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[mr_gaeta]

[Pre-Milliways: Gifts given, for another reason.]

It isn't anywhere close to Solstice season on the other side of the door, but Gaeta's had a good day regardless. He's dressed down far more than usual -- instead of his duty blues, he wears a gray zip-up sweatshirt thrown over his tanks and BDU pants -- and has curled up near the fire with a loosely bound sheaf of papers in hand, perusing through them with a tiny smile on his face.

Louis has done an incredible job of piecing this together. He thinks he might even get some of the basic concepts now, which is a lot more than he could say six months ago.



[ooc: open until it scrolls!]

Comments

[veryvorkosigan]

The thing about visiting Milliways from Vorkosigan House, Cordelia muses as she sits down at the bar, is that sometimes the ambient noise level actually goes down when you step in. Especially around Winterfair.

Despite having been climbed on by grandchildren for most of the afternoon, she doesn't look the slightest bit rumpled. She's wearing her usual (for Vorbarr Sultana) embroidered long dress and bolero jacket, and -- with perfect unconcern about how odd it may look -- carrying the stuffed plush stegosaurus that little Piotr pressed on her when she arrived.

"Coffee, please?" she says to the bar, and smiles when it appears. "Thanks."

[mr_gaeta]

From over the top of Louis' manuscript, Gaeta catches a glimpse of Cordelia. It takes a beat for him to place her; once he does, he smiles and lifts a hand in greeting.

[veryvorkosigan]

She smiles and waves back. "Hi."

"Hi," echoes the stuffed stegosaurus, its synthesized voice a touch crackly.

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta's eyebrows rise.

It's not because of the technology; talking toys had been around for upwards of a century before he was even born. It's what the toy is that draws a look of puzzlement.

"That's, ah..." A small, embarrassed smile. "May I ask what that is?"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Sorry," she says, amused, "I thought I turned it off. It's a toy of my grandson's. He insisted I have it while I'm visiting."

[mr_gaeta]

"Oh." Not all of the embarrassment eases from his smile. "I mean, um -- "

A small gesture toward the toy.

"What animal is that?"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Oh -- it's meant to be a stegosaurus. An extinct reptile from old Earth." She eyes the toy with fresh amusement. "Though by all accounts they were much, much bigger than this."

[mr_gaeta]

He brightens with understanding; stegosaurus is a name he recognizes from a conversation some time ago.

"The dinosaur species, you mean?"

[veryvorkosigan]

"You got it." Cheerful. "I don't know whose idea it was to make a tiny stuffed one that talks back, but it seems to be a pretty popular toy."

[mr_gaeta]

"My first bartending shift," he says with a chuckle, "I asked people to tell me interesting facts about Earth. When one man started talking about dinosaurs I almost didn't believe him."

Gaeta studies the toy.

"It's...kind of cute," he admits.

[veryvorkosigan]

"My grandson likes it," she agrees comfortably. "For some reason his older brother and sisters never really got all that wild about dinosaurs, but Piotr adores them."

[mr_gaeta]

"I probably would've liked them too when I was younger."

(And just as probably would have tried to add "dinosaur herder" to his list of potential occupations, before relenting and settling for "archaeologist" instead.)

"How old is he?"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Four. Precocious. He's already stealing the older kids' books whenever he can get away with it." Amused, and fondly indulgent.

[mr_gaeta]

"Good for him."

Gaeta's starting to grin a little, in spite of himself.

" -- I mean, ah, less the stealing and more the studying, but -- "

[veryvorkosigan]

"I know," she says, resigned, "I can't get mad at him about it either. And his father tries, but he's got the same problem. Luckily his mother's a lot more sensible."

Absently, she takes another sip of coffee.

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta shakes his head, still smiling faintly.

"How old are the rest of his siblings?"

[veryvorkosigan]

"Well, let's see. There's Helen and Alex; they turned eleven back in summer. Lizzie is eight, and Taurie's six. And there's Simon, he's the baby. Almost two."

Beat.

"And if my son were here, he'd be pulling out the holocube to show you all their latest pictures."

[faithful_lt]

He'd taken enough time after coming off-shift to stop by the head, wash up, and change out of his duty uniform, and then had gone on to sit in on the latest semi-impromptu hand of cards after a good-natured exchange with Mardran in the corridor.

Eventualy, however, Hoshi gets around to finding his way up to the door and through to the end of the universe.

He stops by the bar first for coffee, and is surprised when it's presented along with a basket filled with goods of a type he's seen before.

"... oh, gods," he breathes, staring at it, delight plain on his face.

[mr_gaeta]

He'd know that voice anywhere, quiet as it might be. Immediately, Gaeta looks up, already starting to grin.

"Louis!" he calls to him, and lifts his hand in a wave.

[faithful_lt]

"Felix, hi! Just a second--"

Hoshi hastily scoops up the basket in his arms and manages to get a grip on his coffee as well, then weaves his way across the room to the other man.

"-- sorry, I didn't see you there at first," he apologizes, as he reaches him.

[mr_gaeta]

"It's okay," he says, gently amused. He folds the manuscript shut, casting an eye over the gift basket. "Where'd that come from?"

He's not expecting it to be another birthday gift. Louis gave him plenty already.

[faithful_lt]

"Demeter," he says, sounding awed. Hoshi passes it over.

"At least, I think it is -- see, it's got a grain symbol there, and it looks like the things she gave us before?"

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta's eyes widen. Setting the manuscript in his lap, he accepts the basket with both hands, peering more closely at its contents.

"Holy frak," he breathes. A sheepish beat passes; he glances up at Louis. "Uh, pun not intended."

[faithful_lt]

He laughs at that; he can't help it.

"I figured."

[mr_gaeta]

[OOC: This thread continued over at Dreamwidth!]