Chapter Text
Kaveh had truly gotten himself into a pickle this time.
Oh, who was he kidding? He was the pickle. He was truly deep in the brine on this one.
It had started off so well, too. Just another project for another client. A client that - despite having a reputation amongst those in Kaveh’s profession as being someone difficult to deal with - had frankly been an absolute pleasure to work with. The older gentleman had barely required any edits to his designs for a summer home near Bayda Harbor and even then they were all reasonable enough requests. He hadn’t given Kaveh too short nor too long to work on the plans, nor had he tried to cheat him out of any Mora via material delays or contrived labor shortages. There weren't even any issues in the contract - and Kaveh had actually gotten Alhaitham to double check it for him this time!
If there was one red flag prior to now… it was probably that the one who had referred Kaveh to this client in the first place was none other than Dori . When Halil, the client, had first contacted Kaveh about this project and mentioned getting his name from Dori, Kaveh had been too thrilled about getting to work on a big project to give it more than a passing thought. Honestly, he’d just talked himself into the idea that Dori was finally throwing him a bone after all this time. Or that she’d gotten antsy about his slow repayment schedule.
Now he had no idea just what Dori was getting out of this.
Because Halil seemed dead set on making Kaveh his son-in-law.
Was Dori branching off into the matchmaking business now? Archons help them all if that was the case. Or maybe she’d made an exception in this one instance.
Halil’s daughter was an innocent victim in all this, he presumed. The single meeting he’d had with her had been to finalize the design for her personal rooms and solarium in the summer residence. Cennet, he thought he recalled being her name. Regardless, she’d been openly wary of him - her body language making it clear just how uncomfortable she found his presence. It hadn’t meant anything at the time to Kaveh - not everyone was comfortable with a stranger knowing the layout of their personal spaces and Kaveh had encountered that sort of thing a few times. But now with the added context… he felt really bad for her.
He’d turned Halil down as gently as he could the first time the man had casually brought up the fact that his daughter was single. Actually he’d pretended that it went over his head and Halil had gracefully allowed the topic to drop and Kaveh had assumed that would be the last of it.
Unfortunately, Kaveh was proven wrong. As he… so often was.
Halil had brought up the subject two more times before Kaveh really registered anything amiss. It wasn’t anything too out of the ordinary up until that point. Kaveh had been on the receiving end of meddling aunties and well-intentioned yet overbearing parents before. There was one particular grandmother in the Grand Bazaar that was so keen to have him marry into her family that she had not only presented photos of the available women, but also the men.
Now that he thought about it, maybe Alhaitham had a point and he should be more clear about what he does and does not want.
Because Halil had only escalated from there, until finally Kaveh couldn’t pretend not to understand what he was getting at anymore and had to give him an answer.
And of course… Kaveh had put his foot in his mouth in the worst way possible.
By claiming that he - known and confirmed bachelor - was actually seeing someone right now.
When Halil didn’t appear convinced, Kaveh then doubled down and claimed that he was also planning to propose to this imaginary person.
So of course, Halil had invited him and his non-existent partner to a dinner to celebrate the completed construction of the summer home with him and his daughter.
And Kaveh had agreed to it.
Withering take him.
Alhaitham was, predictably, just as unimpressed with Kaveh as Kaveh himself was with the whole thing.
“It always amazes me how you manage to inflict these situations upon yourself,” he observed in his usual dry manner. “One would think you would get tired of this eventually. Or barring that - eventually run out of new ways to torture yourself. Perhaps we should apply for a funding grant to study this phenomenon in greater detail.”
Smiling tightly at his roommate and trying not to lose his temper, Kaveh pointed out, “I asked for your help, not your commentary.” He paused, and then tacked on, “But if you’re offering to rubber stamp a funding grant, there is one project-”
“No.”
Well, he’d tried.
