hell of a party

[middlingalong]

Ivan must be drunker than he thought he was. He could have sworn he knew his way around Vivienne's parents' house, since she wanted to introduce him last week and showed him the place, but maybe they have a... secret... upstairs... bar? where Vivienne's room is supposed to be? And most certainly was last time he checked? He's never going to find the sweater she sent him up looking for here, anyway. Why is there a secret upstairs bar in Vivienne's parents' house?

Comments

[thisvorlunatic]

Miles resumes writing.

Mother, Father (and Simon, and miscellaneous ImpSec analysts I'm sure):

Hello from the year 2998 standard. How's the Komarran Revolt going? Is David Galen dead yet? If he is, assuming these events hold true in your world: (a) he isn't, and (b) shortly he's going to scurry off to Jackson's Whole and clone me for nefarious purposes. Lord Mark turned out astonishingly well, given his childhood. I can only assume he'll do even better if you manage to rescue him nice and early, although given Lord Mark, that may not be a perfectly safe assumption.

By the way, if David Galen's son should grow up and one day decide to join the Imperial Service (approximately thirty seconds after you started letting in Komarrans, as far as I can tell), he will be an impeccably loyal officer. You couldn't ask for better. No need to worry about activating your retirement, Simon. You are right in this as in all things, Da.

What else should I tell you...

It would be a very, very good idea to let me know who Elena's mother was, and how, before any trips to Beta Colony I might take when I'm seventeen. You might consider telling her, too, but I'm the one whose stupid decision will be averted by this knowledge. Around the same time... have a care for Grandda's health. Not that I think there's anything much you or anyone could have done differently.

I am safe and well, having survived all of my miscellaneous childhood adventures and then the ones that came after. You may not find this an adequate reassurance after little Miles learns to run, but it's the best one I've got.

There's more I want to say, but I'm hesitant... I have no more secure method of communication available to me at this moment (sorry, but who memorizes what the standard ciphers were when they were five? Not even you, Simon, I bet) and a lot of the things I could tell you will do more harm in others' hands than they will do good in yours. Also, I have a moderate suspicion that this letter will be read by a four-year-old before it reaches you.

Not to mention that I have no idea just how much of my past will closely resemble your future, because in my own world, I have never had a sister.

All my love,
Lieutenant Lord Miles Naismith Vorkosigan

After signing, he gets out his grandfather's seal dagger and imprints the Vorkosigan seal in blood next to the signature. That should get them to pay attention. It should be a match for little Miles's, but little Miles's handwriting, vocabulary, and knowledge base would not be up to producing this document, not to mention the fact that little Miles has probably never been within spitting distance of his grandda's seal dagger.

[alicornucopia]

Nika observes the seal dagger with interest but doesn't comment on it.

"Should I go bring that and get my Miles now?" she wonders.

[thisvorlunatic]

"I'm... not... sure," he murmurs, contemplating the folded note.

[alicornucopia]

"Well, you could send Ivan, if you'd rather, but I don't see why you would."

[thisvorlunatic]

"I don't know if I want to meet your Miles. I don't know... if I'd do him any good by it."

[alicornucopia]

"If there was another me I'd want to meet her."

[thisvorlunatic]

"I'd want to meet another of me. I'm less sure that I would have wanted to meet another of me when I was five. I only remember a little about being five..."

[alicornucopia]

"Oh." Pause. "But won't he be mad if I don't show him the magic bar?"

[thisvorlunatic]

"Maybe. I don't know. Do you think so?"

[alicornucopia]

"Maybe. It's a magic bar."

[thisvorlunatic]

"It is, that's true," he says. "Well, if you want to go get Miles, then in the finest Vorkosigan tradition you can get your Cousin Ivan to hold the door for you while you go do that."

[middlingalong]

"That's the finest Vorkosigan tradition?" Big Ivan asks, as Tiny Ivan hops to. "Getting Cousin Ivan to hold the door. Start 'em young."

Tiny Ivan giggles and holds the door for Nika, and she goes to get her Miles.

[thisvorlunatic]

"Well, of course," says Miles.

The other Miles, meanwhile, is plopped on a couch watching some age-appropriate adventure holo or other.

[washed_in_blood]

Bothari is standing nearby, not paying very much attention to the age-appropriate adventure holo.

[alicornucopia]

"Miles, Ivan found a thing, you have to come see. Bothari, you gotta bring him," says Nika importantly.

[washed_in_blood]

Bothari looks down at Miles to see what he has to say about this.

"What... kind of thing?" asks Miles, looking reluctantly away from his age-appropriate adventure holo.

[alicornucopia]

"I think it's magic. Come and see!"

[washed_in_blood]

"Magic?" asks Miles, fascinated. "Actual magic? I wanna see the thing!"

"All right," says Bothari, and he picks Miles up.

(Bothari does not think that it might be actual magic.)

[alicornucopia]

Well, Bothari will of necessity also see the thing.

The actual magic thing to which Ivan is holding the door.

[washed_in_blood]

That's... an actual magic thing.

He halts several steps away and stares at it uncertainly.

[alicornucopia]

"It's okay!" Nika says. "Ivan found it."

Ivan is probably incapable of finding actually dangerous things, right?

[washed_in_blood]

He's not sure he finds that very reassuring. But...

"C'mon c'mon show me the thing," says Miles, squirming and stretching his arms forward.

"...all right," says Bothari, against his better judgment. He proceeds into the actual magic thing.

[thisvorlunatic]

[alicornucopia]

"I knew you would want to see the thing," Nika says. "He didn't think you would but I knew."

[thisvorlunatic]

"Hey, that's me!" accuses little Miles. "Who said you could be me!"

"Nobody did," sighs less-little Miles. "It just sort of happened."

"And you're all grown up and you can walk! How old are you?"

"Twenty years older than you."

"Well... well stop," says little Miles indignantly. "I'm not twenty years older than me yet."