[Devi's Apartment] Just What The Doctor Ordered (Devi)

by **Orin Fenix** on May 31st, 2015, 3:28 pm

Evening, 74th of Spring, 515AV

Orin adjusted the collar of his shirt nervously, stalling for time. He’d been looking forward to this night for a long time. He’d finally gotten a chance to ask Devi out for dinner, or, more specifically, in for dinner, at her apartment. It probably would’ve been much less intimate if it had been somewhere in public but their schedules simply were too hectic and Devi was technically supposed to be available at almost any hour of the day. So they’d settled on this instead. Besides, even though he didn’t think he was necessarily the greatest chef in Syliras, and definitely didn’t know the most recipes, he felt that he was good enough that his food would at least be palatable. This wasn’t a date however, but an exchange, no matter what the circumstances. Orin wanted more information on the food he might feed to sick people and just caring for the sick or wounded in general. Since he didn’t really have much else to offer and giving Devi money for that felt quite odd to him, he’d agreed to cook her for a meal. However, even though Orin didn’t have romantic feelings for Devi, he was increasingly aware of how this situation might look to an outsider. Understandably, he was feeling a bit nervous, hoping that Devi hadn’t drawn the wrong conclusions, otherwise it would be an incredibly awkward and shameful evening.

It probably wasn’t helped by what Orin had done prior to his arrival. First, he’d skipped his usual early morning workout and training to go clothes shopping instead. He’d realized the night before that he only had one pair and that it was looking particularly ratty and patchwork. In fact, it wasn’t appropriate for anything other than work, and so he’d set off to find, if not a replacement, at least additional pairs. He’d gone to the market and stopped at the first clothing stall he saw. Once there, he has stopped, completely flabbergasted at the sheer amount and variety of items available. In fact, he’d look so shell-shocked and lost that the stall owner had taken pity on him and escorted him around. Once she’d heard his dilemma, she had been extremely helpful in selecting his garments.

He’d ended up with quite a pile of clothes by the time they were done, which, he realized was probably the point since he had far more than he’d thought he would when it had all started. He had three shirts, one forest green, one a sky blue, and one a plain black, and two pairs of breeches, one black and one charcoal. Beyond that, he’d gotten a gray vest, a black jacket, and three pairs of undergarments. And, as a final touch, he’d picked up an apron because he figured that a man in his profession probably should have one. All of it was linen which the tiny wizened man who watched him with glittering eyes assured Orin would keep him cool in the summer. Then, he’d heard the price of twelve golden mizas and his jaw dropped. While he wasn’t quite as strapped for cash as he’d been in the past his frugal sensibilities kicked in. The proprietor definitely had the advantage over him, seeing as Orin knew nothing of fashion or of cloth prices, so Orin had taken a stab in the dark. ”I’ll give you half that and not a copper miza more.” The man looked scandalized at Orin’s attempt to haggle but quickly dropped into the banter that nearly everyone in Syliras seemed to learn as a matter of course. Everyone except Orin, that was, who still struggled with the most basic tenets of getting a good deal. ”Ten gold mizas and I’m telling you, you’re robbing me blind.” Orin bit his bottom lip, wavering, really unwilling to pay. Then he thought of the humiliation of arriving at Devi’s door in his current clothes and sighed. ”Eight golden mizas, but that’s my final offer.” The man looked wounded, but nodded sagely. ”How about you give me eight golden mizas, plus two silver ones to cover the trouble of me helping you with your selections?”

”Deal!” Orin quickly jumped on the offer, which he definitely saw as a good one. They shook on it, before Orin counted out the requisite number of coins. Then, because he was feeling rather triumphant, he let the stall owner talk him into making a few more purchases from, as he told Orin, “the finest folks in all of Syliras!” On top of his already alarming pile of items, Orin found a belt, a pair of shoes, a low pair of boots, and, most unusually, a broad-brimmed hat. He kept handing over mizas, bemused at the clothes horse he was quickly becoming. Never in his life would he have imagined this scene. He took everything back to his apartment to dump it off, then carefully folded and packed his change for the evening into a bag and grabbed his picnic basket, with only two pairs of dishes and utensils inside. Thus armed, he made two more stops, one for a rather nice bottle of red wine and one at the Butcher of Alban to grab two steaks, both for the dinner. He also snagged a frying pan from the butcher’s because apparently they had a spare on hand and he was a valued customer. His last stop before he absolutely had to get to work was for some early strawberries and the ingredients for some very basic cream, milk and honey. It was a simple dessert, but a good one, and one Orin could make without much effort. As he walked, Orin reflected that he really needed to learn more about vintages. Just because he avoided them like the plague didn’t mean that they weren’t an extremely important facet of his work. That however, was a project for another day.

