Sharing Secrets

Writers: Chelle, Paula
Date Posted: 28th May 2013

Characters: Chupsin, Keayd
Description: Chupsin goes to see Keayd to calm down
Location: Vintner Hall
Date: month 1, day 3 of Turn 7
Notes: Follows Kettle Blew

Mentioned: Alivya, Sinla, Makarl

After all of that running, he sort of just wandered about
aimlessly. He nodded silently to folks he knew as he passed
and kept wandering. Poor Tourniquet was following him but the bronze firelizard felt his
master's confusion and he didn't know what to do. When this went on and the
bronze's belly got empty, though, he disappeared and then came out before
someone he knew-Keayd. Funny, but his master sort of appeared himself
too after that, without knowing how he had gotten there.

Vena's excited bark jolted Key out of his work. He had been concentrating deeply on his
research, books and notes spread around him. "What?" He lifted his gaze.
"Chupsin?"

"Aye....I just shouted at my brother-in-law in the middle of
the Great Hall." He looked slightly confused and he slowly began
to sit down, placing his hands flat on the table. "Key I need to tell you
something."

"You can tell me anything, Chupsin," Keayd said. Frankly, the
healer's behavior was making him worried, even a little bit scared.

Vena
pushed her nose against the healer, begging for scratches.

He
absentmindedly took comfort in the canine even as Tourniquet begged for food
with a low creel. The poor firelizard would
go hunt soon if no one offered
him scraps, but he didn't want to leave his master. "I....Alivya....she was
pregnant before we got
married."

"Shards, I'm so sorry," Keayd really didn't know what to say. He
wasn't really a people person.

"She came to me and I found out about it and I forced her into marriage. She kept her mouth
shut for her reputation and mine." He went through his memories and his thoughts, speaking in a low monotone almost. "But then, she was a good little wife Keayd and...I started to wonder what the baby would be like. I started to think maybe I had made a good decision. Then I found her on the floor. She trusted me and I didn't save her." He didn't cry-he had already done that, but
his voice became choked up and he sat there, quietly.

Key placed his hand on Chupsin's shoulder. "Just let it all out," he encouraged softly.

"And now...nobody is going to marry me. I'm the healer that killed his own wife. I'll
never have children. And here's Makarl over here with a wife and daughter and he
didn't even remember Sinla's birthingday for feck's sake." Disgusted, he looked
away into his hands which trembled just slightly.

"Well, that's bad," Keayd said with disgust. If he had a wife, he would never miss a birthday or
anniversary. He looked around for something to offer Chupsin besides his ears.
Alcohol he ruled out as a bad idea in Chupsin's condition. He did have various
herbal infusions for the pains his clubfoot caused. Then he got it, chamomilla,
he had that. "What if I brew us nice cups of chamomilla tea, you can keep
talking."

Chupsin considered that. He didn't know if he wanted tea just
now, but he wouldn't refuse Keayd's offer out of politeness. Waving his hand, he
finally noticed his firelizard and allowed Tourniquet to come near. "Do you have
any meat scraps?" Stroking the bronze, he made a few soft
murmurings.

"Sure do, I have a canine after all," Key replied with cheerful tone he didn't
feel. He gave him a plate with meat pieces and dropped few to Vena too. Then
he busied himself brewing the chamomilla and keeping an eye on the healer.

"I can't speak to her family. I let Sinla handle that.
Imagine if they knew. I defiled their daughter." He shook his head, feeding the
scraps to Tourniquet who hummed with pleasure.

"Why should they know? It doesn't matter any longer. And you did the right thing by marrying her," Key replied. So Chupsin was human after all and could fall for pretty girl. It was
almost comforting to know.

"I'm not going to tell them. I'm just
saying...I can't....I can't talk to any of them or look them in the face."
Indeed-he had failed their daughter and them. He had not saved their
grandchild.

Keayd had no wise or comforting words to offer. It was
obvious to him that Chupsin blamed himself over something he couldn't had done
anything about anyway. He offered him a mug and asked: "If you had been with her
when she collapsed, _could_ you have done something?"

"I..I don't know. I
mean..I don't know for sure what caused the apoplexy. But sometimes, if you read
the signs that one's coming you can try to stop it from happening." He'd seen
that a few times with the elderly. If you treated the symptoms, they could
sometimes be prevented.

"Yeah, well, you can predict an avalanche too,
but try to stop it..." Keayd said, clearing his throat. His mother had died when
an avalanche wiped out their cothold.

Chupsin sighed and wished the tea
had some liquor in it. Swirling it around, he drank some more and drained the
cup. "Hmmm...do you think...is there somewhere I can rest tonight? I don't feel
like going back."

"There's empty bunks in journeyman quarters," Key replied. "Or you can ask your
sister."

Last updated on the June 4th 2013

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