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Foibles - ‘a minor weakness or failing of character; slight flaw or defect’
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With Tataru’s missive held tightly in her hand, Katsum was nearly skipping through the halls of Congregation towards the Seat of the Lord Commander. When she said she had a message that needed to be delivered to Ishgard to said knight in blue, the Miqo’te’s ears and tail had stood on end as she nearly jumped on the table at the chance to visit her newlywed husband. It had been a few weeks since they had returned from their honeymoon, and both of them had been busy catching up with all that they missed while they had been gone. They had not seen much of each other because of this, save for the passing moments in the mornings as they each left to head to their tasks, and in the evenings when they crawl into bed and fall asleep in each other’s arms. She was sure this was why Tataru had that knowing grin on her face as she waved that letter in front of her, giving her a chance to go and see her dashing Elezen. She would be sure to remember to thank her when she returned, and she would make sure this trip would not be wasted. Her tail swung around her happily as she picked up her pace and jogged down the hallway towards Aymeric’s office.
After a few moments, Katsum skidded to a halt in front of the large wooden door, curious to find that a knight was not stationed there like normal. Yet she paid it no thought and knocked on the door, listening for his sweet voice to allow her entrance. She was suddenly surprised by the door opening, her heart jumping as she thought she would see him looking out at her, yet instead, she looked down into the eyes of a young boy. He was a Lalafellen boy of average height with neatly combed dark blonde hair that was pulled back into a tight ponytail at the top of his head. His deep, blue eyes watching her carefully.
He looked her over before stepping a bit closer and speaking, “Good Afternoon, ma’dam. How may I assist you?”
Katsum blinked, clearing her throat to regain her thinking, “Oh, my apologies. I was expecting someone else,” She managed to smile, “I don’t think we’ve had the pleasure of meeting.”
The Lalafell blinked and then straightened, courteously bowing as he replied, “My name is Hortense Abaddon. I am the newly appointed squire and assistant of the Lord Commander.”
Oh, so this was the young man Aymeric had mentioned a few days ago. He had told her when they were talking before sleep, yet she would admit she was expecting a young Elezen, not a Lalafell. Perhaps an envoy from Ul’dah?
He continued as he stood straight again, a proud grin on his face, “I could tell by your expression that you were perhaps expecting him to answer. However, I’m afraid the Lord Commander is rather busy at the moment and won’t be seeing anyone,” He glanced down then, noticing the roll of parchment in her hand, “Ah, you are a messenger. I can deliver it to him for you.”
He moved to take it from her, yet Katsum took a step back and shook her head, “Oh, no that won’t be necessary. I know he will see me.”
Hortense glared at her, “I…I‘m sorry, did you not hear what I just said?”
Katsum’s expression narrowed at the rudeness of his words all of a sudden, “Yes, I did, however, I know that Aymeric will-”
“SER Aymeric,” He barked, and Katsum was shocked.
A glare not covered her face as she bit her tongue as best she could, “Aymeric, will see me. Tell him that Katsum has a message for him and has come to see him. He will see me, I am sure of it.”
He narrowed his eyes, looking at her with his head turned, “Would that be…Katsum Almor?”
“Yes, it wou-”
Before she could finish speaking, it shut the door in her face. The Miqo’te was absolutely speechless. A fury began to boil in her heart and she angrily reached for the door.
“Who was that?” The sound of Aymeric’s exhausted voice caused her to freeze. He sounded like he was beginning to get frustrated with something and so she stopped.
“Worry not, Ser. There shall be no more interruptions today, I promise.”
Even through the door she could hear her husband’s sigh of relief and she clenched her fist and bit her lip. With her ears folded back sadly, she gently knocked on the door and slid the letter under it, waiting until the shadow of the squire passed by and took it, “Ah, a message from the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, my lord.”
She waited for the shadow to disappear before she turned to walk back down the hall, her excitement fading as she hugged her arms. She could see him that evening surely. She’d make sure she did and make up the time then. With this plan in mind, she took a deep breath and made her way out of Ishgard and back to the Rising Stones.
