Hello, my name is Taura Pines. I've been assigned as your warden for the next month.
Would you like to meet for tea or coffee to check in and get to know each other? We can also talk about whether there's anything you need. [If she doesn't hear from him in a day or so she'll come looking.]
As a warning, some people find my appearance alarming at first. I promise
I don't bite. [She had this conversation without video on purpose.
Best not to alarm the new inmates right off the bat.]
When he arrives, Taura will answer the door with a very small smile,
balanced carefully between friendliness and intimidation given her fangs.
She towers over him at eight feet tall, but isn't dressed for intimidation,
in a flowered dress with a butterfly hairpin holding her braid up against
the back of her head.
"Come in," she tells him, restraining herself from offering a handshake
unless he reaches out for one because some people tend not to like claws
coming at them. "Make yourself comfortable, and I'll heat water for our
tea."
The room behind her is painted a cheery red, and filled with handmade
wooden furniture and vibrant jewel-toned cushions. A lushly planted
terrarium on one side table houses red and blue dart frogs, and a cat is
curled lazily in the pile of cushions in one corner.
That...was certainly not what he was expecting. But Meng Yao had been groomed to a life of keeping his reactions in check so his own expression remained neutral, but cordial. Besides, his life as a cultivator had actually put him in contact with much scarier beings. He made a formal bow.
"Many thanks for inviting me into you home," he said, politely.
So....whatever this being was she drank tea. That at least was familiar. He walked inside and with a light flourish if his robes, seated himself.
He'd met wardens. But this was the first one had been assigned him. He would be lying if he said he wasn't slightly curious.
A mercenary and much more used to salutes than bows, Taura mimicked the bow
nonetheless. Unfamiliarity was no reason not to be polite.
Taura picked up an electric kettle and a pretty floral-patterned cast iron
teapot when they made port in Hawaii last year, so at least she was set up
for the occasion. She flipped the switch to start the kettle heating, then
added good black tea to the teapot.
"I don't remember hearing your name in previous announcements. Am I your
first warden? If you have any questions for me, I'm happy to answer."
"You are," he responded. "And no, I suppose you wouldn't have since I've only been here for bout two months."
He gave Taura a curious look.
"Do wardens and inmates usually rotate?" he asked. "I know from speaking to some of the other wardens here that their inmates sometimes just disappear. I won't lie and say that's not a little unsettling. I'm also naturally suspicious of any person or being who decides to collect a population and divide them into black and white. I suppose it works in a system of checks and balances, but that doesn't mean the person behind the system is altruistic."
"There are permanent assignments and temporary assignments. If the Admiral
decides two people are the right fit, they'll be assigned permanently and
the warden will be given a file detailing the events of the inmate's
life." That isn't what this is, though. "Until that happens you'll
receive seemingly random assignments that last for a month, like this one.
All I know about your life is what you decide to tell me. I want to help
you this month if I can, but that's in large part dependent on you."
Taura pours water into the teapot to steep, bringing it over to set on a
table between them alongside a pair of cups, and takes her seat.
"The disappearances are unsettling. I'm not sure whether they're
deliberate or whether the Admiral loses his grip on people after awhile.
And the divisions between warden and inmate are smaller here than they are
in most prisons. I think it's based in part on what you've done, but in
part on what you need. Inmates need their lives back. Wardens need
a deal to fix something in their lives or their worlds."
"Suppose you don't want to go back to your life?" he asked.
Technically, Gunagyao had had a hand in his own death. Even if Chifeng-zun had landed the killing blow.
"Can one really be brought back to a more fortuitous time?" he inquired, sipping his tea, "Because to be perfectly frank, I've got nothing waiting for me back in my previous life. If reincarnation were on the table, perhaps I could consider it. Otherwise, granting me life again is not kind."
The cultivation world had probably danced on his grave. There was nothing left for him there. He could not even care for A-Ling anymore.
"If you don't want to go back to your life, then don't. I'm not even going
back to my universe when I leave. Any warden, or any inmate who
graduates, can choose a different time and place to go home to. This place
can be harsh sometimes, but it offers possibilities."
She pauses, then adds, "I'm not sure that you can go back in time to an
earlier point in your own life and live things over, though, if that's what
you mean. Do you want me to ask the Admiral? Even if his answer is no,
inmates don't have to leave when they graduate. They can stay on as
wardens in hope of a deal of their own. A deal could give you that
second chance."
"I might be working against my own interests to ask this question," he murmured, "But how do you know that reformed wardens are not just playing along in hopes of a reward?"
He peered over his tea cup, curiosity evident on his face but no judgement. Yet.
"I am not complaining of course. Most people, even good people, work towards their own ends."
"Because I know some of them. Tiffany, for instance, is wonderful. And
she also gives away any deals she earns from the Admiral because she
doesn't need them." Tiffany is here because she wants to be, and perhaps
that is self-serving in and of itself, but she helps a lot more people than
she harms. "Everyone is some degree of self-serving, but there's a
difference in the means that people feel are justified by their ends."
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timeasmymeasure
Audio
Date: 2021-02-28 11:22 pm (UTC)Hello, my name is Taura Pines. I've been assigned as your warden for the next month.
