[ it had been an eighteen hour day. multiple clients, and then she had worked the night shift at the menagerie bar in order to earn enough money to scrape by on her electric bill for the month. and, by the time she finally dragged herself back to her apartment (which is a word she uses very loosely), she discovered that the heat had not been working.
a frustrated and angry phone call with heleen later (who reminded inej that (1) she would have no life in ketterdam without her and (2) that inej still owed her money from her debt, which inej was beginning to think was never going to be paid), she fiddles with her phone, frowning across the room at her parakeet, lizabeta, who looked appropriately cold.
she didn't have very many friends, in the city. she knew nina would take her in, but she had no room to have inej stay until the heat was fixed. jesper was recently dating someone new, and that would be awkward, if she just lingered around. so, really, the only option left was kaz.
swallow her pride, or freeze. freezing seemed like a good option. but eventually, with a quiet groan, she texted: ]
Hi. I know it's late and we've known each other for a month. But my heat isn't working. Do you have a spare room I can have for the night until I get it fixed?
[ and she hit send before she had time to think about it, almost hoping he would just ignore it. ]
[ To say Kaz doesn't have many friends would be a massive understatement. He would blame the fact that he spent years of his adolescence meticulously researching law in order to get back at a certain Pekka Rollins for it—but that isn't the whole reason. Certainly, it had kept him inside and withdrawn. Not properly socialized, which meant he also was incredibly awkward around people. He also doesn't have much time for them, busy with work and the after hours.
All of that in combination with a foul temper and shape tongue usually put people off of him quickly. Jesper alone is lucky to have known him since childhood and remembers a slightly different Kaz. Maybe that's why he sticks around. Kaz certainly knows he doesn't for his sparkling personality.
On occasion, he gives in when Jes badgers him enough to come out to the bars, claiming he plans to introduce him to society. As though he's a modern debutante. Most of the time it just ends with them drunk in a corner, a few other of Jes' friends joining them.
The last time, though, he'd somehow walked away with phone number from a woman Jes had met probably two hours prior; Inej. She'd been all quiet and astute comments, dark eyes, easy smiles. He hadn't been able to look away, frustratingly. And embarrassingly, Jesper had taken it upon himself to get her number for him.
They've traded exactly one text conversation consisting of:
hey how's it going
Alright I suppose, yourself?
good
And they'd seen each other twice more in person at the bar. It's not what he'd call a friendship, barely an acquaintanceship.
So he is colored surprised when he gets a text at 2am from her, asking if she can crash. He's loathe to share his carefully curated space, mostly because he likes being alone, but he can't find it in him to subject her to the brutally cold weather when her heat's dead. He's scathing and rude but there are lines. ]
[ got a couch and blankets. address attached.
He sends her a linked map, a thumbnail preview popping up once it goes. ]
[ the phone buzzes and she exhales to herself as she unlocks it, checking the message. and to her surprise, he agrees.
he lives . . . in a much better area of town. which makes sense, given how he dresses. and acts, really. but he's given her an answer, and inej texts back swiftly: ]
Thanks. On my way.
[ it takes about five minutes, to pack a bag and put lizabeta into a travel cage, covering it with a sheet. she wraps a scarf around her neck and steps back out into the cold, shuddering once briefly to herself before she locks the apartment door behind her, slamming her shoulder against it once to make sure it actually locked. worthless thing . . .
her metro card has no money on it, so she hops the turnstile when the cop isn't looking to quickly make her way onto the next train, calculating the stops quickly as she sinks onto the chair to wait. her phone buzzes as it reconnects - a slew of texts from heleen, which inej ignores. she manages to find a few crumpled bills in her coat pocket, which she uses to pick up starbucks on her way to his apartment.
she guesses, at his coffee order. she gets coffee with some dark chocolate in it. hers is much more sweet. and soon enough, she makes it to his building, and slips inside. there is a knock on kaz's door, to reveal inej with a bag slung over her shoulder, a tray with coffee in one hand and the pet carrier in the other, looking . . . well, tired.
it's in that moment that she realizes she forgot to mention that: ]
I have a bird.
[ apologetically, her cheeks a little flushed with the cold. ]
She doesn't make much noise -- if that's not okay, I can just find a room.
[ or a hotel lobby to hang out in for the evening, anyway. ]
[ Monday morning rolls around without much incident, though he doesn't waste any time once he gets into the office. He has a battery of meetings first thing—one of which leaves him annoyed out of sheer uselessness—but manages to get his secretary to handle Inej's contract buy out. Anika, bless her, doesn't ask many questions, just cocks an eyebrow and gets to work.
(At lunch she catches him and swears vehemently about Heleen Van Houden, it's strangely cathartic to listen to).
With the contract taken care of, the rest of his afternoon is spent trading emails back and forth to Tomassen, who'd handled his case with Rollins. It's an amusing one in some ways, because the first response he'd gotten was You want to do what??? Even though Kaz had a strong suspicion that his lawyer hadn't exactly been that surprised. After they'd won in court, he had told Tomassen he'd be using his money to make sure that similar things didn't happen to other people. So here he was.
Work wraps up and after the flurry of emails, he does end up on the phone with his good natured lawyer, just hammering out small details. And trying to dodge more personal questions about Inej. When he hangs up, he's got a couple texts from Jesper:
Sooooo how's it going?
Inej back at her place yeah??
He doesn't answer yet, knowing it's going to end up with them playing the twenty questions game and he's just about to walk in the front door. Inej had said she wasn't going in so he figures she's probably home. Watching Lizabeta flutter through the living room or something.
Unlocking the door, he steps in and shrugs his coat off to hang, deposits his car keys in the bowl, and heads towards the living room. Where he can hear the tinny voice of someone yelling over speakerphone. Stopping in the entryway, he sees Inej laid out lengthwise on the couch with her phone on the coffee table, a woman shrieking something he honestly can't make out. Kaz just tilts his head at her, flicking his glance to the phone, not wanting to interrupt. ]
[ inej has spent most of the day trying to get her ducks in a row, in figuring out what to do next. she's loathe to ask kaz for more help, because he's already been . . . well, more than gracious. so she spends the day researching how to get out of these contracts. she even makes the trip down to the barrel, to ask some of her less-than-honorable contacts opinions, but the only thing that she comes up with is people telling her that they're not messing with tante heleen.
cowards, inej thinks viciously as she makes her way back to kaz's apartment. and it's when she lets herself back in that her phone rings. the only reason why she answers it is because she's planning on telling heleen that she is through, but heleen beats her to the punch.
fast forward half an hour, and inej is no closer to figuring out who paid off her debt, but heleen has taken it upon herself to be positively vicious. so inej mutes the call, but leaves it on speaker, and lays down on the couch to try and sort through whether heleen is lying or not. she doubts it, given how angry she is . . . but who would bother? it has to be some type of trick. someone adjusting her books, because no one would actually turn over that amount of money.
she doesn't move when she hears kaz enter, recognizing the sound of the cane, though she does glance up at his quizzical look and glance toward the phone. and inej sighs before pushing herself up to sit, rolling her eyes toward the phone. ]
Someone adjusted her books to show that my debt has been paid, and she is angry about it. I have had her muted for twenty minutes.
[ and after inej says that, heleen continues to vent: ]
You may have managed to con your way into finding someone to pay your debt, little lynx, but no one is going to want a single thing to do with you once they find out what you are willing to do for a kruge. This isn't over.