As always, The Rearing Stallion was a beehive of activity. Orin was quickly sweating in the heat of the oven and once again blessed his luck that he’d gotten an opportunity to acquire new clothes. At the end of the dinner rush, Orin grilled up the two steaks. He also got some more good news. Since the tavern had leftover vegetables that they otherwise would either throw out or toss in the soup for the next day, Remi graciously allowed him to take two servings, especially as he skipped the main course that evening. She’d gotten a sly glint in her eye when he’d explained his plans for the evening, which he hadn’t quite interpreted. He washed up quickly in the water barrel, before stripping and changing as quickly as he knew how in the empty pantry. Then, he’d packed everything away, and went to Devi’s, detouring just long enough to deposit his unwanted dirty clothes and bag in his apartment.

Which brought him to this moment. He’d chosen the sky blue shirt, which apparently “brought out his eyes,” whatever that meant, with the gray vest on top of it. The pants were a slightly darker shade of charcoal, but hopefully they matched. He had his new shoes and the belt on, and the leather gleamed. Tucked under an arm was the basket, with the steaks, the vegetables, and the pan to heat them up, the strawberries, milk and honey for dessert, and last but not least, the wine. Orin was definitely having second thoughts about the wine. He’d thought it would be a nice addition to round out the meal, but a bottle for two people was quite a bit, especially seeing as Orin almost never drank, because, frankly, he was afraid to. But he’d tried alcohol again recently and nothing terrible had happened. Besides him kissing a man, but he was still working through all the consequences and implications of that. A bottle of wine did carry certain connotations, and Orin was always growing more nervous by the tick. Still, he was probably overthinking all this and any more delays would likely result in him running away, which would confuse Devi more than anything else. So, he stiffened his spine and knocked, twice, his knuckles rapping lightly on the wood of the door. Priskil preserve me! He sent up a quick prayer for a happy and uncomplicated evening, then wiped his hand against his suddenly sweaty brow.

Receipt :

by **Devi** on May 31st, 2015, 4:04 pm

Devi flitted around her apartment restlessly. This was an unusual situation for her to be in. People didn’t spend time in her home. The people she treated in her neighbourhood had learnt the hard way that she did not treat people here and no, she wouldn’t like to invite any of them in to get to know them better. She got to know more about her patients than she ever really wanted to know. Having those same people snooping around her sorry excuse of an apartment had always been out of the question.

As she raked her eyes across the bare walls and the sparse bits of furniture dotted around she reflected that even she didn’t spend much time in her home. It was a place to sleep and be alone and that was about it. Devi didn’t even really eat here. Her cooking skills were dire to the extreme. Skilled her hands may be in medical matters but apparently they objected to transforming other living things into edible morsels.

That was in fact one of the reasons Orin was visiting her tonight. He wanted to know more about what kind of food would be good for someone who’s sick or recovering from injury. In exchange he had offered to cook for her. She’d accepted without question – Orin’s food was good. It had taken her a few moments to realise that he’d actually intended to teach her a bit about cooking during the process. He had no idea what he was in for.

Of course, all of that was not the reason for her restless pacing. Orin was one of those unusual people that Devi would consider a friend. That and the promise of good food had been enough that she hadn’t questioned the possible connotations of their evening together. One thing she despised about living in such close quarters in the Maiden district however was the gossip. Devi had invited a bloodied up young Chaktawe cage-fighter into her apartment one time and it was all any of the twittering idiots talked about now.

She had an idea just where their gossiping attention would turn with Orin’s visit to her, especially considering this was one of those rare occasions that she had decided to wear a dress. It was a simple one made of cotton, dyed a pale blue. Her worn and snug trousers and shirt were practical for work but her increasing proclivity for social situations had given her a new liking for the garment. Despite the innocuous reasons for her wearing it however, it was yet another nail in her proverbial scandalous coffin.

