vor | Fifth Cream Cake: [Action/Voice]

[Almost two weeks spent in Malnosso captivity and what does Gregor have to show for it?

Lots and lots of band-aids, mostly. Also a minor cold that has turned into a chesty cough.

Instead of any great torture, drugs, or whatever he'd been expecting, the Malnosso mostly took DNA samples. Blood samples. Tissue samples. He's from further in Earth-universe's future than most besides Ivan, so maybe his specific point in human evolution was of interest. He understands the "lab rat" metaphor pretty well now. There hadn't been a lot of space in his cell, so he's a little stiff and sore. At least the hallucinations are gone. That had been the worst part--having to assure himself that this was a normal reaction to solitary confinement. He slowly heaves himself to his feet, blindly scrabbling for his journal. Writing is not easy with all his bandaged fingertips, so he speaks, sounding hoarse, slightly congested, and exhausted.]

Ivan. [A pause. ] Buffy. Adele. Whoever's...interested, this is Greg. I'm back. [He coughs a couple of times, fairly hard.] The Malnosso...anyway, I'm fine. It...wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I'm heading home now. Did someone take care of my horse?

[He'll take about fifteen minutes to walk home from his spot in the woods.]

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You want someone to be there when you check on the horse?

[Ivan's not going to make Gregor check on a horse that may be dead...or just hungry on his own.]

Yeah, fine.

I...

[He's about to tell Ivan it's fine, he's fine, but...no, he is not fine. Being alone is, objectively, a bad idea.]

You could walk up there with me. It's kind of a long walk. If you'd rather, I could meet you back at the flat.

I'll come with. I could meet you on the way, too, if that would be more convenient.

[Now he's certainly worried about Gregor.]

[He coughs. At least he's not staying home and making Ivan go out and see to General Alys himself--which, thanks to the Barrayaran oath system, is absolutely something he has the authority to do--a la Jilly's insistence. But Jilly appears to think sickness is an excuse for idleness.]

Yes, meet me north of town. I'm almost there.

On my way.

[It's not as though it requires much getting ready to go to do that, and by this time Ivan's figured out the town well enough to know things like which way is north. He's soon heading to Gregor, looking him over with obvious concern when he finds him.]

[Gregor stopped by the clothing shop long enough to pick up a navy blue button-up shirt and a pair of flip-flops, having been returned solely in new feather trousers. When he spots Ivan, he gives him a near-identical look of concern before deciding he has no reason to be worried and in fact Ivan probably got laid in the time Gregor was away, so no pity here. Besides, he's extremely anxious to see if General Alys is okay. There are often people up at the farm. Maybe one of them took care of her. Still.

The man himself is looking a bit...well, a bit like hell. Thin, pale, dark shadows under his eyes, and a healthy amount of stubble. And anxious enough not to care.]

Ready?

[Ivan looks pretty much the same as ever, on the worried side of things instead of chipper, but he feels that that's more than understandable. Still he's certainly in perfectly fine physical condition. Unlike Gregor, who at least at doesn't look like he's sporting anything that a few nights of good rest won't fix.]

Of course.

[They're just going to see the horse, right, not marching off to war? Ivan decides not to ask, in case the answer isn't anything he'd like.]

[Gregor coughs into his elbows as he sets off toward the farm at a quick pace. Maybe his first imperial command to Ivan will be to help him build an addition to the stables in front of building 7. Or maybe that's abuse of power, yeah. He can suggest it, then. It's a long walk to the farm.

He says nothing further as they walk.]

[Ivan intends to keep silent as he keeps pace, but a couple more glances at Gregor and he can't exactly stay silent for very long.]

How long were you kidnapped for?

...What's today?

Saturday. The, ah, 29th. Still of July.

[It takes him a second. His brain is pretty much useless.]

Twelve days.

[He is trying to decide if that's more or less than it felt like.]

[...So Ivan feels pretty bad about not noticing, now.]

Oh. Well...you're back now, at least.

[Because that's all there is to it, yeah. Occasionally the temptation to deck Ivan arises, and it's fortunate that Gregor is so controlled.]

Ivan?

[He might even agree he deserves it in this circumstance.]

Sire?

You don't have to talk.

Oh? ...

[Right, that probably means that Gregor would rather he didn't. So Ivan's silent now, again.]

[Thank you.

Gregor keeps walking briskly toward their destination, occasionally giving a chesty cough into the crook of his elbow. Ivan had better not fall behind.]

[Ivan can keep up just fine, and he's not going to let Gregor out of his sight just now.]

[It does help that Ivan has a few inches on Gregor. Long legs always help.

When they finally reach the farm, Gregor is prepared to tear into the barn...but upon coming closer, sees the dark bay mare standing outside, grazing.]

She must've broken free.

[He sounds both relieved and exhausted. He slows to a halt, watching her. She's acting lethargic and is probably undernourished as hell, but she's alive.]

[Right. Is he allowed to talk now?]

In the future I'll check on her daily, just in case you're not here to do so.

[He glances sharply at Ivan, then relaxes and nods.]

Contact me before you set out. It might not be necessary.

[With a sigh, he starts toward the mare to recapture it.] I had this fantasy of running a public stable. Technology here is mixed, but transportation is positively Time of Isolation. Most people only have their feet.

Sure. But if I end up doing it unnecessarily, that's fine.

[The least he can do, sort of.]

How would you get more horses? Do they show up, like the wine did?

No. You have to...earn points from the Malnosso. You can use them to buy things you wouldn't ordinarily have. You go on these missions...

[He ends that with three vicious coughs into his arm.]