[ the call disconnects, after that, and inej exhales slowly before glancing up toward kaz, trying for a faint smile. ]
[ Inej explains that she has Heleen on mute, so he relaxes a bit at that. Though his mouth presses into a thin, unhappy line as he catches the last bit of the tirade. First at the awful nickname—little lynx—because it's downright creepy. And then again at the implication that she's somehow awful for doing what she needed to do to scrape by. As if Heleen herself hadn't put her in this situation.
The call disconnects and he feels like his ears are ringing in the sudden silence. He can only imagine how Inej feels currently, after having to sit through that for twenty minutes. ]
Busy. [ No elaboration, not yet. It's a good summation, though. ] Is she seriously mad about getting money?
[ That's uhh, concerning. But if she's more interested in the power then it makes complete sense. ]
[ it's been about six months, since the beginning of the fight for freedom. paying off the debt had been the easy part; fighting heleen was much harder. but kaz had taken his role of undermining heleen's grip in the city seriously. he had allowed inej to remain staying with him; she even has her own room. and they've grown into very close friends, in a relatively short period of time. inej can't think of anyone else she trusts more in ketterdam than kaz brekker.
a scary thought, really. but she's spent the last few months trying to figure out what to do. getting help, sorting through her priorities. her therapist encourages her to enroll in school, and so inej does. she achieves her high-school equivalent pretty easily, and decides to enroll in university. focusing on language, and translation services, intent on helping other people like her, who get tossed into ketterdam without a clue on what to do next.
the letter arrives, and she's accepted, and she soon finds herself in a bar with her friends to celebrate once she lets them all know via text. kaz even agrees to go, though inej is more surprised to see matthias there . . . the fjerdian isn't exactly one for parties and drinking. but one drink turns into two, and then three, and soon they are both half stumbling into his (their?) apartment, inej saying with a laugh: ]
What kind of bar doesn't serve food?
[ which, she suspects, is why she feels so unbalanced at the moment, as she closes the door behind them, scrolling through her phone to find some semblance of dinner . . . at roughly midnight. thank the saints that tomorrow is saturday. ]
That is the last time I allow Jesper room to pick the gathering point.
[ The last six months have gone quickly. Honestly, it goes so fast that it's surprising. He adjusts to Inej being in his space with very little wrinkles or issues. Which is just. Weird. Jes has given him a hard time over it.
That was probably deserved because a few weeks in to her staying with him, he clears out his office to make up a bedroom for her. It doesn't mean he has to like the teasing.
After she'd gotten all comfortably settled, he'd really focused in on the case against Heleen, which was still crawling along. As things do in the general justice system. They'd collated more evidence and gotten at least two more people on board to testify. Heleen sure was throwing a fit about it, which was incredibly satisfying.
Beyond that, Inej had been applying to schools, seeing a therapist, studying to get her high school degree (and passing with flying colors).
The former is why he's allowed himself to be dragged out to a bar– to celebrate her acceptance to her first choice school. With a bit of a scholarship. He can't help but be proud of her, so he goes when she texts the group chat, despite the noise and the crowd. And maybe he has one too many drinks. Like probably three. Or more than that, he can't really remember.
All he can focus on is how warm she is pressed against his side as they stumble out of the train stop and up the block to the apartment. They somehow make it up the steps and through the door, just before midnight, if he's reading his phone right. The numbers are sort of swimming. As Inej skims through her own device, he flops onto the couch with a loud sigh. ]
One that wants its patrons as drunk as possible. [ Normally he would be annoyed but he feels much too pleasant. ] And Jesper likes to be smashed when possible.
[ Lifting his head carefully, he glances over to her curiously. ] Hot noodles?
[ bless him, he almost sounds hopeful at the prospect of hot noodles. and inej circles to the couch, the movement less graceful and purposeful than it usually is, and she finds a spot on the couch to sit, sort of dropping into place, draping her legs over his as she sinks into the cushions. ]
Sorry -
[ with a laugh, as she sits up a bit more, though her legs are sort of stuck where they are, lacking the coordination to really move them. ah well. ]
[ the airport in os kervo is relatively small, at least compared to the one in os alta. but it's bustling, full of people coming and going, and vendors setting up shop to sell their wares to unsuspecting tourists. inej is stopped by at least three or four suli vendors to say hello, but she soon shakes them off to step into the airport itself. soon enough, inej is fidgeting with her bag on the other side of the security gate, waiting for kaz to arrive.
the university that inej is studying at is directly on the coast, and inej's apartment overlooks the harbor. it's a beautiful day on the port, sunny and bright, the air crisp as it blows in from the sea. it's been three months since she left ketterdam to study in ravka, in home. since she found her parents, and reconnected with them.
her parents are also living in os kervo, just like they were when inej left for kerch when she was a little girl. her mother had taken about two hours to stop crying and holding inej when she showed up on their doorstep. and her father had managed to not cry until inej managed to choke out what happened, when she got to ketterdam. she had never seen her father cry before. or remembered her father ever hugging her so tightly. but her parents had visited her every single night, since they found one another again. to catch up, to learn what had happened. to get to know their daughter again.
she had also talked to kaz nearly every night, since arriving here. particularly when she found her parents. and probably made him stay up too late on more than one occasion to talk. and she's found she misses him (and lizabeta) dearly. her parents (particularly her mother) are keen to meet him, from what inej has told them about her closest friend. though inej isn't entirely sure asena ghafa is ever going to approve of anyone from the island of kerch ever again. not that inej can really blame her.
at any rate, she hasn't seen him in months. and so she fidgets with her bag, waiting for him. it's a pleasant anxiety, an anticipation, as she watches the people move in and out of the gates, looking for his taller frame. ]
[ Inej has been in Ravka for three months. A strange period of time, really, because it felt like it went so slow. The days leading up to him visiting in particular seemed to crawl by. His nerves have been a wreck.
Because not only is he seeing Inej for the first time, in person, in three months, but he's also supposedly meeting her parents. The people she'd been looking for, in going to school in her home country. The people who probably thought her lost to them entirely. She had FaceTimed him late at night (his time) when she'd found them, emotional and eyes glassy with happiness. He'd stayed up far too late that night and Anika had bullied him into going home early after he dragged himself through half his shift.
(That day, he'd slept really well).
Today he hadn't slept as well, anxious about making his flight on time and thinking in circles about what was in store. He's talked to Inej quite often since she'd gone to Ravka, but what if the energy was different when he got there? What if they weren't as close as he thought they were? She's had time to make friends and start a school life, reconnect with her family. He's a friend but also just a strange roommate she lived with for a little over six months.
Ridiculously, he wishes he could've brought Lizabeta. She'd cuddle up and he'd feel a bit better.
Instead, he just has the bag straps that he keeps tugging on absently. And his phone, which now that he's off the plane and into the terminal, he can check compulsively to give himself something to focus on instead of how nervous he is. The nerves drop, momentarily, when he sees Inej, overwhelmed with relief. Then they slowly creep back as he steps over, though he tries not to let it show on his face. ]
[ she immediately lights up into a grin when he makes his way over to her, and inej gives him roughly two seconds of space before moving forward, sliding her arms around his waist into a tight hug.
neither of them are very touchy people. and, faintly, inej recognizes that kaz is probably going to hate being hugged. but in the moment, she can't really bring herself to care. he will deal with it, because she has missed him terribly.
(weirdly, she recognizes the smell of his soap. something to ignore. probably.) ]
I think I found him.
