whispersafterdusk

[whispersafterdusk]

Ensuring the Future - ch 4

With the sudden addition of a lift for the salvage yard the majority of her time had been spent scavenging and assembling; Miguel brought her tea every morning and they chatted while she stoked the furnaces and organized the day's work. They were careful to keep their chatter to innocent things so as to not start the days off in low moods (and had also planned to meet up for dinner every Monday, to hell with their respective schedules) but there was some annoyance to have a desire dangled in her face and knowing that she could not reach out to seize it without letting something else important fall through the cracks thanks to Yan's mismanagement.

At least once the lifts were installed it wasn't such a pain to gather materials -- one had to take the small victories where they could. Down in the ruins everything was far more plentiful: raw ore was easier to refine than recycling scrap and anything and everything wooden was pulled apart and carried back to the surface to be stripped, sanded, and repurposed; little by little things were falling into place and it was taking less and less time to fulfill the late commissions, and it certainly helped that Mi-an's list had been so well organized too -- efficiency was a key component of speed, after all. As she began to streamline things and get established her schedule would effectively open up (a thought both welcome and terrifying). ((Continued below cut))

Recent deliveries included boards to the saloon (and fixing a few loose stairs while she was there), a bucket of screws and a single hardwood panel to the general store, a new pane of glass for a display case in the temple... This morning though was one she was actually looking forward to: a few buckets and some replacement boards for the Moisture Farm.

Contracting exclusively with the botanists in Highwind had introduced her to the work of many of the botanists scattered across the Free Cities; Sandrock had Zeke and his work out here in the desert was discussed quite often -- Professor Luo had even commissioned her to build a more compact hydroponic system to send out here on a trial period to see if it was a feasible means to speed up production and conserve water in such an arid environment. She'd built the unit, they'd sent it off and had received a few tentatively hopeful reports in response, but after about a year or so she didn't recall any further mention of the machine. Whether that was good or bad news was something she intended to find out as she rode the yakmel cart over to deliver the commissioned goods.

She left the boards and buckets beside the door in orderly stacks and took a moment to look over the outside of the farm; it looked like a wrecked and repurposed flying machine with a giant glass-pane dome protecting the plants within. It was heavily rusted and she spotted a few areas that could use some attention, quickly making a mental note of it, then shouldered the door open and walked into the humid enclosure.

It smelled lush and organic -- fresh-cut greenery, wet dirt, and a touch of manure, and it brought back a rush of memory and emotion of Highwind and its greenhouses...though the greenhouses had always been full of students, professors, and aides, and the work always filthy and back-breaking, it had still been a peaceful and fulfilling place to labor. There was but one man here though and she could spot him bent over a planter full of newly sprouted wheat stalks not far from the door, and he in turn had turned just enough to peer at her from over a shoulder.

Olivia smiled at him in greeting and headed over, immediately noticing the rotting board at the top of the planter but turning her full attention to the man for introductions first. "Good morning, am I right in thinking you're Zeke?"

"Uh, yeah, that's me. You're...one of our new builders, right?" He straightened and dusted soil from his hands and beyond his large frame she could spot another ailing planter.

She resisted the urge to look up to check if the weakened areas she'd spotted outside were visible from here and offered her hand. "I am indeed. I'm Olivia, and am pleased to finally put a face to the name -- Professor Luo spoke quite highly of your work out here, and several of your soil testing techniques are being put to use in Highwind and up north near the border settlements."

A very subtle look of surprise managed to overcome his neutral expression. "Really? Huh. He never mentioned any of that." He took her hand and delicately shook it; his fingers were moist and cool from where they'd been digging around in the dirt and she could feel a fine grit still clinging to his skin along with numerous calluses -- not so different from her own after decades of working with her hands.

"I find that surprising...the man was always honest with his praise." Olivia let her hand fall away and glanced back to the planters. "I have your boards and buckets sitting just outside - I'm more than happy to repair these planters for you and if you've the time I did have some questions and an offer."

He struck her as a man that didn't or wasn't used to talking much, and he seemed a tad overwhelmed by the rush of words. "What kind of questions? And what kind of offer?"

"Let me fetch your commissions and I'll explain fully."

"I'll help you carry." He scrubbed his hands off on his thighs and she caught his eyes flicking down to the brace on her leg.

"Thank you, that's very kind," she replied with a smile.

He left her the buckets and easily hoisted the pile of boards up on one broad shoulder; she held the door for him and followed along as he carried the wood over toward the planters. Olivia quickly sorted the boards out by size and walked about the farm to place them next to the correct planters, then returned to where she'd left Zeke at the wheat plants.

"It won't take me long to repair these but before I get to that I wanted to ask about a hydroponic unit that was sent over a while back. How has it held up?"

Zeke scratched at his chin, fingers audibly rasping through his beard. "Well, it worked great, until it didn't. After about a year it broke - think it was the pump or something, since it stopped circulating the water. Asked Yan and Mason to fix it, they both said it couldn't be fixed. I ended up draining the water and storing it in the shed so I could fill the spot it was sitting in with basic planters."

Olivia frowned and closed her eyes, swallowing down a sudden anger and inhaling slowly before opening them again. "Did they say WHY it could not be fixed?"

"Don't think so. They didn't say what had broken for sure either."

"Of course..." she sighed. She already had a suspicion on what the issue was. "And I imagine they didn't do any maintenance on it whatsoever?" Zeke shook his head. "You said you'd stored it then - do you still have it?"

"It's over here."

She followed him over to a metal shack built against the wall squeezed in among some sweet potato pepper planters. The door swung open with the tiniest squeak revealing sacks of seed arranged on shelves, containers of fertilizer (with the expected smell wafting out in force), and various trowels, rakes, and other tools and empty containers. In the back left corner she could see the hydroponic tank sitting on its side with the lighting fixture hanging from some straps from the ceiling - she was pleased to see that the lights had been disconnected from the main unit properly so those probably wouldn't need any work (but she would check them regardless). Zeke moved some of the fertilizer out of the way then lifted the tank free and carried it out to carefully sit it on the floor between them. As he tilted it she could hear the tell-tale rattle of loose parts where there shouldn't be, and nodded more to herself than to him once it was put down.

"I believe I already know the issue, and if I'm right I can't fathom why they claimed this couldn't be fixed," she muttered. She'd brought a hammer and nails for the planters and an adjustable wrench just in case but to get the pump and engine housing cover off she'd need a flathead screwdriver - she didn't have one of those but she did have a penknife that should do the job if she was careful with it. "...well, from what I've already seen - coupled with this - I suppose this just proves a point and makes me hope you're agreeable to my offer."

"What sort of offer are you, er, offering?" he prompted.

She slipped the penknife free of her pocket and flipped it open, bending to place the tip of the blade into the screw's slot. "Along with being so backlogged I've also heard from a few people that Yan has, without scruple, turned down posting commissions he didn't think were 'important' enough jobs, AND-" she paused, freeing the first screw with her fingertips once she'd loosened it enough, "-I had sent two sets of instructions with this unit: one for its usage, and one highly detailed set for its maintenance. I'm assuming you got the usage ones?" she glanced up and he nodded at her. "Good. So that confirms that the instructions were not magically lost in transit, which tells me that Yan or Mason, or both, willfully decided not to maintain this machine. I intend to bypass this carelessness right now," she grunted, pulling the next screw out and moving to the third.

"About six years ago," she continued, "the builders in Tallsky got together with the Central Commerce Guild to rework some of the regulations -- namely, to allow builders to specialize, or be more selective in the work they wished to take on. Those new rules allowed me to set up an agreement with Highwind's botanists. I won't bore you with the legalese but basically, so long as I do not charge less than the going rate of the local guild commission fees, do not claim the jobs as points on any local leader boards, and do not repeatedly favor the private contract over any active municipal ones, I am allowed to enter into contracts with specific people or groups at my own discretion. Of all places to have every need met, no matter how large or small a job, I would say the farm providing the majority of a town's produce should be on top of the damn list, so that is what I propose: I will enter into a private contract with you to attend to any need that arises. You will not need to deal with Yan at all unless I am somehow not available, in which case you'll go through the usual process as normal."

As the third and then fourth screw came loose she looked up to him; a gamut of emotion crossed over his face: confusion, uncertainty, thoughtfulness, and now there was a ghost of a smile playing at the edges of his mouth.

"Not have to deal with Yan, huh? Can't see him liking that."

"It's legal - whether he likes it or not isn't my problem," she said with a thin-lipped smile. "I've already given up on trying to get along with that mustachioed weasel and I find lazy and crooked men tend to never straighten. If he chooses to put up a roadblock then I will find a way around, over, under, or through it."

He let out an amused snort at the weasel comment, then removed his hat to run his hand through sweaty hair. "I'm not against it, so long as it won't cause you any trouble."

"It won't - if I can handle the workload of roughly fifty instructors and twice as many students, I can handle this. And, I actually picked up quite a bit of knowledge about botany and agriculture in my time with Professor Luo. I know the situation here is vastly different from Highwind but it's my hope that what I've learned will help make our working relationship here smoother."

Zeke nodded and pulled his hat back on. "I like the sound of that. So...what needs to be done?"

Olivia paused long enough to pop the pump housing cover free and frowned again as several loose metal shards and springs came tumbling out. "I will write the contract up, it will be a fairly standard one declaring our reason and intention for entering in to the agreement, a one-party-dissolution clause, outlining the scope of work and availability -- which is any time you have need of me, for any reason," she added, briefly glancing up to him. "Even if it's a single nail at 2am."

That finally drew a chuckle out of him. "I'm not even awake then. Or I'd better not be." He bent to look at the revealed pump as Olivia began to gingerly pull more and more broken bits loose. "Can you fix it?"

"Oh, certainly," she replied. "At the moment it appears the pump burnt out - probably due to a lack of lubrication on certain moving parts within it and the motor running it. At the very least the rest of the unit is still in one piece so, worst case scenario, I just replace the pump and motor. I could have this back to you within a week at most."

Zeke nodded and straightened again, and looked a tad embarrassed at a few loud pops from his knees. "It'll be nice to have it back. I'll have to find somewhere to put it though."

"Would you like more of them? They're not so hard to put together."

After a few moments to consider he shook his head. "I was mostly using it to get seeds germinating quickly and letting the seedlings get strong before transplanting them. Did some calculations and found that while it uses about 23% less water than what's needed for a planter when you start factoring in the limited growing space, needing to get the exact right nutrients dissolved and balanced to prevent stunted growth for a variety of plants, and amount of power needed to run them too, then what you're saving on water costs is kind of wiped out by other variables. With how thinly balanced our resource needs and availability is out here, one or two more wouldn't hurt but beyond that diminishing returns would start chewing into the benefits." After a breath his eyes widened briefly and he looked faintly sheepish. "Not to, uh, insult your work or anything."

She laughed and stood, pocketing the screws and closing the knife. "I'm not offended, rest assured. It was my hope that it would make a difference out here but it sounds like I need to refine my design to take care of a few of those variables - which I don't mind at all," she added in a firm tone. "A builder not willing to learn and improve should find another profession. Now..." Again she held her hand out to him. "I believe I've taken up enough of your time, considering I barged in here unannounced. I'll get to those planters and then be back as soon as I can with the repaired unit and contract."

Zeke shook her hand again - his had warmed up. "Don't worry about the planters, I can handle those."

"Are you certain? I came here with full intent to fix them."

"Yeah - nailing a few boards into place is easy enough. Do y'need help carrying that out?" he asked, nodding toward the hydroponic unit.

"I can manage, but thank you."

She popped the lid on the water tank and tossed the engine housing cover in, then shut it securely and slipped her hand into a slot on the lid -- it was meant to slide open to allow water to be added without needing to remove the entire thing but for now it sufficed as a handle to carry it by. Zeke held the door for her and watched silently as she hopped onto the yakmel cart and headed back toward her workshop.

Once back home she set the hydroponic unit down on the assembly platform and went to collect all the tools she'd need to disassemble and determine the full extent of the damage. She hadn't quite shed that little flare of anger from earlier -- that Yan and Mason had essentially sabotaged the Moisture Farm...grr. It made her want to drag both of them into the street and cane them in the town square.

At least in Mason's case the man looked worn down...at the end of his career and the life sapped out of him. It was not an excuse for abandoning his duties but she could at least sympathize with the inability to care. She'd been there once before. Yan however...

She would need to watch him very closely.

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Zeke watched as the yakmel cart pulled out of sight.

He'd heard from Burgess about the new builder; how she was older, wiser, polite yet to the point, and above all seemed like a kind and lovely woman. What he hadn't heard about was her take-charge and 'suffer no fools' attitude.

That she was moving to immediately mitigate Yan's creative way of managing commissions gave him a faint sense of hope. A lot of things at the farm had fallen by the wayside -- if it wasn't a vital or large job Yan usually ignored it or else he dragged his feet, maybe hoping that the request would be forgotten, and usually Zeke had no option but to let it go. He was at least capable of doing most of the repair and maintenance on the planters and tools he used daily but there were weak spots in the floor, rust and degradation, cracked glass... It was a lot of small things but after awhile small things could add up to a lot.

He retreated back into the farm and stood just inside the doorway, resting a hand at his belt and looking up at the dome far above. What 'little' problems should he even address? It'd been this way for so long he'd learned to just deal with it. Maybe he ought to let Olivia assess and decide -- she'd know far better than he would about...things.

...maybe this was a sign things would finally turn around.

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"You look quite worn today. Do remember to take breaks, dearest -- the desert is very unforgiving when it comes to the wear and stress it places on a body."

From across the table she smiled at him wearily. "I am becoming quite acquainted with the sentiment, yes. No need for alarm however, I expect this next week will see things finally slowing down."

Miguel nodded slowly. "As you say. I assume this means you and Mi-an have gotten things caught up to where they should be?"

"Just about, yes," she chuckled. She brushed away wisps of hair from her face and used her fingernails to somewhat comb them back into the hair at her temples, where the rest of it was swept up into a messy half ponytail secured with that silver shield hairpin. "Though it would have been much easier on everyone involved if Yan would have temporarily waived the daily commission limits."

"...limits?" Miguel repeated.

"It's our ranking system," she explained. "As Mi-an and I are new builders to Sandrock we are ranked the lowest out of everyone in the Eufala region - 'tis the same deal every time a builder takes to a new area. Essentially, we must work to prove ourselves but for some Light-forsaken reason the lowest ranks are limited to a single commission a day. There are exceptions to that rule such as in emergency situations but Yan did not think being two months behind on everything was 'emergency' enough to allow Mi-an and I to take more than one a day."

"I suppose I've never given that much thought." He could not immediately decide whether such a rule was warranted; you would not want lazy builders snatching up commissions that were late or never finished nor would you want shoddy crafters being the ones completing your requests either, but did that not also make it extremely difficult for a builder to establish themselves? "How odd that the system is set up in such a manner."

She waved a hand. "It's not so bad. Just because we can only take one at a time doesn't mean we can't prepare ahead of time. I've finally gotten things down to wake up, take my morning coffee, gather up the end result of a commission I already know is on that board, grab it, deliver it, done with my 'day' by 8:15."

He chuckled at the mental image. "While I am certain everyone greatly appreciates the promptness - and forgive me, I don't mean to sound insulting - that doesn't sound like a workload that would warrant your current level of exhaustion."

She glanced down at the table between them, a sly look crossing her features before looking back up to him with a self-satisfied smile. "Ah, you could say I've been finding other means of keeping myself busy."

"Such as?"

"Do you assist Matilda in handling the mayoral and administrative duties at all?"

"Yes," he answered, drawing the word out and fixing her with a playfully suspicious look. "You aren't committing any fraud I should be aware of, are you?"

"Ha! No, no fraud, but I'm making certain things are being done however I can manage. I imagine you'll hear Yan howling about it when he figures it out. Consider yourself forewarned."

He leaned forward, steepling his fingers together and resting his elbows on the table, eying her curiously. "Please do elaborate."

"It's nothing illegal or untoward, if that's what you're thinking. I'm merely making sure all the needs of the Moisture Farm are being met. In order to do that I am having to...route around Yan."

"...I'm afraid I'm not following. I thought you were limited in what you can take per day?"

"From the guild, yes. There are no such limits on how many jobs I can take on on personal basis. Which is what I'm doing."

Owen chose that moment to come over with a cheerful "Evening you two!" so Miguel's follow up questions had to wait. "Good evening, Owen. A pot of tea, if you please. I am not yet ready to order a meal -- but don't let that stop you, if you are," he added, nodding to Olivia.

"Tea is fine, and I shall see where my stomach leads me later."

"I'll have it right out," Owen chuckled, lightly tapping his fingers against the table before hurrying off toward the kitchen.

Miguel watched him go, using the moment to refocus his thoughts. "So, as I understand it, you are taking on commissions...on a personal basis?" Olivia nodded; he felt her foot brush up against his pantsleg as she shifted her legs beneath the table -- unbidden, a memory of a cheeky game of footsie at a family dinner came to mind bringing with it a smile he couldn't contain that he hastily tried to hide behind a clearing of the throat. "-ahem, how- how then does that work with your duties to Sandrock?"

"Quite well, actually. And before you ask, it IS permitted by the Central Commerce Guild commission to have concurrent contracts active. So long as I follow their rules it's perfectly fine and wouldn't even be needed if not for Yan turning away requests."

Yan was turning-- what? Why? That idiot... Turning down commission requests could draw the wrong kind of attention if it reached any sort of authoritative body! That was the last thing they needed out here! "I...see. And wish I had heard of this sooner. What exactly have others been saying that he's been doing?"

Olivia paused as Owen returned with a teapot, two teacups, cream and sugar, and a small brick of pressed tea; based on the swirling, whole leaf pattern Miguel suspected it was from Meidi -- it was surprising that Owen possessed such a thing, and also touching that he would choose to allow them to consume it at the cost of the local stuff as it could not possibly be cheap to import it all the way out here. The teapot was steaming and after a cursory check under its lid he saw the strainer was in place and broke off a serving from the brick, placing it within as Olivia moved the cups and cream out of his way.

"Primarily turning away jobs he didn't deem big or important enough, though it seems he eventually caved at some point and began posting them again but then they simply weren't being completed. Which is saying something when you consider how many screws, boards, bricks, and nail commissions we've had to complete and deliver, and there's still a handful more to knock out before we're completely caught up."

He sighed and shook his head. "Had we known sooner it was more than just delayed completion we could have encouraged him to promptly and correctly fulfill his duties as Commissioner...perhaps if we had you would not have arrived to find things in the state they are. At least, in terms of commissions anyway...the situation here is what it is, and we've just got to squeeze water out of the sand here, so to speak. You'll find MOST everyone here does whatever they can."

For better or for worse, he thought to himself. Someday, hopefully soon, everyone will see sense.

"And so am I, which is why I've put myself at Zeke's disposal -- whether he needs an entire shed or a single nail, by Peach I will get it done. Why anyone would choose to take the majority food resource for granted is baffling."

Miguel simply nodded at this -- it was, after all, not his intention to starve anyone (and certainly not himself, either!) The loss of water would eventually began affecting the Moisture Farm but that could not be helped, and he prayed that by the time it reached the point that their food was in danger that the remaining majority here would have moved on to greener pastures.

And let it be literal greener pastures...these people deserve so much better than this life of disorder and strife, scrabbling around in the sand even as it buries them.

Judging that the tea had had time enough to steep he filled their cups and paused to admire the fragrance; it was quite familiar so certainly a Meidi blend (though he could not name it specifically). "If not for the Moisture Farm what would you currently be doing in this downtime?" Miguel asked as he spooned a small amount of sugar into his cup.

His attention was drawn to her lips - they puckered gently as she blew across the top of her tea, and she took a sip without adding anything (nor did she seem inclined to do so even after a second sip). "-building up a stock of basic hardware, gathering raw materials, that sort of thing. You never know when you might suddenly need something and it's good to have plenty on hand in case of emergency."

Smiling, he curled his hands around the teacup. "You always were the prepared one... Still, do not overwork yourself. Life is not a race."

"I very nearly have the farm caught up on the more immediate repairs needed, after which I'll turn my attention to the less pressing issues. As soon as all of THAT is taken care of my schedule will be wide open," she said, with a coy little smile and a playful flutter of her eyelashes. "Which, I'm sure we'll find ways to pass the time."

He couldn't help the happy little hum that rose in his throat. "-I very much look forward to it."

Olivia laughed quietly and brought her tea cup up close to her face, inhaling deeply. "Never thought I'd be drinking THIS again."

"You recognize it?"

"If I'm not mistaken it's Prancing Snowbloom - from Meidi's northern border. There's a small spring-fed valley up there where they grow it."

Miguel blinked at her in surprise. "You say that as though you are familiar with it." And good heavens, how expensive was this tea?

"A very dear friend and traveling companion of mine, Zachary, was from that region. He talked about his home village quite a bit when we were sitting around in the evenings. Many a time did he promise to take me there someday, to show off the springs..."

"Oh?"

She nodded. "It's a long story, and not one I am willing to touch on tonight. I never did get to see the springs but I did get to meet his wife and children though -- I still get letters addressed to 'aunt Ibby.'"

Miguel chuckled again. "Aunt 'Ibby'?"

"Well, Olivia and Livvy have some sounds that little tongues had trouble with. By the time they were old enough to say it properly the name had already stuck."

With a small smile Miguel leaned back, wiggling his shoulders a bit to readjust the booth cushion behind him (Owen may need to replace this one - it was feeling quite thin). "Have you been to many places within Meidi, then?"

"Only those few villages and hamlets we stayed at on our way to Zachary's home. I was...not entirely comfortable traveling there so I wasn't inclined to do any sight seeing."

"Whatever for? Meidi is one of the safest lands on the continent."

"...that is also not something I am willing to touch on." She then sighed, smiling weakly at him. "Sorry."

He waved a hand. "Not a problem. I may not understand now but perhaps, in the future...?"

She nodded. "Perhaps. I wouldn't hold your breath though."

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Grace approaching -- the tea hadn't really stoked his appetite yet so he kept his attention on Olivia and topped off his drink. "All in due time. So! I must say hearing you've been to Meidi was a bit of a surprise. Where else have your travels taken you?" "Well-"

"-hope you don't mind my butting in, since I just overheard you asking about travel," Grace interrupted as she stopped at their table. "I'm actually curious about that myself."

Olivia gave her a look of mild surprise - whether it was due to the interruption or the declaration of curiosity it was hard to tell - and gingerly returned her cup of tea to its saucer. "I see. Well, the simple answer is 'many places.' Why do you ask?"

She had placed a gentle emphasis on 'you' and was looking at Grace so Miguel assumed it was directed at the waitress and calmly awaited her answer.

"Ever since I saw you I've had the feeling like we've met somewhere before. Have you spent much time in Atara?"

"Off and on. You'll have to be more specific as to the year," Olivia replied.

Grace tapped her pencil against her chin. "Being as I was born and raised in Atara, and factoring in that I'd need to be old enough to have met you previously and remember the encounter...anytime within the last decade?"

Olivia let out an amused snort. "Not quite specific enough, but I can say with a high degree of certainty that I don't recognize you."

"Perhaps you passed one another in the street often enough to spark familiarity?" Miguel suggested.

"That's possible," Grace agreed. "When you're busy with school and jobs I guess things can just slide on by even if you're looking directly at it, I'll just have to deal with the feelings of deja vu until it either comes to me or I get over it. Anyway, would you two like to order anything or should I come back to check in on you in a bit?"

Miguel glanced back to Olivia and paused; she had sounded fine only seconds ago but there was the barest hint of something in her eyes, with a sense of discomfort in the air. He cleared his throat. "Ah, Grace - I would like to order a bowl of the date and lotus soup, if you please."

"You got it." Grace quickly whipped out a little notepad and wrote the dish down, then looked back to Olivia. "How about you, builder?"

"A half order of the tomato beef brisket and a tea egg, please."

"Any desserts?"

Olivia shook her head; Miguel did as well. "No, thank you."

Grace, perhaps noting the change in the atmosphere, nodded and headed off without any further questions. Olivia let out a soft sigh and shook her head; Miguel studied her face, not seeing any sign of that discomfort from moments ago but also not noticing any hint of her current state of mind.

"...Olivia, are you all right?" he asked quietly.

"Hmm? Oh, yes. Sorry. Trying to remember if I've seen Grace before brought a few other memories to mind." She let out an amused huff, shaking her head. "T'would seem tonight we're determined to dance around subjects and people I wish to leave in the past."

Miguel looked at her with some concern but she'd put a warm smile on, as though nothing was amiss, and took another sip of her tea. A flicker of annoyance was warring with worry -- annoyance with Grace for, if unintentionally, upsetting Olivia, and a mild anxious sensation over her well-being and mood; but...as he'd said, he was not about to cross her boundaries. However... "Speaking of the past... You know what holiday approaches."

She blew out a long sigh that trailed off into a buzzing of lips. "Yes, it sure is. One of my least favorite times of the year."

That was true - and, HAD been true even before Doss had... She simply hadn't liked being frightened, even in the name of fun. "How have you marked the occasion these past years?"

Olivia leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table and putting her face into her hands. "Ah, well, to be honest, usually a bottle of something strong and a quiet, deserted corner somewhere."

Miguel blinked at her. Alcohol? Olivia drinking?! She had never-- "I- find that...er."

"Shocking, yes?" she asked, laughing nervously and peering at him through her fingers. "I know, I know, the girl I was before would never. You may choose to believe she finally grew up or died with Doss or fell into a hole, take your pick."

She'd despised alcohol...the taste, the idea of being inebriated, and the thought of even being associated with such behavior. "I...hrm. Of all things to imagine had changed, that one is certainly surprising."

"Oh there's loads more that have changed that you'd likely find more surprising than that."

Having recovered Miguel chuckled a bit and drank from his cup, letting the tea sit on his tongue for a moment to savor the flavor. "-tell me something else that has changed, then. Whether you personally consider it surprising or not."

She let her hands drop to the table, silently drumming her fingertips against it. "Let's see then... I cannot stand the taste of cabbage now."

"What?" he blurted out, laughing. "You loved your mother's cabbage spring rolls!"

"I know!" she said, laughing as well and throwing her hands up. "I still have the recipe memorized but I just can't bring myself to eat anything with noticeable amounts of cabbage in it! There was a time years ago where I fell very ill and cabbage was the most readily available food item so it was in every damn meal. Ever since then the taste of it makes me gag -- I just can't shake the association with that period of time."

Shaking his head Miguel spotted Owen on his way over and reached to move the teapot out of the way. "Astounding what our minds and memories will cling to... Does the smell affect you as well?"

"No, just the taste, thankfully. You're welcome to eat it all you like, it won't bother me."

Owen quickly set their meals in front of them then headed off back toward the bar. His soup was especially fragrant and it was only then that his stomach chose to rumble.

"Your turn," she said suddenly, as his spoon was halfway to his mouth.

"Ah-" Well, t'was only fair. There were things he could say had definitely changed with him...but what to share? Something playful, as she had, but what? "Hmm. To remain on the topic of food: urchin minoris."

Olivia snorted. "Oh, sea urchins? I believe I know where this is going but, do continue."

"You mean to tell me you knew?"

"Yes, I did."

He pursed his lips but wasn't really angered or frustrated -- while Olivia had been quiet and meek in most other things, she'd been adventurous about trying foods (for better or for worse). "Well, once I was told what part of the creature we were eating I couldn't stomach it anymore."

She snickered and sliced into the tea egg with her fork. "Sympathy?"

"No. Pure disgust in knowing that a creature died and that is all that was harvested from it, and I didn't find it all that palatable even before I knew any of that."

"Well, to each their own," she said, tone airy. "They were always too salty when they reached Doss anyway, and I do promise you that the spines were used in other things so it wasn't wholly a waste of an animal. You should try the ones they have in Portia -- they're much larger than the minoris type and actually develop edible meat that has a much more subtle taste."

"I believe I would still react in much the same way as you with cabbage."

She laughed again and stuck a bite of the egg into her mouth; Miguel took that as a sign that it was safe to fill his own mouth and for a time they ate quietly, enjoying the meal and company as around them the saloon began filling up with the dinner crowd and started to grow noisy and distracting. "Would you like to take a stroll around the oasis when we've finished here?"

"I would love to."

After they'd eaten and the tab was settled they stepped out into the evening; Sandrock was mostly deserted at this time of night - everyone was either at home or at the saloon for their supper - so they were free to stroll along the street without anyone interrupting. In the early evenings the oasis always felt cooler than its surroundings (at least for a little while; the desert could get shockingly cold very quickly depending on the season) and there were insects chirping quietly in the moonlight. Beside him Olivia took a deep breath and smiled toward the water.

"Do you remember that pond, and the rope swing?"

"Of course. Knocking a tooth out because I fell off it is one of those childhood memories I doubt will ever fade."

Olivia laughed quietly. "Well, I wasn't thinking of that, I was thinking of sitting beneath that tree reading, listening to the frogs singing their little hearts out."

Miguel smiled fondly at the memory; he could recall bare feet, reading by candlelight just barely hanging on in the breeze, whistles made of grass and some very cross parents every time they stayed out past their curfews. "We've no frogs here so I hope the crickets and cicadas suffice. Sandrock does have its little unexpected joys of nature."

"That it does. I've seen other places out in the Eufala but Sandrock seems especially lucky with its landscape -- it's a lot less desolate here than elsewhere."

He slowly nodded. "...for now, anyway. The desert is trying its best to swallow this place up and while I can applaud, in the most basic sense, the efforts of those trying to slow the inevitable there's times where it feels more like the arrogance of man trying to defy nature itself, even as I look around and witness what we have managed to accomplish. I'm afraid it seems already 'too little too late.' The relic rush stripped the land of life, we are merely the palliative caretakers."

She glanced over to him, mild surprise on her face. "I would never have taken you for such a pessimist."

"Less pessimism and more...realism," he replied after a moment. "Though you do have a point: that was carelessly dismal of me." He blew out a sigh. "I counsel the people here, and those in the villages around us, and while I wish I had Matilda's ever-present optimism someone has to be careful not to instill false hope."

"Mmm, true. But sometimes you need to feed the soul as much as the stomach and even false hope can keep someone going when they would otherwise stop in despair." Idly she tapped the foot of the cane against the boardwalk beneath their feet, suddenly chuckling deeply and winking at him. "Consider it arrogant of me but I shall be the optimist to your pessimist and so declare, 'not on my watch.' I came with the intention to spend the rest of my days here -- let's see what I can manage."

Deep in his gut he felt a twinge of...something. It was uncomfortable and nameless but felt akin to nervousness tinged with a sudden faint frustration that was gone as suddenly as he'd noticed it. "Ah, well...I wouldn't get your hopes up too high, Livvy. And, besides," he added with a small smile. "I could very well be reassigned to a new post tomorrow. The future is ever in motion."

Now she lightly tapped the cane against the side of his shoe. "Already planning for me to pick up and follow you, hmm?"

His cheeks flushed a bit. "I do not actually foresee moving on from Sandrock anytime soon - my duties here are not yet finished," he replied, the words coming out in a rush. "But... I would hate to leave you behind, when we've only just found one another after so long."

She smiled and looked back out over the water, tracing the path of a firefly as it lazily wandered through the tall grass. "As you said: the future is ever in motion. It's wholly possible you might find me an inadequate partner and it won't even matter."

He frowned. "Don't say that... What reason could I possibly have to think that?"

This time she offered him a wan smile. "We're not the same people, Miguel. I'd caution you about holding too firmly to the memory of who I was. I know I'm struggling with it myself. ...I should get going. I've an early day at the Moisture Farm and it's going to be a rough one -- my not being a morning person is at least one thing that's remained UN-changed," she added ruefully.

"I wish you a good night's sleep then," he said softly, reaching out to gently touch her hand. "I will see you in the morning."

She briefly squeezed his fingers then stepped around him, shaking her head. "No no, no need to trouble yourself this time -- when I said early I meant early: I need to replace a window pane and a wall panel and that's more easily done without the sun directly in my face. Sleep in, and I'll see you later on."

"If you're certain."

"I am. Unfortunately."

He laughed quietly and clasped his hands behind his back, moving to walk with her across the stone path. "I will walk with you a bit further - I could use the exercise."

"Oh please. You're a twig."

He laughed again. "I am not as frail as I appear, I promise."

He accompanied her as far as the corner of the fence at the end of the oasis near the train station where she continued across the tracks to go home and Miguel, at first, walked over to the yakmel cart before noticing Yan leaving the saloon and heading toward his own home. His conversation with Olivia earlier came to mind and in a split-second decision Miguel turned from the yakmel station and hurried up the road; he caught up to the man right as he was unlocking his front door and, after checking to see who was about (and with some minor protests from Yan), shoved him inside and entered behind him, tugging the door shut and fixing him with a glare.

"Hey, what's your problem?!"

"Shut up and listen to me," Miguel hissed, reaching out to...well, at first he wanted to seize the sleazy oaf by the collar but that would be sinking to the same despicable level as the creep, and so settled for jabbing a finger into the garish tie instead. "Whatever you are doing outside of your duties, stop it. Word has reached me that you were turning away commission requests--"

"-well yeah, for stupid things!" Yan interrupted. "I don't have time for chump change-"

Miguel jabbed his finger against him again, drawing a pained yelp from him. "Shut. Up. If anyone has actually reported your...dereliction of duty to any sort of governing body, we may very well have to deal with some sort of investigation or audit, and I should not need to explain why we do not want that. Perform your guild duties, to the letter. I don't care how small the fee or "stupid" the request -- if it is submitted through official channels, you do your job. Do you understand me?"

Having seemingly found his courage Yan swatted his hand away. "Calm down old man - no one's going to figure out anything!"

"I said-"

"Yeah, yeah, I heard you. Fine, whatever, just- get out of my house! I didn't even invite you in! Rude!"

Miguel straightened, pulling his shoulders back and shooting him a final warning glare before turning and leaving, with Yan slamming the door on his heels.

Fool... For as easy as it was to convince the stupid, greedy man to assist with their plan there were times where Miguel genuinely feared those qualities would be their downfall; if there was a weak link anywhere, it was him.

...drat, he should have also warned him about retaliating against Olivia. He was only feet away from Yan's stoop still but there were stragglers in the street now as the saloon began to empty out; he did not want to draw any more attention to himself than he needed to or may have already -- it was a little too late in the evening to use 'official business' as an excuse for being seen leaving Yan's house (and honestly, who would visit Yan for anything but business?)

With a sharp exhale through his nose Miguel brushed a hand down his front to smooth out the fabric of his uniform then let his feet direct him toward home.

---------------------------------------

"Oh Pen, she's been here barely any time at all. I think you're overreacting."

"You would - you haven't seen the two of them smiling and laughing. Frankly it's disgusting. But regardless, I'm telling you: she is going to be a problem. We need to take care of this now."

Matilda sighed, looking at Pen from over the top of the papers she was organizing. "She is not a 'problem' and we don't need to turn this into one."

Pen crossed his arms, staring at her with a petulant look. "And just why are you so certain you're right?"

She gently set the papers down and folded her hands atop them. "Why are you? Listen... I've known Miguel for a long, long time Pen. I've seen him at his lowest, and now? Now he's happy. Happier than I've ever seen him, and happy men fight like hell to hold on to that happiness. If anything, having that builder here will only strengthen his loyalty. Leave them be -- if anything changes then I'll reconsider as needed. Don't you dare do a thing to that woman unless I order it, understood?"

Pen huffed. "Fine... But I'll be keeping my eye on her."

"So long as it's eyes only; keep those hands of yours to yourself. Now...head on back to your room before someone notices you're not there," Matilda said with a kind smile and a hint of ice in her eyes.

Pen grunted before stomping from the home; Matilda shook her head slowly -- she appreciated having the knight as back up and a sort of insurance against the plan going awry but sometimes he thought the worst of simple situations and jumped right to the wrong conclusions.

And, Miguel might be a pawn in all of this but she did actually care about the man, and even if she didn't a happy pawn was a loyal pawn. So long as everything played out like it was supposed to, who cared if he found love in the process? Maybe he'd even manage to hang on to it to this time.

She signed a few lines and neatly stacked the papers on the edge of her desk to carry over to the commerce guild in the morning then busied herself with getting ready for bed.

#Ensuring the Future #EtF #Ensuring the Future - ch 4 #mtas miguel #mtas zeke #mtas owen #mtas grace #mtas pen #mtas matilda #my time at sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Heart of Stone - ch 15

"I might make a tiny one to join the quartz and heart on my shelf."

"Really?"

Dawn grinned at him from over a shoulder; she'd been walking in slow circles around the natural rock stack, studying it from every angle. Unsuur had sat down in the sand a few feet away, letting his attention wander between her and the stack as it wanted to. It was great having two things he really liked both in his line of sight at the same time.

"A bit of clay, some paint, some texturing... Might take a few tries to get it perfect but, yeah, really."

He smiled; she came over to sit next to him, leaning her head against his shoulder. She liked being in contact with him as much as he did with her whether that was holding her hand or having an arm around her (and it was both fun and comforting to rest his chin on top of her head - he could do that whether she was sitting or standing in front of him. It was easier when her hair was down but she still laughed every time he did it).

"Can't wait to see it, then." ((Continued below cut. Very mildly spicy part warning))

She hummed happily before lifting her head and looking out across the landscape. "I'll definitely show you once it's done - not sure when that will be since I'll be starting work on Catori's sandrunning stuff sooner or later."

"Sandrunning?"

"Have you ever gone sledding?"

Unsuur shook his head. "Sandrock barely gets a dusting of snow in the winter and it's always gone the next day. I've seen sledges that haul things across sand but those were pulled by animals or people, not really ridden. Something the size of a sledge sounds kind of dangerous to let slide down a hill too."

"Well, Catori wants to build sleds - NOT big ones! - and have people go sledding down the dunes along marked courses. She mentioned something about races and times and prizes too."

"How would that work?

"A race, or sliding down a dune?"

"Both, I guess. I've never thought of sand as slick. I've definitely rolled down dunes before but not usually on purpose. At least it'd be a soft landing if someone falls off."

Dawn laughed and trailed her fingers through the sand in front of them. "Something flat and polished enough should zip down a hill pretty well. Weight might be an issue but I'm not the one building the sleds so I don't know what Catori has planned for those. I'll be building everything else - the sign-up kiosk, the banners, the boundary markers... She's planned out several courses for people to try their hand at so after I get it made I then have to go install everything. That part will probably take longer than actually building them."

Unsuur turned to sweep his gaze across the surrounding area; that was a lot of desert out there to build in. "That sounds like a lot to do."

"It is. It'll mostly be a lot to move but it's all simple to assemble once I get it out here. I'm still waiting on the final blueprints since the whole idea isn't completely finalized with City Hall yet."

"I'll help. And if I'm not around to help you can borrow Boulder to help you carry things." At his name the horse lifted his head from a patch of scrub grass, flicking his ears toward them. "-not right now buddy, sorry to interrupt your graze."

Boulder huffed and went back to nibbling on the grass. Dawn smiled over at the horse. "I'll keep that in mind but I am seriously debating getting a horse for myself. Elsie said Cooper would be willing to sell me one if I got a proper stable built. --oh! That reminds me! Did I mention that Heidi's got me officially penciled in to start on expanding my house?"

He shook his head. "You hadn't, but I was assuming now that the bridge was done that that wouldn't be too far behind. Same plans as the ones you showed me before?"

"Yep! She thinks they can get it done in three or four days since they don't need to worry about any sort of plumbing. Once they're done I'll add on a stable myself -- it won't need to be very big, just enough to hold two horses."

Unsuur looked back to her. "Two horses?"

"My horse and Boulder, just in case you have him with you when you're visiting," she answered, gently nudging him with her shoulder. "He should have a spot to rest and unwind too."

"I'm sure he'll appreciate it, and he can have more than just Truth as a friend then."

"And I can sneak him treats," she added, with a sly grin.

Unsuur smiled and leaned back so he could slide his arm around her, then he brought his other arm over so he could seize her around the waist; she squeaked in surprise as he lifted her over his thigh and settled her in front of him between his legs. "Not if I keep you right where I can see you."

That got him a light swat on the arm but she leaned back against him contentedly.

---------------------------------

"And he bought everything? That's impressive."

"Just as expected! Soon Amirah and I will have what we need -- she can fully embrace her craft and I'll have access to BOTH my hobbies again."

"What glass stuff do you plan on making first?" he asked as he sat down on his stool at the jewelry bench, reaching out to slide Dawn's out for her.

"I haven't decided yet. Normally I'd discretely scout out what's selling but it's just Arvio here, and...my personal feelings about him aside, I know his profit margins have to be razor thin with Sandrock's economy being what it is. My main source of income is basically guaranteed since builders are always needed." She came over and sat down while twisting her hair up into a messy bun.

