Truong's Inn
14 Bakemes, 333
Daina
Daina had come out this morning after a good rest and given a low groan at the sight of the trampled plants and upturned soil. She shakes her head. "c'mon people, party doesn't have to mean trash the place" she grumps softly before starting to look around and gathering up the plants that can be saved. The rest she puts into the compost heap with a soft tsk. The garden was now.. well there was a good bit of room to figure things out at least, bare spaces of dirt and grass where the plants had been removed. She hmmms a little and takes out a seed that would create a flowering vine. Bending she tucks it into the ground and with some urging and a funneling of warmth from around them she urges the plant to go against it's nature and burrow under the ground and then up, the effect being that the soil is turned over and she can get to work replacing the plants that are needed. She'd harvested some seeds from the ruined crops and even though they weren't mature yet she's able to help that along and starts to planting them in the best arrangement for yield and ease of harvest for the family. Singing a nonsense song about how rocking the party had been and pausing in that now and again to talk to the plants she's working on. It's around noon when she pauses for a break and a drink. The garden is coming together nicely and what would have taken months to restore seems to be taking the span of a day at most.
Slavina
"Around noon" is coincidentally about the time Slavina drags herself downstairs. She makes the mandatory kitchen stop, getting a big mug of coffee and the small bowl of porridge Dietrich saved for her. The dining room and kitchen are emptier than they were yesterday but still quite full of Truong's other guests, so she takes her meal out to the garden. She sits near Daina in the shade of an avocado tree.
Daina
Daina looks over as Slavina joins her and offers a little smile as she drinks some water and then uses the remainder to wash her face, though faintly dusty hands don't exactly make for a clean face. The labor of the garden work, some of which she actually did with her own two hands and not godly means, had made her warmer than usual and likely sitting near her was a bit like sitting near a small fire. "Good.. wake up time" she greets with a little grin.
Slavina
She doesn't smile back, but gives Daina a tiny nod. She's... unkempt, for Slavina. Her hair is in a single long braid down her back, her face clean but bare, the shift she's wearing orderly but lacking layers or decoration. Slavina looks up at the sky, but with clouds obscuring the sun it's impossible to tell. "How late is it?" she asks, quiet and almost apprehensive.
Daina
Daina hums "oh it's probably just barely past morning" she shrugs. "Seems you needed some sleep though huh?" she pauses a moment and holds out a hand. "Want a pick me up.. I'm told it's addictive, just as a disclaimer" She rubs her fingers together and 'warmth' and warmth radiate from her hand before 'dimming' again.
Slavina
"Yeah." She looks at Daina's fingers for a long minute. Finally, Slavina says, "I... better check with Janin and Aaren first. I have coffee." She raises her mug, which smells like it's roughly a 50-50 mix of coffee, milk, and honey.
Daina
Daina grins a little "ah Aaren is gonna say don't do it... she's super sketchy about it" she notes quietly. "I sort of want to just put off energy for people sometimes.. you know like I did for the babies when they were sick.. but like just to pep people up if they're down."
Slavina
She takes a sip of coffee. "Yeah, well, you've seen how I get when I'm 'peppy,'" Slavina notes. Her tone is light, but unpleasant, slimy things lurk not far under the surface.
Daina
Daina's brow furrows a little but and she questions. "Wanna talk about the .. well... is there anything you wanna talk about I guess is my best way to ask it" she makes a bit of a face, her nose wrinkling at her lack of elegance.
Slavina
Slavina gives a small shrug and stares at the ground. She wraps both hands around her mug, setting the porridge bowl on the ground. She speaks in a quiet monotone. "What's there to talk about? I was acting like... like..." words fail her. She starts over, "I don't even remember half of what I did."
Daina
Daina hums a little and questions. "So you think you did something you'd regret or feel bad about, if you remembered it?"
Slavina
"That'd just be the ribbon on the bouquet. I know I regret the things I failed to do." She takes a sip of coffee, stares at a loon on the lake for a little bit, and says, "Not that I didn't do anything else regrettable. I'm sure I did."
Daina
Daina frowns a bit and tilts her head. "hmmn mmn so .. do you want to.. stop having times like that? I mean is that something you want to work towards or are you ... ok with how it is?" she frowns "I mean people can have some pretty... " she makes air quotes "bad' things they do but... they are ok with them or they accept them you know?" she purses her lips "Like the Gods have some crummy stuff they do as part of their jobs but you know.. they have to cause ... it's a .. " she closes her eyes a moment "um a... long game" she nods "yeah it's like totally butt and everything but it's part of a bigger plan and picture... so it's gotta get done.. sort of like.. how I'm here when I wanna be home.. it's all part of a bigger story that I've got to see through.. you know.. did that make the least bit of sense or help?" she questions as she huffs "or did you just wanna vent and not get advice or anything.. sorry if that was the case.. "
Slavina
As she listens to Daina talk, Slavina curls over until her forehead is almost resting on the rim of her mug. It takes her a while to process the whole speech. She shakes her head slowly, making her braid slide back and forth over her spine. Her voice is low and raw. "I can't keep doing this. I can't be... I... I don't even know why you all want me around."
