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1.8: Alt forladt

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[ Alt forladt: Danish, literal meaning is "all left/all lost"; idiomatic meaning is comparable to "no hard feelings" or "you are forgiven"  ]


OKAAAAY, so this is that notorious drawing that went missing; or rather, it's NOT the notorious drawing that went missing, because that cheeky li'l thing turned out to be beyond salvation and I had to start from scratch again :dummy:  And... good riddance, I'm really tired of looking at this by now, haha. Working on THIS version has just been a constant reminder of how the original, lost drawing was infinitely better than this mess. Could be purely a psychological factor, buuuut I have to say that's how I feel, at least :'> 

ANYWAY. Finally I'm able to continue my drama saga. I'd have hoped to be finished with 'Season 1' before Monday where I start my hospital internship buuut my plans and schedules got upset a bit, and I still have two episodes to go. Ah. I'll do my best ^^'


Previously: Hypochondriac


Divisionen by Zoubstance

Story:

Kaisa lingered in the stables for a long time. The unfathomable consequences of what had transpired earlier were still only gradually unveiling themselves to her as she reflected on the matter; each new realization bringing its own new level of grimness. She had been fired. Fired. The word itself seemed like a joke - indeed, it had been Andrzej's favourite threat since day 1 on the team, and one he always spoke with his signature grin: "No pressure, Kaisa - you'll only get fired if you lose!"
He always wore that grin, as if richly enjoying a joke he had chosen not to share with anyone else, and he always made that threat -or joke- at competitions. Kaisa had never expected him to actually act on it...
Yet here she was - fired. Dismissed. Laid off. Made redundant. No matter how she phrased it the words themselves still made little sense to her, albeit their implications were starting to sink in.
She would not be coming back to the stable after today. Her daily routine of checking in at the stables after school (and hanging around most of the day at weekends) was now upset. She wondered oddly for a moment what she would do with all this 'spare time' she now had at hand, when the next implication hit her:
She would not be spending time with her best friends any longer. Sure, Facebook and other social media existed, but it would not be the same. There would be no more trail rides in the company of Phuong and Phuong's impressive collection of sweets. There would be no more leather polishing adventures set to the epic voicetrack of Azaria's funny, if a bit vulgar, stories, jokes and observations. Annie's intense, but ever-rewarding, show jumping lectures on saturday mornings would be sorely missed, for while "Admiral Annie" could be stern in her teachings, she was always fair. Then there was Andrzej and his odd combination of stiff, graceful courtliness and slouched shoulders and casual dignity, richly spiced with jokes of, at times, questionable quality. Kaisa reckoned with reluctance that she would miss him the most... that prick..
Connor might be Kaisa's only remaining link to her time with Team Zdarloch. She worked the occasional hours at his family's company, Goldenzymes, so she would be likely to run into him every so often at campus. Perhaps instead of lecturing her about the importance of sound dressage groundwork he could give her lectures on enzymes in the future? But Connor's fate remained uncertain and the realization that there might not be a future time for Connor's lectures, whatever the subject, was a stab to Kaisa's heart. 
It hardly mattered what happened next - nothing would go back to normal and be the way it once was. She would dearly miss the place and its quirky everyday happenings. That slightly-raised tile near the entrance to the tack room that you could so easily trip over. That low-hanging beam in the tool shack that Connor would always bang his head into. The way Phuong's ring tone made Dido the dog bark in that particular way. Being slashed across the hand for disturbing Uvejr the cat in her beauty sleep. Annie's ambitions of 'advanced cooking' only to be followed by her catch phrase 'oh sod it, let's just order a pizza!' as soon as she was done reading the recipe. The road trips with Azaria behind the wheel, music blazing and voices cracking as they attempted to sing along. The way Andrzej every so often (following immediately after conversations with Annie on the phone) would address anyone as 'honey' or 'darling' due to sheer force of habit - by now it had become such an inside joke it could be used without context against him.
But above all: Zdrasti Adrenaline. The dark bay Zlesdin mare that Kaisa had ridden for the past years, bonded with and loved like a best friend. Indeed, the mare was, by all means, one of Kaisa's best friends. Nobody understood silence quite like her, or knew by instinct how to read Kaisa's mood. Nothing in the world could cheer Kaisa quite like gazing into the frosty blue eyes of Zdrasti. They knew each other by heart, or 'zdarloch' if you will,  were undefeated at competitions and now, just like that, it was over. 
Kaisa cursed Andrzej to the nine circles of Hell, but she knew it was not his fault - the fault was entirely her own. It was her own thoughtlessness that was to blame - what had she been thinking blazing off like that?
"Slow down, this isn't a steeplechase!" had been Annie's most over-used critique in her tutoring of Kaisa. 
"You're gonna have an accident someday!" had been Connor's.
Only now did Kaisa realize how right they had been - but it was too late. Zdrasti was injured, possibly for life, because of her and the thought was heartbreaking. 
And how she had talked to Andrzej earlier... telling the one person who had always sided with her to 'go suck it' hardly counted as one of her brightest moments. She would have fired herself too, had she been in his shoes.
So she lingered in the stables long after the scene had transpired. Eventually she would seek out Phuong and Azaria and let them know what happened and that she would not be coming back, but knowing it might be the last time she ever saw Zdrasti she just could not bring herself to put the mare away in her stall. Kaisa groomed the mare meticulously as if preparing for a show, spoke softly to her and every so often buried her face against the horse's neck as she fought back the tears. 


