[G] [P] 743.10.17 | Dessert Discussions

Zelana gave the freshly cleaned bedding a final tug and smooth before she straightened up and looked around at all of her handiwork. Clean bed, tidied up room, the smell of delicious cinnamon buns heating on the stove- Zelly had forgotten about those so she quickly went to make sure they hadn't been burnt and set them to the side under a cover to keep warm. Now all she had to do was wait for A'tay to get back from his meeting with K'dar, which she was fairly sure would go well. Her brother was amazing after all, so it made sense to have him at Igen Weyr. Even if it seemed like she was going to have to keep reminding him every now and then with a little distraction that it was a good idea. That was fine though, she got to use the best distractions on him.

She was giggling about that thought when she heard Xyxyth landing on the ledge outside. She eagerly went to go wrap her arms around A'tay once he walked in, giving him a tight squeeze. "Hey! How did it go? He said yes right? If he didn't will you give me a ride there later so I can beat him up?" Zelly wasn't really worried, she was sure that K'dar had thought it was a good idea, despite A'tay's tendencies to worry about not being good enough. He had good ideas! Hopefully he'd get used to that eventually, but until then she would just have to reassure him every now and then. As it was she was already leading him towards the kitchen.

"I got some treats for us!" she proudly declared as she lifted the cover to show off the cinnamon buns. "I just thought it would be nice to celebrate is all. We'll have to do something bigger once we actually get there, maybe a dinner for all your siblings to celebrate you and K'dar taking over Igen. Well... the ones who can make it." Zelly frowned at that, unsure if Mylorah would be able to join in on their celebrations or if the weyrling class would keep her trapped. She quickly threw the smile back on though as she squeezed A'tay again. "We'll figure something out I'm sure, but for right now, which do you want first while you tell me about your day? Dessert, or dessert?"

A'tay knew his meeting with K'dar went well but he still regretted not having his presentation on a large piece of wood. Zelly told him he didn't need it and that it was just him worrying too much but he truly thought it would have helped demonstrate his points more effectively. He could have made a chart, diagrams, and arrows guiding K'dar from point to point and clearly listed all of Lazerat's highlights and what he could bring to trade deals and organizing shipments in and out of the Weyr. But he made it through the new proposal without it anyway. It helped that he had more time to work on the idea and had Zelly and Lazerat himself to flesh it out. He had the initial idea but they're the ones that made it real. He almost wanted to use that as a reason why he shouldn't have even Weyrsecond but K'dar wouldn't let him resign no matter what he said. So A'tay only made sure his two cohorts got credit for the final product.

"Um, dessert?" A'tay answered after Zelly released him and led him inside. It took him longer than he wanted to admit that he didn't clue into why she offered dessert twice but with a different emphasis on the second offering. When he did get it, her back was already to him as they walked inside so she missed his flush of embarrassment. Knowing Zelly, she likely still knew he had been clueless for a moment. He shouldn't have been given the woman he lived with and all that she had taught him but maybe that just proved how nervous he still was from the meeting.

"That smells amazing," but everything Zelly created in the kitchen did so that also shouldn't have been a shock. Yet cinnamon just had a way of winning over the senses and stomach so even if he had wanted dessert, A'tay was certain that would have changed the moment he had a whiff of the buns. He shooed her to sit down so he could serve them. She had put the time into baking so the least he could do was serve the item and tidy up later--though it seemed Zelly had done a good job of that already as well.

"The meeting went well," he opened intentionally with a vague comment. 'Well' could mean Lazerazt was moving to Igen or it could mean 'K'dar didn't kick me off a ledge for another bad idea so that's a good start'. Not that he would. Maybe. A'tay didn't want to find out if K'dar could be pushed to that extreme for him or anyone else. Two plated cinnamon buns were set down on the table in front of the couch where Zelly had claimed a seat and A'tay took the other.

"K'dar liked how thorough we were and that we came at the idea from all sides," A'tay continued before a mouthful of pastry stopped him and he moaned in pleasure. "So good! And the short story is K'dar said Lazerat will be welcome at Igen and given the job."