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It had been a week since that day, and she and Aymeric hadn’t been able to spend any time together or even talking. Katsum would wake late into the night to him climbing under the sheets and wrapping his arms around her to pull her sleepily into his chest and instantly falling asleep, and then waking to find him already gone. It was bad enough that she hadn’t gone her time with him, but she knew he wasn’t getting enough sleep. The amount of time between him coming home and falling asleep in her arms and when she woke was barely four-five bells, and with him leaving before she woke? And when Lucia came to the manor thet morning with concerns of her own, Katsum knew it was time for action.
With a determined stagger to her step, she made her way down the hall towards the office again, a small tray with a teapot and teacup on it with a small plate of sweet tarts as well. Her eyes were narrowed, making anyone she passed by move far out of her path to avoid her wrath. Lucia was standing at the door of the Seat, and she nodded to Katsum, “Ready when you are, Lady Katsum.”
The Miqo’te moved to hide behind the door as she nodded, “Ready.”
Lucia straightened her stance and knocked on the door. Not a moment later, the door opened and Katsum moved with it, seeing the small form of the Lalafell cross his arms as he stepped out and stared up at Lucia with an annoyed expression.
“Yes? To what do we owe the…pleasure, Ser Lucia?” Interesting to see that while he was still rude to Lucia, he still spoke with some air of respect to her, probably because he had to. Katsum took that moment to slip silently past him and step into the room, letting Lucia deal with him as she knew she would be able to. Aymeric was hunched down over his desk, scribbling away at it and not even noticing her as she approached. The dark rings under his eyes scared her, and she was sure that he was running solely on the sugar that always filled his tea since he had quite the sweet tooth. Katsum sighed sadly and continued towards him, opening her mouth to speak before another voice shouted out, “Hey! You aren’t supposed to be in here!”
She turned to see Hortense glaring at her as he slammed the door shut in Lucia’s face and trotted back into the room straight towards her.
“Oh, Katsum,” She whirled around to see Aymeric’s warm smile as he set down his quill and sat back, “How good it is to see you, my love.”
The squire forgotten, Katsum smiled brightly, her heart aflutter as she moved close, “I thought you might enjoy some refreshments after working so much lately. Surely you can take a break for just a moment?” She set down the tray in front of him next to the paper he was working on and she could see how he leaned towards it to breathe in the scent of the tea.
He sighed happily, and reached for one of the tarts as Katsum lifted the kettle and poured some tea into the cup, “Yes, I think so. I could use a moment of a reprieve as it is.”
Hortense huffed and glared at her, “Are you sure, Ser? There are quite a lot of documents that need your attention today. And won’t she just be a distraction to you, my lord?”
Aymeric scarfed down the tart and then lifted the cup to his lips, sipping it down until it was empty, making Katsum concerned about how much he was eating and drinking then too as she filled it again, “She is more than welcome, Hortense. Katsum knows how busy I am.”
She hummed as she handed him another tart, “Oh yes, I am quite aware, which is why I came to make sure you are taking care of yourself.” She leaned down and kissed his cheek and he smiled at her before eating the tart as she stepped around his chair to move towards the fireplace.
As she stoked the flames, she could almost hear the gears in the boy’s head turning before he asked, “How very kind of you to bring refreshments for the Lord Commander, for indeed he alone has been working so very hard.”
Katsum turned to see a small grin on his face as he thought he got her, but she grinned herself.
“Oh, forgive me, I forgot,” She reached into the pocket of her dress and produced the spare cup she had brought with her and reached out to lift the kettle again to fill it before holding it out for the squire, “Here you are. And thank you for helping my husband with his work.”
His expression became a frown as he reached out as if to take it, yet when his fingers brushed the cup and she grip loosened, the cup went crashing to the floor, shattering and spilling the tea on the skirt of Katsum’s dress. Aymeric nearly jumped at the sound, his quill shifting and a splotch of ink soaking the paper he was writing on.
“Rather clumsy, aren’t we?” Hortense tsked, then his expression turned to shock upon seeing Aymeric moving the ruined paper to get a fresh one, “Oh, and look, you made him ruin the document!”
Her dress at the broken cup forgotten, Katsum froze, turning to look up at Aymeric apologetically, yet he only waved his hand with a soft smile, “It’s alright. My hand merely slipped.”