"So competing with him wouldn't be fair," he concluded, and she nodded as she turned the little light on over the bench.

"Right. That won't stop me from making things but whatever I make will be because I felt like it, not based on any market research." With the light on she pulled out a notebook from the cabinet by the bench and flipped it open to a page with an elaborately wire-wrapped and polished amber pendant drawn out - front, sides, and the back - in dark pencil lines. "For tonight though, this--" They both flinched slightly as the little tin timer went off - it seemed much louder than usual considering how quiet the evening was otherwise. Laughing, Dawn stood back up. "Hold that thought, I need to put in the next batch of fiber."

"Still making rope?" he asked, a little amazed at the sheer amount he knew she'd already made and here she was still making more.

"Yep," she sighed, picking up the top bundle of plant fiber off a small pile and loading it into one of her machines. "Believe it or not we're using a fair amount of fencing too -- we pulled a lot of scrap wood out of Gecko Station for it but there's a limit to how much wood we can use on this project. If it doesn't take off then that's...basically a lot of wasted lumber."

"I don't think it'll be wasted," Unsuur said. "If even one person enjoys themselves then it was a good use."

Dawn came back and flopped down on her stool. "True, I guess. Anyway, like I was about to say, this is tonight's plan -- I probably won't get it done in one sitting but what do you think?"

Unsuur looked the sketch over - it seemed like it'd be about the size of the top joint of his thumb when finished. "I like it, it reminds me of a bird's nest. Where'd you find the amber?"

"In among some lapis lazuli near Gecko Station -- it was wedged in and I wouldn't have seen it if I hadn't, by pure coincidence, quarried that particular outcrop. I'm not sure if someone dropped it or purposely hid it there but I guess it's mine now."

"I'd just call it a lucky find then and not wonder about it too much."

She grinned over at him and moved the notebook to a clipboard hanging from a hook attached to the wall in front of them. "Very lucky. Would you like any of the lapis lazuli? I only meant to take a small amount but it cracked and broke apart more than I was expecting."

"Sure. It'll look great next to my painite."

"Wha- you have painite?"

"Yes. It's not very big though."

"That's still really rare!"

"Do you want to see it sometime?"

"Yes!"

----------------------------------------

"It's all about focus and balance." ...both of which were hard to concentrate on since Dawn was sitting across from him watching as he delicately settled a fifth rock on top of a new stack. "Along with a steady hand and quiet mind."

"I'd like to think I have both...usually, depending on how my day is going," Dawn laughed softly. "Some days you don't need 'steady' or 'quiet,' you need 'sledgehammer.'"

Unsuur very slowly backed his hands away from the rock and held his breath for a moment; it stayed balanced - not even a wobble - and he exhaled silently through his nose. "Luckily you don't need a sledgehammer, or a pickhammer, or even a regular hammer to make a rock stack. Just your own hands and imagination. And rocks, but that goes without saying."

Dawn laughed again. "And good company?"

"...yeah, the company is definitely making this way better than usual," he answered after a moment. "Do you want to try?"

"I..." she started, drawing the vowel out as she pulled her pocket watch out of the top pocket of her overalls. "-dang it. I would love to but I have to meet Mi-an over at the old outpost in twenty minutes."

Wow. They'd come out here two hours early for a walk and some rock stacking...had it already been that long? "That's ok. We can come back to this another day. Will you two need any extra hands?"

"We're just doing final measurements and putting out some color-coded temporary posts to mark where the courses are definitely going. Need to make sure our numbers are right and there's no unexpected obstacles that've been unearthed since we were last out here," Dawn replied, standing up and brushing her knees off. "Tomorrow is when we'll be hauling everything out for the final set up. You can help then if you'd like."

"Count me and Boulder in."

"Does Boulder know how to pull a wagon?"

"...I'm not actually sure. I bought him from the ranch a few years ago so I'm not sure what Elsie or Cooper might have taught him aside from getting him used to a saddle and rider. He can carry things and people on his back though."

"We'll figure it out. I'll see you tomorrow." She stepped over and, once he was back on his feet, hugged him tightly, then tilted her head up toward him.

Unsuur bent slightly and kissed her, then before she could pull away kissed her a second time for good measure, absolutely adoring how it felt to feel her giggling against his lips. Little surprises like that never failed to make her laugh. "Bright and early?"

"Unfortunately," she said, tone flat, but then she smiled and headed off across the dunes.

------------------------------

"I...am done...building...in the middle...of a desert," Dawn wheezed as she threw herself down in the sand, flat on her back with her arms and legs spread.

Unsuur understood the sentiment well; they - meaning her, Mi-an, Unsuur, Elsie, and, surprisingly, Catori as well - had all met up at sunrise, packed all the sandrunning pieces into a wagon that Belle was pulling (Boulder toted all the water along with a satchel of snacks to keep them going) and headed out into the Eufala to install everything. Unsuur and Elsie had been mostly muscle, Catori had been 'supervising' and Mi-an and Dawn made sure everything fit together and was secured, and though he felt like he'd not done much actual work (...to be honest, he didn't really consider what Catori did to be 'work' either compared to everything everyone else was doing) his hands, arms, and feet were aching, he was hot and grimy, and a little hungry as well.

Mi-an dropped down on Dawn's left, fanning herself with the folded remains of a blueprint. "No kidding! Whew! After all this...wanna dunk my head...in a bucket of water," she panted.

Unsuur moved over to sit next to Dawn on her other side. "Don't let Burgess catch you."

"I was joking! ...mostly," Mi-an said with an exhausted smile, moving to lay down in the sand as well. "I wouldn't waste water like that - no dunking unless it's in my bathtub!"

Catori ambled up to them, writing rapidly on a clipboard in her hands. "Oooh, I can't wait to let Matilda know we're ready for business! Opening day is going to be big! BIG big! I'm advertising in every city, town, and village in the Free Cities! If it's got people, I'm sending it flyers!"

...that sounded like a lot of people. Could Sandrock even host however many 'a lot of people' ended up being? Hopefully Matilda had a plan of some kind. "When did you plan to open?"

"Soon," Catori chuckled. "I'm aiming for one week, maybe sooner if the flyers get made and mailed out quicker."

Unsuur glanced down to Dawn, noticing how sand was beginning to cake itself to her arms thanks to the sweat. "So a week before you get to see people enjoying what you've built. -- and you too, Mi-an. Those sleds look fun."

"Heeeeeeey!"

They all looked up at Elsie's yell - she was about twenty feet away with Belle and the wagon, waving at them, and didn't seem to be in danger or anything, just needing their attention; Unsuur relaxed a little, leaning back on his hands behind him and stretching his sore legs out.

"If y'all want a ride back then c'mon!"

"Guess that's our cue. Let's get home," Catori said, tucking the clipboard under an arm.

Mi-an sat up with a groan then stood and offered Dawn a hand up. "Coming?"

Dawn shook her head. "I'll walk. I need...to rest a bit before I try moving."

Mi-an giggled some and looked to Unsuur; he shook his head. "I'll stay with her. We can ride back on Boulder."

Dawn offered up an exhausted wave as the other two headed off; Unsuur got up and headed over to Boulder to retrieve a canteen of water and bring it back over to her, sitting down again with a quiet grunt he couldn't quite suppress. "Thirsty?"

She shook her head; Unsuur took a few large gulps and braced the open canteen between his knees, leaning back on his hands again. They were sitting in direct sunlight but there was a decently strong breeze blowing up from the canyon and over the dunes so the heat wasn't outright terrible but he was looking forward to heading home and sitting in front of a fan for awhile. Along with the aches from all the physical work he had a heat headache forming behind his eyes and starting to pound in his temples.

"I don't really like how worried she was."

"...huh?" Unsuur said, turning to look down at Dawn. "How who was worried?"

"Catori. She might have been acting excited but I think when she thought no one was looking at her she didn't seem all that confident."

"She's been trying to find a big success for awhile now. Sandrunning seems pretty fun though -- if you aren't afraid of crashing into those big rock formations. I'm surprised she didn't try to avoid those more. No matter how politely you ask, a rock isn't going to get up and move out of your way."

Dawn laughed quietly and rolled over to lay on her stomach, letting a handful of sand trickle through her fingers. "I'M just hoping no ruins or scrap or anything dangerous like that gets uncovered by a storm or something between now and opening day."

"Oh, yeah. That would be bad. We can check for that sort of thing before the big day though."

"Mmhmm," she hummed, nodding. "Do you need to head back soon?"

"Not really. I told Justice I wanted to help set things up and he agreed, mostly because he wanted me here to protect you all from any monsters or bandits. I might need to write up an official report stating everything went ok and we weren't attacked but he gave me the entire day to help."

"I have some time to kill before heading home -- they're putting the roof on the addition today and I don't want to be in their way."

"Are they almost done?"

"Just about. There's the roof and the flooring inside to finish up."

Unsuur reached over to rub a hand across her shoulders, which switched to brushing sand off her back. "Considering they kept pushing their start date back I bet you'll be glad to have them out of your space."

She groaned. "You have no idea. If I'd known sooner that they were having supply issues I would have gone out and gathered all the materials myself so I wouldn't be trying to do all THAT-" she gestured toward the sandrunning kiosk and courses beyond "-with people underfoot all day." After a pause she planted her hands on the ground and shoved up, pushing herself to her knees. "I think I've recovered enough to head back. Want to get a drink at the saloon?"

...he sort of did, but that headache... "...I want to, but I think I got a little too hot today and need some time to cool off first. I've got a headache starting but some rest and maybe a few painkillers ought to keep it from getting worse."

Dawn blinked at him then took him by the arm. "Let's definitely get you home then. I can get Boulder settled in the stable for you."

"Thanks but that's all right - I can manage that before I rest."

It was a short walk over to Boulder; Dawn did finish off the water in the canteen and Unsuur helped her fully brush off before hopping up behind her in the saddle. After a quiet ride back to town Dawn helped him get Boulder unsaddled and rubbed down; as they were working Amirah spotted them and hurried over and had a quick conversation with Dawn - too quiet for Unsuur to overhear so he didn't have to feel weird about eavesdropping - before heading off, then he frowned as he realized whatever they'd discussed had left Dawn frowning too.

"What's wrong?"

She let out a loud huff then put on what he could only describe as a brave face. "Nothing, it's... It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

He usually hung Boulder's saddle from a large wooden peg in the wall and missed it twice since he was looking over at her and not at what he was doing (or trying to do). "-are you sure?"

"Not yet," she answered quietly. "...I'll tell you about it later if-- if it turns out to be nothing, I'll tell you."

"...that sounds like if it DOES turn out to be something then you won't."

The smile she gave him was strained. "I won't keep it from you but it might take me awhile to calm down enough to talk about it. -- anyway, you should head home before your headache gets any worse. I'm sorry that helping me made you sick."

He came out of stable and pulled her into a hug. "It wasn't just because I was helping you -- every so often I get overheated and don't feel good for awhile. Rest always helps so you don't need to worry about me."

She momentarily knotted her fingers into the loose fabric of his jacket at the small of his back, crushing herself in against him, then inhaled deeply and stepped back. "Have a good nap. I'll drop by later to check in on you."

"Ok. We can go get that drink then."

Her parting smile was a bit more genuine but he still felt a twinge of concern as she walked away; what had Amirah said to her? Hopefully it wasn't bad news about their arrangement with the Mysterious Man...Dawn had been so excited at the prospect of blowing glass again. The thought of her being disappointed made him a little sad but there wasn't anything to gain by theorizing on whatever news Amirah had shared - she'd share when she was ready.

He ended up sleeping longer than he'd meant to but he felt much better afterward - no headache, normal body temperature, still hungry but that was to be expected since he'd technically napped through his lunch and while he'd eaten breakfast all he'd had since then was a few pieces of jerky. There were still some aches and pains, and a few new blisters on his hands from all the work, but overall he felt good -- time to go get that drink with Dawn, if it wasn't too late. It was at least nice out now that the sun had set and the walk over to the workshop was a short but pleasant one, but the pleasantness was dashed when a red-eyed Dawn opened the door and immediately stepped back to half hide herself behind it.

"H-hey. Um, feeling better?"

"I'm fine. What's wrong?"

There was a loud sniffle; she didn't look sad, more...angry, and was trying and failing to hide it. "It's-"

"-clearly not nothing. I can tell that much. Is Amirah backing out of your deal?"

She let out a sharp exhale and pulled the door open fully, gesturing for him to come inside and sniffling again. "No, it's not her - she actually warned me that-- stupid Arvio-"

Unsuur frowned; anything to do with Arvio was proving to be bad news. He wanted to ask - really badly - what he'd done, but considering their earlier conversation it was probably better to let her decide when she wanted to talk about it, whether that was right now or later.

The smell of fresh varnish and tar washed over him as he stepped through the doorway and she closed the door behind him. Off to his left was the new addition to the house; there was a curtain hung across the doorway that covered the top half of the opening and revealed bare floor studs beyond it. There was also a broom and dust pan leaning against the wall beside it with a small pile of sawdust pushed up against the baseboard -- the construction work crew hadn't been in the yard so he assumed they had finished for the day and would complete the flooring tomorrow (and, hopefully, wouldn't have left until the roof was done).

"Sorry but I don't really feel like getting a drink now," Dawn went on after a moment. "I'm just...ugh, I'm so -- I shouldn't have believed him!" She punctuated that with a little stomp of her foot, before plodding over to drop onto her couch. "He's no different from any other ass that just wants a pretty girl on their arm..."

"Wait, so did he... He knows you and I are a couple, doesn't he? I thought the entire town knew at this point." Unsuur went and sat next to her, fighting against the annoyance rising in him -- surely, surely, Arvio hadn't tried to ask Dawn to be his girlfriend knowing that she was Unsuur's?

"Oh he knows. That's why he was trying to- and why Amirah warned-" she cut herself off and grabbed one of the throw pillows from beside her and pressed it against her face, growling loudly into it before continuing. "He had some grand plan of inviting me to a fancy party under the pretense that there'd be a small group. In reality, I would be the only one there so he could convince me to give him a chance."

Her voice was muffled thanks to the pillow but Unsuur could hear her clearly enough that the annoyance bloomed into anger; not only had Arvio lied to him, to try and hinder his shot with Dawn, but now he'd lied to her too and was openly trying to steal her away? The man had always struck him as young and lacking life experience (not that Unsuur was much older or more experienced) but...he wouldn't have thought the shopkeeper capable of such actions.

"I...don't know what to say or do about that," he said (once he was certain he had his tone under control). "Lying and trying to steal someone's girlfriend isn't technically illegal so all I can do is be mad at him."

Her hands visibly clenched the pillow harder and a breath later there was another frustrated growl, or maybe it was a quiet scream - it was hard to tell. "Little rat." Slowly she slumped over onto her side, her legs gently bumping into his as she shifted. "Uggh...and I can't even choose to just avoid him! He owns the only general store in town!"

"Yeah." Again, no idea what to say, especially now that he was angry too; a cramp in his thumb drew his attention to his hands - they were clenched in his lap and he hadn't noticed he'd done that. He flattened his palms against his thighs and closed his eyes, slowly inhaling and picturing a few of his favorite rock stacks, mentally going through their creation step by step and feeling his anger gradually fading away to a deep disappointment.

When he was certain he was calm he stood long enough to put one knee up on the couch to support himself so he could lean over Dawn and gently pry her fingers off the pillow and move it away. There were twin damp spots on the side that had been pressed to her face and her eyes and cheeks were wet. With the pad of his thumb he swiped away a few tears and smiled down at her, getting a weak one in return, and he bent to gently kiss her.

When he went to straighten she grabbed him by the collar of his jacket, keeping their faces close; vaguely he was aware of her shifting under him, turning and bringing her legs up on the couch and scooting a bit so she was laying on her back under him, then she was pressing in with hungry kisses - way more passionately than they'd ever kissed before. It kind of knocked every conscious thought out of him, leaving him acting on instinct alone and his instincts seemed to know exactly what was needed for the situation; he slid his knee back so he wasn't so hunched over and switched to using a hand to hold himself upright as they kissed. One of her hands left his collar and moved, coming to rest firmly on his shoulder and drawing him down further a couple more inches so he shifted to brace himself with an elbow instead, to allow himself to be pulled down but not leave his full weight on her smaller frame.

When they finally came apart Unsuur sucked in much needed air; their noses were just grazing one another, her breath hot in his face, and he could feel as well as hear the little whisper:

"Stay?"

Stay? Stay. Here. Tonight. That thought managed to make it through and it was exciting, and scary, but mostly exciting (which was embarrassingly obvious by now - his pants felt three sizes too small at the moment). Wordlessly he brought his other knee up on the couch so he was straddling her thighs and slid his free hand under her at the small of her back, and nodded.

They didn't spend much more time on the couch; the walk to the bed was more of a stumble full of roaming fingers and tossed clothing. Neither of them had actually planned for this happening tonight so they had to stop just short of full intimacy but builders had very talented hands and Unsuur was very good at following directions. After tonight he would need to start carrying around protection--

...which he would need to buy from... Oh, damn it.

Well, whatever. Let Arvio really see just how out of reach Dawn was to him, and maybe he'd stop pursuing her and making her upset.

(Or maybe Fang would have condoms - that seemed like the less petty option).

Though Dawn's bed wasn't any bigger than his they still fit comfortably together, like they'd been made for one another; he did wake up once and was confused about where he was for a moment, then remembered and smiled and buried his face into Dawn's hair and fell back asleep. The next morning they woke still curled up together - it didn't seem like either of them had moved - and had a slightly embarrassing scavenger hunt to find where they'd tossed all their clothing.

He ducked into her bathroom long enough to wash his face and run his fingers through his hair - it would at least look passable until he could get home to comb it properly come lunch time. Dawn was over near the stove with the kettle on a burner when he came back out and she offered him a shy smile as she grabbed the tin of coffee grounds out of a nearby cabinet.

"Want breakfast before you go? Coffee?"

Unsuur glanced at the clock on the wall near the bookshelf -- 9:15. "Actually, I should get going before Justice comes looking for me."

"Early start today?"

He silently pointed at the clock; she looked over and he saw her eyes widen. "Ahh! I didn't set my alarm last night -- forget Justice, it's Yan who'll come banging on the door!" She hurriedly put the coffee grounds away and emptied the kettle back into the pitcher of water in the fridge, then began frantically pulling her hair up while jogging for the door. Chuckling quietly to himself - he was in a really great mood that not even the prospect of Yan could ruin - he followed her out and kissed her at the gate before she went rushing off toward the Commerce building.

Unsuur jogged that way as well but continued on to the Civil Corps building where he found Justice inside at his desk filling out a form.

"Sorry for being late, sheriff -- anything different today?"

"There you are, I was starting to wo-" Justice looked up as he started talking, took in Unsuur's appearance, then snorted and shook his head. "-never mind, not worried now and I don't need details. And, nah, just...get to your usual patrol. Try not to be too distracted today either, all right? We're expecting an uptick in tourists with that sandrunning thing planned and I'm hoping we don't have any trouble with them."

"Yes sir."

He turned to head back out the door then paused as a thought occurred to him - one that he felt bad for not having thought of it last night. "Hey, Justice. Exactly where does behavior cross over into harassment and how are we allowed to handle it?"

Justice stopped writing mid-word and looked up, looking equal parts confused and suspicious. "Uh, well, it's -- why? Who's harassing who?" He paused, then frowned. "Is someone harassing Dawn?"

"I'm not sure if it fully counts as harassment yet. Which is why I'm asking where the line is."

"Well, the definition of harassment is any behavior that threatens, intimidates, or demeans, or just plain isn't invited, welcome, or causes alarm without a legitimate reason. --not that there's many reasons to legitimately harass someone in the first place. What's going on?"

Unsuur hesitated - he didn't want to come across as 'the jealous boyfriend' so he needed to word this plainly and directly. "In that case it is, and it's...Arvio. He's bothering Dawn, the forced romance type of bothering, even though he knows we're a couple."

Shaking his head Justice stood, tossing his pen onto the desk. "Not again... I'll go have a friendly chat with him-"

"-wait, again?" Unsuur interrupted. "He's done this before?"

"Yeah, to a few girls that have since left Sandrock. Pretty sure one of them left because of him but also her shop wasn't doing so hot at the time either...last I heard she's got a successful little boutique out in Walnut Groo-- uh..." he stopped and took a breath. "So, uh, anyway, you head on out to patrol and I'll take care of it."

"Thanks, sheriff. I'll see you later."

With Justice following behind Unsuur went back out into the heat, walking together until they reached the stairs where Unsuur broke off to go up toward the temple and the sheriff continued on toward Arvio's.

So Arvio had done this sort of thing before, huh... It must have happened before Unsuur had arrived in Sandrock, or something. He couldn't think of anyone who had left in recent years that had ever mentioned being bothered by the shopkeeper. And, it was a good thing Justice was handling it; he hadn't wanted to seem like a jealous boyfriend in front of the sheriff but...he also didn't want to come across as a vengeful or possessive one either, and Arvio would probably listen if it was Justice giving the talking to instead of him. It was still going to make things very awkward between them all but if the guy couldn't learn when to stop then he sort of had it coming.

...oh, yeah, he needed to stop by Fang's today. He should really remember that.

---------------------------------

"And then tuck that end - no, the silver end - into that last loop you made."

Dawn was sitting behind him and casually draped over his shoulders, occasionally taking his hands in hers to show him how to thread or loop wire, and her voice was low and gentle and right at his ear as the wire heart knot - a smaller one, so she could wear it around her neck - steadily took shape in his hands. He'd chosen primarily copper with some silver threaded through, with a waxed leather cord; this was his third night working on it and Dawn assured him he'd get it done tonight (maybe...he was starting to get sidetracked) and that any lopsidedness he kept insisting was there was all in his head -- she was the builder, and this was a tinier version of what she'd made for him, so...he was going to trust her on that.

He stuck the silver wire through the last loop he'd made, grasped it with the padded pliers to pull it tight, then gently slipped it through to the backside of the heart. "All right... Now what?"

She pressed a kiss to his temple. "Now you're done. Twist the end with that extra copper tail and then pull it up toward the top where you're going to curl it into a loop, and then you'll attach one of the spare jump rings I brought and that's that."

His hands still felt hopelessly clumsy with the wire (it looked more fragile than it actually was) but with the needle nose pliers he managed an even twist and a narrowed loop at the top. Dawn took the heart and pliers from him, tightened the loop just a bit to keep the pointy ends secured, then stuck the ring in place and threaded it onto the cord; she shifted around to sit on the bed next to him and held it up around her neck.

"How's it look?"

"Better than I thought it would. You're a good teacher."

Laughing she clicked the clasp into place and craned her neck to look down at it. "Now this I can and will wear without worrying about damaging or losing it somewhere."

He had a sudden, and very vivid, mental image of her wearing the knot and nothing else, and felt himself flush from his hairline to his shoulders - if that was even possible. Without a mirror he couldn't tell for sure but knew he'd gotten real hot rather quickly.

"Uh, um, yep. It looks nice on your shelf. The stone heart, I mean. Because it's sitting on your shelf still, safe and sound," he said, standing up and taking his jacket off. "Sorry, it's hot in here. Want me to turn on a fan?"

Dawn giggled and leaned back on her elbows, fluttering her eyelashes at him. "I'M fine."

He tossed his jacket over a chair at his table and came back to sit next to her. "Whew, better... Tomorrow's the final check for the sandrunning courses, right?"

She nodded. "So far as I know - Catori wants to head out there around 10."

"Ok. Justice said he wanted to tag along for this one so I'll let him know in the morning."

"All right. And, so we don't accidentally oversleep again, I should probably get going."

Sad, but true. Unsuur helped her pack up the wire and the few tools she'd brought over, made sure there weren't any tiny slivers of wire left in the bed or on the floor, then walked her to the door and kissed her goodnight. He stood out on his front stoop until he saw her walk into her own house then went back inside and sat down on his bed, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply, directing his words over toward the wall to his left. "-no offense Wilson but whenever she spends the night here I'll have to cover your eyes, or I can put you in the wardrobe if you'd be more comfortable in there. ...yeah, I'll think on it some more, you live here too but we also don't need an audience for, um. That."

After some time to cool down he finished doing the dishes and got into bed, letting his mind wander (but not TOO far - he didn't need to cool off again) and morning seemed to come too quickly. He made and ate breakfast and was in the bathroom when his entire house shook with a massive blast accompanied by the sound of a shattering window and a lot of water rushing...somewhere.

He hurried out of his bathroom and looked around; one of his front windows was broken and there were smoking, twisted metal pieces sitting on the floor just beneath the sill, with an acrid smell starting to fill the room as shouts and screams came from outside.

Barreling through his front door he came out to a scene of chaos: the water tower was a smoking and busted wreck, the water inside it had flooded this end of main street, and Justice and Pen were shouting back and forth at each other as they-

-chased Logan. Logan was here in town!

Or, he WOULD be in town for another twenty seconds, maybe. Astride his goat he was already galloping away, with Pen chasing him on foot and Justice trying and failing to saddle Truth, settling for just reins and riding bareback as he took up the chase too. Unsuur knew he wouldn't have time to even get Boulder out of the stable so he took off on foot as well, sprinting down the street -- he didn't think for an instant that he could catch up to Logan but maybe he could keep him in sight long enough that they could finally track him to his hideout.

The tracks had just come into view when the warning whistle for the train blared -- Unsuur couldn't be certain whether the train driver either didn't see Logan coming or actually intended to hit him with the train but as Logan neared the tracks the train was beginning to pull away from the station; ahead of him he heard Justice yelling for Logan to stop, for Truth to go faster - just yelling in general - as he pulled ahead of Pen who still stayed close behind him, and they all got to watch as Logan raced across the tracks and the train separated them.

Unsuur's heart dropped right through the soles of his boots when, as the train got out of the way, he saw Logan had slowed and was approaching Dawn, who was standing rigidly at the corner of her yard - still IN her yard, thankfully, so there was a fence between them even if it wouldn't do much to stop Logan from--

From...

He didn't want to think about it; instead he pushed himself into the hardest sprint he could manage. Even though it was just a handful of seconds it felt like forever, and he was immensely relieved when Logan finally turned his goat away and thundered off down the tracks away from Dawn (and them, but at this precise, specific moment in time, Dawn was all he cared about).

Justice and Pen kept going, chasing and hollering at Logan; Unsuur skidded to a halt and partially plowed into the fence, knocking the top slat loose on accident.

"Are...you...all right?" he panted. It felt like he was inhaling fire with every breath.

"Y-yes, I-- what happened?! That was Logan, and--"

"I'll be back," he interrupted, turning to rush off after the others.

Dawn was ok. He could safely leave her here in town and do his best to finally bring Logan in. Keeping Logan in view was now not possible for him or Pen, slow as they were on foot, so hopefully Justice could keep up and keep eyes on him but all Unsuur could do for now was run.

#Heart of Stone #HoS #Heart of Stone - ch 15 #mtas unsuur #mtas justice #mtas catori #mtas mi-an #my time at sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Heart of Stone - ch 14

The next day Unsuur woke to his alarm as usual and as he rolled onto his side to sit up the blanket fell away, leaving the heart knot on his wrist in full view; he felt his own heart swell up at the sight of it - he and Dawn were together now. He'd never been happier in his life. It filled him with an energy that propelled him out of bed and through his morning routine in record time, and even the stiff collar on his new jacket didn't dim his mood as he stepped outside and took a deep breath of fresh air; it was clean and still rain-scented, with a healthy underlying hint of drying dirt and the promise of all the flowers that would start showing up later this afternoon. Dawn was going to love it. ((Continued below cut))

--------------------------

He stopped by briefly on his first patrol; she had been at her fence reading through some mail and had waved and greeted him cheerfully. She had a busy day ahead of her forging whatever robot contraption Qi had designed -- he saw the blueprints and it honestly looked like a toy so he still wasn't sure how it would help build the bridge quicker but trusted that Dawn, Qi, and Heidi knew what they were talking about.

After that it felt like he was gliding through the rest of his morning; today all his usual daydreams kept circling back to Dawn and what the future might hold. Maybe it was too soon to think about THE future but he couldn't help himself -- everything he could picture now had Dawn as part of it too. He'd be deputy, and she'd be the best builder in Sandrock, and everything was only going to get better. Getting lost and winding up here was officially the second-best thing that had ever happened to him.

As he wanted her to have time to eat lunch before they went for their walk he waited until late in the afternoon to go back. She was at a machine that had a large hammer and anvil as its main features, and between her hands was some kind of metal panel that she was ever-so-precisely moving underneath the pounding hammer to curve it bit by bit around the anvil's horn. When he got closer he noticed the thick gloves and could smell heated metal; whatever she was working on must be very hot so he was careful to keep his distance while moving to where she could see him without needing to take her eyes off the machine. She saw him and smiled and finished off the piece in her hands, stepping over to lay it on the corner of the assembly platform before peeling her gloves and safety glasses off.

"Well hello there. Time got away from me," she laughed, fanning her hands at her sides - to cool them down or maybe dry them off, he assumed.

"Hi. Ready for a walk?"

"Definitely. I've been smelling everything all morning and can't wait to see which flowers are making which scents."

He held out his hand and after giving her hands a quick wipe on her pants she took it, falling into step beside him and briefly leaning her head against his arm -- if only he had a third arm on that side so he could hold her hand and also put an arm around her.

Wait... He'd look very weird and people would probably run away from him if he did, so maybe it was better that he had a normal number of arms. Just holding her hand now was fine.

"How's the robot turning out?"

Tipping her head back she partly groaned, partly sighed. "It's proving to be a massive pain in the butt to assemble. It looks stupid and there's a few parts of it - mostly the outer shell - that seems less like a lifter robot and more something meant to be driven into battle. I'll be glad when I'm done with the thing."

Unsuur frowned -- battle? "But, you're not building it for battle. Right?"

"I'M not, no. There's no weapons or anything on it, it's just got a thicker body than I think it needs considering it's just a glorified robot shell that's meant to lift heavy things - like he's sneaking armor into the design. There's obviously some thickness needed to help with structural integrity -- you don't want it crumpling under too much weight or not properly counter-balancing what it's lifting or whatever. But this..."

"Justice and I can keep an eye on how it's being used once you're finished building it," he said.

"Seeing how, um, weird Qi was being about it that's probably a good idea."

"Any idea how much longer it'll take to build it?"

"I've got everything I need for it so...assuming nothing else major comes up I could have it done in a few days." After a moment she grinned up at him. "Then I'll be free to go see that rock stack you mentioned."

"It's really great, I can't wait to show you."

"Speaking of being unable to wait to show something," Dawn said lightly. "I have something new I'd like to show you when we get back."

"Do I get a hint?"

"I turned the rose quartz you gave me into something -- something I'll eventually wear, just not when I'm working so I don't damage or lose it. I'd be pretty upset if I lost it," she added, pouting a little. "But, what I made out of it was inspired by you, so..."

Unsuur blinked at her. "By me? What'd I do?"

"You'll see."

It was a very pleasant walk - not all that different from one of his patrols, to be honest, but it was a hundred times better than a patrol - and while he would have loved to stay out there longer they both had jobs to get back to. When they got back to the workshop he followed her inside and sat down on the couch while she retrieved a wooden box polished to a sheen and with tiny blue flowers and a vine pattern painted across the lid from beneath her bed. Inside was a small collection of jewelry (it was mostly necklaces, hairpins, and combs, including the one she'd made with the opal he'd given her) and he spotted a glint of silver with a hint of pink.

She sat the box on the table and gently lifted out a necklace; hanging at regular intervals on the silvery chain were small rose quartz pieces shaped like little drops. She slipped it around her neck and made certain it was hanging straight then pulled a silver hair comb adorned with more of the rose quartz and tucked it into her hair above her ear, turning her head so he could see it clearly. It was an irregular shape, thicker on one side and tapered and thinned on the other, with a wavy, irregular lower edge sort of like...

It looked sort of like a dripping swipe of paint. -- oh.

She laughed quietly when he realized. "Can you guess what inspired me?"

"I can. That's pretty clever, and now you'll have that little memory you can carry around with you. Maybe I should paint my walls more often now."

Smiling Dawn took the hair comb out and returned it and the necklace to the jewelry box. "I don't know, I kind of like the green in there."

"It is nice," he agreed. When she went to tuck the jewelry box back under the bed he stood up. "I should get back on patrol. I'll be back around with dinner later like always."

"Could you tell Owen he can definitely make this one the last free meal? I'll go personally thank him tomorrow but I won't be nearly as busy with this lifter as I was getting the trusses done."

"I can do that. See you in a little while."

She walked with him to the door and out into the yard, and when they paused to split off to the gate and back to the machines she stood on her tiptoes to give him a little peck on the cheek.

He quickly bent down to return the gesture. "-I'm going to start doing that more often so I don't fall behind."

"I didn't realize it was a competition," Dawn giggled.

"It's not, but if it is, I want to win," Unsuur replied, bending to kiss her again.

"Shoo," she jokingly scolded, blushing bright red as she gently pushed him toward the gate. "I'll see you at dinnertime."

"Later," he said, allowing himself to be moved a few steps before relenting and heading off under his own power. As he crossed the tracks he rubbed his fingers over the knot, smiling to himself, and continued on to quickly duck inside the saloon to talk to Owen; afterward he hurried down the street and took his usual route up toward the temple. Pen was coming down the stairs toward him so he scooted over to give them enough space to pass each other, and was surprised when Pen stepped into his path.

"So...you and the builder, huh? Whole town is talking about it."

Were they? Dang, that was quick. ...though, most of Sandrock had seen them together last night so maybe it shouldn't be a surprise. "Yeah. I'm really happy about it."

Pen wrinkled his nose briefly before forcing a smile. "I'm sure you are, and I'm sure everyone with their little gossip circles were rooting for you both or whatever, but, let me give you some advice buddy: enjoy it while it lasts."

Unsuur stared at him; he'd delivered that advice in much the same way as he always spoke - with that full-of-confidence bravado - but Pen's smile had shifted just enough to look...weird. "What do you mean?"

Pen sighed and looked around, like he was expecting eavesdroppers, then bent toward Unsuur and lowered his voice. "I've personally seen it happen with a dozen girls -- a way better man is going to carry her off and she won't even look back."

"You're wrong," Unsuur blurted out before he was fully aware of his mouth moving. "...you're wrong, she's not like that - we like each other a lot, and she wants to stay here in Sandrock. She told me that way before we became a couple."

"Girls say a lot of things," Pen said, straightening and carelessly waving a hand. "Just trying to keep you from being blindsided when it happens."

"It's not going to happen, but...thanks?" Unsuur said slowly.

Pen pushed passed him and continued down the stairs with a final "don't say I didn't warn you!" called over his shoulder.

Unsuur watched him go; the entire conversation had given him a strange feeling that he couldn't quite name. He didn't believe for an instant that Dawn would run off with someone else (and if Pen wanted to keep thinking that Unsuur couldn't really stop him - thinking incorrect facts wasn't a crime) but the whole thing had felt off. Was Pen jealous? ...that had to be it. Dawn had never liked Pen and he'd never seen her attempt to talk to him, only run away; she was pretty so Pen probably had a crush on her too, AND he knew the man wasn't fond of losing competitions.

Well, now that weird feeling had shifted to feeling a sort of pride in having Pen of all people jealous of him.

Shaking his head and tracing a finger along the wires in the knot he continued up the steps toward the temple.

---------------------------

Compared to the trusses Dawn got the robot lifter done quickly; it took about a day and a half to craft and assemble it, then she had delivered it to the bridge construction area and Unsuur hung around briefly to watch one of the men piloting it - he didn't think it seemed dangerous and Justice agreed, so they left the men to it and went about their business. A few days after that, when the bridge was "finished," Matilda let them know that an inspector would be arriving from Atara to make certain everything was good with the construction then finally the bridge would be re-opened and things would go back to normal.

This morning Justice was tagging along on Unsuur's usual route; yesterday Unsuur had spotted what he thought was a pack of rockyenarolls trying to establish a den way too close to the Wandering Y so after a quick morning meeting they'd started off from the Corps building and marched along the tracks. The construction crew was already at work and the rest of Sandrock was quiet - hardly anyone else was up this early aside from them and, once they were close enough to spot her, Dawn. Unsuur had planned to wave and keep going, since they had a job to do, but Justice didn't mind standing off at a distance and waiting for a few minutes to give him time to chat with her.

He greeted her with a kiss on the cheek and leaned against the fence to glance around the yard; every furnace was running but nothing was on the assembly platform now that the lifter had been moved. "Big plans for today?"

She shook her head. "More of a catch up day -- I've used a ton of metal and materials lately. It bothers me to not have a stock of stuff on hand so I'm taking the day off from commissions and getting some basic stuff restocked. How about you?"

"Justice and I need to chase off a pack of rockyenarolls. They're moving in too close to the ranch and we don't want them hunting Cooper's yakmel."

"It's...not a BIG pack, is it? Not too dangerous?" she asked, looking concerned.

"Not too big - maybe six of them. Nothing we can't handle."

She frowned, crossing her arms. "Yeah...but, be careful. I don't want to see you hurt."

"We'll be careful, promise. Maybe we could go for a ride later? Boulder needs to stretch his legs some."

"If I'm not buried in wire and screws, sure," she answered, smiling at him. "Be safe."

He was able to lean over the fence and give her a one-armed hug then stepped away with a wave and returned to Justice. They continued along the tracks and a sudden movement on the train platform drew Unsuur's eye -- there was a man there, laying on a bench. He was...sleeping, or something, and had rolled over and was balanced precariously on the bench's edge.

"Whoa, do you see that?" Justice asked, tensing beside him.

"He's really close to the tracks..." Unsuur said quietly, staring at the man. If he moved so much as an inch further he'd-

The man's balance tipped too far and he rolled clear off the bench AND the platform, and a split second later the warning blare of the train's whistle sounded. Somehow neither the whistle nor the impact of landing on the track woke the man.

"Train's comin'-" he gasped, breaking into a sprint.

Could he outrun a train? (Was it considered outrunning the train if they were moving toward each other?) His breath burned in his throat and his pulse was roaring in his ears as he raced for the man; when he reached him he didn't bother trying to stop and just let his hands grab whatever they latched on to and used his momentum to hurl them both to the side where they hit the ground and rolled several feet before coming to a stop as the train rolled up to the platform where they'd been only seconds before. It was only then that Unsuur felt a startled huff of air against his neck from the man sprawled under him, and as he crawled off he was greeted by the man's look of sleepy confusion. The hiss of the train's engine drowned out whatever the man tried to say as he slowly sat up and looked around; as the hissing began to taper off he could make out the sound of approaching footsteps and was almost bowled over as Dawn threw herself down beside him, grabbing his arm.

"Are you ok?!"

"Yeah, I'm ok. Maybe a few bruises," he answered, finally looking himself over. His heart was still racing, his jacket sleeve was stained and smeared with dirt, his hip kind of hurt where he'd landed on his ammo pouch (he checked to make sure he hadn't just spilled bullets everywhere but thankfully the pouch had remained closed). His gun was still in its holster and the safety still on as well.

Justice skidded to a halt a few feet away, looking him and the stranger over before letting out a relieved-sounding sigh. "Nice one, buddy. I was, uh, just about to do that..."

"Huh? What's going on?" the man mumbled, rubbing his head and blinking blearily.

Their tumble away from the tracks had left the stranger with a minor scrape on his chin; if he hadn't just saved his life Unsuur would feel a little bad about it.

Dawn turned toward the man with a glare, hands on her hips. "Who exactly are you and why were you on the tracks?!"

The man looked surprised at her glare and sharp tone. "All I remember is... I was feeling sleepy when I got off the train last night, and... Oh, I'm Mint. I was sent here by the Ataran government to inspect a railway bridge." He scooted away on his backside and then stood up, brushing himself off. "Where can I find City Hall? I'm supposed to talk with Mayor Trudy."

Before Unsuur could answer Justice stepped into the space between him, Dawn, and Mint, fixing the inspector with a stern look. "Hold your horses, pal, you're not getting off that easy. I don't care if you're the Deacon of Meidi, here in Sandrock everybody subscribes to a little tenet called 'responsibility.' What if we hadn't shown up? You'd be in the hospital right now, at best."

Mint at least looked a little sheepish at that and rubbed a hand against the back of his neck.

Justice huffed, shaking his head. "Next time you feel like taking a nap check your surroundings! Ask yourself questions like: am I near any heavy machinery? Am I in a den of monsters? Do I smell gas? This line of thinking may save your life one day, 'cause we're not always gonna be there. You got it?"

