Open Post: What a yarn

[sporesprouter]

There's still quite a bit of winter yet, according to the calendar, not to mention whatever Dark is, and Tress got an idea for a project fairly recently. It's appropriate and it gives her a chance to stretch out a skill she hasn't really gotten an opportunity to use in a while.

So she's in a cozy parlor, sitting curled up in a big comfy armchair right by the window, a basket of yarn at her feet, and she's knitting. It's still too early to be immediately obvious what it is she's knitting, but she's moving with the easy confidence that indicates it's definitely not a new craft she's just now decided to take up.

Sometimes, after all, it's nice to go back to something old and familiar.

Comments

[sporesprouter]

"I hope you've found enough of them here, then, even if they aren't exactly like the ones you had at home."

[az_fell]

Please forgive Aziraphale for this obnoxiously dreamy smile. Or don't forgive him, if you'd rather. "Things are looking up."

[sporesprouter]

That is an adorably dreamy smile. "Well, that's a good sign."

[az_fell]

After a protracted moment, Aziraphale recalls that Tress is probably not also necessarily planning to spend her day thinking charitable¹ thoughts about Anthony J. Crowley. He shakes his head a little to snap out of it. "And? What about you, Tress?"

¹Charity is a virtue! You see, he's doing fantastically at being angelic these days. If you ignore all of the sex he's been having with a demon.

[sporesprouter]

"I've been all right. At least this past event was better than the last couple."

[az_fell]

"Oh, dear." Despite his distraction generally, Aziraphale does quite like Tress. "Dare I ask?"

[sporesprouter]

She shrugs. "Oh. Well, when the translator broke... I'm the only one here from my world at all."

[az_fell]

"Oh." Genuine sympathy softens Aziraphale's face a bit, not that it needs much of that. "I speak every language on Earth, but I'm not certain if that would have been useful."

[sporesprouter]

She nods. "At least it was only for a day, but it was... well, strange, I suppose."

[az_fell]

"Does the language you speak have a name?" Aziraphale asks curiously. "I've noticed that the library here produces, seemingly at random, books from several different worlds. I wonder if we could find one from yours."

[sporesprouter]

"Oh, it's Verani¹. But yes, I've seen books from my world in the library."

¹ On the infinitesimal chance that her author ever makes actual canon about this, she said that instead.

[az_fell]

He brightens with even more interest. "Do you have any recommendations?" With the number of worlds represented here, there could be essentially an infinite reading list unfurling before him.

[sporesprouter]

"I mean... what sorts of things do you like to read?"

[az_fell]

"Well, I'm particularly interested in books of prophecy," Aziraphale says, in a bit of a conspiratory tone as if this is somehow scandalous or secret.

[sporesprouter]

"Oh." She shakes her head. "Prophecy isn't really... I don't think it's much of a thing, on my world."

[az_fell]

"No?" says Aziraphale with surprise. "Nobody ever comes along and predicts the end times? No ominous premonitions of fire and brimstone that coincidentally happen to make the predictor quite popular?"

[sporesprouter]

She blinks. "Not that I've heard of, anyway? I mean, I come from a very small island, though, so maybe they just never got to me?"

[az_fell]

"What a shame," says Aziraphale, brightly. "They're almost always utter bunk, but they're anthropologically fascinating."

[sporesprouter]

"Well, maybe not having any means something, too."

[az_fell]

"Oh?" A cup of tea seems appropriate for Tress' entire cozy situation here, so he miracles himself one. "What's your theory? And would you like some tea, too?"

[sporesprouter]

"Tea would be nice, thank you. I don't know if I really have a theory? But if prophecies have something to say anthropologically, it would make sense that the lack of them would say something too."

[az_fell]

Magnanimously, Aziraphale produces a cup of tea out of the air and offers it to Tress. He doesn't know how she takes it, so it's a bog standard cuppa, black tea with milk and sugar. "The generous interpretation would be that your people don't fear the future."

[sporesprouter]

Tress takes the cup. "Thank you." She looks thoughtful for a moment. "That could be. Or it could mean that we don't consider the future as much as we should."

[az_fell]

"You're the expert on your own people," he points out, mild enough. "Which do you think it is?"

[sporesprouter]

"I'm only an expert by comparison. I really don't know if I'd count. But I... actually, I'm not sure you can draw a blanket conclusion. People are different, and there are ones that fall into either category."