Settling Matters & Asking for Help [a log]

[Armandeus]

Elessar had said that Armandeus would be back in the morning and, after the night she had with that insolent vampire she spent the rest of the time getting into the right mind frame to see the elf. Having changed clothes she was dressed in a light gray, or silver, tunic dress that went down to the floor. Nothing special about her attire, though she had a cloak about her shoulders just incase she had to go outside to find him. First.. she would check the kitchen. The bar area was still clean so to the kitchen door she went and eased it open.

Armandeus had indeed returned that morning, even making it early enough to cook breakfast, but now that it was over he was up and cleaning, re-doing the floors that Elessar had been attempting to mop the night before. He looked tired from his night out, there was the start of dark circles under his eyes and he still wore his own purple cloak over the top of his green and brown tunic and leggings.

So.. he was here. Good. Having pushed open the door she stood in the threshold and then started to lean against the frame. One arm was across her waist and the other hung down at her side. "Elessar had said you were going to return in the morning." she did sound a bit relieved but held most of that in so it wasn't as obvious. "Though he left you a rather big mess...."

"That ... is an understatement." Armandeus' eyes swept across the floor before he turned fully to look at Ryan standing there. "Remind me not to leave him in charge of the cleaning again."

"Or at all." was her opinion of Elessar being in the kitchen, but she wouldn't say anything about that. As there was no need for her to go outside she pulled the cloak from off of her shoulders. "We had a busy bar last night.. You should have been here," speaking as she rolled the cloak up in her arms. "For what it's worth.. you were out too late. You look like you haven't gotten any sleep at all. "

Armandeus was inclined to agree with her opinion of Elessar not being in the kitchen after the mess he'd left, but she didn't say it and neither would he. Instead he gave her a tired grin as he leaned against the mop. "I believe I may have gotten an hour or so. It was a rather long night." Armandeus still couldn't believe just how many customers Mary got at three in the morning. Who needed a barrel of ice that late at night?

"Then you should get back to bed" she said with a motion towards the door.. the same door that she was standing in the doorway of. "You'll be no use to anyone if you're here and stumbling over things because you're more dead than awake. I can take care of the mess." she was trying to be nice even if he voice didn't sound very compassionate.

Did he hear her right? It was the tone of her voice that mixed with her words that confused his tired mind and left him simply blinking at her for a second before he nodded. "Perhaps you are right, a nap would be much needed." A glance was given around the kitchen as he straightened from leaning on the mop, only to fall on the fountain in the corner. "I need to feed Lim first.. He gets rather cross without his breakfast."

Ryanna could get it done a lot faster than he could anyway, even if she went the easy way to do it. Her hair was already back from her face so she merely took the braid and rolled it up into a bun. Pushing away from the door she headed to get a mop. "What was so important that you had to go to Mary's at that hour of night? Something could have happened to you..."

It just went to show how tired the elf was after all as he moved off to hop up onto the small counter beside the fountain, reaching for the bottle of fish food he kept perched on top of it. "She needed help covering the night shift. It turns out she gets quite the customer base in the evenings..." Armandeus shook his head as he uncapped and began carefully tapping some of the flakes into the bottom of the fountain. "She has not quite recovered enough to handle the store during the day and the night."

"And you?" She started saying trying to not sound frustrated. Ryan wasn't much before but after hearing that he went off to help someone else instead of taking care of his own needs.... it was starting to get there. She had taken hold of the Source and was using a bit of Air to gather all the spilled water on the floor, forming a water ball in the center of the mess. "Have you recovered enough to be able to spend long hours and energy helping someone else? I believe the answer to that is 'no'."

"You sound like Elessar. Have you two been talking about me?" He sounded amused, if only by the fact the other two had found something they could agree on, even if it was his lack of self care. "I cannot let Mary fend for herself when it is my stubbornness that caused her to end up this way in the first place."

She huffed and the ball of dropped down into the bucket that was on the floor in a splash causing some water to spill out over the sides and back to the floor. It wasn't enough to make a fuss over and she wasn't. Instead she went to pick up the bucket. "And that very same stubbornness will find you ill and unable to move in your own bed. A fine use you'll be to Mary then won't you." This bucket she took to the sink and emptied. "You don't have to be here," said while still facing the sink so she wouldn't have to see him. "Go rest."

So much for being amused... Armandeus sighed internally and capped the fish food that was still in his hands. "What do you suggest then? Sellion is not old enough to run the store and the business during the night is far more considerable than what comes during the daylight." If she was trying to get rid of him she would have to try harder than that, already the elf had closed his eyes and leaned his head up against the wall. "If I leave then how long will it be until we talk again?"

Considering the nature of Mary's business Ryanna wasn't at all surprised to hear that the bulk of her business happened at night. "Send Cocina to go help her." Even if the girl was young... she currently wasn't there as she was giving Oliver his breakfast. "Or you can ask me," and she turned around then to look at him even if his eyes were closed. The two of them where on either sides of the kitchen. "You want to talk, then do so to ask me to do as simple of a task as to help you out."

