The meeting between the Valintar and Jameson took longer than Addy initially expected. It should have only taken a couple minutes, right? What could they possibly be talking about that would take this long? Moving from standing attentively by the door to lounging against the opposite wall, Addy looked around for anything that would hold her attention; it would not do for her to wander off in the middle of a tour. But the hallways were empty, leaving her immediate vicinity completely void of anything interesting at all.
At first, wandering a couple feet down the corridor towards where she could peer up at the open sky was enough; a few different riders were alight among the puffy, pale clouds of the early afternoon, circling lazily around the volcanic peak of their home or otherwise flying with purpose out over the forest that surrounded the mountain on all sides. Wishing for sharper eyes, Addy tried to pick out the identities of these riders and their birds for the lack of anything else to do, but failed miserably. They were just too high up; brown, black, or golden blotches in the sky to the little woman. All she did know about the fliers were that none of them were Sira. The couple could boast being able to pick each other out from great distances, though it sometimes proved inconvenient of one or the other was trying to surprise their mate.
All too quickly the riders seemed to vacate the skies above Addy and she was once more left glancing around for something to hold her always-fleeting attentions. There was an Avora halfway down the corridor who seemed to struggle with the huge bundle of whatever is was in her arms. A moment of indecisiveness showed as the woman gnawed on her bottom lip, recollecting the stern reminders Sira constantly gave her about acting her Caste. Running to help an Avora with her chores would surely fall under the category of things Addy wasn’t supposed to be doing. Then again, giving a tour to an outsider also seemed “against the rules” and she hadn’t given that a second thought.
Cursing Sira for trying to reinforce the unfairness of their social systems and then making her feel guilty when she couldn’t help but be ‘overly nice’, Addy trotted off down the hallway to help the woman.
“It looks like you’re having a bit of trouble” she called as she approached, already holding out her arms to take some of the burdon from the stranger. “Here, let me help you.”
“Endal Aidara, you shouldn’t have to… It’s dirty laundry, you can’t…” Trying to turn her body away to shield the massive bundle of clothes in her arms, the Dek Addy had assumed was an Avora shook her head vigorously. Her eyes stayed downcast after their initial shocked stare as Addy approached offering help, her voice quiet and meek. In her attempt to prevent the healer from helping, the Dek almost lost her burden on the stone floor, thrown off balance by the load and stumbling a bit as she twisted way.
“How do you all recognize me? I’ve never seen you in my life, girl. Is there a book everyone studies of ‘People to Avoid’?” Suddenly extremely annoyed, Addy ignored the protests and stepped closer, reaching for the clothes anyway. The submissive attitude instantly got under her skin, followed quickly by the refusal of her help. It was her help to give, no matter what Caste claimed her. These foolish Inartans, stuck in their discriminatory and masochistic ways. This tiny young woman would rather struggle with her job than take offered help, just because it was her place to refuse.
Growing up among the other Yasi and then Avora, Addy had learned that the discriminations among the Inarta were, for the most part, instinctual. It was impressed upon them since they were old enough to comprehend Nari, reinforced in everything they saw during their day-to-day. For a while, desperate to fit in and be someone, Addy had played along. She kicked her fair share of Dek, joined in the laughing as two of the lower castes fought over their meager meals.
Except, one day all those things lost their amusement. How she gained a conscience, Addy didn’t know, assuming it came with puberty, that as her breasts blossomed, so did her integrity. How it happened didn’t change the fact that it did, and that most of her peers seemed to lack that same sense of right and wrong; or else theirs were extremely warped. From that point forward, despite what was considered the ‘social norm’, Addy went out of her way to help and not discriminate. Yes, sometimes she fell back into the grips of thinking she deserved special treatment because of her Caste, but not everyone was perfect.
Instead, Addy always thought of herself as slightly different. Perhaps not in a bad way, but different none the less. Never did she actually consider that she had simply been bone differently from the rest of her race for a reason. The Mark from Rek’keli had been on the inside of her arm for so long, since her birth in fact, that she was no longer aware of it every waking moment. It was part of her and had been for the past twenty-four years. Never did she consider that the goddess must have seen something in her, even as a child, that was different as well as deserving. Being ‘different’ in a society where different was shunned and punished stunted outside-the-box thinking such as that.
Either way, Addy struggled with the Dek and her clothes until the Dek, being taller and slightly stronger, was able to wrench herself away and flee down the corridor with her burden.
“Arrrgh!” Stomping her food and growling in frustration, Addy turned in a small circle, actively seeking somewhere to vent her frustration. It built and built inside her, hands balled and shaking at her sides until she couln’t contain it any longer. The toes of her left foot smashed against the stone of the corridor wall; Addy bit down on her tongue to contain the yelp of pain, determined to look tough for anyone who might have been watching. She thought her anger legitimate, for Dek’s might be the lowest of the low, but they of anyone should understand discrimination. Had Addy just not been discriminated against because of her higher caste? The thought rankled, even the throbbing pain in her abused foot unable to dull the insult.
When Jameson finally immerged from his meeting, he found Addy sitting against the wall across from the Valintar’s door where he left her. She was throwing stones against the opposite wall, testing her aim to see if she could consistently hit a divot in the wall just above the doorframe.
“What’s the damage?” Rising slowly because of her now favoring left foot, Addy tried to keep the growl from her voice. There was no reason to be unkind to her new friend, as he had done nothing wrong at all. Forcing a smile she hobbled to his side and took the paper he presented her.
Chiet. Heaving a sigh, Addy saw the friendship of this new, attractive specimen of a man slipping away from her. Would he soon be averting his gaze when the passed in the halls, bowing and tacking on “Endal” in front of her name like everyone was likely to forget their place. She stared at the words written in Kaden’s neat hand, taking note of the hours required and the meager pay stamped on at the end; it was much less than her own income. Even the description of what he could eat stuck in at the bottom twisted her stomach.
“The stables? That is probably one place I haven’t frequented often. The horses scare the living shyke out of me.” She refolded and handed his working slip back, her green eyes meeting his own for a moment before flitting away again. Apparently he was hard of sight, so perhaps he would miss the strained friendliness of her face. Letting the silence stretch between them, Addy tried to get her mind back on track, away from her miseries so that she could figure the best plan of action and where to show Jameson next.
“I’m really enjoying your company.” Having opened her mouth to speak at the same time as he, Addy quickly snapped it shut. The admission caught her off guard, and normally would have elicted a bright smile, had she been in anything other than a cynical mood. Instead her mouth twisted in a wry smile as she glanced away down the hallway.
“And I enjoy yours. Make sure your fellow workers don’t convince you that I’m too good for you, eh? Technically, we met before you were any caste at all.” Knowing that the man would know little and understand less of the complicated Inartan Caste, Jameson wouldn’t really understand what her statement meant, also unaware of the little battle that had waged in the hallway while he was inside with the Valintar. Addy had tried to keep the bitterness from her voice and thought she rather succeeded, hoping that Jameson wouldn’t pick up on such subtle changes in her voice. However, the little woman failed to realize that she had lost the infectious energy Jameson had seen prior to leaving. In contrast, Addy seemed moody indeed.
“Lets go show you the stables, then, since you’ll be spending most of your time there.”
