OOM-but-not, Milliways Infirmary

[noteful]

[After this.]

Kim's hair is pretty unmistakable. Meg can, therefore, spot her sister from the doorway, and is about to go over to her table, when Kim gets up and heads for the infirmary.

Meg stops, and stands, and watches. Kim's back may be to her, and they may be able to count in days -- rather than months or even weeks -- the time they've spent in the same place at the same time in the last three years . . . and Meg can read her mood anyway, from the way Kim holds herself and the way she moves.

There's a moment's hesitation, and then Meg follows her sister into the infirmary.

With almost anyone else, Meg would opt for the somewhat less presumtive is everything all right?

But with her sister . . .

"Kim? What's wrong?"

Comments

[bannion_sight]

Her arms go around Meg in turn with almost frantic tightness-- just for a moment, no more than that.

"How light is the grasp of which you are capable?" Kim can hear the Wolflord's cool tones in memory, and even as she curses him for being right again, she loosens her grip... but doesn't let go.

Her shoulders heave as she tries to keep from breaking down entirely.

"Oh, Meg, I'm so glad you're here--"

Kim gasps in a short, hitched series of breaths, biting back the flood of tears that threatens to ensue.

"-- so, so glad."

[noteful]

In the abstract, this is starting to cross into really terrifying.

But then, Meg has never had much use for hypotheticals.

Meg nods. "Yeah, I'm here," she says, calm and steady.

"I'm here."

[bannion_sight]

She nods in response, but doesn't say anything else, not yet.

One breath, then another, and another. Slowly, Kim manages to stave off the complete and utter breakdown that Galadan's shocking news followed by her sister's appearance and supportive embrace had nearly triggered.

She leans back slightly, searching Meg's face, and tries a weak smile. This time, it sticks.

"No one's hurt," she says. "Just so you know."

[noteful]

"That's good," Meg says.

She'll take it to mean physically, because Kim kind of doesn't exactly look un-hurt right now.

"Do you need water or anything?"

[bannion_sight]

"Probably a good idea, yeah."

She lets go, now, and moves as if to ease back a step.

"There's a sink over there."

[noteful]

Meg looks over, and then says, "You sit. I'll get it."

It only takes a moment to find a plastic cup, and a box of tissues, and bring both over to Kim.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?"

[bannion_sight]

She's taken a seat on one of the visitors' chairs that are scattered about by the infirmary beds; there's a second one nearby, which may explain her choice.

At Meg's question, Kim chokes out something that resembles a laugh -- barely.

"I'm not sure I even know how to begin."

Not where, not if; how.

[noteful]

"Well," Meg says calmly, taking the other chair, "in the words of a certain Wonderland king, 'begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end.'"

Then stop.

"Wherever that is, and however long it takes, because neither of us has anywhere else we have to be right now."

[bannion_sight]

Kim nods again.

After a minute, she takes one of the tissues and begins to draw it through her fingers, twisting and pleating it over and over again, looking down at it as she does.

"You know a lot of it already. The things that'll be important to understand first, I mean." She glances up. "Who Galadan is. What it means when I say someone is one of the andain-- like Darien was. Right?"

[noteful]

"One parent is human, and the other . . . isn't," Meg says. "And, yes, I know who Galadan is.

"I've met him. Here."

If that's going to be relevant in anyway, better to tell Kim now.

[bannion_sight]

She nods agreement, then blinks and stares at Meg in shock.

"... oh."

She laughs again, short and wry.

"You know, somehow that doesn't surprise me. Given who he is."

[noteful]

"Only twice, and not particularly recently."

For whatever that's worth.

[bannion_sight]

Kim takes that in, and nods yet again.

"He was here tonight. With news."

[noteful]

"All right," Meg says.

"What news?"

[bannion_sight]

And that's the thing, isn't it?

"He told me that another one of the andain had been born. A little boy, named for my friend Kevin."

She takes a breath. Lets it out.


"He's Dave's son."

[noteful]

"Oh," says Meg.

And then, "Oh."

And finally, "Oh, Kim."

[bannion_sight]

Her smile trembles, but at least it's there-- although there's something wrenchingly painful in the way it makes her look.

"I didn't know," she says, perhaps unnecessarily.

"He came home, and he never said anything about it."

[noteful]

"I . . . I'm so sorry, Kim."

For a moment, she's silent, because all she can think is that she would quite believe they have, in fact, tumbled down the rabbit hole.

It seems utterly surreal that only days ago Kim was laughing and blushing and describing Dave as steady and someone you can trust with anything.

"I . . . I'm sure he didn't mean . . . " Meg trails off, because she's bad at saying things when she doesn't know they're true, and she doesn't know Dave, doesn't know what he may or may not have meant.

[bannion_sight]

"He didn't."

That, at least, is certain. Kim sighs.

"I just wasn't expecting..."

She trails off there for a second or two, and eventually adds,

"... and I'm going to have to tell him. About Galadan."

And that she knows, of course; that part will be pretty obvious, when it comes down to it.

[noteful]

"He should have told you," Meg says.

It's too big a secret to keep.

"I don't think there's any way you could have been expecting something like that," Meg says.

"What about Galadan?"

She's trying to keep up, but she can't quite.

And she's a little distracted now by being worried about Kim.

[bannion_sight]

"He would have, eventually."

She pushes her hair back from her face and gives Meg a rueful look.

"It -- well, at the time, it wasn't really my business, you know?"

A beat.

"As for Galadan, um. He's the Lord of the andain. Which means he'll be -- Kevin will be his responsibility, one day."

In a very real sense, he already is.

[noteful]

"Maybe it was, at the time, maybe it wasn't. But . . . the guy you were describing the other night? That guy should have told you. When you get to the point where people are pretty special . . ."

Meg trails off again, and then sighs.

"All right. And what does 'his responsibility' mean?"

[bannion_sight]

Kim shakes her head, looking somehow helpless.

"I don't think anyone knows, exactly. Except Galadan. And the andain themselves."

A long, long pause.

"Whatever it is, I think ... it won't be simple."

Her breath catches, and Kim brushes a hand across her eyes, wiping away the treacherous tears that are threatening once more.

"But at least he won't-- he won't be alone."

[noteful]

Meg hands Kim a tissue, and nods.

"Nothing about that place sounds simple," Meg says, half to herself.

"Should I ask what part of all that is the reason you're as upset as you are?"

[bannion_sight]

"It's really, really not," Kim agrees.

She dries her eyes, then looks back at Meg.

"Sort of all of it together."

[noteful]

"That's a fair answer," Meg says.

"Is . . . is there anything I can do?"

[bannion_sight]

"You've already done it."

Kim leans forward and takes Meg's hand, squeezing gently.

"And I'm so glad you did."

[noteful]

Meg squeezes Kim's hand back.

"Any time," she says, simply.

Whatever else they are or aren't still working out . . . some things are bigger.

And then you just need your sister.