"Er... I'm sorry, sir. I'll try to be more careful from now on," Mint answered quietly.

"Yeah, you do that," Justice said after another moment or two of stern staring, then he relaxed a bit and shifted to offer Unsuur and Dawn both a hand each to help them up. "All's well that ends well, I guess. Dawn, me and Unsuur need to get after those rockyenarolls, can you do me a solid and take the inspector here to City Hall? I'd feel a lot better if you went along, considering the circumstances," he added with a final warning glare at the man.

Dawn let him help her back to her feet and nodded. "I can do that. Be careful, you two."

Unsuur got up and Justice clapped a hand on his back in approval, then they moved around Mint and started down the tracks again. Behind him he could hear Mint apologizing again and Dawn replying, though Dawn was too quiet for him to hear clearly.

That had been uncomfortably close -- for both of them, to be honest. He hoped he never had to do that again.

--------------------------

Dawn was busily assembling something new when Unsuur walked by on his way home for lunch; the rockyenarolls had luckily only just started digging out a den and hadn't put up much of a fight when he and Justice went to run them off -- none of them looked pregnant so Unsuur didn't feel too bad scaring them away and denying them a safe home. There were loads of places further out in the Eufala they could settle in, without needing to worry about animal-on-human violence (or vice versa - they were seen as deadly pests more often than not and a lot of the surrounding villages shot them on sight).

"There's the hero of the day," she greeted him, smiling widely but not moving away from the platform.

Being called a hero made him feel a little self-conscious, but also it was a nice feeling too. "Just doing my duty. What are you building now?"

She was smoothly sliding two lengths of bronze pipe together; one was thinner so it would fit inside the other and could be tightened with a bolt threaded through a metal cuff set into the larger one's end. The thinner one was capped with a rubber foot and he could see two more identical pieces sitting nearby, next to an odd-looking gadget about the size of his backpack. From just looking at it Unsuur didn't recognize what it was.

Dawn's smile soured a bit at the question then she shook her head and moved the partially finished whatever-it-was in front of her. "Well, along with almost getting himself killed our bridge inspector also forgot to bring the equipment he needed to inspect the bridge."

Unsuur stared at her. "...I can't tell if you're joking."

"I'm not."

"Oh." Are we sure this guy is the real inspector? Maybe he or Justice should verify that...somehow.

He looked back at the thing on the assembly platform; there was some kind of viewing or measuring machine connected to a wide swivel, that then connected to a tripod made up of the bronze pipes for legs. With the third leg complete Dawn gently laid the device on its side and began attaching the legs to the bottom of the swivel.

"So...then, is this thing what he forgot to bring?"

"Yep," Dawn grunted, grabbing a brass-headed hammer and first tapping the bottom of the rubber foot of the leg in hand then tapping all around the opening the leg fit into. "Qi, somehow, had the needed blueprints sitting around."

"Wow. You built that really quick."

She blushed and smiled up at him again. "Through sheer dumb luck, anyway. I was able to scrounge the rest of what I needed out of the salvage yard in record time with Venti's help. Won't take me long to finish up the last few pieces that go inside, then test all the power connections are working...then try not to beat Mint over the head with it when I go to give it to him," she added dryly.

"You're determined to have me arrest you."

"Maybe I am," she said slyly after a moment, winking at him and reaching for another leg.

Though she'd said it with some confidence her face turned a bright shade of red, and Unsuur's ears felt hot. "Uh... Oh, will you need to do anything else once you finish this? Will the bridge be officially done?"

"It should be, yeah. Can finally put all that behind us," she sighed, sounding relieved. "I don't want to have to do anything like this again." With some more hammer taps she got the remaining legs attached then flipped the device upright and tested the range of the swivel; it moved smoothly and silently, and she nodded in satisfaction. "Shouldn't take me too much longer. Maybe we could make it an evening ride? ...makes me wonder if I should get a horse," she mused after a moment. "When we went out gathering materials back in Atara we had pack horses we borrowed to help haul everything back -- never got to ride them, only lead, but it was really helpful having them carrying the bulk of the weight, and they were so sweet and calm too."

"Boulder is a nice horse. Just don't have any snacks in your pockets or he might try to fit his nose somewhere it doesn't belong. Or pick you up... He did that to Burgess once and I had to pay to replace the pair of pants he tore when Boulder picked him up by the back pocket trying to get at the bag of dried sandberries he was carrying around."

Dawn started laughing; it was such a nice sound, he loved it. "I'm at least much lighter than Burgess so maybe my clothes won't tear but I'll keep that in mind - no snacks."

"I should get home to eat lunch but I'll be back tonight with Boulder," he said, waving as he hurried on toward his house.

Boulder would be happy for a chance to stretch his legs doing something other than patrolling around; he took him out on walks and rides as often as he could (and sometimes Cooper would let him set him loose in the yakmel paddock so he could free-roam for awhile) but he still felt guilty leaving him in the stable so much. Would his saddle comfortably seat two? There'd never really been a reason to think about it before...but he was reasonably certain that two-seater saddles weren't a thing, or at least weren't something he could go out and buy on such short notice.

Dawn was small, at least; she should easily fit behind him, if there wasn't enough space in front of him. He'd need to remember an extra blanket...

-------------------------------------

It was much later than he'd intended when he headed back to Dawn's; though it was rare to get thieves in Sandrock he and Justice had spent the rest of the day chasing down a man who had snatched an armload of Arvio's goods and taken off across the as-of-yet-not-open bridge, blowing right passed a startled Mint and his bridge-testing device. Justice had been close enough to actually see the theft and Unsuur had been coming down the stairs from the temple when he heard the shouting. Justice had taken off on his horse with Unsuur hurrying to saddle up Boulder and follow, and then once he'd reached the bridge he could see Justice pursuing not just the one thief but a group of three fleeing on horses on the far end of the bridge.

Logan might be THE famous bandit in this area but there were still plenty of petty bandits that could be found lurking along the trade routes between the outlying villages; they apparently weren't one of the more successful groups, a fact that became all the more apparent as he and Justice quickly caught up and with some creative lassoing took them all off the backs of their horses - the horses looked dangerously skinny and the bandits didn't look that much better off.

They'd tied the bandits up and got them back on the backs of their horses then led the entire group back to town; Justice marched them into the jail cell then started to sort the stolen goods and fill out the intake paperwork while Unsuur led the poor horses over to Cooper's.

Then, finally, he was free to head over to Dawn's.

She was sitting on a stool to the left of her front door, a book open in her lap; though the air still smelled of hot metal she'd changed out of her work clothes and was wearing regular jeans and a simple teal t-shirt, and as he trotted Boulder up to the gate she closed the book with a smile.

"Sorry, Justice and I got caught up in something."

"It's all right. You won't get in trouble if you're here with me and not helping him, will you?"

Unsuur shook his head. "I left at the paperwork step - he doesn't really need my help with that."

Quickly she ducked inside and seemed to trade the book for a small cloth pouch, hurrying over to the gate; Boulder's ears immediately pricked up at her approach, and the horse craned his neck forward to start sniffing at her.

Dawn laughed softly and reached out with her free hand to pat his nose. "I know I said no snacks but in my defense they're not in my pocket." She dumped a small handful of dried sandberries into her palm and held her palm out, flat, for Boulder; the horse quickly slurped up the berries and nosed her fingers looking for more. She emptied the sack into her palm and held her hand out again and Boulder ate the rest just as quickly.

After that run across the bridge and almost passed the old outpost Boulder deserved a treat; Unsuur waited for the horse to confirm for himself that Dawn did not have any more snacks before he maneuvered him around so Dawn could mount up.

"Do you want to sit in front of me or behind me?"

"Um... I think it'll have to be behind," she answered after a moment. "Elsie gave me some really basic riding lessons so I know how I'd get on by myself but my brain is going blank on how to swing my leg over with you there too."

"...would you rather sit in front?"

"I... yeah, kind of."

With that Unsuur slipped off the horse and held the reins, gesturing for Dawn to mount; once she was settled he got on behind her.

Yeah, this wasn't so bad; they both fit rather comfortably on the saddle together and he slid an arm around her waist to help hold her steady as he guided Boulder away from the gate. They set off at an easy trot, passing the oasis and heading for the new bridge. Mint wasn't there this time so he supposed the bridge inspection was done with and they'd hear the official news soon; it was a much calmer ride across this time and once they were over he felt Dawn shift against him, turning her head to look up at Gecko Station.

"Haven't been any signs of the Geeglers returning, has there?"

"Nope. Pen was checking daily for awhile and kept reporting no signs of any kind of life left in the station. He seemed really disappointed he didn't get to fight any of them."

She huffed. "Of course he would be..."

Now that he'd mentioned Pen their conversation from before came to mind, about a 'better man' coming in to carry Dawn off to somewhere better than Sandrock. It hadn't bothered him too much then but now that he was thinking about it again, staring at Gecko Station and thinking of Dawn's brush with death...

"Since it's empty of Geeglers does that mean Justice will open up the ruins soon? Maybe it'll attract people back to town... I saw a lot of interesting things down there, in between fighting for our lives. Lots of iron too - more than enough to build a bridge and then some. If only we'd had easier access to get at it...it would have taken ages to get all the needed scrap across the canyon using the cable cars. But! At least now if anything else big needs to be built or needs repair, it'd be just a short jaunt across Shonash bridge."

She kept talking as he replayed that scene in his mind - of her and Justice falling and the cable snapping. That had been awful, and there were loads more ways to seriously injure oneself in the desert...maybe a better guy wouldn't be the reason Dawn decided to leave: what if she decided it was too dangerous to stay?

"You ok?"

Dawn's voice cut through his train of thought. "Oh, uh. Yeah. Sorry. What did you say?"

She shifted in the saddle to look back at him. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She frowned at him. "...it's nothing. Just something Pen had said that came to mind."

"That...Pen said? What exactly did he say?" she asked, nose wrinkling.

"You... You still want to stay in Sandrock, right? Despite all the bad stuff that's happened?"

For several moments she stared at him silently, seeming confused by the question. "I- yes, of course I do! Why? Don't tell me Pen is spreading rumors that I'm going to leave?"

Unsuur shook his head. "No. Well, not exactly. Just-" He really, really didn't want to repeat him verbatim right now. "-that you might move on to somewhere way better than here. I know you've already said you wanted to stay in Sandrock so I shouldn't be worrying but--"

Letting out a groan she tipped her face toward the sky. "That stupid meathead... I have no intentions of going anywhere, Unsuur, I promise. I don't even plan on going on vacation! Whatever Pen's said, he's wrong." She turned back around and leaned into his chest, sliding her hand over his where it rested on her hip. "I have a home here, a boyfriend, and a job...pretty much everything I was looking for in life. I'm not giving this up so easily." After a pause she tilted her head back against him, smiling. "Sorry, you're stuck with me."

He smiled and lowered his chin to rest it atop her head, prompting a giggle fit. "Sounds good to me. And, yeah, I really didn't hear what you said."

"I was asking if Justice would open up Gecko Station, and musing on how nice that'd be."

"Oh, yeah. Justice did actually mention something about a final check of the place last week but he said it would have to wait until the bridge was finished. So...now that it's finished, it shouldn't be too long before we go in to make sure it's really safe."

They fell into a comfortable silence; everything was nice and peaceful out this way -- not even the tripions were paying them any attention and were happily sifting through the sand in their own little worlds. Unsuur directed Boulder up the hill and out passed the front of Gecko Station and the old outpost, heading for the open dunes. Far off to their right was the canyon with its impressive view of the rocky walls studded with Old World ruins; sometimes it boggled the mind to consider how big cities must have been back then -- Unsuur had seen single rooms inside ruins that could have comfortably held the entire population of Sandrock.

Of course, big cities meant a lot of people, and the Calamity had wiped out...a lot of people. That wasn't so nice to think about.

"-what are those?" Dawn asked then, bringing him back to the present.

She leaned forward a bit, pointing ahead; Unsuur looked that way and could see a small pack of penskies playing on top of one of the dunes. "Those are penskies. They're friendly -- too friendly, sometimes. Justice calls it 'aggressive affection' I think. Don't ever feed them or you'll get mobbed - they won't hurt you on purpose but being jumped on and licked by a big group of critters with hard heads and sharp claws on their feet isn't fun."

"Noted," she said with a quiet little laugh. "They're cute though!"

"Yeah, they are. I think Grandma Vivi used to sell stuffed animal penskies but the yakmels were more popular. Probably because you could walk out to the ranch to see and pet them but a pensky meant you had to come all the way out here."

He steered Boulder to the left to avoid the dune and penskies and a stretch of sand crowned with a gigantic rib cage bleached white by the sun and pitted and worn down by years of wind came into view - along with an unexpected resident sitting on top of it staring intently in their direction.

"Uh oh..."

Dawn stiffened against him. "Uh oh...what? What's 'uh oh'?"

Whoops. He hadn't meant to say that out loud but at least now she'll see and know about one of the desert's bigger dangers. "Do you see that big rib cage over there?"

"Yes, I- what is that on top of it?"

"That...is a dive buzzard," Unsuur answered. "And they're the most dangerous single creature in this area."

He felt Dawn's hand tighten over his. "It looks big even at this distance -- that thing must be huge."

"That's actually one of the smaller ones."

"What?!" she squeaked, shrinking back against him. "You're kidding!"

Though it was on the "smaller" side for a dive buzzard it was still big enough to make out its details easily: enormous body and wingspan with billowy, hair-like feathers covering its head and gathered into clumps that looked like pigtails on either side of its face. This one had found a pair of goggles somewhere and had them around its neck and was wearing what looked like air or gas tanks on its back; he'd seen them wearing shiny bits of robots and other debris before too.

"I wish I was. They're mean, whether they're big or not. They roam the desert looking for food and consider any place they happen to be at that moment to be their territory. Always be wary of any shadows that pass by overhead -- you might have guessed by their name but they attack by diving down on their targets. The REALLY big ones can snap yakmel spines if they land their dive, and if they miss they'll kick up a big cloud of sand to cover their next try. Usually they don't come this close to town... I need to go get Justice and Pen and we'll drive it off. Or, kill it." Odds were high they'd have to kill it. "Sorry, but we'll have to cut our ride short."

"It's ok, there's always another day."

The ride back into Sandrock was at a quicker pace and luckily Unsuur spotted Pen standing in town square; he trotted Boulder up toward him and stopped a few feet away, slipping down to help Dawn out of the saddle.

"Spotted a dive buzzard-" he started, only for Pen to perk up and slam one fist into his palm.

"FINALLY something almost worthy of my attention! Where?"

"-out passed the old outpost," Unsuur continued. "Have you seen Justice?"

Pen scoffed at that and walked around the other side of Boulder, breaking into a jog and heading for the bridge. "Please, I don't need him! Leave it to me!"

Normally Unsuur would trust to the man's skill - he WAS really good at fighting - but not when it came to dive buzzards. "I should catch up to him. Can you find Justice and tell him where we are?"

Dawn nodded. "I will. Be careful -- and, um, when you're done, how about we have dinner together instead? I'll cook."

"Sure. I'll be back as soon as I can, and I'll be careful, I promise."

Unsuur bent to kiss her cheek as she rose up to kiss his and they almost-but-not-quite met awkwardly in the middle; Dawn's breath was warm against his skin as she laughed softly, then gingerly pressed her lips to his instead.

It was the best feeling in the world. He wanted to do that again but there was a loud 'AHEM' from nearby and Unsuur pulled back to find Miguel standing there, an eyebrow raised.

"Uh... I should go. And find Pen. Like I said I would."

"Y-yeah, don't let me keep you. And sorry, pastor," Dawn added, pressing the back of her hand to her lips, face a bright red. She turned on her heel and rushed off down the street; Justice was usually coming in from the ranch area around this time of day so hopefully she'd run into him quickly.

Unsuur knew his face was also sporting a blush and hurried to hop onto Boulder and head for Shonash bridge again. Boulder let out a grumpy-sounding whinny as his hooves touched the stonework running along the track and Unsuur patted him reassuringly.

"Sorry, I know you don't like walking the same path over and over. It's really not so bad once you're used to it. Lots of time to daydream," he said, leaning in close to the horse's neck and urging him into a faster gallop.

Once more out in front of Gecko Station Unsuur could spot Pen running ahead of him, cutting a direct path for the rib cage where the buzzard was still quite visible sitting and surveying the area. The remaining sunlight glinted off the goggles around its neck as it spotted Pen coming and spread its wings, flapping a few times before taking flight.

That wasn't good -- Pen was technically a smaller target than Unsuur and the horse so the buzzard would probably ignore him in favor of the bigger potential meal. Turning Boulder around he directed him to the side of Gecko Station, hopping off and leading him to a spot where the stairs that lead up to the cable car landing would shield him from any sudden buzzard attacks. "I don't want you getting hurt so wait here until I come back, all right?" He tied the reins loosely to a pipe sticking out of the ground - it hadn't budged at all when he grabbed and pulled on it so it would suffice as an impromptu hitching post for now and the knot wasn't so tight that the horse couldn't yank himself free if he needed to flee.

The sound of an approaching horse reached him as he dashed back out toward the open dunes; Justice was galloping toward him and Unsuur waved at him.

"It's in the air, sheriff!"

"Got it, let me-" Justice called back in a rush, not finishing the sentence and accidentally showering Unsuur with kicked up sand as he abruptly changed Truth's trajectory to run him over toward where Boulder was sheltering.

With Justice warned Unsuur hurried after Pen, keeping one eye on where he was running and one on the skies above.

-------------------------------

The door had barely opened when Dawn threw herself into his arms for a tight hug then just as quickly pulled away, eying him up and down.

"You're ok? No injuries?"

"I'm fine." And that was true - aside from maybe bruising his knees when he'd stumbled he had come out of that buzzard fight unscathed, and so had Pen and Justice too. "It didn't put up much of a fight. Pen punched it a few times when it dove down at us, and Justice and I each shot it once. I don't think we hurt it badly enough that it'll die but after it got shot it did fly away and didn't come back."

"Will it come back later though?"

"I'm not sure. Pen said he'll keep an eye out for it and finish it off. I didn't want to kill it if we didn't have to but Justice said that B3, the sheriff before him, had told stories about how they sometimes even attacked the trains as they came into town so we can't let it stay this close to Sandrock. If that means we have to kill it then...we have to kill it. I was expecting we'd have to but it doesn't mean I like it."

She frowned at that. "I agree about not wanting to kill anything needlessly but nothing about these things sounds pleasant to to coexist with..." Shaking her head Dawn stepped backwards through the doorway and pulled the door open wider; Unsuur could smell potatoes and rice and what he thought was fish, and his stomach growled loudly enough that Dawn heard it. "Come on, it's just about ready," she giggled, gesturing for him to step inside.

The table was already set with plates and silverware and a folded trio of tea towels in the middle, and those delightful smells grew stronger now that he was mere feet away from the stove where he could see two covered pots on the burners and that the oven was on, and sitting on the counter nearby was that little tin timer ticking away steadily. She put a pitcher of chilled water on the table and Unsuur filled both their glasses before downing half of his; his scalp itched with sweat and sand and he was looking forward to cleaning up once he got back home.

Dawn lifted a lid off a pot and stirred its contents briefly - a sweet scent wafted out. "After I found Justice Matilda caught me heading home and said the bridge passed inspection -- not that I expected it would fail, but it was nice to get the official word. She wants to have an opening ceremony for it first thing in the morning."

"Really? That seems kind of short notice."

She laughed and turned off the burner, then moved that pot over to a cold burner. "I guess it is, sort of, but on the other hand I don't see anyone having anything better to do since they've all been watching and waiting for the bridge to be done-" the timer went off then and she jumped slightly, reaching over to turn it off. "-so I bet the whole town shows up."

Out of the oven came two covered pans, one narrow and oblong and the other a rounded square shape; she sat them on folded tea towels on the table and removed the lids to reveal fragrant, poached sandfish in a cloudy broth and a spicy-smelling dish made of cubes of potato and diced leek and peppers. It all smelled really good but he was curious about why there was one tea towel left on the table but two pots on the stove top.

Of those two pots Dawn moved one to the table and the other (the one that had smelled sweet) was left on the cold burner on the back of the stove; inside the one on the table was rice flavored with green flecks of herbs.

"I hope I didn't accidentally make something you don't like."

"You didn't, don't worry. There really aren't any foods I don't like, maybe because my parents made me try everything when I was a baby. No refusing food in their household."

"That sounds familiar," she said, laughing a bit as she gestured for him to serve himself. "Though no amount of feeding them to me has ever made me like raw onions or the green kind of olives."

"I have no idea what an olive even is," he replied, carefully lifting a delicate sandfish filet out of the pan and managing to get it onto his plate without dripping the broth everywhere or breaking the piece apart. "What do they taste like?"

"Disgusting by themselves," Dawn said dryly. "They're salty and briny and bitter, and burn the tip of my tongue. I tried some that had been cured with herbs and garlic once and those were tolerable but the oiliness was kind of a turn off."

They both filled their plates and got to eating; he had no idea what she'd put in the rice but it was amazing - ALL of it was good but he especially liked how simple yet how delicious that rice was. He could definitely see himself eating that alongside a bowl of yellow soup if he could get the recipe and was about to ask her for it when he noticed a calendar hanging on the wall beside the door, with the dates marked through with a single line until today -- the 24th, and it reminded him of something.

"Did you ever get to speak to the Mysterious Man?"

"Hmm? Oh, no, not yet. With everything that's been going on I've missed his visits - I'll hopefully get to see him next month. At the very least I'll have a lot more time to make jewelry, and Amirah has more time as well."

That was right...she had mentioned Amirah the last time too. "What does she need time for?"

Dawn stabbed at a bite of potato. "Well... You know those glaze drips she brought me?" Unsuur nodded. "The kiln she has will harden glaze if it's by itself but not when it's on ceramic pieces. She's tried all sorts of glazes that would supposedly work with lower temperatures but so far she's not had any work properly. She needs an electric kiln - the big, fancy ones you'd find in Walnut Groove or Atara, and those things are expensive even if you're just buying the blueprints. Then, there's me: I need a specific type of furnace that can both reach the super high temperature needed to melt glass while also maintaining a set temperature while I'm working with it. The furnaces I have right now can get hot enough but I don't have precise control over the temperatures... I know Qi could likely design me a furnace but it just so happens that the kiln Amirah needs shares a lot of the components the furnace would need. It'd be easier on everyone if we just buy the blueprint, I build Amirah her kiln, and let Qi alter the blueprint for what I need."

Aha. "So Amirah needs time to sell more, so she can afford to at least buy the blueprint."

She nodded. "Exactly. The plan at the moment is to split the cost, assuming we can convince the Mysterious Man get us a copy. I don't see it being a problem though," she added, tone light and with the barest hint of superiority underlying it. "He and I have worked together before so he knows I'm good for whatever price he sets."

"What about Amirah?"

Dawn slowly inhaled and finally stuck that bite of potato into her mouth, chewing thoroughly and swallowing. "...that might be trickier. He doesn't think very highly of her work even though he's bought a few of her complex, complicated pieces. Those took her days of work each to make so it's not feasible for her to concentrate on making the complex goods, and he thinks her regular work is boring and has told her as much. If it was just Amirah asking him to bring her the kiln blueprints, even if she had the full cost on hand, I don't actually think he'd do so. I don't doubt that he'd do it for me though."

"That seems a bit rude."

"He can be, yeah," she sighed. "But, he's successful, and knows what he's talking about along with having a good eye for what will sell, how well, and when it'll be in demand. It doesn't excuse being outright rude but...sometimes knowing ahead of time that what you're doing isn't going to pay off at that moment can save everyone some headache."

Once the main course was done Dawn moved the empty dishes over to the counter and brought out two clean bowls, then moved that last covered pot from the stove over to the table; she tested its temperature by pressing her bare hands to the sides of the pot and with a satisfied nod lifted the lid to reveal a creamy rice porridge.

"Owen gave me a few ideas on how to make yakmel milk work with this recipe so here's my first attempt."

"It smells nice," Unsuur said as she got a serving spoon and dipped it into the pot.

She gave the spoon a little swirl and quickly lifted it out with a heaping helping of the rice and placed it immediately into the bowl in front of him; for a few seconds it held a lovely rounded shape before slowly spreading out, and there was still some steam rising from it. It reminded him of something he'd had before; maybe his parents had made something like this when he was really little since he didn't remember it clearly but it sure seemed familiar, and homey, and overall had a comforting feeling just from the smell. Dawn handed him a clean spoon and, after testing the temperature with a quick probe of his tongue, he stuck a bite into his mouth.

It was soft, creamy, and delicately sweet, and there wasn't too much of a yakmel funk to it until you swallowed; Dawn was watching for his reaction as he spooned up another bite. "It's good. I like it."

"Phew," she sighed, smiling and taking a bite herself. "--hmm. Aside from the aftertaste it's almost there. It's not right, technically, but it's close."

"What did you do differently than normal?"

"I had to scald it to infuse some sweeter flavors into it. Owen wasn't certain if it'd completely cover up how strong the milk is so he gave me a few different 'recipes' to try, and also suggested using sand date or the sandberry chestnut milks and adjusting the sugar to account for it. I think those would be TOO sweet though, but I'll still give them a try."

"Me too," Unsuur said, smiling and getting a little smile in return.

They finished up and Unsuur helped with dishes, and it wasn't until he'd headed out through her gate that he remembered he'd meant to ask for the savory rice recipe. Oh well -- he'd see her tomorrow in the morning at the bridge ceremony.

It was a nice night out so he decided to take the longer walk home and as he crossed the tracks he spotted Pen standing at the commerce building, leaning against one of the posts of the front overhang; while Pen's pose seemed intended to appear casual there was a stiffness to it, like he was ready to move at a moment's notice. "The dive buzzard didn't come back already, did it?"

It was several seconds before Pen responded. "No, unfortunately... Cowardly featherbag is still nowhere to be seen. More's the pity - I barely felt my heart rate pick up during the battle."

"Oh." So at least he wasn't waiting for Unsuur because they had to head back out into the Eufala. "Then...was there something else over here?"

Pen let out a soft grunt. "If only. I thought I saw a shadow on the horizon but couldn't track down what I might have seen."

Unsuur glanced back the way he'd come; Dawn's workshop was still and dark aside from the soft yellow light coming through the window. "When did you see something?"

"Doesn't matter. Wasn't even a hint or a trace of anything worthwhile. Don't worry your little head over it," Pen grumbled.

...if there was something lurking around Dawn's place, or the salvage yard, that sounded like something to worry about, but if there WAS something dangerous out there Pen would have already gone out to beat it up without bothering to tell anyone first. "...all right then. See ya."

"Hmmph."

Unsuur continued up the road and passed by Miguel sitting on the saloon's upper porch, offering him a wave as he walked by; he was sitting with one leg propped over the other and his arms crossed, relaxed and looking comfortable, and lifted the fingers of a hand from where they curled around his arm in a sort of wave in return. If he was still disappointed in that public display of affection earlier he didn't show it or seem inclined to lecture him about it as he continued on.

Once he reached his doorstep Unsuur paused and vigorously rubbed his hands through his hair to dislodge all the sand, then had to take his jacket off and shake it since he'd done those two things in the wrong order. After he was sufficiently dusted off he took one last look out toward Dawn's -- he really hoped Pen had just been seeing things but it was nice to know that he was keeping an eye out for Dawn's safety too.

Heading inside he tossed his jacket over a chair and began undressing on his way to the bathroom; if there was going to be a ceremony celebrating the bridge tomorrow he should probably fully clean up tonight so he looked his best for Dawn tomorrow. She and Mi-an deserved to be recognized for that crazy amount of work they did in such a short amount of time.

#Heart of Stone #HoS #Heart of Stone - ch 14 #mtas unsuur #mtas justice #mtas pen #mtas miguel #mtas mint #my time at sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Ensuring the Future - ch 3

WARNING: Implied suicidal thoughts Also a final warning about spoilers regarding Miguel's story

Safely shut away, alone once more, Olivia gently slid down the wall to sit in the floor with her knees at her chest.

Overflowing, unadulterated joy was warring with, and in danger of being overwhelmed by, a flood of confusion and a touch of fear. Why here? Why now?! What a cruel miracle...to find him here, alive and well and available and so damned tempting--

Sandrock was meant to be her final haven; as the least populated town within the Free Cities it was remote and largely overlooked. It seemed all too perfect for someone looking to fade away...to abandon the life she'd had and simply exist quietly for however many years were left to her. She had not - could not have - expected to find such a large part of her past here...now what? ((Continued below cut))

Light, but how she wanted to throw herself at him and try to reclaim that happiness ripped away from them years ago; it would be exceptionally hard not to, in fact - she knew her weaknesses. But she was not the Olivia he'd known, and he was not going to be the same Miguel... It simply wouldn't be possible to...what, to just pick up where they'd left off? No, no no no. If there was to be anything between them it would need to be...new. A fresh beginning - here where she'd expected to end - but even that curdled her insides with uncertainty: he would want to know everything...every joy and sorrow, every moment, to understand her as she was now and there was so much she could not tell him. Nor anyone else for that matter.

She leaned her head back against the wall, a sudden nausea gripping her thanks to the warring emotions churning within.

Breathe... In with serenity, out with stress... Seize control of the self and the situation...

Olivia took in a series of slow breaths and hitched halfway through one as a pain shot up her leg into her hip -- sitting in the floor was perhaps not the best idea. Bit by bit she straightened her leg, wincing with every movement, until she had both of them stretched out in front of her and the sharp shooting pains had subsided into a dull throbbing. Through her own stupidity she would need the brace today after all, ha.

...surely Miguel would understand. He would make a pretty poor priest if he'd lost his compassion and empathy.

Slow and steady... In both approaching him and in getting her ass out of the floor.

It was a struggle to get up even with her cane and the wall to support her but once back on her feet she dragged herself over to the trunk to pull out first a casual outfit and then her heavier work pants; she took the time to lay the nice outfit out, smoothing out wrinkles, and tossed the pants toward the door of the bathroom before sitting back down on the edge of the bed and retrieving the brace from within the nightstand, leaning to drop it onto the top of the trunk. She would need to empty that sooner or later before someone noticed it was far heavier than it should be; that this place was old and already had loose floorboards was a blessing in disguise -- it shouldn't take much to pop one free and hollow out an opening beneath it for some discrete storage.

One thing at a time however. She moved back to the bathroom, stooping to grab the pants on her way in; now that her body realized it was awake she used the toilet and got fully dressed, then returned to the trunk to sit down and slip the brace into place, fastening the straps with well-practiced ease. Hopefully it would hold up well enough under the higher temperatures and rougher environment here... And, hopefully, so would she.

As she headed for her door, pain pounding with each step, she briefly thought to take a dosage of the painkillers hidden away within the trunk, then thought better of it -- she couldn't have them on an empty stomach and a few sips of coffee was hardly a breakfast, nor did she have anything she could turn into a quick meal and she did not want to spend the time to cook right now either. Silently cursing the lack of a refrigerator she hurried out the door and managed to keep herself from slamming it behind her.

First, she would go to the saloon for a meal; then to the general store (mattress topper and mattress...or, should she consider a larger bed entirely?); and afterward she would get back to cleaning up the yard and starting everything she was capable of making. ...or, at least, that was the plan -- she did need to remember not to overdo it. She had discovered yesterday that the gauge on the water tank was stuck so there was no telling how much water was left inside unless she climbed up a ladder and physically looked within and it wouldn't do to get filthy without a means of cleaning herself up before...tonight.

The thought sent a little finger of anxiety sliding down her spine; she sharply shut the gate and headed into town, refusing to acknowledge the emotion. "...you're a big girl," she muttered under her breath. "Get to it."

------------------------------------

"Good morning miss Olivia! A pleasure to see you again!"

"Just Olivia, please."

"Of course, my apologies. How are you settling in?" Arvio asked, setting aside the ledger he'd been furiously scribbling in as she'd climbed the steps.

"Poorly, thanks to the bed. I don't suppose you have those on hand?"

"I have some splendid padded mattress toppers but as for an actual mattress those I do need to order in, but I promise you I have an amazing supplier who provides only the finest -- you'll sleep like a babe!" Arvio laughed.

Oh boy... She'd clocked that the man was a charmer but that seemed a bit over the top. "Mmm. I will need a bigger frame and the mattress to fit it, but in the meantime I shall survive with a topper."

Arvio lit up at her request - she swore she could see the gols swimming in his eyes. "Certainly! What color headboard-"

She held up a hand to stop him. "-it can all be the ugliest colors on the planet so long as it gets here quickly. I am more concerned with speed and quality than I am aesthetics."

"Understood, ma'am! It just so happens that I have the frames in stock so you are more than welcome to choose your own ugly color-"

That did get a snort of laughter out of her which seemed to please him.

"- and the mattress can be ordered. They don't keep as well in storage as the frames do -- I definitely don't want to sell you something that a critter has taken residence in! Let's see..." He hurried over to the counter and bent behind it, popping back up with a thick binder and thumbing through it. "If I get your order sent out today I can have everything in by...this coming Wednesday. And I of course have the topper here for your use right away -- I'm told they make fantastic addition to bedrolls if you find yourself out under the stars, and you may as well have a plan for its use once the bigger bed arrives, right?"

Olivia nodded. "I do not see myself camping anytime soon but I shall keep it in mind. What's the total, if you please?"

"Could I interest you in a new quilt or comforter to go along with it?"

"Not right now. Price?"

She waited as he checked a few pages within the binder and it was clear by the look on his face he was calculating the amount, though it did seem like he was taking far longer than it should have to tally up 3 numbers. Finally he nodded firmly and looked up to her with a wide smile. "I have decided, as my 'welcome to Sandrock' gift, that I shall apply a generous discount to your order, which will bring the total to 6345 gols."

It was steep but still less than she'd been anticipating. "Sold. I will need time to run home and bring back the exact amount since that's a sizeable sum one wouldn't normally carry on their person."

"Not a problem! Ah, and when you return, please head around to the back of the store. You'll see a staircase there that leads up to where I store the bulk and bulky items and you can take your pick of the bed frames - just give the door a hearty knock and I shall come straight away."

Olivia nodded and offered a hand; Arvio seized it and shook - it was a bit of a wimpy grip - and went to record the sale in the ledger before pulling out a separate book full of tear-away receipt slips which he filled out. "There we are. Once I have the gols in hand I'll sign your receipt and get everything ordered."

"I'll be back in a bit then," she assured him, carefully stepping down the stairs trying to be mindful of how much weight she was putting on her bad leg.

In the time it took to pause and stretch the limb her eyes fell on City Hall and the construction company beside it; though she was loathe to deplete her retirement savings further so soon she had zero desire to live out the rest of her days in a shack -- at least one more room to keep her bedroom out of sight of guests would be welcome, though open yard space was at a premium at the moment with the junk strewn about -- building UP would probably be the better choice for now (and even on her worst days stairs weren't beyond her so that wasn't much of a concern either).

And, should things progress... She would either need enough space for two or at least a property worth selling later. May as well get an estimate or even plan for the addition right now since she was here.

Well, there is at least the additional silver lining to such a small town - no need to fear pickpockets while walking down the street carrying a small fortune if I end up spending here too, she thought, cracking a smile (though she'd never lost anything to a thief that was not immediately recovered, and they'd even kept most of their fingertips) as she crossed the square quickly and made for the stairs up to the storefront.

As she placed a foot upon the bottom step a movement above her set her on alert, grip tightening on the cane's head as she flicked her gaze upward to the balcony above City Hall's main entrance; a flapping cape, a pacing man staring her down, and as their eyes met he leapt over the railing with a loud "HALT!" -- Olivia quickly determined his trajectory and stiffly jogged up the stairs to avoid him and continued on toward Construction Junction, willing her grip and her reflexes both to relax. Behind her she heard the thud of his landing and a sputtered "Hey!" before there were pounding footsteps approaching her, and the caped man swept in front of her and blocked her path with an arm.

"I said 'halt' lady!"

"Yes, I heard, and subsequently decided to ignore so you wouldn't land on me," Olivia replied. "You're welcome to try approaching me again with less jumping off the roof and at the very least lead off with a 'good morning, ma'am.'"

The man blinked at her, then squinted, then threw his head back to laugh. "Sorry, I thought you were one of Logan's gang. Ha, silly me! You look nothing like an outlaw!"

"Was it my age, the cane, or the leg brace that gave it away?" Olivia asked dryly. "And do you usually accost people on the street like this?"

"Of course not! But one can't be too careful with Logan running around. Bandits aside I think you'll also find the desert can be quite inhospitable, but never fear, for Pen is here! I'll be keeping the riff-raff out of Sandrock so you'll be safe to... Who are you again?"

Bright blue, red, yellow, and white clothing, a thick chest plate and shoulder guards with a cape hanging behind him, and a tiny Church insignia on his belt...not exactly the picture of a priest, so who was he? "Olivia," she answered. "Builder."

"Our second builder! Matilda mentioned you'd be showing up in town sooner or later. Rest assured I'll be keeping all the big bad nasties away, leaving you free to do your little building thingies and whatnot. No need to thank me! Just doing my job!"

"Oh don't worry, I wasn't about to. I assume you're with the church in some manner?"

"I am! For I...am the Protector of Sandrock," he answered, puffing his chest out. "And I bet you're wondering how did someone so awesome - me - end up in this unsavory place?"

"Yes, actually." There was something...different here with how he carried himself too -- far, far different from any other type of churchfolk she'd encountered, with the exception of one, and while the attitude left much to be desired if this man was the same as him... Enforcers do not have jurisdiction within the Alliance, or at least they haven't within the last two decades or so, and I sincerely doubt this man is sanctioned as Zachary was...

Pen stopped puffing himself out and settled for crossing his arms, though she suspected he was still trying to flex his biceps at the same time. "Well, the Light told me to look after the weak and guided me here. That's the short version."

Olivia planted a hand on her hip, eying him - no knots of rank, no badge, no indication he was anything special. "And the long version?"

"Why the interrogation? Look, just, rest assured - so long as the Protector of Sandrock is around, you're perfectly safe! Relax! Make a bench or whatever!" Again he tossed his head back to laugh and shuffled around her, heading off while still chuckling to himself. She counted to five and glanced back over a shoulder; the church's insignia was on his cape as well and he walked like a man expecting (or wanting) to dive into a battle at any moment.

...the Church relied on the local law enforcement for protection in most cases - in others, they had their Enforcers. If this strutting pinecock was with the Church then that suggested he was an unsanctioned Enforcer, or an "enforcer" with no real claim to the title or rank; it wouldn't be the first time she'd met someone pretending to be something they were not, and as she'd actually met a genuine Enforcer the phonies were typically easy to spot...which meant either this Pen was good at acting or he was openly flaunting the Free Cities laws.

She sighed -- Zack would've had a field day with this one.

The suspicion would nag at her until she had a definite answer; she continued on into the construction shop.

--------------------------------------

Keeping his mind on task was proving nigh impossible; his thoughts kept wandering, his anticipation tingling just beneath the surface as he tried to go about his day. Shortly before his usual afternoon break Miguel gave up and left the temple -- the fresh air and change of scenery would help his focus, and he DID need to place an order for this evening so the time would not be wasted at the least.

The saloon was busy and as he settled on the only empty stool at the bar he received a nod of acknowledgement from Owen as the man bustled by with a plate in each hand. Grace too came hurrying by and gave him a hurried greeting and it was she who returned first, wiping her hands on a cloth both retrieved from and then returned to below the counter before she came over with pencil and pad at the ready.

"Hey pastor - what can we get started for you?"

Miguel folded his hands atop the bar, attempting to the put the noise around him out of mind so he could hear her clearly. "I would like to place an order to pick up later, for dinner."

"Oh, sure, that won't be a problem. What time would you want to pick it up at?"

"Mmm...let's say, 5 o'clock."

"Sure thing." Grace held her pencil over the paper, looking at him expectantly.

Ah...thirty years since he'd last thought of Olivia's favorite meals. He remembered she abhorred spicy and heavily vinegared items, and wasn't the biggest fan of fish. "...a double order each of the sand tea beef, steamed sweet potato, tomato soup, and coconut milk jelly."

Grace raised her eyebrow at that. "Double orders? Feeding two tonight?"

"Yes, actually," Miguel replied, unable to stop himself from smiling. "Someone...very dear to me - someone I thought had died a long time ago - is alive and well, and I shall be meeting with her tonight."

"Wow... Sounds like a celebration is in order," Grace said, tapping her eraser against the pad with a smile. "I'll toss in whatever drinks you'd like on the house."