Send Cocina to help her? Armandeus coughed in surprise and forced his eyes back open to look at her. "I do not think it would be a good idea to send Cocina." He could see it now, the poor girl would probably be eaten alive by some of Mary's more frequent customer's. He gave into the sigh then and swallowed what was left of his stubborn pride as he looked at Ryan. "Help me."

It felt good to hear him actually ask for help, the alternative was going to be her stomping over to him and pulling him out of the kitchen to his room by his ears. That's what she was wanting to do anyway. "Good." Though that was all she said at the moment she said it with a small smile as she bit down on her lip. She tapped her fingers on the sink before heading over towards him. "Go up to your bed and lay down," look at that, there was even concern in her voice, speaking softer like she was. "And.. I'll come bring you something." She wasn't exactly looking at him then, a bit off to the side. "Please."

In contrast it was strange to ask for help. The elf had gotten used to trying to handle everything himself, even if that meant putting his own health further down the list. To ask for help was oddly strange, and yet .. nice. The relief was probably visible on his face as he slid off the counter. "Thank you." A bit of a smile came out to match hers as he headed out of the kitchen.

[De'Ryanna Aybara]

Armandeus had asked for her help, no matter how she actually got him to say it, and she was going to give the help she could. The first step in it was preparing a hot kettle of silver nettle tea along with flat flour cakes for him to have. She put the steeping tea her own personal small ivory kettle and placed this on a tray along with two cups. On a saucer were six round flat flour cakes, they were small enough to fit in the palm of a hand. No sugar or honey was on the tray though she did decorate it with a few dandelion petals and sprigs - De'Ryanna had a thing about presentation. Of course, it was very neat. She carried the tray up the steps and through the hall until she reached his room. Holding it with one hand and against her she knocked on his door. "Armandeus? May I come in?"

It had been strange to ask for help, but as Armandeus drew back the blankets of his bed and prepared to climb in he had to admit it had taken some pressure off his shoulders. If he hadn't asked De'Ryanna for help then it'd be likely he'd still be down there cleaning the kitchen, or rather dozing with his mop in hand. Her knock had come as he laid down so he called out, "Come in, the door's not locked."

Turning the knob she eased it open a bit with her foot before she took hold of the tray with both hands and entered in, the warm and earthy smell of the tea mixed in with that of the fresh cakes following her. "It's a good thing that it was open. no excuse for you to get out of bed." there hadn't been a case of anyone breaking into rooms here at the Inn and he had been expecting her so of course it was unlocked. "Brought something for you… be sure that you take all of it…." Once she was in she eased the door shut with her foot and looked for someplace to put the tray.

The door would have locked itself after a time thanks to the enchantments Armandeus himself had put upon it. True, there had been no cases of anyone breaking into the rooms but one could never be too careful or too paranoid if you asked Elessar's opinion, but that was a story for another time. Watching her enter with the tray Armandeus sat up in the bed, curious about what she'd brought. "You brought tea? There's space on the desk if you want to set it down."

"Tea and flat cakes." she corrected as she sat the tray down on the desk. "They are good enough to help fill you up without having to eat a lot of food. And they go well with the tea." Speaking even as she was pouring him a small cup without even asking if he wanted some now. "Though I will admit that they don't have much taste, they are rather bland, but it is something you get use to." With the tea poured she took it over to the bed first. It was hot, steam coming from it, but Ryanna was holding it as if the cup were cool to the touch.

"I don't believe I've ever had flat cakes before, although I remember the tea." He remembered the smell of it at least and it had his mouth watering. "Is there a reason the cakes are bland?" He thought perhaps he was seeing things until he reached out to wrap his hands around the cup and yelped. "That's hot!"

She almost swatted at his hand…almost, and would have if his yelp didn't remind her that he would need something to hold the cup with. "Oh!" and she went back to the tray for a napkin and put that under the cup and offered it to him. "Sorry…." then she cleared her throat. "They are bland because many times when someone is malnourished if you give them things with lots of flavor right away it only makes them ill… this way your body can get food that it won't reject and then you can start with other things. Apple butter or honey on them works well.."

"That's what I get for trying to grab things.." He tried for a weak laugh as he took the cup and napkin from her, holding the cup and looking down at it. "Malnourished? Are you sure you haven't been speaking to Elessar? I believe he thinks I am liable to fall apart." There was a touch of frustration in his voice that he sought to hide by taking a drink of the tea."

A smile tugged at the corner of her lips at what he said. He had the cup now and she settled down on the edge of the bed. The edge cause she didn't ask but she was taking it, and also because this let her be able to get up if need be. "Perhaps it is that he can see what I can.. and that it's written all over your face…" taking a finger and making a circle motion around his face before she lowered her hand again. "You said we needed to talk…. aside from when you were unconscious… this has to be the longest we've been together. "

The tea was good, even if it was hot, and he managed a few swallows before lowering the cup again. "It must be there in blazing letters... Was it that bad from the outside? Everything from that day is a sickening blur to me. I..I cannot tell much of what was real and what was the dream."

"If you had been having issues, Armandeus.. visions.. or …why didn't you come to me?" She sat there with her fist balled as she was going to maintain her temper. "Do you have any idea what it was like to see you like that? And I had to know you were.. like that from Oliver?" She looked away then to the tray that was on the dresser.