[ she says with a laugh, tightening her grip for a moment or two before letting go just enough to straighten his coat, which she's rumpled a little in her hug. ]
Welcome to Ravka. [ she says warmly. ] How was your flight?
[ the rest of her time spent in ravka for the semester is . . . bittersweet, really. a lot of it is spent with her parents, and getting to know them again. but a lot of it is also spent missing kaz, and it's really only in the last handful of weeks in ravka that she realizes she desperately misses him.
it's on her last night in ravka before she returns to ketterdam for the winter that her father has a talk with her. and she had asked him what it meant, to be in love. and he had simply kissed her forehead, and told her that if she had to ask that question, then she probably already was.
it had stuck in her mind when she went back to ketterdam. and she had lasted about a day (after hugging kaz impossibly tight in the airport) until she had decided to be honest. and tell him that she wanted to go on a date.
that had prompted about twenty minutes of awkward conversation, but later that evening, they were walking down the snowy streets of ketterdam. it had started to snow during the walk, the white powder making everything feel a bit more magical. they were walking to their restaurant of choice, but pausing to look at the window decorations of the different shops, all decked out for christmas. and inej tucks her scarf a bit more soundly before deciding to take his free hand as they walk, wool gloves neatly squeezing his fingers. ]
[ The time between coming back from Ravka and picking up Inej from the airport is another difficult one. Made possibly worse by having that bit of time with her and meeting her parents. It wasn't much different from them living in his apartment but there'd been a different charge to their relationship. Maybe. Her apartment was definitely smaller, which meant they were generally closer at all times.
There'd also been the fact that they'd shared her bed the entire trip. By the time he'd been leaving, he'd gotten used to it. Somewhat. It had still been distracting to wake up to her smell. And to the occasional cuddle, as either one of them had rolled towards the other in the middle of the night.
At home, he thought he would've been relieved to sleep in a bed by himself. But he found it to be the opposite at first, feeling the strange imbalance of weight. He might have also thought of her too much while trying to sleep, thoughts of her warm smile or how cute she looked with a pillow crease on her cheek—all keeping him up late.
He'd thought it would just be good to see that again. To maintain their relationship as it was. After all, it was nice to be close to someone like he was with Inej.
Of course, she's the braver of the two of them and a day into her being back, she tells him she wants to go on a date. Which prompts his nerves to climb up into his throat and one of the most awkward conversations he can recall having. It's brought them out and about, though, bundled up against the cold and the soft drifting snow. Ketterdam is not necessarily a beautiful city but it has its moments. The flakes look beautiful, twinkling as they pass the street lamps and lit window displays. He's still nervous but part of him feels oddly at peace, even as she squeezes his hand. ]
Probably. School and work might be cancelled. [ The regular grade schools still have some time before their break. And while the Kerch lived and died by their work ethic, they took snow and inclement weather much more seriously. ]
The finance sector hates going in if it so much as flurries.
[ Another thought occurs to him: if he doesn't have to go in, they could hang out and watch a movie. Like they did on rainy weekends. Except it was decidedly different now. He could ask to hold her with a bit more purpose than the platonic shoulder leans they usually did. ]
It's definitely snowing a little more than flurries.
[ with half a laugh as she leans her shoulder against his briefly, in a small bump. they're nearly to where they agreed to go eat dinner, but inej is loathe to cut their walk short. content to hold his hand and take in the snowy surroundings. ]
We might have to shovel ourselves out of the building. Or be trapped inside until someone frees us from our snowy prison.
[ which sounds kind of nice, actually, as she squeezes his fingers again. ]
You really should avoid going to work, anyway. [ hint, hint. ] You could slip and fall, and break your other leg. And then what would your office do?
[ It's a pleasant few months, honestly. They've worked out a schedule—she has classes during the day, which usually line up with when he's working. By the time both of them are done, it lets them have dinner together and then the evening to go through homework or watch a movie if her schoolwork is light. Lizabeta has the run of the apartment, usually, and gets a good workout while he's plugging away at numerous excel spreadsheets.
The time difference had been weird to work through at first but now it's an easy thing. Work seems very likely to let him stay in Ravka since he's stayed on top of clients and projects. And has apparently been way more pleasant. He'll know for sure when he meets with his boss back in Kerch. A face to face scheduled for a couple days after they get in. It seems almost silly to come back for her short spring break but Tomassen had needed to go through the practice deposition.
Also it would be good to see Jesper and the rest of their friends in person again.
The flight to Ketterdam goes well as any flight does. Which basically means there aren't any delays. They get into Kerch relatively late and definitely sleep in. Well, as much as they can on their own respective internal clocks. It's a couple days before he can get adjusted to the time difference and shake off the jet lag. ]
You're meeting with Tomassen on Wednesday, right?
[ She hasn't exactly been...on edge, that's more his thing, but he knows she's worried about it. ]
[ she's seated on the couch, distractedly reading over an email from tomassen on the ipad she's borrowed from kaz, her feet in his lap. the email is fairly straight forward, just telling her that she will be fine. but at kaz's question, inej's eyes dart upward, her brow furrowing as she frowns to herself. ]
Yes.
[ as she locks the device, setting the tablet in her lap. she knows that it's a necessary part of the process. telling her story, getting it all down on the record. but a piece of her (an embarrassingly large piece) is still scared. nervous, that people will think differently of her. particularly the boy she's half-lounging on. ]
[ the trial had been a nightmare. the witnesses, the media, the chaos. sitting across from heleen, who was resplendent in pearls and feathers and perfectly manicured nails. tomassen had sat inej directly next to him, so he could be in-between inej and opposing counsel, and had filed more than one complaint about how heleen was trying to intimidate her by staring at her across the room.
she had gotten through it, though. gotten through her own testimony, and endured the cross-examination of heleen's horrific attorney. she honestly couldn't remember most of the questioning. just a back and forth, accusations of lying, reading off the list of clientele, demanding if she really was forced to do anything . . . she had stayed up half the night shaking in kaz's arms the moment they returned home, trying to figure out how to breathe. but she had kept it together on the stand, which was what was important, though inej was fairly certain tomassen got in trouble from the court for standing up mid-questioning and asking what the purpose of interrogating a rape survivor was, though he used much stronger language than that.
once that was over, they waited for the jury to decide. it felt like years. inej had spent most of the waiting outside of the courtroom, unable to look at heleen while someone determined her fate. but when the verdict was finally delivered, and inej had won. she honestly didn't remember most of the fallout, from the courtroom. she remembered tomassen's hand at her back, and heleen spitting something in fury. and, in something of a numb daze, tomassen took kaz and inej out of the back of the courthouse, into a waiting car so they could go home.
she cried for hours, it felt like. in relief. and she was happily intending on staying in bed for a month when tomassen suggested that kaz and inej get out of the city. why, tomassen had declined to say, but inej suspected that the fight was not truly over just yet. so they had gotten on a plane to shu han, and were in a hotel room overlooking the beautiful gardens that were just now coming into bloom. inej had stubbornly insisted on keeping kaz in bed for most of their first day there, to catch up on sleep and to relax.
now, though, she wanders out of the bathroom in a robe, her hair damp from the bath she had just soaked in. it's long enough to cover everything, and inej was really keen on sitting outside to let her hair dry when she realizes her (long-suffering, beloved, handsome) significant other is still half asleep in bed.
so she meanders over to sit on the edge of the bed, leaning over him with a wrinkled nose, before lowering herself down to kiss his forehead briefly. ]
Hello.