Kaveh let out a sigh and picked up his mug to sip at his now lukewarm tea. Currently, the pair stood in their shared kitchen. It was a rare day off for Alhaitham and the man was definitely dressed for the occasion. By which Kaveh meant that Alhaitham was still in his well-worn green sleepwear past noon with an eye mask pushed up into his gray locks like a hairband. The noise suppression headphones were shockingly nowhere in evidence for once and Alhaitham already looked like he regretted not wearing them and avoiding this discussion altogether.
After several minutes spent in silence while Kaveh nibbled on a sunsettia and polished off his tea, Alhaitham finally relented. “Have you considered asking someone to just be your fake date for a night? If it’s free food, at least one of your acquaintances should jump at the chance.”
The architect considered the suggestion. Putting aside the implication that his friends were just as broke as Kaveh was, it wasn’t a… completely terrible idea. “Is that you volunteering for the position?”
The intensity of the blanch he received for asking the question was a bit insulting, honestly. Kaveh rolled his eyes at Alhaitham’s clear distress. “Relax, it was a joke. I know you’re courting someone right now. I won’t jeopardize your happiness just because I made a blunder.” Not that… Alhaitham’s beloved had yet realized that the man was courting him. Archons, Alhaitham and Cyno were both terrible at communicating. It was frustrating to watch as it was. No sense in throwing a further wrench into the situation and prolonging the torture for everyone forced to watch.
Which also meant that asking Cyno was also not a possible choice, dammit. Cyno would go along with it without question. All Kaveh would have to do is bring alcohol and pretend that Cyno's jokes didn't give him the heebie jeebies. But also Kaveh would like to keep his liver and his rocky friendship with Alhaitham for as long as possible. Also… Cyno was out of town. TCG competition or matra business, Kaveh had no clue.
Letting out another sigh, Kaveh started going down the list of his friends that would be willing to go along with this - either out of friendship or for a free meal. Nilou and Tighnari were immediately eliminated from the running; Nilou because a dinner would conflict with her peak performance times, and Tighnari because his judgemental and disappointed stare would actually shatter Kaveh’s heart (Disappointing Alhaitham? To be expected. Disappointing Tighnari ? Devastating). Kaveh had no earthly idea where the Traveler and Dehya were nor any idea as to where he would even begin looking. Dehya would likely pop up if he asked Dunyurzad, but Kaveh didn’t want to die, thank you. Candace couldn’t leave Aaru Village. Layla had enough stress on her plate already, the poor girl. He didn’t know Sethos well enough to ask. Dori was out of the question as the likely instigator of all this (also he wasn’t actually sure how old she was). It would be too mortifying to ask Madam Faruzan. Plus Madam Faruzan was like a grandmother to him as well as someone he idolized. He’d been talking with Sachin’s son lately - they had a surprising amount of things in common and trying to kidnap an already dead person hadn’t warranted a strict punishment - but Kaveh wouldn’t say they were close enough to ask for this kind of favor. Also, he was pretty sure the guy was holding a tiny grudge still. You know… after he gave away Sachin’s entire estate to charity.
Aaaaaand that pretty much eliminated everyone.
Alhaitham had apparently come to the same conclusion as he patted Kaveh’s shoulder with an insincere, “Good luck,” before retreating to the safety of his room once more.
Kaveh put his head in his hands.
Two days left until the dinner with Halil and Cennet.
No fake date/fiancee in sight.
He was screwed.
Unable to bear the suffocating confines of the house any longer, Kaveh found himself on a bench near Lambad’s overlooking the docks. Propping his elbow on the railing, he watched the sails drooping in the heavy, wet heat, and the shuffling of goods and people below. The comfort of the noise and bustle seeped into him. It would be nice to have a drink in hand while he watched, but in his hurry to leave the house he’d left behind both his wallet and his key. The smell of grilling meat from the nearby spits filling the air made this an agonizing realization and his stomach added to the resident din with its own complaints.
At this point, he knew he was just escaping from his problems. People watching wasn’t going to give him any sort of resolution to his conflict. But at least he wasn’t panicking anymore.