A light rap at the door paused her pacing and Devi hurried to the door. Barely had the second knock finished when she opened the door, hiding most of herself behind the wooden surface like a paltry shield. When she saw Orin’s face she barely registered the nervous lines etched across his face before gesturing for him to enter.

“Orin! Come in…”

She couldn’t quite stop her eyes from darting behind the chef to the occupants of the hall. She fixed her most intimidating glare on her face to stab out at them before shutting the door. Clearing her expression she turned back to her companion.

“Welcome! Uh…”

Devi’s suddenly cheery greeting faltered a bit as she realised once more that her bare apartment probably wasn’t all that welcoming. A simple bed was neatly made across the far side of the room, her few journals scattered across the surface of the little wooden end table next to it. A wardrobe and washbasin were settled in the other far corner. To the left of the door a faded couch sat, lonely against the wall. The hearth was in the middle of the room, radiating heat out in all directions. She had a small table and two thin chairs near to the warmth and a simple shelf set with the meagre range of kitchen implements that had sat gathering dust for however long it had been since she last attempted to cook something.

“I uh. Well. I don’t really spend much time here… as you… can probably tell. ”

Her cheeks flushed pink against her pale skin. She could almost see the fiercely independent aspect of her personality stood across the room shaking her head at the fact that she, Deviana Helena Blackwood, was actually embarrassed at the state of her home.

by **Orin Fenix** on September 27th, 2015, 2:58 am

Devi looked, well, simply marvelous. While Orin had seen her in dresses before, he hadn’t expected her to have dressed up for the occasion. After all, the few other times he’d seen her outside of work clothes she’d been impeccably clothed in gowns of various colors. This was different, though since the other times had clearly been parties or gatherings where Devi might have been expected to clean herself up. Orin didn’t think she wore dresses while working as a doctor, although he’d only seen her in that capacity sparingly. Of course, he didn’t know what she wore when she wasn’t working or out with friends, but he’d never imagined it to be something like this. Not expecting her to have done anything special for him, Orin simply stopped and took in the sight of her.

Realizing that he was openly staring, Orin cleared his throat and followed her gaze as she defiantly looked at the neighbors down the hall. Stepping into the room, he flushed slightly, with embarrassment at the whole situation. ”I see you have nosy neighbors as well. Ah, I could talk to them, explain what’s going on...not that there’s anything to explain I just meant, if you thought it would help.” Clutching the basket like a lifeline, Orin took a deep, calming breath, to bring his chatter down to a more manageable level. He’d learned a few tricks during his stay in Syliras and one of the best was how to actually hold a conversation with someone without making a complete and total fool of himself. It just took him quite a bit of mental effort to maintain that state, though he figured that this situation certainly called for it. ”Trust me, I know all about it.” Laughing, he leaned against the wall by the doorway, preparing himself to attempt a joke. This was always a bit difficult and had extremely mixed results for Orin in the past. ”You should hear what they say about me living with a young girl. Who likes to be naked all the time. I’m almost certain they’ve tried to call the Knights down on me.” He laughed weakly, but realized his explanation without context didn’t make a lot of sense. ”You know, because Sylvette’s a Kelvic, and my bondmate and well, they apparently don’t like clothes and I try and get her to wear them but it’s an uphill battle and...I’m just going to stop talking, alright?” Blushing furiously, Orin busied himself with finding an appropriate place to set his supplies down.

There wasn’t exactly much of a choice in the matter. Devi’s apartment was pretty sparsely decorated, the bare bones of the stone walls dominating most of the surroundings. ”I see that you’ve also managed to make your cell feel like a cell. Love what you’ve done with the place.” A quick scan of the room confirmed that she hadn’t done much to change the basic setup that he also had. ”Really, though, looks basically the same as mine. My policy is that all I really use the place for is sleeping and storing the things I don’t want to carry with me all the time, so why bother making it beautiful, you know? Function over form, I guess.” Realizing he was babbling, albeit in a friendly way, Orin clamped his lips shut once again and proceeded to get on with the dinner, which would hopefully keep him from opening his fool mouth again, at least in an awkward way.

