Title: The heart of the issue
Fandom: Magic Knight Rayearth
Rating: PG for mention of off-screen sex
Length: 900 words
Content notes: None
Author notes:Ferio POV. Includes a couple of OCs and goes with a couple of other fic I have but stands alone. Implied Clef/?, OC/OC
Summary: "Huh." Ferio looked at his minutes again. "I did not get that from the summary on the agenda."

oOo

"I wish they would get to the heart of the matter and stop waffling," Ferio muttered, shifting in his chair so he was close enough Presea could hear him.

Presea, who was sat properly upright and giving every impression of listening to the meeting in progress, didn't turn. But she did reply. "What do you think the heart of the matter actually is?" she asked,

"I've no idea, that's why I want them to hurry up and tell me." Slumping further into his chair, Ferio picked up the minutes from the table in front of him so he could hide his yawn from the three people who had been arguing with each other about the introduction of whatever bill this was for nearly twenty minutes.

He wasn't the only one struggling to pay attention - it was a full Council meeting, so there were more than twenty people in the room (though a few of the people who were meant to be here had sent a stand-in; Clef was notably absent this week), and he was fairly that a two of them at the back on the other side had started flicking balls of paper at each other ten minutes ago and were in the process of developing a whole new game with them. The Master Healer was on his other side and had been working steadily since the meeting began, on her Guild's accounts. Though Miura did that pretty regularly, unless there was something on the table that actually had a medical impact. He'd also seen the Soru nudge her when something important came up, but honestly she seemed to be good at keeping half an ear on what was going on while doing something else entirely.

Which thought was promptly proved when she glanced at him with a sigh. "The issue is that someone wants all the Guilds to document everything we do publically so we can be held accountable, but the wording is vague enough it would mean we have to tell everyone everything we do. Patient details. Discussions with Priests. Things like that. The original intent was for us to be financially accountable, so they're arguing about the wording of the introduction to try and make it actually sensible."

"Huh." Ferio looked at his minutes again. "I did not get that from the summary on the agenda."

"Hence the arguing," Miura agreed.

Presea leaned forwards a little so she could see the other woman. "You don't seem worried that it will pass?"

Miura grinned suddenly. "Not really. It would be illegal for my Guild to comply, which would rather scupper that law. Hopefully they'll sort it out and put something reasonable together - the current laws about financial undertakings are the most convoluted thing I've ever seen, I'm all for them getting tidied up with something nice and new and thought-through. But there's at least three of us who can block this one if they don't fix it - it'll take a while, though. Did you bring anything else to do?"


Shaking his head, Ferio started to grin. "No, but I think I know why Clef decided not to bother turning up today."

"I thought that was because he's meant to be reporting back on those random storms we're having and hasn't worked out a way to avoid saying 'sorry, I was having sex'?" Miura said, so no one else would hear, not even looking away from her accounts, and just grinning when Ferio burst out into laughter so loud it actually interrupted the meeting.

"Sorry!" he called out. "Unrelated thought, you can carry on." With some grumbling, the arguers got back to business, and Ferio tried to stop snickering. Mostly he failed. "Why would you think that?" he asked Miura, attempting to keep a straight face.

"Because I was looking straight at him when he realised what everyone was talking about, and I have never before seen the Guru flush so hard I worried he might pass out. Plus, it's not the least common thing to happen. It's just normally not on that scale." Miura grinned. "It was an educated guess, but I was pretty certain I was right. I could talk to Zafira actually, get her to help, uh. Generalise the issue? Once she's done taking on this piece of nonsense, anyway." She gestured at the floor, where Soru Zafira was standing and actually explaining in plain terms what the issue was with the bill, to the dawning horror of the people proposing it.

"That could be useful." Ferio looked between Miura and the Soru, and tilted his head. "So, you and Zafira are…"

"We don't have the same kind of problems with our relationship that the Guru's having." Miura looked up at him then, shaking her head. "We've been sharing quarters for over a year, and I know for a fact you're the one who authorised the expansion of my rooms - didn't you notice?"

"I try not to pay attention to that kind of thing? Congratulations, I guess."

"Thank you, I also guess,"

"But - if you could talk to Zafira, that might be helpful. If you can do it without her working out who the one with the problem is, even better."

Miura snorted. "I'll do my best, but that was a truly horrified face he made. Hopefully she wasn't looking."

"Well." Ferio sat back, and stretched his arms until his back clicked. "I think that makes this the most productive Council meeting I've ever had."