crystal.

[elegiaque]

FORM: Crystal
SENDER: Gwenaëlle Baudin
RECIPIENT: All y'all.
NOTES: There's a new junior dad in town. Tell her all about your sick magic weapons and how buff or noodly your little nerd arms might be. (Happy to do action spam here or in her inbox for any office threads!)

Alright, Riftwatch, I assume I don't need to introduce myself,

( possibly because she hasn't been paying strict attention to recent arrivals, but she is certainly not herself a new face, )

but if you have somehow mistaken my accent for Alexandrie, this is Gwenaëlle Baudin, and if you haven't noticed my taking up the office, I am now your acting Captain of the Watch. ( because they are still pretending that dad might come back (with smokes) and that rowntree's appointment might be temporary. she has already begun studying nevarran, but she isn't all that optimistic about when she's going to need to know it by. ) I've started with inventorying our armoury, and as such I have a couple of requests to make of, primarily, those of you not in Forces. If you are in Forces, I need to know if you possess any personal weaponry of note that we should be taking into account. You can provide details by crystal, book or at my office. If you are not in Forces, I would like to know that, but disclosure is voluntary unless your division head decides to make it mandatory.

( yes, she checked with rowntree before announcing it's mandatory for forces. )

Further, if you are not in Forces, I'd like to have an overview of the combat readiness of our ( nerds ) general non-combatants and what their, your needs are. If you'd like particular training, or if you specifically wouldn't. If you're going to be particularly vulnerable in the sort of emergency we recently experienced, or if it'd be useful for me to be aware that you won't. Again, we can have these conversations by whatever means suits you.

( there's a brief pause. )

And to be clear, I'm not assuming all diplomats and researchers need to be provided personal fainting couches, and you will not be considered clever for getting up in arms about having your toughness questioned. If you would like to be provided a personal fainting couch, ask the Seneschal.

Comments

[elegiaque]

Well, I have maps, ( mild as you like. ) You can stop by my office, or we usually steal pizza for the boat on pizza night if you want to come for dinner.

( guilfoyle resignedly stays out of grand theft deliciousness, even though he could absolutely just pick up dinner like he handles most other things, and the kitchen is definitely aware enough to set aside what they can take—

sneaking in and nicking it is part of it for gwenaëlle and florent. )

[grindset]

[This is, after the first knee-jerk instant of No, an unexpectedly compelling suggestion, albeit bristling with reservations. Should he make this part private? Possibly, but considering who else is undoubtedly listening... no, he won't.]

Who does 'we' include?

[elegiaque]

Florent Vascarelle, Stephen Strange, myself— Guilfoyle doesn't usually join us to eat,

( she's not completely sure if that's because it still feels odd to him, after so many years in her family's service, or if there's some completely separate hangup she hasn't got to the bottom of, )

and sometimes Hardie likes to be near the table in case someone doesn't want everything they have. Small Yngvi usually won't be if there's a stranger.

[grindset]

[Thanks to Viktor's usual habits—long delays, replies at odd hours, sometimes never responding at all—the pause of a few minutes before his answer appears perfectly ordinary. As ordinary as this invitation. People make such arrangements all the time, and worse exchanges—uncomfortably personal, humiliating exchanges—over these sending crystals, before the ears of one and all, just like this. Compared to what he's heard, this barely registers on the meter. The idea of seeing people he sees all the time anyway should not be so challenging.

It's the context that moves the needle. It's the stupid cheesy meat circle. It's that his own time is short, eroding from both ends; it wouldn't be fair of him to encourage this. Who does 'we' include? Idiot. He shouldn't have asked, now it seems like—

Just—]

I'll... see if I can make the time.

private.

[elegiaque]

If you just want to sneak into my office and draw a circle on the map, I'll leave it conspicuously on the Vice Admiral's desk, no one's using it.

( a beat. and, )

But you could bring your companion if you have the time.

private;

[grindset]

[Immediate, if sideways, relief—like being knocked out for one's own good. He's decided that boundary was just fine where it was.

This pause is not quite as long, which probably makes it more conspicuous, somehow.]

I'll ask him.

🎀

[elegiaque]

No rush. Let me know.