A'tay's confused answer made Zelana giggle softly to herself a little. She supposed it really wasn't a surprise how much he could cling to that sort of clueless innocence when he still insisted he wasn't great at things or couldn't do things he kept repeatedly showing he could do. Maybe one day he'd realize he was proving himself wrong or she'd finally get his confidence up enough where he could see the compliments and encouragement for what they were without having any doubts. And then maybe her favorite Pickle would finally make a move on the girl he really liked and maybe Zelly would have to find a new place to be. Or maybe she'd still get to stay and keep her Pickle for longer! Either way, she just hoped that one day he'd be able to see himself in that same admirable and sexy light she saw him in. He deserved it after all.

For now she grinned in amusement as A'tay seemed to choose the kitchen over bed, though she did have to agree the buns smelled wonderful. "I didn't bake these all by myself, but I did help and I also learned how so that I can do these again sometime." Comfortably nestled on the couch she waited for him to rejoin her and took her plate to nibble a she waited for him to elaborate on the meeting. Much to her delight the cinnamon buns tasted as good as they smelled! She was glad she'd taken the extra time to learn how to make them instead of just buying some that were already done. She'd have to thank the old woman in the kitchens sometime, probably find another recipe to gift her.

While she had suspected this would be the result, actually hearing the words come out of A'tay's mouth made her squeal in delight, setting down her plate before she threw her arms around him in a tight hug. Oh that's wonderful!" She pressed a frosting glazed kiss on his cheek and then blinked once she'd realized what she'd done. "Oh sorry about that." She licked it off without another thought then grabbed a napkin to dab his face dry before he could try to object too much over her fussing. She smirked and added, "You taste good with frosting though."

She took another bite of her bun as she smiled and thought about how excited Lazerat would be to hear the news. She'd have to send him a letter! But for now she turned her attention back to A'tay and after making sure her fingers were also clean she gave his thigh a squeeze. "See! I told you that you didn't need the wood to be able to get your ideas across! Save the fancy display for really complicated things you have to explain to people who aren't as clever as you and K'dar are."

Zelly abandoned the last half of her bun for a moment as she turned and gave him another hug, this one a bit less frantically excited and more just a long appreciative squeeze. "Thank you again for coming up with the idea and then talking to K'dar about it."

A'tay blushed under the fussing of the icing kiss and the excitement in general. It was just Zelly and someone he was comfortable with--mostly, and after a lot of patience and nudging from her--but he still had issues with accepting praise or most levels of attention. Becoming Weyrsecond was probably how he was going die. A few months into the role with people coming to him regularly and expecting things of him or sucking up to him and he was going to curl up in bed and never rise. Heart failure, he imagined. Shock, anxiety, stress. He wasn't ready for this job.

He managed a small smile that showed his discomfort at the continued praise and light teasing. "Just remember that the next time I start drawing charts for a presentation." Even though it had just been his half-brother, A'tay still wanted that board as a security blanket and distraction. The attention would have been on what he pointed to instead of directly on him and maybe his insecurities wouldn't have shown as much. At least K'dar was also patient with him and full of a lot of optimism.

He held his plate out again when Zelly came in for another hug and this time his smile reached his eyes and was far more genuine. He owed her so much for all the lessons given over their short time together and it was because of that time that A'tay also knew how important her brother was to her. How could he not try to find a way into Igen Weyr for Lazerat when the man didn't seem inclined to become a Candidate? Honestly, he was glad the man was willing to leave behind the established life for a lot of unknown in a fresh start. A'tay would have been devastated if Lazerat turned down the idea and crushed Zelly's hopes he had raised with the idea.

"In a month or so, K'dar wants to meet with Lazerat personally so they can go over the details of the position. But we'll be too focused on the clean-up for the next few weeks still but it will come." A'tay promised as he carefully reached over to set his plate down so he could properly return the hug and guide Zelly into giving in and lounging against him. "I bet it just ends up in bickering over where he will live. I know K'dar wants to make everyone happy and comfortable and Laz keeps saying he'd be fine with a little room in the lower caverns. I'll try to get us there for it. It'd probably be entertaining."