[ quietly. best to wake him up slowly. even on vacation, he still isn't much of a morning person. ]
[ It had been weird, being on the other side of the court. Not being the one who had brought the entire thing to trial. Though honestly, it had been just about as much of a nightmare, if not moreso. The media had become a circus as usual and Heleen had a particular brand of cruelty she liked to try and impress when she'd thought people weren't looking.
Inej had survived her time on the stand, if only because Tomassen had very pointedly asked Heleen's attorney what the fuck is wrong with you. Kaz had seen him pushed to the brink of his—admittedly long—fuse before, in the trial with Rollins. But this had been a different beast altogether. Despite the fine and the emotional upset, he'd been pretty sure Sofia was proud in the aftermath.
Certainly, they'd both been relieved and elated when the trial wrapped in a win. Something they'd been expecting but still left all of them weak-kneed. And had Inej crying until Kaz seriously worried about her dehydrating. They didn't get too much time to simmer in the win, with Tomassen suggesting they get out of the country for a bit, a slightly strained look on his face. Kaz had agreed it was a good idea, though he'd been extremely reluctant to leave his adoptive parents behind in the mire. After Rollins had been found guilty, they'd been extremely stressed until everything completely wrapped. He still doesn't have all the details of what happened.
Heleen, he thinks, won't be much better. Possibly worse. So the important part is getting Inej away where she can't be touched.
They end up in Shu Han, like they'd talked about on his couch that time. Spring is around the corner, the perfume of blooms just starting to fill the air. Most of their first day they'd spent crashed out in bed, exhausted from the emotional journey and the jet lag both.
Earlier, he'd heard Inej get up but had elected to stay in bed, eyelids still quite heavy. By the time he starts to come to again, he feels the bed dip lightly, followed by the light smell of her shampoo and a kiss to his forehead. ]
Morning. [ He rubs a hand over his face and cracks his eyes open, blinking at the gentle stream of light coming in. Vision clearing, his gaze goes to her face, smiling sleepily at her damp and slightly tangled hair. And then drops a bit to take in the fluffy robe. With not much else. Ah. ]
[ after returning from shu han, inej focused on her studies. it involved more trips back and forth from ravka, more time spent rearranging schedules for her and kaz. but for the first time in an incredibly long time, inej felt happy. blissfully happy, really. it was hard to imagine how life could be better than being free and in love and able to do as she pleased.
heleen's case was still fighting it's way through the court system on appeal, but inej had been kept out of it, for the most part. no one on heleen's employ was allowed to talk to her, and heleen herself had been told in no-uncertain terms by the judge that if she contacted inej, she would be headed straight to prison on contempt. so far, heleen (and her minions) had respected the court's wishes, although barely. there had been an incident where inej had walked home from her internship at the kerch human trafficking office one week and had been followed home by someone she vaguely recognized as a bouncer at the menagerie.
after that, kaz had insisted on picking her up (which felt silly, given his leg and the cold and the fact that she could walk), and she felt safer, after that. she stopped seeing the man lingering around once kaz brought her to and from the office. she suspects the man doubted he could take them both, rather than just inej (who could certainly defend herself, but was tiny).
for the most part, heleen was in the back of her mind. her time in school was coming to an end, and inej was working on solid next steps. she had an idea - an organization, outside of the government (which was often corrupt and part of the problem), to advocate and assist people like her. she had applied for funding for this organization and assembled a team of fellow students who were willing to help. kaz had really been the one to put together the grant applications for her, for which inej was eternally grateful.
after some weeks, a letter manifested itself from one of the bigger funders - enough to not only open inej's organization, but fund it for at least a full year. but it felt wrong to open it without him. and opening it felt . . . final. what if it was a denial?
so when kaz comes home, he will find inej sitting on their couch with her arms wrapped around her knees, staring at the (unopened) envelope on the table. but at the sound of the door, she tilts her head back a little with a warm smile. ]
I already ordered dinner.
[ mildly enough.
( she had a feeling he would be coming home late. ) ]
[ All good things come to an end eventually; they go back to a semi-normal life after their trip to Shu Han. Though while he'd thoroughly enjoyed his time there, he'd gotten pangs of homesickness. Even with the accessibility of video calls, it wasn't quite the same. Most of it had stemmed from his worry about Tomassen dealing with the fallout from the case with Heleen, as Sofia had done her best to give him as little information as possible. He knows she'd done it to save him from worrying and in some ways, it worked. Without details, he couldn't spend his entire trip ruminating on things he'd been too far to fix.
But he also worried all the time, with or without details. It had just given him more to think up strange scenarios. Thankfully, he and Inej had spent quite a bit of their trip seeing everything they could. And on days when his leg wasn't up for it or either of them were too tired, they'd set aside time to figure out more of their physical boundaries.
All of which had, mercifully, taken his mind off of the gnawing anxiety.
Getting back to Kerch meant he'd gotten the details. Most of it had blown over enough that he couldn't stew, which was another blessing and likely the one his parents had intended on.
Though it wasn't to say he ended up totally worry free. Inej had a short lived incident which involved someone following her and lingering around her internship. He'd resolved it by picking her up, even if she argued the office was close to home. It seemed to bring them both peace of mind though, in the end, and Kaz hadn't seen the man in some time now.
Which left them both to work on Inej's future without as much of a nervousness. He'd been researching grants and funding, filing paperwork for the organization she wanted to put together. They'd gotten at least one or two responses, from smaller places, but nothing significant enough to be fully operational. If the bigger funding didn't come through, it was going to take time to garner enough of the smaller ones to make it work.
Still, it was in the somewhat early stages. Definitely not time to panic or worry, he thinks. And he's fairly confident she'll end up with what she needs—it's a good cause and her operational outline had been nearly airtight.
He'd spent the last bit of his day compiling a few more links for research, potential places to apply for funding. That alongside a particularly jammed schedule has him coming in later than usual, feeling almost mentally tapped out. Some of the tiredness drops away as soon as he walks in the door, just glad to be home. ]
Yeah? [ He hangs his coat up and hobbles over, one hand finding her shoulder as he leans down to kiss her forehead. ] Hello to you too.
[ therapy had been difficult today. it’s difficult every day, really, but today had been exceptionally hard. because for the first time, inej had forced herself to remember. to pick apart memories she hadn’t thought about in a long time. and really tackle why she felt such a heavy weight in her chest whenever she was intimate, the creeping sense of dread and shame whenever her heart rate returned to normal and she tried to fall asleep in kaz’s arms.
she’s long since run out of tears to shed, which has left her feeling both overwhelmed and exhausted, upon letting herself back into their apartment. she doesn’t see kaz immediately, which she feels a little relief for. part of her feels guilty, for struggling. and not saying anything. but most of her needs a moment to relax.
so she finds herself on the couch, curling up underneath a thick blanket, exhaling slowly as she closes her eyes. letting a moment of peace wash over her as she focuses on calming her nerve.
[ Today has been a long day. Profitable and productive, sure, but long and equally tiring to a point. Anika had looked at him apologetically when he'd walked in the door and after he glanced at his calendar, he'd understood why. Back to back meetings and calls, with basically no downtime to just sift through paperwork. Tomorrow would be a nightmare of updating portfolios and sheets with the information he'd taken down today.
When he'd gotten home, he'd gotten a bit of a head start, just plugging in some notes and reminders for himself. Inej hadn't been back yet—therapy day, as he knows. He's wrapping up said notes when he finally does hear her come in, the door opening and closing and then a relative silence. Her steps are always quiet, after all.