Making his way over to the table, Orin began unpacking the basket, setting the steaks and the vegetables in the pan and sliding it down closer to the hearth. ”Here, can you set this up over the hearth for a bit and heat these up over it? They’re already cooked and shouldn’t be too cold but I want to make sure they’re warm.” Leaving that for her, Orin took out the cutlery and began setting the table. The plates were next, followed finally by the wine bottle. And then Orin realized that he’d forgotten a fairly important piece of equipment. ”So, do you ah, know how to open a wine bottle? I work in the kitchen before so they’re always either already open or they get served in the front room, which obviously I’m not in, so I’ve never...done it before.” There were more extenuating reasons why Orin tended to avoid alcohol, but his friendship with Devi was far too tenuous for him to unburden his past on her. Best to keep it simple for now, and see how the evening progressed. Although Orin doubted that he’d tell her even if they became closer. It was his deepest, darkest secret, one that plagued his days and haunted his nights and the number of people he’d actually opened up to about it could be counted on the fingers of one hand. So whatever else came of this night, Orin didn't think he'd talk about that particular aspect of his family history.

by **Devi** on October 4th, 2015, 3:53 pm

“Set this up over the hearth.” She muttered to herself. “Right. That I can do.”

Fortunately this was a task she was actually practiced in. She often bought food which had been pre-prepared at an inn and brought it back here to re-heat. Orin had already positioned everything in the pan that he laid aside so all she had to do was position it in the right place on the hearth so that it would gently heat and not burn. She did so, carefully and turned to find Orin staring rather confusedly at a wine bottle in his hands.

At his question her heart skipped and her expression flickered. She recovered from it quickly though and let out a light, short laugh.

“Honestly I’m not all that practiced with it myself. It’s useful to mix with Delaviv juice but otherwise…”

She moved over to the little set of shelves and small cupboards by her hearth. They were mostly filled with jars, packets and boxes of medicinal herbs but there were a few kitchen tools buried right at the back. She reached a hand carefully through jars and boxes to try and feel for a corkscrew.

“I’m sure I have a corkscrew here somewhere.” She muttered. After a brief pause she felt the need to continue her previous sentence somehow, the silence lengthening a little too much for her liking.

“To be blunt, I don’t drink anything alcoholic. I’m never really off-duty I guess.”

She let those words trail off, not really satisfied that she had successfully closed the subject. What she had said was true – she had set the precedent that she could be called on at any time. She was a one-woman medical team so there wasn’t anyone to cover her if she wanted to step back and relax. To be absolutely truthful however, she and Ronan had never even wanted to ingest anything alcoholic. They both associated it with everything bad to do with their father. It was something Marianne, her sister-in-law, had always found strange. At first she had expected them both to be harbouring some deep seated rage at the root of it all but eventually she accepted that it was just a choice they had made. That still made it fairly difficult to explain to other people.

“Aha.”

She made the noise in triumph as her fingers rested at last on the small curl of metal she was looking for. When she pulled it out it was a little dusty and the triumph in her face flickered. She cleaned it off with a spare cloth and then handed it over to Orin. Feeling the need to occupy her hands she returned to the hearth, retrieved a fork and poked at the steaks with it, listening to the quiet hiss as the meat’s juices started to heat.

“So… you wanted to know about what food to feed someone who’s sick? Are you planning on encountering more sick people or were you just curious?” She prompted, letting a little amusement slip into her tone.

by **Orin Fenix** on October 6th, 2015, 5:09 am

Obviously his joke fell flat. Kicking himself inside, Orin squashed his first impulse to chatter inanely to cover how nervous he was. Devi clearly didn’t find the idea of gossipy neighbors amusing. And, thinking about it, neither did Orin. It was bad enough that the Syliran Order kept such a tight lid on all behavior they deemed unseemly and uncivilized, or threatening their sovereignty. Add to that the idea that they might actually take reports from citizens and start having friend spy on friend and it became downright terrifying. So prying eyes was nothing to laugh about in the fortress city. While Orin had never personally seen someone dragged off, at least not for a clearly committed crime, he’d heard stories, usually late in the evening when people were deep in their cups, of folks who disappeared in the middle of the night without a trace, and the Order refused to search for them.

