xp_logs | Kashmir Waltz: The Lake City (Nathan and Angelo)

At breakfast, Angelo gets wide-eyed over the Himalayas, Nathan gets nostalgic about his climbing days, and plans are made to see a little of Srinagar before they head out into the back country.

This was still, Nathan thought as he stared out at the Dal Lake still covered in its cloak of morning mist, one of the most beautiful places he had ever been. And that was saying a lot. Shifting in his chair, he glanced back over his shoulder at the mountains, their tops invisible in the cloud cover. It had been dark when they'd arrived the previous night, and if he hadn't been so desperate for some breakfast this morning, he would have hung around at the room just to see Angelo's expression when he woke up and looked out the window.

Instead he'd left a note, and found himself one of the tables out on the long, sweeping lawn in front of the hotel. The food was as good as he remembered, and the waiter was being extremely attentive. Three excellent cups of coffee later and he was feeling more or less human again. He was far from immune to jet lag, especially when he was unable to sleep well when he finally slept - damned dreams - but he didn't get it as badly as some.

It was another twenty minutes or so before Angelo wandered down to join him, still staring out at the mountains as he walked. "You didn't tell me it was like this!"

The stunned look was really cute, Nathan thought fondly. "It's the Himalayas, Angelo," he pointed out as the young man lowered himself into one of the empty chairs, eyes still wide. "You're supposed to be knocked on your ass the first time you see them."

"They're... yeah." He finally tore his attention away, and onto the coffee.

"What's really going to blow your mind," Nathan said irrepressibly - he'd had just enough coffee to be irrepressible - "is that those? Are small, by Himalayan standards." He took another look back over his shoulder. "The only peak higher than eight thousand meters in this area is Nanga Parbat. Nasty climb, that one. I've never done it. Ninth highest mountain in the world, but the weather is insane."

Angelo looked back at the mountains, and raised his eyebrows. "Can you see that one from here?"

Nathan grinned. "Not quite. Where we're going, depending on the weather, maybe." His expression was almost wistful. "Once we get up to Sonamarg... so close to the Karakoram, damn it. That's where I did most of my climbing. Although I did climb Everest once, too."

Mountains and school. His rewards from Mistra, for doing his job, being successful, being obedient. In a way he'd been drawn to both... escapes for the same reason, he supposed. University had freed his intellect from the rigid structures and discipline of Mistra - although it had also made him better at his job, more analytical, which was why they had let him keep going year after year, he'd always suspected. Climbing mountains, though, that had freed his... spirit? Soul?

He preferred not to examine the psychological attractions of the high-risk aspect of the activity too closely.

"Maybe we'll have time for a bit of climbin' on this trip," Angelo suggested. "Beginner's stuff, 'cause... never been."

Nathan firmly put his memories in a happy little box. A man with a two month old daughter had no business fantasizing about climbing eight thousand meter peaks. "I packed a lot of gear for us, but no climbing stuff, sadly. Although if you're interested, we can always do some when we get back. There's some decent rock-climbing at home, and starting small is a good idea."

Angelo grinned. "Sounds good. New hobbies're always fun."

The waiter arrived, soundlessly offering Angelo a menu before he retreated again. "You should get something substantial," Nathan advised him. "We're heading down into the city today to take a look around."

Angelo nodded, scanning the food on offer. "Okay. Any recommendations?"

"It's mostly European or North American style breakfast food," Nathan said easily. "And it's pretty much all good. We'll try Kashmiri cuisine later, either down in the city or when we're out in the field." He gazed down at the city. "I've got the address for DRMA's offices. I thought we might make that one stop while we're out looking around..."

That got Angelo's attention again. "Today? Okay."

"Unless you need more time to recover from the jet lag?" It was a poke, if a gentle one.

Angelo pulled a face at him. "I'm fine, thanks."

Nathan laughed wryly. "I just don't want to be away for any longer than necessary," he said, sipping at his coffee. "Rachel pouted horribly at me."

He got another grin, at that. "She's two months old an' she's already got you whipped. Along with everybody else."

"True, sadly, but she really needs to knock off the maniacal giggling where people can hear her. Folks are starting to get suspicious." The waiter returned, and Nathan pondered plans as Angelo ordered breakfast. "Need to rent a jeep before we come back from town, too," he said. "Something that'll stand up to the excuses for roads they have around here..."

Angelo brightened. "Can I drive it?"

Nathan tried not to laugh. "You're shameless. But possibly. After all," he pointed out with perfect logic, "minions drive, too."

"Yes, we do," he answered cheerfully. "An' I have my license now."

"Just as long as you drive very carefully. You don't want to know what the Kashmiri equivalent of a traffic ticket is, you really don't."

~*~

They stroll through Srinagar, and Nathan encourages Angelo to think about the differences between here and home that have him so fascinated. They decide to do just a little frivolous sight-seeing after their errands and before heading out.

"This is off-season for tourists," Nathan explained as they crossed one of the bridges over the Jhelum river. "Not that I'm complaining, mind you," he said. "You know me and crowds." And he preferred the weather here at this time of the year, in any case. Then again, he preferred autumn most places. The leaves had changed already, and the colors were spectacular. Part of him had to wonder why this was the off-season.

Angelo nodded absently, taking in the view eagerly. "Quiet is good."

"Those," Nathan said, pointing to the low-lying boats being rowed past the bridge, "are shikaras. We might take one a little later today if we want to cross the lake to the other side."

"What's on the other side?" Angelo asked curiously.

"The market, for one. I obviously didn't pack provisions, and it might be easier to stock up here as opposed to relying on whatever we find before we get to Sonamarg." Nathan smiled. "Besides," he said playfully, "you shouldn't come to this part of the world without having the bartering experience."

Angelo nodded. "I remember you talked about that in class. Sounded fun."

