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"Sometimes, the thing that brings us together also pulls us apart. "
The beginning of the month was a whirlwind of confusion—for both seasoned and new members of the crew. Link’d Inc’s unsavory methods for obtaining information were revealed, the company’s front runner was murdered and planted on the ship, and with the help of Benjamin Link, the crew was able to free the kidnapped children and unlock the ship so that the Moira could get as far away as possible. It was a mess, but after the refugees were taken to a nearby by planet to start over, things have finally begun to settle down. The ship also has more crew than it’s ever had, and that can only mean one thing: more work. An unfortunate side effect of having so many bodies in one place, everyone is being asked to contribute; the captains implore everyone to chip in and do their share. Clean up after yourselves, don’t miss your shifts, and give fellow crew members a hand with their tasks if they can’t get them done on time. ☄ SPACEWALK ( 02.16 - 02.23 )Eventually, Manasseh comes to the crew with a training opportunity. The captains are well aware that not everyone on board have learned essential skills for surviving and working in space. To remedy that, she has offered to take a week to train groups in the skill of performing space walks on the hull. Those who already have experience are welcomed as assistant instructors. Those willing will learn how to safely don a spacesuit and secure oxygen lines and tethers—for both themselves and others. All skills that will come in handy in case there is a need for emergency repairs, or if the crew encounters a low-atmosphere environment they wish to explore. Mysteriously, there is also a promise of something interesting on the horizon for those willing to learn. ☄ TREATS N' SWEETS ( 02.16 - EVENING )As a way of extending an olive branch to the crew, the captains have cleared out the kitchen and mess hall early in the afternoon. Later that evening, the crew is asked to come down - via their MIDs - as the captains have a surprise for them. The tables are lined with finger foods, sandwiches, pretzels and chips, but the table in the very back is where the captains are lingering. They’ve made desserts for the crew, but they aren’t just any typical sweet concoction. They are each unique, and there are small, hand-written signs in front of each:
•JUST RELAX: Mint chocolate chip ice cream scooped out into bowls and is the most sweet of the three. The first bite does little to the person eating it, but each subsequent taste results in an increasingly relaxed state. The more that is consumed, the more mellow the person becomes.
•BE HONEST: A delicate concoction of science and the culinary arts, this dessert is refreshing and semi-sweet. The fruity flavors burst in your mouth, loosening your tongue, and result in a brief period of honesty. The reactions vary from person to person—anywhere from being more blunt than normal to answering any question that is asked without a filter. The effects wear off after an hour.
•YOU'RE SWEET: A selection of small chocolate cheesecakes offer something rich and decadent to enjoy. Each one brings something a little different in terms of flavor, the taste lingering for some time after you’re done. Some make you feel indulgent, some make you feel romantic; this makes you feel both. Those that sample this dessert will feel lighter, happier, and more likely to indulge in romantic endeavors. The effects last for only one night, dissipating after a good night’s sleep. Those that do not require sleep will suffer the effects for two days. ☄ LANTERNS IN THE BLACK ( 02.23 )The day starts out differently than most. The captains send a message saying that everyone has been granted light duty for the day, and once they finish their necessary chores, they are given the remainder of it to themselves. Around midday, an announcement will be made. The pilgrim fleet of Librae Prime will be performing their yearly Celebration of Life. They are on their way to a system decades away, and each year, they celebrate the lives gained and lost within their ranks by releasing a multitude of brightly colored lanterns out into space. The Pilgrims make a habit of inviting ships within range to participate as it is a joyful event for them.
The entire crew is welcome to watch from the observation deck, the lights dimmed so the view can be properly appreciated, but those members of the crew who have participated in the space walk lessons or have previous experience have a special opportunity all their own. Manasseh invites them to the airlock with a supply of flying lanterns and an offer to put their new-found skills to use by releasing the Moira’s own lanterns. The morning after the flight of the lanterns a special surprise will await everyone in their mailboxes. A small lantern sits waiting for each member of the crew. It casts a soft light comparable to a simple nightlight and will hover in a stationary position when activated.
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hownkai) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
thisavrou_log2016-02-15 11:56 pm
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"It's incredible. It reminds me of Barrayaran offerings, in away. Letting go of something."
She takes his hand. Is it overfamiliar? Technically, she only just met him. But he's her son, damn it. Cordelia gives Miles's hand a resolute squeeze.