So instead of pursuing that particular train of thought, Orin started asking the sort of questions one acquaintance asked of another. ”So, how’s work been? I assume you’re busy as always.” After that, though, Orin realized how little he knew of the woman whose apartment he’d entered. Clearly he could trust her with his life, as he had in the past. She seemed to take her duties as a physician quite seriously. But beyond that, Orin couldn’t come up with a whole lot of information about her personal life and her past. And it seemed a good as any to rectify that. ”Anything new since the last time we spoke? Or, well, really talked I suppose. It was...Sayana’s surprise party I want to say, is that right?” For whatever reason that felt like an eternity ago to Orin. In his defense, a lot had happened, not just since then but this season. Springtime, though in the past had been planting, had never seemed quite this busy to Orin. From bonding to budding romance to heartbreak, he’d gone through a lot in a relatively short span.

Not wanting to continue on in that particular direction, Orin broached the subject of Devi’s life outside of work as delicately as he could. ”So, Devi, why don’t we get to know each other a little better. I feel like we only seem to interact at parties or when my life is in grave danger.” Orin grinned, letting her know that he was more than happy at the care he’d received from her. ”I hope your other patients aren’t nearly as difficult as I am.” Crossing his arms and resting them across the back of the chair, Orin leaned against it, trying to evoke casual, calm, and collected but most likely just looking strange. ”While I’m sure we could swap war stories about our jobs all night, why don’t you talk to me about something else. Family maybe, or friends perhaps. It’s entirely up to you.” Not wanting to seem like he was prying, or trying to learn about matters he had no right knowing about, Orin straightened up and held out his hands in a placating gesture. “I’d be happy to answer any questions you might have about me.”

Watching her out of the corner of his eye, Orin started laying out the cutlery. He always worried when someone else was preparing the food but seeing as this was her apartment she had a much better idea of where everything was stored. Although, considering that her configuration of furniture was essentially exactly the same as his, he could probably make some educated guesses. Still, it seemed polite not to go rummaging through her drawers, especially after he’d gone combing over her personal life. She seemed to have matters well in hand, so Orin subsided, realizing as he did just how tense he was. Obviously he needed to work on his control issues.

The bottle proved to be a continuing nuisance, and Orin was regretting his decision to bring it along more and more with each passing tick. Not only did Devi not drink often, she seemed to be having trouble locating a corkscrew. And that was on top of the trepidations Orin already had about the wine. All in all, between the alcohol and Orin’s complete and utter lack of a proper sense of humor, it definitely didn’t seem that this evening was getting off on to a great start. Fidgeting uncomfortable, Orin couldn’t help flinching when Devi informed him that she typically didn’t drink. Before he could say anything though, she let out a satisfied sound and handed over the metal contraption that would unlock the belly of the beast. Taking it from her, Orin set both on the table, then ran a hand through his hair agitatedly. Finally, he blurted out what had slowly been building up within him. ”Look, I don’t typically drink either, so why don’t we chalk this one up to a terrible idea on my part and stick to water. I’ll...give it away or put it in The Rearing Stallion or something.” Hoping she wouldn’t inquire as to why he didn’t drink either, Orin spoke the first comment that came to mind. ”If you’re never off-duty when do you sleep? Do people actually wake you up in the middle of the night?” That seemed more than a bit rude to Orin, and dangerous to boot. He certainly wouldn’t want a groggy doctor tending his wounds.

As Devi returned to the hearth, Orin placed the bottle back in the basket, then took the two plates over to where she was standing. ”Why don’t you load that on these here plates and we relocate to the coach? I would suggest the table but you seem to only have one chair and if we try and wrestle with the furniture the food will get cold. We could always reheat it if you want, though. Just say the word and I will put my relatively weak and useless back into it.” Chuckling softly at the thought of him trying to lift anything even remotely heavy, Orin waited patiently for the food to be served.

