( she's accustomed to platitudes. to navigate the political structure of amasti territory beneath the emprine's bootheel, one must by needs adapt. say things they don't mean, flatter the right people. it's been a long time since she was able to be nice to someone for it's own sake. because she could choose to be.
so thursday rolls around. she isn't nervous — they've spent enough time now navigating being in each other's space that there's no cause for that, but. she does perhaps take more care with her appearance than is her normal custom. her hair, which she at best usually ties with a scarf, she actually styles in loose waves, and she wears the new tunic she'd gotten from that shop giveaway a few weeks prior.
she's seated at the kitchen table, but whenever dolores enters she stands up and holds out her arm for a quick hug. )
I wasn't sure which you'd want to try, so besides boiling water I haven't started yet.
[ Dolores normally wouldn't have left so early in the day if she knew she would have to be back around 11, but there were things she wanted to achieve... errands she intended to run.
She's holding a small package in her hands when she enters the apartment- and smiles brightly when she sees Mirian stand to greet her. Where Mirian's tunic is bright and colorful, Dolores's summer dress is a white linen. ]
I'll admit, I'm not quite sure which I want to try first either.
[ She laughs a little and returns the quick hug before setting the package down. ]
I figured we deserve some treats to go with the tea. I hope you like sweets? I didn't think to ask until just this moment...
( she hadn't expected that dolores would bring anything at all, and for a moment her expression is unguarded, surprise evident in the faint twist of her mouth. )
I do, actually. Though it's been a long while since I've had any.
( she trails her fingers along the edge of the package, and then lets her hand fall away. )
Sugar rationing.
( by way of an explanation. the truth was, she could have bypassed the rations, owing to her father's station. but he would have frowned upon her doing so as much as she herself would never have dared. one cannot hope to speak for the people while they stand apart from them. )
[ Sugar rationing... While Dolores had never dealt with that herself (being not actually human or living in a real setting for much of her life), she understood the concept. She smiles a little and gestures for Mirian to take a seat again as she moves to the kitchen to grab plates and napkins. ]
Was there much rationing of other things as well?
[ She's genuinely curious, but adds a moment after: ]
I haven't had to deal with rations, per se... But we had to make do with what we had around the ranch when it was a bad year, so I can understand it a little, I think.
[ She sets the plates on the table and opens the box to reveal two large creampuffs. ]
( it's simply said, as she sits. she feels a poorer host for it, but she's trying not to impose what she knows of culture here, and especially not on dolores, who has already been so kind. )
My country was occupied by the enemy after our surrender in a war. Unfortunately, major supply lines were either destroyed or so tightly controlled that things like fresh meat, vegetables and other non-essential amenities were often very difficult to get. One could acquire them on the black market at great cost, but I personally had no taste for the risk.
( no, she took her risks in other places, but never over sugar.)
[ As Dolores sees it, Mirian has already taken care of the water for the tea. She watches her as she carefully plates the cream puffs, discards the box, and takes a seat herself. ]
In a situation like that, I suppose you have to pick and choose your battles.
[ When asked about missing home, though... she smiles faintly. ]
Pieces, here and there. I miss my parents and how simple things were there compared to here, I suppose.
[ She's been off the ranch for some time now. And perhaps what she misses most is not necessarily something, but someone. The guilt over losing Teddy still lodges itself at the front of her memory bank. ]
( her answering smile is wry. picking and choosing her battles is what lead her to the emprine's death, in the long run. it took nearly a decade, but she still considers it to have been an action of worth.
(she's concerned, of course, about how things will play out in the aftermath. but the white iris had managed to either install trusted people in the vandian government or sway others to their side such that the power vacuum shouldn't devastate sal amast any more than it has already been. if only she were there and not here... but she can't hold to hope.) )
I'm sorry you're separated from them, though I imagine you're grateful not to have them here.
( the idea of having nehir or jaskan here, or even her aunt zubaia... perish the thought. )
Did you raise cattle, then? Or was it more an agricultural farm?