"That is kind of you but not necessary-"

"What's not necessary?" Owen butted in, having come up behind Miguel unnoticed.

"It's totally necessary," Grace answered, tearing off the top sheet of paper from the pad and handing it off to Owen. "An old friend of Miguel's is back from the dead."

"Really?" Owen said, looking between the order and Miguel. "Sounds like there's a heck of story there!"

Miguel opened his mouth to comment then just let out a short chuckle; Owen winked at him and hurried back to the kitchen while Grace moved to the far end of the bar to tend to a few refills. When she came back by Miguel leaned toward her with a quick "-remind him that it is for a later pick up!" which got a thumbs up from her; satisfied that the evening meal was taken care of (and, knowing the barkeep, there would now be more than free drinks tucked in among the dishes -- a remarkably generous man, that Owen) he retreated from the saloon and took a leisurely walk back to the temple, feeling refreshed and more centered now that he'd gotten some fresh air and a bit of exercise.

How long that would last remained to be seen so he'd best get as much written for Sunday as he could.

------------------------------

The subtle hint of a sunburn was already present on her cheeks - the desert already beginning to claim her, it seemed, and even her clothing seemed fitting with its earthy tones: finely crafted calf-high leather boots in a dark brown that hugged her legs, into which were tucked the tops of leggings of a slightly paler brown. Over that she had on a tunic top in a dark tan that reached her thighs in the front and tapered to reach halfway down her calves in the back, with bronze buttons and a belt around her waist that matched the boots. With her sword-like cane she brought to mind illustrations from the classics - she could have walked straight out of Sir Sera or the like; it brought a smile to his face as he offered his arm and she settled her hand at his elbow.

"How did you first true day of work treat you?" Miguel asked as they walked together for the tracks.

"Mm, what work was done was mostly cleaning," Olivia answered. "Patched up the furnace, got all the junk wrangled and sorted out - metal with metal, wood, plastic, actual trash. Mi-an swears these recycler machines are something of miracle workers in cleaning up and making scrap usable again so I'll be assembling one in the morning to give it a try. Waste not, want not."

He let out an agreeable hum to that; Sandrock's resources were...well, they were what they were, and that was mostly 'dwindling.' Nothing could go to waste here unless there was truly no feasible way to use it. "The yard does look much better. It will be nice to see it put to work again."

"When exactly did your last builder retire?" she asked. "It didn't look like the assembly or that work bench had been touched in months, and don't get me started on the state of that furnace. ...though at least in the furnace's case that could be blamed on disrepair but I went over every inch of that bench and platform and didn't find so much as a rivet out of place -- fully serviceable, just...apparently unused."

Miguel gently guided her to the right once they were across the tracks and beyond the train station's edge; he was not quite ready to have the entire town gossiping about them so the back path up to the temple would have to do for now. "He announced his retirement about seven months ago -- closer now to eight, I believe. He completed minimal work while we waited on someone to accept the contracts and with Mi-an's arrival we were limping along as she is but one person battling against a backlog and limited in space as well. --not to discount her efforts," he added quickly once he'd realized how that might have sounded. "She is an eager and talented builder. We would have been even further behind if not for her but now that you are here as well life should improve."

Olivia nodded and gently squeezed his arm. "Once I get everything set up I'll be able to pull my weight right alongside her and get things back to normal... Even with the workload being what it is currently it still isn't anywhere near what I just left behind," she chuckled.

"Do tell?"

Her fingers fluttered against his arm - a dismissive gesture he assumed, as her other hand was currently holding the cane. "Nothing really to tell. I spent four years in Highwind at the exclusive beck and call of their botanists there. You'd be surprised how many of them would show up at three in the morning in a panic because a tool broke, or they needed a vital pump repair, or a someone miscounted how many planters they needed for a demonstration the next day...they were quite the needy bunch. There were literal tears when I announced my own retirement."

Miguel looked to her curiously. "You chose here to retire? And still work? Why?"

"A smaller population means a lighter workload, it's more remote, no desperate botanists banging on my door," she laughed. "Sandrock seemed like the perfect place to live quietly and simply."

"A simple life CAN be found here, and we do have a single botanist but he is a good man. Rarely seen outside of the Moisture Farm, in fact, so you won't need to worry about him appearing on your doorstep at all - or any - hours. As for a quiet life..." he trailed off. "...Sandrock was quiet. Lately however..."

"You're referring to your bandit problem," she said - it was not a question but a statement. He nodded and she shrugged. "I heard of it before I arrived. Wasn't concerned then and am still not concerned now. What would a bandit want with an old woman?"

"Please - you're hardly old."

"Older than you," she said, shifting her hand briefly to poke his side before resting it back at the crook of his elbow. "And believe me, most mornings I feel ancient."

As they'd chatted they'd crested the hill to the temple and Miguel led her to the dormitory entrance, holding the door open and directing her to his room. He'd already picked up the food and had it arranged on a small table that normally was in the corner; it had been moved further out into the room to leave more than enough space for the two small armchairs that normally sat beside it to sit across from one another. Once Olivia was settled in one Miguel stepped over to his own and sat, and though it was a simple thing - to sit down to dinner - the specific circumstance had his heart both aching and racing.

I cannot believe I get to do this again. Thank the Light for this miracle.

Olivia looked over the dishes with a nod of approval. "I see you've made your intent to spoil me quite clear."

He chuckled; as expected there had been a jug of sand tea and two slices of sand jujube cake tucked in with his order -- both of which Owen had refused to take payment for. "Can you blame me?"

"Of course not," she answered, smiling at him. A breath later she leaned her cane against the side of the chair and shifted forward to brace her elbows on the table, hands folded together at chin height, the smile disappearing and an intensely serious expression taking its place. "...before we get to what I know we desperately need to speak about, I... I want to make it clear that there are long stretches of my life that I have no desire to, or in some cases, ability to speak about. Things still hurt, they still enrage, or they're simply a...hazy blur. Especially the first three years or so after Doss -- grief changes you in devastating and unexpected ways, and in my case it caused quite a lot of memory loss. Please don't take offense if I choose not to answer certain questions, or if I can't answer them."

Miguel sucked in a breath, not aware until she'd stopped speaking that he'd essentially stopped breathing. "I understand. I would never purposely upset you, Livvy." He reached out, being careful not to trail his sleeve through the soup, and clasped his hands gently over her own. "Not everything need be shared tonight, and should I blunder into one of your boundaries it's not intentional." The intensity in her gaze softened and she nodded silently; he gave her hands a squeeze before returning his own to his lap.

With a deep inhale through her nose Olivia sat up a bit straighter. "Being as my recollection of my life immediately after learning of Doss is patchy at best, how would we like to begin?"

"Wherever we like - we don't even need to discuss anything at all, if you'd prefer that."

She shook her head. "No, I want to know, and I know you do as well. ...what happened after you were stopped at Atara?"

Miguel closed his eyes briefly; he did not overly mind 'going first' for lack of a better phrase but it had been some time since he'd thought about those earliest days. "At first I was simply in shock. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and I remember being led to a side room to sit down...there were others in there with me, as I was not the only one traveling to Doss. I remember overhearing heated argument, crying, pleading...as I sat there, numb to it all. Eventually I was able to barter my passage back to Meidi - retrace my steps, in a way. And when I returned to school...when they too had heard the news, I felt everyone's eyes on me. Filled with empty pity, at first, but within a week or so everyone was laughing, going about their lives again - as though they had forgotten already, while I glided through the halls unable to process what had happened." He fell silent and reached for his cup of tea, an old anger starting to simmer -- there were many friends he'd cut all contact with then, and who could truly blame him? In his time of need they'd abandoned him, 'too intense' they'd claimed -- as he had back then he furiously put them out of his mind once more, focusing on the warmth spreading across his palms and taking comfort in it. "Matilda is an old friend of mine - she was there when I first arrived at school, working as a tutor in the guided study sessions. She alone noticed as I became depressed and, she alone stepped in to support me through my grief. It is thanks to her that I found the path I walk now."

Pausing to take a drink he watched over the rim of the cup as Olivia's gaze drifted down to her hands, head tilted as she listened. As he returned the cup to its saucer she looked up to him, exhaling a soft sigh of laughter through her nose.

"It sounds like we both have kind, older ladies to thank for swooping in to save us then."

Leaning back he gestured for her to go on, curious.

For a few breaths she was silent then she shifted to lace her fingers together and press her thumbs against her lower lip. "As I said before, I left Tallsky with a merchant caravan -- their plan was to travel all the way to Atara and then on to Ethea. I bartered passage - both paid and also by leveraging my builder skills as a sort of hired on repairman - up to that trade depot that sits on the main road where it split to head west, where I'd then buy a bus ticket to Doss. About halfway to Walnut Groove one of the truck engines blew..." she paused, laughing and shaking her head. "I spent four sleepless nights helping their mechanic rebuild it from whatever we could scrounge up from the nearby ruins combined with the spare parts they were carrying -- they were fawning over me, thanking me in every which way they could word it, and praising the Light that they'd been lucky enough to have two mechanically minded folks along for the trip. The engine would need to be replaced entirely once we got to town but we got it working well enough to limp into Walnut Groove, where I immediately went to their-- have you been there?"

Miguel shook his head; he'd actually been in many towns and villages across both the Free Cities and Meidi, but not specifically to Walnut Groove.

"Ah, well, their uh - their Commerce Guild, City Hall, and a general administration office were all in the same building. It was a huge place, full of people, and I waited in line about a half hour to get up to the telegraph desk to send word ahead to Doss...that poor clerk, having to be the one to tell me and then witness my breakdown there in front of him, but it was that same clerk that took up donations from his coworkers and any willing bystanders to buy me a bus ticket back to Tallsky. It's from here that things...blur. I don't remember getting on the bus at all, or the trip back to Tallsky. I recall getting off the bus and going back to the house, locking the door behind me... Eventually, my teachers realized that I should have been back by a certain time and hadn't reappeared, and sent a few of my acquaintances to check on me. I'm told they spotted me through a window and when I didn't react to them knocking on the door Linda picked the lock to let them in."

Abruptly she stopped and looked directly at him once more. "I wonder - did you take comfort in people around you when you got back to school? -- at least until they seemed like they'd forgotten the tragedy?"

"...in some ways, yes," Miguel answered after a moment to consider. "There were some who tried but did not, and could not, understand, and I cherished the friendship of the ones who did not give up on me. And then there were others who believed that to get over my grief I needed to get back to normal. Those I stopped speaking to, and have not spoken to since."

Olivia nodded, leaning toward him. "Yes, that - that sentiment of getting back to normal. I know Linda and the others meant well but they truly didn't know what to do with me, or how to support me. Bless them, we weren't the closest of friends and yet they tried to include me more: making me leave the house, have dinners at their homes, I was invited to family gatherings... Something I could never get them to understand was how all of that only rubbed my losses in my face: they still had their partners and spouses. They still had their parents and grandparents and cousins. Their childhood homes were still there and cozy and yes, I was freely invited to them, but they weren't mine. The harder they tried to reach me the more I withdrew...and that's when Melissa stepped in. To this day I still don't know who she was connected to or how she learned of me, but one day she was just there. Fixing me meals, making sure I bathed and didn't spend all day sleeping, encouraging me to keep studying since my certification exams were coming up. And, among all that care, she brought me books, and told me stories -- Sir Sera, Arthur the Wise, The Blade of Kings, A Prophecy Divine... Every story I knew by heart and an even greater number that I didn't that she would bring to me to read, and engage in conversation about it once I had. Out of everything anyone ever tried, she latched onto my love of that literature and finally led me out of that dark pit I'd fallen into -- one I'd considered simply dying in."

A sensation alike a hand of ice clenched around his stomach. "...you weren't actually thinking of...?"

After a pause she nodded. "I was. My apathy was the only thing that stopped me at first, and then guilt: it wouldn't be fair for some innocent person to find my body - I couldn't use my trauma to in turn traumatize someone else. And then Melissa arrived. She liked to call me her little spark - her enduring little flame...she would say I just needed a little coaxing to flare back to life. I've certainly sputtered a bit over the years since then but, I'm here. So I suppose she was right all along."

A shiver ran down him, shaking him head to foot, and he reached up to press his fingertips to his temples. "I... Pardon me but I need a moment to process that."

"I think it goes without saying that that part of my life - even if I can't remember every detail - is one I'd rather not discuss further."

"I understand. And I've never felt more gratitude toward another person than I do right now towards this Melissa."

She sat back in her chair and rubbed at her eyes, then exhaled sharply through her nose. "She'd be pleased to hear it. Now... I could use a break, and our dinner is growing cold."

The soup had indeed gone a bit tepid but was still delicious, and everything else still appropriately warm; their conversation turned to more innocent things -- mostly details about Sandrock, Olivia's time in Highwind (she had picked up quite a bit about botany and agriculture while working alongside the professors and students there - she and Zeke were bound to get along well), and they'd gently reminisced about their time together...the unspoken question of 'do we try again' was left hanging between them as Olivia had then abruptly changed the subject to asking about Sandrock's local cuisine. While the ice in his gut had released and been warmed by her company and dinner a small bubble of anxiety took its place -- had she changed the subject because she had no intention of... Ah, no. He shouldn't even entertain the thought - entitlement had nearly led him astray.

They finished eating and Miguel neatly stacked the containers on the edge of his desk at the other side of the room - they could be reused after they were cleaned - and, once they realized how late it was, he offered her a hand up from the chair as she went to stand.

"Allow me to walk you home."

"No need - I feel I've walked enough for the day so I'd planned to ride that yakmel cart thing Jasmine pointed out on her little tour."

"Then I shall walk with you at least that far."

As they left the dormitory they met Pen coming in; his eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he stepped aside to allow them through the door, and Miguel heard a little 'heh' behind them as they headed for the yakmel station.

Don't you dare say a word...

And he didn't - Miguel heard the dormitory door close behind them with no comment or further noise from Pen; the walk to the yakmel station was a short one and Olivia settled onto the bench to wait for it to make its way around to this stop.

Several times on that walk he'd opened his mouth to ask that question they'd left unsaid and each time the exact words failed to materialize. Perhaps it'd be better to ask another night.

When the cart arrived he helped her step up into it and smiled, ready to wish her a goodnight - he could at least word that properly - and she tugged on his hand to pull him a step closer.

"I know what you're thinking, and the answer is a tentative 'yes, I do,'" she said softly. "But, at least for me, it is going to be hard to handle this from step one instead of dashing ahead to where our lives separated. ...I also have to warn you that I'm not the meek, biddable girl you knew back then: she died with Doss, and I wonder if you'll even like the outspoken crone that's taken her place."

Relief flooded him and he rubbed the pad of his thumb over her knuckles. "One step at a time, dearest. Starting tonight."

Her chuckle was drowned out by a loud clearing of the throat from the cart driver; they quickly stepped apart and Olivia sat down, and moments later the cart whisked her off toward the train station. He watched until they were out of sight then returned to the dormitory and almost collided with Pen on the other side of the door.

"Look at you, sly old dog!" was the greeting. "Didn't take you any time to get cozy with the new girl - didn't think you had it in you, though since she's already leaving I guess maybe you didn't."

With a noise of disgust Miguel stepped around him. "My business is none of YOUR business, and I am telling you now to leave her alone. Take your vulgarity elsewhere."

Back within his room Miguel had to exert the self control needed to not slam the door; Light...the sooner he was done with this Sandrock business, the sooner he was away from that boorish knight, the better.

And Olivia... Yes, I do she'd said. The future seemed so much brighter with just three simple words.

---------------------------------

"Grace? Hey, Grace-"

She jumped and nearly dropped the glass in her hand; Owen was standing behind her at the end of the counter, arms crossed and looking at her with a worried expression.

"Everything all right? I've been calling for you for the last couple of minutes."

"Uh, yeah, sorry boss - was lost in thought I guess. What's up?"

"Was trying to tell you you can go on home and came out to find you trying to polish a hole through that glass."

Grace looked down at her hands - she HAD been drying this one glass off for...awhile now, she supposed. "Oops. I'm almost done, it won't take me long to..." she trailed off as she noticed that the remaining beer mugs on the tray had dried while she'd lingered over this one. "Never mind. I'll get these put away and head out."

"All right, thanks. And, you're sure everything is all right?"

"I'm fine, Owen. I was just thinking -- I swear I've seen our new builder somewhere before but I can't place where. It's going to bother me until I either get to talk to her or remember it on my own."

Owen nodded thoughtfully at that, bracing his hands on the counter and leaning against it. "I got to chat with her earlier when she came in for breakfast -- she's traveled around more than I have!" he added with a laugh. "Wonder why she chose our little town to settle in."

"It's possible we've passed each other on the streets I guess," Grace replied. "And why she came here is just another question I can ask later too. Anyway, goodnight Owen."

"'night, Grace. See you in the morning."

#Ensuring the Future #EtF #Ensuring the Future- ch 3 #mtas miguel #mtas Owen #mtas Pen #mtas Grace #mtas Arvio #my time at sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Heart of Stone - ch 13

Unsuur had been careful to not stay long and to also stay out of sight when he peeked in on Justice and Dawn at the shooting range; Justice was right that Dawn was decently accurate and he was impressed seeing her hit target after target with her shots reliably hitting the outer two rings but he could tell from look on her face that she was hating every minute of it and several times she hesitated before firing (Justice had mentioned that hesitation when they'd made it out of Gecko Station, too). It made him more determined than ever to make sure she wouldn't find herself in a situation where the revolver was her only option - not just because he didn't want her hurt if she missed or hesitated but because he didn't want her feeling bad about having to resort to shooting... The first time he'd been forced to put down a crazed rockyenaroll he'd felt guilty for a week afterward and while it was easier mentally to shoot robots it still didn't always feel good to have to fire at anything. To the best of his ability he was going to make sure she only had to focus on the 'builder' tasks: find the right kind of robot, take it apart, get the core, and then they'd go home together.

...well, not TOGETHER together, though that would be awesome too. ((Continued below cut - it's a long one))

With the shooting lesson out of the way and the door into the ruins fixed Unsuur figured they'd be heading in really soon -- possibly even tomorrow morning. He'd need to make sure he had enough bullets and supplies on hand to handle a ruins dive, and a stop at the clinic for something for his arm would be a good idea too. The cactus pricks were really itchy once he got sweaty and since he patrolled during the day in direct sunlight Unsuur had started sweating the instant he walked out of his house that morning; they were also very noticeable bright red spots against his skin even before he'd gotten hot and he'd tried to hide them from view by not rolling up his jacket sleeves but that had only made him sweat more and the additional moisture along with the canvas rubbing against them made the itchiness a hundred times worse.

Willing himself not to rub or scratch at them was at least something to focus on that wasn't thinking about nearly getting caught last night -- he was still mentally kicking himself over the close call. Her letter had urged him to not be shy and to talk to her and yet she'd gone and done that. It had also mentioned that she thought his letters were meant to be romantic...if only if he could keep leaving them, but, he couldn't risk it anymore if she was willing to rig the mailbox to alert her to anyone opening it (or what if she rigged it to chime if anyone got near it at all? She was capable of anything - waaaay too risky now). It made him a little sad but their date was coming up soon - the letters wouldn't matter once they were out under the stars.

He purposely cut his lunch short so he could run over to Fang's; the man barely glanced at his arm before handing him a clear liquid in a jar and charging him for it. It looked an awful lot like plain water - no color, no strong smell, sloshed around in the jar as Unsuur walked toward home - but he didn't think Fang would cheat someone like that; according to the label he'd need an already dampened cloth, soak it in the liquid, then lay it over the red spots (WITHOUT wringing it out first, so he'd better do this over a sink) and leave it to sit for a few minutes...Unsuur figured he'd only have a few minutes left in his lunch break regardless by the time he got back home even as he cut across town by going up by the temple.

As he crested the hill he heard Miguel's laughter, and Dawn's too; he could just see the two of them passed the edge of the temple - most of Dawn was visible, standing there chatting easily with Miguel, of whom Unsuur could only see his arm and hand where it rested lightly on Dawn's shoulder. Since they seemed to be in good spirits and Dawn didn't appear to be recoiling from the contact Unsuur concluded that the hand on her shoulder was being permitted, not forced, and as he got closer they parted with Miguel moving away (most likely to go back inside) and Dawn heading for the stairs that would take her toward the square below, which put them both within line of sight of each other.

Well, since she was here and so was he... "Hey, Dawn."

She stopped and looked around as he called out, spotting him a moment later and waving. "Hi Unsuur! I was actually going to come find you next!"

He jogged over. "And I was going to stop by later like I always do. I'm guessing since you did the shooting lesson that we'll be able to head into the ruins soon?"

"Yep! Wanted to check when you'd be ready to go."

"I'll need to double check my supply stash - medicines, bandages, bullets, that sort of thing. After that I'm good to go whenever you are."

Dawn wrinkled her nose and it was then that Unsuur noticed the ammo pouch attached to her belt next to loops that he knew usually held smaller tools but were empty now - no holster or revolver, either. "Bullets... Light knows Justice sent me home with enough of those. Hopefully between the two of us we'll be fine on that front. Going by the clinic was one thing on my To Do list today too, though it looks like you just came from there?" she asked, glancing down at the jar of liquid with its little paper label that Unsuur still held.

"I did. Fang should still be there if you go now," Unsuur replied, praying she wouldn't ask about why he'd gone, or notice the red blotches on his arm.

She nodded. "Shall we head in tomorrow morning then?"

"I'll be ready."

The bright she smile gave him made him melt a little inside, then she turned and headed off the way he'd just come while Unsuur hurried home to take care of his arm. The liquid stung initially but shortly after applying it he felt a tingling sensation then a numb feeling; he supposed 'numb' was an improvement over the itch even if it felt really weird. After cleaning up he meticulously went through all the supplies he had stored away (he knew Justice would understand if he noticed Unsuur was taking an extended lunch break) and determined that he had more than enough of everything needed for a day's long ruins dive -- if it ended up that they had to head in again then he'd go buy things on an as-needed basis.

After another thankfully quiet day Unsuur came home and did a final check of his knapsack and went to bed right after dinner - nice and early. Before he turned out the light he held the stone heart in his hands and rubbed his thumbs over it -- probably shouldn't have it with him tomorrow...he'd hate to lose it inside the ruins. His pocket was going to feel strangely light now that he was used to having it in there; Wilson and the heart could keep each other company while he was gone, at least.

The next morning he grabbed his pack and sword and made sure his gun was loaded then met Dawn at her gate - she had a backpack too along with her revolver and tools on her belt and a shiny iron pickhammer secured to the side of the backpack within easy reach. After one last check of their supplies they trekked over to the Paradise Lost door; the brand new hinges were sparkling brightly in the sunlight and the door opened smoothly and without so much as a squeak.

"All right...here we go," Dawn said with a nervous laugh. "Let's hope this is a painless trip."

"It'll be ok, promise."

"I hope so," she murmured in response. She took a deep breath and headed through the door; Unsuur followed her in and kept close.

Those robots you could always see from the safety of the fence line were meandering around as usual; Unsuur knew they wouldn't attack unless he and Dawn got close but they would need to pass by a lot of them to get to the building Rocky had told them about. Once you got out on top of the buildings the ramps and bridges didn't have any railings and it was a really, really steep fall -- he didn't want to risk fighting anything on one of those so he gently pulled Dawn to a stop as he drew his revolver.

"I'm going to take care of some of these before we get close -- just to be safe."

"Good idea."

The robots on the rooftop with them were easy to dispatch - he could stand just about anywhere and have a clear line of fire and it didn't take any time at all to thin out the sweepers and trotters wandering around near them. When they got to the first ramp that's where things got a little bit trickier; now he had to take into consideration all the weird angles and differences in elevation. It wouldn't be impossible to take them all out at range but it was going to be harder.

The next threat was a sweeper in the middle of this ramp; since it was not quite facing him but also not quite looking away Unsuur took a single step forward, thumping his boot on the sheet metal extra hard to see if he could draw the robot's attention. Strangely it didn't seem to notice him so he lined up a shot and waited and after what seemed like ages it fully turned its back to them, giving him a clean shot at the power supply. As the robot fell over in a shower of sparks Unsuur could see the next nearest bots on the rooftop below them were now all looking in their direction. "Stay behind me," he warned as he aimed for the next bot (a trotter) and fired. The bullet struck a little high as the robot was bobbing up and down gently as it hovered so the shot only cracked the glass face plate then ricocheted up into the sky without destroying it; that definitely got the trotter's and four other robots full attentions and they started moving toward him.

Luckily they still had to cross a narrow bridge and then come up two ramps to reach the roof he and Dawn stood on and Unsuur's earlier concerns about the missing railings were proven wise as the robots all tried to rush across at once resulting in a large amount of jostling that actually knocked one of the sweepers off the edge; a trotter, a sweeper, and two red-colored secretaries finally managed to get into a single-file line and were charging toward him (he never understood why they'd been named that - why would a secretary need a laser gun? The Old World was weird).

As he lined up his shots he was somewhat aware of Dawn moving behind him; the lead sweeper let out an agitated, robotic squawk as he blew off one of its eyes but it didn't slow in the slightest, and the second shot dinged off its "chin" instead of the neck where Unsuur had been aiming as it spasmed from the loss of the eye. He had two shots more before he'd need to reload when Dawn suddenly shot once -- hers went low and struck one of the sweeper's wheels, causing the sweeper to briefly spin uncontrollably in place which knocked one of the secretaries over the side. As the robot tried to right itself Unsuur shot over its shoulder and bulls-eyed the lone trotter behind it; the face plate and most of its spherical body blew apart as something inside it exploded and with a loud clank it bounced once on the ramp then fell over the edge, plummeting out of sight.

Dawn fired a second shot; the bullet struck the remaining red bot on the little strip of metal that ran between its glass face and the glass dome on top of its head, leaving a deep crater but not penetrating, and even at this distance Unsuur could hear the loud whirring as the bot propelled itself over the hobbled sweeper and jetted toward them; Unsuur let loose with his last bullet and cracked the face plate but again the bullet didn't penetrate far -- these ones were built sturdier than the regular trotters. He would need to check the Civil Corps records later to see what information they had on them to better fight them in the future but for now he rapidly reloaded and unloaded five more rounds and managed to finally drop it as it reached the start of the final ramp that would've led it up to where he and Dawn stood.

In the middle of his barrage Dawn had shot again and finally stopped the sweeper for good and now all seemed quiet.

As he reloaded Unsuur peered around and listened closely, making sure the coast truly was clear, then holstered his revolver and turned to Dawn. "Nice shooting."

Her hands were shaking a little as she reloaded then returned the gun to her holster. "N-not really. I didn't hit what I was aiming for with any of those shots."

"You still hit it regardless and that first shot stopped the sweeper and got that other one knocked over the side. It might not have been your intended target but it still worked, so, nice shooting." She looked comforted by that fact but also still a little tense. "...I know you hate the gun. Thank you for helping handle those but I don't want you feeling like you have to do something you hate when you don't have to."

"I know, but...I don't want you to have to do all the fighting," she answered quietly. "And I don't want you to get hurt because you're doing all the fighting." Her face grew steadily redder with each word but even as she blushed she looked more determined. "You're protecting me and I'm going to protect you. I would rather have to use a gun then know you got hurt because of me."

"Are you sure? The fighting shouldn't be more than I can handle."

She pressed her lips together and nodded curtly, then inhaled deeply through her nose and turned her attention to the ramp. "I'm sure. I can do this."

So much for that... he found himself thinking; he'd really wanted her to not have to fire that gun - of course he'd known there was a chance no matter how he planned or how hard he fought and yet, if she decided to help even if she wasn't in immediate danger he couldn't do much about it... And she was willing to do that for him. He felt warm, and light, and slightly self-conscious, and hurried forward so he could get his mind back on the task at hand.

They walked down the pair of ramps to another rooftop and while they could see the bridge they needed to reach from here (if you could call it that - it was corrugated metal haphazardly nailed to wooden beams in a bridge-like shape and looked as sturdy as a piece of damp straw) they still were too high to reach it and get into the building they were heading for. Dawn walked around the perimeter of the roof they were on and then waved him over toward the far corner.

"Looks like the next ramp down is over here but I see sweepers at the bottom of it."

He walked over and - yep, there were three sweepers and he thought he heard more than that around the corner where the ramp wrapped around the building. Gesturing for Dawn to stay back Unsuur brought his gun to bear again and eyed the robots; he stood there observing for longer than he'd really wanted to but whatever else was around the corner didn't seem inclined to move into his line of sight...they would just have to deal with whatever this next fight drew in when it made an appearance.

The closest sweeper took two bullets to bust the power supply and the remaining sweepers took one bullet each; again he reloaded quickly and listened -- there was still something clattering around down there but it didn't sound like it was getting any closer. Slowly Unsuur stepped over the edge of the roof onto the ramp and began to creep down toward the noise; when he reached the corner of the building he pressed his back flat against it and eased forward just enough to be able to peek around the corner and finally saw the source of the clanking: a broken sweeper laying on its side.

The left set of wheels were grinding against the sheet metal and wood underneath it, the right ones spinning uselessly in the air. As the wheels spun the sweeper was also sort of spinning; Unsuur could see a well-worn circular rut beneath the robot as it clanked around and slowly revolved in place. Both of its arms were busted off and it was missing half its head -- he couldn't imagine how it had ended up here and in this shape but it didn't even react when he walked over and gave it a firm shove with his boot to send it over the side.

From this new vantage point Unsuur could see that this ramp snaked along the side of this building then connected with that hazardous looking bridge that would get them to their destination; there didn't seem to be any other bots aside from a single secretary in the middle of that bridge so Unsuur waved at Dawn to get her to follow him down and around, then he left her at the ramp's edge while he got closer to the red bot and shot it to pieces.

"All right. The way in is clear," he called over a shoulder.

Dawn hurried to catch up and they walked side by side across the bridge and stepped together through the opening. Between the afterimages and having the main source of light at their backs it made it hard to see anything beyond the immediate area passed the hole; there was a metal floor beneath his feet but it didn't feel like the rusting corrugated stuff they'd just been walking over and very faintly he could hear the thrum of electricity so wherever they were still had some power flowing to it. After a few moments to let their eyes adjust they realized they were in front of an elevator.

The doors themselves didn't have any power going to them so once Dawn pried them apart a few inches with a crowbar he took one side and she the other and they slowly pulled them open to reveal a not-quite-intact elevator car; there was just enough of the car's back (or front?) wall to hold a button panel (which thankfully WAS powered and glowed softly in the gloom), the floor beneath their feet was entirely intact and felt pretty solid still, and aside from that small section with the buttons on it the rest of the walls and the ceiling were missing - rusted away. The doors to let you out through the other side of the car to the floor beyond were stuck partially open and through that gap a hot breeze smelling of smoke, oil, and ancient dust blew - an air system of some sort was still working but it wasn't cooling anything down (and the smell of smoke was worrisome).

Squinting a bit Unsuur pressed his eye to the opening to get a look at what was ahead and saw...nothingness. Passed the doors was only a dark void, and far, far, FAR far below he could just make out dim pinpoints of light.

"We're still really high up - there's nothing on the other side of these doors but I can see light way down below us."

Dawn frowned at that and turned to the button panel. "That's not good... Hopefully this thing still works, or at the very least doesn't fall out from under us." After studying the buttons a moment she tapped at a few of them and they both stumbled in place as the elevator began to lower with an ear-splitting shrieking noise of metal on metal.

It didn't drop out from beneath them but once they cleared the walls there was nothing else - no walls enclosing the elevator shaft, no floors around them, just the track hanging in nothingness slowly grinding its way down, completely exposed, and they were still so incredibly high up. Unsuur didn't consider himself scared of heights or the dark but as they traveled further from the opening above them, and as it got darker and darker, an unsettled feeling lodged itself in the pit of his stomach; Dawn must have been equally unnerved as he felt her move closer, with her hand brushing his - she seemed to flinch at the unexpected contact but then didn't pull away when Unsuur blindly reached out to clumsily take her hand in his and give it a reassuring squeeze which she returned.

If the elevator did actually fail and dump them into a free fall he had no idea what they could even hope to do -- maybe he could use himself to break her fall and at least one of them would survive the drop... Regardless, as visibility remained at almost nothing he didn't like the idea of them just standing there unable to even see the edge of the elevator platform they were riding on; the lights below were getting closer at the least even if he couldn't completely make out their shapes. It was like trying to peer through a dirty window; he didn't much care for that either...this sure was an uneasy ride.

Dawn let go of his hand then and he could hear her breathing and also fumbling with something beside him; there was a soft 'tonk' noise that he both heard and felt through the soles of his boots and the sound of something being unsnapped. After more rustling there was another metallic clatter from just in front of them both.

"Cover your eyes, I'm turning on a lantern," she warned. Her voice sounded louder than it should have in the darkness.

Unsuur squinted and partially turned his head. "Go ahead."

There was a click and then light flared to life in front of him; Dawn had brought the smallest electric lantern he'd ever seen - it was just big enough to house a tiny light bulb and the power stone to power it and yet it was surprisingly bright. It lit the two of them up and seeing her there eased the unsettled flipflops his stomach was making but there still wasn't anything else visible around them aside from the track at their backs. She let out a nervous-sounding huff and shifted to sit down so she could rearrange the things inside the backpack that she'd just blindly rummaged through.

Feeling a bit braver he shifted to his knees to peek over the front edge of the platform, lifting a hand to shield his eyes from the lantern; they passed through a thick, choking cloud of dust that was several feet thick and then Unsuur could clearly see all sorts of light below them -- neon-colored signs and bare bulbs and light strips and every other kind of Old World artificial light he'd ever seen before or could imagine. The hum of power was growing louder too and despite the dirt cloud growing steadily more distant above their heads there was still a haze of dust below it that hung in the air and coated everything he could see as well.

"Wow..." Dawn whispered beside him. Unsuur felt her place a hand on the small of his back as she scooted forward to join him; instinctively he lifted an arm to place it around her -- to keep her steady as they moved, he told himself. "Look at this place...look at the SIZE of it! It didn't seem so huge from the outside."

"Maybe I should have brought a couple days worth of supplies," Unsuur said after a moment. "We might actually need more than a day to search through here."

"Maybe... It sure would be nice to not have to ride this thing up and down a lot."

He nodded; just because the elevator was working NOW didn't mean it would keep working if they had to use it multiple times. They fell back into silence as they kept moving downward and at last the elevator ground to a halt, lining up with a set of metal steps that looked like they'd been moved there from somewhere else; Dawn turned the lantern off and stowed it back inside her pack then followed Unsuur off the elevator and down to solid ground.

Here at the bottom of the elevator "shaft" was what looked like an old campsite - there were some chairs, a barrel with the remnants of firewood inside, old crates piled with miscellaneous relic bits and salvage, some makeshift fencing and busted work lights, and sand... So, so much sand. He could hear it trickling like water all around them and where it fell it churned up a gritty yet powdery dirt - the source of the haze that hung over the place - and was piled so high in some areas that it was WAY above his and Dawn's heads and could be hiding who-knew-what beneath it.

Beyond the little campsite the floor was littered with busted up robots and broken weapons; it was clear what the fencing had been built to keep out as he surveyed the long-silent battlefield. Slightly further out beyond the robots he could see more wooden barricades and fencing, some watch towers and pathways made of metal beams and boards above their heads linking the towers together and to the building remnants to either side, and also movement and shifting shadows under the neon lights in the distance -- there were still robots active here, that was for certain. He stepped out passed the metal fencing and scrutinized their immediate surroundings -- didn't seem to be any obvious threats here, at least.

"If people were here in the recent past then I bet these lower levels have been picked over," Dawn said softly behind him. "Our best bet might be to find some way up to the higher floors and see what we find."

"Where do you think we should start?" he asked, glancing at her.

Dawn looked up and he could follow the path her gaze took as she looked the watch towers over (they were more like scaffolding, really) and traced the bridges between them all before shaking her head. "Not with those -- let's see if we can find some of the original stairs or another elevator." She paused and looked to either side again, then turned her attention straight ahead. "That middle thing there is too narrow for stairs but might have an elevator, if we wanted to start with it?"

Middle thing... Ah. Beyond a line of wooden fencing was an original Old World walkway that crossed between the remnants of the store fronts on either side of them, and passed that was a glass and metal cylindrical-shaped room perched on top of a pillar - it looked like a strange metal mushroom pushing up out of the sand. The windows were tinted and dirty but-

"-I think something is moving up there."

Dawn swung her backpack around again and briefly searched through it before pulling out a pair of binoculars and focusing in on that weird central room. "...I think you're right. And whatever it is, it's big."

He frowned - big usually meant dangerous...but, it might also mean power core. "Let's check along the walls first and see if we can find some stairs -- if there's a giant robot up in that room an elevator would put us right in its lap. I'd rather not take that risk if we don't have to."

He waited for her to stow the binoculars then they moved together toward the wall on their right, sticking to the ground floor. There were partially buried shipping containers here and the further they moved toward the wall the higher the sand piles grew but they weren't so high that they completely hid some t-shaped pipes sticking up at regular intervals, and some smaller metal storage containers that were set on their ends like-- oh. The pipes and the containers looked a lot like...

"I...don't think I want to search in that direction," Dawn said suddenly.

Unsuur nodded in agreement, because that looked an awful lot like a graveyard there (whether it actually was one or not he didn't intend to find out).

They retreated out toward the original walkway and went to walk beneath it when Unsuur heard a loud creaking and snapping noise, and though she wasn't close enough to have been in any real danger he still pulled Dawn back as one of the neon signs hanging from the walkway fell free and slammed into the ground about ten feet ahead of them, peppering the sand at their feet with glass shards.

Dawn dug her fingernails into his jacket sleeves and let out a shaky breath. "I cannot believe I let Heidi and Qi talk me into this..."

"Do you want to go back? The bridge might take longer but it'll be completed even without a robot."

After a few steadying breaths she shook her head. "We need to get that bridge done. I should at least give it one attempt to find something usable and if we don't find it today then... I don't know. But at least we can say we tried."

Unsuur let her decide when she wanted to let go while he surveyed the area ahead - more fencing, more broken bots, and no visible door on the side of the pillar that he could see from here. When Dawn was ready to move they walked up to its base; there were more fences preventing them from freely walking around it (and hopefully they'd keep the trotters that he could see away from them) but Unsuur didn't see any doors on its sides either -- if there wasn't a door on the side they couldn't see then they wouldn't have to worry about an elevator ride into almost certain danger because there wasn't anything there to ride.

Humming to herself Dawn walked the fence line to the right where a shipping container had been propped up against the higher level that the walkway they'd just passed connected to. The doors at the end were missing - it looked like they had been torn off their hinges, violently - and after a quick check Dawn began to carefully climb up the inside. Unsuur moved to follow her; the incline was uncomfortably steep but not impassably so, and so long as he didn't try to stand up too straight his boots gripped the metal floor well enough to get him up to the next landing outside of a large open doorway that opened into a sizeable room. More fencing lined the edge of the landing but it was mostly made of chain link so they were able to move to the far end and get a look at the other side of that pillar -- no door. Now they'd HAVE to find stairs, or else build some way to get up to that glass-enclosed room.

A quiet whirring noise caught his attention then and he gestured for Dawn to stay quiet, turning toward the open room behind them; it looked like...well, he wasn't sure what it looked like. The long, tall metal door was partially sticking out of a slot in the ceiling with a section of shelving and cabinets along the walls beyond it; seats were lined up facing into the center of the room in clusters of three each set between columns that stretched from floor to ceiling, a long desk with several chairs was against the back wall, and the rest of the space was hidden from his sight as it curved around a corner to their right -- probably where that walkway was. Unsuur could see a malfunctioning sweeper pacing back and forth, in and out of their view, futilely trying to pick up small piles of sand around the chairs with a broken arm and a few trotters were behind the desk along the back wall too. He raised his revolver to take aim and heard Dawn draw hers as well.

"I'll take the trotters," he whispered. She nodded in understanding and adjusted her aim for the sweeper.

Unsuur silently counted to three then fired -- his first shot dropped one of the trotters instantly, his next three took out the second one. Dawn fired twice, missing the power source both times but damaging the sweeper's remaining good arm, and Unsuur shifted to empty his revolver into the sweeper; it fell over in a spray of sparks. Dawn seemed disappointed with herself as she reloaded and returned the gun to her holster; he wanted to say something but wasn't sure what so he remained silent and led the way through the room and around the corner. It met up with the walkway like he'd expected and across it he could see an almost identical storefront across the way (though that one's door was shut tight).

"Oh great..." Dawn growled beside him.

"What?" he asked, looking to her in surprise.

She pointed at the closed door. "See that panel beside it?"