…Though he… probably should be panicking.
He could just attend the dinner and try to bluff his way through an excuse for his absent non-existent partner. A grumble worked its way past Kaveh’s mouth, twisted in self-disgust. No. Lying had gotten him into this mess in the first place. Pathetic wouldn’t even begin to describe him if he showed up alone and continued the charade like the others had no intelligence of their own.
Should he just come clean to Halil? Admit that he was trying to tactfully duck out of an awkward situation? Kaveh hadn’t wanted to hurt Halil’s pride by turning him down directly, and had wanted to spare Cennet the embarrassment of being set up with someone she didn’t want and who didn’t want her either. Maybe he’d just made things worse this way. Not just for himself, but for his client as well.
It was embarrassing to Kaveh, too. So desperate to keep his good image in the face of a client that he’d forsaken his own pride and backed himself into a corner. There was no way he was getting future contracts or referrals from Halil now. In one fell swoop, he’d tanked his reputation almost as much as the Withering and bankruptcy debacle had.
What now, then?
Kaveh sighed, feeling the weight of the decision he had to make sitting on his chest.
A shadow fell over Kaveh, wrenching his attention from his thoughts and his eyes from the docks. He looked up and into the kind brown eyes of a woman dressed in the telltale green of the adventurers’ uniform.
“Do you mind if I sit next to you?” She tucked a strand of black hair behind her ear.
Kaveh found himself momentarily mute. He tried to covertly glance to his left - and sure enough the other bench just a few feet away was empty. “Uh… um… sure?” he responded weakly, scooting aside to make room for her. She looked vaguely familiar… “Pardon if I’m mistaken, but is your name… Katheryne?”
“Yes.” Slowly, she sank down onto the bench beside him. “I am the receptionist for the Adventurers Guild.”
Ah, no wonder. He’d walked past her just a short while ago, on his way to this bench. Actually, he passed by her nearly every time he left the city. She was a fixture behind the Guild’s commission kiosk. It was well known amongst the members of Kshahrewar that Katheryne was off-limits. Something of an open secret, that the matra would intervene if anyone took too keen an interest in the living creation from Snezhnaya. Not wanting trouble, Kaveh had pointedly ignored the receptionist in his younger student days, to the point it was now he barely registered her existence.
Politely, Kaveh averted his gaze from her face. Now that he knew who he was dealing with, he needed to reign in his curiosity before he did something rude. Although he suspected that the casual way with which he’d disregarded her over the years was probably something far worse than merely rude .
They sat for a few moments in silence. Him facing away towards the docks, and her directly ahead with her hands folded in her lap. Eventually it was Katheryne who broke the impasse. “Pardon me if this is impolite, but it seems as if something is troubling you, Kaveh.”
He flinched at hearing his name from the automatons mechanical lips and turned to her. “Er… yeah, I guess it is. But uh… how did you…?” His voice trailed off as he met her eyes. They were… kind, somehow. How strange.
“I have a good vantage point from my counter,” she told him, not addressing the true question Kaveh had been asking. Then again, he did have some infamy. “You seemed perhaps a bit lost.” Her voice, too, was not quite what he recalled. Not the key, but the tempo and accents. More… cantabile. No... that wasn’t quite it.
Con anima. With feeling.
It made his fingers itch to pick up his instrument.
Kaveh cleared his throat. “I’m sorry for distracting you from your work.”
She shook her head lightly, hair fanning in the breeze stirred up from the action. “Not at all. I am on my break now.” Before he could apologize for interrupting her break - or perhaps sensing that was where he was headed - she continued, “Might I lend an ear to what’s troubling you? I may not look it, but I do have a wealth of knowledge to draw upon. Perhaps I may have an answer for you.”
Well… that made sense, now that Kaveh thought about it. A lot of information passed through the Adventurer’s Guild after all. And adventurers were well known for having a wide array of talents.
Inspiration struck him like lightning.