She doesn't announce herself though, or come into the room. Which means she probably needs at least a few minutes by herself. A particularly harrowing session today, he guesses. Or maybe she's just generally tired.
Whatever the case, he still has enough to keep him occupied for a bit longer so she can have her space.
It's another ten or so minutes before he closes the lid on his computer, pulling himself away from work to finally check in on Inej. Who, by all accounts, seems to have taken after Lizabeta by the shape of her blanket nest on the couch. ]
[ If he knows his father at all, it's with a surety that Tomassen suspects something is up. Over the Rollins case, Kaz had become familiar with the laws and arguments that had been cited on both sides. Had read so many books on the subjects so he could never have someone pull the wool over his eyes again. Both of his parents had been extremely patient in their explanations and through his several hundred questions.
Since Inej's particular situation calls on a separate branch of laws and rulings, especially because of her being a Ravkan national, he's been sending Tomassen inquiries here and there, getting a better understanding of the contract's wording. As well as doing his own research on everything that stemmed into it; housing, indenture, all the various business Heleen Van Houden owned and operated throughout Ketterdam. Each new discovery fueled the already stoked anger in him. By the time he finishes what he considers his preliminary findings, the word document is nearing fifty pages. He saves it, encrypted, prints everything off, and then carefully wipes all trace of his search, the print job, and disconnects from the VPN he'd set up for it.
Just in case.
He manages to send a message at a normal hour, asking if his dad will be free for lunch the next day, relieved when it's an agreement. Nothing is set in stone, not yet, but he intends to get Heleen in some way. After all, Inej seemed resolute in her desire to get her justice–which is rightfully deserved. Tomassen and Sofia had supported and seen him through his own hell; it was karmic balance to help Inej through hers however he could.
So, on a beautiful but brisk Wednesday, fifteen minutes before noon, he's let into Tomassen's office by the receptionist, Maia. She'd looked startled but glad to see him, having gotten familiar with his comings and goings over the years the Rollins case had dragged on. Kaz takes his seat across from his dad, stretching out his bad leg. The paperwork laden leather bag gets set in the chair next to his so he wouldn't have to bend to collect it. ]
For the record, I did text mom back separately about dinner on Friday.
[ it isn't as if lunch with kaz was unusual, but there was usually a reason. a birthday, a celebration, or sofia had requested his presence. it was rarely initiated by him, which tomassen had long since stopped taking personally. he just wasn't a social person, which on most days, was fine.
so when kaz reached out for lunch after asking some inquiries about suspicious activity, he had a feeling his son was not coming to his firm for a casual lunch. his suspicions were confirmed at the sight of the briefcase laden with paperwork, and as kaz sinks into the chair across from his, tomassen arches his eyebrows.
(he may have a text or three from his dearest wife, telling tomassen to remind kaz to text her concerning dinner on friday, so tomassen is glad he doesn't need to get involved.) ]
She's concerned you're starving to death. [ obviously. he folds his hands in his lap, his elbows resting on the arms of his chair, surveying kaz. he looks tired, as if he hasn't slept very well recently. not stressed, necessarily, but determined despite the lack of sleep. ] Do most people bring an encyclopedia to lunch, or is that just a special trait you carry?
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timewasting2020-09-27 05:30 pm
times are shitty.
a frustrated and angry phone call with heleen later (who reminded inej that (1) she would have no life in ketterdam without her and (2) that inej still owed her money from her debt, which inej was beginning to think was never going to be paid), she fiddles with her phone, frowning across the room at her parakeet, lizabeta, who looked appropriately cold.
she didn't have very many friends, in the city. she knew nina would take her in, but she had no room to have inej stay until the heat was fixed. jesper was recently dating someone new, and that would be awkward, if she just lingered around. so, really, the only option left was kaz.
swallow her pride, or freeze. freezing seemed like a good option. but eventually, with a quiet groan, she texted: ]
Hi.
I know it's late and we've known each other for a month.
But my heat isn't working.
Do you have a spare room I can have for the night until I get it fixed?
[ and she hit send before she had time to think about it, almost hoping he would just ignore it. ]
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All of that in combination with a foul temper and shape tongue usually put people off of him quickly. Jesper alone is lucky to have known him since childhood and remembers a slightly different Kaz. Maybe that's why he sticks around. Kaz certainly knows he doesn't for his sparkling personality.
On occasion, he gives in when Jes badgers him enough to come out to the bars, claiming he plans to introduce him to society. As though he's a modern debutante. Most of the time it just ends with them drunk in a corner, a few other of Jes' friends joining them.
The last time, though, he'd somehow walked away with phone number from a woman Jes had met probably two hours prior; Inej. She'd been all quiet and astute comments, dark eyes, easy smiles. He hadn't been able to look away, frustratingly. And embarrassingly, Jesper had taken it upon himself to get her number for him.
They've traded exactly one text conversation consisting of:
hey how's it going
Alright I suppose, yourself?
good
And they'd seen each other twice more in person at the bar. It's not what he'd call a friendship, barely an acquaintanceship.
So he is colored surprised when he gets a text at 2am from her, asking if she can crash. He's loathe to share his carefully curated space, mostly because he likes being alone, but he can't find it in him to subject her to the brutally cold weather when her heat's dead. He's scathing and rude but there are lines.
]
[ got a couch and blankets. address attached.
He sends her a linked map, a thumbnail preview popping up once it goes. ]
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he lives . . . in a much better area of town. which makes sense, given how he dresses. and acts, really. but he's given her an answer, and inej texts back swiftly: ]
Thanks.
On my way.
[ it takes about five minutes, to pack a bag and put lizabeta into a travel cage, covering it with a sheet. she wraps a scarf around her neck and steps back out into the cold, shuddering once briefly to herself before she locks the apartment door behind her, slamming her shoulder against it once to make sure it actually locked. worthless thing . . .
her metro card has no money on it, so she hops the turnstile when the cop isn't looking to quickly make her way onto the next train, calculating the stops quickly as she sinks onto the chair to wait. her phone buzzes as it reconnects - a slew of texts from heleen, which inej ignores. she manages to find a few crumpled bills in her coat pocket, which she uses to pick up starbucks on her way to his apartment.
she guesses, at his coffee order. she gets coffee with some dark chocolate in it. hers is much more sweet. and soon enough, she makes it to his building, and slips inside. there is a knock on kaz's door, to reveal inej with a bag slung over her shoulder, a tray with coffee in one hand and the pet carrier in the other, looking . . . well, tired.
it's in that moment that she realizes she forgot to mention that: ]
I have a bird.
[ apologetically, her cheeks a little flushed with the cold. ]
She doesn't make much noise -- if that's not okay, I can just find a room.
[ or a hotel lobby to hang out in for the evening, anyway. ]
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mysterious benefactor (not so mysterious)
(At lunch she catches him and swears vehemently about Heleen Van Houden, it's strangely cathartic to listen to).
With the contract taken care of, the rest of his afternoon is spent trading emails back and forth to Tomassen, who'd handled his case with Rollins. It's an amusing one in some ways, because the first response he'd gotten was You want to do what??? Even though Kaz had a strong suspicion that his lawyer hadn't exactly been that surprised. After they'd won in court, he had told Tomassen he'd be using his money to make sure that similar things didn't happen to other people. So here he was.