( they've hardly had the time to have an idle chat. she knows very little of dolores, and her interest is evident in the way she is leaning slightly forward, fingers tracing absently along the line of her collarbone where it terminates in the amputation. )
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branchandroot
text; un: prime
Date: 2020-09-07 05:08 pm (UTC)The tea looks wonderful- thank you. Will you join me for a cup sometime this week? After work, perhaps.
@cpt.akambe
Date: 2020-09-09 11:37 pm (UTC)I would be delighted. Perhaps Thursday?
no subject
Date: 2020-09-16 03:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2020-09-17 04:29 pm (UTC)( she's accustomed to platitudes. to navigate the political structure of amasti territory beneath the emprine's bootheel, one must by needs adapt. say things they don't mean, flatter the right people. it's been a long time since she was able to be nice to someone for it's own sake. because she could choose to be.
so thursday rolls around. she isn't nervous — they've spent enough time now navigating being in each other's space that there's no cause for that, but. she does perhaps take more care with her appearance than is her normal custom. her hair, which she at best usually ties with a scarf, she actually styles in loose waves, and she wears the new tunic she'd gotten from that shop giveaway a few weeks prior.
she's seated at the kitchen table, but whenever dolores enters she stands up and holds out her arm for a quick hug. )
I wasn't sure which you'd want to try, so besides boiling water I haven't started yet.
no subject
Date: 2020-09-21 08:46 pm (UTC)She's holding a small package in her hands when she enters the apartment- and smiles brightly when she sees Mirian stand to greet her. Where Mirian's tunic is bright and colorful, Dolores's summer dress is a white linen. ]
I'll admit, I'm not quite sure which I want to try first either.
[ She laughs a little and returns the quick hug before setting the package down. ]
I figured we deserve some treats to go with the tea. I hope you like sweets? I didn't think to ask until just this moment...
no subject
Date: 2020-09-21 10:08 pm (UTC)I do, actually. Though it's been a long while since I've had any.
( she trails her fingers along the edge of the package, and then lets her hand fall away. )
Sugar rationing.
( by way of an explanation. the truth was, she could have bypassed the rations, owing to her father's station. but he would have frowned upon her doing so as much as she herself would never have dared. one cannot hope to speak for the people while they stand apart from them. )
no subject
Date: 2020-09-23 01:04 am (UTC)Was there much rationing of other things as well?
[ She's genuinely curious, but adds a moment after: ]
I haven't had to deal with rations, per se... But we had to make do with what we had around the ranch when it was a bad year, so I can understand it a little, I think.
[ She sets the plates on the table and opens the box to reveal two large creampuffs. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-09-25 08:29 pm (UTC)( it's simply said, as she sits. she feels a poorer host for it, but she's trying not to impose what she knows of culture here, and especially not on dolores, who has already been so kind. )
My country was occupied by the enemy after our surrender in a war. Unfortunately, major supply lines were either destroyed or so tightly controlled that things like fresh meat, vegetables and other non-essential amenities were often very difficult to get. One could acquire them on the black market at great cost, but I personally had no taste for the risk.
( no, she took her risks in other places, but never over sugar. )
Do you miss it? The farm.
no subject
Date: 2020-09-25 10:38 pm (UTC)In a situation like that, I suppose you have to pick and choose your battles.
[ When asked about missing home, though... she smiles faintly. ]
Pieces, here and there. I miss my parents and how simple things were there compared to here, I suppose.
[ She's been off the ranch for some time now. And perhaps what she misses most is not necessarily something, but someone. The guilt over losing Teddy still lodges itself at the front of her memory bank. ]
no subject
Date: 2020-10-01 08:40 pm (UTC)(she's concerned, of course, about how things will play out in the aftermath. but the white iris had managed to either install trusted people in the vandian government or sway others to their side such that the power vacuum shouldn't devastate sal amast any more than it has already been. if only she were there and not here... but she can't hold to hope.) )
I'm sorry you're separated from them, though I imagine you're grateful not to have them here.
( the idea of having nehir or jaskan here, or even her aunt zubaia... perish the thought. )
Did you raise cattle, then? Or was it more an agricultural farm?
( they've hardly had the time to have an idle chat. she knows very little of dolores, and her interest is evident in the way she is leaning slightly forward, fingers tracing absently along the line of her collarbone where it terminates in the amputation. )