Cracks in the Spires

50: Possession is nine tenths of the law.

Mik came back full of his adventures. Everyone got a 'thing that you can put your beaker on' which he'd collected on his trip to Gladhopiggen. All visitors received one as a souvenir and the attendant when Mik asked if he could have ones to take back to Esperance had given him enough for everyone with one or two spare. Mik explained that one side was a picture of the sculpture and the other side was a diagram of how it worked and that he wished they could have one for Esperance because it was super exciting. The same trip had also given him the opportunity to collect several pebbles with interesting white lines of which Fant, Lolly and Uncle Var were recipients. He had also with Ben and Per's help got a small piece of mineral for Roni from the copper mine because he thought it was pretty and she would like it. He gave it to her saying that his dads had helped choose it and he hoped she liked it. She put it on the chest in her room and said it was very nice. He was happily engaged in visiting people and telling them about his adventures so he didn't mind too much that Ben and Per were very busy in the days immediately after their return. The transfer of the orphans to the Warrens had been on hold while they were away but as soon as they were back Da was keen to start the process. On top of that Asken wanted to get on with reconstituting the Governance Council and Per needed to be present at the meetings.

Per had had the idea of turning the Riss estate into new premises for the orphanage. There were several pavilions, the main villa with twenty eight rooms, servants quarters and pleasant gardens that could be used for growing vegetables. Ben was enthusiastic and the day after their return under the pretext of getting Heta to plan some murals they took her over there. Arn took Mik into the garden to help him decide how to make a good play area to give them the chance to ask Heta how she'd got on with Roni. She pulled the corners of her mouth down and shook her head slightly

"Not very well I'm afraid. It was quite difficult to get her to talk about it at all. She seemed annoyed that you'd taken Mik to Kvernstat with you. At first I thought it might be a little bit of jealousy that he'd gone with you and not stayed with her but in the end it turned out it was more that she couldn't see the point of 'dragging a little kid all that way' and that Mik would just be bored.

Ben laughed "Well hopefully after he's finished telling her for the thousandth time what a great time he had she won't still think that."

Heta chuckled "He has certainly got his bounce back! Unfortunately, however, when I did get Roni to open up a little it became clear that she is deeply uncomfortable around you since she discovered that you are in a same sex relationship and as for Jan, she's horrified by the way he dresses. She kept referring to you and to him and Kiri as 'unnaturals'. There is definitely a deep seated prejudice there which seems to come from her parents, particularly her father. He was a vigilante who turned in Sprags for the reward. She persisted in calling you that even though I said I found it an offensive term. She apologised for upsetting me but said it was the truth. I don't think I got through to her at all despite my appeals to the fact that both you and she want what's best for Mik and what he wants is for us all to get along. She grudgingly said she'd see but I don't think I did much good. Since then she's gone back to calling me Madam Norin."

"I think the only thing we can do is confront it head on. Tell her we know she doesn't approve of us but for Mik's sake we've got to come to some kind of working arrangement. She doesn't need to have much to do with us and Jan and Kiri are getting a new apartment on 3 near the Arena so he won't be around that often. She can't have anything against you and Da or Dad so hopefully we can find a way to co-exist."

"I wouldn't say she has nothing against us because she did wonder how we and your father could permit the pair of you to become morally deficient. I think she was implying a moral deficiency in us though she didn't come out and say so."