Unsuur looked again and could just make out an orange glow mounted on the wall beside the store front - he assumed that was the panel in question. "Will that open the door?"

"It should, but it looks similar to the ones Justice and I had to get open down in Gecko Station, which means we'll need a card or a key or something to get it open."

"And if we can't find the key?"

"I guess we'll be climbing fences or hoping we can dismantle any doors we come across then," she sighed in response.

He didn't want to do either of those if they didn't have to. "Where would we find a key..." he mumbled, looking around. That campsite they'd found (and the possible graveyard) was proof that people had come through here in the not-so-distant past; surely they wouldn't have taken the keys with them -- they'd have no value outside of here...but where would they have left them?

Dawn was already back in the room they'd just come from, opening up cabinets and drawers. Unsuur moved in further, heading for the opposite side of the room where they'd entered from, figuring he'd start here and he or Dawn would either find what they needed or they'd meet in the middle and could decide what to do from there. He was about a quarter of the way through the room when he heard Dawn shout for him; hurrying over he found her behind that long desk at the back (she'd moved the destroyed trotters out of the way) where she'd pried a drawer open -- it was filled with colorful, oddly shaped plastic key cards. They were sort of circular on one end with a triangular shape attached, with the pointy end cut off and the sharp edges all rounded.

"These should be it," she explained. "Hopefully one of these will open that door."

Unsuur found an intact box and they transferred all the cards from the drawer into it, then he tucked it under an arm as they hurried over to the panel. It had a screen a few inches tall and about a foot wide, glowing a soft orange; Dawn studied the panel for a moment then rifled through the box of keys and pulled out a few orange ones that were about the same color as the screen and began sliding the cards across the front of the panel. With each incorrect card there was little buzzer noise and the screen flashed red before returning to orange.

Unsuur sat the box at his feet and waited with his gun at the ready - there wasn't anything he could do to help with the keys but he COULD hear movement on the other side of the door and he wanted to be ready to fire the moment it opened. Several minutes later the door slid up and out of the way, revealing the sweepers and trotters on the other side that had been alerted to their presence by the buzzing noises and now the door opening. Unsuur had time to shoot twice before they were on top of him and he quickly switched over to his sword, ducking and weaving between laser blasts while parrying the swings of the sweeper arms.

Not long after Dawn joined the fray, leveraging a very impressive swing at a trotter that had gotten too close; her pickhammer traced an arc from near her ankles to over her opposite shoulder, connecting with and batting the trotter away like a toy. Unsuur severed a sweeper's head with a swipe of his sword and ducked again as the remaining trotter shot at him while Dawn moved forward and brought the pickhammer down in an overhead strike at a second sweeper, leading with the pick end; it split the robot's head in half and she had to leave the weapon embedded there to dodge away as the last trotter aimed its lasers at her. He surged forward into the opening and aimed an overhead blow of his own, slicing downward and cutting through one of the trotter's arms. It beeped angrily at him as he followed it up by smashing the pommel of his sword down on top of its head, bouncing it off the floor and finishing with a kick to send it careening away and give him the space needed to get his revolver back in hand. A quick shot ended the trotter and he turned to check on Dawn -- the sweeper she'd hit seemed disabled and she was struggling to dislodge the pickhammer.

He came over and grabbed the pickhammer further up the shaft and pulled with her; it took several coordinated, strong tugs but it came loose and sent them both stumbling back a few steps. She was breathing a little hard but mutely strapped the pickhammer back onto her backpack and as she went to pick up the box of cards Unsuur discretely looked her over -- she didn't seem injured so that was good, and he didn't see any other robots in this room (which was the same shape and size as the last, if a bit more in disarray - the chairs and other bits of furniture were tossed around and piled up against the columns and the long desk, and there were little scorch marks dotting the floor too).

Out through this room they were actually on the correct side to see the rest of that central pillar -- no door had magically appeared but now they had an unobstructed view of another walkway above their heads that connected that room to a circular platform, and from there another path led back to a wide door flanked on either side by bright yellow, garish 'welcome' signs. That door was set into a building section that looked relatively unscathed and strangely untouched by time; the metal walls and the signs had no obvious rust or dents and while they couldn't directly see it from here it looked like the area below it was in good shape too. That seemed like a pretty good place to find intact stairs or an elevator if they could just find their way back there through the mess and maze of this place.

Unfortunately there wasn't an original pathway from this side going across; this room opened to stairs leading back down to the "ground floor," such as it was, and there was a mess of fencing and shipping containers piled around with ramshackle bridges of metal and wood built between them. He also could make out the hulking shape of hauler-type robots roaming around between the containers and under the paths -- a swipe from one of those would send either of them flying and he didn't especially relish the idea of falling into a group of them, which was a real concern as all those bridges and ramps didn't look very sturdy.

It WAS the only way forward from here though; they'd have to risk crossing and hope none of the bridges broke and that the bots wouldn't see them. "Maybe if we're quiet enough the robots won't notice us moving through here," he whispered, tracing out a path over the bridges with a finger. "Let me carry the cards and we can give it a try. If we do get spotted run for whichever side you're closest to so we don't get knocked down there with the haulers."

She nodded and handed the box over then cautiously moved toward the start of the pathways; the wood and metal creaked under her and they both froze in place and listened -- it didn't seem like the robots had heard, or maybe they had and just didn't care (yet). After a few moments Dawn sucked in a breath and kept going; she reached the first shipping container and disappeared inside (at least they had that going for them - the robots couldn't spot them through the walls of the containers). Unsuur slowly followed and the bridge creaked again and he could also feel it sagging a little under his weight (he didn't even weigh that much!) but he met up with her in the first container without anything breaking. They could actually see the next room from here but it was at the end of a long ramp that was completely open with no cover.

Again he let her go first and watched, crouched in the opening of the container; she made it about halfway to the next landing when he heard the alerted beep of a hauler.

"Go - hurry!" he called, rushing out of the container after her.

She sprinted across and skidded to a halt next to the door panel, spinning to watch and wait for him. Unsuur just made it onto the landing when ramp behind him was hit with a tremendous blow from below; the wood splintered and exploded upward while the metal buckled and fell down onto the hauler that had just swung a small storage box into its underside. Unsuur dropped the box of cards at his feet and drew his revolver, watching as the hauler bobbed up and down, in and out of view at the landing's edge -- could it not jump high enough to get up here? Sure seemed that way, and though he could see another set of stairs leading down to the ground level on this side there was metal fencing between them and the hauler.

He waited with his gun at the ready, finger on the trigger; the hauler kept trying to jump up a few minutes longer then went silent, and Unsuur heard it stomping away. He gave it several more minutes then cautiously moved to the edge of the ruined ramp -- as hard as the hauler had hit it Unsuur knew without a doubt it could have mowed down that fence with ease but for whatever reason it had chosen not to. Shaking his head and deciding not to question it Unsuur moved back to Dawn who was crouched at the box of cards but hadn't begun scanning any of them yet.

"Is it gone?" she asked, voice just above a whisper. He nodded and she let out a relieved sigh. "Oh thank the Light... I can't imagine how many robots must have been in here the first time people tried searching through this place."

"If the broken ones are any indication there were...a lot," he replied. "That's why there were always big groups of people who cleared out the giant ruins. Justice and I can handle the smaller ruins but there's no way the two of us alone could empty something like this, and even when there were way more people here in Sandrock there were still a lot of places too dangerous to secure. It's why this area has been a hazardous ruin for as long as anyone can remember. ...anyway, I'll keep watch so you don't need to worry."

She nodded and started sorting through the cards - this panel was a warm yellowish orange so she was grabbing all the orange and yellow cards since none of them seemed to be exactly the right color at first glance; Unsuur moved to the top of the steps nearby where he could see another hauler pacing around down there on this side of the fence, and also another one in the distance that was walking back and forth along the entire length of another of the original pathways that he knew they would need to cross as they made their way toward the back of this giant room.

Haulers were strong and had a lot of reach... They didn't have any ranged weaponry on them but they could easily shatter bone if they landed a punch or hit you with those boxes they carried around. Down below with the nearest hauler were stacks and stacks of the storage boxes along with more broken haulers (including one sprawled at the base of these stairs) and a few busted secretaries and trotters partially buried in sand and garbage...plenty of stuff for the hauler to wield against them - not to mention a lot of tripping hazards - so if opening the door actually got that particular robot's attention they'd need to deal with it up here on the landing.

He crept back over to Dawn, an idea forming in his mind. "Hey... How quickly do you think these doors close?"

"Um... I'm not really sure. Why?"

He jerked his head toward the walkway and the visible hauler and saw Dawn tense up, her grip tightening on the card she was about to try. "There's one there, and one on the ground below us. I know we'll have to deal with at least one of them, maybe both, so I'm thinking if the doors close pretty quickly we could drop one on their head and that would keep them from attacking us while we disable them."

Dawn inhaled then exhaled slowly and stood, pulling her pickhammer out of its clip and letting the card in her hand drop back into the box. "I'm not against the idea but I really do not want to risk the door not closing fast enough and leaving us with two big robots to deal with. Can we deal with just this one first? How do we fight it?"

She did have a point...also, they'd need to consider whether there were other robots on the other side of this door too. He didn't hear anything just yet but...yeah, probably better to deal with this lone hauler first and see if the door trick would help with the second.

Unsuur tiptoed over toward the edge, peering over at the still-pacing hauler; Dawn came up beside him and dropped to one knee, looking to him for direction. "The joints are the best points to attack," he began, voice low. "If we can get it to stop moving or make it unable to attack us then we won't need to completely destroy it. Inside its chest is a trotter but I don't think it can separate from the hauler body -- or, at least, I've never seen one do that. They've also never tried shooting at us either so I'm not sure that's an actual trotter in there."

Dawn nodded slowly and adjusted her grip on the pickhammer. "Should I shoot at it or...?"

"You can until it gets close. When its up in our faces you should focus more on not letting it hit you." He looked between the robot and her a few times. "Are you ready?"

She laid the pickhammer down on the ground beside her and switched over to the revolver, then nodded silently. Unsuur turned his attention to the hauler and aimed, waiting for it to turn around so he'd have a clear shot at the glass chest panel; he wasn't sure where the power supply for these things were but maybe wrecking the trotter inside it would stop or slow it down enough that they could bust the leg joints.

When it turned he fired; the glass splintered with the first three shots then shattered on the fourth but it had begun sprinting toward them on the second. Dawn fired twice and he heard the ping of the bullets against the outer shell of the hauler but didn't see much damage. He shot his last loaded rounds and went to reload as Dawn emptied her chamber as well. As he clicked the cylinder into place the hauler leapt upward, clearing the busted hauler and the first section of stairs, and then jumped again bringing it within mere feet of him and Dawn; he shoved the gun back into his holster and switched back to his sword -- the blade wouldn't do much against this thing if a bullet couldn't punch through the metal body but if he could distract it and draw it away from Dawn she'd have a chance to go for the joints.

The hauler luckily focused on him and he lured it to the left, ducking a fist and leaping to the side and wincing at the crunch of the storage box hitting the ground beside him. As it went to pursue him the hauler suddenly staggered and almost tipped forward -- Dawn had slammed the hammer end of the pickhammer into the inner thigh of its left leg just above the knee joint; the blow had bent it outward and Unsuur was pleased to see the hauler was now unable to fully straighten or extend the leg as it fought to get its balance back. He then had to duck again as the hauler pirouetted suddenly - the storage box whistled by and he could feel a breeze ruffle his hair as it passed overhead - and when its back was to him, halfway through the turn, he took that moment to dash forward and jam the tip of his sword into a hip joint.

The hauler hopped away and the sword was pulled out of his grasp, bobbing along just ahead of him accompanied by a high-pitched grinding noise; there were two more loud cracks as Dawn slammed the pickhammer down hammer-first onto an arm and then into the chest cavity onto the trotter within. A breath later she had to dodge backward as the hauler thrust the box out toward her -- Unsuur reached out to wrench his sword free and brought it around and over his head to cleave at the hauler's upper arm where he could see wires wrapped around the metal "skeleton" of the limb. The wires severed and spat a few sparks into the air then the arm went limp; he had the distinct feeling that the robot now wasn't sure which of them to go after as it seemed to try to move toward him then changed its mind halfway through the turn and went to shift back toward Dawn in time for her slam the pick end of the pickhammer directly into the trotter pilot. At the strike the hauler stiffened then tipped backward and fell over the side of the landing like a toppled toy, ripping the pickhammer out of Dawn's hands and taking it with it; Unsuur hurried to the edge and looked down to find the bot laying atop the busted hauler down there with its "head" embedded in the ground and its legs jutting straight up. Luckily the fall had jarred the pickhammer loose and it was laying in the sand several feet away on the far side of the wrecked haulers near the fence so it'd be easy to retrieve, and it didn't look bent or damaged either.

Another lucky thing was that fight hadn't drawn in any other robots, though that other hauler that was ahead on that walkway was looking in their direction; Unsuur took a moment to catch his breath as he stared back at the robot. It didn't seem hostile or even especially interested in them - it almost seemed bored.

He turned his attention to Dawn then; she had her revolver in hand again and was reloading - she seemed fine aside from a tremor in her hands as she fumbled the bullets into place. She caught him looking at her and flashed him a thumbs up - also shaky - and moved over next to him to look down at the busted bots.

"I'll be glad to get out of here," she murmured. Unsuur put what he hoped was a comforting hand on her shoulder; it must have been comforting enough as she leaned slightly into the contact, then inhaled sharply through her nostrils. "Let me grab my pickhammer and we can keep going."

"I'll get it. And we can take a break too if you want, before we open this next door." After a moment to consider she nodded; Unsuur let his hand drop and jogged down the stairs as she turned to go back to the box of cards.

The hauler they'd just fought was far enough out of the way to not be an issue but the other broken hauler was laying across the foot of the stairs, blocking the most direct path to get the pickhammer back; with there still being robots nearby with only a flimsy metal fence keeping them away he didn't want to spend more time than he needed to down here, and if he hugged the wall he could stay out of the other robots view - he'd just need to climb over that broken hauler then. He hopped down the stairs and up to it, patting around the top of it for a hand-hold then pulling himself partially up, bracing himself with his forearms and against his stomach as he blindly poked around with his toes for something to stand on to push himself the rest of the way. Once he'd clambered almost on top of it the robot shifted, and at first he thought it was just settling under his weight but then one of its arms lifted and attempted to grab him; Unsuur threw himself over and and landed awkwardly in the sand with his feet and ankles still touching the not-so-dead hauler.

Before he could right himself it swiped at him, which caught his legs and spun him on the ground on his chest; he kicked out and connected solidly with the other upright hauler's body, shoving himself forward with enough force to unzip his jacket then desperately rolled to put more distance between himself and the live hauler. He came up on an elbow with revolver in hand, emptying the gun directly into the trotter in its chest and was momentarily blinded as something inside the bot popped under the onslaught in a bright flash of light before it went still.

"Are you ok?!"

Unsuur pushed himself to his feet with a grunt, brilliant afterimages still swimming in his vision; his left ankle and calf hurt a lot but he didn't think the ankle was sprained, and he could feel where the zipper of his jacket had grated against his skin through his shirt - nothing felt like a serious injury. Squinting he saw Dawn crouched at the top of the stairs looking down at him, face pale. "I'm all right. Thought that one was dead - it wasn't."

"So I heard," she said, rubbing a hand across her face with a relieved laugh.

After zipping his jacket back up Unsuur grabbed the pickhammer and - now that it wasn't trying to kill him - easily climbed back over the hauler laying across the bottom of the stairs; once he was up on the landing he handed Dawn the pickhammer, put his backpack down, then sat next to it with his back against the door and Dawn flopped down beside him.

Despite the harrowing ride down here and this sudden surprise he had to admit this was going rather well; if they got through here without either of them being seriously injured then even if they didn't find anything he'd consider it a good day.

"Are we still trying to drop the door on the next hauler?"

He nodded. "I think it'll make things easier, if it works. And if it doesn't we can just fight it like we did the other one."

"I'm not so sure about that last part," she said, reaching to the other side of the box of cards and picking up something metal, that was about the size of the palm of her hand.

She held it out to him and he took it, turning it back and forth between his fingers a few times before his brain registered what he was looking at: it was the tip of a sword - HIS sword. Frowning he pulled the weapon into his lap and looked it over -- that was the tip, all right. It had broken off cleanly at least so the rest of the blade wasn't bent. "Oh. I guess that's what I get for trying to stab a robot. I can still slash with it, it should be fine."

With a giggle she laid her head back against the door behind them, closing her eyes. "Bet Hugo could reforge it, or I could melt it down and recast it - er, eventually. I need to get a proper forging set up put together first. At the very least I could melt it into bars that you could take to Hugo for forging, it would save you some gols on the cost."

"I'm not too worried," he replied, pulling his canteen out of his backpack and taking a long drink. It had a faint metallic aftertaste - a sign that the inner coating was finally wearing out. He'd need to remember to get a new one soon.

After they'd rested for a bit Dawn went back to swiping the cards to find the right one while Unsuur positioned himself so he could see the hauler ahead of them, partly see the ruined ramp they'd come over, and also could react to anything that might be on the other side of the door - it was unsettlingly quiet and the hauler on the walkway appeared to have lost what little interest it'd had in them (he didn't trust that for an instant).

There was finally a beep and the door began to rise; when nothing rushed to attack them through the opening Unsuur shifted his attention back to the hauler - it had stopped in the middle of the walkway and was watching the door open with the same aura of boredom as before.

"Try closing it?" he called over a shoulder to Dawn. He heard a trio of beeps a moment later and the door closed again; it closed faster than it had opened but it was still a pretty slow descent... So much for dropping the door on the hauler's head.

With the door shut again the hauler went back to pacing, and Unsuur walked over to where Dawn knelt by the reader with a chipped, bright yellow card in hand.

"The door plan isn't going to work and I bet it'll charge when it realizes it has a path to us," he said.

Dawn nodded. "Yeah... Think we could shoot at it from here and blow it apart before it could get to us?"

"Possibly, but I want a look at the room first - I won't go too far in," he added.

Dawn swiped the card again and Unsuur waited as the door rose; the hauler shifted to look at the door once more but still didn't seem inclined to do anything about it - Unsuur felt relatively certain that so long as he didn't stray into its line of sight that he'd be fine to go in.

He was pleased to discover this room was even messier than the previous ones with a lot more furniture all arranged in more purposeful piles - like makeshift barricades. Assuming the hauler didn't try to plow through it immediately all this junk would slow it down a lot, giving him and Dawn more time to shoot at it before they'd need to close in with their melee weapons (and next time if they needed to go into a ruins with a lot of robots in it maybe he should get himself a pickhammer too - Dawn's seemed really effective). For one brief moment he debated asking to use the pickhammer, to keep her out of harm's way, but then that would leave her with just the gun (he still didn't want to put her in that position) with the added difficulty of trying to shoot around him safely -- not the best plan...he was pretty sure he wouldn't attempt it even if it was someone like Justice at his back with a gun. It would need to be both of them shooting or both of them beating on it, just to be safe, so at least this space had a lot of places to shoot from.

He went back to Dawn and was just opening his mouth to tell her about the state of the room when a distant rumble reached them -- this giant ruin was one big echo chamber so Unsuur couldn't tell for sure which direction it had come from. It had at least been too quiet and uniform to be a cave in or anything like that and looking at Dawn's face she didn't seem to know what it was either.

"...could this key have made something happen somewhere else?"

Dawn shook her head. "I don't think so... Typically systems like this are mostly self-contained - you'll have the key for a specific lock or system-" she said, waving the one in her hand, "-which works only for what it was designed for, and then somewhere else there might be a central control unit that would be able to remotely do whatever the key did. A good example is a button or panel that could unlock and open every door in the mall at the same time if there was an emergency."

He nodded - that made sense. "I guess we just continue on and see if we notice anything. And, there's a lot of stuff in the room ahead of us that should slow that hauler down so we might get lucky and shoot it apart before it gets close."

Dawn set the key card down on the floor beside the key box and stuck a hand into the ammo pouch on her belt. "Are you getting low? Do you need any of mine?"

Unsuur roughly patted a hand against his own pouch - hard enough to make the bullets inside jingle. "I'm good. I brought loads extra just in case. If we both target the legs that should slow it down even more, if not stop it completely."

"All right...I'll do my best."

With their guns in hand they slowly moved into the room; Unsuur gestured for Dawn to take up a position behind the long desk but as far on this side of the room as possible -- that would give her a clear view of the incoming hauler while also putting several furniture barricades and a solid desk between it and her. He in turn headed further across the room and just managed to make it behind a barricade that was out of her line of fire when the hauler saw him through the open doorway.

There was a brief moment where it turned to square up to him and heft a storage box up onto its shoulder; before it could start moving toward him Unsuur aimed and fired, emptying his gun into the chest plate. The glass splintered and shattered by the sixth bullet but the trotter inside was still intact and the hauler was now coming for them in a sprint -- he'd hoped that maybe he could drop it before it even got to this room but as he reloaded the hauler shifted the box in front of it to block further bullets from hitting it in the chest.

Luckily that left its legs still in view; he lowered his aim and fired again and once the hauler got through the doorway and into Dawn's view she began shooting as well. Under both their onslaughts the right knee joint was shredded and it stumbled forward, using the storage box to catch itself. With the chest area within his sights again Unsuur unloaded all six shots into the trotter inside, reloaded, and emptied again. The hauler stopped struggling to stand back up and slammed forward into the floor, bent over its storage box and spasming wildly.

Unsuur held up a hand to signal to Dawn to wait a moment and all shooting paused. He watched closely as the hauler kept twitching around for a surprisingly long time before it fell still. After several minutes of silence he walked forward and prodded the robot with his boot, then aimed a kick at its arm to try and rouse it -- nothing. No reaction.

"I think we got it."

"Are there any more?"

He stepped around the hauler and wound his way around the makeshift barricades to look out the doorway, then just as quickly hopped back; there were two more haulers out there. Neither had looked bothered by the noisy fighting - they were looking at something sort of in his direction further off to his right along the wall - but that wasn't enough to convince him that they hadn't seen him (and there was no way they hadn't heard all that gunfire).

Behind him Dawn was leaning on the desk in front of her, watching him with a frown -- it was pretty obvious she knew the answer without him needing to explain but he still held up two silent fingers and she blew out a heavy sigh.

Motioning for her to stay put Unsuur moved through the doorway again but hugged the wall to his right, picking his way along a line of busted sweepers and dropping into a crouch at the edge of the landing to get a look at the area ahead.

The two haulers were still staring off at something along the wall and now Unsuur could spot a lone trotter hovering between them. He couldn't tell what they were looking at from here but aside from those three bots he didn't see any other threats. There was this next walkway ahead that led to yet another big shut door (he was getting tired of having to open all these) but his attention was drawn to a makeshift ramp made up of scrap metal and wood that had been attached to the walkway and led down to where the haulers were...and down there across the room from him next to a normal sized (but closed) door Unsuur spotted a bright green sign with a repeating line of chevrons pointing and floating upward.

That HAD to mean stairs. Or an elevator. Finally.

Now...they just had to get to it.

Unsuur retreated back to Dawn and hopped up on the desk to rest a moment. "There's two haulers and a trotter ahead. I saw a door - a people-sized door - with a sign pointing up so there has to be stairs or an elevator behind it."

"Can we get by them without needing to fight?"

That was a good question... Whatever the robots had been staring at was apparently interesting enough that they'd ignored the gunshots; it was possible that may work in their favor as well if they were quiet...and assuming that the lock on the door buzzing with each incorrect key swipe didn't prompt them to act.

Unsuur absently slid his hand into his ammo pouch-- still plenty in there but he wasn't certain if he could handle two haulers coming at him at the same time even with Dawn's help.

"Maybe," he finally answered. "But this next part might be rough."

She nodded. "I understand..." With a sharp exhale through her nose she went to retrieve the box of cards and dumped the ones that were still left inside out on the desk between her and Unsuur. "Were you able to see the panel from here? Did you see what color it is?"

...whoops. He probably should have taken note of that. Dawn grinned at his slightly embarrassed expression and pulled out the binoculars once more; he took them and moved to where he could get a look at the doors ahead -- that big one had a purple screen and the other one... Huh. That other one looked different - like a tv set with a keyboard only with three slots in it instead of the letter keys. The screen on it was blue so hopefully that meant the keys needed were blue, and hopefully it still needed the type of keys they'd been using.

He retreated back to Dawn and gave her the binoculars back. "The one ahead is purple, the one for the stairs is blue. The blue screen also has slots on a keyboard thing beneath the screen - it looks different than these other panels."

"Slots..." she repeated thoughtfully. "That might be what the other half of these keys are for."

"...other half?"

She nodded and went to retrieve the box of keys, holding up a red one and flipping it around so he could see the back. "The circle-end of this has a bar code the panels are reading but the triangle ends have a solid double strip that's not connected to it."

The key was a uniform red but now that he was looking at it closely he could see the striped barcode on one end and two darker strips - still red, just...darker - along the triangular end's edges.

"That settles the key problem then. Hopefully. We'd still have to deal with those haulers out there though," he said after a moment. "Even if we get by them this time I don't think we'll be able to sneak back out of there without them noticing."

Dawn pointed up to the circular walkway above their heads. "Think we could hit them from up there instead then?"

"...probably. Unless they retreat directly below us, or break the door down to come after us." He paused, then nodded (more to himself than anything). "And if they do then hopefully if it's stairs beyond the door they'll be narrow enough they can only come after us one at a time, and I don't think two of them could fit inside a human-sized elevator at the same time either."

"Sounds like a battle plan," Dawn said, giving him a tired smile and hefting the binoculars. "I want to get a look at that panel myself though - to have a full idea of what we're sneaking toward."

They both tiptoed out together to where Unsuur had been crouched only minutes before; Dawn laid flat on her stomach and propped herself up on her elbows, training the binoculars on the door in the distance. Unsuur leaned as far out as he dared to try and spot what held the haulers attention but still couldn't see much passed the back side of some kind of rectangular panel; it was mounted on the wall with curved metal brackets and stuck out about a foot, blocking his view.

When Dawn scuttled backward and rolled up onto her heels Unsuur stepped back, looking to her curiously; she flashed him a thumbs up and jerked her head back toward the desk, leading the way back where she dropped the binoculars into her backpack.

"These keys should still work...I think."

"All right. If we're going to try sneaking by then we need to ignore the ramp going down and get across to the other side of this room, climb down from there, then hug the wall over to the door. That should give us the best chance without the robots seeing us." He went to grab the box of keys. "I'm going to dump these into my backpack so my hands are free, just in case."

Dawn reached out to grab his hand. "Hang on, let me get out the ones I think we need." He nodded and stepped back, letting her sort through the box; she selected and slipped four blue keys into the front pocket of her overalls and slung her backpack over her shoulders, pausing to adjust the pickhammer in its clip. With the remaining cards safely in his pack Unsuur headed back out through the doorway and started across the walkway, keeping to the left side to put as much distance between himself and the still-distracted haulers. When they were about halfway over he could finally clearly see what the robots were so distracted by: the panel was actually a lit screen that was flashing words and images too quickly for Unsuur to tell what was being displayed.

Huh. Odd to think that robots would want to watch television too like their creators had once upon a time. ...it was probably REALLY boring to be stuck in a ruin for hundreds of years.

He hurried to catch up to Dawn when he realized she'd kept walking while he'd watched the robots and the screen (still no idea what they were watching - he was pretty sure whatever it was had just looped back to the start though). Once safely across Unsuur found a spot where they could easily climb down onto a stack of boxes to reach the ground and from there the walk toward that locked door was a clean, straight line -- no broken robots, no boxes, no garbage, nothing. Just clear, slightly sandy ground from point A to point B. This entire back area was actually pretty clear of debris and the large sand mounds; that almost entirely intact building above their heads had shielded this spot from everything falling from above.

"How do we want to try this?" Dawn asked quietly.

"You head for the door and get it open. I'll watch the robots and let you know if they start coming after us but even if they do don't try to help me until the door's unlocked - that should be our main goal. Ok?"

She nodded; Unsuur slid down onto the top box below, then to the next, then jumped down to clear the last two, only glancing away from the haulers a few times to check where he was putting his feet. Neither the haulers nor the trotter reacted - still too engrossed in the television - so once Dawn had hopped down beside him they made their way over to the door where she took out the first key and slid it into the rightmost slot as Unsuur stepped away to give her room and to keep watch.

The first key didn't cause any beeps or buzzes but nothing else seemed to happen either. Dawn pulled it free and stuck it in the middle slot; immediately a green triangular mark appeared on the panel's screen above that slot. She left it in place and took out the next blue key and put it into the first slot and got another green mark.

"This feels too easy," he heard her whisper as she pulled a third key from her front pocket. She slid it into the slot and this time there was a short beep and a series of clicks as all three keys were ejected from the slots; Dawn scrambled to catch them before they fell to the floor and Unsuur turned his full attention back to the robots - had they heard that beep? It hadn't been very loud so there was a chance that...

...ok, good. The robots still didn't seem to care about anything except their tv show. He glanced back to Dawn in time to watch her slot the two correct keys back into place and stick the last blue key she had into the final slot; a third green mark flashed across the panel briefly before the screen went dark and beside them the door finally slid open. They rushed inside and Dawn slapped the panel on the inside of the door to close it, then leaned back against it with a loud exhale.

"I did not charge enough for this," she laughed after a moment. "If we don't find a core down here I'm going to beat Qi with a rolled up newspaper."

"Still assault, and I still don't want to have to arrest you."

She playfully stuck her tongue out at him and he smiled back at her before giving their immediate surroundings a better look. Up a short set of stairs was some sort of reception area with more of those 3-set seats, chairs behind a desk, and some storage lockers against the back wall. Both he and Dawn let out simultaneous sighs of relief when they got far enough up the steps to see the main stairwell off to the right -- finally. A way to get up to the walkway and glass room.

...hopefully.

They headed up the stairs with Unsuur in the lead; the second floor had two doors - one was blocked off by a pile of lockers and the other had no button or panel or other means of opening it that they could find so they went up to the third floor. This one also had two doors and was more brightly lit than the floors below; the door directly ahead of them from the top step actually opened on its own the moment they reached the landing while the other was also blocked off with a pile of furniture. Beyond the open door was a short hallway with a busted view screen on each side wall and yet another doorway that opened at their approach and as Unsuur crossed over the threshold he heard two loud, alerted beeps and felt his heart jump up into his throat.

Haulers. Right there on top of them.

"Look out!" he shouted, spinning on a heel and grabbing Dawn up in his arms, lunging down the hallway for the safety of the stairwell as a thrown storage container smashed into the door frame where he'd been only seconds before.

Once he'd gotten them out of the hallway he plopped Dawn back on her feet and spun, drawing his revolver as he moved and starting to fire at the lead hauler. The hallway was too cramped for the robot to effectively swing its reclaimed storage box so if he could just hold it in there... As the hauler crossed the midpoint of the hallway the automatic door shut behind it - it would likely only buy them a few extra seconds but there was a small chance they could shoot this one apart and use it as a barricade against the one behind it before the door opened again (they could figure out how to get through there later AFTER they were safe).

He experienced a moment of shock and terror as Dawn shoved by while he reloaded to take up a position in front of him; before he could say anything she dropped down to her knees and he realized what she was doing: now he could easily shoot over her head and she wouldn't have to pick her shots around him in the cramped firing line either. This just might work...

The chest plate shattered under his next barrage and he tightened up his aim to try and blow the trotter pilot inside apart; as it lifted the box into a defensive shield in front of it one of Dawn's shots ricocheted off the moving box and struck the inner shoulder where something popped loudly and began to spray an oily orange fluid everywhere. It kept staggering forward as the door behind it opened and the second hauler shoved its way inside, only to promptly slip in the fluid and land heavily on its backside with a bang Unsuur could feel in his chest.

Suddenly Dawn spun on her knees and lunged up to grab his arm. "STOP! Stop shooting!"

"What? Why?" he asked, staring down at her in bewilderment - they couldn't stop now, the haulers weren't about to stop-

"That's hydraulic fluid and it's very flammable!"

Oh. Uh oh. Unsuur lowered his revolver and looked between the still coming hauler and Dawn desperately.

What do I do...

...he still didn't want to do this but not much of a choice now. He shoved his revolver into Dawn's hands - no time to holster it - and grabbed the pickhammer off her pack, hefting it as he charged to block the doorway with himself. The first hauler had just about reached it so he still had room to bring the hammer end down in a savage arc over his head onto the storage box in its hands, slamming it out of its grip and to the floor; he followed it up with as hard a shove as he could manage to stagger it backwards. It didn't move much but it was enough to slip in its own hydraulic fluid and fall forward onto its knees, somewhat propped up on the storage box. Before it could recover Unsuur brought the pickhammer around and swung upward leading with the pick end to impale the trotter and yank it free from the hauler's insides; he slung it off to the side away from Dawn to crash into a locker and quickly turned back to the empty hauler body in front of him -- it had gone still and was slowly sliding backward off the box in the spreading puddle of hydraulic fluid.

The hauler behind it couldn't seem to get its footing and after a few failed attempts to stand it found itself wedged firmly between the hallway's narrow walls and its own box, unable to free itself.

As the robot beeped and whined angrily at them Unsuur let out a loud breath and carefully lowered the pickhammer head-first onto the floor, resting an arm over the end and looking over to Dawn. She was still holding his revolver and staring in at the remaining robot, and jumped a bit when he touched his fingers to her arm.

"Sorry," she said, offering him his gun back. He in turn handed her the pickhammer and returned the revolver to its holster once he'd reloaded it. "Ok... Ok. How...do we deal with that hauler without setting the hallway on fire..."

"If we do somehow accidentally set it on fire will it explode?"

She shook her head. "Hydraulic fluid isn't explosive but if it goes up in flames it might burn hot enough to melt the doors shut, or trigger some kind of fire suppressant system -- there's no way to tell if something like that is still functioning until it's been set off and for all we know it could seal the doors if it detects a fire."

"And either of those would keep us from getting through here," he said quietly, rubbing at his chin.

"My pickhammer could probably smash the doors down but that'll take a lot of time and effort...we COULD go back to the surface to get a cutting torch if need be but, again, that would take time," Dawn went on. "It's best to just not need to do any of that."

With a nod Unsuur moved back into the doorway and climbed up on the discarded storage box in front of the hauler he'd destroyed; the one beyond it tried to grab at him but was still solidly wedged in place with its legs and right arm trapped, leaving only the left arm as a danger but a limited one - because of how it was laying on its side and where the box was stuck it couldn't reliably swing its free arm down toward its legs. "Can I see your pickhammer again?"

Once he had it in hand he carefully stepped from the box onto the top of the busted hauler and shifted down to balance on the legs. The stuck hauler tried to swipe at him again but clanged its elbow into the storage box, halting the limb and leaving several feet of relatively safe space between its fist and Unsuur; he took note of its range and gingerly hopped from the broken hauler's legs onto the other hauler's box and raised the pickhammer over his shoulder, taking aim at the robot's arm. The box shuddered under him as the robot attacked again, and a second time, then a third, and then he was sure of where he needed to swing and when so on the hauler's fourth attempt to hit him Unsuur brought the pick end of the pickhammer down and struck the elbow joint right in the center as he'd planned. The limb buckled under the blow and when the robot yanked its arm back the joint pulled apart (though not immediately and Unsuur almost lost his footing - behind him Dawn gasped loudly and he felt a little guilty making her worry like that) which left the fist and forearm stuck to the end of the pickhammer and leaving the robot with only a stump to wave around.

Unsuur dropped the arm into the space between the two haulers and came back over to Dawn. "It can't reach us now and it's still pretty stuck. We should be able to climb over them both and won't even have to worry about getting that fluid stuff on our boots either."

Dawn giggled at that, even if she looked a little nervous at the thought. "That's for the best as hydraulic fluid can be the most slippery thing you've ever touched in your life -- it's also really annoying to try and get it out of your clothing."

Unsuur offered her a hand up onto the first storage box. "Does that mean you've tried?"

She waited until she had stepped over onto the first hauler before answering. "-sort of. I've had to help wash the cleaning rags in class and sometimes it takes several treatments to get it fully out."

"What kind of treatments?" he asked as he climbed up after her.

"A lot of soaking and washing with oil-removing soaps, and so, so much rinsing. -- ooh, actually, now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think I could get it out of my clothes here if I wanted to. It takes a lot of water that Sandrock doesn't have to spare," she added after a moment. "If we get any of this stuff on us in any quantity bigger than a little splash we'll probably have to throw away whatever it got on."

Unsuur eyed the orange fluid underneath them; he'd already gotten rid of a jacket full of cactus prickles, he really didn't want to have to throw away a second one because it got covered in oily gunk.

The still active hauler beeped and flicked its stumpy arm around as they clambered over but it remained definitely stuck and, when the door sensors recognized they were there and opened, they were able to jump from the hauler to the room beyond without having to touch the hydraulic fluid puddle. Getting back out of here was going to be an issue but they could work that out later.

The next room was surprisingly pristine -- there was no sand, dirt, or even much dust around, the screens and signs were all intact and still lit, and everything still looked freshly painted. There was a normal sized door ahead of them and a large one to the right up another short set of stairs; Dawn quickly found the correct red-colored key and carefully checked through the smaller door -- there were some ancient meal packets and cans of drink, and a line of some kind of food-related machines mounted on the wall above a long counter. Dawn poked at them briefly but couldn't get any of them to activate so whether they heated up food or cooled it down would remain a mystery.

That just left the large door. Instead of sliding up into the wall like the others had this one split in half with the top half going up and the bottom slipping down into the floor with a separate flat sheet slipping out horizontally to seal up the gap. Beyond it was that upper walkway they'd been trying to reach and there, in the distance, was the circular room.

"Finally," Dawn sighed beside him. "I hope this was all worth it."

He nodded and stepped out onto the walkway; a quick peek over the left side showed those haulers and trotter still watching tv. To either side of them were still intact storefronts and office buildings - some still had their signs advertising what company occupied the space and there were some lights on behind dirt-encrusted windows. Every so often a shadow would cross in front of the windows indicating there were robots inside those buildings too but there was no way to get over to them from this central walkway, and not just because the place had been wrecked; there just wasn't any hint that there'd ever been connecting paths from this middle area out to the sides.

The path changed from a straight lane to a circular one, with evenly spaced seats along the railings, and as they made it halfway around the circle suddenly a loud crackling blared out from unseen speakers; both he and Dawn jumped and froze in place as something simultaneously flared to life over the top of the circular room ahead.

"Is...is that a robot, fighting a monster?" Dawn asked, sounding every bit as confused as Unsuur felt as they stared up at the projected image of an armored robot punching some kind of giant, angry fish.

"It sure looks like it. Did the Old World even have monsters?" he asked in turn. The images kept looping the same five seconds over and over and were accompanied by crusty, metallic-sounding audio of a crowd cheering but it sounded like it was being played through a tin can.

Dawn shrugged, still staring up at the projection as she started walking forward again. The cylindrical room ahead had a set of double doors that opened as they approached and they both came to an abrupt halt as an enormous robot was revealed beyond the doors.

It was painted blue with yellow stripes and designed to look like a giant cat's head with its eyes glowing a bright blue and the mouth a warm gold. It was beeping softly and spinning counter-clockwise which brought one of its extended arms into view; three large glass tubes, similar to Old World light bulbs he'd seen before, were mounted between two thick metal discs, rotating forward and with wild arcs of electricity dancing along the tubes.

Beside him Dawn winced as she noticed the electricity. "That's not good... But unfortunately, that thing probably has our core inside it."

"So...no shooting it, then?" It didn't seem hostile or even able to attack them so he wasn't inclined to shoot it just yet anyway.

She laughed quietly and slipped her backpack off, dropping it at her feet. "No shooting - at least, not yet. I don't think this thing is a real AI, or if it is it's not working correctly. We should try to shut it off first."

With that she walked forward and stopped right at the edge of the doorway, leaning first to the left then the right to try and see around the giant cat-bot without putting herself in harm's way. Unsuur moved up to join her in time for one of the spinning arms to pass by and felt every hair on his body stand up in the presence of that much electricity -- a shock from this thing would likely kill them. "Can we do that safely?"

"I can see some control consoles -- I'll go check them and see what they're for."

He caught her by the arm as she went to step inside the room. "Wait, you're just going to walk in there?"

"When the arm goes by, yeah -- and besides, see how they can't reach the outer wall?" She pointed as she spoke and he could see that she was correct - the electrified arms weren't wide enough to sweep the entire width of the room. "So long as I hug the wall I'll be fine. All I really need to worry about is building up static and frying the circuitry."

"Should I come too?"