Her questions caught him a bit off guard. While he’d have liked simply to chat with her before getting down to business, she seemed to want to get straight to the heart of the matter. And since it was the real reason he’d come out here tonight, he could hardly complain. Although he wouldn’t have minded a bit of sociable conversation and relaxation, he was more than willing to pick her brain about her medical knowledge. ”Right, yes, of course, that is why I’m here. And, forgive me for saying this since it’d put you out of work but ideally I’d like to never encounter another sick person again.” Orin wasn’t going to give up even if his attempts at witty observations were more than a bit feeble. ”But since that’s probably not going to happen I figured I might as well learn as much as I can about the subject. And do whatever is in my power to help.” Shrugging, embarrassed at that admission, Orin blushed. ”Anyway, I remember...I think it was Remi saying that there were specific dishes that helped in recovery but I’m having trouble remembering the details. Or maybe she didn’t tell me. Regardless, I was hoping you might be able to elaborate.” Smiling shyly at her, Orin added the last part softly. ”And since you’re the most knowledgeable medical professional I know, I figured I’d ask you. Hopefully the meal will be enough to repay your kindness.”

by **Devi** on October 17th, 2015, 11:24 pm

When she had pulled the chronically underused corkscrew down from its hiding place at the back of her kitchen shelves she presented it to Orin with a slight flourish. His expression when she turned to face him was not exactly what she had expected. He hesitated before taking it from her, not looking her in the eye. She noticed he was fidgeting slightly, uncomfortable, considering what to say. Finally he set both the corkscrew and the bottle down and the thoughts that had clearly been tumbling through his head burst out in a rush. As he finished she felt her stomach squirm a little with guilt.

Before she could summon up the words to apologise however he was already talking again, clearly keen to move the conversation along. Internally she shook her head. For someone who was so uncomfortable in social situations Orin sure was a talker. He asked a few more questions and then indicated the food would be ready to eat. Devi carefully extracted the slabs of delicious-smelling steak from the pan on the hearth and transferred them to the plates. She nodded towards the sofas, considering where to even begin.

“Orin you really need to learn to breathe in-between questions. You’ll learn a lot more that way.”

She smiled a little to reassure him and then continued.

“So, listen for a little bit and I’ll give you a crash course in all things Devi. Maybe we’ll both stop skirting around awkward subjects then. To start with the obvious, I love being a doctor. I live for it. Yes, people interrupt my sleep fairly frequently. And my mealtimes. They tend to come seek me out whenever I’m supposed to be off duty too. A lot of people around here either don’t like going to Soothing Waters or just can’t afford it. I studied under a doctor who does exactly what I do, actually going to people’s homes and treating them where they’re comfortable, helping them in whatever ways they can afford. Sometimes just helping them when they can’t afford anything.

I find it ridiculous that the Knighthood haven’t established any kind of centralised medical facility and if you let me I’ll talk your ear off about that. Needless to say I sleep when I can, I eat when I can and I rarely take time off just for myself. When I do take time off it’s generally to see my brother’s family and even then, I always keep my kit with me because I can guarantee you that at least half the time it’ll be needed.”

She shuffled back into the sofa a little, kicking off her little shoes and pulling her feet around her side in a more familiar comfortable position. Unusually enough she found that she was fairly comfortable around Orin, more so now that she was unloading all of the things she tended to keep restrained. Devi had a suspicion that it was a habit the two of them shared.

“I really am sorry about the wine, I didn’t mean to spoil your plans. I wasn’t lying when I said that I’m never really off duty. That’s my choice though, as is abstaining. My family have a bit of a coloured history when it comes to alcohol. Ronan and I never really talked about it much but we both agreed that we wouldn’t touch the stuff. It’s not that we think it’s this terrible thing or that we judge people who do indulge, it’s just a bad reminder for the both of us.”

She frowned a little before continuing, “A bit of a bad habit too I suppose. Our mother died giving birth to me and my father passed when I was thirteen. Ronan and I grew up quickly and we were already used to watching each other’s backs. It’s a hard habit to break.”

Devi shook her head, easing the frown from her brow. “Regardless, it’s just a choice. Nothing more. Like my addiction to my work is a choice.” Her lips quirked a little into a half-smile. “I’m practically inviting an interruption dressed like this. Still, it would hardly be the strangest outfit I’ve worn whilst attending to the ill and injured.”