She let out her breath and moved to kneel down and pick up the pieces of the tea cup and used a nearby cloth to soak up the tea. Hortense just stood and watched her as she could feel his gaze burning into her skull. Finally, he took out an old handkerchief and dropped it in front of her as he sighed, “Well, so much for tea. I will however help myself to one of those tarts.” Before Katsum could say a word, he stood on his toes and grabbed one of the last tarts from the plate and promptly bit into it.
Katsum’s fury sparked as she glared at him, “Now those were only for Aymeric.”
Hortense only shrugged and continued eating, “Well now this one is mine.”
Aymeric again flashed a smile, “It’s alright, really. I still have one here, and they are delicious, Kat. Thank you.”
Katsum took a deep breath and just sighed, giving her husband a soft smile and returning to her work. She did however grab the handkerchief the Lalafell had dropped to her and made sure to scrub it into the stone floor until almost no threads were left of it. She picked up the pieces of broken cup and stood, wrapping them in the cloth and setting them on the empty tray. As she turned back to see if Aymeric’s cup needed filling again, she noticed the tart plate was empty and the Elezen was still writing away at the document he was focusing on. Instead, a certain squire was holding both the first tart and now the last one in both hands, a bite taken out of each one.
Katsum’s tail lashed as she seethed, “Why you little-”
Hortense glared back at her as he finished the first, “What? I am just as hungry as he is. And I have worked just as hard.”
“You have not! You’ve barely done a thing for him to help since I walked in here.”
“Without permission I might add to that, and that would be because I can’t possibly concentrate with a clumsy woman about, crashing into things and making a fuss about the smallest things.” He turned his face up and away as he finished the last tart and Katsum’s blood boiled.
“I did not drop the cup, you didn’t take it from me.”
“That would mean you dropped it.”
“I did not, you little nuisance-”
“That’s rather rude. Someone ought to teach manners. And to respect your superiors.”
“You are not my superior by any means.”
“Oh, but I-”
“That’s enough!” Katsum jumped at the loudness in Aymeric’s voice and she quieted immediately, her eyes turning to the fireplace as her ears dropped. She could feel the smugness of Hortense’s eyes on her, yet before he could make a remark, Aymeric spoke again, “Hortense, that will be all for today. Leave me and my wife to speak alone now, please.”
Something about the way he said ‘my wife’ instead of her name pained her and so her ears dropped as her tail curled around her.
Hortense seemed surprised, “Ser, are you-”
“I said that will be all,” Aymeric growled, “Leave us.”
There was a moment of silence before she heard the boy sigh and turn, plodding out of the room. The hinges of the door seemed to scream through the silence as he opened and then closed it and Katsum and Aymeric were left alone. To think she had yearned for a moment alone with him so much, yet this wasn’t what she had in mind. The tension in the air scared her, and she heard him sigh and sit back heavily in his chair and she glanced over to see him covering his eyes with one hand before running his fingers through his hair.
“I’m sorry…” She whispered, looking back at the fire as she couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes, “I didn’t…I just…” She didn’t know what to say, only felt her body suddenly begin to shake as she debated leaving the room herself. She heard Aymeric’s chair shift across the floor and heard his regalia chime as he stood and walked around his desk towards her. She closed her eyes to try and hold back the tears as he gently took her hand and bid her to follow him back to his chair. She obeyed and let him lead her to stand in front of his as he turned the chair to face her. Yet still, she did not lift her feline eyes to his, looking only at their hands as he gently held hers,
“Are you alright, my dear?” He asked quietly, looking up into her face she guessed by the way it looked out of the corner of her eye.
She took a moment to answer before she nodded, “Yes, I’m fine.”
He sighed and pulled her closer to lean his forehead on her shoulder and wrap his arms around her waist and hips. She involuntarily stiffened at this, yet he felt it all the same.
“Did I frighten you?” He asked, to which she nodded, “I am sorry, my love. My fatigue has gotten the best of me lately.”
“I’m sorry…” She hid her face in his neck, trying to calm herself to keep from crying, “I was just worried about you…and I missed you terribly. I’ve been trying to get a moment with you, to be able to talk with you for almost a week now.”