"I...guess? I don't think this thing is going to attack."

He nodded and slipped his backpack and sword off too, then waited for the next arm to pass by before heading into the room behind Dawn. They didn't need to worry about being against the wall until the arm was about to pass them so they hurried to the first console they could see set against the wall and Dawn began looking it over.

"That arm is getting close," Unsuur warned after a few minutes.

"I know, I- aha, I think this is it!" Dawn replied as she flicked a switch which lit a red button that she then pressed before pushing herself flat against the wall.

Unsuur put his back to the wall and tried to make himself as small as possible as the end of the arm rumbled by; once again all his hair stood on end and once it passed he dared to turn his head toward Dawn. "Did it do anything?"

"I...guess not. Let's see what else we find in here," came the answer. She pushed off from the wall and hurried after the arm with Unsuur on her heels, walking along the edge of the room until they came across a similar looking console that was set against the big glass windows they'd been able to see from the entrance of the ruins. It took two passes of the arms before she relented and popped a front panel off the console to reach inside and yank a plug loose. There was a rumble and a few cheerful-sounding chimes before a robotic voice issued from the console:

"ERROR: MAINTENANCE REQUIRED. SWITCHING TO BACK-UP POWER."

"What? No! Just turn off!" Dawn growled, throwing the length of wire in her hand into the ground with a huff and hurrying to get out of the way of the arm as it came around again.

The robo-cat thing was at least turning more slowly but was just as sparky and dangerous. Dawn pulled a few more things lose to no effect then followed in the arm's wake again until the next console where she immediately yanked the front of it open and began unplugging everything she could reach.

With every disconnected wire the console blared an "ERROR, ERROR" warning until finally Dawn was out of wires and the robot ground to a halt; most of its lights went out, including some of the overhead lights in the room, but the arms remained electrified. It had come to a stop with its back to them, revealing three hatches that looked removable, and Unsuur hoped that the arms weren't also running a current through the body so they could yank those hatches open without worrying about being electrocuted.

The robot had also stopped in such a way as to leave the way back out of this room open; Dawn went to retrieve her pickhammer from beside her pack then went to examine the hatches. Standing a safe distance away she lightly tossed the pickhammer at the left-most hatch -- it bounced off then clattered to the ground unharmed a few seconds later.

"No spark - should be safe," she said, smiling at him from over her shoulder.

He watched as she squared up to the hatch before swinging the pickhammer with just enough force to wedge the pick into the corner of the hatch; she then shoved forward with all her strength to pop the corner out and slid the pick further in for better leverage and then on the next big push the hatch popped loose and crashed to the floor. Now with an opening to the robot's guts Dawn leaned the pickhammer beside the hatch and crawled up and inside.

Unsuur had just stepped up to the opening when Dawn came out again, shaking her head.

"Not that one. Let me try one of the others."

She repeated her pick-and-pop-open steps on the middle hatch and once more climbed inside to have a look around. This time she only stuck her head out, looking over to him.

"Could you go grab my backpack please? I can see the core from here but there's a lot of stuff between me and it that I'll need to take apart to get out of my way and I've got the wrong sized wrenches on my belt."

He dutifully retrieved the pack and brought it to the hatch; Dawn squatted on her heels and began removing stored tools from within it, along with the lantern. She clicked it on and shoved it between a few wires to hold it in place, pointed inward, then climbed back inside the robot and began carefully crawling between the wires, tubing, struts, and more, beyond which Unsuur could see the mechanical parts for movement too -- cogs and pistons and a few compact engines all hooked up together to one giant, flat plate that had all the computer-type bits that ran the robot screwed to it.

Once she reached a point where even she was too big to fit between the parts she began to meticulously disassemble everything, letting the parts drop to the floor as she finished with them. There was one particular length of tubing that she paused and studied for several minutes - almost like she was unsure about what it was or if she could remove it, but it ran completely across her path to the power core. She seemed to steel herself for a breath before extending out a wrench to loosen the end she could reach then stopped as a familiar looking orange fluid began to leak.

"Damn it..." she swore softly. "I'm going to have to find the pressure release for this before I can-"

She was interrupted by the tube's end suddenly blasting off the loosened connector; a spray of hydraulic fluid exploded forth, along with a string of colorful cursing from Dawn as well as she took the spray to the right shoulder and down her side.

"Are you all right?" Unsuur called in after her. He wanted to crawl in after her but he didn't know what that would accomplish exactly, and there were also a few spots he was certain he'd be too large to slip through.

"Yes," came the snarled reply. "Damn it... I should have just- TRUSTED myself," she yelled a moment later, banging the wrench in hand angrily against a metal strut beside her. After a few deep breaths she untangled the hydraulic line and shoved it out of her way. "--the hose was labelled for coolant but I knew, I KNEW, by looking at where it was connected, that it couldn't have been coolant, but I decided to trust the label anyway and-- ugh! Damn it!"

She continued swearing to herself as she wiggled her way through and got in at that plate with the computer stuff on it; she loosened a few things and pulled something from their midst that she shoved into a pocket, then finally she started worming her way back out boots-first. When she slipped - literally - back out of the hatch she stopped to look herself over, frowning heavily at her soaked shirt and stained overalls.

"Will this stuff hurt your skin?" Unsuur asked.

"It'll irritate it, yeah," she growled, gently plucking at her shirt to pull it away from her shoulder. "The overalls are thick enough that I don't think it soaked through but I need to get home ASAP so I can get this shirt off me. Of all days to not pack an extra one..."

"You could take the shirt off now?" he asked, before considering what he was saying. At Dawn's sudden blushing he hurried to clarify what he meant, since he actually hadn't been thinking about her shirtless (he was NOW, but that's not what...) "I mean, I can give you my jacket to wear if getting that stuff off you right now will keep it from hurting you. Would it?"

"It...would, yes," Dawn replied slowly. "But I wouldn't want to get any on your jacket on accident either."

"It's ok if you do. I'd rather lose the jacket than have you burned or whatever it is that hydraulic fluid does to skin. I'll take my jacket off and turn around."

"A-all right..."

Unsuur went to turn around as promised and paused at a distant rumble - it sounded like the one they'd heard not too long ago; he was able to make it over to the window overlooking the ruins below while still keeping his back to Dawn and rubbed a small area clean with the side of his hand. Peering through he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary -- he could see the elevator tracks clearly from here and they still looked intact so at least their way out was still there.

"Shirt's, um, shirt's...off," came Dawn's voice from behind him.

"Sorry - got distracted," he said in a rush, fumbling to unzip his jacket and pull it off. He draped it across his arm and held his arm out at his side; the jacket slid free and a moment later he heard the zipper working.

"You can turn around now."

He did and felt a rush of heat as he took in the sight of her with his jacket on; it was big on her, she was in process of rolling the sleeves up a few more times with her discarded shirt in a sodden heap at her feet, but...she looked good in it. Real good. Amazing, even.

He quickly tore his gaze away and stared back toward the window. "Um. Did we find what we came for?"

"Yeah. We can finally get out of here...somehow," she grumbled. "Let's check where that other door in here goes and see if it'll get us back down to the ground level...I really don't want to go back the way we came."

"Me neither," he agreed.

They collected their backpacks and with a little trial and error on the consoles Dawn got the door open; another narrow hallway greeted them beyond the door, far longer than the one they'd been attacked in but this one was dimly lit and blessedly quiet, and it eventually spat them out at what looked like a maintenance stairwell that brought them down to a floor just below where they needed to go but they were able to hoist themselves up and crawl through an opening in the wall to get back to an area near the suspected graveyard.

"Oh thank Peach - let's get the heck out of here," Dawn sighed, hurrying for the elevator platform.

On the ride back up the surface they heard more rumbling - louder and more frequent - and it wasn't until they were above the hazy dirt cloud that a wet scent reached them:

They were hearing thunder. It was raining. And once the elevator reached the top they could see it was coming down pretty hard too.

He glanced over to Dawn and stopped, riveted by the look of surprise and then delight on her face as she looked out at the water lashing the rickety bridge that led toward home.

She noticed him staring out of the corner of her eye and her face flushed again.

"W-what? Did I miss some fluid?" she asked, reaching up to touch her face.

"No, you're-" Don't say something stupid. "-the jacket looks good on you." Crap. "We should get you one, since you're part of the Civil Corps now." Better. Also, technically true.

"Unofficially," she replied with a smile, quickly glancing down at her boots. "I'm not really a member."

"You still look good in the jacket."

"Thanks...that's really sweet of you." She lifted her gaze after a few breaths, fingers playing along the edge of a rolled sleeve. "Any plans on what you'll do once we finally get home?"

"Not really. I doubt Justice will expect me to still patrol today after a ruins dive," he answered. She opened her mouth to speak and then flinched at a particularly loud crack of thunder. Unsuur looked out across the bridge and then back to her. "-I think we should wait for this to blow over first before we try heading home."

"Right," she said, with a short laugh. "It'd be dumb to survive the ruins and then get washed over the side."

Though the wind wasn't blowing directly into the entrance there was still a fair amount of moisture reaching them; they retreated back toward the elevator and sat down along the wall beside it to try keeping as dry as they could. They hadn't been sitting for too long before Dawn suddenly scooted over and leaned her head against his arm.

"Thank you for helping me with this," she said softly. "The defense lessons we got in school didn't really prepare me for how dangerous this sort of thing could get... This would have been impossible without your help. Again." She paused then laughed quietly. "Sorry I keep dragging you into these things."

"You're not dragging me anywhere. I like y- spending time with you, even if its down in a ruin," he replied. "If you need me I'll be there." Should he...? ...yeah. He was going to. Carefully he shifted his arm back and slipped it around her; his heart started pounding against his ribs when she scooted over the last few inches between them and put her head against his shoulder.

As he adjusted his arm a bit his fingers brushed against his jacket pocket; he couldn't decide if it was lucky he hadn't brought the heart stone - he could have lost it, or she might have found it accidentally on her own - or if he should have brought it anyway, because right now...

Since they'd heard the thunder while down in the ruins the storm had obviously been going for awhile before they'd come back up to the surface; it felt like it didn't take any time at all for it to pass and once the sun was out the bridge rapidly dried off (and oh boy did the humidity immediately set in as well - that also wouldn't last very long but while it was here, whew...). Dawn hadn't budged while they'd quietly enjoyed the rain but once it was clear and dry she stirred and sat up to quietly shuffle on her knees over to retrieve her backpack from where they'd left them.

"I guess we can head back...or, should. Qi is going to want this core as soon as possible and I'm going to need time to mentally prepare for whatever he designs," she said, tone growing steadily more annoyed. "This better not get me in trouble with the church or something."

Unsuur grabbed his things and walked with her across the bridge and up all the ramps; the ground underneath the Paradise Lost entrance was one large puddle and he grimaced a bit at the squelch of mud under his boots, knowing that at least a little bit of it had gone up over the top as he felt a wet spot against the back of his ankle. Dawn didn't seem bothered by the water or mud and plodded onward, stopping only to knock the worst of the clinging muck off against a pile of metal scrap that was now jutting out of the ground beside the salvage office.

They slipped a few times each going down the hill to Dawn's workshop but made it to her doorstep where Unsuur didn't move to follow her once the door was open; Dawn walked a few steps in then realized he wasn't behind her and turned around.

"You can come in, if you like. It won't take me long to change into a clean shirt so you can have your jacket back."

Unsuur glanced down at his extremely muddy boots. "I don't want to mess up the floor." She silently raised an eyebrow at him then pointedly looked from him down to her own muddy footprints trailing across the room. "...you have a point." He stepped through the doorway but didn't go more than a few feet inside; it was cooler and less humid in here and while he waited he pulled his canteen out of his backpack and finished off what was left in it.

Dawn did remove her boots before getting near her bed, leaving them and her backpack sitting at the edge of the kitchen area and after retrieving a shirt from the little dresser disappeared into the bathroom. As she'd said it didn't take long before she was back out with a clean shirt on and the straps of her coveralls hanging loose around her waist and the front flap hanging down over her thighs. In one hand she had his jacket and in the other was the power core that she sat on the kitchen table before holding his jacket out to him shyly.

"I have something I um...wanted to show you, but it's not quite finished. I should be able to get it done in an hour or two, if you don't mind coming back or meeting somewhere later?"

"I won't mind at all. What time is it now?"

Dawn moved a hand toward one of her pockets and paused, then moved to her backpack and rooted around until she found her pocket watch. "-it's almost 5."

Wow. They'd been down there awhile. "Should I come back around 7 then? I can bring you dinner, like usual."

"Um... Why don't we...plan to go get dinner? W-we at least deserve some drinks after today," she added, hiding a giggle behind a hand -- he was also sure she was hiding a creep of red to her face.

"Sounds good to me. I'll be back around 7."

She retrieved her boots and carried them to the door, dropping them just outside as Unsuur headed out; a quick glance over his shoulder got him a small wave and a smile, which he returned, then he headed down the tracks along the oasis to head home. Once he was back inside he dumped his pack, boots, muddy socks, and broken sword just inside the door and held his jacket up to his face; it smelled a little oily though he didn't see any obvious stains. It also smelled sweaty - like him, and now like Dawn he supposed. He carefully laid it out on the table with it spread as open as possible, to give it the best chance to air out (body odor didn't really bother him but he wanted to see if the oil scent would fade).

What to do for the next two hours... His legs hurt where the hauler had hit him and a quick check of his chest revealed some minor scrapes and a bruise across his sternum so he headed to the bathroom to clean the scrapes; though he really wanted a shower (or to soak in a tub, even - but, not while the bridge was out and every drop of water mattered) he settled for filling a little wash bin with hot water and steadily scrubbing himself down with a cloth and soap. Once suitably clean he headed over to lay on his bed on top of the coverlet, wincing a bit as aches made themselves known but didn't get to lay there long before an insistent scratching at the door had him heading over to let Captain inside.

"Anything to report?" he asked as the cat sauntered in passed his legs. Captain ignored him and hopped up on the table to begin sniffing at the jacket and Unsuur went to pick him up. "Sorry, Captain - not actually sure if there's hydraulic fluid on there or not. I don't want you getting sick."

THAT got him a loud yowl of protest as he carried the cat over to the bed and plopped him down on the pillow before scooting around the foot of the bed to get a clean shirt and jacket out of his closet. "Here - you can lay on this one if you want," he said as he tossed the jacket near the pillows before stretching out on his stomach across the middle of the bed with his legs hanging off one side and his arms off the other, shirt dangling loosely from one hand. Laying like this wasn't entirely comfortable with the scrapes on his chest but the discomfort was offset by how good it felt to stretch his back and legs out; he felt a little like a cat himself as he stretched as much as he could, thrusting his hands toward the door and pointing his toes - no wonder Captain liked doing this every time he woke up from a nap.

Speaking of Captain, when Unsuur looked up from his stretch the cat had disappeared off the pillow and he was disappointed to spot him back over on the table sniffing at his dirty jacket.

Again he got up and grabbed the cat but this time carried him to the door and set him outside on the doorstep. "Sorry Captain - visitation privileges are revoked. It's for your own good."

He closed the door (Captain was meowing and scratching but he'd give up sooner or later) and finally pulled his shirt on before looking down at his boots and socks - should probably get as much mud off them as he could and put all his supplies away too. When he was done cleaning and putting everything away (what could he do with these remaining plastic keys? At least there were only a few left - he put them in a small pile on his counter) he still had a half hour before he was due back at Dawn's so might as well go get a new canteen while he was thinking about it.

The new jacket had an uncomfortably stiff collar so he decided to go without; after making sure Captain wasn't outside trying to sneak in Unsuur headed out and jogged over to By the Stairs. Arvio was outside and seemed to be taking inventory of some floral-scented sachets overflowing out of a box on the main counter and Unsuur concluded it really had been awhile since he'd gone out without his jacket on as Arvio did a quick double take as he walked up.

"Oh, Unsuur - hello! Almost didn't recognize you there. Enjoying a day off?"

"Dawn and I spent the day down in Paradise Lost, looking for some power core thing for Qi."

The man seemed to cycle through a few fleeting emotions - surprise, concern, and jealousy perhaps? - before he recovered and plastered his usual 'charming salesman' smile across his face. "A-ah, I see. No one was hurt, I hope?"

"Nope, we're both fine. I need a new canteen though."

"Well, I have a small but splendid selection of those - have a look," Arvio replied with a flourish, indicating the middle section of a nearby shelf.

There was a neat line of canteens - six across, two deep - on the shelf; the water-container part of them were all the same dull green metal but they were set into colorfully decorated leather cases, and out of the twelve there Unsuur counted eight different patterns. He examined each and settled on one that looked like a rocky horizon caught between sunrise and night: there was a stylized line of mountains colored in silvery tones beneath a navy blue and star-speckled sky on one side that gradually blended into a gradient of purple, red, orange, and a tiny hint of a yellow sun on the other, and above and below the image was a thin red border that had a repeating pattern of tiny green cacti. It was way fancier than his old canteen - fancier than it needed to be - but he liked how it looked; he paid for it and carried it home, admiring the artwork and trying not to think about how all the colors would eventually wear away with use.

...that had taken about twenty minutes, so ten more minutes to go. He may as well make his way over there. He put the canteen on his bed and retrieved the stone heart from where it had been sitting beside Wilson.

"I hope you both had a nice day. And, sorry that my pants pockets are tighter than my jacket," Unsuur said as he slipped the heart into his back pocket. "I'll put my jacket on again tomorrow morning like usual."

All right...back to Dawn's. He wondered what she had to show him.

Her yard was still and silent so he went directly to the door; she answered almost immediately after he knocked - like she'd been at the door waiting - and invited him in with a shy smile, and once he'd stepped inside and she was no longer partially hidden by the door he realized the overalls and work shirt had been replaced with a pale blue sundress that hung to her calves and left her shoulders bare.

Uh oh... I'm in trouble.

"...hey," he said simply. It was all he could think of to say.

"Hey," she repeated softly, looking him up and down. "I didn't ruin your jacket, did I?"

"Nope." He dragged his attention away from bare skin, focusing ahead on the kitchen table - the core wasn't sitting there anymore; she must have taken it to Qi already. In its place was a wooden box, small enough to sit in the palm of his hand, and then Dawn moved back into his view as she walked over to flip the top of the box open and take something out of it.

Unsuur caught a whiff of leather as she walked back over; she looked...uncertain, and her hands shook a little bit as she held something out to him.

He took it from her and looked it over; a newly cut, oiled, and stitched leather band connected to a...beautifully woven...heart-

Heart knot. It's a heart knot. Made out of gold and silver wire.

"I know it's not...the usual kind, but-" Dawn started, voice steadily growing quieter with each word, "but I- Arvio, he... He had one he was willing to give me but not one he was willing to sell, and- I-I mean, surely metal and um, and leather would hold up b-better anyway, and..."

Unsuur almost dropped it twice as he tried to fumble it onto his wrist; Dawn reached out to help curl the band and hold it in place as he got the end threaded through the buckle and the buckle's tongue through one of the holes. Once he'd slipped the loose end of the band into the securing loops behind the buckle he jammed a hand into his back pocket and produced the heart stone.

Her eyes went wide as he offered it to her; as she gingerly took it she began to giggle -- it was soft at first, then grew in volume and force until she was laughing outright.

"We do make a pair, don't we?" she managed in between the laughter.

"Arvio lied and wouldn't sell me one either," Unsuur said in a rush. "But that's ok because now we both have something special." Impulsively he stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, lifting his chin to rest it atop her head; he could feel the stone heart pressing in against his back where she held it in one hand as she squeezed herself against him.

At her touch something inside him released - it was the most exquisite rush of relief and giddiness he'd ever felt in his life, like a dam inside his head had bust open. No more doubting himself, no more waiting, no more wondering. He let out a contented sigh and felt Dawn stir in his arms; glancing down he found her looking up at him quizzically.

"Something the matter?"

"No -- it's just, I've never really had a crush like this before. It was confusing, I know I was overthinking a lot of things, and I was trying to not let it to get to me, waiting on our date to finally happen. A few times I nearly slipped up, you almost caught me once, and I've basically acted like a total idiot for no reason. And, even though I know we had a date planned I still worried something would happen again and the day wouldn't ever come. That's why I've been carrying that heart around with me just in case the right moment presented itself. Good thing I did, huh?" he added after a moment.

She opened her mouth and paused, then leaned back from him so she could lightly jab a finger into his chest. "I KNEW that had to have been you leaving those letters!"

"Yeah, that was me. What would you have done if you'd actually caught me that night?"

"Probably, um...this, just... I wouldn't have had the knot ready. But! I would have gotten it done as soon as I could!"

Unsuur lifted his arm from her back to admire the shine of the wire. "It's really great- wait a moment." Something about the shape struck him...stirred a memory. "That day I saw your sketchbook, was that...?"

She nodded then hid her face against his chest, voice muffled. "Yep... I wasn't expecting you to show up and didn't even think-- not until you said something about it anyway, then I realized it was right there in full view."

"I didn't know what I was looking at, don't worry. I was trying to not look at you."

"Hmm, I didn't realize my pajamas were so scandalous," she teased, tilting her head back to grin up at him, her cheeks going pink.

"Not really scandalous but definitely distracting. A girl who likes rocks, art, is smart and really pretty too? That's a perfect storm, only way less destructive than an actual storm."

She snorted and started laughing again. "I'd hold off on the destructive opinion until you've seen me fully dismantle something."

"Did that robot cat not count?"

Once more she hid her face against him. "Oh Peach, don't even remind me of that... I'm going to have to burn those overalls too, they're a lost cause." A few seconds passed before she placed her hands on his chest and gently stepped away. "Ready to head to the saloon?"

"I'll go anywhere you want, for any reason. Food is a good reason though."

Giggling Dawn moved over to her bed and retrieved a pair of plain tan canvas shoes that were slipped just underneath the edge and pulled them on; he was expecting her to meet him at the door but instead she went to the bookshelf with her rocks again and gently leaned the stone heart against the large rainbow quartz chunk, looking back at him with a smile.

"I think I'll make a wire cage for it so I can wear it but for right now I'll keep it right here."

It looked nice on the shelf but it'd look great as a necklace or something (and then everyone would be able to see it too and know).

They headed out the door and as they passed through the gate Unsuur reached over to twine his fingers with hers. "Since it's rained the desert is going to start blooming really soon - would you like to go for a walk tomorrow afternoon to see it? I know you'll probably be busy with a robot so it's ok if you don't have time but you might need a break by then anyway."

"I would love to," she answered, smiling up at him. "And I will MAKE time for it."

There were a lot of eyes on them when they walked into the saloon: Unsuur saw Owen give him a sly wink; Mi-an practically vibrated in place and dragged Elsie away before the other girl had a chance to open her mouth; Arvio and Amirah came in, spotted them, and Arvio left just as quickly - abandoning an annoyed looking Amirah who moved over to go sit with Elsie and Mi-an; Justice was grinning at him from where he sat at the bar; and, strangely, Pen seemed to be staring them down as he picked up a pair of packed bags from Grace at the counter -- the man lingered there for a unusually long time eying them, wearing an expression that Unsuur couldn't read (he found himself glad Dawn was sitting with her back to the counter) until finally his usual smirk found its way back on his face and he swept out the door with his hefty order.

Whatever that had been was...well, it was odd.

Their food came out quickly as Cooper and Hugo were setting up on the stage so there wasn't a lot of time to chat between eating and the music starting; Dawn did shift around to sit beside him in the booth once they'd finished their dinners and Unsuur happily put his arm around her again, feeling a little thrill of excitement shoot through him as he realized he'd be able to do this without feeling weird -- maybe even any time he wanted to. And hold her hand, and spend time with her, and compare rock collections, and...

Tomorrow was going to be a great day and he still had that perfect date planned and coming up too.

Best. Day. Ever.

#Heart of Stone #HoS #Heart of Stone - ch 13 #mtas unsuur #mtas arvio #mtas captain #my time at sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Ensuring the Future - ch 2

Tentatively one of her hands moved toward his face, tracing from his jawline up to his temple before she gently lifted his hat from his head; at the same time her other came up to touch his chin. Miguel offered no resistance - he didn't know what to do with himself.

She's alive... How? How was this possible?

It was all he could do to remind himself to keep breathing as 'how' repeated over and over in his mind.

With a little bark of laughter that was half joy, half sob, Olivia brushed the hair from his face before letting his hat drop to the floor and throwing her arms around him. It jarred him out of his stupor and he wrapped arms around her as well, crushing her against him and burying his face in her hair. ((Continued below cut))

Light, she even smells as she did all those years ago, he thought as the scent of clover and honeysuckle reached him. Always floral or earthy tones...sunshine and summers, green and lush and alive. Like she is now.

"Um...I should...or would, you know, go, but..."

Mi-an's voice was small and awkward; Miguel dragged himself back to the present -- they WERE right in the only doorway, weren't they?

"R-right, right..." Olivia murmured, slowly pulling away from his embrace while keeping hold of his hands to tug him along with her as she limped (limped? Why? What had happened to his Livvy?) backward a few steps to clear the way. "Put the list in my mailbox, I'll tend to it later." Her voice cracked a little, tears beginning to well up and Miguel could feel that familiar pinprick heat in his own and squeezed her hands in his.

Mi-an rushed by, and then...silence, aside from the sound of the wind gently moving the still opened door; it creaked softly as it rocked in place -- the breeze had picked up a great deal since last night and a good enough gust would surely send the door careening into the wall. Without breaking eye contact Miguel felt around with his foot until he hooked a toe around the door and slung it shut, no doubt leaving his hat in a puddle of coffee while closing him in with her.

"I can't believe this...I...I thought you were dead," she whispered, blinking several times. In what light made it through the dusty window nearby Miguel could see a few tears fall. "They said Doss was wiped out to a man."

"I was told the same, yes," he answered. "I... I wasn't there. My teachers had forced me to- my departure was delayed by three days. I had sent a telegraph ahead - it cost all the pocket money I'd saved up to feed myself on the trip but I couldn't bear the thought of you worrying or, or thinking I had gotten cold feet, or--" It was rare when words refused to come to him. Miguel squeezed his eyes shut - a few tears of his own fell free and he let out a short chuckle as he fought to get his thoughts into order. "My path was meant to take me east to Lucien and then Atara, then onward to home. I was stopped at the Ataran border and told I could go no further if that was my destination... That it was..."

She tightened her grip on his hands and grimaced a bit, shifting her weight-- ah! She'd been limping! Miguel took a step toward her and slid an arm about her waist, turning his head to look about the room. Whatever her injury he wasn't going to let her stand there in pain; his ire toward Mason grew a bit as he saw the scant amount of furniture left in the dwelling -- had the man just sold everything or had he lived as an animal? Good riddance to the wretch...

There was a chair at the table - it was closer than the bed and would have to do. Gently he guided her that way and after a step or two she matched her stride to his to make walking a little less awkward but then continued on passed the chair without his assistance and went to sit on a traveling trunk at the end of the bed where she pulled him down beside her; though it was wide enough they could have sat together without touching Miguel couldn't help but sit as close as he dared -- knees and legs brushing against one another as he again took her hand in his.

"I also was delayed," she said after a brief pause, accompanied with a small laugh and a quick dab at her eyes with a sleeve. "Public transportation schedules weren't exactly in my favor so I had to seek other means of getting back to Doss in time -- ended up buying a seat in a merchant caravan. We left Tallsky on schedule but broke down halfway to Walnut Groove... I remember being so frantic, thinking as you had: that you'd think I'd changed my mind or that I was somewhere out on the road injured or worse. As soon as we reached Walnut Groove I went to send a telegraph but... 'tis hard to send a message when there's no one left alive to receive it," she said, voice quiet at the last. "...that poor man's face went so pale when I announced where it needed to go. They'd only just gotten the news of Doss that morning, and he had to be the one to tell me."

"Were you not here before me now, where I can see and touch and hear you, I would think this little more than a dream," Miguel said softly. "And dreamed I have, for thirty years... This is nothing short of a miracle."

Olivia nodded, pulling his hand up to her mouth to press a kiss to his knuckles - it almost brought him fully to tears. "It is. It truly is, because I tried -- I tried sending letters to the ministry, begging them to tell me you had not been in Doss at the time. When I didn't get a response I had no choice but to believe the worst."

She had...what? Why had he never...? "What letters?" he asked. "I never received them nor was I told that there had been letters sent for me."

Her brows knitted together, confusion plain to see. "I sent three letters - no, no, it was four. Spaced out over a month. Addressed to you and, I believe her name was Gail?"

Miguel nodded - Miss Gail, in the main office there at the ministry. She handled all incoming and outgoing mail and Peach help you if you were even a single gol short for the postage costs. "Yes, that's her. I know without a doubt she would have made certain they got into my hands or at the very least that you received a reply. As inconceivable as it seems, none of those letters must have made it to Meidi." He fell silent a moment, weighing his next words; he remembered that her father Oswald had been an architect and was hired to design a new arts school auditorium in Tallsky around the same time Miguel had first left for the ministry. It was meant to be a temporary move at first but then Olivia had begun studying there as well and her father's design work suddenly became highly demanded, so much so that they had bought a second house and would move between the two cities as his work required while giving Olivia a place of her own to stay while in school. All of them were supposed to be back in Doss by the time of that last visit but if she had been delayed then there was a chance... "...your family, were they...?"

Olivia looked down into her lap. "They were in Doss. Left a few weeks before I was due to meet you back home. They're gone." After a breath she looked back up to him. "Yours?"

"Gone," he answered quietly. Though his heart ached to hear she'd lost everyone as he had a part of him morbidly found it a relief -- back then he'd been in such despair at the news that it had never even occurred to him to try and send a letter to her Tallsky address, to see if anyone would have been there and able to tell him the truth of the matter. ...now that he was thinking of it he marveled at how stupid he'd been in hindsight. Why hadn't he thought of that at some point? Knowing now that she was alive and she would have eventually gotten it-- well...maybe. If her letters hadn't reached him perhaps his would not have found her either, and grief had laid him so low that for weeks afterward it had been a struggle to think clearly about anything at all...perhaps he was being too hard on his younger self--

Both of them about jumped out of their skin when there was a loud pounding at the door then. "Oh for-!" the woman growled. "What now?!" After the outburst she took a deep breath, wiped her eyes quickly, then stood; he was forced to let his hand fall away from hers as she began limping toward the door. "Excuse me - I need to skin alive whoever this is."

He watched as she grabbed her cane from beside the door frame before throwing the door open; from over her shoulder Miguel could see Yan standing there and bristled - how dare he, of all people, interrupt this reunion?

"Yes, commissioner? To what do I owe this...pleasure?"

Miguel could hear the forced pleasantry in her tone.

"Hey heeeey, newbie! And er, that's 'president' ... Anyway! Couldn't help but notice you haven't swung by the commerce building yet today! Now, I don't know how things were run back in...wherever you moved from, but around here I run a tight ship. I know you just got here and all so I'm willing to let it slide this time but I expect to see you bright and early tomorrow morning - we've got a lot of work to get done!"

Olivia tossed the cane up to catch it at the middle of the shaft before she gently brandished the polished round head at Yan. "Yes, commissioner, you do seem the sort to try captaining a ship in the desert. Rest assured the work shall be done regardless of when I arrive at the guild. Anything else?"

"It's 'President' and just keep in mind that we have standards here-"

"-which is why you're two months behind on commissions, I'm sure," Olivia interrupted. "It will be taken care of, good day."

As Yan sputtered Olivia closed the door, letting out a huff. Miguel could hear a faint and final 'and clean up your doorstep!' from outside as she came back over, cane tapping along in her hand -- it sounded as heavy as it looked, and it looked oddly similar to a sheathed sword sans the cross-guard, though he appreciated the brightly colored red and orange enamel swirls against the silver and black metal.

"I can already tell working with that man is going to be a headache," she sighed as she settled back onto the trunk.

"You do not know the half of it, Livvy," Miguel chuckled. Olivia's smile widened at the nickname; he wondered how long it had been since she'd heard it last. "Though...I suppose, loathe as I am to admit it, he is right in that we do have responsibilities to tend to. I imagine more than just him will come calling if our respective absences are noticed and I do not want to be interrupted a second time. We have thirty years to catch up on."

"That we do, and that we shall." She tapped the cane's tip against the side of her foot, glancing around briefly. "Wish it were more hospitable in here. I've had better-appointed camps in the middle of nowhere... And while the saloon looked and smelled very inviting I'd rather not lose my composure in public, if it's all the same to you," she said, tone teasing. "I can definitely have at least a few more chairs by the evening though I can't vouch for how comfortable they'll be. At the very least there'll be more options than the bed or the trunk."

"We can make use of my room in the church dormitory - I promise it is comfortable and private enough. I can come collect you later this evening and we can start catching up over dinner there?"

"Sounds marvelous. And I in turn promise I will be far more presentable than I am now," she said with a low laugh, reaching up to comb her fingers through her hair at the back of her neck.

Miguel stood and they walked to the door together. As the door opened and sunlight streamed in again he noted a glint of silver in her hair - a little hairpin, shaped like a curved shield with a tiny sword stuck through holes at its edges to hold the hair in place. It seemed fitting considering her sword-cane; those tales of knights and damsels in distress had always been her favorites growing up...it was strangely comforting and heartwarming to still see that bit of her on display. How much had she changed in these last thirty years? ...and oh how he had changed, as well. At the thought the tiniest flicker of fear shot through him but it was just as quickly banished as she reached out to touch his hand again.

"One more thing... Is there...a missus, or anyone I need to be concerned about not crossing?"

He shook his head. "No. Few ever compared to you and those that came close enough didn't end up working out."

"Good," she said. "Then there's no guilt in this." With that she leaned forward to press a quick kiss - barely a brush of the lips - against his cheek. "There aren't words to explain how much I've missed you. I will see you later tonight."

Miguel's face flushed bright red as his stomach twisted with the aching familiarity of the gesture and hurried to grab his hat up off the ground (the coffee had soaked into the band but only at the back -- even if it stained it wouldn't be all that noticeable unless someone was staring at the back of his head). He swept the shattered mug off to the side of the door with his foot then reluctantly turned to head for the gate; he so very much wanted to just...stay. To speak to her now and hear every detail, every moment, of what her life had been since they'd parted -- as they had always parted after their visits home. It had been so routine at the time with her returning to her builders school in Tallsky and he making the long trip back to Meidi...never in his life could have he predicted losing so much in one fell swoop.

And yet, here I have regained some of it... Though he would need to watch himself carefully for any unchecked feeling of entitlement he had to acknowledge a sudden surge of selfishness and hope -- that she too carried that same love that he had, even after all this time, and that he might have just been delivered a second chance at the life they'd always wanted.

#Ensuring the Future #EtF #Ensuring the Future - ch 2 #mtas miguel #mtas Mi-an #mtas Yan #My Time at Sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Ensuring the Future - ch 1

**WARNING: if you have not finished all of Sandrock's and Miguel's stories this will be spoilers from start to finish**

It was Thursday which meant an early morning walk from the temple to City Hall to file the weekly water usage reports (and on the first Thursday of every month Miguel would file the import reports as well). As he'd slotted the file into the correct cabinet Matilda had greeted him so excitedly - almost falling over herself to tell him the good news: a second builder had finally accepted the remaining open contract.

When Mason had announced his impending retirement it had taken six months before Mi-an accepted the first one. While awaiting her arrival Matilda had had the idea of adding a small stipend to the contract, to try and quickly attract applicants (and of course it was added to Mi-an's as well, to be fair) for that last contract, which Miguel had considered a needless gamble with their limited resources (among...other problems) but it seemed it had paid off and the builder would be here within 3 days. ((Continued below cut - and, again, SPOILER WARNING))

He'd been all smiles and hopefulness for Matilda but once she'd gone to inform Yan and ask Mi-an to meet their new builder at the train station he felt his good mood sour a bit. Another variable to figure out... Not the end of the world but not ideal; there were appearances to keep if things were to proceed without bloodshed - a careful balance to maintain. Mi-an had proven to be naive and easily cowed but Miguel doubted this second builder would be as simple to manage... Well, he supposed he would find out soon. In fact, it would probably be a good idea to introduce himself as soon as possible, to assess this newcomer and determine how much trouble they would be.

-------------------------------

Though he'd wanted to greet their new builder on the day of their arrival his duties had kept him busy until the evening, and while he considered still making the trip out to introduce himself it didn't feel exactly proper to intrude on their night; no doubt they were in that moldering workshop settling in after an exhausting day of touring the town and being bombarded by new faces. Miguel was familiar with such - he'd felt overwhelmed and more than a little out of place when he'd first arrived in Sandrock and there were still days where he keenly felt like an outsider still...perhaps along with assessing the builder he could offer some guidance on that front as well.

The saloon was buzzing with chatter when he'd dropped in to order something to take back to his room to continue working until it was time for bed (sermons did not write themselves, after all) and here and there he'd catch snippets about the builder - "nice" and "polite" and "so proper!" and so on. It seemed they'd at least gotten someone with manners...that alone would be a breath of fresh air compared to the usual rabble in town.

Something caused him to pause at the door however -- the barest hint of a name amongst the conversations: Olivia. It was gone in an instant, lost in the multitude of voices, but the sudden and familiar gut punch of regret lingered on afterward; sucking in a breath Miguel shoved through the doors and out into the much quieter dark, exhaling slowly. Olivia... Was that the new builder's name? Surely not... Though he could hardly hold the girl responsible for what her parents had named her if that was indeed her name then having her around was going to be a constant exercise in composure, never mind all the other issues he'd been imagining off and on all day whenever he'd had a moment to breathe between his tasks.

"What an unfortunate coincidence," he sighed, tipping his head back briefly. "How many lanterns have I sent to the heavens with that name on it?" At least 30, not counting the years he'd released more than one.

...the sky was especially clear tonight and felt downright pleasant with the scant breeze blowing lazily over the town. He would bring his work and his dinner outside and enjoy the weather while he could, and attempt to steel himself for speaking to the builder tomorrow.

Her name is not her fault, he repeated in his mind as he walked back up to the dormitory.

----------------------------------------

The old bed was creaky, smelled musty, and just barely serviceable; as Olivia begrudgingly opened her eyes to a knock at the door she vowed the first thing she would do today (after a pot of coffee) was head back to that little general store and purchase a new mattress -- the frame itself just needed a few nails to vanquish the squeaks and pillows were will within her ability to make immediately but she had neither the patience or a young enough back to last long enough to make the mattress herself.

Another knock on the door drew out a quiet groan as she leveraged herself up on an elbow; she'd agreed to meet with Mi-an again this morning to discuss divvying up the shameful backlog of commissions (what HAD the previous builder been doing all this time?) but she probably should have specified an actual time rather than "at the crack of dawn."

Grunting she swung her legs out of the bed and gingerly stood up, testing her weight on her right leg; the train ride had aggravated the limb even with her preemptively wearing the brace for the trip and while there was a dull ache from hip to calf it held firm and there were no debilitating sharp, shooting pains -- she could make do with the cane for the day, most likely. She picked up and plopped the brace into a drawer in the nightstand (THAT needed some nails too - wobbly) then grabbed her cane and hobbled slowly over to the door while using her free hand to attempt to comb her long, currently unruly hair into some semblance of order.

"Yes, yes, I'm coming," she grumbled as the knocking came again.

As expected a bright-eyed and cheerful Mi-an was on the other side, and she was pleased to see at least a little bit of sheepishness once the younger woman had taken in her appearance.

"O-oh, I'm sorry, I just thought..."

Olivia waved a hand and moved from the door, leaving it open for her to decide whether to enter or not. "It's fine. I have never been a morning person - I will only wake with the sun because I am expected to, not because I like it. Coffee?"

"Yes, please." Mi-an came in and closed the door behind her. "Wow... Mason must have lived very um...sparsely."

"Or else he sold everything he could get away with," Olivia retorted, and it came out sharper than she'd intended. "I suppose a table, a chair, a bed, and a nightstand count as 'fully furnished.' At least the stove and toilet were left behind as well, and I had the foresight to already own cookware and flatware." No fridge though...yet another thing she needed to take care of quickly.

"I can bring you some stools, if you like? Maybe Matilda didn't realize it was so empty in here..."

Olivia set a pot of water on the stove to boil. "Stools would be welcome for outside work. Given time I'll whip this place into shape -- your general store DOES sell mattresses, yes?"

"I could make you one?" Mi-an offered.

She turned and could see the girl hovering awkwardly near the lone chair at the single table. "I could make one myself, I just require one immediately."

"Oh. In that case, Arvio can order them in but he does sell really nice mattress toppers in the meantime? I have one on my bed and mine is..." she trailed off, looking at the old bed in the corner. "Newer, and... Mine doesn't even need one but it's still nice to have."