Uvejr the cat raised her head and scurried off as the sound of Dido's claws tip-tapped against the floor of the stable. Dog incoming, Kaisa reflected - that meant...--
,,What are you still doing here?" Andrzej's voice intoned, streaked by a hint of humour. ,,Didn't I fire you?"
Kaisa turned to face him, taking a step away from Zdrasti. 
,,You are no longer the boss of me, Sir." she made sure to enunciate the words meticulously, keeping her voice icy though she regarded him with a certain degree of humour. ,,You can't tell me what to do."
,,I could tell you to get off my property," he retorted, but the expression he wore annulled that statement entirely. ,,Of course, we all know how much 'credit' you gave my orders when you worked for me, so I guess I'd accomplish even less now."  He weighed his next words for a while, the edge of his smile budging towards a more serious expression.
,,I... came to make amends," he said then. ,,I spoke hastily before - I didn't mean to--"
,,Don't apologize," Kaisa cut him off. ,,You were right. I should be the one to apologize."
,,Oh. Well there's something we don't hear every day..."
,,What I mean is this," Kaisa continued, for now ignoring Andrzej's jest. ,,You were right. I was reckless and foolish - and I certainly shouldn't have talked to you the way I did."
,,Your boldness is also what makes you brilliant. Besides, It takes two to argue, Kaisa."
,,It's one of many things I'm better at than you, though."
,,Well ouch."
,,And I should also apologize for calling you a douchebag."
,,I'm.. pretty sure you didn't actually call me that," Andrzej said with an amused smirk. ,,I would have remembered."
,,I didn't? Well, I was thinking it." Kaisa replied bluntly; her expression revealing nothing, although her tone implied a certain degree of satire. 
,,Kaisa, your people skills are out of this world!" Andrzej chuckled. ,,And when I say 'out of this world' I mean they literally don't exist on this plane of existence. But thank you, I'm glad we cleared that up. It was probably well-deserved."  He sighed, absent-mindedly petting the muzzle of Zdrasti. ,,Apology accepted, now hear me out - I didn't mean to fire you earlier. It was said purely out of spite for how you were acting. Err, what I mean is you can feel free to.. disregard it"
,,You want me back on team Zdarloch, ah?"  Kaisa crossed her arms and cocked her head slightly to the side, observing her former employer with amusement. Oh, he was nervous - trying his best to hide it with his self-satisfied smirk but the angsty draw across the brow gave him away. Had Kaisa been less scrupulous she could probably have manipulated him into just about anything at this point.
,,How would I live without my favourite grumpy swede on the team?" he asked with an exaggerated flicker of his hand. ,,Why, I'd cry myself to sleep every night!"
,,Don't be a sycophant." Kaisa sneered. ,,You're mocking me!"
,,Do you see me smiling?"
,,What a question, Andy. You're always smiling." Kaisa admitted she was finding the conversation perhaps a bit too entertaining. Having Andy so eager-to-please was not, after all, an everyday happening, and she felt like she needed to cheer herself a bit.
,,I'll consider rejoining," she hinted. ,,If you ask me really nicely."
,,And how does one ask 'really nicely'?" Andrzej wondered.
,,Didn't you go to Catholic school? You of all people should know how to beg." Kaisa stroked her chin deep in thought. ,,Perhaps if you asked on your knees?"
A snort of disapproval.
,,I went on my knee for Annie once. I'm not going on my knees for you."
,,No? That's too bad --"
,,What if I say 'pleeease' and promise to get you a beer?" 
Kaisa chuckled at that.
,,That was actually what I was fishing for the entire time." she admitted with a smirk.
,,You sneak."
,,That's me."
,,So you're back on the team, then?"
,,If you'll have me."
,,I wouldn't want anyone else to boss around," Andrzej confessed. ,,An excuse to put you to work with some tedious task was actually what I was fishing for the entire time. You'll get your beer after you've finished painting the paddock fences."
,,I knew there'd be a catch..."
,,There's always a catch." he grinned to himself. ,,So... we're cool again? Alt forladt?"
,,Alt forladt."

They kept talking for a while - discussing Zdrasti's future retraining programme, sorting out hurt feelings and reflecting upon the recent days' events. Soon they were back to square one, as if nothing had ever happened to upset the balance of their friendship. 
,,It's been a weird couple of days," Andrzej mused. ,,We've all had a lot on our minds, I suppose. Weird things happen during weird times."
,,Thats the understatement of a century," Kaisa snorted.
,,Still - we have to remain optimistic. Things are going to get better, I promise. I mean, they can't get any worse at the moment, right?"
Kaisa was about to let a snide remark drop, but instead her brows furrowed. Andrzej, still partially preoccupied with reflecting on the importance of optimism despite the hardships, caught her distress within seconds.
,,What is it?"
,,Andy," she said slowly. ,,Your nose just started bleeding."


To be continued... ~
Next: Death rides a pale horse


Divisionen by Zoubstance

Kaisa and Andy reside with meee
So does ZS Zdrasti Adrenaline  :>
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Eefketje's avatar
Zdrasti, why do you bring bad news? He must not die, come on.