"It's a pity Dom's not here. She tends to get great results from batting her eyelashes." And not always just with men, either.

"Maybe next time?" Angelo asked with a grin.

He clearly liked the idea of world travel with Dom. Wasn't that cute? "So," Nathan said idly as they reached the other side of the bridge. "What do you think, so far?"

"It's really nice," Angelo answered sincerely, attention on what was around him again as they headed down the street. This part of Srinagar was slightly more modern, but still very different than anything Angelo had seen before. "Never been anywhere like it."

Nathan gave him an interested sideways look. "I'd wondered what your reaction would be. The standard of living's a lot lower here, obviously, as compared to what we have back in Westchester... but then, you didn't grow up with that."

"No, I didn't. I mean, two years, I've got used to Westchester, but... y'know."

"The people here are... tough," Nathan said, watching faces in the crowd, letting his mind brush against their thoughts so that he could gauge the mood of the city. It was... calm. A nice change, really. "They've had to be. Things have been a lot better the last year or so than they have been in... well, pretty much the previous thirty, but there are still occasional bombings, or shootings..."

Angelo nodded. "Yeah, I... know what that's like. Not so much with the bombs, but guns? Yeah."

Nathan paused, holding out a hand to stop Angelo. "Look," he said, pointing. "Up on the top of the hill over there... you can just see it through the mists."

Angelo stopped, peered, then stared as the mists shifted further to reveal an ancient-looking stone temple, set high on an octagonal plinth. "What is it?"

"That's the temple of Shankaracharya. It's been a shrine since the third century BC, although the temple that's there now dates to the sixth century AD or thereabouts." Nathan gazed up at it. "Maybe when we come back here after we get our business out in the country done, we'll head up there and take a closer look at it."

"If we can, that'd be great." Angelo was still looking up at the temple, obviously rapt.

Nathan gave Angelo an understanding look, nudging him to keep going in the direction they'd been heading. "I know it's a lot to take in," he said. "Feels like being dropped into another world, doesn't it?"

Angelo dragged his attention away and started walking again. "It really does."

"What's surprising you the most?"

"A lot of stuff. It's just... nothin' like America, you know? An' this is the first time I've been out of the west."

"So if we weren't here on business," Nathan mused, "what would you want to do, right now?" They could indulge themselves, maybe. Just a little. Or he could indulge Angelo, rather. After all, he'd been in Srinagar often enough to have seen all the sights for himself.

The answer was instantaneous. "Right now? Go see that temple."

Nathan grinned suddenly. "Maybe once we get the jeep. On our way out of town?"

Angelo grinned back, pleased. "Sounds like a plan."

~*~

They find the local office of DRMA, and the administrative assistant makes them tea while Nathan swipes some useful information from his computer.

DRMA's Srinagar office was smaller than Nathan had expected, next door to a carpet shop, of all things. Making a mental note to come back here before flying out - he had after all promised Moira a rug - Nathan eyed the NGO's office thoughtfully, then looked down at Angelo. "Don't be surprised by anything I say in there," he told him. "Just smile and nod."

Angelo nodded, fidgeting with his jacket. "Right."

Inside, there was a young man, maybe a few years older than Angelo, sitting at a desk with an obviously out-of-date computer. There wasn't much else in the office beyond file cabinets and other office equipment, equally dated. Nathan eyed the two doors, apparently leading to other rooms, but as soon as he established that there was no one else in his office, he turned his attention to the young man, who was blinking up at them in obvious surprise.

"Good morning," Nathan said, in English, with a flawless British accent. "Is this the office of DRMA?"

"Yes, it is," the young man said, and it wasn't hard to place his accent. Delhi, definitely, although his English was very good. "May I help you?"

"I was wondering," Nathan said, "if we could pretend I was a freelance British reporter, and that you and I and my photographer here sat down and had a lovely chat about your organization's activities." The young man was blinking at him, clearly dazed as Nathan reached out and gently blurred his perceptions.

"That... would be... I have time for a talk."

"And tea."

"I have very nice tea," the young man said. His mind was wide-open, uncomplicated in the way that generally meant 'sincere'.

"That's good. Why don't you go make us three cups, while I take a look at your computer? You don't need to remember me doing that, mind you."

Angelo blinked slightly at this, wondering if this was really the right way to go about it. Then he realized Nathan could quite possibly hear him, and stopped. It wasn't like it was hurting the guy, after all.

Nathan did indeed hear him, and for a moment, reconsidered his approach. Only for a moment, though. As the young man vacated his chair, Nathan told his conscience to shut up and sat down at the computer. A few minutes of searching told him that there was very little of actual use on the computer's hard drive, except for... ah, there it was. Nathan hit print and watched the pages scroll out of the printer, outlining DRMA's various food and medicine drops over the course of the next week in the Kashmir Valley.

"This should be helpful," he said quietly to Angelo, as the administrative assistant went cheerfully about making tea.

"What've you found?" Angelo asked, equally quietly.

"Their schedule for deliveries for the next week." Nathan picked up the pages, skimming them quickly. "A number of these are on the way from here to Sonamarg, too, or within easy driving distance. It would be good to try and talk to some of the locals after DRMA's been through, see what exactly's been going on."

Angelo nodded. "Sounds like we've got ourselves a plan, then."

"Go have a cup of tea," Nathan suggested.

He blinked, then grinned and accepted the one the assistant offered him. "Thanks."

"So, this has been a very edifying discussion," Nathan said to the assistant, reacquiring the British accent. Closing the file and stashing the folded printouts inside his coat, he accepted the other cup of tea with a smile. "Very gratifying to see that a locally-based organization can do so much good work in such a turbulent area."

"Thank you," the assistant said, beaming.

"No," Nathan said, sipping at the tea. Which was very good. "Thank you."