Do You Remember The Day

Clear and bright is the mid-day. It is also chill, though The Sun's unblocked light does what it can to warm the district and those in it. Many seek to keep others warm in body and spirit here and elsewhere in the city. Kira enters the square from the lower city, a basket over one shoulder bearing empty bowls. In her other hand she bears a large iron pot, also now empty. Her general path is towards The Healer's Temple to deposit the used cooking- and eating-ware, or possibly to refill. Unfortunately, there are many in need of warm meals this winter.

Walking out of the Temple of Daeus is a familiar blue-scale sith-makar. He is in fact, very familiar in this area, and more than one person nods or offers him a wave as he makes his way toward the benches with a basket in tow. The sith is not wearing a cloak in spite of the cold, and he shivers a little to himself, glancing at the sky as if silently questioning the gods as to their choice of weather conditions before he sits himself down carefully.

The flash of blue scales is not so strange at all in the district and surely not near Daeus' temple. It is a bit more conspicuous than those in cloaks and coats, though. Already approaching the temple somewhat, as The Healer's is adjacent, Kira doesn't need to alter her course much to approach. "Peace on your nest, Zeke," she offers in polite greetings as she nears. She may have noticed the shiver, or just his lack of wear and the Makari tendency to dislike the cold. "Is His light keeping you warm enough?"

Zeke looks up from his currently empty claws as Kira approaches. There's a flash of something in his eyes - always is when he sees her - but it quickly vanishes. "Peasssce on your nessst Kira." He offers her a low nod and his tail shifts behind him back and forth. "Thisss one gave a cloak to one in need, and hasss not had a chansce to replasssce it. Much asss Hisss light isss welcomed by thisss one, it doess little to warm the wintersss here."

Kira's ever-present smile is warm, though not enough to replace a hearty fire or jungle heat, alas. There is a flicker to it in response to him. Perhaps as there always or often is? She could be more attuned to tail and posture than some... or perhaps just to Zeke? She nods at his words, expression making a slight downturn. "There are always too many in need," she agrees. "You are welcome to my cloak, if you are in need, " she offers. "I don't need it to keep warm. Have you eaten? There may be some stew left, or I could fetch you some?"

The blue-scale shakes his head. "Thisss one will not take from you to warm ssself. Thisss one will sssurely replasce the cloak sssoon enough." Zeke looks up at her, his eyes nicating once at her offer of stew and he glances quickly away. "Thisss one hasss break-fassst in thisss basssket. Thisss one will be fine with it. Would you care to sshare the meal with thisss one?" There's a subtle discomfort in his voice that is difficult to pin down.

"I..." Kira considers countering that what is freely offered can't be taken, but starting a debate is not her wish. Instead, her smile broadens, though it is also increasingly colored with concern. "I would be delighted to join you if wished." The briefest of pauses. "Is anything wrong, Zeke?" The question of 'What' might be better, but she is never one to be impolite nor imposing.

"Wrong?" He repeats the word, tasting it and patting the bench at his side. "Join thisss one. We will ssshare wordsss Kira, ass perhapsss we ssshould have long ago." He hefts a sigh and watches her with just a trace of concern in his green eyes. "There isss no-thing 'wrong', but perhhapsss all iss not right?"

Kira moves to occupy the other portion of the bench, setting down the pot, followed by the basket; both carefully to avoid noise and disturbing others. Zeke then receives her full attention, and she nods lightly to his correction. "If there is anything not right, I would help... even if just to listen." Her concern remains, now joined by curiosity, though the prod, if it even qualifies, is gentle.

Now that they are sitting together, Zeke finds that he does not in fact, know where to start. He looks at Kira, his breathing shallow and his body tense. "Do you remember much of the... the tower that we were both held in?" Yes, that is one place to begin...

Kira seems to recall enough of it, or after, that his tension immediately prompts a reflexive attempt to calm. "You are safe, Zeke..." This includes a hand moving to him that belatedly slows to a halt shy of encroaching into his space, much less contact. She fills the pause after with an awkward bit of nod and an exhale. "I remember too much of some, maybe not enough of others."

Zeke does not move to breach the gulf between them. Her hand does not touch him, and his does not reach out to her. "Thisss one wasss there with you. In the tower. Ssshe did not have much time for you, but sshe had an interessst in the Forgotten, and ssshe often bade thissss one..." He stops here, his jaw working uncomfortably, his gaze on his claws. "Ssshe wanted thisss one to eat. Thisss one refusssed."

Kira lowers her hand to her lap, eyes lowered to somewhere between claws and hands. "You refused to eat for me, too. I think you thought I was her, trying to trick you. I was worried you would starve, or be too weak to heal..." Her eyes then lift towards him. "But you didn't. You were, and are, stronger than her."

Zeke nods, more to her former statement than the later bit. "There are timesss, when thisss one ssseesss you and it isss ssuch a relief. But then? Then it wasss a harsssh thing. Thisss one half-hated you for your kindnesss. Alwaysss bringing thisss one food that thissss one could not trussst. Thisss one wasss sso hungry... But thisss one wasss sstubborn and would rather have faded than become Forgotten."

Kira's smile flattens as she thinks on this. "I am sorry. I didn't know what happened to you when you were taken away, and never meant to add to your suffering. Then and after." A thought strikes that causes her smile to rebloom. "I did not like your stubbornness then, but I am glad, now, that it never left."

Zeke's tail shifts behind him, and he nods to this as well. "Thisss one iss glad asss well. For thisss onesss own sssake, but alsso for you Kira." He reaches out then, and offers his flesh-and-blood claw to her.

Kira is somewhat surprised by this gesture, enough to glance to him to ensure she is understanding him correctly before she reaches to take his claw. Or, more correctly, lifts her hand to rest under his. Support rather than clasp, knowing of his feelings on contact. An easy withdraw for him should he change his mind.

"I hope in the future, when you see me, you might come to think of this, instead of that place." She dips her smile to their pleasant ... hand-holding? and then up and around to the gleaming temple grounds about them. "If not that, then that you weathered her, and of all the many you've helped since then."

Zeke ducks his head. "Thisss one isss trying. Thiss one isss working very hard to remember that thisss one endured thossse trialsss. It iss easssier sssome dayss than othersss." Gently he removes his hand after a time. Not out of a desire for a lack of contact, but so that he can use it to open the basket and pull out a filet of fish. He breaks it in half, and offers her half.

Kira lowers her hand, at least until his offering. "Thank you. All we can do is try. Even small steps are steps forward. If there's ever anything I can do to help..." She leaves the offer at that so that she can take a small bite of the fish. Not suspicious nor tentative, just a polite one.

The pair lapse into silence as they share Zeke's breakfast, and then they both have their respective duties to attend to. Yet they leave one another with more understanding than they'd shared before. Which is perhaps more than anyone could ask for.

-End