She looked Orin in the eye and finished up her little speech, “I’m a self-perpetuating workaholic. I tend to drift from friends like other people drift from fashion trends. It has been a really long time since anyone was romantically interested in me or that I’ve cared to notice the difference. My brother is my best friend and I would give every miza I own to him and his family if they’d let me. I’m a terrible cook. Dangerously so. I know the streets of this city better than the contents of my apartment and it really wouldn’t surprise me if I lived here for the rest of my life. I hate being inside all the time, so much so that one time I managed to sneak to the roof of the stronghold to watch the sun rise.”

She pondered for a moment but couldn’t think of much else to let spill out of her.

“My father gave up, so I never will. I also don’t like subtext. Apparently it makes me a little blunt.”

Devi nodded to him in encouragement.

"Your turn."

by **Orin Fenix** on July 16th, 2016, 4:59 am

She had a point. And in fact, breathing had always helped him to control his more annoying impulses. So Orin took a deep breath, letting the air fill him up rather than his thoughts. When he let it out, he was a bit calmer, and more willing to listen rather than just chatter on. After all, Devi was right. She needed time to answer, or else he was going to look rather silly spending the whole evening asking questions and getting no answers. In response to her comment, Orin just smiled. ”Is that your professional recommendation, then?”

As Devi started revealing a bit about herself, Orin was surprised by her frankness, but he did his best not to show it. It seemed like most people in this city, or maybe just people in general, tended to keep to themselves. Not that they stayed indoors all the time. Indeed, he thought the Knighthood would have some choice words to say to someone who shirked what the Order thought of as their duty. Free loaders weren’t tolerated in the city and everyone had to pull their own weight. But what he had noticed was that everyone had secrets and few were willing to share them. It was amazing what he could overhear. People tended to treat cooks and servers as part of the furniture, and would speak frankly. Orin respected their privacy too much to listen. But then again, he wasn’t exactly the most open individual. In fact, his past was a mystery to almost everyone he knew, and he was sure that it would shock more than a few of his acquaintances.

Which was why what Devi was doing was so remarkable. She was baring her soul to him, and doing it quietly and confidently. He was frankly amazed she trusted him so much. They were at best barely friends, more like people who occasionally ran into each other because they operated in the same circles. But he found himself responding to what she was saying. At her admission that she loved being a doctor, he grinned. While she had asked him not to speak for a while, he couldn’t resist just one small follow up question. Before he could stop himself, one question slipped out. ”What do you love so much about being a doctor” Orin knew something about being passionate about his work, and he wondered if Devi’s reasons were anything like his own.

Realizing that he probably looked a bit silly hovering over her couch, food in hand, Orin eased himself down onto the sofa, taking a bite of his food. Frankly, he did even taste his food that much. While he was proud of his work and it was nicer than he usually ate, he genuinely wanted to get to know Devi, and so he put his full attention onto her words. And it seemed that, if anything, Devi was even more devoted to her life’s passion than Orin was. He hesitated slightly, but decided to jump in between two statements when she paused for breath. ”No rest for the wicked, I suppose?” He grinned to show that he was making a joke, just in case, since his other ones had gone undetected. ”But I guess, if you like it, then why not do it as much as possible? That’s sort of how I feel about cooking.” Orin titled his head and his brow furrowed as he thought about that a bit more. ”Actually, that’s more apt than you might think. While I don’t go out to my customers I, I don’t know, I like to think that I bring a bit of who I am to them with everything I feed them.” Orin shook his head ruefully. ”It sounds a bit silly now that I say it out loud, doesn’t it?”

When Devi mentioned giving people free treatment, Orin smiled. ”That’s incredibly kind of you, if not exactly financially sound. But still, I’m sure people repay you with what they can, even if it’s just gratitude.” This woman was definitely more than she seemed at first glance. ”And I’d like to think that one day your kindness will be rewarded, in some how.” Smiling, though, Orin gestured at her plate. ”For now, though please take this very small token of my gratitude.” Orin bowed, at least as much as one could bow from a sitting position, extending one arm out to the side in the overly dramatic action that was sometimes present in a bard’s tale. He kept as goofy a look on his face as he could the whole time, hoping to get at least one laugh out of Devi this evening. It seemed that someone with such a good heart should have some happiness in her life too. As she moved on to talking about the Syliran Order, Orin gave her a sharp look. He searched her face for signs that she might be leading him on into a trap about criticizing the order, but couldn’t find anything. Still, he decided to proceed cautiously. ”Feel free to tell me about the Order. I’m all ears.” He leaned forward, since he really did want to know what her opinions were.

