fandomtownies | Groovy Tunes; Tuesday [10/20].

Tisarwat finally had proper, good Radchaai tea again, and it felt like the single greatest thing that had happened to her in a while.

She figured she should be sparing with its use, of course, just as she had when she first arrived on this island, but for these first few days, she was going to indulge in it, while it was still fairly fresh. And sitting there behind the counter of the music shop, thankful for once to not have much to do so she could just cup her hands around her tea and truly savor it, it was enough to almost make her wonder if she should take the chance to go back.

But, no. It wouldn't work. It would mess things up. It wasn't her timeline, and who even knew how trying to implant herself elsewhere would throw things off course? It wasn't her place. It would be different if it was her timeline, and, besides, she almost felt as if...she wasn't quite done here yet. There were things to do here, things to explore, and maybe, one day, Summer could figure out how to get her to her timeline, but, for now, just the thought that it was now a viable possibility helped a lot.

Then again, so did the tea.

Ugh. How had she ever come to think that Earth tea even had a chance? This wasn't even from one of the finer estates, but the differences were still...just profound. And Tisarwat was just going to enjoy this rare little bubble of happiness in a cup of excellent tea while it lasted.

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Breq stopped by late morning, prepared to offer to make tea, when she saw that Tisarwat had already done that. She wasn't really surprised, of course.

"New tea?"

The scent gave it away.

Tisarwat couldn't help but be all smiles and shining lilac eyes at that.

"Radch tea," she corrected, all the weight and importance and meaning in those two words together clear and evident. "Summer...well, Summer and her boyfriend," still a strange word, if you asked Tisarwat, "finally managed to break through whatever was blocking Seivarden from going back, and she returned with...souveniers."

Here, she thought her smile couldn't get any bigger, but she was apparently wrong.

"Would you like some?"

It wasn't really a question. She was already pouring Breq a cup.

"Of course. Thank you."

Breq might not care about it as much as Tisarwat did, but she wasn't going to upset her by turning it down.

"Yes, I heard Seivarden finally managed to leave."

She had thought about it ever since.

"Do you know how Summer and Barry managed it?"

"Apparently," said Tisarwat, tea poured now and handing thr cup over, "it's a portal device based on one of her grandfather's designs, plus an algorithm developed to try to pinpoint the exact dimension. It sounds like they managed to get it just about right, too. Only about a month after when she'd wound up here."

She had been trying to figure out the timeline a little herself, in the case that maybe it could be viable, but there felt like too many conflicting factors. It didn't seem...strategic, at this point.

Breq sipped her tea.

"Do you know how hard it was for them to get it right?"

Breq guessed Tisarwat would figure out why she was asking.

"Definitely Radchaai tea."

It really didn't take much to figure it out.

"Wonderful," Tisarwat smiled, "isn't it?"

She had already been thinking on it a little herself. As far as she knew, Seivarden really didn't do well by herself out there, anyway.

She took a long, thoughtful sip from her own cup.

"As for how hard it is, though," she ventured, "I guess that depends on how accurate you're trying to be."

"Yes," Breq said, attempting a smile as she referred to the tea. Then, face blank again, she continued:

"A month is quite close. I would be content with a few years."

And she would be, wouldn't she? Just as long as...

"You should talk to Summer," Tisarwat said. "I'm sure she'd like to help."

It was not a good thought, that Breq would be quick to depart after Seivarden did, but it was not a new thought, either.

"And," she added with a smile, "she can bring me back even more tea."

"That's not a bad thing," Breq said, not attempting to smile this time.

"You're going to take her up on it," said Tisarwat, "aren't you?"

Again, it wasn't really a question.

"Yes."

Breq was aware of that, of course. She sipped her tea.

"If it's successful, and you decide to stay a little longer, this place is yours, of course."

Edited 2020-10-20 14:07 (UTC)

"Someone's got to look after it, I guess." Tisarwat's smile was a little wan, and the urge to follow their footsteps and go too flared up inside her gut, and she settled it back down with more tea. It wouldn't be the same if she went. It wouldn't work, not the way it needed to...

"I might have her look into figuring out my timeline, too" she admitted, "but right now, I think I can wait it out a little. I haven't even been here for as long as you...or Seivarden...have been."

"You have friends here," Breq said. "And it seems like the island lets most people go eventually. I have things I need to do, and I've been forced to wait far too long already."

And knowing all too well what those things were, Tisarwat could only agree, and she wished she could tell Breq that. But what could she say, without having to explain...so much. She sipped her tea thoughtfully for a moment before she nodded.

"You really have," she said. "And it's probably time you got back to it..."

It was an unexpected comment, but perhaps Tisarwat was only trying to express that she accepted and understood the reason why Breq abandoned her.

Not that Breq really had any responsibility to make sure Tisarwat was ok, but still.

"It is," she said. "And you still have piano lessons to practice before you leave."

Groovy Tunes; Tuesday [10/20].

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