She swallows, thick, takes a steadying sip of coffee-milk and a deep, shuddering breath. "Sorry... sorry. Um. What kind of things?"
Daina
Daina hums a little "well I like having you around cause you're fun to dance with and I still gotta learn your shopping technique" she smiles a touch before pausing "uh like what kinda lame poopy things do the Gods gotta do?"
Slavina
"Yeah. That." She sets down the coffee and tries for a bite of porridge.
Daina
Daina considers that "well like ok.. Uncle Bren, The Drowned King, He was totally stuck in his castle for a long time.. and he missed his family and stuff but .. ya know he went through and Aunt Aida helped by being there with him 'n eventually it got figured out.. but also like there's Nawi Sofi and Nala Ro .. He bleeds for ages... and mean obviously that cuts down on his social life to say the least.. but he does it and Nawi Sofi she's there with him and I mean she's watchin' her husband suffer but she does it." She relates more stories that are probably more relevant, like Fury's for instance.
Slavina
"Danska." Slavina breaks in during a break in the stories. "Carrying out unpleasant, painful responsibilities is the exact opposite of being wildly irresponsible."
Daina
Daina sighs "I mean yeah ... but more so like.. I guess what I'm trying to say is the .. struggle of it.. you know how you feel really like not good sometimes... it's all part of the story and ... it'll come together eventually and you know if you want help reigning it in .. I'll do my best to try and help ya.. just hang tight.. and it'll turn out in the end. You're a clever, kind person and .. I dunno man just like don't despair... er... unless you really want to cause.. that's your right as a person but.. you don't gotta is my point.. probably" she looks hella awkward and looks away "bluh sorry I'm not .. wise or .. insightful in this stuff.. I just... want to help"
Slavina
She prods at the porridge a few more times and gives up, setting it back down. She takes a minute to recoup from the effort, then picks up her coffee-cup again. "Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything stupid. I know better."
Daina
Daina pauses a second and questions "d'you want a hug?"
Slavina
Slavina curls herself back up again, and her head bounces a little in something approaching a nod.
Daina
Daina gives this sort of press of lips that is like a faint some and scoots over to wrap her arms around Slavina and give a warm hug, willing to sit like this till Slavina indicates she's had enough of the huggings. She absently hums a tune she learned from Babushka with the crinkle hair, because silence is not the way of her people.
Slavina
Slavina leans into Daina and just sits there for a while. She doesn't make any noise, but when she uncurls a bit her cheeks are wet. She stays in the hug for as long as Daina's willing to continue it, taking slow spoonfuls of porridge every so often. About halfway through her oatmeal, she asks in a hoarse murmur, "Do you miss Pasar de Morado?"
Daina
Daina sighs some. "Sure, all my friends and my family and I had lot's of plans.. I'll go back one day.. it'll be really cool to see what they've done while I'm gone" she tacks on a note of hopefulness. She falls silent after, she'd thought to ask if Slavina missed her family but that .. she wasn't sure if it'd make things worse or better or what.
Slavina
Slavina swallows hard. She shifts the angle of her shoulders so the bones aren't digging into Daina so much. "I always imagined if I left my family, it'd be because I was given to a new one. It was hard to think about leaving, you know? But I never... never thought I'd just... not have a family."
Daina
Daina sort of settles a little, her frame shifting to hopefully be more comfortable. She's quiet a moment "Well I don't know .. I mean we're not.. a huge family or a big community but you've got us.. and who's to say.. like you could make your own big ol' family one day or .. or we could totally get a group of God 'kids' and be a 'super family' .. Like The Incredibles or something.. ok well there were only five of them but whatever... "
Slavina
"Thanks." She clears her throat. "I... appreciate it. Probably when I'm doing better I'll think that's really nice. It's just hard. There's not enough of you and you're not Liudzi... it just doesn't feel like a family." She's quiet for a moment, then says very softly, "Sorry."
Daina
Daina hums softly and nods her head. "I get you... don't forget I left my family too.. and I found a new one but.. it wasn't the same. It never will be totally the same... but it doesn't mean I can't still find love and happiness.. You don't gotta be sorry for how you feel dude, it's totally understandable!" she gives a bit of a tighter squeeze. "I hope you feel better when you're ready to, and like.. lemme know if I can do a thing.. or say a thing.. or .. be a thing to help ok?"
Slavina
"Can I do anything for you?" Slavina asks.
Daina
Daina ponders "umm wanna hang out and keep me company while I finish up the garden, that'd be nice."
Slavina
"Sure." She nods. She shifts so Daina can get up if she wants to, silently releasing her from the hug.
Daina
Daina smiles a little and gives her another lil squeeze before retreating to go back to work, she really couldn't let something happen before she fixed at least this. She felt kinda bad about it. "That party was pretty great but I mean.. arg I never wanted damage to happen" she frowns a little as she sorts through the seeds in her hand to pick the right one for this plot.
Slavina
Slavina pulls herself up and follows Daina, moving like someone twice her age. She looks around at the carnage. Or... vegetatage. "You... didn't see this coming?"
Daina
Frowning a little Daina shakes her head. "I figured you know .. if you wanna dance and party you find a clear space and then you do all the fun things.. not trample peoples gardens" she seems to grump a little about that.