Sime~Gen Roleplaying: District Controller's Office Scenario
Episode #113: Recreational Workstyles (12/8/99)
Beni watches his channel with some concern.
Arat is actually doodling. Well, sort of.
Arat is retracing the same small mark on the page over and over again while his mind wanders far into the jungle of his problems.
Arat is scowling at the paper, although he probably doesn't see it or he'd stop what he was doing at once.
Beni: Arat, you've been trying to read that same page for the past 20 minutes.
Arat looks up, his concentration (?) broken.
Arat looks blankly at Beni for a moment, and then straightens up.
Beni: You should take a break.
Beni pushes a fresh cup of tea in Arat's direction.
Arat looks at the paper, at the mark on the paper, the pencil in his hand, and reluctantly agrees Beni may be right.
Arat takes the tea and drinks a sip.
Arat: My concentration isn't what it should be.
Beni then steps behind Arat's chair and starts to work some of the knots out of his shoulders.
Beni: That report isn't due for another three weeks.
Beni: You can afford to relax for a bit.
Beni tries hard for a suitably ~~ soothing ~~ nager.
Beni wishes he had Nick's knack for the task.
Arat relaxes a little as the shoulder rub and nager treatment begin to take effect.
Beni notes the improvement with some ~~ encouragement ~~
Beni: That's better. You know, it might clear your head a bit if we went for a walk.
Beni's suggestion is based on a thorough study of the way Nick is alleged to have handled Arat.
Beni has no way of determining how much of what happened between Arat and Nick was Nick handling Arat, and how much was Arat handling Nick, however.
Beni has frequently found himself wishing that Nick kept better notes in Arat's file.
Arat naturally doesn't like that idea at all.
Arat however can't argue that he has actually gotten anything done sitting here, and anything that might help must be seriously considered.
Arat: Very well.
Beni is ~~ pleased ~~ at Arat's cooperation.
Beni: We'll require coats--it's a bit brisk out.
Arat: My cloak is in my quarters.
Beni: My coat's in my room, as well.
Beni is careful not to let voice or nager even hint that the effort involved in coat-fetching is significant.
Beni has plenty of experience with channels who find tying their own shoes too much effort when in need.
Arat rises, looks at the work still lying on his desk.
Beni: Ah, no you don't. Until we return, you're not allowed to even think about anything related to your responsibilities.
Beni: ~~ lighthearted playfulness ~~
Arat reluctantly rips his eyes away from it. It's not as if he'd be able to read it if he sat right down again anyway.
Arat utterly fails to respond to the playfulness, but he does get moving out the door.
Beni follows, keeping up but letting Arat set the pace.
Arat moodily walks towards the ritzier end of the residential wing.
Arat lives in the Sime Center for two reasons: 1) it's more convenient since he spends most of his time at work anyway, and 2) to make a point.
Arat however doesn't feel it's necessary to put up with just-out-of-1st-year rowdiness, pesky 3rds who assume nearness means equality, etc.
Arat therefore has a room in an area limited to Firsts and tenured 2nds.
Beni rolls his eyes at Arat's moodiness (safely behind Arat's back, of course), and concentrates on feeling ~~ relaxed and off duty ~~
Beni pauses by the door to his own room.
Beni: Hold on a moment, while I grab my coat.
Arat stops.
Arat: [about 20 feet past Beni's room]
Beni knows better than to just disappear without warning when his channel is in need.
Arat waits there, causing various people trying to get to their rooms to make hasty detours to other corridors.
Beni ducks through the door, grabs his coat, checks to make sure the gloves are still in the right pocket, and slips a small bag into the left one.
Beni then rejoins Arat.
Beni manages to avoid appearing hurried, at least pretty much.
Arat continues toward his own room without a word.
Beni tries to imagine that he is a rogue who's spent over a year working with the old, unreformed Snake, and that Arat is therefore a vacation.
Arat has hated the sight of the place since Jeniard decided to move out.
Arat therefore doesn't waste any time in picking up his cloak (it's seen a lot of unaccustomed use recently, again due to the lawsuit) and returning to Beni.
Arat is wearing a scowl as well as the cloak.
Beni sees Arat's reluctance to linger in his room, which should be a refuge for him, and wonders if he should move Arat into his own room until their transfer.
Beni ignores Arat's scowl, which at least doesn't seem to be directed at Beni himself, and leads the way casually towards the front of the building and the sign-out book.
Beni: How about going down by the river? There's always something interesting going on there.
Arat: No.
Arat may be willing to be subjected to a walk, but he's going to stand by his right to do it somewhere a little dignity is possible.
Beni decides not to make an issue of it, since after all, this is supposed to be a de-stressing exercise.
Arat leads the way through the bowels of the building, eventually winding up at the grand lobby where the security desk people are becoming less and less titillated by the sight of him signing in and out, and more and more aware of how the boss showing up regularly can cramp one's recreational workstyle.
Arat signs out and passes the pen to Beni.
Beni dips the pen in the inkbottle and signs with a flourish.
Arat looks sour as a particularly exuberant stroke flicks a spot of ink at him (narrowly missing).
Arat considers chiding Beni for using four lines of the book, but decides it is not worth it. (a sure sign Arat is not at his best)
Beni doesn't let the sour grapes 1 get him down, but in tacit apology he carefully buttons his coat and puts his gloves on before stepping outside to prevent the chilled-Gen effect.
Arat follows.
Beni steps carefully going down the front steps, just in case the grounds crew missed a bit of ice.
Beni isn't the sort of outdoors-maniac that Nick was reputed to be, but he is ~~ enjoying ~~ the change of scene very much.
Beni reaches into his left-hand pocket and pulls out the small bag.
Beni offers the bag to Arat.
Beni: Apple candy?
Arat looks like he doesn't want one, but he takes one anyway.
Arat's actual feelings on the matter are way too complicated to get into here.
Beni smiles and takes out another candy for himself.
Note:
1) Sour grapes: This is an in-joke for one. The term "sour grapes" is used differently at Beni's player's workplace than in standard English. [return]