraid and embarrassed, and quickly looked away. “Sorry!”
"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 glanced at her with a pained expression on his face. He'd rather have just fallen so he wouldn't have to walk to the doors, honestly. That would have upset her so very much, though. And she seemed even more distraught that she'd tried to help him in the first place. He wasn't a fan of physical contact--that was putting it lightly; he only let five people touch him, really--but he wouldn't have recoiled or scolded her if she'd caught him. "It's nothing," he said finally, still moving determinedly forward but having more trouble with every step.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
"Okay." It came out more like a squeak, so she cleared her throat. It wasn't 'nothing'. His face had betrayed his disgust, before he managed to regain his mask and pretend like he didn't mind it. Gods. Why was her instinct to fuck up, 100% of the time? She over-corrected the squeak and her voice was a bit gruff as she repeated, "Okay."
"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 had fucked it up. He'd have to talk to Sara about not making him have meaningful conversations with Ky anymore. It never ended well. He glanced toward the Keep, trying to gauge how far he had left to go. There was sweat beading on his forehead; he wasn't sure he could do much more.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
Ky buried her treacherous hands in her pockets, determined not to ever touch him ever again in her entire life. And yet, what was she going to do if he stumbled again? It wasn't like she could just let him faceplant in the snow. He clearly wasn't okay. She felt antsy and very much wanted to end this interaction. But it'd be rude to sprint away mid... well, there was no conversation. Just mid-awkward-silence. No, she shouldn't do that. He was clearly torturing himself for her benefit.
But it'd feel much better to have an excuse to run. Even if it pissed him off. "... I could go get Sera?"
"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]
Gaius considered it. That would probably be smart. Sera would scold him for pushing himself, especially if he made himself go up the stairs. They really needed to have a lift installed. And Ky obviously wanted to flee; he'd put her right back in the mindset she'd started in. "If you wish," he replied, deciding for the noncommittal answer even though his limb was on fire.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
She looked at him with a pained expression. Was really going to force her to make a decision at a time like this? One that was likely to piss him off if she guessed wrong? She glanced ahead at the door, considering.
Was that his save-his-man-pride way of asking for help? It kind of seemed like it. And she wanted to go get him help. But. Well. She also wanted him to make the call. And, now that she thought of it, she didn't particularly want to see Sera this soon, either. What if she tried to comfort Ky, too? She was getting exhausted pretending to be comforted.
"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 looked back at her, carefully expressionless. Only his jaw clenching betrayed the pain he was in. Whether she was going or not, he was going to sit down in a second. He just couldn't make it.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
Ky whimpered, anguished at having to make the decision. Her face was burning; heart racing. Why hadn't she just locked herself in her bedroom and pretended not to be there when Gaius came to check?
She couldn't take this.
If she stayed here, she was going to start crying.
Again.
And then they'd both be unhappy.
She turned on her heel and sprinted towards the Keep.
"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]
Gaius watched her go, then immediately slumped to the ground, letting out a pained gasp as his leg crumpled underneath him. He dragged it out from under him, biting his lip hard enough to draw blood, then laid down on his back and stared up at the sky, panting. He could feel tears of pain pricking at his eyes and he shut them quickly, clenching his good fist.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
Ky ripped open the door to the Keep, tears burning the back of her throat as she blinked rapidly in an attempt to keep them out of her eyes. She just needed to get a mask back. Thirty seconds is all it would take once she found Sera. Tell her where Gaius was and that he needed her. Then she could go lock herself away and have a good cry.
She hesitated. Was breakfast over yet? She had no capacity to judge how far along it'd been when she ran out. It'd felt like it'd taken five years for her to get the toast down. She didn't particularly want to go back to the dining room, and especially dreaded the thought of everyone being there and looking at her when she came back in. But, well, it made more sense to check there first than it did to run all the way up to the infirmary only to have to come back down again.
She rushed to the dining room, taking half a moment in the hall to take a deep breath and set her jaw, then pulled the door open.
"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]
There were a few lingerers--Sara, Imali, Ada, and Emery were all still there. Sara took one look at Ky and rose from her seat.
"The artist deals with what cannot be said in words. The artist whose medium is fiction does this in words. The novelist says in words what cannot be said in words." --Ursula K. Le Guin
Ky looked at her for a moment and opened her mouth, then realized she didn't have anything to say and closed it again. She glanced around. Sera wasn't here. She's who Gaius needed. The rest couldn't help him... unless Sara could? She didn't know. Her chest was so tight she could barely breathe. Sara had fixed it the last time. And, well, maybe she'd know whether she could handle or not -- and if not, tell her where to find Sera? Or should she just run for the infirmary to check?
She damn sure wasn't going to ask these questions in front of an audience. Although she supposed Emery would be the only one who would be able to understand her. But... well... gah!
"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]
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