“A week? Has it truly been that…” He paused, “I had not realized that a week had passed. ‘Tis little wonder I am so easily irritated with how little sleep I have gotten.”
“I was worried about that as well…seeing you come home so late…and be gone before I woke…”
She felt him kiss the side of her head, “I’m sorry to make you worry, my love,” Then, as if remembering something he sat back and bid her look him in the eye, “Was that you that brought the message from Tataru the other day?”
Again, she nodded.
“Did he speak to you rudely that day as well?”
“…yes.”
Aymeric sighed frustratedly, once again running his hands down his face, “I thought it was only Lucia he spoke that way to, and that was bad enough…” He looked at her sincerely and took her hands again, kissing her knuckles, “I shall have a talk with him, and I will make sure he gives you the respect you deserve.”
She nodded, wondering if she should ask what she wanted to, “…Does he…does he actually help you more than I, or even Lucia, would…?”
Aymeric scoffed, “Hardly…what you saw and experienced save for quite the lack of respect is the way he has been this whole week. Save for correcting my grammar or picking at my wording in my letters, he is just a boy who has much…much to learn.” She saw him watching her shuffle at that answer, seeing a soft grin spread on his lips, “You aren’t jealous of him are you?”
“No!…Not in the full sense of the word at least…only of how much time you’ve been here…and not at home with me,” She looked away again sadly dropping her ears against her skull, “I’m sorry if that’s bothersome…”
“Is that why you did not come in that day when you delivered the message? After he closed the door on you?”
Shock covered her features as she blinked back to meet his gaze, “You knew?”
“Not at the time, but when I read Tataru’s letter, she heavily mentioned you at the end, hoping that I enjoyed any time we could spend together while we could.”
Katsum sighed, “Oh Tataru…”
Aymeric pulled her close again to cup her face and spoke almost at a whisper, “You know you are always welcome to visit me, Kat, no matter what’s going on. You know that, yes?”
The Miqo’te thought for a moment before she leaned into his hand, a single tear escaping the corner of her eye as she admitted, “You sounded so tired and frustrated that day. I didn’t want to bother you…”
“Katsum,” He took her face in both hands and made her look at him as he pulled her into a kiss and then pulled back to look into her eyes and say, “You are not now, nor will you ever be, a bother or a burden to me. Alright?”
She teared up again, but she nodded, “Ok…I’m sorry…”
“It’s alright, my love. My sweet love,” He wiped her tears with his thumb as he smiled warmly at her, “One day I will help you fully understand how much you mean to me, and how silly the idea that you could ever burden me is, but that is for later.” He let her go and turned to tidy up his desk and papers, returning everything to its rightful place before he looked back at Katsum with a twinkle in his eye, “For now, I must admit I am exhausted…and wish for nothing more than to wrap my body with yours and rest with my head on your chest. I must also reward you for your patience in waiting so faithfully for my hard-working soul to return. So…would you accompany me home for the rest of the day?”
Katsum’s cheeks heated up at his words, looking away with embarrassment at his implications as he took her hands and caressed his thumbs across the back of them, “T-That does sound lovely…”
“Does it?” He leaned into her neck and breathed down it, making Katsum shiver and her ears point up and her tail fur stand on end.
She playfully smacked his shoulder, her face growing redder, “Don’t tease me! People will start asking questions…”
He chuckled, kissing her cheek as he sat back and then stood to his feet, “Well, we shall have to let Lucia know the Congregation is hers for the day.”
“Understood, my lord,” The knightess in question suddenly pushed open the door and saluted them, a smile on her face, “You may leave the cleanup of your office and your commands to me for the rest of the day today and tomorrow as well.”
Aymeric blinked wide-eyed as Katsum turned to look at her, “Lucia are you…”
She smiled, “I am. It will give me the chance to whip a certain someone into better shape and mindset as well,” She smirked slyly as she said this then turned a warm gaze upon them, “Make sure he gets plenty of rest.”
Katsum smiled and nodded, “I will. I certainly will.”
Aymeric reached down and kissed Katsum’s head, smiling down at her, “Lead the way, and I shall follow.”
With a warm blush on her face, Katsum took his arm, pulling him away from his desk and responsibilities, and away from that devil of a squire.