"The new and improved Miles," he jokes.

"Well, the new and slightly less breakable Miles. Maybe try to schedule your next batch of replacements?"

"I don't know about you, but I consider being less breakable a definite improvement. Anyway, I don't know if I want to replace any more bones - they only get trickier from here, I'm told. I'll wait and see."

"If your ribs were not so breakable," Linya says, "you could be less carefully squeezed."

"Yes, but I'd have to pay for that privilege by going through this business over again with my ribs. I'm not keen on the idea. Suggest it again in a few months when I've had time to forget how much it hurts."

She kisses his forehead again. "I'll make a note of it, if you're done reading the correspondence."

"Yeah. So you're on first-name terms with Uncle Simon now. Congratulations."

She withdraws the display from its hovering position over his face. "We'll see what comes of it, I suppose." Pet pet pet.

"...Was Mother with you when you got here?" he asks, trying without much success to peer around her.

"She was. She stepped out. Do you want me to go get her?"

"No, no, it's fine. I just wanted to confirm my memory."

"Your memory's fine." Pet pet. "You have probably been outrageously bored in here, haven't you? I don't even see a setup to pipe in music, what an inhospitably designed hospital."

"It's ImpMil, Linya. It's not supposed to be hospitable."

"What a fine excuse for leaving you with no functioning arms and nothing to do. I forgive those responsible completely and at once."

Miles snickers. (Ow.)

Forehead-kiss. "I think Quinn may have saturated me with all the war stories I wish to hear this week. But I successfully coaxed Dr. Cheung to Komarr, and he arrived the other day and is recuperating and cursing my name for talking him into it and celebrating the nice workspace I rented him. And pens are now available without custom order in three more colors. And I'm going to take physics courses and a little math when the next term starts. And I have to keep stopping myself from re-offering to show you simulations of Aral Adri because he's going to be exquisitely cute."

"Which three colours?"

"The viridian and burgundy and brown were the most popular custom offers. And my agent's working on getting them available on Beta Colony now."

"Congratulations."

"Thanks." Pet pet. "Any idea how long it will take the doctors to let you go?"

"Soon, I hope. I've been promised recuperation at Vorkosigan Surleau, and now hand-feeding."

"I can hardly expect you to manage it telekinetically, now, can I?"

"I'm sure given sufficient time to come up with a creative solution, I could manage to feed myself semi-independently."

"With your feet, perhaps. Or by diving face-first into bowls of things. I believe I will spare you self-inflicted creative indignity."

He giggles, then winces. "Ow."