“Katheryne,” he began, trying to keep his rising excitement from coloring his voice too much. “How does one go about posting a commission? And is there any restriction on the requests?”
A small smile spread across her lips. “The procedure is simple: fill out a request form and pay the posting fee. The only restriction is to remain within the bounds of Sumeran law.” Katheryne stood up and gestured towards her office with one hand. “How about we get started right away?”
“Oh, er…” Kaveh cleared his throat nervously. “About the fee… and remuneration… I didn’t actually bring my wallet with me.”
Katheryne closed her eyes with a brief shake of her head. “That is no issue. Remuneration is not restricted to Mora, as it were. Perhaps information or use of a skillset may be more appropriate?”
He continued to hesitate. “The posting fee…”
“I shall waive that as a first time customer service,” she offered.
Stubbornness and pride teamed up to kick-in Kaveh’s better judgment. “I don’t wish to cause you any trouble, Katheryne.”
“Then perhaps you could pay the posting fee once the commission is accepted.”
Katheryne was unexpectedly just as stubborn as Kaveh, it seemed.
But this did seem a reasonable compromise to the architect. “Sure,” he agreed, standing up. “Lead the way.”
Buzzing with anticipation, the short walk up the ramp to the Guild reception found Kaveh’s spirits already much higher. Once Katheryne had presented him with the simple request form, he found himself flying through it. After a quick check-through, he passed it along to Katheryne for review.
A light tune filled the air as Katheryne read, a performer down the street busking. “You are requesting someone to play your partner for a business meeting,” she read aloud. “The remuneration to be related to your Kshahrewar skill sets, the specifics to be discussed in person. Does this sound correct?”
Ears hot, Kaveh confirmed that it was.
“Hmm.” Katheryne contemplated the request form for a moment longer.
Anxiety welled up like a ground spring, slowly subsuming Kaveh’s earlier excitement. “Is there… a problem?”
She looked up and smiled at him gently. “Not at all. I was merely considering if you had a gender preference for your false-partner? If so, it would be good to clarify.”
“Oh, of course.” Kaveh took the paper back, considering. On a personal level, he didn’t have a preference for any gender in particular. The few relationships he’d had, had been more about the person themself than anything else. But for this… “Male,” he decided, adding the line to the request. A male partner would hopefully deter certain… countermoves, from Halil. “But I won’t turn anyone away, frankly.” Desperation, and all that.
Katheryne took the form back from Kaveh. “I have registered your request with the Adventurers Guild. I hope you have a pleasant day. Ad astra abyssosque.”
A smile pulled at Kaveh’s lips. “Thank you, Katheryne. I hope you have a lovely day, too.”
In the future, Kaveh would have to make more of an effort to greet Katheryne whenever he saw her.
In the Sanctuary of Surasthana, a happy ditty filled the air as Nahida skipped up to her terminal, Dendro blooming along her footsteps.
“Someone’s in a good mood. Something happen while you were commandeering Katheryne?”
Nahida smiled at her assistant as he sat down beside her. “Hat Guy!” she greeted him. “And yes, how did you guess?”
He grunted, rolling not only his eyes but his entire head, the bells attached to his hat tinkling faintly at the motion. “The singing.”
The little god let out a giggle. “There was a performer down the street playing a new tune. It got stuck in my head. Oh and…” She paused and reached for a paper printing out from the terminal. “Kaveh of Kshahrewar placed a commission at the Adventurers Guild.” Passing it along to the Wanderer, Nahida smiled up at him expectantly.
“I assume you want me to take this one,” he guessed.
She nodded. “Yup. I knew it was a good idea to have you registered as an adventurer.”
There was no response from her assistant for several long minutes.
Eventually, he slowly raised his gaze to meet Nahida’s. “Buer.” The name was all but growled through his tightly clenched teeth. “What… the hell… is this.”
Oh dear.
It looked like it might take longer to convince the Wanderer than she initially thought.