Work wraps up and after the flurry of emails, he does end up on the phone with his good natured lawyer, just hammering out small details. And trying to dodge more personal questions about Inej. When he hangs up, he's got a couple texts from Jesper:
Sooooo how's it going?
Inej back at her place yeah??
He doesn't answer yet, knowing it's going to end up with them playing the twenty questions game and he's just about to walk in the front door. Inej had said she wasn't going in so he figures she's probably home. Watching Lizabeta flutter through the living room or something.
Unlocking the door, he steps in and shrugs his coat off to hang, deposits his car keys in the bowl, and heads towards the living room. Where he can hear the tinny voice of someone yelling over speakerphone. Stopping in the entryway, he sees Inej laid out lengthwise on the couch with her phone on the coffee table, a woman shrieking something he honestly can't make out. Kaz just tilts his head at her, flicking his glance to the phone, not wanting to interrupt. ]
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cowards, inej thinks viciously as she makes her way back to kaz's apartment. and it's when she lets herself back in that her phone rings. the only reason why she answers it is because she's planning on telling heleen that she is through, but heleen beats her to the punch.
fast forward half an hour, and inej is no closer to figuring out who paid off her debt, but heleen has taken it upon herself to be positively vicious. so inej mutes the call, but leaves it on speaker, and lays down on the couch to try and sort through whether heleen is lying or not. she doubts it, given how angry she is . . . but who would bother? it has to be some type of trick. someone adjusting her books, because no one would actually turn over that amount of money.
she doesn't move when she hears kaz enter, recognizing the sound of the cane, though she does glance up at his quizzical look and glance toward the phone. and inej sighs before pushing herself up to sit, rolling her eyes toward the phone. ]
Someone adjusted her books to show that my debt has been paid, and she is angry about it. I have had her muted for twenty minutes.
[ and after inej says that, heleen continues to vent: ]
You may have managed to con your way into finding someone to pay your debt, little lynx, but no one is going to want a single thing to do with you once they find out what you are willing to do for a kruge. This isn't over.
[ the call disconnects, after that, and inej exhales slowly before glancing up toward kaz, trying for a faint smile. ]
How was your day?
[ it's a weak joke. ]
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The call disconnects and he feels like his ears are ringing in the sudden silence. He can only imagine how Inej feels currently, after having to sit through that for twenty minutes. ]
Busy. [ No elaboration, not yet. It's a good summation, though. ] Is she seriously mad about getting money?
[ That's uhh, concerning. But if she's more interested in the power then it makes complete sense. ]
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raise a glass to freedom.
a scary thought, really. but she's spent the last few months trying to figure out what to do. getting help, sorting through her priorities. her therapist encourages her to enroll in school, and so inej does. she achieves her high-school equivalent pretty easily, and decides to enroll in university. focusing on language, and translation services, intent on helping other people like her, who get tossed into ketterdam without a clue on what to do next.
the letter arrives, and she's accepted, and she soon finds herself in a bar with her friends to celebrate once she lets them all know via text. kaz even agrees to go, though inej is more surprised to see matthias there . . . the fjerdian isn't exactly one for parties and drinking. but one drink turns into two, and then three, and soon they are both half stumbling into his (their?) apartment, inej saying with a laugh: ]
What kind of bar doesn't serve food?
[ which, she suspects, is why she feels so unbalanced at the moment, as she closes the door behind them, scrolling through her phone to find some semblance of dinner . . . at roughly midnight. thank the saints that tomorrow is saturday. ]
That is the last time I allow Jesper room to pick the gathering point.
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That was probably deserved because a few weeks in to her staying with him, he clears out his office to make up a bedroom for her. It doesn't mean he has to like the teasing.
After she'd gotten all comfortably settled, he'd really focused in on the case against Heleen, which was still crawling along. As things do in the general justice system. They'd collated more evidence and gotten at least two more people on board to testify. Heleen sure was throwing a fit about it, which was incredibly satisfying.
Beyond that, Inej had been applying to schools, seeing a therapist, studying to get her high school degree (and passing with flying colors).
The former is why he's allowed himself to be dragged out to a bar– to celebrate her acceptance to her first choice school. With a bit of a scholarship. He can't help but be proud of her, so he goes when she texts the group chat, despite the noise and the crowd. And maybe he has one too many drinks. Like probably three. Or more than that, he can't really remember.
All he can focus on is how warm she is pressed against his side as they stumble out of the train stop and up the block to the apartment. They somehow make it up the steps and through the door, just before midnight, if he's reading his phone right. The numbers are sort of swimming. As Inej skims through her own device, he flops onto the couch with a loud sigh. ]
One that wants its patrons as drunk as possible. [ Normally he would be annoyed but he feels much too pleasant. ] And Jesper likes to be smashed when possible.
[ Lifting his head carefully, he glances over to her curiously. ] Hot noodles?
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Sorry -
[ with a laugh, as she sits up a bit more, though her legs are sort of stuck where they are, lacking the coordination to really move them. ah well. ]
Do you want anything else with your hot noodles?
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ravka.
the university that inej is studying at is directly on the coast, and inej's apartment overlooks the harbor. it's a beautiful day on the port, sunny and bright, the air crisp as it blows in from the sea. it's been three months since she left ketterdam to study in ravka, in home. since she found her parents, and reconnected with them.
her parents are also living in os kervo, just like they were when inej left for kerch when she was a little girl. her mother had taken about two hours to stop crying and holding inej when she showed up on their doorstep. and her father had managed to not cry until inej managed to choke out what happened, when she got to ketterdam. she had never seen her father cry before. or remembered her father ever hugging her so tightly. but her parents had visited her every single night, since they found one another again. to catch up, to learn what had happened. to get to know their daughter again.
she had also talked to kaz nearly every night, since arriving here. particularly when she found her parents. and probably made him stay up too late on more than one occasion to talk. and she's found she misses him (and lizabeta) dearly. her parents (particularly her mother) are keen to meet him, from what inej has told them about her closest friend. though inej isn't entirely sure asena ghafa is ever going to approve of anyone from the island of kerch ever again. not that inej can really blame her.
at any rate, she hasn't seen him in months. and so she fidgets with her bag, waiting for him. it's a pleasant anxiety, an anticipation, as she watches the people move in and out of the gates, looking for his taller frame. ]
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Because not only is he seeing Inej for the first time, in person, in three months, but he's also supposedly meeting her parents. The people she'd been looking for, in going to school in her home country. The people who probably thought her lost to them entirely. She had FaceTimed him late at night (his time) when she'd found them, emotional and eyes glassy with happiness. He'd stayed up far too late that night and Anika had bullied him into going home early after he dragged himself through half his shift.
(That day, he'd slept really well).
Today he hadn't slept as well, anxious about making his flight on time and thinking in circles about what was in store. He's talked to Inej quite often since she'd gone to Ravka, but what if the energy was different when he got there? What if they weren't as close as he thought they were? She's had time to make friends and start a school life, reconnect with her family. He's a friend but also just a strange roommate she lived with for a little over six months.
Ridiculously, he wishes he could've brought Lizabeta. She'd cuddle up and he'd feel a bit better.
Instead, he just has the bag straps that he keeps tugging on absently. And his phone, which now that he's off the plane and into the terminal, he can check compulsively to give himself something to focus on instead of how nervous he is. The nerves drop, momentarily, when he sees Inej, overwhelmed with relief. Then they slowly creep back as he steps over, though he tries not to let it show on his face. ]
Looking for someone?