Would you like to meet for tea or coffee to check in and get to know each other? We can also talk about whether there's anything you need. [If she doesn't hear from him in a day or so she'll come looking.]
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 02:43 am (UTC)Tea is fine. I'm supposing you'll want to meet somewhere public?
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 02:51 am (UTC)If you'd rather, we can. You're also welcome to stop by my cabin, Four-Eleven, or I could come to yours. I'll let you decide.
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 06:41 pm (UTC)Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 06:44 pm (UTC)I'll be home all evening. Stop by any time.
As a warning, some people find my appearance alarming at first. I promise I don't bite. [She had this conversation without video on purpose. Best not to alarm the new inmates right off the bat.]
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 06:48 pm (UTC)Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-01 07:08 pm (UTC)When he arrives, Taura will answer the door with a very small smile, balanced carefully between friendliness and intimidation given her fangs. She towers over him at eight feet tall, but isn't dressed for intimidation, in a flowered dress with a butterfly hairpin holding her braid up against the back of her head.
"Come in," she tells him, restraining herself from offering a handshake unless he reaches out for one because some people tend not to like claws coming at them. "Make yourself comfortable, and I'll heat water for our tea."
The room behind her is painted a cheery red, and filled with handmade wooden furniture and vibrant jewel-toned cushions. A lushly planted terrarium on one side table houses red and blue dart frogs, and a cat is curled lazily in the pile of cushions in one corner.
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-03 01:40 am (UTC)"Many thanks for inviting me into you home," he said, politely.
So....whatever this being was she drank tea. That at least was familiar. He walked inside and with a light flourish if his robes, seated himself.
He'd met wardens. But this was the first one had been assigned him. He would be lying if he said he wasn't slightly curious.
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-03 02:12 am (UTC)A mercenary and much more used to salutes than bows, Taura mimicked the bow nonetheless. Unfamiliarity was no reason not to be polite.
Taura picked up an electric kettle and a pretty floral-patterned cast iron teapot when they made port in Hawaii last year, so at least she was set up for the occasion. She flipped the switch to start the kettle heating, then added good black tea to the teapot.
"I don't remember hearing your name in previous announcements. Am I your first warden? If you have any questions for me, I'm happy to answer."
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-03 04:23 pm (UTC)He gave Taura a curious look.
"Do wardens and inmates usually rotate?" he asked. "I know from speaking to some of the other wardens here that their inmates sometimes just disappear. I won't lie and say that's not a little unsettling. I'm also naturally suspicious of any person or being who decides to collect a population and divide them into black and white. I suppose it works in a system of checks and balances, but that doesn't mean the person behind the system is altruistic."
Oh does he ever know a thing or two about that.
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-03 04:40 pm (UTC)"There are permanent assignments and temporary assignments. If the Admiral decides two people are the right fit, they'll be assigned permanently and the warden will be given a file detailing the events of the inmate's life." That isn't what this is, though. "Until that happens you'll receive seemingly random assignments that last for a month, like this one. All I know about your life is what you decide to tell me. I want to help you this month if I can, but that's in large part dependent on you."
Taura pours water into the teapot to steep, bringing it over to set on a table between them alongside a pair of cups, and takes her seat.
"The disappearances are unsettling. I'm not sure whether they're deliberate or whether the Admiral loses his grip on people after awhile. And the divisions between warden and inmate are smaller here than they are in most prisons. I think it's based in part on what you've done, but in part on what you need. Inmates need their lives back. Wardens need a deal to fix something in their lives or their worlds."
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-04 02:00 am (UTC)Technically, Gunagyao had had a hand in his own death. Even if Chifeng-zun had landed the killing blow.
"Can one really be brought back to a more fortuitous time?" he inquired, sipping his tea, "Because to be perfectly frank, I've got nothing waiting for me back in my previous life. If reincarnation were on the table, perhaps I could consider it. Otherwise, granting me life again is not kind."
The cultivation world had probably danced on his grave. There was nothing left for him there. He could not even care for A-Ling anymore.
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-04 02:59 am (UTC)"If you don't want to go back to your life, then don't. I'm not even going back to my universe when I leave. Any warden, or any inmate who graduates, can choose a different time and place to go home to. This place can be harsh sometimes, but it offers possibilities."
She pauses, then adds, "I'm not sure that you can go back in time to an earlier point in your own life and live things over, though, if that's what you mean. Do you want me to ask the Admiral? Even if his answer is no, inmates don't have to leave when they graduate. They can stay on as wardens in hope of a deal of their own. A deal could give you that second chance."
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-07 05:08 am (UTC)He peered over his tea cup, curiosity evident on his face but no judgement. Yet.
"I am not complaining of course. Most people, even good people, work towards their own ends."
Re: Audio
Date: 2021-03-09 12:48 am (UTC)"Because I know some of them. Tiffany, for instance, is wonderful. And she also gives away any deals she earns from the Admiral because she doesn't need them." Tiffany is here because she wants to be, and perhaps that is self-serving in and of itself, but she helps a lot more people than she harms. "Everyone is some degree of self-serving, but there's a difference in the means that people feel are justified by their ends."