"Mmm. It will have to do." She moved to the cabinet to retrieve the canister of grounds and from the corner of her eye could see Mi-an trying - and failing - to not steal glances at the cane; when she'd arrived yesterday she'd been wearing a long skirt over the brace, with the cane packed away in her traveling trunk. "-go on, ask away."

"Ask? Ask what?" Mi-an repeated quietly, smiling awkwardly.

Olivia came over to sit in the chair. "It's an old injury. Most of the time I wear a brace to support everything - had it on yesterday when I arrived. It isn't hurting too badly today so I can manage with the cane, and on those days where it hardly hurts at all I can do without both."

"Gotcha. It's a pretty cane!"

As her back was to Mi-an Olivia allowed herself a tired smile - it WAS a pretty cane. Enameled metal in a bright red and orange swirling pattern with a plain silver handle that looked like a sword's rounded pommel - a very purposeful design. "Thank you. It is my own creation and serves me well." She could hear the water boiling now and went to measure out the appropriate amount of grounds and clip a tiny sieve onto the side of the pot (another little invention of hers, built to fit this specific pot - though, usually she only used it when camping rough. An actual coffee pot would be acquired in the near future but for now this would suffice). Once it had boiled long enough she poured the coffee from the pot through the sieve into a pair of mugs. "I'm afraid all I have is sugar at the moment."

"Yeah...I guess Mason didn't leave you any way to keep things cold," Mi-an said, wrinkling her nose as she looked around again. "...I actually don't even see where a fridge might have sat. But there's no way he lived here all this time without a way to keep food fresh, right?"

"At this point I wouldn't dare speculate 'lest I fall further into unfairly judging a man I've said six words to," Olivia sighed. She returned the coffee canister to the cabinet and tucked the little tin of sugar into her elbow, then moved it and one of the full mugs to the table. "Spoons are over in that little wooden box atop the trunk, if you please."

"Sure," Mi-an replied, hurrying over to grab the aforementioned box. There was a metallic rattle as the contents inside shifted; she sat it on the table between them and opened it to reveal the silverware within it -- 4 each of forks, large spoons, smaller spoons, and table and steak knives, all in silver with black wooden handles.

Olivia grabbed one of the spoons and dipped three spoonfuls of sugar into her coffee and stirred, then carried it with her as she headed toward the tiny bathroom. "Go ahead and have a seat - I am going to attempt to make myself presentable."

A splash of water, a brush dragged through her hair and then the majority of it pulled up and secured with her favorite hair clip - a little curved shield with a hairpin shaped like a sword to hold the hair within the clip...a gift from her old master. One of the few sentimental items that had both survived the years and was something she was willing to let other people see.

A clean shirt finished off morning preparations (or at least as much as she was willing to do for current company); it wasn't as refreshing as a morning shower but she would get used to that...probably. At the very least she looked more human as she slowly headed back out to Mi-an, finding that the girl had put a notebook in the middle of the table and was standing there waiting for her return.

"I hope you don't mind but I actually got up earlier than this and was at the commerce guild as soon as President Yan-"

Olivia snorted loudly at "president" Yan (and noted the mention of time - it wasn't as early as she was thinking, apparently).

"-uh, as, as soon as the door was unlocked," Mi-an went on after a moment. "And, I wrote down all of the remaining commissions on the board, grouped them by material and ordered them from oldest to newest."

"Efficient," Olivia said approvingly.

Mi-an smiled brightly and gestured at the notebook. "Thanks! I figured we could split them more or less evenly and knock them out over a matter of days. Most of them are just small things like screws, boards, and bricks."

Olivia settled into the chair and rested the cane against her thigh, grabbing the notebook with her freed hand and skimming the list. "-separate it out as you see fit and I'll complete what's assigned to me."

"What? You're...are you sure? You get a choice in this too you know."

"You know what you are set up and able to already make, and I will adjust as needed to do the rest."

"All right. If you're sure."

"Mmhmm," Olivia hummed into a gulp of coffee but pausing before getting to swallow as another knock came at the door. "--oh come now... I am not awake enough for company yet."

Mi-an moved out of her way as she stood again and moved to answer the door, coffee still in hand. At the door she leaned the cane against the wall and tugged the door open.

-------------------------------

Though it was early it didn't seem TOO early - the commerce guild did open promptly at 7am and it was half passed nine now. Assuming the builder was home it should be a quick trip to introduce himself and invite her to the sunday sermons; he could stand to do at least that much for this first interaction.

It appeared there had been some effort in tidying up the yard so there was less junk to pick a path through as Miguel entered the gate and approached the door.

At the door, hand raised to knock, he took a last deep breath. It was just a name.

It was just a name.

He knocked and waited, hands clasped behind his back.

There were footsteps beyond the door with a regular thump along with them and the door opened to reveal--

Dark, long, and wavy hair - graying at the temples but still worn in the same way as she had in her youth. Hazel eyes with deep laugh lines at the corners. A subtly hooked nose, full lips, narrow face and-

No. No... How...

At the same time Miguel felt he couldn't get enough air into his lungs and also that there was too much air there as he watched the woman's eyes flick up and down his figure before there was the sudden recognition and her jaw dropped (as did the mug of coffee in her hand - he was faintly aware of the liquid splattering across his shoes and pantslegs as the cup shattered at their feet).

"Olivia..." he whispered.

It wasn't a name. It wasn't just a name. She was here...here!

Alive!

#Ensuring the Future #EtF #Ensuring the Future - ch 1 #mtas Miguel #mtas Matilda #mtas Mi-an #My Time at Sandrock

[whispersafterdusk]

Heart of Stone - ch 12

His day had fully recovered from the deputy thing; he'd made three rock stacks (one of which was a new record - a whole twelve rocks tall - and while it wouldn't last through even a slightly windy day he was still rather proud of it) and had found a natural stack out in the wild -- it was made up of layers of different colored sandstone and had weathered in such a strange way that it looked like someone had purposely placed individual rocks even though it was one solid piece. He'd spent an hour or so sitting out there admiring it from various angles; despite having been out this way hundreds of times he'd never seen it before. It must have been buried after it was formed and all these recent sandstorms had finally uncovered it; he'd have to bring Dawn out here to see it sometime. ((Continued below cut))

Speaking of Dawn, each time he'd passed within view she'd seemed steadily busier as the pile of scrap near the furnaces grew; her fence had been taken down along the back and side of the yard as well and new corner posts had been driven into the ground further out to mark her new property. There was enough space now for a bedroom and then some -- she could probably add on three rooms of roughly the same size as the current house without encroaching too much on the area of the yard where all the machines were, though with how things were going in Sandrock lately some of that open ground might be needed for more machines instead... At least she'd definitely get the separate bedroom she wanted.

Anyway...dinnertime was here. Owen ought to have food for him to deliver. Unsuur brushed himself off before heading into the saloon; Grace was at the bar, taking orders and handing out drinks, which meant Owen was probably in the kitchen on cooking duty tonight (that was good). It took Grace several minutes to notice he was standing there but she quickly headed into the kitchen and came back out with a box for him.

"Here you go - tell Dawn I said hi," she said as she handed it over.

"I will. Thanks."

Whatever was in the box smelled...not spicy, but spiced. Nice and fragrant. The box was heavy too - definitely a hearty meal inside. Unsuur was careful not to tilt the box as he headed across the tracks and to Dawn's gate; the scrap piles had both multiplied and grown larger and every furnace was lit though Dawn herself wasn't in view. He diligently checked among the machines to make sure she wasn't actually out in the yard and just out of sight then went to her door to knock and wait.

She answered a few moments later and while she looked surprised and pleased to see him Unsuur had to quickly drop his gaze to the box in his hands after getting a look at her; gone were the overalls and work shirt and in their place were soft looking, loose-fitting pants and a sleeveless shirt that left a strip of bare skin visible at her midriff. Over the top edge of the box he could see she was barefoot too and his face and ears grew warm.

"Hello! Please tell me you're not here because something else broke or exploded or something," she said, adding a quick laugh at the end.

"Nope." Focus. "Uh. Owen sent me over with some dinner for you - he doesn't want you worrying about having to cook after working all day on the bridge. Grace says hi too."

He held the box out to her, gaze still riveted on it, but with moving it closer he could see her midriff again in his peripheral vision; her shirt shifted as she reached for the box, revealing a bit more skin. Wonder if she was ticklish...

Focus...

"Aw, that's really nice - I'll have to thank him the next time I'm at the saloon. I actually already ate dinner but I'll save this for tomorrow."

The box left his hands and she turned to carry it over to the kitchen area. Unsuur dared to look up once she'd stepped fully out of his sight; under the overhead light's glow he noticed a buttery golden dot of color gleaming just above where her hair was pulled into a slightly messy bun. Without really meaning to he let his gaze drift lower to her neck and shoulders, spotting a tan line and-

The rock heart seemed to triple in weight in his pocket, like it was reminding him again that it was there... He needed to think about literally anything else at the moment. "Looked like there's a lot of scrap out there now. I guess Rocky and his crew came through."

After sticking the box into her fridge she straightened and nodded at him. "They busted through to an old garage-looking place down there -- lots of broken vehicles, lifts, even abandoned tools. I think what we managed to bring up today is about a fifth of what I'll need overall, assuming all of it is usable." She walked back toward him, reaching up to pull a hairpin (topped with a very familiar-looking opal) free; Unsuur was transfixed by the sight of her hair tumbling loose. With a soft sigh Dawn rubbed a hand across her head, massaging fingers into where the hair had been twisted into the bun with a grimace. "It's a very long walk from there to here, even with the lift and a cart. Most of my days are going to be eaten up by travel time alone and then I actually have to get everything made."

"That doesn't sound fun," he mumbled, glancing around the room desperately for something else to fix his attention on. His eyes fell on the coffee table where he could see one of her notebooks laying open with a sketch visible on the page. "Designing stuff for when the Mysterious Man gets here?"

She glanced toward the couch and her eyes widened, then she was across the room in three steps and flipping the notebook face-down on the table. "Um, yep! He- when did you say he usually shows up?"

"Around the 20th each month - unless he gets held up somewhere, but that doesn't happen very often." From here Unsuur hadn't really seen much detail; he had the impression of a bracelet or maybe a choker, or perhaps an enlarged drawing of a ring? It had been a circular shape with something sort of triangular inverted and set into its middle.

"I'll have some things ready for him, not a problem," Dawn went on with a nervous-sounding giggle and a grin. "Um, well, I plan on getting up really early tomorrow so I should probably turn in!"

Oh, hmm. How early would that be? That might make delivering his letter...tricky, depending on the timing. Hopefully 'really early' for her wouldn't be around 3am, which is when he'd be waking up to sneak over (and why did she seem suddenly anxious?) "All right, I'll let you get to bed. Remember: no overworking yourself."

Right before his eyes the nervousness drained out of her and she had a much more natural smile for him as he turned to go. "I promise I'll at least try. But, we do need the bridge built and soon."

Unsuur waved goodbye then went straight home to putter around for the rest of the evening: he did a few exercises, made dinner, talked to Wilson a bit, and sketched out that natural rock stack he'd found and hung the drawing on the wall near his wardrobe. Every so often his mind would wander back to Dawn's hair tumbling down, and wasn't that the opal he'd given her? He swore it was...there hadn't been an opal of that coloration in her collection when she'd shown it to him. That she'd turned it into something she was openly wearing made him really happy, and that memory of her hair falling into place made him...also really happy. A little TOO happy, even. Luckily no one else was here (aside from Wilson but Unsuur wasn't too worried about him).

As usual he placed the heart stone on his nightstand as he climbed into bed, giving it a little pat for the night; so far he'd thought of watching the sunset again, or going for a leisurely ride on Boulder, or story night...what else could he plan? There were lots of scenic places around here and it didn't need to be at sunset to be a nice view, and there was also that natural stack he'd found that he felt she'd love to see. Ooh, or, maybe they could create a rock stack together? While at that naturally formed one? That would be the best thing EVER.

...actually, yeah. He couldn't think of anything that would be better than that. It felt right...felt perfect.

All right. Plan time.

The bridge had to be completed first, that was for certain, but when it was all done they could go see the natural stack, make one together while the sun set, then he'd give her the stone heart as the moon rose. In the meantime he would bide his time, maybe write some more letters if his head started feeling a little too full again, and avoid distracting her too much so the bridge would be done as soon as possible.

With his plan of action settled Unsuur actually fell asleep pretty quickly afterward; when he sneaked out later the night was clear and the moon was bright enough to navigate by, and he spotted a shooting star as he walked over to the workshop. A long time ago his mom had told him you were supposed to make a wish if you saw one; Unsuur had never learned why you were meant to wish nor had he ever noticed if a wish came true, but... At the very least he felt he should try, just in case, but rather than use it on himself (since he only wanted one thing and was pretty sure he didn't need a wish's help) he could try using it on Dawn's behalf instead.

Let's see, how to word it... He wished that nothing else major would happen for at least a little while; let Dawn have time to rest, recuperate, make her jewelry, spend time with friends (and him). Give her time to breathe and get settled. ...or, something like that. Since he didn't know why you wished on falling stars he wasn't sure what the rules were, but with his wish now quietly willed into the world he went to slip the letter into her mailbox only to notice a flap of paper sticking out of it already and whatever it was was keeping him from properly sliding his own letter into the box.

Carefully he poked at it with his pinky finger -- it seemed to be a folded bit of paper wedged in the slot sideways...he'd need to move it to put his letter inside. No one was around but he still felt awkward - like he was going to be caught and accused of snooping through her mail - as he slipped his thumb and pointer finger into the narrow opening and, after a few tries, managed to grab and pull the paper free without ripping it. Once he had it in hand he smoothed it out between his palms and was about to slip it in the slot straight when he noticed "TO: NAMELESS LETTER WRITER" written across it in big letters.

Nameless letter writer... That was him, right? Unless someone else was also leaving her letters at night without signing their name to them, which didn't seem likely.

Since it was just paper - no envelope - it was easy to open and there was just enough moonlight to make out what it said:

Thanks for the compliments!

I just did what needed to be done. I'm glad I left an impression though - leave your name next time! I'd like to know who you are. I'll leave this in my mailbox, hopefully you'll see it.

Too late to leave his name on this letter (not that he would have) but at least he'd seen the response. And Dawn had amazing handwriting...

He carefully folded the note up and stuck it in his pocket then slipped his letter in the box.

-------------------------------

A few mornings after dropping off his letter he'd found Dawn fitting a new face plate on her mailbox while the furnaces were heating up; the box, much like her front door, faced directly into the wind and she'd grumbled good-naturedly about the miniature desert she'd found inside after that first sandstorm as she attached the front with its pull-down-flap style door.

Though the new door looked pretty nice Unsuur couldn't help but notice another folded paper inside the mailbox with big, blocky letters on its front as Dawn tested the tension on the clip that held the door shut; he didn't want to show too much interest in the box's contents and look guilty or give anything away so he'd politely excused himself shortly afterward but then that left him daydreaming about what she might have written back to him. If he snuck over to retrieve it he wanted to leave yet another in its place, along with another small gift... No definite ideas on what either of those should be came to mind though. He WAS watching Dawn build an entire bridge...surely some encouragement and admiration of her skill would be welcome but saying 'wow you did that really well' felt a little lackluster -- a bridge was a big project so his letter should properly consider that. Luckily he didn't have much to do with the bridge still out so he had plenty of time to think on what to say.

He was still trying to put words in order in his head when he collected the food Owen had prepared and was heading back over to Dawn's. Just as he'd reached the tracks he spied her slumped over at her workbench with her arms folded over her head, and from here it didn't look like she was moving either... He hurried over and barged through her gate without stopping to latch it again behind him. "Dawn? Are you all right?"

She sat upright with a start and spun on her stool to face him. "-ah, sorry! Sorry, didn't mean to worry you. I'm fine, just-" she cut herself off with a huff and closed her eyes, holding up a finger in a 'hold on' gesture.

Unsuur was relieved she was ok and waited as she took several deep breaths with her eyes shut, taking a moment to take a deep breath of his own -- seeing her like that had actually scared him a little and had also emptied his mind of the half-composed letter he'd been thinking on all day.

"Ok," she sighed, opening her eyes and smiling up at him - she looked exhausted. "Hello. Sorry, I'm really tired and I was just...having a moment."

"Is something wrong with the bridge stuff?" he asked, glancing around. The scrap piles were in their usual spots, the line of truss parts in the distance had increased; he didn't notice anything obviously out of place.

She wordlessly held up a piece of paper and for one wild moment Unsuur thought she was holding up a letter he'd left her, feeling his heart jump up into his throat with the sudden crushing worry that he'd scared or annoyed her with them.

-wait, that wasn't his handwriting at all. He held out his hand and she handed it over; skimming the letter he recognized Qi's scrawl and picked out mention of the Paradise Lost ruins -- specifically the hazardous part that, despite their best efforts over the years, they hadn't managed to clear the monsters and robots out of.

"...he wants a power core to help with the bridge? I didn't think the bridge had anything that'd need to be powered," he said, looking from the letter to her.

She nodded, rubbing at her eyes. "It doesn't. No idea what he has planned but he just expects me to waltz into those ruins and find him a power core."

Unsuur frowned and suppressed the urge to crumple the letter up. "You weren't planning on trying to do it by yourself, were you?"

Dawn shook her head. "Absolutely not, you don't need to worry about that. Without knowing what he wants it for I have no idea what type of core to even look for or if it'll be something we can find around here."

Qi had mentioned in the letter that he and Justice wouldn't know a power core from a stapler and...while insulting, it was true that Unsuur didn't know what a power core was aside from assuming that it must be different from the power stones he was accustomed to in some substantial way. "How many types of power cores are there?"

"Loads," Dawn groaned, pressing the heels of her palms to her temples. "He wants the largest I can find but does he mean physical size? Power output? Power storage? Number of input and output ports? He at least had the courtesy to warn me about the killer robots in there but left out every other pertinent bit of information I'd need," she growled.

He couldn't quite keep himself from smiling - she just looked so cute in the moment - but wasn't sure what to say. Qi usually went overboard with details so it was odd that he'd leave out precisely what he wanted (Unsuur had completed enough of his ruins diving commissions to know how specific and exacting the man could be in his demands).

After another few breaths Dawn let out a weak chuckle and seemed to relax. "I'm guessing Owen sent you out here with another dinner delivery?"

He nodded and held out the box to her. "Still hot."

She popped the top of the box open and he could see her eyes widen. "-that is way more rice than I can hope to eat." After a pause she looked back up to him. "Have you eaten dinner?"

"Not yet, but this isn't meant for me."

"This is enough for three people and I still haven't touched the beef noodles he sent yesterday. I'd rather not risk it all spoiling before I can actually eat it so, would you like to join me for dinner?"

More than anything. "Sure. If you're sure."

She nodded and stood (after he'd handed it back she wadded Qi's letter up and tossed it onto a scrap pile) and led the way into her house. As he walked in the door Unsuur's attention was immediately drawn across the room to the photograph he'd included in his last letter; it had been framed and was hanging on the wall above her bed and he felt a rush of elation hit him -- she'd made the opal into a hairpin (which was in her hair, again, right now!) and had put the picture on display too! Any lingering fear he had that the letters were a nuisance was soothed (now if only he could fully remember what he'd been composing earlier...)

"I guess tomorrow morning I'll go ask Qi what he ACTUALLY is asking me to find," she was saying as she set the rice on the table and moved to grab plates and silverware.

While she had her back to him Unsuur got his grin under control. "When you find out and are ready to head in after it let me know. I'm not letting you go in there alone...oh, and also the door to get in is broken, so an official commission to fix it will have to be drafted, approved, and posted."

With a grateful look tinged with amusement Dawn set the plates and forks in place then turned back to the cabinet for a pair of glasses. "Well...I'm at least thankful for your help - and your company, too. I DO want to get these trusses done before I move on to anything else though, whether that's smashing robots or otherwise."

...right, that reminded him. "I actually thought about something recently. You're really good - and seem more comfortable - with swinging that pickhammer around. What if you made that your weapon of choice?"

She looked thoughtful as she set the glasses next to the plates and didn't answer until she'd retrieved the water pitcher and a bowl of noodles out of the fridge. "I guess I never really thought about it in that context... It's not a bad idea but I'd probably have to make a new, sturdier one specifically to pull double duty like that...I might end up with enough scrap left over for another pickhammer and iron would hold up a lot better over my old one."

Unsuur sat down at the table. "I can also keep teaching you how to use a sword but I think switching to something you're already comfortable with would be best. That does mean Justice would need to help with combat lessons - he's way better at swinging a hammer around than I am - and he still wants to teach you how to shoot too."

She made a face at the mention of shooting as she placed the pitcher on the table. "Ugh... I really don't want to but I guess I should learn how."

The beef noodles went into a pot on the stove to reheat; in the silence, as she stood there stirring, Unsuur found himself staring at the back of her head and replaying in his mind her hair falling down around her shoulders. He was seized by a sudden need for it to be his hand that pulled the hairpin free; not wanting to have to explain anything embarrassing he switched to staring at the plate in front of him, noticing a few chips on the rim and little hairline cracks in the glaze. It was kind of pretty in a way, and since the cracks were dark against the solid color of the plate (which was a sort of cool off-white - not gray but kind of bluish?) one could think it was done on purpose. It made him think of how the mud dried then cracked after it rained, and now he was hoping it would rain soon so they could enjoy the desert blooming together. Rain and flowers were calming to think of while he waited.

The noodles didn't take long to warm through; Dawn put them into a new bowl (one that wasn't fridge-cold) and came back to the table with it and two serving spoons, one for each dish. "How are your hands healing up?"

He held them up where they both could see; all but the deepest cuts had already healed beyond notice and those that were still visible were soft pink lines against his skin - not even really cuts anymore. "Can't even feel they were there."

"Yay - that means I can show you those stretches finally," she giggled. "I also need to finish your paints. I hate that I have to keep putting those off but I also wasn't expecting...um...all this," she went on, gesturing in the approximate direction the truss parts would be in the yard outside.

"You don't need to worry about those or rush," he replied. "It's not a big deal and I only drew something small recently so my wrist doesn't even hurt right now." She looked to him curiously as she filled their water glasses so he added "I found a real interesting rock formation earlier. I'll have to show you sometime soon."

"I'd like that," she said, smiling as she finally sat down.

Unsuur waited for her to fill her plate first then, as he went to scoop up rice, he cleared his throat and glanced up to her. "Would you like to go see it after you've gotten the bridge finished?"

"My part or the entire bridge?" she asked, laughing quietly. "I do have almost all the truss pieces done but afterward I'll still have to assemble and install them all and that alone will probably take a few days even with Heidi's crew helping me. I can't even get to that part until the base is rebuilt and there's no telling how long whatever Qi's planning will take either..."

"Whenever you're free, and after you've had time to rest." Please say yes, please say yes...

"It's a date, then," came her quiet answer and a shy smile accompanied it briefly before she stuck a forkful of noodles into her mouth.

The rush of relief and anticipation left him feeling almost lightheaded. It was a date, and that meant the second-hardest part was over with, whew. ...or was it the third-hardest part? He still had to wait until the time came and give her the stone heart...comparatively, asking her just now was probably the easiest part of this whole thing.

"Find any other interesting rocks while you've been out and about?"

...uh.

Technically yes...he didn't want to ruin the surprise but he also didn't want to lie either. He settled on just shaking his head and shoveling a bite of rice into his mouth.

"Aw, that's a shame," she went on, idly twirling her fork to gather up more noodles and quickly stifling a yawn with her other hand. "--I'll admit I'm a bit jealous you get to patrol around while I've been stuck mucking around in ruins... Normally I find delving to be exciting but I can't wait to be done with it for a bit."

He seized on the change of subject. "I like looking at things in ruins. I sometimes try and imagine how people went about their day back then -- makes me wonder what it'd be like to talk to one of them, like if someone invented one of those time machines that they kept writing sci-fi novels about."

"I don't think I'd use a time machine if I ever built one," she giggled. "Especially not with the intention of traveling back to talk to people before the Calamity... Can you imagine someone popping up out of nowhere and mentioning, oh, by the way, a Calamity is happening in your near future and it's going to destroy the world! Timeline paradoxes aside, that would just be awful..."

"True. Guess I didn't think about that. If we ever end up with a time machine I'll make sure I don't bring that up."

She laughed and finally stuck that next bite of noodles into her mouth, chewing slowly and swallowing. "A time machine would probably be a bad idea no matter how, or why, or when someone decided to use it. I can't think of a single book I ever read where things worked out in the end."

"Maybe there were books where it did but we just haven't found them, or no one in our time has decided to write one yet. I'd like to think someone somewhere got a happy ending," Unsuur said, lifting his fork to his mouth but pausing to add "I prefer the happy endings."

"Me too," Dawn replied softly, moving around rice on her plate. "Even if it's rough getting there."

As he'd just taken a bite he had a few seconds to think on what to say next and weigh whether it was appropriate; it definitely felt like a question was hanging in the air, so he decided to ask it. "Do you think Sandrock is your happy ending?"

After a few breaths she nodded, more to herself than to him, then glanced up to meet his gaze. "More like a happy beginning. We'll see where things go from here."

Another wave of warm fuzzies hit him; he smiled and kept eating.

--------------------------------------

They'd switched to chatting mostly about Sandrock as they finished off the noodles and put a decent dent in the amount of rice; Unsuur actually knew where to find a lot of the resources Dawn mentioned she'd be needing often (which surprised even himself -- a lot of what he remembered was just stuff he'd noticed in passing and hadn't thought about much since). Mid-conversation she had gone to grab a notebook off the bookcase and then together they created a roughly drawn map of Sandrock and the surrounding Eufala with points of interest marked off for Dawn to go survey later, along with Unsuur pointing out places that had great views (and promising to take her there whenever she wanted).

After they'd eaten and done the dishes Dawn showed him the stretches; first she demonstrated with her own hands, going slowly through the movements and giving a short explanation on what they were stretching and how they helped. Once she'd shown him five or six stretches she took his hands in hers and carefully guided him through the little exercises to make sure he was doing them correctly. A few of them were sort of uncomfortable, which she assured him would go away once he was used to them, while the rest were downright pleasant (and not just because she was holding his hands -- a good stretch, whether it was your back or legs or your hands, sometimes just felt great in a way that was hard to describe).

Before he headed home she'd asked him to come by again tomorrow afternoon where hopefully she'd have talked to Qi and figured out what he wanted; Unsuur was positive that whatever Qi needed, so long as it could actually be found around here, he and Dawn would track it down eventually no matter how many roaming AIs might be lurking down in the ruins. At least the robots couldn't sneak around like a geegler -- unless they were somewhere really loud they'd hear anything coming well before it could get the drop on them so no repeat scenario of him screwing up and Dawn finding herself in sudden peril.

(He wasn't letting that happen again - not now or ever)

As he walked passed By The Stairs he made himself a mental note to stop there in the morning to buy more of the bigger envelopes and see if Arvio had those heart knots back on display; he was curious to see how dedicated Arvio was to the lie -- would he actually give up whatever profits he might make off the hearts just to try and hinder someone's chance at wooing Dawn? Guess he'd find out tomorrow.

----------------------------

Most of Unsuur's morning was again spent thinking on what he'd like to write in this next letter; he'd gotten his envelopes and while he hadn't seen the heart knots on display anywhere he HAD noticed a pretty seashell sitting on a serving platter on the counter with other tiny knick-knacky looking things. It was multicolored with white at its most narrow point that turned into a bright and creamy orange that then darkened into a burnt red along its outer edge, and the inner curve of the shell was as smooth as glass and pearlescent; it seemed like a nice little gift to include with his letter so he'd paid a few extra gols for it then carried it and the envelopes home and left them on his table to (hopefully) use later tonight.

After lunch but before dinnertime he headed back to the workshop where he found Dawn and Amirah chatting at the gate. Dawn smiled at him as he walked over but didn't pause in the conversation and, as he didn't want to be rude and interrupt, he waited patiently behind Amirah for them to finish up.

"Excellent. Hopefully he'll be agreeable," Amirah was saying.

Dawn nodded. "I always found he liked to play a little coy about things even if he was intending to make the deal. He'll gripe a bit but will probably buy everything."

"You seem to know him rather well."

With a sheepish chuckle Dawn rubbed at the back of her neck. "I...wouldn't say well. We're more like semi-close business partners -- I can trust he won't try to cheat me and likewise he knows my level of craftsmanship, though it HAS been a bit since we last conducted any business."

"Guess we'll find out when he gets here," Amirah laughed. She gave a half wave and turned to go and nearly walked straight into Unsuur.

"Sorry," he said, stepping out of her way.

"That was more my fault for not noticing you. I'll see you later, Dawn -- you as well, Unsuur."

Unsuur waited until Amirah was to the tracks before turning back to Dawn. "I didn't just cut something short did I?"

"Nope, no worries. Day going well?"

He nodded. "Nothing's happened so far. It's been a really quiet day."

"Always good to hear...which means I'm probably about to ruin it," she sighed.

With a 'follow me' flick of her fingers she headed away from the fence and over toward the sole burning furnace that Unsuur could see; the pile of truss pieces had grown larger but the scrap piles were all nearly gone, and since there was only the one furnace going he assumed she was really close to being done (which sent a little thrill of anticipation through him). There was already one stool sitting next to the furnace and she quickly retrieved a second one from in front of her workbench and brought it over for herself as they both sat down.

"I talked to Qi and he's wanting to build a robot lifter to help build the bridge base," Dawn started, resting one ankle on top of the opposite knee and hunching over to brace her elbows on her calf, with her chin going into her hands. "Which is as insane as it sounds but Heidi is onboard, so..."

Unsuur blinked at her. "Why a robot? Is that really the best thing that'll help?"

With a huff she straightened and threw her hands up. "I asked the same thing! It feels more like a personal project than anything! But Heidi was convinced, which left that conversation as two versus one so now I guess I'm heading down into the ruins to find the right kind of core to build a fancy lifter robot."

"I'm going with you," Unsuur said quickly. "What are we looking for?"

"Something bigger than one in the actual lifter-type robots in there, but not big enough to run a Living AI. And I know that sounds like a lot but it does kind of narrow it down to roughly ten different types...the problem is I don't have any way of knowing what we might find down there. I hope Rocky might so I'm planning to go talk to him before he leaves the salvage yard for the day. -- oh, and, you said before that the door was broken?"

He nodded. "It is. Justice will have write up the commission to fix the door and get it approved, then post it, then...I guess either you or Mi-an will get it."

"Can't just give it to me directly?" she asked, giggling.

"Sorry, can't. We get yelled at when we don't follow the process," he answered. "Can't show favoritism and all."

"...what? Who yells- Oh, Yan, I'm guessing."

"Yep."

She rolled her eyes. "He certainly is something... I've definitely worked with better builders, and better men."

"He's not all bad...usually."

"Could've fooled m-" she cut herself off abruptly, looking at something over Unsuur's shoulder.

He turned and spotted Arvio in the distance - clearly headed this way - and as he looked back to Dawn he could see she didn't look exactly pleased. "Do I need to stay or go?"

"Stay - if you feel like it you can walk with me to Rocky's in a bit," Dawn answered, still staring at Arvio. After a pause she blew out a heavy sigh. "He's probably coming over because of Amirah. She dropped off some pottery shards and we had a quick talk about one or the other of us talking to the Mysterious Man when he gets here. Even before she found out that I kind of know him she thought it would be the better idea if I did the talking -- apparently they were butting heads over her pottery not too long ago. Might be able to help her with that issue too..." she added, trailing off and rubbing her chin, finally returning her attention to Unsuur. "Anyway, I better see what he wants. I'll be right back."

As Dawn brushed passed him he kept his back turned toward the gate; not looking at them didn't prevent him from hearing them though.

"Dawn! Sorry for intruding but Amirah just told me, and- I... I just - thank you! For all the help, thank you, genuinely. And, um...listen, I... I understand how I screwed things up before, and I was wondering..."

"...yes?" Dawn prompted.

"Can we...start over? Maybe?"

"Start...over?"

"Y-yes! Start over, act as though we've just met! I'd like to be friends, if...you're willing?"

There was a very long pause; Unsuur still didn't turn around and actually felt a bit awkward that he was essentially eavesdropping (even though it wasn't on purpose). Underneath that awkwardness was also a twinge of suspicion -- was Arvio being serious? Or was it another ruse to have a shot with Dawn?

"I...guess. Sure. If you're actually serious about being sorry over your behavior."

"I am! I am, promise! I acted poorly, and- it- I-- no...no! Trying to explain myself is no different than trying to justify it. I can be better than that."

"All right... We can give it a shot."

Unsuur didn't think Dawn sounded entirely convinced but it was her choice, not his.

"Great! I'll see you around, then. And, again, thank you - for helping Amirah and for this."

There was a crunch of sand underfoot and both retreating and approaching footsteps, followed by Dawn coming back around to sit with Unsuur again; she didn't seem upset but she certainly wasn't smiling. "Everything all right?"

"I...want to think that was genuine but I honestly don't know," Dawn answered softly. "He started out acting like a friend when I first got here too then began leaning really hard into flirting and trying to get me to agree to a date."

In that moment he wished it had been anything other than a heart knot that Arvio had lied about... There wasn't any way to tell her about it without having to explain why he'd wanted a knot in the first place, and while Arvio might have actually decided to change his attitude it seemed like something she should know about. ...maybe after he'd given her the heart rock?

Before he could think of anything else to say about it Dawn stood up again. "Well, may as well go talk to Rocky. You're welcome to come with me if you want, and I'd also like to get a look at that broken door if that's all right?"

"Nothing wrong with looking." Unsuur got up and followed her through the gate and up the hill toward the salvage yard.

Rocky's crew was out in the yard but Rocky himself wasn't; they checked inside and found Krystal at the main desk who said he had Pebbles today and was already home but that he wouldn't mind a visit (especially if it was pertaining to the bridge construction). They thanked her and headed off to Rocky's, finding him cleaning up the aftermath of feeding Pebbles a late lunch.

"Huhmmm...power cores... Can't say my boys have found anything like that in a good, long while, builder - at least not in the safer parts. Uh- I mean, the safer parts of the dangerous parts. It ain't often we head into the hazardous section but I think I might know a place you could check."

Dawn looked a little hopeful (but only a little). "If we can't find one then we can't find one but any ideas you might have will definitely help."

"Right, so, there's a big buildin' with a blown out wall out kinda in the center of the hazardous area - you gotta walk across some catwalks and real rickety walkways to get out to it but we know there's some kind of power source down there that's still goin' strong, and the place is full'a robots. Best we can tell it was the centerpiece of one of the Old World mall structures and we haven't been able to push too far in because of those dang bots, meaning it ain't been stripped like the rest of the safer areas -- not even sure anyone's been down that way in the last decade or so. Probably your best shot at findin' something like a power core but it ain't going to be a walk in the park or nothing."

"That's promising, at least," Dawn murmured. After a few breaths she nodded and gave Rocky a wide smile. "Thanks, I appreciate it."

"Hey, no problem - just be careful over there, all right? Those robots ain't nothing to play around with."

Dawn glanced to Unsuur quickly before nodding again at Rocky. "Don't worry - I'll have Unsuur with me for extra protection. If we find anything else of interest in there we'll let you know too. Unless the robots or monsters fill in behind us there ought to be some time to safely head in there after we're done."

"Not a bad idea, ha. You're all right, builder," Rocky laughed, clapping Dawn roughly on the shoulder and sending her stumbling in place with the force.

They headed out and once the door had closed behind her Dawn rubbed at her battered shoulder. "Ouch... I guess we've got a plan then, once we can get inside."

"Inside where?"

He and Dawn turned together and saw Mi-an standing behind them at the corner of the house with her arms full of rolls of leather.

"Uh...well, to be honest, Qi wants to build a robot, Heidi approves, and that means Unsuur and I have to head into the hazardous part of Paradise Lost," Dawn answered.

Mi-an's eyes widened. "Wait a moment, a robot? I thought Heidi was joking about that! And you have to go in there for it?!"

"I wish it was a joke," Dawn muttered quietly, then shrugged at Mi-an. "Just another lovely day in the life of a builder I guess."

Mi-an shifted from foot to foot, switching between looking anxious and guilty. "I wonder if they would have changed their minds if I'd been a little less accepting of the idea... Do you need any help?"

"I have Unsuur for that," Dawn replied, gently nudging her shoulder into his arm - he smiled at the contact. "But, Justice is going to be putting up a commission to fix the door to get in there so I guess...if you see if it before I do, grab it and that'll be the same thing as helping? I trust you to get it done more than I trust Yan."

"Got it!" Mi-an said with a curt nod. "Or, I WILL get it, when I see it."

With a giggle Dawn glanced toward the tunnel. "I should've had a look at that door before we walked all the way over here... Oh well, I have to go back that way to go home anyway."

"After I drop this off to Vivi I can come with you," Mi-an offered. "If we both know what's needed to fix that door then we'll have a head start on the commission. Oh, and tonight is story night - do you two want to go? I'm meeting Elsie there in a bit."

"I wouldn't mind going. How about you?" Dawn asked, looking up at him.

That brought to mind his arm over the back of the couch. "Sure, I'll go." There wouldn't be a reason for Elsie to be squishing in beside him and Dawn but a man could hope-- wait, if they were going to have dinner at the saloon... "Do you think I should go let Owen know, so he doesn't make you guys anything? And I can also go talk to Justice about that commission so it'll get posted as soon as possible."

Dawn blinked, then grinned up at him. "Good ideas, both. Mi-an and I can go have a look at the door and see what needs to be done, then we'll meet you at the saloon afterward?"

"I'll get a table if I beat you both there," Unsuur replied.

They walked together down the stairs near city hall and at Vivi's they split off - the girls went inside to deliver the leather and Unsuur headed into the saloon; it was quiet and cool inside and he could see Owen behind the bar with an open crate in front of him that was packed with bottles.

"Hey Unsuur! You're a bit too early for dinner pick up tonight," Owen said with a chuckle, pausing what he was doing - Unsuur thought he might have been taking inventory of what was in the crate.

"I know, and it's on purpose: Dawn and Mi-an will be coming to story night so they didn't want you making them dinner ahead of time."

"Ah, got it - thanks for letting me know. I'm guessing you're not just the messenger and will be joining them?"

Unsuur nodded. "Yep. They're checking on something and I need to go talk to Justice but we'll all be back in time. Or at least I will and so will they, no idea if Justice might want to come along."

Owen picked up the crate and swung it around toward the shelves behind him, bracing it between his hip and a shelf and beginning to slot the liquor bottles into place. "I'll try to discretely keep a table open for you all."

"Thanks Owen. See you later." With that task completed Unsuur headed for the Corps building; he'd been hoping Justice would already be there but all he found inside was Captain lounging on the desk so he settled in front of the fan to wait -- with it being near the end of the day it shouldn't be too long before he showed up.

Unsuur's chosen seat had blocked the fan's breeze from reaching the desk so Captain had relocated to Unsuur's lap and was still trying to get comfortable when the door opened and Justice came in grumbling under his breath.

"-dang roosters, don't know-- hey pardner, Captain," he interrupted himself when he spotted them sitting there. "Nothing to report I hope?"

"Dawn and I need to head inside the Paradise Lost hazardous ruins to look for a power core, because Director Qi and Heidi want her to build a robot."

Justice stared at him blankly, kept staring for a few moments longer, then with a groan flopped into his desk chair. "They want to WHAT?"

"It was Qi's idea, Heidi agreed with it. It's some sort of lifting - ow - robot to help build the bridge faster," Unsuur explained. Mid-sentence Captain had decided to play-bite his knuckle and he paused long enough to get his finger out of harm's way. "It needs something called a power core and Qi thinks we'll find one down in the ruins. Rocky already pointed us to a likely place and I'll be going with her to protect her, but the door to get in there is still broken."

"Right," Justice sighed. "A dang robot... I at least trust Dawn won't build anything dangerous but I can already hear the complaints rolling in about it. ...I'll write up the necessary paperwork for that door and get it over to Yan and Matilda for approval. Might take a few- ...might take a few days before it'll be posted, which is perfect," he said as he sat upright and pointed a finger at Unsuur. "I'll get that commission proposal drafted but I want to make it clear that Dawn ain't going anywhere near those ruins without at least one shooting lesson. You're good but I want her able to defend herself if something goes wrong. Understand?"

Dawn was not going to like that but Unsuur didn't see a way to get out of it. "Understood. I'll let her know when I meet her at the saloon tonight."

At that Justice gave him a little grin as he pulled a sheet of paper out of a desk drawer. "Taking your lady out to dinner?"