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"But it is a form of letting go, I suppose." His eyes search the slowly billowing cloud of lanterns, looking past his faint reflection in the glass. He wonders if it would be cruel to tell her about Bothari. Right now, surely. He feels she'll have to know eventually, but that story comes with so many others, some Miles isn't really prepared to tell her. Some he doesn't know how to tell her. No, now isn't the time. He has his own consolations. Bothari's coat, another mysterious gift of the Ingress, is still neatly folded and tucked away in a drawer in their cabin. "Or...reaching out, you might say."
The touch isn't overfamiliar at all. Miles smiles a little more, almost shyly -- an odd look on him -- and squeezes her hand back. Cordelia, Betan as she is, has always been so much more inclined to physical affection than most Barrayarans generally are, and Miles takes more after his father in that regard, but she's his mother. And if he's honest with himself, she's one of the people he's been missing the most. This isn't the same thing as being off-planet for months at a time on a job. He's been homesick, for the Dendarii and Barrayar both. After a moment, Miles lets out a little breath and tips his head to the side to rest it lightly against his mother's arm.
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Miles leaning his head against her breaks her reverie, and Cordelia looks down at him. Every time she sees him she's amazed at how far he's come. She must remember to get Vaagen his own lab.
Cordelia slips her arm around Miles and gives him a squeeze. She's just beginning to get used to how solid and healthy he is. Don't, she reminds herself. You're here together now, but soon you'll go back, where everything is only just beginning. If only Aral were here.
"You know, I'm almost happy to be here. Nobody is trying to assassinate anyone, you aren't kidnapped, Gregor is safe- if only I could summon Aral. And Simon, and Kou and Drou and Bothari and Elena-- are you friends with Elena? I'd hoped you two would grow up together, you know."
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"I think Illyan would have a fit the second he set foot on this ship," Miles murmurs, eyes glimmering with distant amusement. "Security here's a mess, he'd probably have an aneurysm..."
At the mention of Elena he blinks up at her, then smiles. "Oh, yes -- we did grow up together, mostly, along with Ivan. I'm pleased to say you had a tremendous influence on her. But she, ah, left Barrayar some years ago. Just as soon as she could. We still keep in touch, though, of course."
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"I'd hoped that by the time you were in your teens, things would be easier." For women (and the disabled and the poor and anyone who wasn't a big strong Vor boy), she means. "Barrayar is hurtling along at breakneck speed and simultaneously progressing achingly slowly. I suppose change will just keep on flooding in. I don't blame Elena for not being able to wait."
Cordelia thinks of general Piotr, who lead the march of modernity and has now been thoroughly overtaken, living in a world he helped to create but no longer fits into. Did he ever get used to Miles? Accept the facts and try to build a relationship with his grandson, or was Miles still a non-person to him, an embarrassment to be quietly put down behind closed curtains? Does Miles even know his grandfather tried to murder him?
"Did... did you ever know your grandfather?" Her tone is very careful, like she's tiptoeing around land mines. If she and Aral ended up deciding not to tell Miles about all that nonsense, who is she to go back (forward?) on that decision now, after all.
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Miles almost wishes Elena were here, just so Cordelia could meet her. He's certain his mother would be proud. He glances up at that question, his interest piqued more by her tone than the words. An ironic smile pulls at his lips.
"Oh, yes. For quite some time, actually. Grandfather didn't pass away until I was seventeen. I'm twenty-five, now," he adds, because he's not sure he ever did specify his age. God knows it's not easy to tell just by looking. He feels just the faintest twinge in his chest to think of his grandfather. Even now, he still can't help but feel that it was he who killed his grandfather. Death by disappointment... Miles waves a hand in order to assuage any immediate concerns of his mother's about needing to hedge around the subject.
"Don't worry, I know all about the abortion argument, what he tried to do. Why I don't have his name." He shrugs. He's decided his mother doesn't really need to hear about the postpartum attempt on his life just now. Later, he thinks. "He did come around eventually -- over horses, of all things. He and I never really quite saw eye-to-eye, I don't think we could have, and there were things he never really could understand. But I think he did love me, in his own way, and I learned just as much from him as I did from you and Dad. Painful lessons, some of them, but I don't wish them undone." He smiles faintly. "Well, you know Grandfather. He was a stubborn son of a bitch right up until the end."