At the mention of her brother, Orin perked up. ”I had no idea you had a sibling. You mentioned he had a family? How much older is he? What does he…” Catching himself, Orin put his hands out in a placating gesture. ”Sorry. I slipped into my rapid question mode again. I promise it won’t happen again.” Picking up a piece of his food again, Orin chewed and swallowed to allow her a chance to continue. She took the time to resettle herself, looking more comfortable with her shoes off and pulling her feet up. Orin felt inordinately glad that she felt safe enough in his presence to relax, and unconsciously, his own tension eased.

However, at her next topic, Orin started stressing out again. Why am I so bad at reading people? He was raising his hand to wave it off and opening his mouth to say that she should just forget about it when the rest of her words started to filter in. His throat felt like it was closing up, his mouth was dry, and he got a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. He managed to force out, ”My family has had some trouble in that regard as well,” before words failed him. He smiled, but it was empty of any joy. And when Devi said that her mother died in childbirth and her father died when she was thirteen, Orin was instantly catapulted back into his childhood, back to that awful afternoon. He felt memory of heat on his face and the memory of tears on his cheeks. His smile, already sickly, broke, and while his mouth still turned up at the corners, his eyes were dead and he was elsewhere. He listened to the rest of Devi’s answers with half an ear, but couldn’t respond. That is, until she said that it was his turn to speak and hers to listen.

With a mental and physical shake, Orin brought himself back to the present. I’m past that now. I’m never going to have to worry about that again. He struggled a bit with what he wanted to say to Devi. Finally, when he’d gotten the courage back to speak, he managed something that was somewhere between a whisper and a sigh, with unshed tears behind it. ”I’m sorry that you had to go through that. I...well I wouldn’t wish that fate on anyone, not even my worst enemy.” For whatever reason, Orin’s eyes felt wet and he scrubbed at them distractedly. ”And I would know. I’m an orphan myself you see. An orphan whose family had drinking problems.” Looking away from Devi, Orin studied the walls of her apartment, so like his own. It was depressing to think that every single apartment probably looked the same, and that it was simple cycling through its inhabitants through the years, unchanged. As if nothing they did in their lives mattered. ”You know, I’ve never told anyone that before. Here, at Syliras, at least. Guess we’re more alike than we thought.”

Looking back at Devi, but not quite able to meet her eyes, Orin tried to regain the thread of the earlier conversation, with mixed success. ”Well, anyway, enough of that. Let’s get back to the discussion at hand. I’ve certainly proven that I can be blunt, so...let’s see.” His voice sounded emotionless to his ears, drained, but that was the best he could do under the circumstances. ”I’ve thrown myself into my work as well. It helps me get on with my life. If I don’t have something to do then that leaves me time to think, you know.” Orin shrugged, not able to articulate what he was feeling. Then again, that had never been his strong suit. Trying to be more chipper for Devi’s sake, Orin forced himself to look fully at her. ”So what is the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever worked in? I’m afraid for me it’s aprons all the way.”

The subject of friends and lovers hit a little too close to home. Orin didn’t have either, and his few attempts in that regard had failed miserably, so he decided to let that thread of the conversation go for now. ”I’m glad you and your brother seem so close. It must be nice.” Biting his lip to keep from saying anything further on that front, Orin plunged ahead as best he could. ”Well, have you ever actually cooked before? It can’t be as difficult as mixing medicines, I’m sure. As for the city streets-- if you can call them that -- well, you’ll have to show me around sometime because I still occasionally get lost.” Finally, Orin couldn’t help but get a bit excited about her admission that she went onto the roof. ”How in the world did you get up there?!”

by **Anuk** on February 20th, 2018, 10:32 pm

　
Grade Withheld

Due to inactivity

If you return to Mizahar, feel free to PM me or resubmit this thread to the queue for your grade! You may also want to check out this announcement and amend your skills accordingly in your CS.
　

Closed [Devi's Apartment] Just What The Doctor Ordered (Devi)