Third Wheel
Vivith was, of course, waiting.And they certainlyappearedproperly penitent: they sat, hands folded carefully in their lap, head tilted down; they didn't even look up when we entered the small meeting room.I sat across from Vivith, Araxis sitting down at my side.It was exactly as we'd been positioned when Vivith had hauled me out of bed to give me a dressing down.
Araxis was silent, watching Vivith patiently.I let one of my hands drift to the solid muscle of his thigh, resting my palm there, wanting to be an anchor for him and to feel him as an anchor for me.He didn't move, but I saw the light flicker in the black of his eye.
Finally, Araxis said, "Speak."
Vivith kept their head bowed, a perfect supplicant, which meant, of course, that I wasn't inclined to believe a word out of their mouth.They hadn't been penitent outside of the shop."I have not yet completed my atonement," they said in abayan.Then, "Would you like me to continue in Standard?I would wish us all to understand."
Araxis blinked several times.I held my tongue, and he said, "Yes."
"I understand that I must still complete my atonement," Vivith began carefully, "and Iwill, but the information I gathered was of great significance and potential consequence.It was best for me to return even before I had completed the tasks laid out for me, to prevent further damage to Creche Thiel."Their black stare flicked up to Araxis, just for a breath, before they jerked it away again.
"You say it was best.That was not for you to determine.That was my decision to make as head of Creche Thiel."
Vivith's chest hitched as they sucked in a breath to respond.I watched as they visibly bit back the words and forced themself to a more composed state."Yes, of course you are correct," they murmured."I feared to send this information to you through even secure relays; it is sensitive and urgent.Even careful encryption can be cracked if someone is skilled and determined.And our –yourenemies are both of those things."
I didn't love hearing that: I was relying an awful lot on encryption.But the odds were that Vivith was being dramatic.
Apparently, Araxis thought the same."Then speak plainly, Vivith," he said, an irritated edge humming under his words."What have you learned?"
Vivith's tongue wet their lower lip; they risked another fleeting look up, glancing first at Araxis and then at me, before tipping their chin down again."Creche Naival moves against you.They convened an emergency gathering in the Assembly and had enough support to pass a writ of –" They used an unfamiliar abayan word, and Araxis tensed immediately under my hand, somehow straightening even more.
"Who supported the measure?"he asked, voice low.
"Hanalthi," said Vivith."Arvas.Bathel."
"So our pilot –" Araxis looked away, stare fetched up in some projected timeline."We cannot use the one promised to us."
"One of the reasons I hurried back," said Vivith, insistent."The representative of Creche Athaldidlodge a formal complaint, arguing that one cannot beheld to account–" the abayan phrase had the weight of formality, "without first being fully reinstated.The writ may yet be recalled if the challenge is successful.But you see, now, why I had to return, Araxis, even though I have not yet completed my atonement.Were Naival's efforts to be successful –"
He sucked in a hard breath, and I stared at the two of them; the air in the meeting room was suffocating, heavy with some unfamiliar danger."I – Sorry, I hate to interrupt," I said, "but… could you explain that?What doesheld to accountmean?And –" I repeated the other word Vivith had used, entirely unfamiliar."Another type of writ?"
"The writ is...propitiation," murmured Araxis next to me."A sacrifice to correct an error.Naival has put forth that, in order to right the wrongs Creche Thiel has done against them –"
"The wrongs thatIhave done," interrupted Vivith, looking grim."I do understand that, Araxis.I know the position you are now in, and I know why you are there."
He glanced at Vivith, before turning his attention back to me."They have made the claim that this injustice can only be addressed through blood.They've received enough support to attempt to kill me without legal redress.Held to account– it is assassination."
* * *
My reaction was about what you might expect.
"What in the fuckingfuck," I'd said."And they wouldn'ttell you?How the fuck didyoufind out, Vivith?"
Vivith's expressions tightened with irritation as though I were a particularly annoying sound that they were being forced to listen to."I went to an information broker and obtained some damaging intelligence, which I then used to blackmail a zarravon of some status within Creche Naival, who is a frequent companion of one of their branch heads.It was not terribly difficult, although it did take some time."
"Is this justnormalfor Xitera?"I asked, wide-eyed as I took in the two of them.I'd been so certain, back when I'd first stepped onto the creche ship, that abaya didn't do drama and were mostly very boring.Fuck, what I wouldn't give forboring.
"It is not abnormal," said Vivith, flat."If you are now finished with having your reaction, we should speak at greater length about how to handle this."
"But why didn't Lauvis warn you?"I asked Araxis, still reeling."If Creche Athal challenged this writ, then obviously heknows, so –"
"Creche Thiel is not yet reinstated," Araxis said."Anything that happens in the Assembly is privileged.We would not be permitted to know."
Which struck me as incredibly stupid: how could something be private if it wasaboutyou, and especially if it was about your potentialmurder?
"In some ways, it is fortuitous that I was tasked with an atonement that took me to Vadania," Vivith admitted, before sharpening and leaning forward."Araxis, surely you agree that the remainder of my atonement should be suspended until we arrive in Xitera."
