milliways_bar | (no subject)

(no subject)

Eddie is in the bar with his wife, eating dinner. They aren't inclined to be apart tonight, say true.

Eddie's dinner involves tater tots, while Susannah's is quite a bit healthier, but he's drinking bottled water while she has white wine, so he feels superior on that front.

Nobody tell him about the health benefits of a moderate consumption of wine.

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Looking at the two of them together, Susan smiles faintly.

(Cuthbert and Eddie are twins)

She waves a greeting, but doesn't seem inclined to disturb them.

They wave back, and Susannah waves her over. "Hey, girl. You look good," she says gently.

"So do ye," she says as she joins them. "The both of ye, say true."

Her smile is still faint, mayhap, but it's brighter now.

"Siddown," Eddie suggests. "You want anything from the Bar? On me."

"Hot chocolate, mayhap?" she says, as she takes a seat. "How do'ee fare-- "

She amends that quickly to, "Do ye like being the head 'tender, while sai Bernard is away?"

Eddie steps away to grab her hot chocolate. "Get me some of that, too, sugarman," Susannah says after him. He returns with three mugs of it, mit schlag and all that.

"It's interesting. Bar's a sweetheart. It takes a little adjustment, but not so much after being ka-tet and speaking without words already."

Her smile flickers a little, but she nods. They know. They all know.

(ka-tet one from many)

"Mayhap not, then, I wot--" and there's a sudden hint of curiosity. "Does she talk a lot to ye?"

"Some, a fair amount. I can always sort of feel her there, but we talk directly some, too. She's a comfort," he says briefly.

"I'm glad of that, then," she says softly, then looks down at her hot chocolate.

"How are your horses?" Susannah asks.

She glances up, and there's a real smile at this.

"They're well. Some are better trained than others, and we've had a time working out methods for the pegasus and dealing with the chocobos and lady-sai Neysa's skittishness, but -- they're well."

She smiles. "I keep meaning to go out there and ride, but it just keeps getting put off. I'm gettin' fat and lazy."

"I never tried riding a giant bird before," she says speculatively.

Susan shakes her head at Susannah, clearly amused at this. "Ye're far from either, I wot. But ye're welcome any time ye'd wish to ride."

And if she wonders how a woman in a wheelchair's to mount, well, there are more difficult things in the world, she's certain of it, and ways to manage.

"Springheel and Windfoot-- the one's more skittish than the other, but they're used to me now, and they'd take to ye, mayhap."

She's rode before. ...just not giant birds.

"When all this is over, maybe I'll give it a try."

There's a look of sick hope in Eddie's eyes.

And oh, but she knows that hope, and there's no need to say it.

Susan nods firmly.

"Ye'll be welcome," she repeats."

At some point during the evening, Simon approaches the table.

Eddie looks up. "Doc. This is my wife, Susannah, I think you met briefly once."

"That's right. Evening, Doctor Tam." Susannah smiles, a very small one. Eddie was dead at the time, when they met.

He nods. "Simon, please."

"How's everything going?" Eddie asks. "On course?"

His intake of breath is a little too deep for his light tone to be convincing, when he speaks. "It seems to be."

Eddie regards him. "Anything on your mind?"

"...I tried to convince River not to come along. I wanted her to stay here. Where she'd be safe."

"Doctor Tam--Simon," Susannah says, gently but firmly. "Your sister's a gunslinger. She ain't safe, and she's not about safe."

He doesn't reply.

(I just have to keep her safe)

"She'll be all right," Eddie says. Ka-shume.

Jake. "Roland will make sure of it."

"I'm, ah ..." He tries to smile. "I'm counting on that."

Eddie tries very hard to look as if Roland never let anyone fall to their death. "Are you going in yourself?"

He nods.

"We, ah ... we're in different groups, though. I'm with the captain, and ... River's going to be with Roland."

From the bar, Cuthbert nods to them both.

He looks fidgety and restless, but his smile at the sight of them together is real.

They wave to him.

Cuthbert heads over, grabs an empty chair, and says one word as he sits down.

"...Landshark?"

Eddie nods. "Landshark."

"Oh, Lor' not you too. I'm sick and tired of hearin' about this here landshark," Susannah says, covering her face with her hands.

Cuthbert grins wryly.

"Say sorry, but..." he gestures vaguely. "Landshark! It's not like it's the kind of thing we have occasion to discuss often."

"Eddie," Susannah says dryly, "is obsessed with landsharks. And once he gets started, he can't shut up about this Saturday Night program either. I have had enough landsharks, and enough samurai optometrists to last me a long damn well."

It's probably a good thing that Cuthbert doesn't know what a samurai or an optometrist is.

"So, landsharks aside, how are you both?"

"Well enough," she says, squeezing Eddie's hand.

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