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Ivan has just recently been assigned to Earth. It's very cultural. He has already explained Vor to groups of natives four separate times. Some of them seem to find it really hilarious to call him Lord Vorpatril. He doesn't mind; some of those people are girls who giggle it and bat their eyelashes. He likes it here just fine.
After he finishes with his day-job duties (separate from attending diplomatic functions to stand around and look handsome) he attempts to let himself out of the room with the comconsole and all its data to sift through, only to find that the hallway has turned into a bar.
He looks over his shoulder. The office is still normal. Which is to say there are no other exits.
Ivan goes into the bar, squinting.
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middlingalong
middlingalong
"Lieutenant Vorkosigan, that's well beyond the budget of this embassy," says Galeni. "Let alone this department!"
thisvorlunatic
"...I have spreadsheets?" he says weakly. "I'm going to have to produce it from somewhere, sir, we've been running the last six months on nerves and prayer. I don't know what I'm going to do if I have to pack up the fleet and limp the rest of the way to Tau Ceti. Besides in all likelihood get nailed by a Cetagandan assassination team on the way."
middlingalong
"Cet-" Galeni finds it necessary to cough. "If there are assassins after you, Vorkosigan, you may consider yourself confined to the embassy. I will send to Tau Ceti for your eighteen million marks."
"Fortunate we replaced that courier," Ivan chirps. "He was a rat, we found that out courtesy of Mark."
"Fortunate we replaced that courier," Ivan chirps. "He was a rat, we found that out courtesy of Mark."
thisvorlunatic
"...Congratulations to Mark," says Miles. "I'm going to have the rest of this story out of you, Ivan, you realize." He sighs and refocuses on Galeni. "Thank you, sir. Under the circumstances I certainly don't have any good reasons to leave the embassy - just as long as I have some line of communication to my Dendarii, in case they need their admiral for something. What's the turnaround on a fast courier to Tau Ceti - ten days? We can make it ten days."
spacetobreathe
"Ten days," Galeni confirms. "You are not on a communications blackout, you are simply not to go wandering off. We can provide you a secured commlink."
"We should be able to manage, sir," says Elli.
"We should be able to manage, sir," says Elli.
thisvorlunatic
"All right. Thank you. Elli, stick around for the commlink and then go deliver the news to the fleet, all right? And my next order of business is... to get out of this hard-to-explain uniform and go meet my brother, I guess. God." He rubs his face again. "Where do I go around here to get clothes, Ivan? I've run dry of civvies; things keep getting blown up or abandoned in storage."
middlingalong
"Stores has one of those machines that measures you and makes whatever you like, within extremely conservative tastes, on the spot. I'll show you and then warn Mark you're incoming."
middlingalong
Ivan shows him to Stores, then nips back to his dorm.
"Miles has turned up on the doorstep," says Ivan. "I hope you weren't still planning to replace him, that would be disappointing and likely ineffective."
"Miles has turned up on the doorstep," says Ivan. "I hope you weren't still planning to replace him, that would be disappointing and likely ineffective."
middlingalong
"Didn't ask. He'll be here for a bit and then vanish again, is my understanding, I suppose they'll have to give him his own room since you're in this one."
unmarred
"'Vanish again'... yeah, he does have that habit," says Mark. "Excessively so even for an ImpSec courier. And he hasn't been heard from at all in something like six months, and now he is inexplicably and unexpectedly on Earth. What does my big brother do for a living?"
unmarred
"Top secret?" he guesses. "I'm going to find out anyway, bet you anything you like."
middlingalong
"I will bet you one of those raspberry cookies, but I will not tell you."
unmarred
"Sure. I may redeem the knowledge of what Miles has been up to for one of Carolyn's delicious raspberry cookies. Well, if I wasn't going to find out before, I sure am now."
unmarred
"It's Miles, Ivan. There is no force nor law in this mortal universe capable of preventing me from finding something out about Miles. The effect of the extra incentive is negligible."