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neither of them are very touchy people. and, faintly, inej recognizes that kaz is probably going to hate being hugged. but in the moment, she can't really bring herself to care. he will deal with it, because she has missed him terribly.
(weirdly, she recognizes the smell of his soap. something to ignore. probably.) ]
I think I found him.
[ she says with a laugh, tightening her grip for a moment or two before letting go just enough to straighten his coat, which she's rumpled a little in her hug. ]
Welcome to Ravka. [ she says warmly. ] How was your flight?
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first dates. :)
it's on her last night in ravka before she returns to ketterdam for the winter that her father has a talk with her. and she had asked him what it meant, to be in love. and he had simply kissed her forehead, and told her that if she had to ask that question, then she probably already was.
it had stuck in her mind when she went back to ketterdam. and she had lasted about a day (after hugging kaz impossibly tight in the airport) until she had decided to be honest. and tell him that she wanted to go on a date.
that had prompted about twenty minutes of awkward conversation, but later that evening, they were walking down the snowy streets of ketterdam. it had started to snow during the walk, the white powder making everything feel a bit more magical. they were walking to their restaurant of choice, but pausing to look at the window decorations of the different shops, all decked out for christmas. and inej tucks her scarf a bit more soundly before deciding to take his free hand as they walk, wool gloves neatly squeezing his fingers. ]
We might be snowed in tomorrow.
[ thoughtfully. ]
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There'd also been the fact that they'd shared her bed the entire trip. By the time he'd been leaving, he'd gotten used to it. Somewhat. It had still been distracting to wake up to her smell. And to the occasional cuddle, as either one of them had rolled towards the other in the middle of the night.
At home, he thought he would've been relieved to sleep in a bed by himself. But he found it to be the opposite at first, feeling the strange imbalance of weight. He might have also thought of her too much while trying to sleep, thoughts of her warm smile or how cute she looked with a pillow crease on her cheek—all keeping him up late.
He'd thought it would just be good to see that again. To maintain their relationship as it was. After all, it was nice to be close to someone like he was with Inej.
Of course, she's the braver of the two of them and a day into her being back, she tells him she wants to go on a date. Which prompts his nerves to climb up into his throat and one of the most awkward conversations he can recall having. It's brought them out and about, though, bundled up against the cold and the soft drifting snow. Ketterdam is not necessarily a beautiful city but it has its moments. The flakes look beautiful, twinkling as they pass the street lamps and lit window displays. He's still nervous but part of him feels oddly at peace, even as she squeezes his hand. ]
Probably. School and work might be cancelled. [ The regular grade schools still have some time before their break. And while the Kerch lived and died by their work ethic, they took snow and inclement weather much more seriously. ]
The finance sector hates going in if it so much as flurries.
[ Another thought occurs to him: if he doesn't have to go in, they could hang out and watch a movie. Like they did on rainy weekends. Except it was decidedly different now. He could ask to hold her with a bit more purpose than the platonic shoulder leans they usually did. ]
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[ with half a laugh as she leans her shoulder against his briefly, in a small bump. they're nearly to where they agreed to go eat dinner, but inej is loathe to cut their walk short. content to hold his hand and take in the snowy surroundings. ]
We might have to shovel ourselves out of the building. Or be trapped inside until someone frees us from our snowy prison.
[ which sounds kind of nice, actually, as she squeezes his fingers again. ]
You really should avoid going to work, anyway. [ hint, hint. ] You could slip and fall, and break your other leg. And then what would your office do?
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depose
The time difference had been weird to work through at first but now it's an easy thing. Work seems very likely to let him stay in Ravka since he's stayed on top of clients and projects. And has apparently been way more pleasant. He'll know for sure when he meets with his boss back in Kerch. A face to face scheduled for a couple days after they get in. It seems almost silly to come back for her short spring break but Tomassen had needed to go through the practice deposition.
Also it would be good to see Jesper and the rest of their friends in person again.
The flight to Ketterdam goes well as any flight does. Which basically means there aren't any delays. They get into Kerch relatively late and definitely sleep in. Well, as much as they can on their own respective internal clocks. It's a couple days before he can get adjusted to the time difference and shake off the jet lag. ]
You're meeting with Tomassen on Wednesday, right?
[ She hasn't exactly been...on edge, that's more his thing, but he knows she's worried about it. ]
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Yes.
[ as she locks the device, setting the tablet in her lap. she knows that it's a necessary part of the process. telling her story, getting it all down on the record. but a piece of her (an embarrassingly large piece) is still scared. nervous, that people will think differently of her. particularly the boy she's half-lounging on. ]
It is a practice. So it will only be Tomassen.
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victory.
she had gotten through it, though. gotten through her own testimony, and endured the cross-examination of heleen's horrific attorney. she honestly couldn't remember most of the questioning. just a back and forth, accusations of lying, reading off the list of clientele, demanding if she really was forced to do anything . . . she had stayed up half the night shaking in kaz's arms the moment they returned home, trying to figure out how to breathe. but she had kept it together on the stand, which was what was important, though inej was fairly certain tomassen got in trouble from the court for standing up mid-questioning and asking what the purpose of interrogating a rape survivor was, though he used much stronger language than that.
once that was over, they waited for the jury to decide. it felt like years. inej had spent most of the waiting outside of the courtroom, unable to look at heleen while someone determined her fate. but when the verdict was finally delivered, and inej had won. she honestly didn't remember most of the fallout, from the courtroom. she remembered tomassen's hand at her back, and heleen spitting something in fury. and, in something of a numb daze, tomassen took kaz and inej out of the back of the courthouse, into a waiting car so they could go home.
she cried for hours, it felt like. in relief. and she was happily intending on staying in bed for a month when tomassen suggested that kaz and inej get out of the city. why, tomassen had declined to say, but inej suspected that the fight was not truly over just yet. so they had gotten on a plane to shu han, and were in a hotel room overlooking the beautiful gardens that were just now coming into bloom. inej had stubbornly insisted on keeping kaz in bed for most of their first day there, to catch up on sleep and to relax.
now, though, she wanders out of the bathroom in a robe, her hair damp from the bath she had just soaked in. it's long enough to cover everything, and inej was really keen on sitting outside to let her hair dry when she realizes her (long-suffering, beloved, handsome) significant other is still half asleep in bed.
so she meanders over to sit on the edge of the bed, leaning over him with a wrinkled nose, before lowering herself down to kiss his forehead briefly. ]
Hello.
[ quietly. best to wake him up slowly. even on vacation, he still isn't much of a morning person. ]
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Inej had survived her time on the stand, if only because Tomassen had very pointedly asked Heleen's attorney what the fuck is wrong with you. Kaz had seen him pushed to the brink of his—admittedly long—fuse before, in the trial with Rollins. But this had been a different beast altogether. Despite the fine and the emotional upset, he'd been pretty sure Sofia was proud in the aftermath.
Certainly, they'd both been relieved and elated when the trial wrapped in a win. Something they'd been expecting but still left all of them weak-kneed. And had Inej crying until Kaz seriously worried about her dehydrating. They didn't get too much time to simmer in the win, with Tomassen suggesting they get out of the country for a bit, a slightly strained look on his face. Kaz had agreed it was a good idea, though he'd been extremely reluctant to leave his adoptive parents behind in the mire. After Rollins had been found guilty, they'd been extremely stressed until everything completely wrapped. He still doesn't have all the details of what happened.
Heleen, he thinks, won't be much better. Possibly worse. So the important part is getting Inej away where she can't be touched.