Unsuur's ears warmed. "We're not a couple-" yet "-we're just meeting Elsie and Mi-an there."

"Don't let me keep you then. Nothing aside from some especially ornery roosters to report on my end."

Unsuur gave Captain one last scratch under the chin then gently picked him up and placed him on the edge of the desk. "Should I tell Dawn you'll come find her?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind. I'll head on over in the morning and we'll see what we can plan. Judging by her yard she looks close to done with her half of the bridge project."

"I think so. There was only one furnace going when I was over there earlier."

Captain chose that moment to move over and stretch out atop the paper Justice had just put down; as Justice began arguing with the cat over his new nap location Unsuur headed back outside and walked toward the saloon and ended up meeting Dawn and Mi-an at the door -- it didn't escape his attention that Mi-an looked a little guilty and Dawn a touch exasperated.

"...everything ok?" he asked, glancing between the two of them. Maybe the door was way more broken than they'd thought?

"Yeah, fine, just -- might as well tell Justice we don't need that commission anymore," Dawn sighed, shooting Mi-an a look. "We can let Yan yell at all three of us later."

"Ah, well, you know me! See something broken? Ding ding ding! Fixed! Good as new!" Mi-an giggled sheepishly.

"You...fixed the door?" Unsuur asked, staring at her for a moment before looking to Dawn.

Dawn shrugged, huffing and then crossing her arms. "How was I supposed to know she carries spare hinges in her pockets? Should I just shake you next time and see if you rattle?" she asked, directing the last half at Mi-an.

Mi-an started laughing and reached for the saloon door. "It was an easy fix once the sign was moved out of the way! I doubt Yan would've wanted to post up something that simple."

"You two go get a table, I'll go tell Justice the news," Dawn said, shaking her head but grinning.

She took a step in that direction and Unsuur gently caught her arm. "Justice wants you to complete at least one shooting lesson before he lets you into the ruins, and he's going to come talk to you about it in the morning. You could always wait to tell him about the door then," he said. He had a very loose grip on her arm so she could easily pull away, but she didn't; she remained in place, chewing on her lower lip.

"That...should probably work. It'll likely take more than one evening to get a city-sponsored commission up on the board," she said after a moment. "...is he really going to make me take that lesson?" Unsuur nodded and she sighed heavily. "Fine, all right... I'm at least down to the final segment of the last truss piece. It won't take me long to finish it then I can handle whatever else comes after."

He followed the girls inside; they seated themselves in a booth by the door with Unsuur and Dawn on one side and Mi-an on the other, leaving an open seat for whenever Elsie got there, and watched as folks began to file in. When Elsie did finally show up they placed their dinner orders and Unsuur was content to sit and listen to the three of them talking -- or, more like arguing... something about the two builders overworking themselves. Elsie seemed to think they needed a break, which Unsuur agreed with to some degree, but it sounded more like she wanted them to take a break NOW; with the bridge not completed that seemed like a really bad idea.

"C'mon! All you two have done since you got here is work! You can't work all the time!"

Dawn rubbed at her face. "Elsie, we can take a break when we get the bridge done - and it's almost done, so it won't be very long at all."

Mi-an nodded. "That's right - once the base is done you just need to bring the truss parts over and assemble, right?" she asked, directing the last half at Dawn.

"More or less, yeah. And with the trusses done I can, uh..." Dawn paused, glancing at Elsie; Unsuur guessed that she was debating whether to mention the robot thing or not. "...help...get the bridge base built."

Elsie groaned and slumped in her seat. "Didn't they teach you that you gotta rest and whatnot at your fancy builder schools?"

Mi-an started giggling at that. "Yes, technically. They're actually pretty serious about teaching you how to work efficiently and safely - proper rest is one of those things we're told not to skimp on."

"I had a semester-long course on safety, health - including getting good sleep - and first aid," Dawn added.

"Ooh, first aid too? How indepth did your classes go?" Mi-an asked, looking at her.

"...I don't actually know how to answer that," Dawn laughed after a moment to consider. "I don't know what the curriculum is like in Tallsky."

"They taught us how to properly clean and bandage cuts and bruises, how to set bones, stop more serious bleeding, how to deal with burns, what to do if you sever something," Mi-an said, ticking each thing off on a finger on the opposite hand. "They taught us how to deal with injuries before they taught us how to not get injured."

"Not so different from my classes, then," Dawn said with a nod.

"I didn't know there was more than one builder's school," Unsuur said into the pause that followed. "Are there a lot of them?"

"Tallsky and Atara are the biggest ones," Dawn replied, smiling up at him. "I actually wanted to go to school in Tallsky but Atara accepted me first...I was sort of more concerned with just getting out of Highwind as quickly as possible so as soon as Nia got my acceptance letter I was out of there."

"Who's Nia?" Elsie asked, sitting back upright. "And why'd she get YOUR letter?"

Owen arrived with their orders so Dawn didn't answer right away but Unsuur could tell she had to be thinking about what to say again -- he already knew about her family woes but that didn't mean she wanted everyone else to know.

"My parents - mostly my mother - didn't want me to become a builder," she replied finally. "We were constantly arguing over it so I took things into my own hands. Since I didn't want them to know what I was planning I used Nia's address as mine and just kept quiet until it was time to go."

"Ha, yeah..." Elsie sighed. "I know how that goes. Seems my folks ain't that interested in what I might wanna do either."

Dawn gave her a sympathetic smile as she speared a tomato with her fork. "Well...if it makes you feel any better, your parents seem way more agreeable than mine ever were. I'm sure they'll come around."

"Maybe. You ain't been around my pa long enough," the girl grumbled.

The conversation abruptly turned to horses, with Elsie insisting on dragging the two builders out for riding practice to make sure they were riding 'properly' - whatever that meant. Unsuur knew how to ride a horse and no one had ever told him he was riding them wrong; maybe Elsie was just using it as an excuse to get the builders out of their workshops and to relax a little. Again, he didn't exactly disagree with the sentiment that Dawn - and Mi-an too - needed a break but right now didn't seem like the best time for that (and he didn't want to start another argument so he kept that to himself). Once the bridge was done maybe they could all go out for a ride; Boulder could easily handle two riders so Dawn could ride with him if she wanted.

Once everyone that had come in to the saloon were settled with their drinks and meals Owen got up on the stage; tonight's story was the one about the two knights - Unsuur had heard it before but based on the intent look on Dawn's face he guessed she hadn't, and she actually paused in devouring her dinner to give Owen her full attention and didn't pick her fork back up until he was done.

"Wonder if Highwind had places that hosted things like this," Dawn said after a bite of mushrooms. "...wonder how many things I missed out on because my mom wouldn't let me go."

"Ah, forget about your ma - you're in Sandrock now!" Elsie said, gesturing with her spoon and leaving a small trail of gravy across her plate and partly onto the table beside it. "Might not be AS much to do like you'd find in a big city like Highwind but there's still plenty to do here and ain't no parents 'round to tell you what to do anymore."

"True," Dawn giggled. "Though, I HAVE been making my own decisions for awhile now."

"So does that mean you're ready to decide to take a break?" Elsie asked through a mouthful of meatballs.

"Not yet Elsie," Dawn and Mi-an both answered, before both breaking into laughter.

-----------------------------------

Unsuur had walked Dawn home then gone home himself and spent some time sitting at his kitchen table writing a few practice letters. Getting the words just right was a challenge and as he finally got everything in order a desire to...be a little bold this time struck him. His date was coming but now, the more he thought about it, and the more he stared at his handwriting on the page, the more impatient he felt. Sure, there were things he planned to say when he handed her the heart stone but he also really, really wanted her to know about how much he liked her, how he wanted to hold her hand, or stroke her hair, or get to put his arm around her without it seeming awkward. And he wanted to hear that she liked him as well. Maybe she also wanted to hold his hand or play with his hair, maybe with his head in her lap and...

He crumpled up the letter he thought he was happy with and grabbed another blank sheet of paper.

Dear Dawn,

As I watch you create the pieces for our bridge, I think to myself "dang, is there anything Dawn can't do?" Then I thought about it for a bit and realized...well, yeah, you can't fly or read minds or sneeze with your eyes open, but the list of things you can do is really very long.

Anyway. Bridges are hard to make. Especially safe ones, I would assume.

Um. I also wanted to tell you... Maybe we should hold hands sometimes? If you want to. We don't have to. Maybe it's too big of a commitment. Especially if it's with someone like me who is hiding their identity.

Well. I got you this seashell.

Signed, The secret guy who thinks you're cool but also kind of likes you but if you don't like him back that's okay but maybe come say hey if you do like me?

Not...not his best work, probably. But, knowing that Arvio had come on strong and that had driven her away Unsuur definitely didn't want to risk doing that himself no matter how bold he might be feeling right this instant.

He tried a few more practice letters, switching up the wording and trying out being more or less direct about things but found he liked that first draft of the newer, bolder letter the most so he'd folded it up and slipped it and the seashell into the envelope and sat there looking at it, feeling his hands shaking a little bit. Was he really going to write that AND deliver it? ...yeah. Yeah, he was. At this point, maybe he NEEDED to.

As he stood up from the table he heard the tell-tale trickling noise of sand hitting his roof. With a sigh he stepped over to the window and opened it a tiny bit and was struck by that smell of old dirt and cold wind -- sandstorm, almost on top of them already. Great. Carrying his letter over in the dark AND in a storm, even though it was a short distance to travel, wouldn't be a good idea.

(A sandstorm would also delay the bridge completion too...)

...oh well. It's not like Unsuur could tell the weather to go away. He shut the window, plodded over to bed and, after slipping the letter into his nightstand, he pulled the covers up over his head -- once the storm really picked up the blankets would help muffle the noise so at least his sleep wouldn't be too disturbed. The letter delivery would have to wait for another night (and hopefully he wouldn't lose his nerve by then).

---------------------------

The storm turned out to be a rather mild one; Unsuur didn't feel like he even needed his mask but wore it anyway just to be sure he wasn't inhaling a lot of dust. Like usual he went home for lunch but it wasn't long after he'd gone inside that there was a knock at his door.

Answering it he was surprised to see Dawn on his doorstep -- she was wearing a sand hat and had what looked like a pair of sealed buckets, one in each hand.

"Hey! Sorry to interrupt your lunch break," was her greeting.

Unsuur stepped aside and gestured for her to come in, closing the door behind her. "You're not interrupting much - I only just got home." He paused and looked to the buckets and saw they were actually paint cans. "Is that the paint? You didn't need to bring it over, especially not in the middle of a sandstorm."

Dawn set the paint cans down beside the door, reaching up to untie and remove the sand hat and shake her hair out. "The wind woke me up early and since I couldn't work on the trusses with the storm blowing I stayed inside and finished your paints. And after that I was bored and it didn't look too bad out either so I thought I'd deliver it while I had the chance. Pen forced this sand hat on me weeks ago so I may as well make use of it."

There was a dot of paint on each lid to indicate which was which color; both were exactly the shades he'd wanted. He bent to grab them and carried them over to the far wall, setting them down near his weights. "Thank you. It'll look really nice in here with the new colors."

"Did you want or need any help painting?"

Unsuur paused, straightening and staring ahead at the wall. Did he NEED help? Not really. But everything about painting was fun - this was an unexpected opportunity for a really good time. He turned back around to face her. "I don't have anything to do later this evening after dinner. Why don't we enjoy the paint together then?"

"Sounds good," she replied with a smile. She combed her fingers through her hair to wrangle it back into a gathered knot at her neck and went to slip her sand hat back on. "I'll be back later tonight. Hopefully the storm will have blown over by then but the paint I made is low-fume so we should be fine regardless."

"My front windows are shielded from the wind so we can crack those open if the paint is too smelly," Unsuur said. "I'll see you later."

Dawn gave him a little wave and an 'enjoy lunch!' as she headed back out into the storm. Unsuur peeked out the door after her -- not a lot of time had passed since he'd walked in but he swore the sandstorm seemed even weaker now. Definitely shouldn't be a problem by nightfall.

As he shut the door again it occurred to him that it was really lucky that he'd been carrying the stone heart around with him, rather than leaving it sitting in his house somewhere; it would have been really easy for the surprise to be ruined just now, or later tonight when she came back over to paint. Unsuur pulled the heart out of his pocket and held it on his palm, rubbing the fingers of his other hand across its surface -- that had been a close call. He should find somewhere else to hide it for tonight, just incase he forgot and took his jacket off and it somehow fell out of the pocket.

Well...his next letter was hidden inside his nightstand - he could leave the heart in there too. They wouldn't have a reason to open that drawer so it should be fine.

----------------------

The rest of the day seemed to drag on now that he was looking forward to the evening; he'd stopped at the saloon to buy some juice in case either of them got thirsty, had perused his music collection to find something he thought they'd both like and moved the music player out away from the wall (he'd also made certain the step stool he owned was sitting in plain sight near the kitchen counter as he knew they would need it to reach the high places). After all that he'd made himself dinner and had just finished drying the dishes when Dawn knocked on his door.

The sandstorm was completely gone so she wasn't wearing the sand hat and her hair was hanging freely down her back again; as she walked by he admired it briefly then moved to follow her across the room where she was already kneeling down with a small screwdriver in one hand and a pair of paint brushes in the other. With a practiced ease she popped the cans open and handed him a brush.

"What kind of pattern were you picturing?" she asked.

"I thought stripes would ne nice," he answered. "I'll start on one side with my color and we'll pass each other going around?"

She giggled and took her can toward the front wall. "Sounds like a plan. Do you want the stripes to be about the same size or one wider than the other? I have my measuring tape so we can make sure we get the look exactly as you want."

Unsuur dipped his brush and gave the wall an experimental swipe; the paint was heavily pigmented and a little bit went a long way -- great coverage, and a great color. "I think it'll look nice with the lighter color in thinner stripes. Don't you?"

Dawn nodded with a little hum, sticking her brush down into the can and using the lip to knock off the excess. "I think so. How wide would you like?"

"Actually, how about we vary it? Still smaller than the dark green but not all the same size. That way it'll never look boring in here."

"Got it."

Not long after they'd started painting they realized a small problem: neither of them were tall enough to reach all the way up to the ceiling -- even standing on the step stool Unsuur was still about eight, maybe ten inches shy of being able to reach all the way.

With a huff Dawn bent to lay her brush across the top of her paint can and frowned up at the ceiling. "Guess I should have brought my smaller ladder." After a pause she shot him a sly grin. "It's not often someone else ends up being too short for something when I'm around."

"I guess I never had a reason before to notice how tall my ceiling is. Seems like a waste of space now though - maybe I should hang some shelves up there for my rocks."

Dawn wiped a smear of paint off a finger onto her overalls. "I feel like that would make dusting ten times harder than it needs to be. But! I'll run home and get the ladder, it won't take me long. I should've thought of that or rigged up some extendable paint rollers before I came over tonight or something, sorry."

"That's all right, it's not like either of us realized we'd need more than brushes. I'll keep painting and we can fill in the blank spots when you're back."

As she slipped out the door Unsuur kept going, leaving sections of varying width to fill with the lighter green later and painting up as far as he could reach. It was a little tiring to be constantly stepping onto and off of and then moving the stepstool -- who knew painting would be such a workout? Good thing they had a show to look forward to after this part was done.

Unsuur had made it halfway around the room when Dawn returned; they decided to leave the high areas for last and worked quickly to fill in all the places they could reach. Even though the room wasn't done it was done enough that Unsuur felt pretty pleased with how everything looked -- stripes had been the right call and he liked that the lighter green areas weren't uniform. When it came time to get the higher spots they found it easier for one of them to be up the ladder and the other to lift the paint cans up within reach; Unsuur volunteered to hold the cans up for Dawn and finally, they had the entire room done.

As she went to clean the brushes and the edges of the cans so the lids could be put back on without causing a mess Unsuur moved over to click on the music player.

Dawn came over a moment later, looking curiously between the player and Unsuur. "What's the music for?"

"Now that the hardest part is behind us I thought some music would be nice to set the mood. It's time to sit back and enjoy the show."

The curious look turned to one of mild confusion. "...show?"

...huh. He thought it would've been obvious. "You've heard the stories but did you ever think you'd really be living it? Watching paint dry. This is one of my favorite things in the world and after all this work I wanted to do something nice for you."

Dawn blinked at him for several seconds, then burst out laughing. At first it worried him - was she laughing at him? He supposed this sort of thing may not be for everyone but he felt like she was too polite of a person to react like that.

"Professor Erin would've loved having you in class. I haven't thought about her in a couple years," she finally said, the laughter subsiding. "I can't say I've ever directly watched PAINT dry, but I know...entirely too much about varying stages of curing of glues, adhesives, and epoxy binding agents."

Ok, so not laughing at him. "You had to watch glue dry as part of your builder classes?"

"Yeeeep," she said, drawing the word out and ending with another giggle. "Professor Erin really, REALLY wanted us to know what proper curing looked like so a lot of that class was spent staring at and writing down observations as whatever we were using that day dried. She liked to give us several examples all at once and have us write little essays on which ones we believed were -- oh goodness, this is going to be a long explanation," she interrupted herself, face going red. "I shouldn't bore you with the details."

"I don't think it'll be boring. Let's sit and watch the paint, and you can talk about glue if you want." He grabbed two chairs from the table and brought them over, using a foot to push the music player back a little bit so it wouldn't be right in their faces, then he sat down and waited; Dawn seated herself after a moment too, glancing around the room.

"...I guess it's not too different, really - the drying process. Professor Erin would give us examples of -- you know, I'm just going to call them all 'glues' so it doesn't get overwhelming because oh boy are there a lot of ways to stick things to other things," she laughed. Unsuur nodded in understanding and she continued. "She would have some glues that were mixed and set like they're supposed to be used and then she'd...I guess you could say she'd alter or mess with the others, and we'd be graded on if we could tell them apart and also determine what she'd done to them."

That sounded...actually kind of satisfying to him. "I think I'd enjoy that sort of thing. With paint, I like noticing all the little changes. Like, see there-" he pointed to a dark green stripe he'd left thick and gloopy. "-if you look really close you can see the thicker parts of the paint slowly drip down and even out. And I like to focus on a point, remember the paint, then close my eyes for about 10 minutes. Then, when I open them, I can definitely see the difference."

Dawn grinned at him, pulling up a leg to brace the heel of her boot on the seat of the chair so she could rest her chin on her knee. "Closing your eyes would've gotten you whapped with a rolled up newspaper if you did that while in class."

"Did that happen often?"

"...to me, or in general?"

Unsuur smiled and looked back at the wall, watching as a big glob slowly dripped down and caught up to a skinnier one. "I promise I won't whap you with anything so you can close your eyes if you want to."

With a small sigh and a smile she turned her attention back to the walls. "A tempting thought but I think I might fall asleep if I did."

"Oh. You don't have to stay if you're tired." Or...bored. But hopefully she wasn't.

She waved a hand dismissively. "It's more my body realizing I'm sitting still and thinking it's time to go to sleep because lately I haven't been sitting still unless I'm eating or going to bed, and since I'm not hungry that must mean its bedtime. Once we get this bridge done I'll have to work on straightening out my sleep schedule and re-training my brain on what's considered a normal level of physical activity." Again she paused, then slowly nodded to herself and glanced to him. "This did give me an idea though... If I can pull off what I'm picturing in my mind anyway."

"What kind of idea? Or is it a surprise?"

With a soft and short laugh she shook her head. "Not really a surprise but I'd rather see if I can make it before I try describing it to anyone." She gently nudged her arm against his and stood from the chair. "But, I do think I should head home while I'm still awake enough to do so."

Unsuur stood up as well and turned the music off; the paint was mostly dry now anyway so not much more to see, and now that he'd been sitting for awhile he could feel a tension in his legs too -- he must have tired them out with all that up and down climbing on the stool. "Well, you know what they say: nothing good can last forever. That was more than enough excitement for one day. Did you enjoy yourself?"

With a nod she carried her chair back to the table then moved to retrieve her paint brushes and the ladder. "I did! I'll leave the extra paint here with you in case you notice any spots that didn't get full coverage, or if you need to cover up any scrapes or marks in the future. And, I'll let you know when I'm ready to head in after that core. Justice stopped by earlier and we'll be getting the shooting lesson out of the way tomorrow morning, then...after that, I guess there's nothing else to do but head in and start searching."

"I'll be ready whenever you are - just say the word."

Unsuur walked with her to the door; she insisted she didn't need him to walk her home so he stood at the corner of his front porch and watched her walk up the tracks toward her workshop, and stayed there until she was out of sight then he headed back inside and went to his nightstand. The stone and letter were exactly where he'd left them (not that he'd expected otherwise), and with them both in hand he looked around at the walls. It looked really nice in here now -- if it wouldn't be a dead giveaway as to who was writing the letters he would add in a little line or two about what an amazing job she'd done making those paints. Oh well. He'd compliment her on the paints in person later.

As for tonight...well, he basically had confirmation that Dawn would be sleeping soundly, if she was so tired that sitting still was enough to cause her to doze off. And there wasn't a sandstorm to deter him this time either.

He grabbed his alarm and set it for 3am again.

---------------------------

It was pretty dark out when there were next to no lights on in Sandrock; the moon was a bare sliver above and the stars by themselves didn't put out a ton of light either, and he didn't want to give his presence away by carrying a flashlight or lantern. Unsuur walked more slowly, just to make sure he wouldn't trip or twist an ankle, but his familiarity with the route between his house and Dawn's helped a ton as he navigated in the poor lighting until he was standing in front of Dawn's mailbox again with his letter in hand.

Before she'd replaced the face plate on the mailbox it had been a simple - and silent - task to slide his letters inside; hopefully this new front plate wouldn't squeak or creak or click too loudly when opened. He looped a finger into the clip at the top and used his thumb to gently ease it loose; the metal pieces grated softly against one another -- Unsuur had barely heard it and he was standing right in front of it so he knew there was no chance such a quiet sound could be heard inside the house. After a moment to double check that no one was around he pulled the front flap downward; there was a small amount of resistance, like he was tugging against something that was tugging back, and he briefly laid eyes on the paper inside before the flap fully extended down and there was a chiming noise that went off as loud as gunshot in the silence of the night.

Unsuur had felt the vibration of a bell or something dinging through his fingertips as the chime had sounded and could barely, just barely, make out a glimmer of wire stretching between the top of the face plate flap to something secured at the back of the box in the faint moonlight -- she'd...she'd booby-trapped the mailbox.

Run...

He could still hear the chime ringing in his ears.

Run.

A light came on in the house.

RUN.

Abandoning the paper inside the box Unsuur darted away and skidded slightly in the sand before bodily hurling himself into cover behind the little raised ridge of stone there near the tracks. He felt dozens of prickles in his arm as he partially landed on one of the barrel cacti there but mere seconds after he'd landed and swung his legs fully out of view of Dawn's house he heard the distant click of the front door opening and could see the beam of a flashlight sweeping toward the tracks.

Sucking in his breath he strained his ears for any hint that she was walking toward him -- what would he say? What could he do? It seemed so stupid now that he'd been so confident earlier thinking Dawn would be fast asleep; he'd really tempted fate tonight, huh? Not just tempted but thumbed his nose right at it and fate had decided to bloody it in response.

The flashlight's beam didn't get any closer, and he didn't hear any approaching footsteps yet... It seemed like ages passed before he heard the front door close but that didn't mean much -- there was no guarantee she'd gone back inside and even if she had she could just be watching through the windows to see if anyone or anything out here moved. Unsuur let out his breath and focused on getting his breathing evened out and his heart rate under control, and laid there and waited. And waited. And waited some more...

He couldn't wait here all night or else he'd get caught by someone spotting him from town.

Cautiously Unsuur scooted on his stomach through the scrub grass and cacti and poked his head around the edge of the rocks. Dawn's door was closed, there were no lights on in the house or yard, and no sign of her in the yard either.

Laying there for another undetermined but extended period of time and seeing no signs of life from the yard Unsuur carefully stood up and crept toward the mailbox again. In his rush to get away he'd dropped his letter and left the mailbox hanging open; the letter was untouched on the ground in front of the mailbox and, luckily, the box itself was still open. He quickly grabbed Dawn's response out of the box, threw his letter inside, and then hurried out into the dark -- no way was he risking closing the mailbox and making another noise.

Once he was back home and gotten the door closed behind him he sank into the floor with his back against it, wincing a bit at the cactus spines that were still poked into his skin; his jacket had prevented them from going too deep but there were still dozens of tiny punctures in his skin that he had to clean up, and as he didn't especially relish the idea of pulling the spines out of his jacket he wrote it off as a lost cause and tossed it into the corner to deal with in the morning.

Any confidence or desire he'd had to be bold had effectively evaporated. He was going to wait like he'd planned before he screwed things up.

#Heart of Stone #HoS #Heart of Stone - ch 12 #mtas unsuur #mtas justice #mtas grace #mtas Owen #mtas Mi-an #my time at sandrock

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Prompt 30: Amity

When Revkr made his return trips to Garlemald he kept a low profile.

The Garleans had been through a great deal and he had no desire to add to their stress by revealing himself as the cowled courier who brought in supplies and warm garments to be distributed to those in need; he suspected they would still shun such things, even as they froze or starved, if they knew their most hated enemy was the source of some of their meager comforts. It brought him no joy to be willfully deceiving them but after having seen how strongly they yet clung to their pride he couldn't stomach the thought of seeing more innocents dead in the snow.

Perhaps such a sentiment was prideful in and of itself but he did not do this to feel like a savior nor did he want their thanks -- he did this because it was the right thing to do, to help them survive until they could sort out who wished to relocate to the moon and who would remain and where they would or even could find a way to rebuild. Whether here or in the heavens they would land on their feet, surely...they just needed a little helping hand to get there.

He did know that eventually he would be spotted and his identity revealed -- he held no illusions that he could carry on with this ruse for any extended period of time. Revkr hadn't decided on how best to handle the situation when the time came but Jullus at least understood the line he tiptoed along each time he came with the supplies; their "unofficial" interactions consisted of bringing the supplies in, a quick conversation, and then him leaving as quietly as he'd arrived before he drew the attention of anyone who would question where these new crates and bags had come from, because they certainly weren't on any ledger or inventory list brought over by the Contingent. He certainly wouldn't be stopping the supply deliveries once he'd been revealed but perhaps Jullus would be able to defuse the situation when it inevitably happened, as even he had been convinced to take a sweater or two.

This little song and dance had fostered a level of amity and goodwill between them at the least, and the younger man was growing quite adept at deflecting questions about the sudden appearance of an extra pile of coats and sweaters while Revkr slipped away. Maybe someday in the future that same level of goodwill would be found between all of them, regardless of where anyone had come from, or what had been given or asked for.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #endwalker spoilers #ffxiv spoilers #jullus pyr norbanus #wol

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Prompt 29: Contravention

Aymeric, with his head pillowed on her breasts, breathed slow and steady and Gaelle occasionally ran her fingers through his sweat-tangled hair as he slept. They hadn't intended the evening to end this way - in fact, one could argue their little romp was a contravention of every expected "rule" in the traditional courtship they were both trying to be faithful to - but Gaelle couldn't complain, nor did she feel shame as she laid there wearing little more than the ring on her hand and with Aymeric sprawled atop her.

She would certainly have some explaining to do to Lord Fortemps in the morning... Hopefully he wouldn't be worried (and with luck no one else would know she'd not returned) and hopefully no one would notice her leaving the Borel manor in the morning.

Such worries could wait until dawn though; for now she could bask in the afterglow of an exceptional evening and in knowing that, for as much as she loved Aymeric, he in turn loved her just as much. For the first time in quite a long time Gaelle had no doubts about her future -- a relieving thought considering all that she (and the rest of the world) had just gone through.

He stirred briefly and again she ran her fingers through his hair, which roused him just long enough for him to shift to lay beside her, pulling her in against him and burying his face into her hair. Gaelle found his hand on her hip and slid hers over it, lacing their fingers together as she finally closed her eyes and allowed sleep to take her.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #aymeric de borel #wol

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Prompt 28: Blunt

Being trapped on bedrest was awful.

Not because of the pain - the chirurgeons were staying on top of her comfort - but because of the sheer boredom. Sure, people came to visit (quite a number of them) and there was almost always someone in the room with her at all times but Gitawen was dying to get up, walk to the canteen, train, go for a walk, something that wasn't laying flat on her back, as conversation could only entertain for so long before one grew tired of it.

Granted, this was her own fault. There at the end of everything she had found herself rather evenly matched with Zenos; neither of them were making any noticeable headway against the other and it was looking like the "victor" would be whoever could last the longest. Endurance was a fight she was mostly convinced she would have won in hindsight but she hadn't been ready to gamble on a 'mostly' in the moment -- not here where there could only be one winner; she'd thrown all caution, all precision and efficiency, all of it to the wind and had gone at Zenos like a rabid animal -- if he wouldn't present an opening so she could end this then she'd carve her own. In the end she knew that was exactly what he'd wanted but...well, she'd won. Whether he died actually satisfied or not didn't concern her.

Such recklessness had cost her in pain and time. It would be weeks before she'd be back to full health, and here in bed all she could do was indulge in idle chatter, stare at the four walls while simultaneously being ready to climb them, and nap... There had been so many naps. Whatever herbal remedies the chirurgeons were using on her, which they insisted were NOT sedatives, still had a sedating effect on her. Between those and the boredom far too much of her day was spent dozing.

It was one such afternoon that she woke from a doze with a little thrill of adrenaline bringing her partially upright in the bed; though she knew there wasn't danger here her senses were still telling her that someone had just slipped out of her room.

At least it had been someone leaving rather than her needing to contend with someone having slipped in, but who had just left and why did they feel to need to sneak around?

She quickly cast her gaze around the room and her attention fell on her gunblade sitting on its stand on a cabinet across the room -- which was strange, as she'd last seen it (and her armor) in Thancred's possession. It had been fixed and polished; the bent, blunted blade was now straightened and wicked sharp, the cracked stock had been replaced, and the barrel was no longer blackened. That weapon, much like its wielder, had been put through hell and she'd actually feared that it was beyond repair; to see it again made her smile, but she was also equally confused on why it had been returned to her -- it's not like she needed or could wield it right now.

...at least it was here, and back in one piece. It was possibly the finest gunblade she'd ever wielded and she doubted there would ever been another one of such value - neither physical nor sentimental. Hopefully someone had told Gaius she'd survived. Perhaps it had been Gaius himself who'd brought the gunblade back to her.

At the thought of him she'd instinctively reached to trigger her linkpearl only to remember that it was gone -- lost in the shuffle of getting her back to civilization and to medical assistance. With a frustrated growl Gitawen sat up fully and stared at the blade, then sucked in a breath and willed herself into swinging her legs over the edge of the bed and standing.

Pains shot up and down her calves and through her lower back but she was more or less stable while standing stationary...how would she fare if she were to walk?

(And with a guilty look at the door she wondered how long she had before someone came in and caught her)

First one foot, then the other, slowly and surely she crossed the room to the cabinet and lifted the gunblade in her hands. Now that she was close she could see the blade on its end was brand new and not just the old one sharpened. It still felt just as balanced in her hands and she ached with a need to put it to use in a few training exercises.

Grumbling to herself under her breath (mostly cursing her body for this slow recovery time) Gita returned the weapon to the stand and carefully padded back to her bed, and had just managed to get settled again as the door swung open and one of the chirurgeons came in.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #wol

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Prompt 27: Sole

Roaring Whisper had barely touched his finger to his ear before the chiming of the linkpearl gave way to Tataru's clearly agitated voice.

"-let it be known that you are the SOLE reason I am even trying to deal with this man!"

He bit a knuckle on his other hand to stifle his laughter and had to take a few breaths to compose himself. "If anyone can help him, it's you."

"Ugggh! He has a sharp mind for numbers but no backbone! And he's from Ul'dah?! I'm surprised he's lived this long!"

For a moment he considered recounting all the times he'd come to Broti's rescue (either purposely or inadvertently) but he didn't feel like that would likely improve Tataru's mood. "Can you help him?"

"I'm not sure anyone could help him grow a spine but I know of a few places he could stand half a chance at." She paused and Roaring heard a loud sigh. "Assuming someone doesn't stuff him in a barrel first. No courage and no awareness of how much he chatters. It'd be endearing in any other circumstance... He's certainly eager enough."

"Eager describes him well. If this costs anything I will cover it." He'd already given the man a hefty amount to get started with but he wouldn't ever ask Tataru to work for free.

"No, no, he seems able to cover the initial start up estimates I gave him. At the very least it'll be one more outlet for my own designs...that ought to give him a leg up on his competition at any rate."

"Thank you, Tataru. I will owe you a favor."

"Oh ho ho! Funny you should mention that..."

Oh dear. "What did you need?"

"Oh, nothing major... I could just use some assistance in modeling a few new things."

Well... At least it was Tataru and not Phioleux. "When?"

"When you have a spare moment. I know Y'shtola has you buried in the library still."

He let out a soft chuckle -- Roaring wasn't exactly buried...more that he had to periodically remind Y'shtola to 'come up for air' as it were. "I will come when I can."

"See you then!"

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #tataru taru #wol

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Prompt 26: Last

A ground as smooth as a mirror beneath his feet, a point of light on the far horizon not so different from the sun he knew, a vast skyscape above his head...ultimately, a place empty and cold, devoid of anything familiar.

Except...for him.

Zenos. Kazutane's final problem to solve -- here, at the far-flung edge of all of existence, where there was no help or escape. At the very least there were also no innocents he could threaten... Not that Kazutane thought Zenos would hold others hostage, no; it was more he knew that the man would not take care to not injure anyone else who happened to be "in the way."

Though, surprisingly, Zenos had given Kazutane time to speak to Meteion uninterrupted and as he sent her off he found himself thankful that she would not be present to witness this final confrontation; he did not need to be an entelechy to sense the anticipation, the carnal hunger radiating off the man even as he stared back at him with an expression that hid that blood-thirst frighteningly well.

Slowly Kazutane hovered his hand above the hilt of his katana, ready to draw; an untrained eye would have missed how Zenos stiffened - shivered, almost, at the movement. He was ready. He was waiting. Waiting for this last battle where there could be no other outcome: one of them would not walk away from this place.

Kazutane inhaled deeply, closing his eyes and exhaling slowly as he centered himself. As he drew in his next breath he opened his eyes and fixed his gaze on him, watching as Zenos drew the scythe from his back and held it at the ready; he swore the man was almost vibrating in place.

"I want to go home," Kazutane said softly. In the instant that followed he clenched his hand around the hilt and drew and the suffocating silence of this desolate place was shattered by the sound of clashing steel as Zenos eagerly leapt at him.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #endwalker spoilers #zenos yae galvus #wol #ffxiv spoilers #spoilers

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Prompt 25: Call it a Day

PING PING PING THUD-

With a frustrated grunt Gitawen lowered the gunblade as the final automated target zipped into a slot in the side frame of the training machine with her final shot hitting the backboard a fraction of an ilm away from having struck the metal disc.

Cid had done an excellent job at building a more compact version of the magitek targeting training dummies they'd used in Garlemald; it wasn't quite as sturdy as the ones she'd used long ago but it did the job, and this one singular disc kept getting away unscathed even though she knew exactly where it was coming in the training pattern -- she just kept missing it. This wasn't so much a question of accuracy as it was speed: her reaction time wasn't quite quick enough to take out the preceding three targets and then get back into position to catch that 4th... So far she either missed it entirely or found herself sacrificing the shots meant for the second or third in order to hit that last one.

"Still at it, hmm?"

Gita tapped the button to reset the machine and over the whir of gears she could just hear Nero's leisurely footsteps coming up behind her.

"I'll get it eventually," she answered. She slotted a new cartridge into the gunblade and closed the chamber.

"Perhaps, but not tonight. Exhaustion is only going to frustrate you further and you are getting incrementally slower with each attempt. Call it a day already -- I'm getting quite tired of hearing the same repeating 4-shot pattern."

She shot him a smirk over her shoulder and lifted the gunblade into position as the machine chimed once to warn her it was ready. "We'll see." With another tap to the button Gita started the sequence up again.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #nero tol scaeva #wol

[whispersafterdusk]

Prompt 24: Rest (pick your own)

It was storming in Sharlayan tonight; the soft pattering of water against the window was barely audible and Kazutane could just smell the comforting scent of the rain from his bed. As he settled on his stomach, a pillow held in his arms and his chin propped against its top, a pang of homesickness struck him -- when had he last seen the Steppes? It felt like an eternity, and even as he stopped to consider the emotion he felt a surge of guilt over his desire to...simply go. Return home. Return to that simple life of guard and shepherd.

People needed him. The world needed him, while there was still a world left to defend -- the Final Days were upon them and if they did not find the answer to halt them there wouldn't be a home left to return to...not for him or anyone else. Such sentiment didn't stop the hollow ache though. The longing for the safe and familiar, the constant exhaustion and desire for a more substantial rest, were deeply entrenched and liked to haunt him late at night and not even the rain could completely ease the loneliness.

Though it wasn't the most comfortable of positions he rolled to his side and shifted the pillow up to awkwardly pad his head and neck, to hold his horn up off the mattress; it put his back to the door and window, aiming him into the blank silence of the wall where he began to count within his head.

The next morning (which came way too soon) he only recalled reaching 73 as he groggily dragged himself out of the tangle of blankets and instinctively reached for his katana and armor before he'd even fully opened his eyes. Another day of crisis called.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #wol

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Prompt 23: Suit

Phioleux was a man who had taken one look at Roaring and had taken it as a personal challenge to create something that suited the giant mage, much to Emmanellain's delight and Roaring's exasperation. So went the next several hours of measuring, designing, choosing fabric and color and cuts and accents, all with Emmanellain tittering on in the background.

Each time Roaring had tried to steer the tailor to something a little less opulent the man had seemed determined to double down on his determination until at last he'd managed to impress upon the man that whatever he made that was fashionable had to be twice as functional or else the garment would go unused. Such a sentiment had been taken like a slap in the face but finally, FINALLY, Phioleux had begun to listen to Roaring's requests on what he actually needed this new outfit to be rather than his insistence on treating the roegadyn like a doll.

Days later, to Roaring's great surprise, Phioleux had brought him a rather beautiful but just as useful overcoat; it was styled to the typical Ishgardian fashion that he saw everyone in the city sporting but it was heavier, reinforced in all the seams and more padded (though it was cleverly hidden) than the old coat he currently had, made of a fine and flexible leather dyed a deep gray with silver button and piping and lined with a maroon silk. It was an amazing piece of work for as short an amount of time it had taken and fit him like a second skin. Phioleux had seemed quite pleased with himself and insisted that Roaring exclusively seek him out for any further armor or clothing needs in the future (which...he supposed was sensible, being as he now had all of Roaring's measurements on hand).

The only downside to the whole thing was now Emmanellain was puffed up and strutting around, full of himself and quite satisfied that he'd won out in the end.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #emmanellain de fortemps #wol

[whispersafterdusk]

Prompt 22: Fulsome

Ishgardian social niceties were exhausting, and Gaelle could only imagine how much worse it could be if she was both a hero and of a noble house or lineage. It also probably did not help her situation that it was openly known that Aymeric was courting her -- the Lord Commander and the Warrior of Light together made for quite a sight and no doubt was and would be fueling the gossip mills for the foreseeable future.

Aymeric was trying his best to gently ease her into this life; they'd had several very frank conversations on what their future could look like, what their respective responsibilities were and what that would mean for them. Gaelle knew she would always be called on to assist in a crisis and Aymeric, despite his best efforts, hadn't managed to extricate himself from leadership. As part of his duties he had to make social appearances, to discuss policy and law and keep abreast of problems or progress within the city.

Gaelle had accompanied him to several balls and dinner parties and she felt like she was being stalked by predators every step of the way; any time Aymeric had to excuse himself briefly the nobles pounced on her, showering her with fulsome praise and very obviously trying to dig for information under the appearance of polite interest in her and her recent adventures. Deflecting and giving non-answers on the fly, engaging in the delicate dance of politics until Aymeric returned to her side and the nobles scattered was, she supposed, a fact of life now... She felt so amateurish but hopefully this would get easier with time.

And, hopefully, she'd grow more used to the fine clothes. Gossip she could avoid engaging with but there wasn't any escape from the constricting gowns or uncomfortable shoes, ugh. At the very least in a few weeks' time Aymeric would be accompanying her back to Gridania, under the guise of a diplomatic trip but truthfully it was a much-needed vacation where they could spend some time with each other away from both their responsibilities. Perhaps he'd love the feel of grass and fresh soil beneath his feet as much as she did.

#ffxivwrite2023 #ffxivwrite #wol