They end up in Shu Han, like they'd talked about on his couch that time. Spring is around the corner, the perfume of blooms just starting to fill the air. Most of their first day they'd spent crashed out in bed, exhausted from the emotional journey and the jet lag both.
Earlier, he'd heard Inej get up but had elected to stay in bed, eyelids still quite heavy. By the time he starts to come to again, he feels the bed dip lightly, followed by the light smell of her shampoo and a kiss to his forehead. ]
Morning. [ He rubs a hand over his face and cracks his eyes open, blinking at the gentle stream of light coming in. Vision clearing, his gaze goes to her face, smiling sleepily at her damp and slightly tangled hair. And then drops a bit to take in the fluffy robe. With not much else. Ah. ]
Good bath?
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explorations.
heleen's case was still fighting it's way through the court system on appeal, but inej had been kept out of it, for the most part. no one on heleen's employ was allowed to talk to her, and heleen herself had been told in no-uncertain terms by the judge that if she contacted inej, she would be headed straight to prison on contempt. so far, heleen (and her minions) had respected the court's wishes, although barely. there had been an incident where inej had walked home from her internship at the kerch human trafficking office one week and had been followed home by someone she vaguely recognized as a bouncer at the menagerie.
after that, kaz had insisted on picking her up (which felt silly, given his leg and the cold and the fact that she could walk), and she felt safer, after that. she stopped seeing the man lingering around once kaz brought her to and from the office. she suspects the man doubted he could take them both, rather than just inej (who could certainly defend herself, but was tiny).
for the most part, heleen was in the back of her mind. her time in school was coming to an end, and inej was working on solid next steps. she had an idea - an organization, outside of the government (which was often corrupt and part of the problem), to advocate and assist people like her. she had applied for funding for this organization and assembled a team of fellow students who were willing to help. kaz had really been the one to put together the grant applications for her, for which inej was eternally grateful.
after some weeks, a letter manifested itself from one of the bigger funders - enough to not only open inej's organization, but fund it for at least a full year. but it felt wrong to open it without him. and opening it felt . . . final. what if it was a denial?
so when kaz comes home, he will find inej sitting on their couch with her arms wrapped around her knees, staring at the (unopened) envelope on the table. but at the sound of the door, she tilts her head back a little with a warm smile. ]
I already ordered dinner.
[ mildly enough.
( she had a feeling he would be coming home late. ) ]
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But he also worried all the time, with or without details. It had just given him more to think up strange scenarios. Thankfully, he and Inej had spent quite a bit of their trip seeing everything they could. And on days when his leg wasn't up for it or either of them were too tired, they'd set aside time to figure out more of their physical boundaries.
All of which had, mercifully, taken his mind off of the gnawing anxiety.
Getting back to Kerch meant he'd gotten the details. Most of it had blown over enough that he couldn't stew, which was another blessing and likely the one his parents had intended on.
Though it wasn't to say he ended up totally worry free. Inej had a short lived incident which involved someone following her and lingering around her internship. He'd resolved it by picking her up, even if she argued the office was close to home. It seemed to bring them both peace of mind though, in the end, and Kaz hadn't seen the man in some time now.
Which left them both to work on Inej's future without as much of a nervousness. He'd been researching grants and funding, filing paperwork for the organization she wanted to put together. They'd gotten at least one or two responses, from smaller places, but nothing significant enough to be fully operational. If the bigger funding didn't come through, it was going to take time to garner enough of the smaller ones to make it work.
Still, it was in the somewhat early stages. Definitely not time to panic or worry, he thinks. And he's fairly confident she'll end up with what she needs—it's a good cause and her operational outline had been nearly airtight.
He'd spent the last bit of his day compiling a few more links for research, potential places to apply for funding. That alongside a particularly jammed schedule has him coming in later than usual, feeling almost mentally tapped out. Some of the tiredness drops away as soon as he walks in the door, just glad to be home. ]
Yeah? [ He hangs his coat up and hobbles over, one hand finding her shoulder as he leans down to kiss her forehead. ] Hello to you too.
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cooking.
she’s long since run out of tears to shed, which has left her feeling both overwhelmed and exhausted, upon letting herself back into their apartment. she doesn’t see kaz immediately, which she feels a little relief for. part of her feels guilty, for struggling. and not saying anything. but most of her needs a moment to relax.
so she finds herself on the couch, curling up underneath a thick blanket, exhaling slowly as she closes her eyes. letting a moment of peace wash over her as she focuses on calming her nerve.
home feels safe, after all. ]
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When he'd gotten home, he'd gotten a bit of a head start, just plugging in some notes and reminders for himself. Inej hadn't been back yet—therapy day, as he knows. He's wrapping up said notes when he finally does hear her come in, the door opening and closing and then a relative silence. Her steps are always quiet, after all.
She doesn't announce herself though, or come into the room. Which means she probably needs at least a few minutes by herself. A particularly harrowing session today, he guesses. Or maybe she's just generally tired.
Whatever the case, he still has enough to keep him occupied for a bit longer so she can have her space.
It's another ten or so minutes before he closes the lid on his computer, pulling himself away from work to finally check in on Inej. Who, by all accounts, seems to have taken after Lizabeta by the shape of her blanket nest on the couch. ]
Inej?
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kaz kicking in tomassen's door with a phonebook of evidence
Since Inej's particular situation calls on a separate branch of laws and rulings, especially because of her being a Ravkan national, he's been sending Tomassen inquiries here and there, getting a better understanding of the contract's wording. As well as doing his own research on everything that stemmed into it; housing, indenture, all the various business Heleen Van Houden owned and operated throughout Ketterdam. Each new discovery fueled the already stoked anger in him. By the time he finishes what he considers his preliminary findings, the word document is nearing fifty pages. He saves it, encrypted, prints everything off, and then carefully wipes all trace of his search, the print job, and disconnects from the VPN he'd set up for it.
Just in case.
He manages to send a message at a normal hour, asking if his dad will be free for lunch the next day, relieved when it's an agreement. Nothing is set in stone, not yet, but he intends to get Heleen in some way. After all, Inej seemed resolute in her desire to get her justice–which is rightfully deserved. Tomassen and Sofia had supported and seen him through his own hell; it was karmic balance to help Inej through hers however he could.
So, on a beautiful but brisk Wednesday, fifteen minutes before noon, he's let into Tomassen's office by the receptionist, Maia. She'd looked startled but glad to see him, having gotten familiar with his comings and goings over the years the Rollins case had dragged on. Kaz takes his seat across from his dad, stretching out his bad leg. The paperwork laden leather bag gets set in the chair next to his so he wouldn't have to bend to collect it. ]
For the record, I did text mom back separately about dinner on Friday.
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so when kaz reached out for lunch after asking some inquiries about suspicious activity, he had a feeling his son was not coming to his firm for a casual lunch. his suspicions were confirmed at the sight of the briefcase laden with paperwork, and as kaz sinks into the chair across from his, tomassen arches his eyebrows.
(he may have a text or three from his dearest wife, telling tomassen to remind kaz to text her concerning dinner on friday, so tomassen is glad he doesn't need to get involved.) ]
She's concerned you're starving to death. [ obviously. he folds his hands in his lap, his elbows resting on the arms of his chair, surveying kaz. he looks tired, as if he hasn't slept very well recently. not stressed, necessarily, but determined despite the lack of sleep. ] Do most people bring an encyclopedia to lunch, or is that just a special trait you carry?
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